The Role of Web Designers in Creating Powerful Online Experiences
What do web designers do? They can be described as the creative architects behind visually appealing and functional websites. Their work requires a unique blend of artistic creativity and technical expertise. It’s the job of a web designer to combine elements such as layout, colour schemes, typography, and user experience to deliver engaging online experiences for visitors to the site.
Why use web designers? They’re trained to clearly communicate your brand’s message, enhance user interactions, and optimise your website’s performance. While creating your own website may seem an option, partnering with a professional web designer ensures a professional online presence that captures your business’s essence and engages your target audience.
What Do Web Designers Do?
Web designers will make decisions relating to both the broad strokes and finer details of creating a successful website. Usually, businesses depend on them to decide on the structure of the site, and the menus that will allow visitors to navigate it. They will also deal with the fine detail, including the choice of colours, fonts, and graphics. Combining vision, and detail to align with business goals, is what makes web designers worth your investment.
There are 6 distinct functions that a web designer fulfils, each one involving different skills:
- Understanding the business and the brand.
- Finding an aesthetic that reflects the brand.
- Developing the site’s structure and navigation.
- Designing the layout, colour scheme and graphics.
- Optimising the site for search engine success.
- Testing the site and handover.
1. Understanding the Business and the Brand
Taking time to understand a client’s business allows web designers to align the web design with their specific goals, target audience, and brand identity. By carrying out a competitor analysis, web designers can create a website that effectively communicates the business’s message, engages the intended audience, and drives conversions. These insights mean that the design and user experience of the website are anchored to the business being represented.
2. Finding An Aesthetic That Reflects The Brand
Imagefix web designers start by selecting a theme which allows clients to get a clear idea of what their site will look like early on. We use WordPress themes which provide a foundation for creating custom websites. These themes offer templates and layouts that are customised to match a brand’s unique style and requirements.
WordPress has a massive library of theme options available, which can be tailored to your business using custom colours, fonts, and page layouts. This flexibility allows designers to create visually appealing and functional websites while still maintaining the benefits of the WordPress platform, which include ease of use, scalability, and plugin compatibility.
3. Developing The Site’s Structure and Navigation
When deciding on a site structure, web designers consider the website’s business goals, content organisation, and user experience. They work with the client to understand the target audience’s preferences and expectations.
Designers create menus that provide the most logical and intuitive navigation paths. They also prioritise simplicity and clarity, keeping the navigation consistent and concise. Through strategic placement of menus, and search functionality, they ensure easy access to for customers to the information they are looking for.
4. Designing the Layout, Colour Scheme and Graphics
By employing design principles and a knowledge of UX (user experience), web designers create layouts that guide users’ attention and facilitate seamless interactions. Colour schemes are chosen to guide the visitors’ emotions and align with the brand’s personality.
Graphics, such as images, icons, and illustrations, are carefully selected to enhance visual appeal and convey information clearly. Web designers seek to balance aesthetics and usability, to enhance the website’s overall design, engage users, and align the site with the business’ goals.
5. Optimising the Site For Search Engine Success
Search engine optimisation improves search engine rankings and increases the visibility and organic traffic to the website. This is achieved by optimising page loading speed, improving website navigation, and enhancing mobile friendliness. By utilising proper heading hierarchy, descriptive alt tags for images, and logical site architecture, they make the website more accessible and understandable for search engines.
An SEO website is often described as ‘Google-ready’, or ‘Google-friendly’.
6. Testing the Site and Handover
Web designers carry out a number of tests to ensure a high-quality website before handing it over to the client.
- Functional Testing. Verifying that all interactive elements, forms, and navigation function correctly across different devices and browsers.
- Usability Testing. Identifying any usability issues and gathering user feedback for improvements.
- Cross-Device Testing. Ensuring consistent performance and display across platforms.
Additionally, web designers review the site for proper content alignment, typography, and visual consistency. Once testing is complete, they provide the client with a comprehensive handover package, including all relevant files, and documentation, Imagefix also provides training for adding pages or changing the web content.
Working With Imagefix Web Designers
At Imagefix, our clients benefit from a comprehensive web design experience without the need for external developers. As a full-service web design agency, we offer all the necessary resources to establish your online presence. Our team is not only friendly and motivated but also readily available to address any queries or provide guidance throughout the process. With our expertise and support, you can confidently launch your website and enjoy a seamless journey from start to finish.
We hope we’ve answered the question ‘what do web designers do?’ for you. If you would like to talk to one of our web design team about a new website, give us a call today on 01525 715608.
