Web Development
What is Website Development?
Website development, also known as Web development, is the process of developing websites or WebPages hosted on the Internet or intranet. Think about your favorite website; whether it’s an e-commerce store, blog, social network, online video streaming service, or any other type of Internet application, it all had to be built by a web developer.
The web development process has three main components: server-side coding, client-side coding and database technology.
- 1. Server-side Coding: Server-side refers to operations that are performed by the server in a client–server relationship in a computer network. Typically, a server is a computer program, such as a web server, that runs on a remote server, reachable from a user's local computer or workstation. Server-side Coding is a technique used in web development which involves employing scripts on a web server which produce a response customized for each user's (client's) request to the website. The alternative is for the web server itself to deliver a static web page.
- 2. Client-side Coding: Client-side refers to operations that are performed by the client in a client–server relationship in a computer network. Typically, a client is a computer application, such as a web browser, that runs on a user's local computer or workstation and connects to a server as necessary. Client side programming has mostly to do with the user interface, with which the user interacts. In web development it's the browser, in the user's machine, that runs the code, and it's mainly done in JavaScript, flash, etc. This code must run in a variety of browsers.
- 3. Database Technology: For any website to function on the Internet, it must be hosted within a database on a web server. The database contains all the files required for a website and its applications to function. Websites typically use some form of a relational database management system (RDBMS); the leading RDBMS options are Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, Apache, and IBM. Open-source RDBMS are also very popular, led by MySQL, PostgreSQL, and MariaDB.
Why is Website development important?
If you have a business and don’t have a website, you are losing out on great opportunities for your business. A website itself can be used to accomplish many different marketing strategies to help your business grow. As a business owner, you need to know where your consumers are. But what if consumers know your business and what you can offer, but they can’t reach you? That is one of the risks you take by not having a website for your business.
Some benefits of having a business website are:
- • Cost Effective: A strategically developed website and online presence solution provides tremendous benefits and costing outlines.
- • Accessible around the clock: Your website and social media accounts are accessible 24/7/365. Imagine that you want to buy from a store. You put in all the effort required to go to the store, but when you get there, it’s closed. Since your website is operational around the clock, from the convenience of the local coffee shop, their couch or their bed, your customers and clients can easily access your website and services.
- • Convenient: What is more convenient: driving outside to look for different stores that are available to shop in, or sitting in the comfort of your own home and shopping for the products you’re looking for? The answer is pretty obvious.
- • Credibility: By building a website you are giving your business the opportunity to tell consumers why they should trust you and the testimonials and facts to back up those opportunities. People tend to trust a business after they have done business with it. Using your website, you can continuously serve consumers online and increase your credibility as a business owner.
- • Sales: Being visible worldwide means you are very likely to gain more customers. The more customers and visitors you have, the more sales you will generate. The more sales you generate the happier you and your shareholders will be!
- • Marketing: Having a website and online presence strategy allows you to market your business online. There are lots of marketing strategies you can use to advertise and market your business. All online marketing strategies have been proven to be effective. Which ones you choose depends on the type of business you are in.
Website development can include anything from simply programming the data of a website to adding client liaison, content, network security and web server configuration, e-commerce development and more. It usually ranges from creating the simplest, plain text to the most difficult web-based applications, social network services and electronic business. If you want your business to flourish, web development is crucial. Developing a well-designed, professional looking website will get your foot in the door of the online market, and give you a base from which to build your clientele.
How Web designs impacts customer experience?
Web design is one of the most important parts of any Internet marketing strategy. It has a huge impact on the digital customer experience in several different ways. Your site’s aesthetics, usability, any other crucial factors are essential to your company’s long-term online success. But how dramatically does it actually impact your bottom line?
- 1. Appearance: Web design most obviously impacts your site’s appearance. You choose how your site looks, which plays a huge role in your company’s first impression on new online visitors.
- 2. Professionalism: It refers to the impression you make on your site’s visitors before they ever start reading your site. When someone arrives on your site, you want them to understand that you’re a modern, respectable business. This impression is largely based on how your web design represents you.
- 3. Clarity: It means designing your website so visitors can find what they want as quickly as possible. Most often, this means improving your navigation. Intuitive and familiar navigation styles allow your visitors to quickly find the information they want.
- 4. Load Time: It refers to how long someone has to wait for a page on your site to display on their device(s). Load time is a major Google ranking factor, and it’s become crucial to online success as more consumers move toward using the Internet on mobile devices. The modern Internet user is concerned with websites that load in the blink of an eye and — more importantly — use minimal data.
- 5. Conversions: They are arguably the most important part of web design. After all, your business won’t thrive online without them. Web design can impact conversions in a thousand different ways, and they’re all important, but these three are some of the most impactful:
- Color: It sounds general, but in web design, it refers to a color scheme that intelligently uses contrast to highlight selling propositions.
- KISS Principle: It is an acronym for ‘Keep It Simple, Stupid.’ The idea is that simpler designs are better designs. When you have an easy-to-follow, organized website, you make it that much easier for visitors to convert.
- Faces: It may sound a little odd as a web design principle. But the idea is that human faces help visitors relate to your business. You could use stock images, but this works best when you use your own staff. Essentially, you show someone the human side of your company to make them feel more comfortable contacting you.
By using all three of these concepts at once, you make your site much more efficient at earning new customers.
Web development takes into account many security considerations, such as data entry error checking through forms, filtering output, and encryption. Malicious practices such as SQL injection can be executed by users with ill intent yet with only primitive knowledge of web development as a whole. Scripts can be used to exploit websites by granting unauthorized access to malicious users that try to collect information such as email addresses, passwords and protected content like credit card numbers. A basic understanding of information technology security concerns is often part of a web developer's knowledge.
It is imperative for every business to have a website. The more professional your website is, the more advantages you can gain. Get online, build a website, and prepare to keep your customers forever.