5 things every web designer should know
The website project you’ve been working on for the last four months has finally come to a wrap. All of the blood, sweat and pixels you put into the project have finally culminated into something you can be proud of. You can put down your Wacom pen and your text editor and step away from the Mountain Dew. It’s a good feeling, but what can you do to make things go smoother next time?
I’ve been in the web design racket a long time. I’ve done the freelance thing, worked for agencies and now run a firm with my partner Lauren. Here are 5 key things I’ve learned along the way, that I hope will be helpful in your next project.
1. It’s going to cost more and take longer than your client expects
I’m starting with this, because if you can’t close the deal, well the rest is irrelevant. In all the time I’ve spent working as a web designer, I’ve only encountered 3 clients who had realistic expectations about cost and time. Everybody wants everything cheap and they want it yesterday. If you’ve every designed a website for anyone, I’m sure you know this all to well. Knowing how to handle the unrealistic expectations of a client will make or break you in this business.
I got into web design because I enjoy design and I’m pretty good at it, but it didn’t take me long, working as a freelancer, to realize you really need to be a salesman to make it in this industry. Clients don’t always know what to expect when hiring a web designer. It may be their first time or they may have formed expectations after working with another designer who didn’t know how to sell himself/herself. Either way, you need to know what you have to offer and why things will take and cost what quote. My experience is that most clients just don’t know what to expect and if you explain things to them realistically, everyone is better off. The key thing is not to cut corners and make promises you can’t keep. Nobody wins that way. If you want some tips, Andrew Neitlich sums this up very nicely in this article.
2. Know what your client wants
I’ve found it to be a fifty-fifty split. Half the time the client knows what he or she wants and half the time the client only thinks they do. It is your job as the designer to provide direction. The key is research, research, research.
- Find out who your clients target user is
- Find out what terms they search for
- Find out what they expect from the services.
If you know this, you’ll be able to give advise.
3. You are the expert, so Act like one
One of the most important things I learned doing freelance was that you have to act the way you want to be teated. You are an expert in your field. Act like one and your clients will respect you. Don’t let clients push you around. It’s important to hear them out. After all, they are experts in their field. But when it comes down to it, stick to you guns. If you think something’s a bad idea, tell them and tell them why.
4. Get specific
A vague wish list from the client isn’t going to cut it. Have a goal for every page. Rachel McAlpine said it best, clients all want the same things: more traffic, more action, more customers and more income.
Having a goal for every page helps everyone. It helps you as a designer, by giving you a better sense of the whole and it helps the client, well, in the obvious way. Take the extra time when meeting with the client, to cover the fine points. This pays off in a huge way and ends up saving you time.
5. Resources are the cat’s pajamas (this part is fun)
Having a good arsenal web design and development resources is crucial. Well, maybe not. But, it mighty useful and usually fun. Here is a list of some of my favorites (and I really had to force myself not to put this at the top of the list).
First up, browsershots.org. Browsershots is an online application that takes screenshots of your website, on multiple platforms, in multiple browsers. Check this out.
Next up is 256 Pixels. This tool is actually intended to help in designing favicon icons, but I’ve found it a very useful color palette tool. Ever want a detailed, pixel by pixel color map of an image you’re working on? This tool does just that.
And following that, we have ColorBlender and Color Palette Generator, both splendid color palette tools.
