In terms of web development, how do people tend to go about formulating their designs? Are people generally just good at thinking this shit up? I like the coding side of development, but I haven't got an artistic bone in me and find it difficult to create decent looking pages.
I'm currently working on a little site for my uncle's business and, as a complete technophobe, he's given me no real ideas about how he wants it to look.
Are there any sites out there that people use for ideas/inspiration when it comes to design? Or it it just a case of needing that artistic nature that I haven't got?
DH, I saw something on here earlier that gave me the impression you're from Derry - is that right? There's a chance I could be moving over there in the not too distant future. What are the chances of letting me do some unpaid shadowing for a bit?
AJ, I'm actually from Sion Mills about 15 mile away and work in Omagh about 30 miles from Derry.
I can give you pointers on here no problems though.
I always start my projects with a questionnaire to find out functionality and style. The most important questions I find design wise are as follows:
- Who are your competitors? - This is a good way to find out what they are doing, try then to start thinking about differentiation to stand out from them.
- Have you seen any sites you've liked the look off and what aspects did you like? - This will give you a frame of reference, this isn't a license to go out and copy the other sites.
- what sites don't you like? - People often find it easier to tell you what they don't like, this question and the last attack the problem from both ends to whittle down potential styles.
- Have you any Colour Schemes you prefer? - Again this narrows down the guess work, if they give you a free hand look again at their competitors sites and try to stand out from them.
Once you have all the info you need either start your design or if you're still lacking ideas the search the web for stuff like "Beautiful web design", "beautiful packaging design" or "Beautiful print design", inspiration comes from all places, if you're using Google limit your search back to the start of the current year.
Something to keep in mind when designing, is this site going to date badly (this can affect you ability to showcase it in your portfolio in a years time), things that can affect this are:
Do I want a 'pure digital' design which has no faux textures or no button elements that mimic real life counterparts (See Windows 8 or Windows Phone 7) or should I go down the opposite path or "skeuomorphism" as it's not so kindly know (see Apple IOS apps) and have a calendar that looks like a calendar in real life and a faux glass menu bar.
Again it's trying to listen to your client but also putting your own slant on it, I always start with a "Design first" attitude, then I make usability and functionality fit into my idea, this doesn't mean they come second fiddle but that you can still offer great functionality and usability without compromising design.
The way I look at it's like this, the first thing you notice about anything in life is how it looks, then how it feels and finally long-term satisfaction.
Take a car for instance, you own a Aston Martin garage and have the latest DB9 out front, it looks fucking spectacular, you draw your first customer, they get inside and it's plush interior makes them want to melt and everything is right there on the dash, then finally they take it for a spin and find that the clutch is too heavy and the pedals are offset a little which makes it very uncomfortable to drive, boom! you've lost the sale.
The same goes for web design, you need to get all three components right, even if one of them is off then it could cost you a sale, but you can take heart because they at least they came into your garage and got into the car, they totally ignored the Lada garage next door because they just didn't like the look of it.
This applies to women, men, houses, hotels, food etc
I hope this kinda makes sense, if not let me know and I'll see how I can better explain it.