On this page:

•  Accessibility and Usability Audits
•  Site Design and Build
•  Process Methodology
•  Illustration and Graphic Design

Accessibility and Usability Audits

I can audit existing sites and make recommendations as to how you can improve usability by designing with web standards or how to attain compliance with accessibility guidelines.

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Site Design and Build

At the definition stage I can work with the various stakeholders within your company to agree goals and objectives, and to plan strategies to achieve them online. This would initially involve assessment of use-case and required business processes.

I can produce creative and robust visual design and brand communication concepts or, alternatively, I can pool my expertise with that of your branding agency. I have extensive experience of providing asset and style guides which can be rolled-out group-wide.

I can then build the user-interface templates with standards compliant mark-up based on client's functional specification and work closely with your technical team for back-end integration and testing prior to deployment.

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Process Methodology

Phase 1: Information capture and auditing

In this phase, I would capture information about the client's vision, business needs and brand strategies, and also gain stakeholder and target audience insights. I would also comprehensively audit the existing website.

Deliverables:

Summary of findings from audit.

Benefits:

Ensuring that the proposed solution fully reflects business and stakeholder requirements.

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Phase 2: Requirements definition & planning

Based on the knowledge generated in the audit stage, I would:

1. Align the content, functionality and structural organisation of the website with the identified user and business needs. I would achieve this by segmenting users and choosing appropriate engagement techniques.
2. Define goals and objectives for the website.
3. Outline the scope of the project.
4. Detail any further content that is needed to fill out the site and meet your customers' expectations.
5. Define functional requirements.
6. Agree budgeting and scheduling.
7. The resulting requirements are related back to the business.

Deliverables:

Outline Requirements Document Implementation Strategy: setting out the programme of work needed to deliver against the objectives.

Benefits:

A clear view of the project requirements: key success factors, issues, obstacles and current capabilities. Ensures that an achievable strategy is put into place thereby facilitating a quicker and more efficient implementation.

Prioritisation matrix:

I analyse features according to the ease of implementation (input) and the business impact or return on investment (output):

I identify features that are QUICK WINS, i.e. features that can be implemented easily for large returns. Since work can start on these type of features immediately, benefits are gained from improvements from an early stage.

I outline the MUST HAVES, i.e. those features that will deliver the highest value and set the company's web presence apart from competitors. These type of features usually require long-term planning.

I also list the NICE TO HAVES. I make sure that these features don't detract from the main goals of the project.

I will also advise you what initiatives to avoid i.e. those that deliver little or no value and are expensive to build - the MONEY PITS.

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Phase 3: Solutions design

The findings of the previous phase provide a framework for the design stage. In this stage we:

1. Develop visual design and brand communication strategy.
2. Detail the organisational structure of the website and plan the user experience through storyboarding - showing where the content will go and how users can navigate through the web site.
3. Develop and specify functional and delivery solutions.

Deliverables (typically) include:

1. Navigational wireframe.
2. Site map showing how the content is organised.
3. Key page prototypes.
4. Finalised visual design, chosen and refined from initial concepts.
5. Specifications for technical assets.
6. Initial style guide.

Benefits:

Agreement is reached on look and feel, technical requirements and site organisation before moving onto the production stage.

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Phase 4: Asset production

Creation of assets, templates and other website content components to be used in the solution. Also includes the building of tools, dynamic functionality, and back-end integration guide.

All templates will be built to be accessible to disabled users, cross-browser compatible and W3C standards compliant.

Deliverables (typically) include:

1. Finished XHTML template pages.
2. Interface graphics for page templates (e.g. header and footer graphics, logos, buttons, backgrounds).
3. Detailed page compositions or finished examples of key pages.
4. Style guide/Site graphic standards document.
5. Generic scripting components (e.g. JavaScript scripts)
6. Completed technical assets.

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Phase 5: Content deployment

Content from the existing website, as well as newly created content, is incorporated into the new framework within a staging environment.

Deliverables:

A fully working website.

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Phase 6: Launch

Following a thorough QA process with the client, and client sign-off the website is put live.

Deliverables:

A live website.

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Illustration and Graphic Design

Visually striking, brand-complimentary illustrations and graphics.

Low-bandwidth dynamic promotional Flash banners and teasers.

See the Graphics section for more details

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