The design and development of websites is a process that requires an approach whose stages it is advisable to define to establish expectations in terms of objectives to be met, deadlines for completion and budget.
It should be remembered that the result will largely depend on a good organization and the resources that we have. Also the level of knowledge and experience, since there are many factors that influence the process. In Mbc we explain the basic stages that the development of a web project must include and the best way to manage it in a summarized way to achieve a satisfactory result.
1. Investigation: The first thing to do is an analysis and a review of the context, for example: look at similar sites (competition), look for a style that identifies us and that of course meets the expectations of the client and its users. Here it is very valuable to delve into the information between the interested parties about the objectives, the audience to which it is directed and the type of content that the pages that are part of the website will host according to the theme, as well as the necessary functionalities that they should perform for the users.
2. Planning: When planning a website, several factors must be considered: the audience and their needs, the purpose for which it is created, the topics and content you would like to cover, the name of the site, the availability of the domain and registration, what other sites have done, etc. It is a key element when developing any project, especially if it is digital, since it significantly helps to identify what the client wants..
3. Site architecture and content: This is the point where we think about what we are going to tell and how we are going to tell it. We must create a site architecture map to visually demonstrate how the content and structure of the site is organized. Remember that once we know what we want to include on our website, it is time to implement the improvements. Here it is not only about copying the competition, but we must also overcome it with quality.
4. Design, build and develop: It is the stage of web design in which you must choose fonts, colors, templates, images, titles, etc. Development could be defined as the point at which developers lay out the mockup in a web version. It is the step in which we take care of the characteristics and internal functions of the page, or what is the same, creates the internal part of the web, such as the operating systems, content, database, etc. At this point, the content management system (CMS) must be selected, choosing the most appropriate for our project. The most used programming languages are ASP, JavaScript, XML and SQL, although with the new programming requirements, new programming tools are beginning to be developed. On this, it should also be clarified that some overlay tools are used both by designers and developers in HTML and CSS formats.
5. Tests: With all the content mounted and the images adjusted, it’s time to dive into the web testing. It is important to thoroughly analyze each of the pages that we are going to launch, making sure that all the links work correctly, as well as corroborating that the web load is running correctly on all the different devices and browsers that exist. For this function there are some tools that can facilitate the testing process, such as SEO Spider by Screaming Frog, which is used to review and identify the flaws that harm its performance in search engines. This can save a lot of time since manual page-by-page review can become very tedious. Do not forget to review very well all the metatitles and descriptions of each page, and remember that even the same order of the words has its importance, and can affect the performance of our website in search engines.
6. Operate, maintain and evaluate: At this stage the website is constantly being maintained for possible improvements. Performance reports are sought to ensure that the website is a success. A quality image that attracts and informs the user will not only give your website a professional appearance, but will also serve as a springboard when it comes to making yourself known.
Marketing: Once the web is published you have to get down to work and do marketing. Work hard on the SEO of the portal so that it is positioned correctly in search engines, disseminate on social networks (Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin), pamper the content, update the portal daily, etc. Having a quality and updated corporate website is essential to position yourself in the market, make yourself known, get customers, improve your reputation and, ultimately, sell your products or services and earn money.
Understanding this process, it should be clarified that although it is a complex methodology, the truth is that thanks to the categorization of each step to be carried out we will be able to enjoy a final product of much higher quality than the projects launched in an anarchic way, without a clear process of realization.