Website Design

 Design Overview

There are a number of different aspects involved in producing a website and each of these has an important role in the finished product. When implemented properly each element will combine to produce an attractive site which is easy to use and reliable in its performance. Websites that have been properly designed and installed provide the visitor with an image that the owner is a professional and reliable business with which they can trade. Conversely those websites that look shabby, are hard to navigate or produce error messages portray a poor image for the owner and it is likely that the visitor will move on to a different supplier.

 Planning A Design

The most important aspect of the design is carried out before a single piece of code is written or image created. Establishing the requirements for the website and planning the design are the essential first steps of the process. Changing the design at this stage is relatively inexpensive but modifications carried out later on in the design process will cost much more. At first it may seem obvious what the website has to do, but when you sit down and think about the requirements there are many more issues than those initially considered. At Design Atom our experience of designing websites means that we know what questions to ask our clients so that we can quickly establish a comprehensive specification.

Once we have produced the specification, the design is broken down into its component parts so that we can plan and allocate the work. This modular approach not only allows us to track progress of the design, but also ensures each aspect of the website is addressed properly. Where appropriate we will use existing components to build your website because this reduces cost and improves reliability, but because each customer has a unique set of requirements, we always start our design from scratch and never use templates since these can only compromise the solution.

Building A Website

Building the website requires the development of each component and regular integration into the growing solution. Depending on the nature and size of the website plus the timescale for delivery, these components may be developed concurrently and regular testing ensures that each integrates and functions correctly as the solution grows. Regular design reviews are used to track progress, ensure each of the components is addressed properly and resolve any issues that have arisen during the development.

Testing The Solution

Testing is an essential part of the development process which is all too often overlooked by website designers and software engineers. Whilst the power of the internet allows the potential for millions of people to visit your website, it also means that there are countless numbers of web browsers, computer platforms and electronic devices being used to access the internet. Each combination will render your website differently and produce different results for the visitor. Many problems can be overcome by following strict programming standards (surprisingly few sites do) but there is no substitute for rigorous testing.

At Design Atom we comprehensively test our websites on all the main internet browsers to ensure that as far as possible they are error free and reliable. We also follow recognised programming standards which not only ensures correct operation of the website on different platforms, but makes them compatible with future browsers.

Find Out More

If you like the sound of our design approach and you‘re looking for a new website, changing or refreshing your existing site, or you require any other aspect of software design then we can certainly help. To find out more about what we do, use the "Quick Links" to the right or Contact Us with your requirements. Whatever your needs we have the solution.