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Wireframing is the act of planning and designing how a website or app will function. Wireframes can be created for many different purposes, but they are most commonly used in the early stages of web design to planning out how content will appear on pages. Wireframe tools like Balsamiq Mockups allow users to quickly create wireframes with drag-and-drop ease.
Wireframing is an important aspect of web design because it helps designers work through any potential issues before spending time coding them up. Wireframes are especially useful when working with teams that might not have experience in web design because they can help get everyone on board with what needs to happen before moving forward into development phases.
Here are 5 common wireframing mistakes that designers should avoid:
- Wireframing UI before UX. Wireframes are not the place to design your app’s user experience, so don’t spend time designing an overly complicated navigation or a beautiful looking login page when it will later need to be redesigned and redeveloped for improved functionality. Focus on wireframing only counterfeit ids what is necessary to move forward with the project and design more details as you go. Wireframing is a collaborative effort, so your wireframes should be able to communicate clearly and concisely without too many bells and whistles.
- Wireframe for yourself only not for others. Wireframing can be very personal; however, if no one else can understand your wireframes, they won’t be very helpful. Wireframing is all about communication and getting buy-in from other team members or stakeholders that might not have any experience with the web design process before diving into code development.
- Wireframing too many details up front. Wireframes primarily used for planning and design purposes, so they should include enough detail to communicate with stakeholders and team members. Wireframes are not the place for pixel perfect designs since you do not know what will change during development phases. Wireframing can be iterative in nature, meaning that it’s okay to make changes as long as everyone is on board with how the wireframes are evolving. Wireframing too many details upfront can be a waste of time and resources, so avoid this mistake by focusing on the big picture only to iterate as you go along with development phases.
- Wireframe everything from scratch don’t use pre made components or stencils. Wireframing is an important part of the design process, but it’s also a time consuming one. Wireframing tools like Balsamiq Mockups allow users to quickly prototype their wireframes by utilizing pre-made components and stencils. That can dragged onto a canvas or screen where they can be edited as needed. Wireframes should always created from scratch, but they can speed up by borrowing components and stencils to save time. Wireframing is not the place for design; it’s about planning out how a website or app will function before development begins in earnest.
- Wireframe every single page on your site. Wireframes used primarily to plan out the structure and flow of your web app. Wireframing every single page can be time-consuming, so it’s best to focus on key pages that will need more development work than others. Wireframes not meant for design purposes; they should always include enough detail to communicate with other team members or stakeholders who might not have any experience with web design. Wireframing every single page of your site can be a waste of time and resources, so avoid this common wireframing mistake by focusing on the pages that will need more development work instead of all the nitty-gritty details.