The overall design of your web site is very important.
It must be visually appealing, easy to navigate, and free of
"noise".
It must not only meet your needs, but those of your clients
as well.
Your web site is your calling card. It should
portray your image, philosophy, and style. A poorly designed
site will reflect negatively on you and your business.
At ILT, we can design single pages, large multi-page
sites, or anything in between. We offer many options which can
be incorporated into any site, including:
- logos,
- text,
- graphics,
- images,
- charts,
- tables,
- forms,
- special effects, and
- and much much more.
We can use your logo, design a new one, or modify
an existing one. We can design custom graphics, menu bars, banners,
and backgrounds that make your site unique. We can also take
your traditional design themes, of letterhead, business cards,
brochures, or pamphlets, and keep the same theme in your web
site.
We also incorporate marketing strategies including
meta tags, descriptive text, and hyperlinks. These strategies
will help increase the traffic to your site.
The actual design process consists of two primary
phases: analysis and design.
In order to design an effective website it is
necessary to identify the needs of the client and the expected
goals of the site. For larger sites, this involves conducting
an in-depth needs assessment consisting of the following elements:
- development of goals and
objectives for the site
- content review and development
- analysis of the target audience
- analysis of current trends
- market intelligence of similar web-sites
- review of of features useful for the site
- analysis of current technology and equipment available
for hosting the site
- review possible domain names for the site
- identification of budgetary or resource constraints
The analysis phase is one of the most important, and often overlooked,
steps of the design and development process. At ILT, we begin
the process by learning about you:
- what is your business?
- who is your competition?
- what are you doing that your competition is not?
- what is your mission statement?
- what are your goals and objectives?
- what are your expectations?
A needs assessment is often the most overlooked
aspect of the development process. Too often, a project is started
in the middle with "this is what we want to do." Prior
to investing time and money in a project, however, it is essential
to look at the needs of your organization to ensure "what
you want to do" will meet those needs.
After the analysis is complete, we focus our attention
on the design phase of the project. During this phase, we look
at all the elements of the web site to determine the best site
architecture and features to utilize.
We will identify specific content to be included
in the site. If necessary, we will identify a host and obtain
a domain name for the site.
Once the key features are identified and site
content refined, the process turns to creation of a master template
for the project. This usually takes form as a storyboard.
A storyboard involves a step by step outline,
in visual form, identifying all the components of the project.
It is similar to completing a puzzle. The components are moved
around until they all fit into the project in the most logical
and beneficial manner. This includes items such as links to
pages within the site and links to outside sites.
We will determine the layout for the project including
items such as font types, graphics, colors, backgrounds, navigation
tools, and other visual aspects. We create design specifications
from scripts and storyboards to the way information will flow.
Our design decisions then become blueprints of the final product.
In short, the design phase focuses on details
of the total web site and navigation attributes within the site.
Our goal is to make the layout as user-friendly, comprehensive,
informative, and visually pleasing as possible. We know that
in order to keep people coming back requires a well-designed
site.
Once the web site design process is complete, the development
of a successful web site involves multiple tasks including:
development, testing,
revision, implementation,
evaluation, search
engine positioning, and maintenance.
The development phase involves
the nuts and bolts of the creation of the web site.
This might include:
- content and page development
- conducting searches
for useful links as appropriate
- development of custom
graphics and logos
- scanning of current
logos and artwork
- scanning of documents
and text for inclusion in the site
- creation of photos as
needed for inclusion
- orchestrating a mechanism
to link an on-line catalog with an inventory database
- developing security
measures as needed
- inserting animated features
and video clips as desired
Development may be straightforward
formatting and programming of data submitting in electronic
form, or it may involve converting paper materials into an
on-line document. Conversion might involve:
- scanning and touch
up of photos, images, graphics, or logos,
- generating tables or
graphs from data contained in documents, or
- scanning text from paper
documents.
In addition, we offer the following services:
- converting graphics from a non-web format to a web format,
- video conversion from standard VHS to digitized video,
- capture and converting still images from video,
- developing custom graphics, bullets, icons, and navigation
bars,
- creating custom forms such as requests for information
forms, and
- conducting searches to find useful links to add to your
site.
Once developed, it is necessary
to test the web site. The testing phase targets multiple areas
including:
- content specific - Is
the material complete, accurate, and understandable?
- design specific - Is
the material aesthetically pleasing? Is the navigation control
effective? Does the site flow well?
- function specific -
Do all the components work as designed. Do page links work?
To advanced features work as desired?
Based on the results of
the testing phase, any necessary revisions are made.
Once revisions are completed,
it is time to launch the web-site onto the internet. This
is first done in a "pilot" mode during which all
aspects of the launch are analyzed to ensure effective deployment.
At the conclusion of the
initial launch, the site is reviewed for effectiveness, problems,
and suggestions for improvements. If necessary, modifications
are then made.
The successfullness of a web site is dependent upon the ability
of potential clients to find the site. The staff at ILTwebsites.com
is firmly committed to helping clients get the maximum benefit
from their website. All sites are designed using search engine
optimization techniques. We also offer our clients a search
engine positioning service where we will optimize web site
pages for specific keywords and submit web site pages to multiple
search engines and work diligently using various proven strategies
to help our clients obtain top search engine positioning for
various keywords. We have been successful in reaching #1 ranking
on multiple search engines. For more information on our search
engine optimization and positioning service, click
here.
The design and development process involves an on-going strategy
of review, revision, and evaluation. The maintenance phase of
the process occurs on a periodic and "as needed" basis.
As new strategies emerge, technological advances occur, or new
information is generated, ILT stands ready to make any necessary
modifications to the finished product.
It is also necessary to continually monitor the site to ensure
functionality, that internal and external links function properly
and that the site remains in working order. This maintenance
can be completed by your in-house IT staff or by ILT staff.
For more information on our website maintenance service, click
here.
The cost for designing and developing a web site
depends on many factors, most importantly of which is the size
and desired uniqueness of the site. As a general rule of thumb,
development of a site costs approximately $100 per page. The
cost can increase substantially with the addition of animation,
sound, video, and other special effects.
For more information regarding our cost for services,
view our pricing guide or to receive
a no-committment quotation for the development of your web site
please contact us by one of the following methods:
