Drupal is among the popular platforms that designers use. In order for the site to be user friendly and perform consistently, a number of things are necessary during the design process of a Drupal website. Leveraging Drupal web design involves being aware of the functionality of the theme structure to create a site that works efficiently.
Avoid Bad Design Techniques
One of the advantages of Drupal is the flexibility that makes it possible for you to customize your site according to your specified needs. While enjoying this high level of flexibility, it is important to avoid bad design techniques that can compromise your ability to have an effective and efficient site.
Proper Planning
When using Drupal to build a site, proper planning is essential. This is because this platform is flexible and powerful enough to enable you to configure and present content any way you want to. It is always a good idea to determine your strategy for content.
It is also important to take into account architectural considerations for your site prior to page design. This helps to prevent situations where you design a website and encounter a major setback that compels you to start all over again because of poor content strategy.
Consistency and Accessibility
With the varied elements such as types of content that each page will constitute, you need to have a plan in place to ensure that the site remains consistent. Grids or wire framing are useful for page consistency and alignment.
They also cut down on the time and effort used in the design process. The need for well-designed websites makes it necessary to incorporate different devices including mobile to make it possible to access content on different types and sizes of devices.
Web Speed
Considering how crucial web speed is in web design, it should always be a priority. Regardless of how attractive the site may be, visitors will rapidly lose interest if pages load slowly. Websites need optimization during the process of design. Identify the modules that will be useful and add value to your design.
The disadvantage of enabling excessive modules is that they may cause the website to slow down. While designing you need to determine which modules and files you can effectively use. Using JPEGs for purpose of optimizing images is also an effective way of avoiding slow loading. Many designers like to include specialized effects but these can lead to slow sites if used excessively.
Graphical Elements that can be Reused
Standardize the graphical elements such as buttons and bullets that you use. Avoid resizing them in accordance with layout colours and sizes. The advantage of having similar elements is that it makes it easier for developers to reuse blocks of code whenever the elements take place.
Colour Setting
Remember to implement colour-setting configurations in Illustrator or Photoshop. You have the option of using colour or non-colour managed software according to the desired results pertaining to color shifting when saving for web.
Understand Drupal Forms
It is important to become better acquainted with the inbuilt forms of Drupal. Many designers are often tempted to customize the forms but redesigning the structure of a Drupal form can be a time consuming process. If you have a limited amount of time to spare for your design project, it is advisable to restrict design adjustments. Knowing the structures of the forms is highly beneficial.
Leaving the form elements as they are is a good way to cut down on the costs and time used. Although focus is usually on designing what you want and not using what Drupal automatically provides, you can download and assess various templates before finalizing your own designs.
Start with Generic
- Whenever you design the elements for display on the site, it is advisable to start with general consistent items that will be executed on the site before using specified elements for given pages.
- The most general items are on display while the specified ones are set aside for items that have a specific target.
- Ensuring that the fundamental styles you use are in place prior to the specified styles is time effective during the process of development.
Familiarize with the Elements under design
Every designed element has restrictions therefore knowing which element is under design goes a long way towards saving you time and resources by speeding up production. Designers can undertake some of the tasks to ease theme development and boost the performance of Drupal sites.
Designers need to implement the most suitable practices for the design and execution of Drupal themes to make sure that their clients are able to yield a worthwhile return on their investment and enhance the user experience of on-line users.