Website Design vs Website Development

In an industry that is filled with jargon web-design and web-development is often used interchangeably, however, there is quite a big difference between the two phrases. For many, they won’t know the difference but it’s actually really quite important you know the difference, especially if you’re looking for a new website. So what are the differences between a website developer and a website designer?

Web designer

In a brief summary, your web designer is the person who looks at the visual aspects of a website. They’re the one who makes sure that your website is looking good and that there’s a pleasant experience on the site. In order to provide you with the best experience on your website a web designer is likely going to be proficient on a handful of different programmes, to a name a few you should look for are:

• Adobe Photoshop – This is a very popular platform that is going to be used for a handful of things such as mockups, wireframes and graphic designs.
• Sketch – Similar to Photoshop but really focused on creating web templates and designs, it uses vectors so it allows for the highest-resolution results.
• WordPress – The most popular CMS platform that allows a web designer to create a website and manage the content.

Within the website designer category there are also two different specialisations that will divide most designers:

User Interface Designer

A UI designer focuses primarily on the way a user is going to interact with the interface on your website. They’re most likely going to be looking your content, images, videos, buttons and animations.

User Experience Designer

Whereas your UX designer is going to be looking at the principles of how a user would interact with your website. They will focus on your target market and make sure your website is optimised to keep the users’ attention.

Web developer

When the design for the website has been completed, it is over to the web developer to start coding the website and bring it to life. The developer is going to deal with the code and focus on the technical aspects of the website. Again, when it comes to finding an experienced web developer it’s likely they’re going to be proficient in a host of different softwares. From platforms such as Git, Text editor and the built-in developer tools that most browsers have built-in. Similar to a website designer there are specialisations within web development as well:

Front-end developer

Your front-end developer is going to have a basic understanding of coding languages and will most likely know a number of languages such as HTML, CSS and Javascript. All of which can be used to create a website and get it ready for launch.

Back-end developer

Your back-end developer is similar to a front-end developer however, they are going to have more experience and a better understanding of some more complex coding languages. Your back-end developer is going to be doing a lot of work that won’t be seen on the website but is crucial in the creation of a website.

Full-stack developer

Your full-stack developer is someone who is extremely experienced in both front and back-end development. They would be able to build an entire website on their own and have a great understanding of the architecture and databases required to produce and build a top tier bespoke website.

In conclusion, in order to build a great all-round website, you should be looking for a team that is comprised of both web designers and web developers. For both of them to do the best job possible they have to rely on each other. If you’re looking for a brand new website, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the team of experts here at Frogspark…