Building the Navigation First

I start with the navigation before I figure out the rest of the RitesDev website.

That might sound backwards. The navigation is only a small part of the page, and it doesn’t tell anyone what the business does. But it gives me a framework for thinking about the site as a group of connected pages instead of a set of unrelated designs.

It makes the structure visible

When I see the links together, I make decisions about what belongs in the site and what I can leave for later. Home, About, and Contact are a reasonable starting point. The blog fits alongside them without taking over the whole project.

It also gives me a quick way to check whether the site makes sense. If I can’t tell where a page belongs in the navigation, I probably need to think more about why that page exists.

A useful first step

The navigation isn’t the finished design. It’s a small piece I can build while I make larger decisions.

That gives me a helpful way to start. I don’t need every answer before I build something. I just need a first piece that makes the next decision easier.