How to hire a website designer

Hiring a web design company can be a daunting task. Here are three steps to make it a little easier.

The Planning

• What are your internet goals. Setting your objectives is the foundation of any project and creating a web site is no exception.
• Create a "must have" list. For example it may be really important that your site include a blog or that it is configured so you can maintain it yourself.
• Got some ideas on the architecture of your site? Get out a pad of paper and pencil and create a rough sketch
• Don't be intimidated to do a little research, e.g Check  Godaddy to see if can you get the domain name you want.
• Get online and start browsing, bookmark sites you like, they don't have to be in the same sector as your business or organization but this exercise will help determine what appeals to you and also enable to articulate your design preferences.
• Check out your competition

The Search

• Try a simple Google search for your area. Here are the results for St Louis web design.
  
• Word of mouth, ask members of your business network if there is anyone they can recommend.
• Found a web site you really like? Very often a web design company will have a simple link at the bottom of the site directing visitors to their web site.
• Draw up a shortlist of design companies you would be interested in meeting.

The Meeting

• Arrange to meet three design companies.
• The research you have already done will put you in a great position to talk about the specifics of your project.
• Do they seek to understand your business?
• Are they goal/objective driven?
• Do they listen?
• Ask to see a portfolio of their work. Does it show a diversity of style or does everything look the same? 
• Do they know their limits or will they try and sell you "everything"
• Discuss the creative process they follow. Is it flexible?
• Do they seem like a good fit for your project, do you feel a connection?
• Will you enjoy working with them?
• Ask them to put together a comprehensive web design proposal which outlines all the specifics of your project, pricing and terms and conditions.

You're Hired!

The contract is signed, the deposit  paid and the project  is well underway. Is it time to site back and relax? Next time I will talk about how to work with your web designer.

2010 © St Louis Web Designer

Color palettes and web design

Last week I talked about  how color can be used in website design.

Quick pop quiz. What do the follow three web sites have in common?



The answer is ORANGE

Does the use of orange in these designs conjure up the same emotions or associations?  Lets take a look at a breakdown of their color palettes.



The color palette used in this site results in a cozy and friendly feeling. The use of orange here really adds warmth.


Teaming orange with cool blues produces an invigorating pop which not only helps guide the eye but also adds an element of energy.



Here again orange has been teamed with blue but in this case the use of yellow and orange adds a sense of friendliness and approachability.

So three designs and three different emotions, warm and friendly, invigorating and approachable.


2010 © St Louis Web Designer

The uses of color in web design

Color is one of the most important tools in a web designers tool box. It happens to be one of my favorite.

The uses of Color: Define: Engage : Differentiate

Color can can be used to define, think of brands like T Mobile (they have a trademark for Magenta) , UPS ( What can brown do for you) and our very own Indigo Image.



It can be used to engage - look at these example of call to action elements.




And can be used to differentiate, look how the use of color on this web site is tied into the navigation.



Colors are also associated with different emotions and meanings but interestingly these emotions can change depending on the palette in which they are used.

Stay tuned for more about color palettes next time.

2010 © St Louis Web Designer