Category Archives for "Website Design"

Planning Your Pages

This is the sixth post in a sequence about working with your web consultant or designer to build your site.  Today we’ll have a look at the pages you need to post from the outset.

Normally, your designer will discuss this early in your site planning and so at this stage, you will already have a plan for the first site layout.  It is easy to change the layout with WordPress and so you are not stuck with the same page structure for all time.  But if you want to get a basic site online, you will need this early plan.

If you have not already done so, you need to map out the site pages.  You may consider the following, for your first site:

  • Home page – your chosen theme may decide your home page content.  So, its worth having an idea of the content for the home page before you choose the theme.
  • About page – WordPress provides a sample About page, so you need to decide whether you want to keep it and if so what you want to put on it.
  • You will have some pages that contain your site content.  Remember the rule is one topic per page.  Don’t overload pages with masses of information across a range of subjects.  You may have pages about resources, links, products, services, causes, etc.
  • Contact page may be helpful especially if you want to show a map or photographs.  If you have a small amount of contact information, you might put it in the footer.  Most people know to look there but it’s possible some visitors won’t scroll down to find it.

You can create a wireframe, showing the site structure.  This is a diagram showing how the pages relate to each other.  Some pages will be in submenus within your navigation.

If you plan pages in advance, you can work on the content whilst your designer sets up the site.  Your designer is likely to want to create placeholder pages so that s/he can set up the navigation.  You really don’t want empty pages.  Your designer could at this stage show you how to create pages and add in your content.  If you work alongside your designer you can ask for feedback as the site develops.

So, have I missed any common page types for an initial site?  I have omitted the page-types I’ve covered in the sequence about the hidden life of websites, as they are likely to be added later.

What to Put in Your Header

Once you’ve chosen your theme you can turn your attention to the site header.

There are two approaches to your header in WordPress.  A site title and tagline on a solid colour background, although it is possible to use a gradient if your designer understands CSS.

Or else you can install a Photoshop header image.  This goes over the header and so you can’t see the title and tagline, unless you add them to the image.

Remember the site theme will decide the size of the header image and so if you have an attractive idea you need to check it fits into the space the theme allows.

Choosing Your Title and Tagline

The site title will normally be the name of your organisation.  The tagline is useful because it is an opportunity to tell the visitor what the site is about.  To start with it reads “Just another WordPress site”.  To change it you go into Settings and General.  There you can change both the title and the tagline.

Normally you know the name of your organisation and so the title is straightforward.  It is worth giving some thought to a suitable tagline.

What can you say that will tell the right visitors they are in the right place?  Take a look at my tagline above.  What do you think?  What does it say to you?

Choose Your Site’s Theme

So, you’ve set up your content management system (cms).  I’m going to assume you’ve chosen WordPress but this post applies to any cms.  For WordPress you can view your site on  “www.domainname.com” (OK maybe not .com but you get the idea).  To log in to the site and visit behind the scenes, go to “www.domainname.com/wp-login.php” or click on the link on the page you see with the first url.

The real headache starts here.  Choosing a theme.  Why do you need a theme?  It determines the look of the site.  You can do anything with a basic theme if you understand html, css and php.  Your website designer will and if you pay them a small fortune they might be able to come up with something that exactly matches your requirements.

The chances are you can spend your money on better things and so you and your designer need to choose a theme.  Most people’s experience is they have a website with massive functionality and once they lay a theme on top, whilst the functionality is still there, it’s a bit like painting your entrance hall through the letter box.

Theme descriptions are often not brilliant and omit to tell you something really important which you discover only once you download the theme.  This is OK if it is a free theme but if you’ve paid for it, it can be frustrating.  Why pay for a premium theme?  Here are some reasons to consider it (they are usually not terrifically expensive):

  • They enable you to change more things than free themes allow.  Of course this is a matter of degree.  Some free themes  allow you to change more things than others and some premium themes can be really frustrating.
  • Apparently premium themes allow you more plug-ins.  I suspect this is a fairly marginal issue these days.
  • Some premium themes offer more security and help with seo.  I like the Genesis themes from StudioPress and usually recommend them to my clients.

If the look of the site is really important and funds are limited, you need a designer who knows something about themes.  If it’s not so crucial, choose one you like (or agree with your designer) and crack on with it.  Life is too short to mess about.

Can you recommend good WordPress themes?  Why do you like them?  What do you find most frustrating about theme descriptions?

Set Up Your Content Management System

Once you have chosen your domain name, the next step is to set up your content management system (cms).  Your web designer or consultant may have a cms they favour.  You need to check out a few things about it.

  1. Will it be easy to change to another designer in the future?  If the cms is something your designer has sole access to or it’s not well-known, a change may be difficult.  There may be a number of reasons you will need to change designer and not all of them because you lose faith in your designer.  Ultimately you need to know you control your site.
  2. Is the cms likely to be around for the foreseeable future?  If it belongs to a company, how likely is it the company will be around in a few years?
  3. What are the costs for now and in the future?
  4. How easy will it be to add content yourself?
  5. What if you wish to extend your site’s functionality ?  Are you confident you will be able to extend it in five years time?

WordPress

I recommend WordPress because it is open source (which means it is not dependent on a single company) and offers you loads of potential functionality.   It is well-known should you need help from other sources after your contract with your designer is over.

For the rest of this series I shall assume you are using WordPress.  The next question is WordPress.org or WordPress.com?

If you have a designer, then opt for .org because it has extended functionality.  WordPress.com is really a blog; if you are on your own it is easier to set up but doesn’t have the potential for expansion of .org.  You can assign your domain name to it.

Your designer will help you purchase a host and domain name for your site if you choose .org.

Remember if you take this route you will need to renew your host and domain name, usually once a year. Failure to do this will jeopardise your site.  Some designers look after your site for you but remember you may have difficulties if you want to change designer in the future.

Remember to discuss these issues with your designer before s/he makes a start.

What cms do you use?  Do you have a cms other than WordPress you recommend?  Why?

On the Naming of Sites

Last Thursday I introduced a sequence about how to manage your website designer or consultant as they help you develop your site.  An early decision, in any new relationship with a designer, is the naming of sites.

So, you know what you want from your new web presence and you’re planning to set up a website?  Don’t let your designer name the site – it is your decision.

Your aim is to choose a domain name, the address visitors type into their browser to find your site.

So, here are some things to consider:

  • Your site can be named in a way that clearly states what you offer, eg forumhousecommunityforum.org might be a good name for Forum House Community Forum.  That is if this domain name is available.  This is known as a literal name.
  • You can equally choose a brand name.  This creates an impression but does not give much away about your offer, eg Panthers21, where “Panthers” has local significance around Forum House and 21 might be from the postcode.  Again check the domain name is available.
  • Whatever you choose, use conventional spelling.  Panferz21 might make sense locally but what will people write if you say it?  It’s bad enough having to say “forumhousecommunityforum is all one word in lower case” without having to spell it out as well!  Whilst people are aware of this type of thing, there is still plenty of scope for confusion – minimise it!
  • Keep it short!  If you go for my example for Forum House, why not simply forumhouse.com?  It saves typing, is easier to remember and maybe more likely to appear in search results.  That is assuming the domain name is available.
  • Make sure when you scrunch word together you don’t inadvertently create something hilarious or offensive.
  • You also need to think about your domain extension.  If you are trading .com is probably best, if not try .org.  If you are in the uk you might consider adding .uk to the end, thus .org.uk !  There are other options but most people won’t think to try them if they forget the extension.  And some are a bit iffy for search engines.
  • Your domain name will help people search for the site when they know its name.  Don’t confuse your domain name with the keywords you use for search engine optimisation, these are the words people use when they don’t know your domain name, to find your site.  Another topic altogether!

Don’t forget you hire domain names and pay a fee every year.  They’re not terrifically expensive, usually under £15 and the extensions make a bit of a difference.  And don’t forget to renew it – if you don’t want to lose your site!

Website domain name disasters – any offers?  Examples of where things have gone wrong, that we can learn from might be helpful.

Designer or Consultant?

In this new sequence, I’ll show you how to manage your relationship with a website designer or consultant.

When you set up your web presence you have three options:

  1. Do it yourself.  If you understand the basics, eg html and css, it isn’t difficult to do it yourself, with packages such as WordPress.  If you have time and patience, the big advantage is you are not paying someone.  However, no-one knows everything and you will inevitably find you need help with something!
  2. If you know what your site will do for you but want to save time, then hire a designer.  You need to manage this relationship.  Some designers have a lot of experience and can deliver to a clear remit with minimal oversight.  Third sector, designers can lack experience, working for next to nothing; they understand how things work but not necessarily how to design a web presence that does the job.  Someone with limited experience may be able to help but will need supervision.  To supervise effectively you need to understand what’s involved.
  3. If you are not sure what you need or what your web presence can do for your organisation, you need a consultant.

The many online guides for people who set up their own websites cover option 1.  This sequence is going to equip you with the basic technical knowledge you need for options 2 and 3.  Third sector organisations may find with professional help they can do a lot of the work in-house. So, this information may help with option 1 as well!

Which do You Need?

If you employ an experienced designer or consultant they guide you through the steps. It is helpful to have some  understanding of their role.  If a website designer has technical knowledge only, the initiative is with you to guide creation of your web presence.

My sequence about consultancy will help you understand more about the role of the consultant and consultor.  These new Thursday posts will introduce you to the technical knowledge you need to guide an inexperienced designer or work more productively with an experienced designer or consultant.

Design is a species of consultancy.  Not all designers necessarily see it that way.  In conversation you will find your ideas change and develop but you may find you need to steer the design process to do what you need.  Equally not all consultants are necessarily brilliant at all aspects of technique.  They can help you work out what is and is not possible online and help with design details.

The Difference

It is not always clear-cut but consultants help you solve problems – this is what I want to do in real life, how can my web presence help? – whereas designers find the best solution to an agreed plan.  So a consultant might help you work out what you need from a WordPress theme, a designer will find the best theme and adapt it to meet your needs.  Sometimes the same person does both.

You need to understand your designer or consultant’s offer, their strengths and weaknesses and manage your relationship accordingly.

So, for this sequence I shall assume you know what you want.  There may be some choices to make and you will change your mind as your web presence develops but you are crystal clear about your requirements.  This is probably never true in real life but the assumption will enable me to focus on the technical issues.  I’ll deal with other issues elsewhere.

What have you found to be most problematic about your relationships with web designers or consultants?  What are the marks of a good relationship?

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