This concise guide outlines the different ways in which wireframe tools are crucial for the best website design results, whether desktop, mobile or app.
Mobile devices are now the second most popular way in which the average person accesses the internet on a daily basis. As of 2018, 95% of Americans own a cellphone of some kind. Traditionally, the desktop version of websites was designed prior to mobile applications. Mobile first web design takes a different approach by designing the site around mobile integration first. Wireframes are still an important part of the process, however.
What is mobile first design?
Mobile first web design is exactly how it sounds: it’s designing the aspects of the mobile version of a website before the desktop version. There are pros and cons to this process, of which we won’t discuss in this article, but you can find here.
Mobile first web design is a concept that bases its approach off of the fact that the majority of people are carrying a cell phone of some sort with them all day every day. This means that millions of people are accessing the web and mobile applications on a daily basis.
Planning is just as important with mobile design
A wireframe acts as a roadmap for the development of a website, putting together key elements and page hierarchies and structure. Without a wireframe, it is difficult to direct a development team on how the final product should look and feel.
Just as with desktop web design, poor planning can make for an ineffective and frustrating site. Poor navigation, hierarchy, and design can all make your users quit accessing the site altogether. No one wants to use a site that doesn’t load properly or that needs constantly updated.
Planning also allows a web design company to involve the client in the design process. With wireframe tools, you can show your client exactly what you’re doing and make real-time edits in relation to any of their suggested changes.
Your team will also be able to provide input with an effective wireframe, and since everyone is aware of what the final product should look like, your team will be better able to work together to create the final product.
Wireframe tools address functionality before design
A mobile site can look great and function poorly. Which do you think is more important to user retention? Users want a site that will function properly. This doesn’t mean you should let design fall by the wayside, it simply means that functionality should be your first concern.
Mobile sites are often more compact and should be less burdensome on the network connection when loading since they’re loading from a mobile device. You want your pages to be responsive and load in quickly.
With good functionality, you’ll see increased conversion rates; that is, turning users into paying customers. Just like with tangible products, users want a website that solves a problem. Their “problem” is that they want to know more about your brand or even purchase your products. If your website is not an effective solution to either of these, you’re going to need to do a rework.
Wireframe tools offer easier handoff
Once you’ve designed a successful wireframe, you’ll want to hand it off to the developers so the design can come to life. Without a good wireframe, the handoff process can be frustrating and counterproductive.
When you hand something over to developers that looks incomplete or leaves too many unanswered questions, you’re essentially hindering your own progress. A wireframe is simple, effective, and very clear.
Clarity goes a long way in the design process. If your developers spend less time asking you questions about your design, they can spend more time on the project itself. Handoff should involve a lot of communication and an excellent draft the development team can work with.
Wireframe tools are important for client satisfaction
Clients love to change their minds, as you well know. Once they see the product in action, they decide they don’t want that color, or that it’s not working the way they’d expected. It happens all the time, and to the best designers and developers.
This is why wireframes are so important for client relationships. You’ll have something tangible to show the client: a visual representation of how their site will be organized on mobile devices. From there, they decide what to keep and what to edit, and you can make all of the changes before you hand it off to the developers.
Edits can be costly after the final product is released, and too frequent updates can cause frustration. Include your clients in the wireframing process and nail down some of those edits before working on the final draft. Get to know your client’s preferences so you can be quicker to adhere to them in the future.
Wireframe tools save time and money
All of the advantages we’ve listed so far add up to one thing: saved time, which is essentially saved money. When you streamline the design process with a good wireframe, your company will benefit by not wasting time on costly edits and reworks.
In addition to eliminating edits, a good wireframe can also help the design be completed on time or even before the deadline. The less time you finish your project in, the more money you pocket from reduced labor costs.
Conclusion
Whether you’ve chosen to implement mobile-first design or you’ve opted for the traditional route, always use a wireframe to map out a website. It will make the design process smoother, save you money in the long run, and keep everyone, including the client on the same page during the design process.
