Designing sites can be very time-consuming and tedious. By taking certain steps before, during and after can help eliminate hours of additional work and frustration. I'm not talking about how to make droplets or batch processes, but simple steps you can do outside of your software to help you maintain your sanity.
GATHER YOUR INFO:
|
"The key is to start with the end in mind. Know what you're trying to accomplish and who your audience is, and work backwards." |
First, before even starting a project, get as much info about it as possible. If you happen to be doing the project for yourself, this can be quite easy. You are more able to conceptualize within your head what you are wanting and the info is basically there. However, if you're working for a client, sometimes this can be a daunting task. It's not anyone's fault because sometimes it is hard for one person to explain to another exactly what they're trying to accomplish. The key is to start with the end in mind. Know what you're trying to accomplish and who your audience is, and work backwards. If your client doesn't know what they want to accomplish or what their site is to be about, that's where you'll probably want to start. Afterall, how are you suppose to help sell their product if they don't know what their own product is about? Believe me, it happens.
GATHER YOUR TOOLS:
1. Photoshop or Other Design Tool and HTML Editor - These, of course, will be your modern technology pen, pencil, paintbrush and writing tablet. You should become very familiar with your tools of the trade. You should know how to reach your objective with your tools. You can't build a house without knowing how to use a hammer and saw.
2. Images - If you're project requires images to be used, you should have a large selection to choose from. Sometimes not having the right images can actually hurt your project. The images themselves are a tool because they are there to assist you in explaining, communicating, and prompting a person to do what you want them to do.
TIP: If you have images that you plan to use over and over on several designs, such as browser logos for Netscape, IE and AOL, you may want to start an image archive of items such as these. You may also want to make several different buttons that you can quickly and easily retrieve for later use.
3. List of catch phrases - I actually have lists of phrases written in document files that help me write the copy used on projects. These lists I've made over time and which I add to constantly when I think of additional phrases that I think would work. Even though some may sound corny at first, I still write them because they can be fine-tuned later. The following are a few samples from a general list that I call "actionwords":
TOP
TESTED AND APPROVED
TAKE ACTION NOW!
TAKING OVER
TRAVEL DISCOUNTS
TO ASSIST YOU
THERE'S NOTHING LIKE IT!
UTILIZE
UNLIMITED
UNDERSTANDING
UNBELIEVABLE
UNTOLD BEHIND THE SCENES
UNBEATABLE
UNIQUE SYSTEM
TIP: Keeping the words in alphabetical order helps making particular phrases quite easy.
4. Coffee or other form of caffeine: Explanation not needed.
OUTLINE YOUR PROJECT:
If this is your own site, write down everything you want to talk about in your project and write it down as topics. This will help build your outline. Designing a site is much like writing a term paper or an article such as this. When I start to write these articles, I usually just outline the topics, break those down into subtopics, and from there, just fill in the discussion parts. Of course, if you're doing a paysite tour, your topics can be broken down by the pages. You talk about topic 1 on page 1, topic 2 on page 2, and so on.
By outlining your project, you are also making a map or mini business plan that will allow you to see the big picture. Doing so will assist you in making changes as needed and rearranging the structure of your layout.
DIG IN:
Getting down to it is simplified by the fact that you have all of your tools and have actually outlined your entire project like a guide book. You'll have a reference which you can refer to each step of the way.
Consider your first attempt at the project as your draft. Go through the first page (for a paysite) without editing the copy and with an open mind realizing that it is your first draft. You are compiling all of the parts. It will not be perfect and you will have the opportunity to edit it. Getting your concept on the screen is the first step. This will allow you to visually absorb what you put in words. When writing your copy, don't try to edit it or make it perfect. The biggest mistake a writer does is editing while writing. Don't be concerned about perfection. Get it up and in place so you can edit things in the next steps
Untitled Page
EVALUATE:
Now that you have something to look at, take a break. I call this the, "Tune out, Tune in" concept. Have you ever written something in one sitting and thought that you had every word checked for spelling, only to come back later and find an obvious error? It happens all the time and designing is no different. I find that when I don't get away from the project for a few minutes at this point, I don't see the obvious. This is because I've been fixated to the image for so long, that the typos and butt pimples just seem to blend in. It's one of the reasons that editors and proofreaders exist. Get up and away from the screen, go get a drink, and come back. You'll see your work a bit differently.
MAKE CHANGES AND CORRECTIONS:
A person may not say much if you've done a fantastic job on a project, but as soon as you put up a site with just ONE spelling error, you'll have 100 people emailing you that it's barfed up. Make your corrections before this happens. If your pages don't seem to flow in a natural optical or physical way, move things around a bit. Change your navigation if your hand doesn't seem to naturally go where you want it to. Change the background color to something totally off-the-wall and see how it looks. Make things blink where you want your eye to drift. Motion on a static page will automatically make your eyeballs shift. Use that human reaction to your benefit.
RE-EVALUATE:
The last step is to not become satisified too soon. Look over your project over and over and don't be afraid or too proud to make a minor adjustment. Tweaking your project after you see the entire thing come together may or not be needed, but re-evaluating it is still a must-do whether it's within that same day or weeks after you have it up and running.
The next time you start a design project, take it step by step and plan from the beginning to end. By doing so, you may help eliminate costly and time-consuming mistakes.