| Designing a plan that works |
 I know this is the design category of this blog. One might think that the posts in this category might have to do with graphics design and one would be correct, for the most part. One of biggest things web developers and graphics artists overlook is designing a solid development plan for their web project.We here at 3rd Hatch tend to take on only complex projects, so the planning stage of the project is the most important in order for us to meet deadlines and make our clients happy. If we miss a beat or a detail, the whole website is affected. We can't afford that and neither can our clients. So how does designing a development plan work? Rather than bore you with the nitty gritty details of project management, I'll cover some high level things to keep in mind when planning your web project. Graphics Design Phase The graphics design phase on a simple website can be up to 90% of the timeline. Before entering the design phase we review all of the site requirements with our clients and also get feedback on sites that they like and don't like. This gives us an idea of what the template design has to accomodate not only in function but in look and feel. A realistic Graphics Design Phase will take two weeks or more unless our client is very clear about what they like and don't like. Our design phase follows a 3 step process.:
Design Layout Phase The design layout phase is the process in which we take the final composition and turn it into a real XHTML and CSS template for our content management system. This process requires slicing, dicing, lots of CSS and a little PHP skills to accomplish. A tough layout can take up to three or four days to complete, while most layouts take about two days. Our CSS staff are very skilled at making your final design a reality. If you don't believe, take a look at the Portfolio page for proof. CSS layout can be complicated sometimes because each web browser and sometimes each different version of each web browser (Internet Explorer) interprets the CSS and XHTML code differently. So, when the layout may look good on one web browser, it could be in shambles on another. We test our layouts on all web browsers to make sure we have 100% compatibility across the board. This step alone can be very time consuming and sometimes maddening. We currently support the following browsers: Internet Explorer 8, Internet Explorer 7, Internet Explorer 6, Firefox 3, Firefix 2, Safari and Chrome. Once the design layout is complete it is time to put the content items into the site. Content Layout Phase Content layour is just as much of an art as the Design Phase. It requires patience and sometimes some minor tweaking of the CSS and design layout to ensure proper design fidelity. If the text looks horrible in your new design, the design looks bad too. Both need to work flawlessly for the site to look and function perfectly. Since we are working with a content management system, we need to build the content Sections and Categories to organize all of the site content. The sections and categories work in a hierachy. So, each category belongs to a section and each section can contain many categories. This allows us to sort content easily for future modification and additions. Once the main set of content is inserted into the site, it is time to work on the custom functionality to provide all of the special features the site requires. Custom Functionality Phase We provide several standard features on every site we build. Among these are Google Analytics tracking, Search Engine Optimization functionality, Contact Forms and custom editors to make content updates easier. We also provide several custom modules for our clients including:
Finally, with all of these phases complete, we are ready to launch your website. If you would like to learn more about this process or find out how to move forward with your web project, please Contact Us today. |
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