Website design covers a variety of disciplines and skills in the creation and maintenance of corporate websites. The various website design disciplines include graphic design, web layout and navigation, visual interface design, content management, social media management, and search engine marketing. These disciplines also encompass website maintenance and business continuity. The website design process involves several stages such as domain recognition, product identification; website analysis; site navigation; web content creation; and web page optimization. The final steps in the process include website marketing and promotion. Read on to go through our Affiliate Reviews.
The first step in the web design process is to achieve site visitor usability by evaluating its information architecture, usability, and usability testing. The information architecture refers to the arrangement of pages within site in terms of page layout, appearance, and page content responsible for creating a user experience. The user experience measures how the user will interact with the site; for example, if a user moves his mouse cursor over an image, will he be able to find it easily and move it around the page? It is also important to know what the site visitor will do once they have navigated past the introductory material and found the categories and featured products.
Next, web designers use layout to plan the website’s visual elements. This includes such things as color scheme, typography, images, borders, videos, and more. While visual elements make up the bulk of the layout, text content usually serves as the site’s content, including links, navigation, and testimonials. Web designers use a variety of tools and graphic designs to create the layout of a site.
Content management systems (CMS) allow web designers to create and update website design content without needing to modify each page individually. CMS programs also allow for search engine submissions of content, which allows search engines to categorize websites based on content. A good design for a website is one that can adapt to the changing needs of the user experience. Websites are not static.
For example, magazines change their appearance frequently and website designers have to be flexible with regard to the design of the website pages. In the past, magazines would display magazine articles as plain black text on white backgrounds, or occasionally with a colored border, sometimes even with different fonts. Today, though, magazine websites use color palettes to give visitors a visual cue as to the article’s theme. When you are designing a website design, be sure to consider this aspect.
Another key factor in the website design process is goal identification. What is the overall goal of the website? Where does it fit into the larger picture of the company? The website designer must work closely with the project manager to identify the ultimate goals for the website design. Goals should include but not be limited to: increase site traffic, improve Search Engine rankings and organic traffic, create an online brand, and/or enhance internal communications.
A final consideration in the website design is that it must provide a sense of usability. The goal of a website is to make the process of obtaining information easier for site visitors. When the website design lacks usability, site visitors will not be encouraged to stay on the website long enough to achieve their goals. A good design for a website not only provides ease of use but also encourages the site visitor to navigate effectively.
All the visual elements on the website require consistent arrangement so that when the website is viewed, it looks smooth. The colors used, size of elements, position of elements, and even the placement of an element within an element all contribute to the organization of the page. Each element should have its own meaningful role. This is especially true of links, which are an integral part of web design. When the links are not placed appropriately, the site visitor will have a difficult time understanding how to get to the desired information.