When you are deciding what you want your WordPress website to look like, it can be helpful to know about the skills and disciplines that go into visual design. Graphic design, UI design, and Visual design are all commonly used terms describing the process of website building. Here I will examine the actual definitions of these terms as used in the industry, and how they influence the success of your WordPress website
Graphic designers have been around since the beginnings of commercial publishing and print media. Traditionally, they worked with printed promotional materials, such as brochures, business cards, and advertising posters. As digital media has expanded, the role of the graphic designer has also grown to include digital assets such as logo design, creating interface icons, and, of course, website design. Graphic designers have a solid background in visual art skills, such as color theory, visual composition, and typography. They are also responsible for creating visual assets, such as logos, and ensuring that those assets are consistent across a brand. Graphic designers who work with WordPress are also skilled at applying these methods and practices to the design of WordPress sites.
UI, or User Interface, describes the overall look, feel and functionality of the website as it is experienced by the user. All the skills of a Graphic Designer are needed. A UI Designer is responsible for selecting colors, applying fonts and typeface, and arranging website and menu layouts. They create an online experience that is both aesthetically pleasing and functionally easy to navigate. The UI Designer works on a more technical level than Graphic Designers, and requires extensive coding knowledge to translate the visual medium into a digital product. Specialists in WordPress UI design can utilize the framework of WordPress to very quickly produce a website that attracts users and engages them with its contents, helping your brand grow.
A Visual Designer incorporates many aspects of Graphic Design and UI Design, but is more responsible for overall brand management and communicating the concepts and focus of a brand. Visual Design is a newer concept in the world of publishing, and is rarely associated with print media. Web Design is a subset of Visual Design that is focused solely on website management and design. A skilled Web Designer can create a website for you that clearly expresses the message you want to communicate, and can work with you to effectively build a WordPress site that will draw in your users and keep them immersed.
Using a professional WordPress crew like ClockPunk Studios gives you access to in-house talent that can ensure the quality and reliability of your website. Experienced Graphic Designers, UI Designers and Web Designers can translate your vision into a concrete product that can attract new customers or readers, market products to a much wider audience, and firmly establish a public brand. Utilizing a professional is a necessary step in having a professional quality web presence, which in the modern world is needed for any business or author.