Less than 65% of smaller businesses across the United States have taken the step online of having a website. It can have a huge effect on how people perceive your business, but it is hard to know what makes a website will encompass before you do it. How can you understand the website design process without doing it yourself?
We have listed some of the steps in the website design process that you will go through with a designer when you try to produce a bespoke site. By the end, you should be ready to work with any developer knowing what is to come.
Identify What You Want to Achieve
Talk to the designer and work out what you want to happen after you make the website. Are you looking to get more people contacting you? Or do you want to generate leads and make sales through the site?
Working out exactly the direction you want to go in can mean the rest of the development goes in a very different direction.
Define What You Want to Make
There are many types of websites, which would you want to make? Do you only want a single landing page as a small business owner? Or would you prefer a detailed site that expands on your role more?
If you are planning to engage with a professional about this part of the process, you should seek out one that knows what they are doing. If you do not already have a list, you can find more here.
Create a Sitemap and Wireframes
The next step in the web development process is to put together a map of how the site fits together. This would define each page and what it contains, as well as a plan for how the site should look.
Create or Commission Content
Once you have planned the site’s layout and sitemap, programmers can start building it. On top of this, you can either create or commission text, images, and other content for the site.
Add Branding
Business ownership includes making sure that everything related to it fits the branding. This will include the website, and as it might be the first place many people experience your brand, it is very important.
Test the Site
Even the best web developer makes small mistakes. The developer can test the site to ensure that all the code works as intended and fix any problems that crop up.
It’s Go Time
Launch the site with the technical help of the developers you have hired. Good luck.
More on the Website Design Process
You now know much more about the website design process and how to start thinking about what you want on your website. There might still be more to learn, though, before you jump in feet-first.
Our blog has several articles that might be able to help you. We would recommend you start there and work to understand all that you can. What have you got to lose?
