Web design is the process in which a designer shapes the appearance of a website. We can also define it as planning and building web elements like structure, layout, images, colors, fonts and graphics for a website.
Web design has numerous parts that work together to create a final product. A typical design includes graphic design, UX design, UI design, search engine optimization (SEO) and content creation. The visual impression and feel of the website depend upon these elements.
Essential Tools for Website Design
Different tools are required at different phases of website design.
The first phase is information gathering. In this phase, we collect information about the website business, methodology and other important things. In most of the cases, client offer the information and details about their business. Moreover, we can use Google to research and accumulate some practical information if required.
Next phase is wireframing and mockup. The primary objective is to design a prototype of the website. It’s a crucial phase because a good prototype leads to a good and responsive design. Moreover, prototyping allows us to easily collaborate with the clients and receive real-time feedback.
Wireframing Tools
There are several different wireframing and prototyping software available online. Some of the reliable tools available are Figma, Adobe XD and Sketch.
- Figma is free and provides a handy in-app commenting feature that eases the review process.
- Adobe XD is a free and powerful prototyping tool. It provides plenty of options to prototype the website without using any third-party app.
- Sketch is the best one among others, it has better features and functions, but it’s not free and only works on iOS.
Now we have the prototype, it’s time to bring it to life using programming and markup languages. These languages design the website and enable us to test and improve it.
Coding and Debugging Tools
Similarly, there are numerous tools available to code and test the website. Some recommended ones are Adobe Dreamweaver, Visual Studio Code and Sublime Text.
- Adobe Dreamweaver is a code editor available on both Windows and macOS. It provides an interactive environment and comes with many pre-built design elements that can boost your design process.
- Visual Studio Code is a Microsoft’s creation; it is excellent with nearly any coding language. Moreover, it is free and easy to use.
- Sublime Text is one of the best front end development tools that support various programming and markup languages.
Next phase is testing and launch. Testing is performed on different browsers while the website is launched after purchasing the host and domain.
Shopify Store
WordPress is usually used for Blogs sites; on the contrary, Shopify is used for e-commerce website design. Shopify provides the base to run an e-commerce store conveniently; it gives you a selling space, ability to engage customers, showcase your products, accept payments and much more. It’s like a helper that eases the process of selling your products online.
Shopify has different pricing plans with prices varying from 9$ to 2000$.
How to Design a Shopify Store?
Designing a Shopify store is straightforward. Below is a step-by-step guide to develop a Shopify store.
- Sign up on Shopify
Open Shopify and locate the Get Started Button. Clicking on it will bring the sign-up page. Enter a unique name for your store and click next. Now you will add a detail about your shop, and on the next page, you will add personal information and address to accept payments.
- Add Products to Shopify Store
Once you are signed in, Shopify will take you to the admin screen of your website. Here you will customize your shop and add your products.
Adding the products is elementary; you will fill in details like title, description, vendor, price, and lastly, you will add pictures of your product. Always add the best images of your products and make sure that they will attract your target customers.
- Customization
In this phase, you will design the appearance of your shop. You can add colors, graphics, logos etc., to your Shopify store. There are lot of templates available for instant customization that your time.
- Domain Setup
Now it’s time to add the domain to your website. You can purchase one from Shopify or get it from a third party and then add it to your Shopify store. Upon activation, you can go to your domain to see your website.
- Activating Payment Processor
Click on the Payments option on the dashboard, here you’ll see dozens of payment processors like Authorize.net, Stripe etc. Shopify has its own payment processor, which is very easy to implement. Follow the steps to activate the payment processor and accept payments in your account.
How to choose a website design company?
Choosing a web design company is not simple. There are some technical and non-technical points that you must look for before choosing a company.
The initial steps of choosing are the same. Firstly, do thorough research and make a list of good companies. Pinpoint your research to what type of website you are looking to build i.e. e-commerce website design or a blog website. Then shortlist the ones that fit your style and preference.
After shortlisting the names, find their contacts and have a chat. Moreover, visit their own website test it in every possible way that you can think of, like responsiveness, SEO, ease to use etc. This will give you a prospect of how professional they are.
You can also ask for their portfolio or samples. In the portfolio, you will see some examples of their work. While looking at models, your task is to look at how good the websites are? Are the features fulfilling the client’s requirements? Does the site is easy to use? and How is the overall user experience?
Now you have tested all the companies; it’s time to make your final decision. While making up your decision, always keep the money as your second preference and skills and expertise as your first priority.
Benefits of choosing a professional website design company
It is beneficial to hire a web design company than hiring an individual freelancer. Because the company has more experience, expertise and provide better services.
Here are some benefits of choosing a website design company.
- Creativity: Companies are fairly more experienced than freelancers, and they have professional creative design and development teams. They are constantly learning and implementing new techniques and tools to enhance their abilities and performance.
- Better Aware with Local Trends: If you are looking for an e-commerce website design in the United States. So, instead of hiring a freelancer from India, it’s better to deal with a local design company because they know the hot trends of United States.
- Better SEO Performance: Along with expert designers, the companies have professional SEO experts. They use their skills to optimize your website to ensure that the website has a better ranking in search engine results pages.
- Custom Designs: Most freelancers use specific templates to design, while the company’s professional designers use their experience and skills to create custom designs from scratch.
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