7 Stages of Website Development Process: A Step-by-Step Guide for 2023
The step-by-step guide provides a comprehensive overview of the various
stages involved in developing a website. Learn the importance of each
step
and tips for effective website development.
When you are giving thought to creating a website, not only do you worry
about the content or design but also about maintaining a developed website.
If you are wondering if is it possible to achieve all the fundamentals of
web development in one go? No, all it requires is a step-by-step process to
start with by considering both user needs and business persona into an
account.
The website development process isn’t easy as it seems, it is an image of
the company portrayed to customers. It requires a highly optimized and
functioning design that eases access and enhances the experience for end-
users. With the growing interest in digital platforms, having an aptly
designed website aids in bringing the business to new heights.
What is Website Development?
Website development is a process that involves multiple executions of ideas and
implementation phases. The fundamentals of the website developing process are
analysis,
design, development, testing & review, deployment, and maintenance. Creating a
website
has two main stages, one is developing a functional website that embarks the
structure
of the business. Another is designing a website that enhances the ability of the
business application and meets the needs of the end users.
A well-designed website not only attracts visitors but also aids in understanding
the business, brand, and services provided by the company without any complications.
Every minute detail presented on the website helps towards meeting the defined goal
by the company.
So, how do you achieve it? By focusing on every possible detail of the business or a
company, you need to initiate the step-by-step process to build the website.
What Are the Steps for Developing a Website?
Before heading the steps for developing a website, any website developer should
be aware of the Website Development Timeline. The
website timeline is a strategy
to be thought through before initiating the website build such as the cost of
developing the website and the duration. This can be well planned if the size and
scope of the website are pre-known or discussed.
There are several project management tools available in the market to track the
implementation of the process to meet the deadline beforehand. Once the scope of
the website is made organized, then you can follow the steps to build the website.
7 Easy Steps for Developing a Website
1. Research and Analysis
For any process to start, research and analysis with respect to the website is
needed. Identifying a goal and gathering as much as information available are two
important parts of any research.
Few main queries that have to be answered while setting a goal are- Who is the
target audience? What does the website offer? The primary goal of the website is its
informational, navigational, or transactional identity. If the company is service
based. What is the broad spectrum of services available for all kinds of users? Last
but not least, who are the competitors of the website? It is always recommended to
have a broad vision toward the competitor to have the inspiration to provide the
best results.
These are a few important queries one should consider before planning any website.
An estimated time to complete the research and analysis would vary from 1 to 2 weeks
or more based on the size of the website. This will help you build the website in
the right direction.
2. Planning
After all the necessary information has been gathered, it’s time for planning
sitemaps and wireframes. At this stage of creation, the developer allows the user or
customers to witness the flow of information gathered from the previous stage.
A Sitemap allows you to connect all the main platforms of your website. Such website
representation allows you to understand the internal structure of the business. It
also allows you to know how well different pages are connected and most importantly
it provides easy navigation through the site.
A Wireframe is a visual description of a site that allows users to view features and
services of the website in a better-communicated way. This representation involves
login, subscription, live chat, etc.
An estimated time to complete the process is 3 to 6 weeks based on how well the
interface is portrayed.
3. Design
Designing the website is a key phase of website building that aids you in your
business success. Any design is created to attract the users therefore it has to be
designed based on the target audience of the business.
However, if appropriate research is done at stage 1, this phase becomes easy to
accomplish. For example, the website design for e-commerce is completely
different from the website created for any medical facility. A website theme,
layout, color, images, videos, and everything plays an equally important role in
making the website interesting and taking the website to heights without any
design
mistakes.
This stage comprises 3 crucial things- page layout, review of the design, and
approval cycle by the management. Therefore, the estimated time to accomplish
this stage of web development is 5 to 12 weeks based on the graphical
representation and user interface that has to be delivered.
4. Development
Until this step, all the visual or graphical representations of the website will be
taken care of. In the development process, most work will be carried out by
developers on creating the programmable code to run the website smoothly.
At the initial processing stage, the home page and landing pages were created first
and the rest of the pages were added later as per the structure of the sitemap.
Therefore, the estimated time to complete the process may vary up to 15-20 weeks.
5. Content Management
Once you are aware of your design and development of the website, next comes
content management. Content management holds a great part of your business
success because what you portray in the form of content is what reaches the
customers. How well you can organize the content or how well you can deliver
the message to the customers without complicating and compromising the quality
of content are the two main keys to successful content development.
Content writing involves how creative your writing could be, starting with
headlines, proofreading, paragraphs, visual entities, and many more. Nowadays to
stay at the top, proper SEO has to be included in your work. Having knowledge of
all the SERPs and updates related to your business is mandatory.
To have an overall concept of understanding and create quality content for the
initial process may take 5-10 weeks. However, content updation has to be carried
on a routine without letting it stop. If updating the site is stopped, it directly
affects
the metrics of the site.
6. Testing
Testing is a crucial part of the website development process, until now everything
has been made ready to run the website hassle-free. In the Testing process, every
page, and every code of the website is tested before launching the website. Every
form, script, and programmed code will be tested under various scenarios or
devices to make sure the website runs flawlessly.
Key things to focus on while testing:
Largest contentful Paint- Calculates the time a page takes
to load (2.5 sec or lower)
First Input Delay- The time taken by a user to make his
first interaction with the website (100ms or lower)
Cumulative Layout shift- Shifts in the layout when viewed
on different devices such as desktop and mobile devices (0.1 or lower)
7. Maintenance
What is the most important role of a website? Is it just one time delivering the
service to its user? No, it has to be constantly updated and maintained to achieve
its goal. You need to make sure the website runs fine and cope with the update of
the market on your platform.
To maintain the website, one best ways is to have a feedback system so that
problems faced by the users can directly be addressed quickly. Creating a support
team to handle any queries related to the service provided by the website or
business build customer and brand relationship.
If the website is not well maintained, you may lose your potential customers.
Therefore, not only developing or designing but also maintaining the website plays
a key role in bringing the website live.
Once you completely comprehend the website creation process, you need to focus
on making the website run. Web developers are responsible for creating an easy
and functional website with a creative user interface. In the next section, you will
be able to understand three types of development that is required to make your
website function.
Different Types of Website Development
Web development is basically classified into 3 types. When you click on any call-
to-action button it is directed to another page refereeing the action called. For
example, if you click on the Downloads or Buy button, you will be directed to the
next page. Some of the best web
developers like Webomindapps create a simple
and well-designed page response to make user access easy.
Front-end-development
Front-end development focuses on the outlook of the website and user interfaces
i.e. color, icons, and images presented on the website. Front-end also considers
cumulative layout shifts into consideration when the site is viewed on different
devices. The main programming used by web developers to develop front-end
designs are HTML, JavaScript, and CSS.
Back-end-development
Back-end development focuses on the code or programming part of the website that is
responsible for running the website actively. The programmable code connects the
server and website to process the data flow, and connections appropriately. The
focused programming languages are Java, PHP, and MySQL, the updated tool uses new
technologies such as Python and Golang. The important role of a web developer here
is to build a secure network connection between the website and users.
Full stack development
Full stack development is a whole process that includes both front-end and back-
end development phases. The web developer as a full stack developer will be
responsible for the steps from the server side to user interfaces including
troubleshooting and redesigning of the website for better access. Full-stack
developers should be aware of the latest and most advanced tools, techniques, and
platform that is compatible to run the website hassle-free.
Tips for the Website Development Process
Below mentioned are a few website development tips, that
help you accomplish your website’s success-
Have a Plan- without a plan, nothing can be achieved
nowadays. Proper planning and
being comprehensive in your thoughts are likely to bring success to your
business.
Let websites be mobile-friendly- who doesn’t use mobile
now? Making your website mobile
friendly is your big bet to reach most of the customers in a short time.
Make easy-to-read content- Easy and understandable content
clears half the path to success. Therefore keep your
content precise and answer the customers' uncertainty without breaking any
flow.
Conclusion
The website development process is a work of creativity. All you need to do is
implement the right amount of knowledge and resources at the right time. With the
7 steps explained in the blog, you surely will be able to accomplish your website
design. There are tools to help you build your dream website without any
restrictions.