How To Do Web Design Using Templates

Did yous know that you and your squad can build great websites — and salve fourth dimension — by creating your own team templates ? Squad templates can be used over and over once more, for multiple customers in various verticals. Whether there are ten people on your team or 110, team templates are a fantastic way to provide your entire team with customized, well-designed templates that look dandy on all devices.

To make the most of the templates you build, follow these tips:

1. Know the difference between a website and a template

A website is for a specific user , templates are for multiple users . A website will exist used once , templates will exist used multiple times . When you design a website, y'all have a particular audience in mind . When yous pattern a template, yous're designing for a full general audition . (For example, when you build a website, you're probably building for a specific plumber; when yous build a template , y'all're edifice for it for any plumbers who are your customers, today or in the future.)

2. Retrieve almost how you want the template to look

Consider elements like the colour palette (no more than iii colors is best) and fonts (similarly, we don't recommend using more than than three).

three. At present choose a template

You lot'll need to start with one of Duda's templates in society to build your ain custom versions. On the elevation bar of the editor, click Squad > Squad Templates > Create Templates. Yous can start with a blank template or choose ane with images and text. When choosing a template, consider the following:

Header and navigation mode
Site vertical (eating place, service, etc.)
Purpose (full website or landing page)
Number of pages (one-pager or multiple pages)
Features and widgets (store, blog, etc.)
Colour scheme (dark or light)

4. Give the template a logical proper noun that anybody on your team will empathize

One time yous've chosen the template, click Create & Customize. You'll be prompted to requite the template a name so think of something that's meaningful makes sense to everyone on your team. For example, "Wednesday Template" will probably exist useless while "Carpenter Template" will be very useful. If yous modify your listen about the template proper name later, don't worry. Y'all can rename it at any time.

From this bespeak onwards, you'll exist working in Template Style. When you're finished, click Done to save your pattern every bit a Team Template, which means anyone edifice websites on your team can use information technology every bit a base of operations for their sites.

5. Start with the desktop design

All templates are fully responsive, so information technology's really important to check each version on its ain (desktop, tablet and mobile) as some elements will need to be tweaked on some versions. Focus on the desktop blueprint commencement and when it's perfect, move to the tablet and then mobile versions.

Site elements that can exist customized for each version include:

Header and navigation menu
Font size
Padding and margin spaces
Photo galleries layout
Popup size
Site background colors and images

half dozen. Set the Global Design

This is where you lot'll ready the styles that employ to all pages and widgets in the template. Make sure you define all the elements now (even if you lot don't utilise them), so that they are set when you and your teammates utilize the template. Elements controlled here include:

Global fonts: Prepare the font size and color for everything from H1 to H6. These styles too apply to the weblog.

Global buttons: Set the pattern for all buttons. Stick to your colour palette (no more than iii colors; run across Footstep 2) and consider adding shadows to brand buttons pop.

Site background: Set a groundwork image or colour for all pages and per page.

Site layout: Cull from three customizable desktop layouts and cull your desktop width: 960px or 1200px .

7. Design the homepage thoughtfully

The homepage is super of import as information technology defines the entire flow of the site. If your template has multiple pages, there should be a section on the homepage for each page that appears in the navigation. For case, if the navigation includes: About / Services / Team / Contact, the homepage should have a section or row related to each of these. If your template has a single page, the navigation should connect with anchors on the page.

8. Add images

Fifty-fifty though many (if non all) of the images that y'all use in the template volition be replaced when information technology is used to build a website, we nonetheless recommend using high-quality, relevant images that provide guidance and inspiration. The hero image is the top image on the folio — select a great, relevant, loftier-quality image for information technology. As for the balance of the images, use 1920px Hard disk images with a max weight of 450k.

Never use images that comprise text. If you want text on the hero epitome (a slogan, for example) add information technology using a paragraph widget.

9. Add widgets, pages & sections

Add the widgets that you want from the left side bar. To add pages, click the Pages tab and click New Page. To add together sections, hover the plus sign that appears between sections and click on information technology to select sections. Widgets, pages and sections automatically take on the Global Styles of the site (and are completely customizable).

x. Want a web log? Add information technology now

When you lot add a blog to your template, a new weblog page is automatically added to the navigation. You can customize the proper noun of this page; for example, News, Updates, Stories, etc. Once a blog has been added, weblog-related widgets such equally the All Posts and Search widget will become available.

xi. Add a store

Similar the web log, when you add a shop to your site, it is automatically added to the site navigation. The default store allows for up to ten items. If the template is used to build a site that has a richer store, the store tin can be upgraded from the site.

12. Desktop done? Motility to tablet

Once the desktop design is complete, move to the tablet version and make any necessary adjustments. Note that the two views are almost identical, with two exceptions: The tablet version has but 2 layout versions (the desktop has three) and there are different layout options for the Image Gallery widget.

xiii. Mobile design – terminal merely (definitely) not to the lowest degree!

Once the desktop and tablet design are perfect, motility to the mobile version. Keep in mind that in nigh cases, this is how site visitors volition experience the site, then brand this version excellent.

You take several layouts to choose from here, though we recommend the superlative two. Review all of the Global Design elements (font size, buttons, etc.) to brand certain they look neat on mobile; if they don't, you can hands make adjustments. Y'all may also want to change the spacing and position of rows, columns and widgets. We recommend that y'all don't use more than than two columns on mobile.

In areas with multiple columns, have note of the column order on mobile. If the columns aren't arranged as y'all like, you can opposite their order.

At that place are no video backgrounds on mobile, so brand sure that if the template has a video on desktop, you've set an image on mobile.

Finally, double-check icons and divider width to brand sure it all looks smashing.

14. Consider Lighthouse when designing your template

Lighthouse is Google's automated tool for improving spider web folio quality. To optimize your template for it, follow these tips:

For full-bleed or background images, make sure they are no larger than 450k – 1920px.
For small images (gallery images, squad images), load images that are the right size from the start (not unnecessarily large).
Avoid using custom code, peculiarly JavaScript in the header.
Place widgets that might dull down site loading (for case, the map widget and HTML widget) below the fold.

For more than on building sites that rank well on Google, come across these tips .

15. Tidy up and you're adept to go

Now'due south the fourth dimension to clean upwards the template and so that whoever uses it has a prissy, clean template to work with. Here'south what you need to do:

Delete unnecessary images from the image library.
Check that all site links are correct (navigation menu, buttons, anchors and more than).
Bank check that the URL of each page matches the folio name.
Make sure Global Designs match template designs (text sizes and colors, buttons and more).
Check the color palette to make sure just template colors are used.

That'south it. Your Team Template is practiced to go. All that's left to do is tell your teammates most the fantastic new template that's waiting for them!