As with any plan, organized execution of that said plan can truly make or muck up a project. Below is the general workflow that I try to follow with any of my web projects. This allows the project to run smoothly with minimal back-pedaling.
These are the stages of the work-flow
- Spec requirements and research
- Site plan
- Content building
- Design and production
- Testing, feedback, revisions
- Clean up and SEO
- Launch
SPEC REQUIREMENTS & RESEARCH
This is probably the most important phase of any design project as. Defining your goals and needs gives your project a starting point that you can build upon. Proper planning is beneficial the success of your website.
I will work with you to establish the budget, timeline, technical needs, visual style and the content structure.
SITE PLAN
A site plan is a a list of all the pages and elements likely to be seen on each page. You can see an example of a site plan here.
This allows us to review the structure and functional needs of your site. Creating your site plan is an extension of your project planning aspect and allows us to review or foresee any items we may have overlooked at the during the initial phase of communication.
CONTENT BUILDING
Well written copy-writing is essential for any website. The copy on your site is one of the most important SEO factors in determining how your site appears in search results.
The content for your website, which includes text, images, or videos are to be supplied by the client. If you are in need of copy-writing services, the briefing of the content that you will need must be supplied. For example, if you’d like me to write copy for your “About” page, I will need points of interest and your background to produce relevant and effective content for your site.
DESIGN & PRODUCTION
This production stage is where the actual website is created. After the requirements of the website is determined, the engineering aspect begins.
Visual and functional components will be integrated, but at this point they may not be optimized for the best practice in web standards. This step allows the client to see their site coming together and make visual, layout, or content changes.
TESTING, FEEDBACK & REVISIONS
No project is ever without flaws. Although testing is done throughout the design and development process, there are bound to be a few areas that were inadvertently overlooked.
At this stage, I will fix any design and functionality issues that may arise for optimal performance and usability. We will work together to fine tune your site to your liking.
CLEAN UP & SEO
This is the final stage of your project. At this point I will clean up the code and ensure site-wide optimizations. If SEO is part of your project, this is the stage that I would implement SEO(search engine optimization) practices. We will have a final review prior to launching your website.
LAUNCH
Completion! Your site goes “live”.
IN CONCLUSION
This is the general workflow that I try to follow for most of my projects. However, an occasional after-thought may require some flexibility. Proper planning is paramount in smooth and effective workflow. More on this can be read in this post: What is a Site Plan?
