Best Strategies for Web Design

It's an exciting time — you're getting ready to launch a new website. Your public visibility is about to dramatically increase as you develop and curate your online presence. You've got several decisions to make along the way, which may seem daunting at first — but there's no need for undue concern. Most types of sites incorporate a series of straightforward steps during launch. Here are several key strategies that will help you during the process.

Domain

Selecting a unique, memorable domain name is one of the most strategic decisions you'll make when launching a website. If it's a personal site, it's usual to use your own name as a domain — you'll likely use your brand name (if it's different) for a business or e-commerce site. For a personal site with your name as the domain, think about how common or rare your name is, and how publicly recognized you are. It's an important proactive step to secure a good domain name, and possibly another few that are similar; check out an online resource for helpful suggestions. You might hear some fresh perspectives if you call on the advice of a few trusted friends, colleagues, or even family members.

Platform

It's vitally important to thoroughly research the platform you plan on using. The platform you choose will directly affect your site's appearance and functionality. This is a time when it might be helpful to consult an experienced Boston Web Design firm that can guide you in a direction that fits your specialty and needs. Utilizing professional design services is a wise long-term investment — most agencies offer a variety of pricing tiers and plans. Often, they can teach you how to maintain your site, or offer regular maintenance and updates at a reasonable cost.

Hosting

Peace of mind about your website and its stable operation has a lot to do with the web hosting provider you choose. Professional design services often bundle hosting into their pricing plans — if you're going the pro route, check with your representative. Reliable hosting should have minimal downtime. Accessibility and helpfulness of customer support is particularly essential when choosing hosts; it's likely you'll be in contact with them several times. The hosting will affect loading speed — the faster, the better for keeping potential clients' interest.

Branding

Who you are and the service you offer online will drive the look of your brand. In the process of developing your website, self-awareness is key. The type of service you offer and how it intersects with your background, character, and values will help to define all aspects of the visual component of your brand. Also, identifying your ideal clients is an important step toward your brand's evolution. What type of lines and colors are they attracted to? What types of images do they post on social media? This can be one of the most enjoyable aspects of planning your website.

Logo

A great logo is important whether you're launching a personal brand or business. You might be starting from scratch, or already have one that's part of a promotional package. Logo design has improved a great deal in recent years; you can use nearly any combination of text and image. The design possibilities are endless as long as the logo is attractive and legible. Design firms are skilled in creating top-quality logos. Their graphic expertise extends into every aspect of your brand.

Social Media

You might have several social media accounts that are active. Take some time to evaluate, select the ones that will enhance and are most relevant to your website content, then bring in high-quality imagery and copy. Integrating social media effectively involves alignment both visually and message-wise. A consistent brand identity built into your social media feeds will build synergy with your website, whether you decide to incorporate the feed itself or simply an icon link. Either way, it helps your customers build a community around your unique offerings.

SEO

It's essential that your website ranks high on search engines — and SEO (search engine optimization) is as much an art as a science. It's a complex subject; generally, the best design firms have personnel or departments exclusively devoted to SEO. Ensuring that you include SEO as part of your agreement is of critical importance when hiring a web design firm. Even after the site is online, you can devote time to evaluating and optimizing — try a few good resources to help you learn how SEO works.

Design

The current buzzword is "clean design," but clean doesn't have to mean boring! Knowing your core demographic (and their aesthetic preferences) can help you make specific choices about design — one size doesn't necessarily fit all. In general, clean design refers to legibility, an optimal amount of negative space around text and images, and as few distractions as possible. Your product or service should be central. The color scheme you choose is vitally important, too. This is another case where having an intimate knowledge of your ideal customer will influence your decisions. Colors evoke emotional responses — make sure that your colors align with the preferences of your viewers.

Functionality

How easy is your site to use and navigate? This is one of the most important determiners of how long a visitor stays on the site, and how likely they'll interact with your offerings. It's crucial to view your website from a user's perspective. If it's possible for you to get enough perspective to pretend that you're a first-time visitor, do a thorough evaluation. If not, enlist the help of a professional or trusted colleague. Every touchpoint of the experience should be seamless and effortless.

Consider the Cost

Cost is a necessary consideration when choosing your domain, host, website development method, and maintenance. From a nominal fee to thousands of dollars, the price range is wide — it's important to budget carefully. The services and platform you choose should be a good match for your financial resources and projected earnings.

Launching a website is an ongoing learning process. Try these strategies to set you up for success!