How to Ensure Web Design Stays on Track

It is easy to have the creative design process of a website become nebulous and scattered, having varied opinions on what looks best and delaying the artistic process altogether. Each individual will have their own aesthetic vision of style based on their artistic background and preferences, and with trying to create a coherent design, can quickly be muddied by varying personal taste. While everyone’s preferences and aesthetics are valid, establishing scope on a project, setting parameters, and making decisions through committee can ensure a project stays on track for budget and desired timelines. Here are a few ways to keep a creative and collaborative atmosphere between the client and designers, while also making sure that a project doesn’t stagnate.

Establish a Visual Story

Discussing with your client what their ‘narrative voice’ and ‘commander’s intent’ are can lead to a more productive establishment of aesthetics. Visuals and language are often inextricably linked, as the design informs the content, and vice versa. Having this preliminary brainstorming session is productive early on so that the designers and client share a vision for what the goal of the website is. While these design principles may change in the early stages of the design process, through consistent discussion with the client on aesthetics, designers can prevent stagnation later down the road.

Agree upon Scope

Oftentimes aspirations can eclipse tangible results, leaving a project in a state of limbo and without a clear end point. Formulate with your client what aspects of the design are critical, and what are additional. The non-critical wants are still important, however if certain desired outcomes would derail the launch date the client is set upon, these need to be addressed as tertiary to the goal of the design. Communicating with the client and collaborating on agreed upon wireframes and prototypes through the design process can alleviate going beyond scope, and save a project from falling behind.

Create an Organized Timeline

Utilizing an Agile methodology to the project process prevents snags that can slow down a project’s desired finish line. By setting sprints, or several individual stages, projects can flow through the creation process with little to no retroactive changes. The Agile approach consists of a planning, design, test, and review process in short bursts, allowing for each stage of the process to be agreed upon between the designers and client. With the client consistently aware of what each iteration of the project looks like, it prevents the project from stagnating and going backwards given the result is agreed upon before moving forward in an iterative process.

By implementing these methods into your design process with a client, projects can maintain trajectory and not destroy budget or time constraints. Echo Origin utilizes an Agile methodology working with our clients, working with them every step of the way, and ensuring that their goals are met. We prioritize what is best for the client rather than what is easiest for us, and by using the concepts presented above, we help our clients get their desired outcome on time and without breaking the bank.