Web design is the process of creation, planning, building and presenting the content of electronic web pages. There are various elements of design such as layout, colours, text styles, structure, graphics,  images, and the use of interactive features, such as accessibility by the end-user through the internet using a web browser.

Web design and web development are used interchangeably. Web design is a subdivision of the category of web development. Web design can be linked to other areas such as graphic design, and it has become a significant part of everyday lives. Since the beginning of the 21^st century, there has been a substantial change to the web, how it was used, accessed, and all these elements have improved how the web is designed.

The speed and cost of getting the site up and running will be determined by the degree of customization included in website design. Website design has a significant impact and essential purpose for increasing online sales by reaching out to customers and search engines.

Today technologies are used to create websites containing W3C standards like HTML and CSS which can be generated with WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editing software such as  Adobe Dreamweaver or can be hand-coded using tools such as Sublime or Notepad++. These tools and softwares are updated over time, but the principles behind them remain the same.

Web design elements

To create a great result that meets the goals of the website, the designer should combine all these elements with the fundamental principles of design.           

Layout: This the way text, graphics, and other content are arranged on the page. It should help the viewer find the information they are seeking at a glance. The layout is one of the critical goals used on the web; this includes consistency, maintaining balance, and the design principle.

Content: Text and visual contents should work together to enhance the message of the site. The text should be relevant and useful and not confuse the reader to keep them on the site. The content should be suitable in length and incorporate keywords for search engine optimization (SEO).

Colour: This should be a web-safe colour, and the colour scheme should be simply an assignment to the brand of an organization or the personality of the person.

Graphics: By adding graphics to a web page it will enhance the web design. Graphics can include photos, icons, logos, and/or clipart. Graphics should be placed appropriately to be working with content and colour on the page, and it should be saved for web-safe so it will not take much time to load.

Fonts:  A designer should work within the group of accepted fonts because most web browsers can only read a selected number of fonts (web-safe fonts). The use of these fonts can increase the website design.

User-Friendly Web Design

To create a user-friendly website and in addition to the essential elements of design, the designer must always consider the end users, and this will be achieved by paying attention to the following factors.

Navigation:  Menus and site architecture and other tools should be created with consideration of how the users interact and browse the web. The user should browse the site efficiently, move around, and find the information they need with ease.

Technology:  The technology advancement allows web design to stay fresh, professional, and dynamic.  It also gives the designers the freedom of innovation.  With new technology, designers can design websites that work well on both desktop and mobile phones.

Multimedia: Relevant audio and video can encourage users to spend more time on a webpage, it also helps the users to grasp and understand the information easily and quickly.

Interactive: This can convert users from visitors to clients by adding email forms and sign-ups for newsletters. Also, it increases the user’s participation and allows them to engage in comments and opinion polls.

Compatibility: Designing the webpage to operate on multiple platforms increases its viewing. In responsive design, the content moves dynamically depending on the screen size; in adaptive design, it is fixed in layout sizes to match the standard screen sizes.

Further jobs which may become involved in the creation of a website include:

• Graphic designers to create visuals for the site such as logos, layouts and buttons
• Internet marketing specialists to help maintain web presence through strategic solutions on targeting viewers to the site, by using marketing and promotional techniques on the internet
• SEO writers to research and recommend the correct words to be incorporated into a particular website and make the website more accessible and found on numerous search engines
• Internet copywriter to create the written content of the page to appeal to the targeted viewers of the site
• User experience (UX) designer incorporates aspects of user-focused design considerations which include information architecture, user testing, interaction design, and occasionally visual design.