Purpose of a Web Site Design Document

The development of a Design Document will help ensure that you keep focused on the importance of Information Architecture for a communication project. It will establish what you are trying to achieve and how you will achieve it while becoming a record of all the decisions that are made through to the completion of the design.

Developing a Design Document
The Design Document will help to:

1. Decision Making - ensure all analysis and decisions required to create the site are carried out in proper sequence
2. Communication - ensure you are continually communicating with the client and involved parties
3. Schedule - keeps the project moving forward and on the right track
4. Change Control - facilitate changes and revisions

The Design Document becomes your road map to satisfying the clients needs and your understanding of their needs. Clients and Managers love Design Documents. You will discover that as a site develops, the only tangible thing your client may have for a time is the Design Document.

The Design Document Structure
The Design Document is broken down into the following sections:

Introduction
Site Goals
User Experience
Site Content
Site Structure
Visual Design

Within each section there are various processes that will be undertaken and documented.

Introduction - This sets the general tone and understanding of what the web site project is about. This is at a very high level. Should also contain information about the client and the nature of the clients business.

Goals - A thorough analysis of what the web site should achieve once it is completed. Consider whether the goals relate to a business or user need. How will the goals be measured? Why are the identified goals important? You must have a clear understanding of what it is you are trying to accomplish. Goals should also be defined as short-term and long-term.

User Experience -This will state who the web site is intended for. Who is the target audience? Why is this information important to the audience? Completion of scenario development will help you to understand how the site will be used and help to define the functional requirements of the site.

Site Content - A complete listing of all content (articles, images, etc.) that will be required in the site to satisfy the identified goals and appeal to the target audience(s). This content list will be sorted into logical groupings with each labeled in a meaningful way.

Site Structure - Defines how your content groups will be arranged within the web site so that your target audience may easily access the information. Defines the solution to the navigation problems. Documented through the development of flow-charts, structure listings and blueprints.

Visual Design - Solves how the site will actually look and feel. This will make the site easier to understand and to use, and also to appeal more directly to the intended target audience. The visual design will give a clear picture of what the completed web site will look like.

To aid you in the completion of your Design Document, I have created a template with examples for you to follow. Note that the template site is in fact considerably larger in scale than the one you will be producing for this class. It will be a great tool for you to use in the development of your future websites. You can download the template here: