Site designers' poll
 

When you sit down to design a new site, what procedure to you follow?

Any thoughts? Come on folks, I need to get in da mooooood.

determine master brand identity
identify 5 user archetypes to target
create information architecture wireframe using freehand mx
place ads in high traffic prime screen real estate
SEO keyphrases as I write live text and insert
hack out PS comp. & slices

Or I bribe someone else to do it all.

Orly????

Well...
Thats exactly how ya do it.

Get in Da mood.

Im not good at design but I know the basics, and I can produce some decent shit....

I usually fire up photoshop and design the whole thing there...then hit the slice tool and cut my tables/headers/footers etc.. in multiple images...

#1 -- I have a notebook I keep in a safe deposit box -- :winkwink:


2hp

not enough choices in the poll. the closest of the three is to lay it out in photoshop, though I know how it's going to fit together before it gets sliced and uploaded.

I wasn't really talking about slices. But ok. I haven't used Photoshop to completely design a site before. I usually make the graphics over there, then pop them into Fireworks. But I can learn new tricks still. :)

Quick sketch (30min-1hr)
Design Logo (1-2 hrs)
Design header/layout/etc, incorporate logo, all in photoshop (6 hours)
Design Inner pages (variable)
Cut up in HTML, Apply CSS, Double Check everything (8 hours)

I plan the sites out on a big dry erase board with grids.

You're quick. I like that.

Hire someone else.

You ARE quick...I spend at least 4-5 hours to design 3-4 good logos to choose from.

make a quick draft and work from there.

any designer who doesn't do thumbnails and/or sketches first is most likely a self-proclaimed designer who has no actual training.

Real Designer
:thumbsup

no idea i dont design ;)

thanks for the info... one of the typical procedure :thumbsup :thumbsup

So that's how it takes you for a TGP ? :winkwink:

I always started in ps and try to use different elemets colors etc.

I've never had professional training but I always sketch first.