Comments on: How to Select a Web site designer http://blog.curvine.com/2010/05/11/how-to-select-a-web-site-designer/ Mon, 24 Oct 2011 18:38:16 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Anita Wong http://blog.curvine.com/2010/05/11/how-to-select-a-web-site-designer/comment-page-1/#comment-1117 Anita Wong Wed, 12 May 2010 18:48:24 +0000 http://blog.curvine.com/wordpress/?p=269#comment-1117 An additional item to consider: Web Design vs. Web Development You may see the words design and development used interchangeably, however, technically, they are two very different but integral parts of a website. Website Design is the process in which a designer creates the visual aesthetic of your site using colors, fonts, images, proportion, etc. This can be done by the web designer or by a graphic designer. Website Development is the coding of a website in order for it to be displayed properly on the web. Also, coding for the functionality and useability like navigation and links, a back-end database, or viewing of a flash movie, and for adding tags for search engine optimization. Some graphic designers may say that they provide web design services, but most will say that web development is not their strong suit and that they actually prefer to just create the design and layout. Some web designers are not strong in the design side either and will sometimes use pre-designed templates and content management systems to create their sites. When searching for a web specialist to hire, be sure you understand the difference and make sure they do as well to assure that your website is created correctly and completely. An additional item to consider: Web Design vs. Web Development

You may see the words design and development used interchangeably, however, technically, they are two very different but integral parts of a website.

Website Design is the process in which a designer creates the visual aesthetic of your site using colors, fonts, images, proportion, etc. This can be done by the web designer or by a graphic designer.

Website Development is the coding of a website in order for it to be displayed properly on the web. Also, coding for the functionality and useability like navigation and links, a back-end database, or viewing of a flash movie, and for adding tags for search engine optimization.

Some graphic designers may say that they provide web design services, but most will say that web development is not their strong suit and that they actually prefer to just create the design and layout. Some web designers are not strong in the design side either and will sometimes use pre-designed templates and content management systems to create their sites.

When searching for a web specialist to hire, be sure you understand the difference and make sure they do as well to assure that your website is created correctly and completely.

]]> By: Robbin Block http://blog.curvine.com/2010/05/11/how-to-select-a-web-site-designer/comment-page-1/#comment-1116 Robbin Block Wed, 12 May 2010 15:25:09 +0000 http://blog.curvine.com/wordpress/?p=269#comment-1116 All important considerations, but one of the first decisions to be made is whether your site needs to be custom or can reside on a templated solution, or somewhere in between. This has a huge impact on the cost and time it takes to complete a project. A custom website is necessary when the site requires unique functionality. The custom route will require you to hire designers, developers, coders, etc., which can be a challenge if you're not familiar with the process. In many cases, you'll need to keep hiring them if you want to make changes over time. And this is typical if you're a startup and are evolving your business model. If you do hire developers, be sure to ask them to provide you with a way to add content yourself. You don't want to be going back to them for every change. A templated solution which often includes hosting, the CMS and a variety of other tools, is appropriate for startups requiring little specialized design or functionality. You'll get your site built quickly without the need to know too much about the technology behind it. Tools like Squarespace and Wordpress are template-based, but can be "skinned" with custom colors, fonts, headers, images and more. Plus, once you learn how to use them (some are more complicated than others, but offer more flexibility), you'll be able to make most of the simple changes yourself. That means they'll get done faster and for a lot less money. I'm giving a class in Seattle about this topic on 5/14/10. For more resources on this topic and a list of website builders, visit my site. All important considerations, but one of the first decisions to be made is whether your site needs to be custom or can reside on a templated solution, or somewhere in between. This has a huge impact on the cost and time it takes to complete a project.

A custom website is necessary when the site requires unique functionality. The custom route will require you to hire designers, developers, coders, etc., which can be a challenge if you’re not familiar with the process. In many cases, you’ll need to keep hiring them if you want to make changes over time. And this is typical if you’re a startup and are evolving your business model. If you do hire developers, be sure to ask them to provide you with a way to add content yourself. You don’t want to be going back to them for every change.

A templated solution which often includes hosting, the CMS and a variety of other tools, is appropriate for startups requiring little specialized design or functionality. You’ll get your site built quickly without the need to know too much about the technology behind it. Tools like Squarespace and WordPress are template-based, but can be “skinned” with custom colors, fonts, headers, images and more. Plus, once you learn how to use them (some are more complicated than others, but offer more flexibility), you’ll be able to make most of the simple changes yourself. That means they’ll get done faster and for a lot less money. I’m giving a class in Seattle about this topic on 5/14/10. For more resources on this topic and a list of website builders, visit my site.

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