Web design has truly transformed the way we consume content on the internet. Web design has significantly evolved in its over thirty years of existence. And web designers have over that period picked up one or two lessons that remain valuable to web designers today. If you are designing sites for a living, we’ll show you some of the lessons that you may find valuable.
1. Learn to adapt
The progress of web design is an ongoing process. Any web designers who want to make something for himself/herself in the web design industry need to learn how to adapt to any web design changes that come along the way. For instance, the rise of mobile devices has made SketchCorp. Website Development experts learn how to make sites more mobile-friendly. With more businesses requiring mobile-friendly websites, being able to create this will boost your web design career or business.
2. Communication is important
Miscommunications and lack of communication can destroy an entire web design project. As a web designer, explaining your clients’ involvement and feedback at every step of the project is important. Several clients tend to be vocal and involved at the beginning of a project, but as the project progress, they can become distant and gradually quiet. And this silent usually leads you to believe that everything is going well with the project, until the end when the client shows up with several lists of things to edit.
It is important at the beginning of the project to explain to your client that you will need consistent communication from their end during the course of the entire project. From issues as little as color combinations to matter as big as billings, constant communication will help create a better result within a limited time.
3. Don’t be a ”Yes Man.”
Though you are being paid by a client to design his/her website, you are not doing yourself or your client any favor by agreeing with every single thing he/she asks for. Don’t forget that you were hired because you are the expert. However, that doesn’t mean you have to disagree with everything your client suggests; you are working on their website after all.
That being said, you are the expert who has to decide if your client’s suggestion will work. In case you think it won’t work, you need to be honest and have the confidence to tell him/her what you have in mind. Note, you can consider your client’s ideas, but the degree to which you integrate them depends on you.
4. Let your client understand that you are a creative professional.
It is important to make your client understand that you are a professional in your industry. Most people don’t tell their lawyers or doctors how to do their jobs because they understand that the lawyers and doctors know more about their respective jobs than they do. However, when it comes to web designers, this seems to change. A lot of clients think that being able to surf the web qualifies then to make web design decisions.
Due to this false-perception, several clients often take web designers as laborers who are there to do their bidding, and not as creative professionals. This is especially the case with freelance web designers, with their clients believing since they don’t own an office, they don’t have work hours. It is important to educate this kind of clients so as to establish a respectful work relationship.
5. Make sure your rate replicate how good you are
You have likely been doing web design for quite some time, so it is probably safe to say you are very good at designing the web. If yes, you don’t have to shortchange yourself by charging your clients bargain-basement rates. It is important you charge what you believe to be a good rate and don’t negotiate. In the case, your prospective clients are having second thoughts due to your rate, make them understand what you can do to provide them a site that can match their budget.
6. Avoid the “one small final change” situation.
One of the bad habits of clients is to ask for one small final change or last-minute changes, irrespective of how little or big they are. For instance, a client that asks you to make a last-minute changing of color from white to blue might see it as a minor job, whereas it’s a major task. At this point, it is important you make your client realize that there is no such as making a little change, and they should agree on everything beforehand.
How can you avoid such a situation? Simple, ensure you put down the revision rules in the contract. In this section, explain in details before the prospective client signs the contract, so that you can tell them to go back and read the contract when this type of issue arises later on.
7. Don’t blindly adopt web design trends.
Most of the trends tend to go as quickly as they come. For instance, Flash was a trendy design before apple crushed it. Design trends hardly stay around because they are usually rooted in need to be avant-garde and popular. On the other hand, some web design trends, such as video, for instance, are likely to be around for a very long time.
However, you don’t have to disregard web design trends wholly, because some of the designs will be great. Try to be updated on the latest web design trends and choose the ones you think would be perfect for your needs. And if they don’t work or stick around for long, consider it a learning experience.
