As designers, we often think of the Web in terms of wireframes, content management systems and code. But savvy designers know that the success of a Web design isn’t determined by the code, social media integration or cool visuals. Designing a winning website requires a well-thought-out online strategy focused on reaching organizational goals — that can be anything from attracting visitors to buy products to getting the public to understand an issue to introducing visitors to a new brand.
We begin work by outlining the basic flow of the project and understanding your ideas and what are the results you want from it. We brainstorm with you & we start the journey together.
Defining the scope of the project is a critical step. One of the most common frustrations with projects is scope creep. By creating a well-defined project scope plan that outlines specific activities and deliverables, along with specific timelines, you will be able to clearly set expectations for your clients.
The overall visual style will most likely be determined by the visual brand of the organization; the goal being to connect all forms of the organization’s communications. The organization’s brand plays an important role in this part of the process, as designers will want to visually convey key brand perceptual ideas within the design.
Now it’s time to flesh out the design of the pages, develop new content and refine old content, create videos, slideshows, podcasts and other media that will appear on the site as well as start to build out the HTML and CSS of the site.
Testing of the project is critical as there will inevitably be issues that need to be addressed before the site goes live. There is nothing that erodes a brand more than a site that doesn't function properly or that has misspellings or broken design elements. At this stage the project will need to be reviewed on multiple browsers (Firefox, Safari, Internet Explorer) and multiple devices (laptops, tablets, and mobile) to see if and where breaks occur.
The big day. You’ve tested the site, had it reviewed and approved by the project stakeholders, and you’re ready to launch. But once the site is launched, the project isn’t over — you should be prepared to address feedback from users adapting to the new site. Expect to make some immediate changes to the site, such as fixing broken links, editing copy and making adjustments. The Web is a fluid medium that changes on a daily — change is inevitable.
Websites are living, breathing entities and need constant care and maintenance. Updating content, making changes to the backend and fixing broken links are all in a day’s work.All of these phases are critical to the Web design process. But the thread that runs through the process is strategy: the desire to achieve a goal, to move the organization forward, to prosper in a competitive environment. Let’s take a look at what strategy is, how it is formulated and how it translates to the Web.
Building Bridges Between Ideas And Results.