Before going about starting your own website, it is helpful to understand the difference between ‘design’ and ‘development’ processes. ‘Web development’ is the term used to define the process of programming the actual website behind the scenes, while ‘web design’ refers mainly to the creation process of the layout or appearance of the website. Web development encompasses the website content; ranging from words and graphics used on the pages to the applications embedded in the site. For a better understanding of the terms, development means the coding and the content of the website, while the design simply means the overall appearance.
With so many new websites coming online every day, a whole variety of templates have been designed, to the point that you can have a professional looking website up and running in a matter of minutes. The problem is that with so many websites out there, and only a limited amount of templates, staying unique and different is not easy when you take a DIY approach.
The need for customization
The need for customization is long rooted in human behavior. We can see it everywhere, from the tuned up car on the street, to your own customized laptop. We customize something so we feel it is ours. In the same way, people have always wanted to customize their websites, to enable them to stand out from the crowd.
Most templates offer some customization features, but they are typically limited to backgrounds, fonts and color choice. Although many templates nowadays offer far more customization options than they did even a few years ago, your options are still limited by the capacities and potential of the template itself.
Custom Web Design and Development
So, you want a unique website and you don’t feel that using any particular template will make it the way you want to. What do you do in order to achieve your custom web design and development goals within your required budget?
Well there are two options. The first involves a lot of work from your part and requires you to start learning web programming and design. With the amount of information available on the internet this shouldn’t be a problem in principle at least. However it takes time, and a lot of trial and error. The good part is that after you know a bit, you can start experimenting, maybe find new things and ultimately, end up with a totally different website than the one you planned for.
The second option is faster, requires no effort from your side, but costs money. If you want a custom web design you hire a company or a freelancer to do it for you. You talk to them, explain exactly what you want, pay up and wait. They do all the hard work, and you get your dream site. This is much faster, but it costs money and you need to make sure they understand exactly what you want. In terms of how much this actually costs this depends a lot on what you want and the complexity of your website.
