Designing With Purpose
Our Website Design Process
At Fishtank, we know that every client’s needs are unique. To kick things off, we use a detailed project discovery form to understand your goals, expectations, and budget. This helps us align on success measures, tailor our approach to deliver what matters most to you, and make sure we’re the right fit for your organisation, and vice versa.
Discovery Session
After reviewing your project details, we host a discovery session to introduce you to your core team: a designer, a developer, and an Account Manager. This session allows us to dive deeper into your business, key stakeholders, and project priorities. We assess your current website, identify opportunities, and listen carefully to your desired features and functionality. Thorough information gathering at this stage sets a strong foundation for a smooth, collaborative journey.
Project Proposal & Tender
Following discovery, we deliver a comprehensive project report and tender, including:
– Relevant case studies
– Your dedicated project team
– Clear objectives and suggested solutions
– A detailed timeline covering project management, sitemapping, wireframing, design, prototyping, revisions, development, testing, deployment,
and launch
– Investment breakdown based on deliverables
Brand Strategy Considerations
A successful website starts with a strong brand foundation. If your brand needs refinement, we recommend addressing this ahead of the site launch to maximise impact. For established brands, we request access to brand guidelines and toolkits to ensure the website strengthens your existing brand equity and aligns perfectly with your digital-first strategy.
Site Mapping
Using insights from our audit, we create a sitemap framework that reflects your current structure, introduces new pages, and incorporates extra functionality like client portals or product downloads. We collaborate with your project guardians to map user personas and journeys, ensuring every visitor’s path is accounted for. Once the sitemap is approved, we move to wireframing.
Wireframing
Our low-fidelity wireframes visually illustrate how users will navigate your site. This stage ensures key calls-to-action are clear, helping guide visitors to submit enquiries, purchase products, or book meetings. Wireframes provide a strategic blueprint before full design begins.
UX/UI Design
User experience (UX) and user interface (UI) form the backbone of a successful website. UX focuses on intuitive, accessible, and user-centred design that reduces friction and guides visitors to their goals. UI brings your brand’s visual identity to life with engaging, interactive interfaces that enhance usability. Together, UX and UI create a website that looks stunning and performs effectively for every user.
Design Phase
Using industry-standard tools like Figma, we craft responsive designs for desktop and mobile based on the agreed sitemap and wireframes. This phase breathes life into your brand online, weaving in guidelines, tone, and personality. Every visual element is crafted to be consistent, captivating, and aligned with your strategic vision.
Prototyping
Our prototype stage lets you explore the site interactively, showcasing micro-transitions, user flows, and key functionality. For less complex projects, a simplified prototype can be delivered. Your lead designer guides you and your team through the prototype to ensure the journey, functionality, and design meet expectations before development starts.
Development & Handover
After design approval, our development team bring the website to life. We implement responsive layouts, optimise performance, and ensure accessibility, creating a site that looks fantastic and functions flawlessly across all devices.