With the internet being used more and more with each passing day, web design is becoming more and more important. Wireframing is one of the many important steps for achieving success with web design. So what is wireframing and why is it important for you to learn what it is?
If you ask any experienced web designer what is one of the most important aspects of building a beautiful website that actually converts traffic I can almost guarantee that they will tell you the foundation of the site.
If nobody can navigate your website smoothly, then it doesn’t matter how good your content is, you will fail.
Wireframing can help determine how a user will navigate your site once the reach it. For example, your goal could be to get an affiliate sale, having people land on a page about cooking then leading them to a page about the best non-stick frying pans is a perfect example of wireframing.
You may be wondering “So why would I use this strategy? Most WordPress sites have really nice themes.”
Though most people now use WordPress or any other CMS (Content Management System) it’s still important to understand HOW people will be navigating your site. Here are some reasons as to why you should consider this.
Wireframing Can Highlight Your Site’s Main Features Easier
If you were my client and I told you that your site will have many different features such as Google maps, lightboxes, image carousels, counters etc, would you really understand what I mean?
Probably not.
This is why wireframing can be important, you can convey exactly what features will be going where and what purpose they will serve when the site goes live.
It also gives you a mental image of the site so that you can go through the features and remove/add features that will help you reach your goals.
Usability is One of The Most Important Aspects
As I mentioned earlier, you can have the best content ever mixed with the best colour scheme possible, however, if your users get confused when using your site then you have failed.
You can use wireframing to step back a take a look at your site from users standpoint seeing how easy it is to use, what links go where and how your main features can remain in people’s face.
Allowances For Change
Wireframing provides allowances for change, meaning once you have come up with your design and seen the preview of it, you can make changes before the final design has been made.
As it provides you with a visual of what your website would look like it allows you to see for yourself exactly what is going to be where, the design of it etc.
This gives you time to create changes and make decisions about what you would like to change. A wireframe is usually just a black and white layout of your website, therefore, no logos or colours will be included it will focus mainly on the structure of the site.
Think of it as your websites blueprint.
Everything is Much Easier To Understand
Creating a wireframe saves time for clients because it makes it very clear and concise what is being built and where everything will be placed. If you have a design team dedicated to creating websites then it also makes it much clearer to understand what they are building than if you just provided them with a document details.
This allows clients and design teams to be on the same page about how the website is supposed to function and how it is supposed to look and clears up a lot of confusion in the design process.
Taking a Look into WireFraming
To make sure that you can understand the importance of wireframing I am going to use a real-life example. In the images below you can see what a website would look like compared to a sitemap.
An example of a Homepage:
An example of the main page for your sitemap:
An example of a page of content:
An example of a blog within a sitemap:
As you can see, in some cases (Such as with the content itself) it’s much easier to have the sitemap there so that you can scroll through all the content. Whereas with the position of things (for example an email list sign up) wouldn’t show up on a sitemap.
Final Words
Humans are visual creatures and we tend to remember images/videos better than we do text. That’s why wireframing can be a powerful tool for both you and your clients. If you have any more questions then feel free to comment down below.
