Designers, what are the main concerns of your= Web design clients?

When someone wants a site, what are their real needs, goals, fears?

[zollerwagner]

I'd like to know what experienced designers have found to be their clients' real needs, concerns, fears, and goals in regard to having their Web site designed?

I assume that some of those are unstated and possibly preconsconscious.

[dcrombie]

Typically clients don't have a clue (with some exceptions). The best approach I find is to understand what they do, what takes up most of their time, and show them how you can make their life easier ;)

[zollerwagner]

I like the approach you take. It makes a lot of sense.

What about their "itch"--whatever it is that has them wanting to have a site or redesign an existing site? Is there any predictability to what that is, or is there a lot of variation?

And is there a list of questions they're asking in their heads while they decide who they'll hire?

[dcrombie]

I find that by the time the client starts asking for changes it really means that they're a bit bored with the look of their current site, or they have a new boss who wants to put his/her stamp on things. There are notable exceptions of course.

To break through the apathy you need to show them something that looks a bit different from what they have. The functionality doesn't have to change much - just read their minds and work out what new feature would make them happiest. It could be a 'poll' on the front page, or (god forbid) a marquee in the footer.