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March 5, 2010

How To Utilize The Difference Between Web Design And Web Development Effectively

by Adriana Noton

Many people are interested in using the Internet to promote their business. Knowing the difference between web design and web development is important because while the terms are often used in place of one another, they are two very different things. Being able to speak with the people who are creating your website and use the proper terms can help reduce misunderstandings and speed up the creation process.

There are many times that people will use the two terms when they are discussing the progress of their website. They may talk about design when they mean development. It will probably not hurt the overall site building process if you use design when you mean development but it is always good if you understand the difference so that you can speak about the process properly. It can also help you to outline where any issues or problems have occurred since the issues surrounding design can be very different than those surrounding development.

Web design involves the way the website looks. Each website has a different feel and should stand out and be memorable for your customers. You want to make sure that different design elements such as color, font size and style and the position of images and text all work together to create a website that looks professional.

You may think that a website that is simple may look plain but often it can look quite professional. When you are undergoing the web design portion of your site building, you should be able to give the designer an idea of what you like and what you do not. Often, a designer will give you mock-ups or samples of what your site will look like. You can then approve a design or refine what the designer is trying to do so that you get a site that you can be truly happy with.

Web development however tends to deal more with the way the site works. This is also referred to as the back end of a website. You want to make sure that your site works well in that you want to make sure that you can navigate from one page to another easily, that the links work and that the images used will load properly and consistently.

This can mean that some images will not appear or it may not load at all. This can be devastating for a business that is relying on its website to sell products or services. If a website takes too long to load, customers with a slow Internet speed may take too long to load and possible customers may go elsewhere for their goods and services.

Experience is important when it comes to selecting the company that will create your site. If you can, make sure that you have one where there is both a designer and a developer on staff. This means that sound design principals can be used in order to make a beautiful looking site and the development staff can programming things properly so that everything works as it should.

The right company can mean the difference between a site which attracts customers and a site which can actually drive them away. By understanding the importance of both web design and web development you stand a better chance of getting that seamless and visually beautiful website you have always wanted.

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