Award-Winning Web Design - What does it take to create an Award-Winning Web Design and how to determine if your agency is right for the job.

1. Award-Winning
Web Design
Does Your Agency
Have What it
Takes?

2. Asea Ginsburg
Twitter @aseag
Creative Director
• Oversee creative direction
• Lead design, front-end development & accessibility efforts
Have done work for:
• Associations & Non-Profits
• Government Organizations
• Trade Show Associations
• Real Estate
• Legal Market
Twitter @aseag

3. What you will learn today:
• The key ingredients of a successful web design project
• Why the link between creative and programming is one of the most
important pieces of your web project and why you should not
separate the two
• Five questions to ask that will help you determine if your agency
can deliver award-winning website design
• How to generate collaboration between your ad agency and web
design agency to get the best results
Twitter @aseag

4. Your Brand
• Not just your logo & colors
• The promise
• The big idea
• The personality
• The lifestyle
• The expectations that reside in
customers’ minds about a
company, service or a product
Twitter @aseag

5. Marketing – Translating Brand into Action
• It is the strategy that differentiates
your brand promise from all the
other brand promises.
• It is a toolbox. Each tool creates
an opportunity to strengthen your
brand to communicate its
essence.
• It is the combination of methods
used to persuade your target
audience toward some specified
behavior.
Twitter @aseag

6. Award-Winning Websites
• Never just about design
• Putting customer in charge
• Deliver engaging content
• Create interactive user
experiences
Twitter @aseag

7. Web Design ≠ Any Design
• The two aren’t the same, thus
the results are not the same
• Both media can have different
audience or target groups
• Working together, they make a
stronger message
Twitter @aseag

8. Brand Consistency
Print Campaign Website Design
Mobile Website Mobile App
Twitter @aseag

9. Phase 1: Discovery
• Set Goals & Define Success
• Determine Boundaries &
Technical Specifications
• Define Strategy
• Perform Usability Testing or
User-Centered Analysis
Twitter @aseag

10. Usability Testing
vs.
User-Centered Analysis
Twitter @aseag

11. User-Centered Analysis
Goal:
Gather information for the purpose of design definition when the product
doesn’t exist or needs to be fundamentally redefined
To Analyze:
• Brand Attributes
• Current Product Impressions
• New Product Features
• Desired Content
• Persona Characterization
To Ask:
• How do users think and work in a specific domain (desktop, mobile)?
• What are the factors affecting users’ tasks?
• What do users want or expect from the design?
• What are the users’ desires, problems and motivations?
Twitter @aseag

12. Usability Testing
Goal:
Evaluate existing designs for usability against a set of criteria
To Analyze:
• Information Architecture
• Graphic mockups & Visual Representation of Brand
• Hand sketches & wireframes
• Functioning Prototypes
• Live Site
To Ask:
• Is the design effective and successful?
• Is it usable?
• Does the design match the way the user thinks and behaves?
• Can the user complete the tasks?
Twitter @aseag

13. Phase 2: Architecture
• Determine Site Structure
• Map Content
• Create User Personas +
Scenarios
• Postulate Users’ Mental Model
• Define Page Elements,
Functionality + Interactions
Twitter @aseag

14. Phase 3: Design
• Understand Business,
Content, Technical
Constraints
• Establish Creative Direction
• Create Uniform Style
• Ensure Visuals Enhance
Content & Function
• Usability Testing
Twitter @aseag

15. Phase 4: Build
• Define all Aspects
of the Site
• Incorporate Content
• Integrate Complex
Functionality & Make it
Easy to Use
• Meet Client’s
Expectations
Twitter @aseag

16. Creative + Technical
Why Does it Matter?
Visual Design:
• Making it beautiful and
emotional
Interactive Design:
• Shifting the focus from the
visual to human
• Anticipating the way people
interact, click, type and expect
to receive requested
information based on the idea
that every user is unique
Twitter @aseag

17. Key Ingredients of a
Successful Web Design Project
• Well defined web design process
• Experienced team in web design, interactive design
• Testing (Usability/User-Centered Analysis)
• Web strategy
• Open mind
Twitter @aseag

18. Top 5 Questions
to Ask your Ad Agency?
1. What is your web design process?
2. What type of experience does your
team have in Interactive Design?
3. Can I see web design samples?
4. How does your experience and work
you have done relate to my project?
?
5. Are you open to collaboration with
another Creative Agency?
Twitter @aseag

19. Collaboration
Between Agencies
• Make sure everyone understands their
responsibilities
• Get everyone involved from the start
• Discuss the big picture
• Schedule plenty of time for frequent meetings
Twitter @aseag

20. Thank You!
Asea Ginsburg
Creative Director
Twitter @aseag | asea.ginsburg@balanceinteractive.com
Slides available at:
http://slidesha.re/psc5aK