Web Design Advice

How to Start a Web Design Project

How to start a web design project
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A new client is on the horizon. There is initial contact via email, phone, message or whatever it might be outlining in very broad terms what they’re after. You meet in person either at their office or over a casual cup of coffee and discuss the web design project in more detail. A lot can be learned from this meeting not just of the project but of the client you will potentially be working with.

What next?

So what’s next? If it is a web design project you’re discussing you’ll probably be brainstorming ideas or looks in your head even as the client is talking. This is pretty normal for any designer worth their salt. So the project is given the go ahead and you’re sitting in front of your screen waiting to start? Well, where do you start? I’ve mentioned in a previous post how we like to advise our potential clients that it’s always a good idea to have examples of projects or site designs that they like and may want to incorporate into their own site in some way. As I said this is good and while obviously it doesn’t give us a very definite route to take, it points us at least in the right direction.

Learning about your client

From here on in it very much depends on the business, product, individual or whatever it might be. What are they selling? What services do they provide? What is their current branding like? A good tip here is to look towards their social media platforms if they have any. What is the tone of their posts or tweets? How much imagery or video do they use? Do they use humour or are they reliant on straight facts about their business or items related to their business. All this will give you ideas of how to approach a new project. This could influence everything from type of font to use, to colour patterns for the site.

Overall web design

The next phase is to think about the overall design of the site. How will the landing page and content pages look and contrast? How do you want the user to experience the site? We call this aspect of web design “user flow” and even though it sounds like something you would go to the doctor with, we actually associate it with the actions a user takes when visiting a site! You’re trying to guide a user to the information they require and ultimately to a contact page or contact information section in order to create a lead. This process is very much an amalgamation of your own design expertise and the idea a client has in their own head. Then it’s your job as a designer to

  • Fish out that idea

  • Realise it, and ideally for us in any case

  • Improve on it ten-fold

You want to give the client what they want and what they didn’t realise they needed on top of that. Go that extra mile if it is at all possible.

That’s it, a very broad overview of how we think about and start a web design project. Stay tuned for more tips, advice and insights into our work very soon. If there is any topic you would like us to talk about in particular why not let us know by following us on facebook and twitter and leaving us a message. Check out our previous posts on web design below.

What is design?

Web Design Tips for beginners

Also, follow us on facebook for further insights and advice.

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