Web Design vs. Web Development

Looking to create or update your small business website? You’re probably shopping around for different professionals who can get the job done for you and will no doubt hear the terms “web design” and “web development”. Both are equally important, but are they one in the same? Are they completely different? The answer is they are kind of like a married couple: you almost always see them together and associate the two as one entity, but they are two distinct areas. However, they work best when they are together.

Web design is the customer-facing part of the website. It is concerned with the look and feel—colors, layout, logos, and text—as well as usability, or how easy it is for customers to navigate and do things on the site. Often web designers have graphic design, photo editing, content writing, and search engine optimization skills. They also need to keep up with web accessibility guidelines, which change with trends, technology, and software updates. Web designers also consider things such as making clickable areas large enough to adapt to the precision of the user’s mouse, putting captions on videos for users hard of hearing, and using clear language and instructional graphics so people can easily understand content. Web development is the back-end of the websites—the “nitty-gritty” stuff such as programming, coding, scripts, and forms. Web developers need to know all the web “languages” such as HTML, CSS, and PHP. This part of the website creation process is all about how to keep a site running effectively and making sure visitors can do what they need to do on the website.

As said, the two go together in almost every case. Web designers need to know programming and techniques to ensure functionality and web developers need to know about graphic design, photo editing, creating layouts, and more. To someone outside of website creation professions, all they really need to know is that these two terms are both important and both necessary for a successful website.

 

Beyond Custom Websites has a team of experts who cover every aspect of both web design and development with every small business website we create. But we don’t stop there—the team at Beyond Custom Websites offers marketing expertise, technical support, and unlimited updates and changes to your website with us. Our goals is to get small businesses found online and deliver an original, highly functioning site that will increase sales and get you results. Find out more on our website.

Does Your Website Need a Makeover?

So your small business has a website—it has for quite a while now. Lately, however, you may have noticed less traffic and when you visit your site, the feeling you get is more irksome than inspiring. You may be scratching your head and wondering: does your site need a simple update or is it time for a redesign? Does your website need a makeover?

If you are considering a fresh start, here are some points to help you finalize your decision. Does your website function fully on mobile devices such as smart phones and tablets? Do you have a mobile version of your site? With more and people accessing the web from everywhere but their computer, it’s important to be visible on the mobile web to reach a wider audience. Some companies don’t make even small updates to their website because it is difficult to do. Whether than means you don’t have the time, you don’t have the knowledge or access to complete these updates, or any other reason, it’s best to figure out why and then obtain the resources to make these updates. Website features such as buttons, external links, and videos are great for dynamic customer interaction. However, they need updating to stay current and function optimally. If a major feature on your website no longer works or takes the user to a broken link, they are no longer beneficial to your website.

When you type your URL into your browser, how long does it take to load? If the answer is more than a few seconds, you may want to rethink the structure of the content. Internet providers do have data storage limits and the more balance your site has between rich content and efficient storage space, the better. How about elements of your site which lead to an error message when clicked on? While these issues are usually easy to fix, it could indicate a space that needs better organizing. Finally, internet users will look at the copyright date in the header or footer. Does it read 2011 or earlier? If so, this suggests you don’t update your site often and the site begins to lose credibility.

Beyond Custom Websites assists all types of small businesses with the redesign of their existing website. We can work with you to pinpoint any issues your site may have while retaining unique and effective elements for your redesigned site. Our team of web developers, graphic designers, copywriters, and marketing experts can not only give your website a fresh, cutting-edge new look, but also maximize its usability for 2013. Beyond Custom Websites designs new and updated websites that are search engine friendly and completely customized to the customer’s specific vision. Redesigning your website will give your customers a new perspective on your business and increase your profitability. See what we’re all about-we are excited to work with you.