Are you interested in redesigning an outdated Drupal website? Or maybe you’re looking into launching a brand-new platform using an outstanding Drupal toolset? In any case, the main challenge you’ll face is finding an agency to guide you and assist you with Drupal website design.
The Drupal strongest suit is providing user-friendly content authoring experience, especially for complex and large-scale websites. Businesses should collaborate with web developers with in-deep knowledge of Drupal design to benefit from its scalability and flexibility. Without further ado, let’s get down to what the crucial Drupal components designers should know and how to choose the best Drupal web agency, avoiding the red flags.
What is Drupal website design?
Let’s start with a deeper understanding of what makes Drupal website design so popular.
Drupal is a primary open-source content management system that provides a flexible and powerful platform for creating interactive and dynamic websites. The Drupal website design refers to crafting sites using their CMS.
Drupal stands out with a wide selection of features and functionalities suitable for building various websites, from small personal blogs to large-scale enterprise applications. Drupal allows you to create and manage content, customize the interface and layouts, and extend the website’s functionality by using modules and themes.
Drupal design: What should you know?
- Component-based design. Drupal follows a component-based approach rather than a page-based design. Meaning developers break down the user interface into modular components that serve different purposes and can be reused across various pages or sections. Drupal components range from buttons, forms, and headers to navigation menus and content grids. Designers build complex layouts while maintaining a cohesive system by organizing and cheating components. Component-based design approach offers flexibility, consistency, and scalability for your website.
- It’s flexible, but it’s not a clean slate. Drupal indeed provides extraordinary flexibility with design customization. Designers have the freedom to craft unique user experiences and tailor the website according to specific brand needs. With extensive theme capabilities, it’s possible to override default styles and layout templates or create an entirely custom theme. However, Drupal doesn’t provide a clean slate for the designer’s imagination. The platform comes with pre-existing structure and design patterns, which might impact the design implementation. Therefore, designing should understand the existing Drupal markup and CSS conventions to ensure seamless integrations and cohesive styling across the new website.
- Information architecture matters. Drupal’s power lies in its robust content management features. When creating a Drupal site, designers should consider the information structure (IA), meaning understanding the content organization within the website. A well-thought-through IA ensures the content you post is logically grouped, discoverable, and accessible to users. Good intuitive IA should include content hierarchy, consider user workflow, and follow the navigation requirements. Informational architecture is crucial for the end user to navigate the website effortlessly, find relevant information fast, and have a seamless experience.
Choosing the Drupal design agency: Red flags to avoid
Before giving out the best tips on how to choose the best-suited Drupal web design agency, let’s talk about the warning signs you should be on the lookout for. The biggest red flag is the lack of experience in Drupal development and design. The system architecture is too complex and requires the designer to know the module ecosystem and best practices to deliver high-quality results. Otherwise, the team can hinder your project’s success.
Another warning sign is an inadequate discovery phase. Stay away from studios that offer significantly lower rates, as there are probably tons of hidden fees waiting for you. Failing to build effective communication with clients gives away incompetents. Therefore, pay attention to poor responsiveness, lack of transparency, and delays in communication.
Be mindful of these red flags to guide yourself far away from studios that provide low-quality results. You want to have reliable support, fair pricing, and deep expertise in Drupal to make your collaboration with a web design agency productive and successful.
Tips for finding the best Drupal web design studio:
- Check their Drupal design portfolio.
Review the agency portfolio to evaluate the quality and diversity of their Drupal projects. See if any designs align with your main requirements or vision. This step will allow you to pick an agency with the expertise level you require and experience working on similar projects in your industry.
- Research their involvement in the Drupal community.
A professional Drupal web design studio actively engages with the Drupal community. The involvement demonstrates their commitment to the Drupal ecosystem, eagerness to learn best practices and up-to-date knowledge of the CMS platform. Loof for agencies who attend Drupal events, contribute to Drupal modules or have team members involved in various initiatives.
- Investigate their design process.
Don’t be shy to ask agencies about how they organize the design process to understand their approach. A well-defined and structured process signals the team will provide you with clear communication, efficient workflows, and successful project outcomes. To assess the efficiency of their approach, ask about their discovery phase, wireframing, designing iterations, and testing procedures.
- Keep an eye on the communication style.
It cannot be stressed enough how crucial communication is throughout the design process for your project’s success. During initial interactions with the agency, keep an eye on how responsive, transparent, and collaborative they are. Effective communication fosters a healthy working relationship, ensuring that your goals, requirements, and feedback will be heard and implemented accurately.
Wrapping up
Finding the right Drupal web design agency is not that challenging if you follow the general tips and detect the warning signs immediately. Drupal is an extremely popular platform with a rising worldwide community. Thus, there is plenty of talented and experienced professionals out there that are ready to bring your ideas to life!
