Web design (or website design) is a process the usually goes through each of the following stages:

• project brief
• web design quotation
• design research
• graphic design
• construction
• live website

For a guide to understanding different types of websites (such as CMS and eCommerce) read Different Types of Websites Explained.

Project Brief

A project brief is a general overview of a web design project. The brief describes what you want the website to look like and what you want the website to do. For example a brief might refer to a few existing websites for design reference and provide a step by step description of how a person might interact with the website.

To learn more about writing project briefs read How to Write the Perfect Design Brief.

Web Design Quotation

Finding, comparing and choosing web design quotes can be a long and complicated process. First you need to spend some time looking for companies, submit your brief to each of them, wait for the design quotations to be sent back and finally decide which company you want to use.

Here are three simple guidelines to keep the process running smoothly:

1. Detailed design briefs equal accurate web design prices.
2. Face to face meetings clear up information much more quickly than email.
3. A web design portfolio is essential for evaluating each company.

If you are unsure about what to talk about in a face to face meeting or how to interview web designers read our guide How to Interview Designers.

If you want to skip the finding part of getting web design quotations, get your quotes from Design Quotes. Just enter your criteria and the number of quotes you want to receive and you are matched with the best designers in your area.

Another useful resource is Web Design Buyer's Guide: Comparing Design Quotes.

Design Research

The first thing a graphic designer or web designer will do is research the design. This usually starts with the project brief. The designer will try to understand what 'elements' are required and what the competition is doing so he/she can set your design apart from the rest.

Elements include:

• Style (grungy, clean, photographic, illustrated)
• Navigation (horizontal menu, vertical menu, drop down menu)
• Layout (number of columns, number of rows, alignment)

The main benefit of the research for you is that it ensures that you and the designer have the same idea about what will be made.

A very useful resource for design inspiration is Pattern Tap. This can be used when creating the project brief.

Graphic Design

This is the most creative stage of the web design process. A graphic designer will typically use high-end software like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator to create a static (non-interactive) version of the website interface. Using the brief and the research, the designer puts theory into practice. Once the designer has completed the graphical aspects, he/she will usually submit a static preview to you for review and feedback. The number of reviews allowed is usually defined in the your design quote.

Construction

This is the most technical stage of the web design process. This stage requires programmers to turn the raw graphic design into a working interactive website. There are many different ways to constuct a website and every web browser (such as Microsoft's Internet Explorer and Mozilla's Firefox) open websites differently. It is important to tell the designers early on that what level of compatibility you want. Depending on the type of website you are buying will dramatically affect this stage. A CMS project or eCommerce project for example will cause this stage of the project to take longer and cost more because the software has to been adapted for the interface design.

Live Website

Once the website is constructed it is then uploaded to a 'website hosting space'. Website hosting is a bit like renting land and the house build on that land is your website.  You pay a monthly fee for website hosting which allows people to access your website via the world wide web. Web designers usually have a partnership with one of more website hosting providers and will happily guide you through this process.

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Resources

• Different Types of Websites Explained
• How to Write the Perfect Design Brief
• How to Interview Designers
• Web Design Buyer's Guide: Comparing Design Quotes
• Pattern Tap - Design Inspiration