Web design is generally considered to encompass the design and development of a website. In reality, web design is the art of designing the website. This is how the website will look, the layout, the images, and the text. Web development is the art of making the website work, the HTML coding that gives functionality to the web design.

Even with this understanding, it is possible for someone without web design / development skills to create an attractive website. There are basically three approaches to this.

1. WYSIWYG - A long acronym that stands for What You See Is What You Get. This type of web design / development is done through a software program like Microsoft's "Frontpage". With this type of program you select a theme, drag and drop images to where you want them to be displayed, and add your text where you want it. The software program automatically creates all the HTML coding behind the scenes to make sure your website functions the way you want it to. This is a quick and easy way to design a website, and many web hosting companies, like LunarPages, offer WYSIWYG templates to get you started. The downside to WYSIWYG is that your design is limited by the capabilities of the web design program you are using. So depending on your needs, a WYSIWYG web design program may be right for you.
2. Templates - Templates are pre-designed websites that you modify with your own content and if desired, your own images. Using a template is not difficult. Basically you open the template with a text program like notepad, and replace the made-up copy that came with the template with the text that you want displayed instead. When you done, you save your changes and view your design in any web browser. Probably the most difficult part of using a template is finding what you want to change among all the HTML coding, but it's really not that hard. There are thousands of free and for sale templates on the web. This website is based on a free template from Free CSS Templates. In case you are wondering, CSS stands for Cascading Style Sheet, and is a type of website design. CSS design will be discussed in future blog articles.
3. Web Design Company - Yup, this means paying to have a website designed and developed for you. Depending on your needs, this may be the only option. If you do decide to hire a designer, be sure to write out exactly what you expect for functionality and any design ideas you may have. When you meet with a web designer, review your needs, ask about their credentials, view their portfolio, and be sure to ask for references. Get their web design / development quote in writing. Make sure the contract includes project milestones, redesigns allowed, upload, long term support etc. Most importantly, don't be afraid to shop your business around to several web design / developers.