Web design and development

Posted by Felix Okoli on Saturday September 13, 2014 at 13:6:55:

So you want to be a web designer or maybe you just want to have an idea of what it takes to design and develop a website? Once again, we’ve got you covered. There are basically six stages to web design and development. There are:
STAGE 1: Information Collation:
The very first step involved in creating a successful website is Information Collation. By this time, you must have known your niche. It is recommended to already know something about your niche before diving in but it is not completely necessary as the internet is filled with information on almost every kind of niche under the sun. The same is required if you are building the website for a company. If you are not the in-house web design and developer, then you might not know all there is to know. You must request for information on:
 The purpose of the website
 The goal
 The target audience
 Kind of content required
Having a good understanding of the above listed will help you meet the goals of the client which should be your ultimate aim.

STAGE 2: The Planning Stage:
In this stage, you have to use the information in Stage 1 (all information collated) to put a plan in place for the website. You need to decide on the site’s navigational system. Be sure to keep in mind what the client wants while doing your planning. You may be privy to some cutting edge navigational system but if it is not to the client’s taste, you would have failed in some measure on delivery.

STAGE 3: The Design Stage
At this stage, you need to draw from the information you have collated and the plans you have made. Take the target audience into consideration as you design. For example, a site with Teenagers as target audience will look different from a site with nursing mothers as target audience. So, look around and see what popular websites in the niche you are working on look like and design with the factors considered in their own design in mind. At this stage, you must work closely with your client so that work you do does not go to waste if they do not like it. Explain your choices and list alternatives to the client. This will ensure that the finished work is exactly what they require plus you’ll look really good when this happens.

STAGE 4: The Development Stage
The development stage is the creation of the website. All the resources you have accrued will now be put to good use. Be sure to have a picture (and this should be as close to the clients’ as possible) of what the end result should look like and a list of all the steps and resources you will need to get there.

STAGE 5: Testing and Delivery
Here, the final details should be attended to. Be sure to cross every “T” and dot every “I” before you delivery so all your hard work does not look sloppy or slapdash. (learnt this the hard way). You should not miss deadlines but it’s better to miss deadlines than to “package” sloppy work with quality content on the inside. The “packaging” can make all the difference. This is not specific to web design and delivery but a whole other range of work.
Final details like installation of plugins etc. should be fully tied up and the website should be visible on the internet (not necessarily ranking unless that’s part of the package and we all know that takes time).

STAGE 6: Maintenance
If this is also part of your job, be sure to pencil it into your calendar as often as necessary so you do not forget. Be sure to propose this for the extra money it should bring if it is not in the job description