What are the steps involved in a website development lifecycle?

Every software or website goes through different phases of development in order to run successfully. These phases form a lifecycle which is called the web or software development lifecycle.

The process may vary from project to project, but the most generic steps that are followed in every project are:

1. Information Gathering

This step involves identifying the purpose, goals, and target audience of your website. You’ll determine the requirements of the audience using this website and the scope of your project.

2. Planning & Analysis

Using the information gathered in the first step, you’ll form a sitemap of the website and analyze what tools and technologies will be most suitable for your requirements. You’ll also document the requirements in the form of “use cases.”

3. Implementation

This is where you implement the site structure and “code” the use cases you formed in the previous step. This includes both the front-end and back-end development of the site.

4. Launch

Once the views and functionality are implemented, the next step is to launch it online. This involves steps like registering a domain name, subscribing to a web hosting service, and publishing your web app.

5. Testing

To make sure your website is running perfectly on the web server, you’ll perform rigorous testing. This involves front-end testing, database testing, server testing, etc.

6. Marketing

There’s a list of some post-launch items that you will also need to take care of,e.g., recording web analytics, optimizing your site for search engines, and promoting your site on social media so that more people will visit your website.

7. Maintenance

Maintenance is endless and needed indefinitely. You’ll need to make sure that ​your website is running smoothly and is up-to-date.