Web Development

Mockups

Mock-ups are extremely important during the web development process because web developers have to understand what you want before they can develop your product. The web designer or web developing team will gather all of the information that they need to construct your project and bring your vision to life. The web design mock-ups are created based on this information, and provide you with a simulation of what your finished website will look like. Keep in mind that these simulations will not include transitions or any other form of usable functions that will be present on your finished page. Instead, mockups help you identify the following things:

• How your website's information and messaging will be organized, both logically and hierarchically.
• What kind of user experience you are providing.
• The visual representation of all the elements on your website.
• How well the color scheme compliments the layout of your website and its corresponding pages.
• Where your images, charts, and other visuals will be placed on your site.

User experience is everything when it comes to websites, and mockups are the first step in ensuring that you're offering the best experience possible. Once all of these elements are finalized, the next step in the process is coding.

Testing

Once the coding process is complete (or at a pausing point at least), it's time for testing. This stage of web development can be both fun and frustrating depending on how well your web developer structured your site during the mockup stages. Testing should investigate all of the following aspects of your website:

• Functionality
• Usability
• Compatibility
• Security
• Performance

Having a web development team to guide you through the testing stage is invaluable. With the nearly endless list of things that need to be tested on a brand new website, it's much easier for a team of experts to create and manage that checklist.

Once all the testing is complete and any issues with the coding of the website have been fixed, the site is ready to be launched live. While many believe that this is where the web development process ends, it's truly only the beginning of lifelong maintenance that will be necessary for running the site.

Coding

The coding stage is where everything on your website begins to come to life. In fact, 90% of web development can be broken down into coding and programming. The information gathered through the mockup process is put into action by coding it so that it's ready for testing.

Part of this coding includes uploading all files to a server where they will be live, allowing you to view your website on an actual web browser. From there, it's a simple process of debugging and testing your website to ensure that everything is running smoothly.

Maintenance

Website maintenance is ongoing, and it will always be vital for continuously improving the user experience that you provide. This is where small updates are made to the site that allow you to continue offering visitors a fresh website experience.

These updates might include adding new pages, changing photos to reflect current campaigns or events, changing text on certain pages, updating links, etc. It also includes keeping the site healthy by:

• Updating security measure
• Encouraging new traffic and growth
• Making sure Google indexes and ranks your page

A great maintenance team can help you see consistent success throughout the lifespan of your web development project.