Want to create an amazing website? Follow these 8 steps to master the art and science of the website development process. From planning to launching, we've got you covered!
Have you ever wondered how some websites manage to attract millions of visitors, generate huge revenues, and rank high on search engines? What makes them so successful and appealing? The answer lies in their website development process.
But what is it? And what are the main steps and best practices that you need to follow? In this article, we will guide you through the 8 steps of a website development process that you need to master to create amazing websites. Whether you are a beginner or an expert, we hope you will find useful tips and insights to improve your skills and knowledge in this field.
What is a Website Development Process?
A website development process refers to all the steps to create a website from scratch. It involves various stages and tasks that aim to turn a concept/idea into a fully functional and user-friendly website that can be accessed by anyone on the internet.
The steps may vary depending on the scope, complexity, and purpose of your website, but they generally include:
- Gathering information;
- Planning;
- Design;
- Content creation;
- Coding;
- Testing & Review;
- Launch;
- Maintenance.
Now, let’s dive into each step of a typical web development process.
8 Steps of Website Development Process
Step 1: Gathering Information
Estimated time: 1 – 2 weeks
First, you need to define the purpose, objectives, target audience, and scope of your website project. This step is crucial as it will guide all the subsequent decisions in your website development process.
To gather information, you need to ask yourself some key questions, including:
What are the main goals and desired outcomes of the website? - Who are your target audience and what are their needs, preferences, and expectations?
- What is the scope and scale of your project?
There are lots of methods to gather information. But the most popular ones are interviews, surveys, questionnaires, and analytics.
Step 2: Planning
Estimated time: 2 – 6 weeks
Next, you need to decide on the structure of your website. This step will determine how easy and intuitive your website will be for your customers. Here, you need to create two things based on the information you have after the first step: a sitemap and a wireframe.
A sitemap is a diagram that shows how your website is organized. It helps you to visualize how the content and information will be arranged and categorized. You can create it with tools like Coggle, MindMeister, Whimsical, etc.
A wireframe is a sketch that only shows what components will be added to the page and their location. It doesn’t contain any design elements, like logos, colors, etc.
Also, you should specify what technologies you’ll use (e.g., programming languages, frameworks, CMS, etc.) at this step.
Step 3: Design
Estimated time: 4 – 12 weeks
This is when your website takes shape. Design in a web development process is creating mobile- and SEO-friendly designs for your website through the use of page layouts, color schemes, typography, images, icons, logos, etc.
There are many tools you can use to design your website. But most designers use Photoshop, InVision, Sketch, and/or Figma.
Step 4: Content Creation
Estimated time: 5 – 15 weeks
Whether your website is valuable for your users is dependent on the content. Therefore, this step is extremely important and you shouldn’t skimp on it.
Also, you should do SEO research so your website is ranked high on the SERP (Search Engine Result Page). You can start by using keyword research tools, such as Google Keyword Planner, Moz Keyword Explorer, etc. to identify the most relevant keywords for your site. After that, you should optimize title tags, meta descriptions, URL structure, etc. when writing content.
Also, these days, people prefer consuming visual content. Therefore, you should use relevant, high-quality images, videos, audio, etc., to enhance your articles.
Step 5: Coding
Estimated time: 6 – 15 weeks
Now it’s time to build your website. This is when you turn the design into code that can run on browsers. Also, functionality and performance are important and should not be underestimated.
All websites nowadays are built using these three languages: HTML (HyperText Markup Language), CSS (Cascading Style Sheets), and JavaScript. In addition, depending on the requirements and features you want to add, you may also need to use other web technologies such as PHP, SQL, Ruby, Python, etc.
Or you may have decided to use a Content Management System (e.g., WordPress, Drupal, Joomla, etc.) to speed up the process. If so, this is when you install plugins/extensions for your website.
Step 6: Testing & Review
Estimated time: 2 – 3 weeks
After creating a website successfully, you shouldn’t publish it immediately. Instead, you need to test it first because no one wants to use broken software. In this step, you should check all the buttons and links, check the spelling, and ensure your site looks good on all devices.
Step 7: Launch
Estimated time: <1 week
To ensure everything goes smoothly and effectively, you need to have a website launch strategy. It is a plan that outlines the goals, objectives, tasks, and timeline for launching a website.
There are various methods to create a website launch strategy, such as checklists, SWOT analysis, SMART goals, and many more. However, it usually includes the following steps:
- Register a domain name: A domain name is the address of your website. You can register one at GoDaddy, Namecheap, Google Domain, etc.
- Upload files to a web server: A web server is a computer or service that hosts your files and makes them available on the internet. You can use a protocol like FTP or FTPS to accomplish this step.
- Finally, you need to announce and promote your website launch to your target audience using various methods such as email marketing, social media marketing, press releases, etc.
Step 8: Maintenance
After launching your website, you need to come back regularly to update and improve it. So your website will always be secure, relevant, and fresh.
Maintaining a website usually consists of:
- Add new content, edit existing content, and remove outdated content to keep your website up-to-date and engaging for your users.
- Mistakes happen. Therefore, you need to identify and fix any bugs that may affect your website negatively.
- You also need to enhance and extend the features of your website to meet the ever-changing needs of your customers. Remember to test any new features before implementing them.
- Listen to feedback from your users and track various metrics of your website using tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, etc.
Experts' Tips for the Website Development Process
By following these steps, you already can create a website that is functional, user-friendly, and attractive. However, you can go even further if using these tips:
- Stay mobile-friendly: Most people nowadays access the internet through their phones. Therefore, your website should look good and function properly on a phone screen.
- Write easy-to-read content: Few people want to spend more than a few minutes browsing a website, so your content should be concise and easy to read.
- Consult a website development company: If you need help creating your website, don’t hesitate to contact a website development consultant. After all, having a professional team like Golden Owl can help relieve the burden of trying to manage the process on your own.
Wrapping It Up
As you can see, web development is a complex and dynamic process that requires careful planning. However, by following the 8 steps of our website development process, you can ensure that you’ll meet your goals and satisfy your target audience.
If you need professional assistance with your website development project, you can always contact us: Golden Owl. We’re a team of experienced developers who can help you create a stunning and compelling site that suits your needs and budget. We offer many web development services, such as custom web development, UI/UX design, project management, and more.
We hope you enjoyed this article and learned something new about the website development process. If you have any questions or comments, feel free to leave them below. Thank you for reading!
