Blog Topic #12: Project Research

When beginning a web design project, it's a good idea to research other sites that have similar goals and objectives as the site that you plan to build. In other words, you need to check out your competitors (direct or indirect) to find both good and bad ideas, and to find ways to differentiate yourself. You may also choose to do inspirational research, finding sites (or other media) that have effective color palettes, navigational schemes, grid structures, etc.

Find and analyze one or two sites that are similar in nature to your final project site. For example, if doing a website for a cafe, find other cafe/restaurant sites to analyze.

Analyze your chosen site(s). What are the site's communication objectives? How is information structured on the site(s)? What content is emphasized? Is there a theme? How do the design elements function to reveal the theme(s) and objective(s)? Review the analysis questions in Blog Topic #9 for fuel in your analysis here. Describe what you've learned about designing your project site based on this competitor/idea research.

Possible Points: 20 points