Web development. Types of web development

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The difference between web development and web design

The designer is responsible for the aesthetic and visual part of the site, while the developer works directly with the code. A web designer must understand graphic design and be aware of the latest trends in this field. In addition, the specialist should look for methods of developing a creative layout and a user‐friendly interface, taking into account the branding of the site. The developer writes the code and implements the designer's ideas.

The latest stages of creating a website or web application

1. Studying the brief and creating a technical task.

A brief is a questionnaire filled out by the client. In short, the client expresses his wishes regarding the design and functionality of the site, and also describes other details of the project himself. In a word, the technical task is created primarily for programmers.

The specification is a document that describes all the details of the project (number of pages, sections, categories), design requirements, adaptability, cross‐browser compatibility, visual and text content, as well as other technical capabilities. In other words, it is a guide to use during project development.

2. Marketing strategy and structure development.

Today this stage is very important. It occurs in parallel with the first step. Usually, a website is only part of a marketing strategy and its tool. In order for it to fully perform its functions, before starting development, it is necessary to consult with marketers, especially with an SEO specialist.

3. Design development.

At this stage, the designer designs the pages of the resource. Designs logo, brand fonts and text styles. Most users use mobile devices to access the Internet, so it is very important that the site not only looks good, but also works well on smartphones. Thus, the Mobile First technology (literally translated as «mobile first») has recently appeared, which provides for the creation of a mobile version of the site as a priority. An invariable design requirement is an intuitive «friendly» interface with interaction, where the user of the resource can easily and quickly find all the necessary information.

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4. Programming.

Front‐end developers bring designs to life by turning mockups into interactive websites. Then back‐end developers start writing the server part of the website or application. You usually don't see their work with your eyes, but you can feel it when using certain features of the resource, creating an account or making an online purchase, because all your requests are processed in the background. The server part is not always written separately for each page. There are also ready‐made solutions ‐ various content management systems (CMS). Depending on the type of site, the optimal CMS is selected, with the help of which the resource works. In this case, experts adjust the system for a specific location.

5. Filling the site with information.

Filling is a separate step from the overall development process. This is done by a content manager, site owner or IT company.

6. Placement of the resource on the Internet.

At this stage, the development company helps the client choose hosting (a place on the Internet) and get a domain (resource address) ‐ two things necessary for hosting a site. Then it is transferred to this hosting.

7. Testing.

At each stage, the resource's compliance with the design scheme, speed of operation, optimization for mobile devices and display in various browsers are manually checked. The final quality check is an assessment of the finished product from both the programmer's and the user's point of view.

The main purpose of the test is to check the performance of the resource in accordance with the requirements. It seems, how can you test a site or program for errors if no one is using the project? Everything is simple. Testers specially create artificial situations that may arise when working with the resource in the future. Analyzes the behavior of the resource under the proposed conditions. When a specialist discovers a bug (the professional name for an error), he submits his report to the project manager, who then distributes the work to other project participants to eliminate the errors. The site will be re‐checked after the errors have been corrected. Testing will continue until the site is improved.

8. Promotion of the resource.

This step is not included in the main development process, but it is very important in the age of digital marketing. At this stage, SEO specialists, SMM managers and target specialists are engaged in the global promotion of the resource: they analyze its work, develop and implement an internal and external optimization strategy.

Our team provides a full range of services described above. We have been engaged in web development for more than 4 years and understand our customers well. Need a website but don't know where to start? Not sure how it should look and work? Are you afraid of being cheated? We guarantee that all standards and requirements will be taken into account and that the development process is open and clear to our customers. Contact us and let's create a product together that you and your users will love!