web building: designing it

If you're here, you are probably thinking it's time for your company to go live. Live on the Internet, that is.

The first step to building your presence on the Internet is to design a Web site that customers will want to visit - and come back to.

Getting customers to stay long enough to explore your Web site is like getting them to stay at a store. Like a store, your Web site should be attractive and professional looking.

Most important: Whatever your business offers - whether it's a product, a service, or information - it should be easy to access on your site.

Identifying your goals
Whether you're building a site from scratch or updating your existing site, you've got a few options. Your goals for the site determine the options you should go with, so make sure you've got those nailed down first.

Ask yourself: What do you want to achieve with the site?
Will you use the site to dispense information?
Do you merely want a Web presence so customers can find you online?
What sections do you want in your site? (e.g. About your company, company history, product pages, executive bios)
Do you want your site to act as a virtual salesperson, performing online transactions?
Will you need to develop any special tools for users to interact with your site?
Do you already have a logo that your site designer must incorporate in their design?
About how many pages are you looking to have designed?
Do you want your site to be structured to help gather data for marketing purposes?

Depending on your answers to these questions, you may be looking for a one-stop shop or separate contractors to address each part of your site. Designing your site can be as simple - or as complex - as your imagination and/or budget allows. And before you can decide the approach you want to take to accomplish all of your goals, you should know the difference between Web designers and Web developers.

Design vs. development
You'll probably find the titles "Web designer" and "Web developer" used interchangeably, but this isn't accurate. Designing a Web site is actually very different from developing one.

There are two major components to designing a Web site: the "front end" and the "back end." While there can be quite a bit of crossover, for the most part design refers to the front end, development to the back end.

Front end and design
The front end is what your customers see: the "pages" that display the graphics, the images, and the text on your site.

Web designers concentrate on the front end, choosing appropriate images and fonts and determining how images and text should be arranged.

A Web designer's strength is his or her appreciation for aesthetics. A designer doesn't have to be a technical whiz. But one should at least have a strong understanding of what will work visually on a computer screen and what the technical limitations are in designing for the Web.

A good Web designer will also have experience in collaborating with a Web developer.

Back end and development
Developers are part of a new breed of Internet professionals who can help you build your Web site. Web developers work on the back end, making a site work. This side of the process is not visible to visitors, but it is essential to enhancing the visitor's experience.

Back end functions include making images change or move, allowing visitors to view different pages or enter data about themselves, or performing sales transactions. If you're hiring a Web developer, learn to speak the language. Make sure the resumes of those you are considering include the following skills:

HTML for the text and layout framework of a Web page

Web Imaging to create and compress images for the Web

Javascript to write programs that run as part of Web pages and to do tasks like validating form fields before submitting a form

ASP to customize a Web page for a particular user on the server before it is sent down to the user

Java/C++ to write programs that are embedded within a Web page - to do things that Web pages alone cannot do, such as playing a game within a Web page

Whom to use?
Can an individual be both a Web designer and a Web developer? You bet! There are plenty of talented individuals who are adept at both. And for the sake of convenience, not to mention your budget, you may prefer to work with these hybrids.

If your heart is set on a snazzy design that puts your competitors to visual shame, however, your best bet is to hire a separate designer with strong graphic experience.

Or say you want to include complex e-commerce transactions that require special programming skills. In this case, you may want to go with a top-notch Web developer - even if they have no interest or experience in graphic design.

What Are Your Options?
If you've never designed a Web site, could you be capable of handling both ends of Web design? Quite possibly! Then again, taking on such a big undertaking could be foolhardy. It all depends on your goals.

Keep it all in-house. This is certainly the cheapest route. If your needs are relatively simple - your site will be purely informational, or it will perform only basic sales transactions - some excellent software packages can guide you through the whole process.

Go with an expert. But what if you want animated graphics, interactive tools, or complex e-commerce functions? You'll need an expert in CGI scripts and important Web programming languages like PERL.
Mix it up. Your third option is to do some of the work in-house, and outsource the tasks your company can't handle.

Look around your company. Does anyone on your staff have experience with graphic design software like Adobe Photoshop? Maybe he or she can design the images for the site, then you can use a contractor to work the images into the overall design. Or are you a better-than-average photographer? Use your own photos for your site. Or buy a digital camera and learn how to upload images onto your site.

But take caution if your staff is already spread very thin. Even if you have some capable people in-house, it may still make sense to use contractors and save your full-timers for what they're there for: growing the company.

And don't forget ongoing maintenance. No matter who designs and develops your site, you can't just put it up and leave it there. A good site creation plan should incorporate the long term.

Finding a designer
So you need a designer. Who's right for the job?
As with filling almost any position, referrals are your safest bet. Ask your business colleagues who built their company's site.

You can also visit the Web sites of companies that match the size of your own. If you like the look and functionality of the site, check the site to see if the designer is listed. If not, you'll probably have to make a phone call.

Then it's time to do your homework. Find out if the designer has his or her own site; a worthwhile one will. Take a good look at it. Often, a Web site professional's own home page will give you enough insight to save you the time and cost of a phone call. At the very least, the site should tell you where they are located and exactly what type of services they provide.

No one to ask for referrals? You can always turn to the Web. Online directories can help you locate a Web site professional in your area. You'll want to be a bit more vigilant about screening, though.

It's not necessary to hire someone near your office, however, since you can view the site through your Internet connection as it is being built. But if you feel most comfortable with regular face-to-face contact, by all means choose a professional in your area.

Evaluating a designer
To find the right Web site professionals, use techniques similar to those you'd use to hire any other type of contractor.

Look at their past work. Have they worked on Web sites that resemble the site you have in mind for your company?

Look at the contender's own Web site; if it's not top-notch, move on. If they can't effectively market their own services through the Web, how will they market yours?

Determine who will be doing what. If you are contracting an individual to design your Web site, find out exactly what services he or she can provide. Are they capable of developing the back-end functions of your Web site to make it e-commerce ready? Or are they able to only redesign the look of your site?

If you are contracting a Web design company, ask about their specific services. Will they be able to take the project from start to finish, or will you need to seek additional contractors to complete the job?

Also, find out which specific employees will be assigned to your project, and ask about their individual experience.

Check references. Former clients can give you the real scoop on what it was like to work with this particular Web site professional. Get at least three, and ask them specific questions:

Did they meet deadlines?

Were they flexible?

Did they set and meet realistic goals for your company?

Would they work with this contractor or firm again?

What team members were responsible for which parts of the site?

Agree on costs.
How do they charge for their services? By the hour? Flat fees? Do different team members command different hourly rates?
Get an exact estimate for how long it will take to complete the project, and at what cost. Include the agreed-upon dates in your contract and provisions for what will happen if these dates are not met.

Are your goals in line?
Confirm that they understand your business objectives and your customer base - don't be afraid to ask that outright.

If they dismiss this question as insignificant to the design of your site, find another designer. A good Web professional will either come into the interview with a good sense of what your business is about, or will at least be eager to learn.

Make sure you can periodically view the progress of their work as the site is being designed and built. You'll also want to have final approval on each stage of the project.

Questions To Ask Your Designer
The following is a checklist of questions you should keep handy when interviewing potential Web designers.

Will they test your design across multiple browsers? Which ones exactly?

Are they capable of adding any back-end functions to your design?

Are they willing to design around items you've already had designed by someoneelse, such as your company logo?

If you don't have a company logo designed already, are they willing to design one?

Will they include meta tags for you?

Ask how long they have been in the business and who their current clients are. This would also be a good time to get the names and numbers for references.

Do they have a basic understanding of your business and customer base? Bad egg alert: If they can't answer this question, they should at least be eager to learn.

If they cannot finish the project by the agreed-upon date, will they continue to charge the regular hourly fee to finish it? Make sure their answer is included in your written contract as well.

Will they be taking on other projects while working on yours? If your project is large and complicated, you don't want someone who may be overextending himself.

Pricing
The cost of designing a Web site is tricky business. Web designing is a relatively new profession and even Web designers themselves are uncertain as to how much they should be charging since experience and abilities tend to range dramatically from person to person.

A good independent contractor, or a member of a Web design firm, will ask you questions about your specific needs and your expectations to determine the amount of time and work it will take to complete the project. Then they'll submit a bid or proposal. For best results, have each potential candidate fill out a standard form so you can compare bids.

If you're using an independent contractor, the full cost of the project will probably be determined by the designer's hourly rate and the number of hours per day the designer plans to work on it over a specific time period.

Some designers will be willing to negotiate a flat fee for the entire project. If you agree upon a flat fee, the designer will also have to agree upon a completion date.