What are the day-to-day front-end development deliverables?
When describing what front-end developers do in regard to creating a website or web app, one usually mentions the “look” and “feel” of said digital solutions. In software development-speak, it means appearance and functionality.
21 September, 2022Why choose web development? Well, assume you want to have your own website or web application. There are tons of web development companies for startups and regular companies out there able to help you with that. Merge is no exception. So, to develop a web solution, you must first turn to front-end development services. But what does the front end include? More specifically, what are the front-end development deliverables? Read on to discover what results to expect during your project’s creation.
Front-end services: meaning
When describing what front-end developers do in regard to creating a website or web app, one usually mentions the “look” and “feel” of said digital solutions. In software development-speak, it means appearance and functionality.
In front-end, the look is the graphic design, while the feel is its interface. They are created separately (most of the work is done using HTML, CSS, JavaScript, and their respective frameworks) and then united to become a cohesive application or site.
Ultimately, front-end services mean services that handle the design and development of elements and content directly visible to people using your solution, i.e., the client-side of the application.
To explain this even further, let’s list some of the main front-end developer duties. Use them whenever you need to conduct or just be to be present in a front-end interview.
- Shaping and coding the structure and design of web applications and web pages;
- Using markup languages to write web pages;
- Working alongside the UX/UI design team to check if design choices match the established user experience and also preserve brand consistency across all design systems;
- Optimizing the web solution for smartphones and other non-PC devices;
- Maintaining the product while issuing upgrades when necessary.
Front end vs. back end vs. full stack
The front-end, as mentioned earlier, deals with visuals and features that are straight-up noticeable to the user. So, the front-enders are only in charge of graphics, content, styling, navigation, etc., while the back-end covers the logic and integration of the client side.
Full-stack development combines both front-end and back-end responsibilities, meaning one specialist deals with both sides of the product and, therefore, has the upper hand in integrating the server side with the client side.
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Learn moreMain frontend deliverables
What are deliverables in the first place? In project management, where this term initially came from, a deliverable means actual results from any project phase that you can either present to your clients or use internally to headway the workflow. The results can be either internal or external - usually a report, a design, a setup, or any other part of the project requirements.
By adding the necessity to adjust your websites and web apps to different devices, naturally, the deliverables have changed as well. Frankly speaking, the whole bunch of frontend deliverables can also vary depending on what web project you’re creating, be that a web application, a dynamic website, or perhaps a less dynamic and more of a “portfolio-style” one.
However, a few definitive and somewhat tangible outcomes are pretty much a constant in most projects. Here they are.
User interface
Design-related front-end deliverables include wireframes and prototypes of the whole user interface of the app or site. Visual design deliverables, aside from being a part of the front-end roadmap, serve the purpose of showcasing the design outcomes to stakeholders. High-quality prototypes then become a reference when coding.
Responsive components
Responsiveness in front-end UI means being able to adjust adequately to any device and any screen size. Responsive components are parts that interact with the user, and in their nature, they are simply groups of one or more HTML elements. Most common are buttons, menus, and any other building blog of any web solution’s interface. Together, they form a structure.
Reusable code + documentation
Reusable code snippets are sometimes part of front-end development deliverables. They are a practice that makes coding a bit more efficient since it strips down all the unnecessary bits and lets developers focus on the most vital components. Good product documentation is, on the other hand, one of the most crucial and tangible outputs that provide clarity for the user.
Optimization
Optimization (combined with front-end testing) is one of the less tangible deliverables, yet one of the most important for the website’s or app’s ease of use. The developer’s job is to accommodate the solution not only to different sizes (see: responsiveness) but also to various thumb locations, screen orientation, swiping and zooming motions, etc.
Backend services integration
And last but not least, frontend services also call for backend integration with the provided third-party APIs. As a deliverable, it’s all about ensuring that the client-side of development is fully integrated with the server infrastructure that stores all the data and where all the requests go when they leave the browser.
Why front-end development is important for your business
As a business, your online presence ranks on top of what you should care for to ensure popularity with your customers and, thus, improve brand loyalty. Digitalization has long settled into our daily lives, so having a website is really non-negotiable when it comes to maintaining a successful business.
This leads us to front-end development, a crucial aspect of building your online product. As part of web development, be that a website or a web application, front-end services take care of what your customers see, and, as we know, first impressions are vital to securing your business-client relationships.