We all came across a stunning website and clicked “Buy Now” even if we did not need that product. Or click “Subscribe” even if we do not intend to. Thanks to the well-thought-out web design that made us accept their invitations. Web design is designing a website’s aesthetics in relation to its functionality. The web design process includes
- Planning
- Conceptualizing and
- Building the elements of the website.
The aesthetic elements of a website include typography, colors, images, moving graphics, and background. All these visual design elements in a website work to deliver the message of the brand. Every click of the mouse corresponds to a function that makes an audience interact with the brand. And now you are inspired to create a stunning website. The good news is that yes, you can!
Table of Contents
Here are some tips to create a good web design for beginners.
Web design process explained. A phased approach
Every client has different needs and wants. Some may want a colorful and vibrant website while others might just want a simple and minimalist web design. But whatever the demands of the client, the web design process never changes. It is important to follow a set of guidelines to make your work organized and save a ton of your time. Following an effective web design process can help eliminate redundancy and unnecessary steps that consume time and energy. The following can guide you on the stages of web design.
Goal Identification
Like any other project and undertaking, web design also starts with the question “What is the goal of this project?” This very first step in the whole process is always done with the client. We need to identify what they expect to achieve in the end. We can start asking the client the following questions:
- What is the mission of this project?
- What is their vision of the project?
- Who is their target audience?
- What is the brand about?
- What is the message of the brand?
- What are the deliverables that they expect?
These are just a few basic questions that can help a web designer understand the client and the brand. As a web designer, it is paramount that you fully understand the wants and needs of the client and the message of the brand.
Apart from the client’s needs and wants, it is also important for a web designer to understand the deliverables. The client and the designer should have a clear understanding of what they expect from each other to make the project successful.
Tools:
Project Brief
Research and report
Market analysis
Competitor profile
Scope Identification
Once the goal is identified, next is the identification of the scope of work. The scope of work clearly states the tasks and deliverables that are included in the project. It is not uncommon that along the way, a client will add something or come up with a new design idea.
As a designer, you should be able to handle clients’ demands and expectations in relation to the budget and the timeline. A contract is the most effective tool to avoid any misunderstanding between you and your client. It is also important that the client understands the schedule and the limitations of the budget.
Tools:
Project scheduler
Contract
Sitemap and wireframe creation
This is the step where all the real action begins. By this time, you already have a clear picture of what the client wants and what you need to reach the goal. You already have a plan in mind of what the website looks like. And now it is time to put that plan on paper.
A sitemap is the skeleton of the whole website. The sitemap presents the website in a concise manner, displaying the most important pages of the website. Search engines like Google and Bing use sitemaps to find pages on your website. This is also very helpful to the website visitor in finding the right content on your website.
Once you have created the blueprint of your website, the wireframe follows. Wireframes show the basic layout of the website. It shows the placement of every design element in a simple black and white form. This helps the web designer focus on the structure and architecture of the website. This can be helpful in presenting to the client the basic idea and design of their website so they can make any clarifications before creating the website. Through wireframe, you can save time by identifying the redundancies and unnecessary elements of your web design.
Content Creation
“Content is King” is a cliche for a reason. Content is the most important part of web design. The contents are the driving force for every site visitor to stay and continue to browse your website. Contents include typography, images, moving graphics, colors and background.
To be able to create content, you need to understand the brand and its message. The contents of the website should reflect the brand’s identity and message. It should also match the target audience of your client. 94% of first impressions are design-related so make sure to create the best content for the right audience. A brand focusing on the younger generation needs to see a lively and interactive website. Whilst a brand with an older audience needs neater and more simple content and layout.
Nowadays, the attention span of an individual has become very short. A website has only a few seconds to capture the attention of its visitors. According to independent Fors Marsh Group research, people can recall mobile news feed content at a statistically significant rate after only 0.25 seconds of exposure. Long typography will eventually bore a visitor prompting them to click the back button. Create short, direct-to-the-point and catchy phrases and tag lines to engage your client.
Proper keywords on your content can boost your search engine ranking. Choose the right keyword and Google will bring you to the right audience.
UI and UX Design
User-interface (UI) and user experience (UX) are equally important as content creation for a website. A good UI design engages the site visitor and keeps them scrolling on your website. UI design includes the layout, interface and transition of the elements in your responsive web design.
The most common way of communication between the customer and the brand is through their website. Give your clients the best user-experience by giving them easy navigation around your website. User experience is the smooth interaction of your customers visiting your website creating a worthwhile and engaging experience. The functionality of the website created by the UI design will affect the UX of your customers.
Testing
The design of the website gets life after web developer implemented HTML, CSS, Javascript, and PHP codes, after a few testing and debugging, and finally, the website is ready! Before showing your creation to the world, better to check if the UX design has no issues by making sure that all functions are working. This is the time to discover usability issues, errors, and malfunctions on your website. Test your website on a laptop, desktop, and mobile device to make sure that everything is working as planned. Testing your website before launching it to the public is a tedious process. But this will make sure that your customers will get the best UX.
Launch for public
Finally, the long days and sleepless nights are getting their reward. Get your website up and running on the internet world and see the product of your hard work. Although launching a website is not the end of the web design process, this is the most rewarding. There will still be minor errors and bugs that may come up after the launch. But it’s OK! That is part of the process. All the fixes and rectification works are part of post-launch procedures.
Before the big day, you can start advertising and giving teasers on social media. Social media has become a popular way to reach and connect to a wider audience. Social media users are now spending an average of 2 hours and 24 minutes per day multi-networking across an average of 8 social networks and messaging apps. There is no better way to create awareness of your launch than social media.
No project is perfect. No matter how hard you try to scrutinize every nook and cranny of the process, there will always be errors and mistakes. Let us just hope that they are not major! Launching a website is only the start of another phase of the web design process. Post-launch includes maintenance of the website. Due to the ever-evolving world of the internet, there will always be adjustments to be made. Make sure you are updated with the latest market trend so you can always improve your website design.
The maintenance of a website is an additional task in web design. Be sure to stipulate this in your contract. If not, you can always create a new one and list down the tasks included in the maintenance and upkeep of your client’s website.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does web development take too long?
There are a few reasons for this. First, developing a website requires a lot of planning and coordination. You need to determine what the website will do, how it will look, and what features it will have. This takes time and effort.
Second, coding the website can be complex and time-consuming. Even if you use a platform like WordPress or Squarespace, there is still a lot of work that goes into making a website function properly.
Third, testing the website is critical to ensure that it works well for users. This can involve testing on different browsers and devices, as well as making sure that all the links on the site work correctly. All of this takes time and can delay the launch of a website.
Designing a website is a long process. It starts with identifying the client’s need and familiarizing yourself with the brand to the actual web design process. This is a tedious process that includes a lot of market research and study. All of which constitute an excellent finish product.
Why does following a web development process matter?
Web development is a tedious process. It takes time to develop a good and functional web design. That is why it is important to follow a solid process step-by-step guide to keep you on track with your web design project to minimize redundancy and to save time.
Why is a brand strategy so important?
Brand strategy is important to make sure that the web design is in line with the brand’s identity and vision.
Why is UI important?
UI is important to give the best user experience (UX) to site visitors. A good UI will keep the audience engaged and will keep them scrolling your website.
What Is A Responsive Design?
Due to the rise in the use of mobile devices, responsive design websites are now a must. A website should be adaptable to different screen sizes and devices. The layout of the website should be adaptive to different screen sizes.
Conclusion
If you are thinking of giving web design a try, why not? Web designing is for every creative and artistic individual who wants to make the internet world more interesting and user-friendly. You need to establish a solid web development process to guide you in creating your own website. Without this, the whole process will be a blur and you are sure to accomplish nothing. The discussion above can help you with the basics. But as you go along, you will be able to create your own web design process that best fits your personality and your work ethic.
