Designing a website layout

Website design is not all coding- far from it. The majority of the work, in fact, is the actual design itself. Anybody can throw together a website design that looks decent enough, and is easy to programme, but actually generating a unique, professional site could make the difference between the success and failure of the said website.



The first step in the process of designing a good website layout is the generation of website design ideas. This is where most people struggle; however I have found the following technique to be rather handy:
Initially, you need to decide what your target audience will be and also what look your website should have. Perhaps you are a professional business selling your services to high flying lawyers? In this case, your website design will be much more professional than if you were building a personal homepage for your friends and family to keep up to speed with you. Once you have decided what angle your website will attack from, move on to the next step.


Next, you need to do some pretty extensive searches online for websites with the same sort of focus as you have. Make a list of twenty sites, before narrowing them down to your three or four favourites. You should then write up the pros and cons of each website design.


Thirdly, you should have a diagram drawn up in a site map style. Make sure you know exactly what page will be used for what: Give it a purpose and clear heading. This will eventually be used in your final website design.
The last stage of the analytical process is to research some important techniques on website design and graphic design. Learn about using contrasts for emphasis and powerful heading titles. Understand SEO techniques which are needed to ping you to the top of search engines etc. Perhaps if you are designing a blog you could monetize the site (think Google Ad sense or Affiliate Marketing). Would this be appropriate for a commercial business site?


Now it is finally time to get creative: you need to get an A4 sheet of paper for each page on your website and start making the initial drafts. Think carefully about your placement of pictures, text boxes and possible adverts. If it looks too cluttered or so sparse that no information can be gained from reading the page, then you have done something wrong.


Finally, refine your ideas to produce a final website design for your website. The whole process can take up to a week of good hard work, so do not be deterred if you aren’t making millions within a couple of days as, unfortunately, the harder you work, the luckier you become.


The writer is an expert blogger and writer, he has passion on Website Design and XigmaPro Software