One of the things we do in the discovery stage is determine your needs and wishes with respect to the look & feel of the site. In this stage, we are not yet trying to identify
what the site will look like. Instead, our objective is to clarify what the visual design
process will be like.
In other words, we will want to know:
- how many different visual design models you would like us to create and how many revisions you think you will want;
- how many people in your company will be involved in the decision process;
- whether you already have ideas about the look & feel you are after (such as flyout menus or Flash splash screens);
- whether you will be able to refer us to exemplary Web sites which possess elements you want in your site.
Since the pricing for everything we deliver is based on our projection of effort hours, we need to understand the scope of the visual design process in the discovery stage. Our Contract Proposal will include specific costs for the visual design component.
Once the project is in progress, you will be feeding us information to guide us in the visual design. We will get a small number of exemplary URLs from you, and we will work with you to identify
exactly what it is you like about those sites. We will create design mockups and post them to your Client Area.
We will then conduct Web conferences with you and your project team to review those mockups and to identify the elements your like. We will make revisions and conduct a follow-up Web conference.
Clearly, the visual design process is highly iterative — lots of give-and-take.
Having said all that, it is important to emphasize that visual design usually takes place
after the structural design process. This is consistent with our belief that form must follow content and function.