The first step in designing a successful website is to gather information. Many things need to be taken into consideration when the look and feel of your site is created.

This first step is actually the most important one, as it involves a solid understanding of the company it is created for. It involves a good understanding of you - what your business goals are, and how your website will be utilized to help you achieve those goals.

Then we go on to create a site map for the website. The sitemap is a list of all main topic areas of the site, as well as sub-topics, if applicable. This serves as a guide to the content on your site, and is essential to developing a consistent, easy to understand navigational system. The end-user of the web site - your customer - must be kept in mind when designing your site. These are, after all, the people who will be learning about your service or buying your product. A good user interface creates an easy to navigate web site, and will attract customers to your business

During the planning phase, your web designer will also help you decide what technologies should be implemented. Elements such as interactive forms, ecommerce, flash, etc. are discussed when planning your web site.