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Today’s modern world sports ubiquitous websites among companies and individuals. Everyone either has a website or is feeling pressure to create one. In addition are those who had a website designed during the initial website “boom” and are finding their sites dated and behind the web 2.0 going on 3.0 times.
If you desire to create a first-class website, your first and most critical task is to find a good web designer. But, the process of finding a good designer can be a difficult process. There are more aspects at play in modern web design than there used to be. Not only does a development firm need to have a good handle on modern graphic design, it also needs to be technically proficient. The firm must understand what should go on under the hood in order to produce a solid product that will have broad impact and will work under a variety of browsers and devices.
Due to the overwhelming growth of the internet market, there has been an equally overwhelming influx of designers who are either not proficient in design or are not capable of tackling the technical requirements of a good website.
So, how do you find a good web designer?
There are a lot of companies out there which claim to have first-class web design skills, but actually finding a good designer who is able to create a first-class website can be quite difficult. I believe that there are three crucial hoops that a development firm should jump through in order to be classified as a good web designer:
In searching for any service company, reputation is crucial. Start with your friends who have websites you like. Find out which web designers they used, and then call them for a client list. Perform your own due diligence. Call and ask those clients whether they are pleased with their websites and if they would recommend the designer to you and why or why not.
Everyone has different tastes when it comes to design. Find a designer who has tastes similar to yours by going to their website and looking for their “portfolio” page. Take a look at the other sites they have created. Since your website is an integral part of your marketing, do not settle for a designer with graphic tastes you consider to be poor and dissimilar with your advertising format.
If you are not very “web savvy”, it may be difficult for you to determine which development firm can successfully jump through these three crucial hoops. Knowing a few slang words can help. Designers who are able to create quality websites should produce websites that are standards compliant. This means that the underlying computer code that produces the website is written in such a manner that a wide variety of existing and new computers and devices will be able to properly “view” the site, as well as greatly cut down on maintenance costs and future design changes. In the current state of web technologies this means using valid xHtml, and CSS code.
For most web design applications, the designer should also be comfortable and willing to design your site using a Content Management System or CMS. The use of a CMS allows you to maintain many aspects of your website without great technical prowess or the need to constantly employ your web designer to make simple changes to your site for you. It can also greatly cut down on development costs and can grant such features as automatic web syndication or RSS.
Yes, you should be aware of the following:
A modern website can be a valuable asset to a company’s marketing campaign or an individual’s global presence. It can also be a huge headache that can waste a lot of resources and effort. Finding a good designer is the key. I hope this article assists you in making a wise decision. Good Luck!