Website Goals = Website Appearance

How Your Website's Goal Determines Its' Appearance

Before you talk about the specifics of what your site should look like with your web designer, determine what it is you want to accomplish with your web page. Web designers typically charge a consultation fee for the initial meeting, understanding your own needs and having an idea of the aesthetics of the site prior to this meeting will save you money in the long run as well as speed up the graphic design process. It is important to stress this order of process, being that once you have an intended goal, the aesthetic part of your site will fall into place. There are three basic types of sites, each accomplishing a different feat, understanding what the three categories are is step one:

1. Information-Sharing: This is the simplest of websites and is generally formed using a template. These sites are smaller in length (three to six pages) and are text plus your company's logo. These pages are the least expensive and most "generic" looking, sometimes being called "cookie-cutter" pages.   Goal: Provide a lot of text based information.

2. Showcase Sites: As their title reads, these sites serve to showcase a product, or service. This site can also be done through a template however it is not necessary. These sites have a heavy image presence and sometimes are done using flash web design. This type of site is very customizable. Goal: Show through images what a company offers.

3. Ecommerce Web Design: Of the three site types mentioned, ecommerce sites are the most complex. These sites allow you to track inventory, manage products and sell directly to your clients. These sites can also be template based, but will require lots of customization and are the more expensive site option. Goal: Directly sell to clients.

Plainly put, a company's website goals will impact the appearance of the website. Before talking with a web designer, determine these website goals. Your web developer is not a mind reader and will not know what best serves your company's needs. That being said, your designer can provide you with ideas to better promote your goals but your company goals are your own.  Also something worth considering when selecting a designer is their familiarity with the type of site you are selecting. If you are in favor of a flash based site or an ecommerce website, the more complicated sites of the three, your web developer should have experience with that specific website type.

Monique L. Myers is a writer, surf instructor and an art enthusiast based in San Diego, California. She writes extensively for Resource Nation, an online resource that provides expert advice on purchasing and outsourcing decisions for small business owners and entrepreneurs.