4 Stages of Website Design

 Stage 1 - Style over substance

The first stage is to design a site that the chief executive officer, venture capitalists, and ad agencies like to see. There are all types of "bells and whistles" in this design. An entire site might be a Flash animated site. Or there might be some beautiful JavaScript mouse-over effects or drop-down menus in the design. It's always a pretty design, but the message is clear - style over substance.

Stage 2 - Designing for online visibility

In Stage 2, the reality of an ineffective web design begins to hit, usually around 3-6 months after the initial launch. A site will typically get rejected by many of the major directories, not be indexed by the major search engines, or not get the traffic or sales that were projected based on the various types of marketing strategies used. Typically, that's when companies decide that they will try to hire a professional online marketer to promote the site. Doorway page companies, in some way, shape or form, rear their ugly heads. Unfortunately, many website owners fall for a doorway page company's pitch because the beautifully designed site couldn't possibly be the problem with low site traffic. Yahoo might have rejected a site, or the site might have been listed in Yahoo and the company cannot understand why they have no description next to their company name. But in no way would many ad agencies or doorway page companies want to tell potential clients the truth -- they simply did not design and write an effective website -- because it would mean losing thousands of pounds in business.

Stage 3 - Designing for your audience

By Stage 3, after spending an exorbitant amount of money on pretty website designs and various marketing strategies, website owners generally figure out that they did not design or write an effective website for their target audience. Typically, website owners will bring in a usability expert to analyze potential problems and present various solutions. Bringing in a search engine marketing expert to help with search-engine friendly website designs and templates early in the design phase can save a company thousands of pounds in online marketing costs.

Stage 4 - Site redesign

After careful usability and search engine visibility analyses, website owners finally have an effective website. A site that is written, coded, and designed for user friendliness and search engine visibility generally gets the most traffic and resulting sales because it was written, programmed, and designed for end users.

Conclusion:

Websites should always be designed with the target audience in mind, rather than personal preferences. Colors have meaning, and professional designers understand the psychology of color and the use of white space to project the desired image. It is important to understand what products, services, or information the target audience is searching for in order to design and maintain an effective website. Site statistics software and reporting can provide valuable insights into visitor preferences and allow for adjustments to content and marketing strategies. Advanced technology should only be used if it clearly benefits end users. Ultimately, the success or failure of a website is determined by the target audience, not by venture capitalists, CEOs, or lawyers.