Website design and development process
There are multiple steps in the design and development process of a web page. From collecting initial information to maintenance and update of your existing web page.
The exact process varies according to the page’s specificity, but the basic steps are similar as follows:
- Collecting information
- Planning
- Design
- Development
- Test and Validation
- Maintenance and Update
First step – Collecting information
The first step in designing a successful website is to gather the necessary information. Many things need to be taken into account when implementing the idea for your page.
This first step is the most important, as it requires a full understanding of the company’s activity for which the page is developed.
The main things to keep in mind are:
- Purpose
What is the purpose of the site? Do you want to provide information, promote a service, sell a product …? - Goals
What do you hope to achieve by building this website? Two of the most common goals are to generate profit or to disseminate information. - Target Audience
Is there a specific group of people to help you reach your goals? It is useful to imagine the “ideal” visitor you wish to use your website. Think about their age, gender or interests – this will help you determine the best design style for your site. - Content
What information the target audience of your site will search for ? Specific information, specific product or service, on-line order …?
Step Two – Planning
Using the information clarified in the first step, it’s time to create a plan for your website. This is where the map of the web site is being developed.
The site map is a list of all major thematic areas of the site, as well as subtopics, if any. It serves as a guide to what site content will be and is essential to develop a consistent and easy-to-understand navigation system. We should be aware of the end users of the website when designing your site. After all, those are the people who will learn about your service or your product.
During the planning phase, we will also help you decide what technologies to apply. Specify key technologies (such as CMS, for example) and elements (contact forms, galleries, sliders, etc.).
Step Three – Design of the Web Site
Taking advantage of the information we have collected so far, it’s time to define the view and the feeling of working with your site.
The target audience is one of the key factors taken into account. Site aimed at teenagers, for example, would look very different from the one intended for the financial institution. During design, it is important to pay attention to elements such as the company logo or colors to emphasize the identity of the company.
We will develop several prototype designs for your website. This is usually an image of how the final design will look like. Either way, we will give you access to the design during the development stages. The most important reason for this is that you will have the opportunity to express your preferences and to note the drawbacks of the page design.
At this stage, communication is critical to ensuring that the end result matches your needs and tastes. It is important to work closely together and exchange ideas until we get to the final design of your website.
Now the actual page design can begin …
Step Four – Development
The development stage is where the website itself is created. In this step, using all the individual graphic elements of the prototype, we will create a real, functioning website.
This is usually done by first creating a home page. Subsequently, all types of “subpages” are created, as planned in step two. Once the backbone is created, we will enter the content you provide.
Elements such as contact forms, order forms, etc. are being developed during this phase.
Throughout this time, you have the opportunity to see progress on your page so that you can offer any additional changes or adjustments you would like to make.
From a technical point of view, a successful website requires developing a valid HTML / CSS, JS, PHP code that is in accordance to current web standards, maximum functionality, and accessibility for the widest possible audience.
This is being tested in the next step …
Step Five – Test and Validation
At this point, we will test the correct functionality of the forms and all other scripts, as well as checking the compatibility (according to the differences between different web browsers), which ensures that your website is optimized to look properly on latest versions of all web browsers.
We perform a full validation of the developed code. Valid code means that your site complies with current web development standards – this is helpful when checking compatibility issues with different browsers, as noted above.
After validation, we can say that your website is officially ready and can be presented to the world. At this point, you might consider SEO optimization.
Step Six – Maintenance and Update
The development of your website is not necessarily over. One way to guarantee more visitors to the site is to regularly offer new content or products. We, the team of Global Consult Engineering Ltd. – Web Design and Development Studio will be glad to continue working with you and to update the information and functionality of your web site. We offer maintenance packages based on how often you expect to make changes or additions to your website on promotional prices.