Development Cycle

Web design and/or web services can generally be broken down into this particular cycle of development:

Initial Consultation
This is generally your first contact with the web designer (via email, phone or in person) and this is the time to let the designer know the goals of your business/website and your particular needs.

Second Consultation
Don't laugh! This is a further in-depth consultation with the web designer so he/she can pinpoint specifics and is generally is the time the web designer forms a true vision of your new website.

Initial Design
For website design, this will usually be the website layout mock. Just a shell of a web page usually, but it serves as a guide to more elements of a website

Intermediate Design
This is when the website starts to come together and you can truly start seeing the work that the web designer is putting into it. For a website, this may be the integration of graphics, animation, navigation and site content.

Late Stage Design
The website is basically complete and programmed. This is when all the final pieces come together to create a new masterpiece! A lot of fine tuning is done in this stage.

Testing Stage
Your website is tested (usually by the designer/developer) and all the kinks are worked out in the site code (usually thousands of lines of code) and to make sure the site links work properly, the site shows well in all the major web browsers and everything does what it is supposed to. If it doesn't, it gets corrected now.

Final Stage (approval by you the client/buyer)
This is when you look at the site in it's completed state, test the functionality, integration (if necessary) and the feel of the site. Once approved, it's time to pay the web designer...Click Here for general tips for Paying a Designer!