Web Design Process: 6 Easy Steps to Build A Successful Website in 2024

Most popular myth today…..designing a website today is easier than ever.

But the truth? 

A complete 360º!!!!!

There are literally tons of variables to take into account. 

It’s not just a piece of cake to Find a balance between what the user wants and needs and tailor the design accordingly. Designing a beautiful website takes a hell lotttttta of work. 

But don’t let that scare you off. 

Here is an A to Z guide on Web Design Process flow so that you get the idea of how to track various tasks and stages closely and document them to create a coherent outcome.

Why do you need a custom-designed website?

Look:

A well-designed website is the mirror of your business. When you get a personalized website, you have already outperformed 99% of the competition.

Yeah, that’s right.

Creating a well-crafted website means your online presence is not only visually appealing but it will also be more user-friendly (and interactive).

And the outcome?

In plain words, by creating custom pages for each of your products or services, you can streamline the process of online sales and marketing. I guess that is our main goal.

Last but not least…….

When your potential clients have access to specific information about the company right at their fingertips, it will positively impact credibility.

In a nutshell, a customized website will give you……

• A platform to showcase your own voice
• Boost Credibility           
• Kick start the sales and lead

Get it, why don’t site owners think twice about paying you the big bucks?

Alright, so you get it! … Let’s jump right into the Main Web Design Process flow

Website Design Process: From Idea to an Awesome Finished Website (& Everything in Between)

Whether it’s your site or the project of the clients, the process is kind of the same. And we divided it into sixthree main sections:

• Phase 1: Research and planning
• Phase 2: Design
• Phase 3: Development
• Phase 4: Testing
• Phase 5: Launch
• Phase 6: Maintenance

Step 1: Research & Planning (aka Pre-design Preparation Phase)

As a rule of thumb…….

“The more effort you give on the pre-design prep, the smoother your next design process will be”.

In fact, it’s no exaggeration to say that these are the background works that differentiate the work of an amateur and a pro designer. 

Let us confess something…..Like most of the backstage work, this pre-design part is pretty boring. Let’s see what stuff we want to cover.

1. Identify the goal of the website

Having a website is good. 

But having one that voice the name of your business is even better. After all, Websites are meant to be used. This is why the first stage of website design is always identifying the website’s goal. 

For example, if your goal is to provide information, ensure all your content is organized logically and well written. On the other hand, when is to sell products or services, think about how you can display them prominently on your page and create easy purchase links for visitors. 

And if your goal is to entertain users, consider adding fun elements like animations or interactive widgets.

2. Define your target audience

Without knowing who you are designing for; you run the risk of creating a site that is not effective or relevant to them.

Can you afford it?

Nope! Compassionating your customer’s desires can create something inviting, useful and, most importantly, interactive.

3. Find out the language of the reader, not your own

Wondering why?

Designing for the reader is the key to a higher conversion rate. And that’s our ultimate goal, isn’t it?

When designing for the reader, it’s essential to keep in mind what they need to see on the screen and how they interact with the content.

Disclaimer: This can be challenging when working with a pre-existing website or application, but it’s especially important when creating new content. Our goal is to tune in with your reader’s interaction with your content and design.

4. Don’t forget to have a look on conducting research on competitor

It’s never too late to learn about your competition. 

The more you know about what your competitors are doing, the better positioned you will be to stay ahead of the curve and gain an edge on your competition. 

Here are some reasons it’s important to understand the competition: 

• Learn from their successes and avoid their mistakes. 
• See where they are outperforming you and focus on improving those areas. 
• Develop strategies for competing with them.

5. Gather all the material, content and resources for sitemap creation

Well, it’s the secret sauce of success.

We are basically cutting off the time to go through the process of collecting the necessary data one by one. By assembling all of these items, you’ll be able to produce a finished product that is accurate, complete and error-free (hopefully). 

Yeah, the aim is to save time. Here is what you will look for in all the materials that have already been collected.

1) Accuracy

2) Completeness

Step 2: Design 

Feeling excited?

Yessss, the adrenaline rush of a designer starts working!!!!!

There are a few questions you need to ask yourself when designing your website, though, so that you don’t end up with an ugly or unfinished website.

• Is it a personal blog? A business site? Once you know the purpose of your site, you can start thinking about how you want it to look and feel.
• Want it to be chic and modern looking, or do you want something more contemporary?
• Are they people who are new to the internet and technology? Older? Adults? Or Children?

Did you notice we already got the answer from our pre-design stage?

Yeah, that background work was not a waste of time. Let’s start working on our main task.

Part 1: Designing the site (Be prepared to work with tons of trial and error)

Designing a website can be a daunting (yet the most exciting) task. But with the right tools, it can be a fun and informative experience. The main focus is on…….

• Plan your layout carefully. Make sure Everything is easy to access and navigate while still visually appealing.
• Consider features like security and stability when planning your site’s functionality and design.

Part 2: Develop Content Hierarchy with Wireframe 

A wireframe is more like a sketch.

So…..sketch about what?

Well, it provides a basic structure and layout of a web application. Developing a wireframe is not to create finished visuals, but to provide a framework for further development. This also includes the sitemap.

Here is the whole nitty-gritty of this process……

Designing an effective and user-friendly system for organizing and displaying information on the web! A poorly designed Information Architecture can lead to frustration for users as they struggle to find what they’re looking for.

Part 3: Let’s play with the contents

You’ve heard this rule a million times in the web designing world……Content is the King!!!!

From coming up with the initial concept to designing the layout and graphics, many different steps must be taken to craft a successful online presence. 

Engaging and well-written content is what will help draw in visitors and keep them coming back for more. In fact, according to Web Designer Depot, 71% of all users abandon a website within the first three pages if it doesn’t feel legit and trustworthy.

Fortunately, it’s not as difficult to map the content as it may seem.

What’s the secret? Be creative. 

Use your creativity to come up with unique and stylish designs that will stand out from the competition. Bold colours, eye-catching graphics, and innovative layout ideas can make a difference in how your customers perceive your business.

Part 4: Deliver value and show a clear call to action

For any business, it is essential to close the sale with a clear call to action.

This can be done through your website design, which should be easy to navigate and allow customers to easily find what they’re looking for. By providing a clear CTA, you’ll ensure that potential customers take the necessary steps required to purchase from you.

Step 3: Development (aka programming stuff)

At this point, you have all the information and material at your hand, right?

Now it’s show time.

And if you are a pure developer, this is the field you gonna enjoy most. Here are the things you have to cover at this stage.

Start with a Framework

A framework for web design is a structured way of thinking about web design that helps you to create consistent and user-friendly websites.

Wondering why you need a framework?

It can also help you to avoid common problems and make better decisions about your website’s layout, color scheme, and content. 

You will find many frameworks available, each with its own benefits and drawbacks. The most popular one is probably WordPress, an open-source content management system (CMS) that allows website owners to create easily, manage, and customize websites.

1. Easy to use 

2. Affordable 

3. Customizable 

4. Secure

And the best part? Anyone can make a website with WordPress (even if you have dipped your toes in the world of web development). In fact, it’s the world’s most popular CMS software, and it powers around 43% of all websites on the internet.

Some other noteworthy frameworks include the SCA (Systems Concepts Architecture) Framework, the MVC (Model-View-Controller), and the Crystal Structure Framework.

A big disclaimer……. These frameworks are designed for someone who is pro at playing with code.

Code template

In plain word…….code template is a skeleton for a web page or application.

And why do we do that?

The truth is a code template provides a clean, organized starting point for your web pages or applications. 

And don’t worry, creating a code template in WordPress is fairly easy. At the same time, it is a smart way to streamline the development process by providing a set of standard code elements that you can use to create new pages or applications (like home page, categories, contact page, etc.). And trust me, this will save your tons of hours.

Look over the CSS/HTML (again)- Are they working fine?

Check whether the CSS is working as intended. At the same time, The HTML is neatly organized, and all of the tags are properly placed. Work with it until there are no errors or problems with the code.

Stick with the Web standard and Content Accessibility Guidelines 

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) are a set of standards that aim to make the web more accessible for people around the world for everyone.

The guidelines offer recommendations on how to make web pages more usable for people with disabilities. They also provide suggestions on how to design websites that are easy to understand and navigate, even for those without disabilities.

Make sure your site is mobile-friendly and fully secure

It’s no secret that the use of the mobile device is skyrocketing.

In the second quarter of 2022, mobile devices (excluding tablets) generated 58.99 percent of global website traffic.

And this number is only going to continue to grow. Not only site, ensure that all content is easily accessible on a mobile device. This means ensuring all text is readable, and font sizes are reasonable, especially when viewing on smaller screens. 

And more importantly……Keep your site up-to-date with the latest security threats and implement appropriate security measures. 

Step 4: Testing

Once the design is finalized, it must be tested with users to ensure that it meets their expectations. Use feedback from the early testing stages to improve designs and ensure readability.

Make a mockup and test how the users react

When users can provide feedback during development, it helps you identify issues early on and make necessary changes before hitting that live button. This allows for smoother sailing down the road, making your site more user-friendly overall.

Polishing a little bit and last finishing touch

If you are a perfectionist, you’re gonna love it.

From creating the website’s layout to choosing the right typeface, every web design aspect should be taken care with extra care (and love). Cross-check the sitemap and technical part.

Step 5: Time to launch

The train finally reached the station!!!

Just click the live button. Wait…there are a few things to look carefully at even after the website gets launched already. 

• Is it going well with the web server?
• How’s the chemistry with the browsers?
• Are you using the right HTML5 and CSS3, or are you relying on Adobe Flash make it too clumsy?

Step 6: Maintenance (Post-launch care)

Don’t take it lightly.

Here is why:

First, as the website evolves, some content may be outdated. Meanwhile, you may face some new errors in the system which you haven’t seen before. This kind of issue hampers the user experience.

Wanna avoid this? This section is all about ensuring the best user experience. Here are some suggestions for you………

• Keep your website pages up to date with the latest information and changes. This will help keep visitors interested and engaged.
• Monitor your website’s performance. Check how users are interacting with your site using the analytics and make necessary changes to optimize it for better performance.
• Schedule regular C-panel maintenance routine and plugin checks to ensure everything is up to date to keep your website running smoothly. By doing so, you can identify any potential problems with your website’s C-panel, as well as any missing or outdated plugins.
• Protect your website from unauthorized access and hacking attempts by using strong passwords, installing antivirus software, and configuring firewall settings correctly on your computer.

So………..Everything working fine? 

Congratulations, you finally did it!!!!

If it’s your website, enjoy the incredible work you just did (& shared with your loved one). And if the website is for your client, get ready for a fat paycheck!!!!