This is Part 2 of my Q & A with Joshua Lomelino discussing the Web design process. I wanted to post in two parts, but it’s so long that I decided to make it three. I hope you enjoy it.
How do you prefer to visualize conceptual models in an interface design?
Lets break down my personal process:
wireframes > digital comps > finished home page, secondary and sometimes tertiary page designs > HTML markups
The client reviews the marked up site on our test server and gives the final approval. I sometimes do sketches but not always. I can’t stress the importance of wireframes enough…especially when designing large sites with lots of content. They can save a lot of headache and a lot of time. This is a great article regarding wireframes: http://buildinternet.com/2009/09/why-your-next-website-should-be-designed-with-wireframes/
Though it doesn’t happen often we’ve had clients that have approved everything: wireframes, sketches, jpeg mock ups…and have gotten to the fully and completely built out site on our server, and before we go live say, “This is a good start, but…”
What do you find are the most difficult milestones to meet with clients when establishing a visual identity for a company and for their website? Are there strategies you find helpful?
We do a fair amount of identity development and the kinds of clients we serve are varied. It’s hard to have a single process that applies to every client when everyone we do business with has a unique situation. We have developed identity design briefs that we ask each client to fill out. These briefs contain around 10 questions and serve to inform us of the clients history, their biggest competitor and what they would like to see happen with their business in a given timetable. The briefs really give us a glimpse of the personality of the clients business, which we’ll then craft into a brand. I think some of the most difficult situations arise when the client hasn’t already identified some of these key components.
Once the logo, colors, fonts, logo placement standards and printing substrates have all been decided on, we’ll begin working on the clients web design. Keep in mind that when sending web comps, some clients will take what they see literally. If you’ve used lorem ipsum to fill in some space, make sure they know it’s just filler text because they may ask why their site is in French (it’s happened).
At the start of a project, do you design more than one visual interface design to help the flow of ideas?
That really depends on the client. We have our clients fill out a web design brief (very similar to our identity briefs) which consists of questions that help them identity their goals but also helps to dictate the design process. Sometimes the project will require several different design examples and, sometimes, a client needs us to guide their decision making process a little more than usual, which means we offer one interface design and explain why it’s the best solution.
