Introduction to Web Design.

Purposes of a website

• promotion
• informing
• persuasion
• contact
• (entertainment)

Audience

• target audience
• never everyone, even if it is a broad range of people

Defining factors of a website

• user-ability - does it work well?
• aesthetics - does it look good?
• functionality - does it work?

Designing

• design off screen

Group page ideas:

• landing page (introduction to portfolio/slideshow)
• argument against people should be able to choose where they want to look, audience could loose attention, unnecessary
• top notch designers can maybe get away with it
• why is it there? what is the point? if you can't justify it, don't have it
• contact page
• email
• telephone
• address - makes people more confident you exist
• social networking - twitter, Facebook etc
• shop - etsy, big cartel etc
• the information you feel comfortable people having
• information can also be put elsewhere
• could be a footer rather than a separate page
• bio/about page
• where you studied
• work placements
• do people care?
• can add quirky flavour
• CV
• selected work
• clients - major companies can add professionalism
• exhibitions
• previous experience
• education
• timescale
• if you're freelance a cv is maybe not necessary
• can be creative to further promote your work, doesn't have to be the standard format
• portfolio
• examples of work
• separated into different areas although could be too much clicking, time wasting, narrowing down starts to look smaller than it actually is
• shop
• buying prints
• etsy store etc
• blog
• current projects
• homepage
• branding 
• links
• name 
• job title
• news/updates - shows you're an active designer
• teaser - one image of design, thumbnails
• could be minimalist, but people still need to be impressed by it, needs to be inspiring
• manifesto
• about information
• fees
• easy access for a potential client
• could seem like you're only interested in money
• most designers don't include because prices can vary so much, can depend on clients and type of job

• categorisation is important

My design:

I based my design on ideas we had been taking about throughout the workshop and aspects I had noticed I liked on current websites I had seen during my research. I liked the idea of having a logo as a central piece of the design so I organised the navigation links around it. I selected pages that I thought would be relevant. I really liked the idea of the news feed that was suggested so I included it in the main section of the layout. I also included

My personal feedback:

Common feedback:

• clean layout
• unoriginal - good aesthetics but nothing special/stand out
• navigation - should remain constant throughout the pages
• scroll bars - unnecessary
• redundant features
• KISS - keep it simple stupid
• grids - using this in the drawing stages will really help when you move onto digital
• logo could be used as home link