Planning
February 22nd, 2008 by Jerson
Determine your audience. Is it for kids or for adults? Do you need to put Parental Guidance signs? What language would you use? Will your target readers access your site in school, in the office, or at home? Will your site be viewed by users with slow Internet connection?
Are these questions important? Yes! The design and content of your site will largely depend on whatever answers you come up with.
Make sure that the site is organized. Users will not return to your site if they get confused navigating through it. Besides, an organized design would also be easier to maintain. You can easily add or change the design and content eventually. The best way to insure this is to create a diagram on the flow of information that will be used in your site. The simpler you make it, the easier it is for you as the designer and also for your readers.
If you have no idea yet on how to start, research. Visit similar sites and take note of how they are designed and presented. Of course, this doesn’t mean that you copy them. But at least you’ll get an idea on now to go about your own site.
Don’t forget to read up on new innovations. The Internet is pretty much fast when it comes to introducing new web services and internet applications that can be good additions to your site. In other words, try to keep up with the changes.