Before Your First Website: An Accessibility and Readability Checklist

Before you begin building a website, ask not “What can this tool make?” but “What does a visitor need to know here?” For a café, start with information that helps someone decide whether to visit, such as opening hours, location, menu, and contact details. For an online store, consider the products and the purchasing flow as well. If you are not ready to sell yet, you can begin with an informational website.

1. Check readability and accessibility

Accessibility starts with considering how people will actually use the site, not with specialist terminology. Check that text is readable on a small screen, that text and background are clearly distinguishable, and that links and buttons make their purpose clear from their wording. Do not use color alone to show whether the café is open or to communicate essential information. Prepare descriptions of the key content in images, keep menu labels short and consistent, and make sure important information does not appear only inside an image.

Keep paragraphs short and focused on one point. Replace vague claims such as “We provide the best experience” with facts visitors can verify. For example: “Closed every Monday; open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m.–7 p.m.” Before publishing, read the site on a phone. You can also ask someone else to find the menu or explain how to contact the business; their experience may reveal unclear wording or navigation.

2. Gather materials and make decisions first

Preparing the following items can help you avoid omissions while editing:

• Site purpose: prioritize store information, inquiries, or online sales.
• Business details: business name, address, opening hours, contact method, and closing days.
• Content: menu or product names, descriptions, actual photos, prices, and terms of provision.
• Structure: what visitors should see first and what each navigation item will be called.
• Ongoing ownership: who reviews the content and who updates changed information.

Check that your address, phone number, and opening hours match the details posted on your other channels. If you want to accept online payments or offer social login, those features require separate setup. A custom domain and shipping also need the relevant setup; creating a site does not automatically put them in place.

3. Choose a starting format that matches your goal

A no-code service can let you start with templates and visual editing, without requiring coding or design experience. TalkTalkMySite offers no-code templates, AI chat, and visual editing, but it does not take the place of reviewing your business details, wording, or page layout. Check the available features and setup requirements yourself before you begin.

Choose the right format for the intended use. TalkTalkMySite Basic is for a website, Standard is for a store, and Premium is for multilingual use. If online sales are your goal, prepare product information and plan the payment and shipping setup too. If you intend to serve multiple languages, identify someone who can review the translated copy and business details in each language.

4. Hypothetical example and action checklist

**Hypothetical example — “Corner Café”:** Assume that the first version will be an informational website, not an online ordering site. The owner gathers the opening hours, address, featured menu items, and contact method, then places the hours and location on the first screen. Each menu photo gets a description, and the owner checks the text and buttons on a phone. If the café later decides to sell online, it will separately review the store format and payment and shipping setup. This example is illustrative and does not promise a particular feature or result.

• [ ] I wrote the site’s purpose in one sentence.
• [ ] I checked the opening hours, address, contact details, and menu information.
• [ ] I reviewed short wording, screen readability, and clear link labels.
• [ ] I identified which payment, social login, domain, or shipping setups are needed.
• [ ] I assigned someone to review the site on a phone and verify the business details before publication.

The best next step is to gather the materials above and draft the content for one page. Search rankings and sales are not guaranteed. A website tool does not eliminate every mistake or promise unlimited free use. After publishing, you still need to review and update the information and layout yourself.