the web design and development process.
We want you to have a complete understanding of how your site will be developed. Below is an outline to guide you through our process of creating your website.
- Project Discussion and Estimate
You will be emailed a questionnaire form so I can establish the scope of the project. Once you have filled out the form and returned it I will go over your project. Based on your answers to the questionnaire form I will provide an estimate.
Once you agree upon the estimate you will be sent an invoice for 50% of the total amount due and the Web Design Contract for signing. Once the deposit and signed contract has been received the project will begin on the date noted on the Contract. A deposit will ensure that you have a secure spot on the project calendar. - Planning
It's time to put together a plan for your website. The site map is a list of all main topic areas of the site, as well as sub-topics, if applicable. This serves as a guide as to what content will be on the site, and is essential to developing a consistent, easy to understand navigational system. The end-user of the website — aka your customer — must be kept in mind when designing your site. These are, after all, the people who will be learning about your service or buying your product. A good user interface creates an easy to navigate website, and is the basis for this.
During the planning phase, I will also help you decide what technologies should be implemented. Elements such as interactive forms, ecommerce, flash, etc. are discussed when planning your website. - Content Gathering
This is the point when you collect and/or write content for your web pages. You will also be responsible to obtaining any digital files you want used on your site, such as logo, pictures and illustrations. The faster you are able to get this information to me the quicker your website will be ready for launch. - Design
Drawing from the information gathered up to this point, it's time to determine the look and feel of your site. As part of the design phase, it is also important to incorporate elements such as the company logo or colors to help strengthen the identity of your company on the website. If you do not have a logo we can certainly design one for you.
We will create one to two prototype designs for your website. This is typically a .jpg image of what the final design will look like. You will be sent an email with either the mock-ups for your website or a link to where you can view your mockups online. The most important reason for this is that it gives you the opportunity to express your likes and dislikes on the site design. In this phase, communication is crucial to ensure that the final website will match your needs and taste. It is in this phase that the site design will be finalized and signed off on by you, the client. - Development
The developmental stage is the point where the website itself is created. At this time, we will take all of the individual graphic elements from the prototype and use them to create the actual, functional site.
This is typically done by first developing the home page, followed by a "shell" for the interior pages. The shell serves as a template for the content pages of your site, as it contains the main navigational structure for the website. Once the shell has been created, we will take your content and distribute it throughout the site, in the appropriate areas.
Elements such as interactive contact forms, flash animations or ecommerce shopping carts are implemented and made functional during this phase, as well. - Testing
At this point, I will attend to the final details and test your website. I will test things such as the complete functionality of forms or other scripts, as well last testing for last minute compatibility issues (viewing differences between different web browsers), ensuring that your website is optimized to be viewed properly in the most recent browser versions. As part of testing, I will check to be sure that all of the code written for your website validates. Valid code means that your site meets the current web development standards — this is helpful when checking for issues such as cross-browser compatibility as mentioned above. - Site Launch
Once I receive your final approval on the site design and function you will be sent the final project invoice. Once I receive your final payment it is time to deliver the site.
An FTP (File Transfer Protocol) program is used to upload the website files to your server. Once your website is uploaded to the server, the site will be put through one last run-through. This is just precautionary, to confirm that all files have been uploaded correctly, and that the site continues to be fully functional.
This marks the official launch of your site, as it is now viewable to the public.
