{"id":29436,"date":"2018-07-07T23:15:40","date_gmt":"2018-07-07T23:15:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/newdomaindesign.com\/?p=29436"},"modified":"2022-09-03T01:31:37","modified_gmt":"2022-09-03T01:31:37","slug":"new-business-web-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newdomaindesign.com\/index.php\/2018\/07\/07\/new-business-web-design\/","title":{"rendered":"Designing Your Business Website – Before You Begin"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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by Scott Riley<\/em><\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Let’s say that you have a killer idea for a new business website.\u00a0 It\u2019s important that you stand out, but you don\u2019t really know where to start. You\u2019ve looked around online, but there is just too much information! How do you begin?\u00a0 Well, I\u2019m glad you asked that question!<\/p>

Before you start it\u2019s important to have a clear understanding of some fundamentals. You need to know how to create the basis for the overall design and identify the structural components of a typical website. These include a distinctive business brand<\/strong><\/a>, and the standard structure of a<\/strong>\u00a0business\u00a0<\/strong>webpage<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>

This article will provide you with some information to use as a foundation upon which to build your spectacular new business website.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Creating a Business Brand<\/strong><\/h3> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\n \"Well-known \n <\/div>\n \n \n
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\n Omni channel customer experience – well-known business brands <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n\n
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The Concept<\/strong><\/h4> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The first thing that you need to do is to create a business identity<\/strong><\/a>, or brand that will guide the design of your website. What\u2019s the first thing that comes to mind when you envision a well-known company? Most likely, it\u2019s their logo or emblem, such as the Nike swoosh, Starbucks maiden or McDonald\u2019s arches, and a specific color or colors \u2013 Facebook blue, Coke red, etc.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\"Silhouette<\/p>

Okay, cool, but\u2026 how do you go about getting one of those for your own business?<\/p>

Notice how I asked you to \u201cenvision\u201d those companies? That was a clue.<\/p>

You start with your own, unique vision<\/strong> of and for your business.\u00a0 Focus on the passion,<\/strong> drive<\/strong> and feeling <\/strong>you have for it. What does your business dream look like?\u00a0 How does it make you feel?\u00a0 How do you want it to make your audience feel?\u00a0 Focus on the energy behind and around it. Try to describe it by writing it down. Use adjectives and colors and emotions.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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The Design <\/strong><\/h4> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Now use your written description as a guide to do some rough sketching.\u00a0 This sketch will provide the foundation for your business website logo design <\/strong><\/a>and color palette<\/strong><\/a>, so be sure to indicate 2 or 3 colors that you prefer as well.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\n \""Susan's \n <\/div>\n \n \n
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\n “Susan’s Map” – Susan is a dentist in Portland, Oregon <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n
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Logo<\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Once you have a sketch that captures the essence of your business, take it to a professional digital designer to develop a unique, custom logo<\/strong><\/a>. Your logo will be the core visual representing your business. It must be very clean, finely detailed, strong and dynamic to convey your business as an authoritative, active and well-organized enterprise.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\n \"Generic \n <\/div>\n \n \n
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\n Generic corporate design vector illustration <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
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Color Palette<\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Now that you have an awesome logo, it\u2019s time to have the graphics and elements needed for your new business website designed. A good designer will create a coordinated color palette<\/a><\/strong> based on the primary colors used for your logo.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\n \"New \n <\/div>\n \n \n
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\n New Domain Design website color palette <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n
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Understanding the Business Webpage\u00a0Layout<\/strong><\/h3> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\n \"Picjumbo.com \n <\/div>\n \n \n
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\n Picjumbo.com stock image of a webpage wireframe sketch <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n\n
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Your business website pages can be styled with a custom background image or color, font-faces, styles, colors and other unique design elements.<\/p>

Individual layout containers are placed on the Body <\/em><\/strong>and usually include a Header, Navigation Menu, Main Content, Sidebar<\/em><\/strong> (optional) <\/em>and Footer<\/em><\/strong>.<\/em><\/p>

The header, navigation menu and footer section elements are carried throughout the website.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\n \"Web \n <\/div>\n \n \n
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\n Web page sections basic layout <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n
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Body<\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The body encompasses the bulk of the page\u2019s area, which can be set to a specific or full width. It\u2019s the background upon which all other page elements are placed.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Navigation Menu <\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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A menu will be needed to navigate your new website. It will contain links to each of the various pages or sections, typically Home, About, Services,\u00a0<\/em>and Contact.<\/em><\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Main Content<\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The main content includes the specific information related to the page title, including images<\/strong><\/a>, graphics<\/strong><\/a>, video, calls to action (CTA\u2019s), internal and external links, special features and everything else pertinent to the page.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Footer <\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The footer appears at the bottom of the web page and usually displays the navigation menu, copyright and contact information and other important data.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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Header <\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The header<\/strong><\/a> appears at the top of each page and contains your logo (with contact info), tagline, navigation menu and various optional items such as social media links, RSS<\/em> feed and internal search form field.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Page Headings <\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The typography used throughout your business website must consist of consistent font sizes for the body text (p)<\/em> and headings (H)<\/em>.\u00a0 There are 6 headings, gradually reducing in size, that are universally labeled as: H1, H2, H3, H4, H5, <\/em><\/strong>and H6.<\/em><\/strong><\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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Sidebar<\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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The design of a business website may include one or more sidebars on each page or selected pages. Sidebars commonly feature info, links, video clips, search bars, tags, images, META data and more.<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

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Ongoing Maintenance<\/strong><\/h5> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n
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In order to keep your new website effective and running smoothly, you will need to maintain it.\u00a0 This requires scheduled time to perform various tasks, such as backups, inspection, testing, updates and repairs.\u00a0 New Domain Design offers two web maintenance plans that will attend to these items and much more.\u00a0 For more details, click here<\/a>.<\/p>

To learn about the essential items involved, you can download our website maintenance and protection guide for free (see below).<\/p> <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n

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\n \"Designing \n <\/div>\n \n \n <\/div>\n\n
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