Communication and Web Design - A Critical Look at the Communicative Process of Web Design

Presenter Information

Mahamadou Tahirou, Minnesota State University, Mankato

Location

CSU 253/4/5

Start Date

4-4-2011 9:00 AM

End Date

4-4-2011 10:30 AM

Student's Major

Communication Studies, Computer Information Science

Student's College

Arts and Humanities

Mentor's Name

Kristen Cvancara

Mentor's Department

Communication Studies

Mentor's College

Arts and Humanities

Second Mentor's Name

Kristen Treinen

Second Mentor's Department

Communication Studies

Second Mentor's College

Arts and Humanities

Description

With the tremendous advances in technology and the availability of the internet, many business owners saw the potential of bringing their stores to our homes through their websites. The internet nowadays is populated with numerous websites serving different purposes and targeting different audiences. This study examines the process used by most web designers in web development and proposes a more efficient option that incorporates a better analysis of the targeted audience. To better understand the actual approach used by most web designers, the content of six popular websites has been analyzed throughout the course of this study. In addition to the websites themselves, three manuals used by web developers have also been scrutinized. The application of the new web design process discussed in this analysis is expected to generate more efficient and user friendly websites, which in turn will increase the number of users and their satisfaction. This innovative method is also likely to cut the time spent in web design by filtering features and functionalities that are not solicited by the end users.