Designers and developers work in two different worlds. The design usually focuses on graphics, interface features and placement of menus and overall color schemes. Development specializes in back and front-end work that usually involves code and highly detailed information. Design and development prioritize different objectives in order to accomplish the same mission and overall goal for the brand. When starting a project, it can be tempting to give one more attention than the other, when they both need equal attention to be successful. This cross-functional collaboration creates data-driven designs that are impactful for the overall user experience and generate work that is influential and necessary for a brand’s legacy.
Best Practices for Design
Designing with purpose when creating a website or print material is key. Evoking emotion and engagement between the consumer and brand while articulating the core values of the company is done through data-driven design. From visual communications, corporate identity and marketing collateral, creating work that is more than just pretty is critical. Making design decisions based on preference is no longer going to hold up against the competition. Working design into the developments is crucial when creating for a user. Selecting colors, placement of text and overall design details, the goal is to attract the target audience and create long term success with users.
Best Practices for Development
The website strategy should focus on development that attracts targeted visitors to expand the brand’s overall reach. By creating a strategy that connects the user to the brand and creates a responsive, interactive and engaging design. Development crafts conversion-driven digital assets to support SEO and accessibility to the user. This happens by creating the skeletal foundation for user pathways and journeys support design implementation and creates the foundation for design to work smoothly.
“Without design, developers would not be able to visually represent ideas and products in an impactful way. Designers need to know what developers can accomplish in order to set proper expectations and deadlines.” Kristina Diaz, ArtVersion designer.
Merging the Gap Between Design and Development
When a user lands on a website, design and development impact the surrounding aesthetics, simplicity, design to articulate the brand’s mission. Visuals and Functionality work the best when they work together, sites develop better online conversions and user engagement. Design and development study and analyze analytics, platform interactions, user experience, user interface, web accessibility and usability to merge the two creative worlds together to produce results that matter.
Design and development work most successfully together in a collaboration, not a silo. One simply cannot fully be successful without consideration of the other. When in harmony, the two influences work off one another to create an impactful user experience, increase bounce rate and overall brand influence.