Creating a wireframe is quite simple, even if the term doesn't sound familiar. Basically, it's a layout with the design you want, no coding or image-editing involved. It could just be a hand-drawn sketch of what you picture your website will look like.
A wireframe tells your web developer exactly what you have in mind so they can code it and create the elements you want.
Benefits of Having a Wireframe
A wireframe comes with several benefits. These include giving your web developer an idea of what to work with.
In addition, it will save you and the web developer several rounds of to-and-fro amendments to the site. Think of it as sparing several rounds of edits to a document.
Having a wireframe eliminates that part where you suddenly tell your developer 'Oh I wanted a navigation sidebar' or 'can you make the images in this section show up like a slideshow?'
Last but certainly not least, having a wireframe will save time, for both you and the developer, money and lots of edits and changes.
Wireframe: Not as Complex as It Sounds
If you're still worried you might be going into uncharted waters, don't. Wireframes aren't as complex as they sound.
You don't have to create a full-scale design of every single page you want on your website. You just need some basic elements, like knowing where to include your navigation and the layout for product pages.
In addition, you'll want to know where some of the extra bits or slots you want for related products or thumbnails go.
As you talk to your web developer as to how you see your website, they'll be able to translate this into a simple hand-drawn wireframe that you can edit, add-and-remove from together till you reach a preliminary product that the web developer can work with.
Once that's done, your web developer will be able to make recommendations as to best practices or what looks more modern and is used more in your industry or in web design in general.
Wireframe Design Options"It’s part of the developer’s job to help you refine the design," says James Parsons, stressing that the wireframe is merely a basis for the web developer to work with.
As mentioned above, you can create a hand-drawn wireframe, but if you're using a mobile phone or tablet, OmniGaffle is great for iOS, while Wire Flow is more Android-suited, and Fluid UI works with both operating systems.
For web-based options, Balsamiq is a great mockup tool that comes with a free trial option and is cheap to purchase. Other web-based options include
Wireframe.cc,
Moqups, and
UXPin.
Wireframes are a process
Like creating your business or your website or even a daily routine, wireframes are a process. They're not just a single sitting with a web developer and voila your website comes out like a printed sheet. Even though wireframes will save you time, they're still a process to get to the final product.
It's important to remember that as you create your business, you learn bits and pieces along the way. Wireframes should be one of them. They're simple and are meant to save you time and eventually money.
Let's say you have several ideas that will require different websites. Having an idea about wireframes and how to use them will save you effort as you progress forward.
They'll also save you a hassle once your business is large and your website needs an upgrade.
