A website worth doing is worth doing well. The process of creating a great website takes time and hard work; effective websites do not spring up overnight. This article provides a brief overview of the stages before, during and after the actual design and programming.
Before any design or construction can take place, you must outline a detailed plan. A good plan begins with a budget, a few clear goals and a target audience. A good plan also identifies the technologies to be used.
The final step in the planning phase is collecting, creating and organizing the site's content. The process results in an organized, visitor-centered site structure, around which the site's visual design can be created.
After the planning is complete, the actual design and construction take place. A site is often designed on paper before any HTML is written or components are programed. This allows the client and the graphic designer to be creative and visualize the final look and feel of the site.
Once the site's look has been established, the designer begins the process of coding the actual HTML structure of a test site. This may also involve programming some of the advanced features. This test site allows the client and designer to tweak any final details.
Finally, once the entire site is constructed, the site is ready to "go live" or be made available to the public.
After a website has been made available to the public, the ongoing task of promoting and maintaining it begins.
For a website to be successful people must know that it exists. Consequently the site must be promoted through search engines, print advertising, in house advertising, etc. For a website to remain successful, its content must be kept current and fresh. In many ways a website is never done since it must continually evolve to meet new needs or to meet old needs better.
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