Web Design

Web design has 3 components which all need to be married together to produce a successful website. When planning a custom website each of these components is designed particularly to serve the goals and audience identified in the strategy.

Aesthetics - the graphic design of the site. This is what gives the site its visual personality. Colour, images, borders, fonts, and all the big and small details of layout contribute to the final look. The design should reflect the company personality, the purpose of the site, and should appeal to the type of person who will be using the site. Ideally it's interesting, beautiful, and original as well.

Usability and persuasion - As well as looking great, the design must make it easy for the user to achieve the goals of the website. Intuitive interfaces combine clear messages with expected behavior. Many visual cues are used to help the user choose a path of action. A hierarchy of information - most important things most obvious - is created using colour, position, size, and contrast. Interactive tools, buttons, and links are clearly differentiated from static items and are tested to make sure they are clear and behave logically.

Flexibility and standards - The website will vary depending on the browser and device the site is being viewed on. Planning and management of images and plugins along with adherence to web standards helps in designing a site which performs well on different platforms.

In addition, ongoing updates of visual content should be planned to work with the design. The frequency of update and the skills of the person updating will have a bearing on the design of containers for new images and video.