subject: Website Design: What Does "bespoke" Really Mean? [print this page] Bespoke. Tailored. Custom. Bespoke. Tailored. Custom.
It's a rare website design company that doesn't refer to one of the above. Yet, like all buzzwords, these terms are frequently misused. Can a design really be called custom if it uses the same form and template as another site?
So, what really constitutes bespoke website design?
Getting the right fit
The term bespoke comes for the suit tailoring world.
When you ask for a new custom suit, a good tailor will ask what kind of cut you want, as well as what colours, what design, what texture, what material, what price, and any unusual feature requests. Ultimately, the tailor is asking what you want your suit to say about you.
However, if you walk into a department store and pick up a suit from the rack, you're holding a compromise. It may be flabby round the edges, it might have bad stitching, it might even fray and unravel after a few wears - but it is cheap.
Bespoke means questions
If a designer doesn't ask you, often in fine detail, what you want from your site then you're probably not going to get a customised result.
After all, if a designer doesn't ask you how you upload your content and what type of content you work with, then chances are they won't build a customised content management system just for your needs.
The underlying code
An off-the-shelf suit is designed for an Everyman. But custom clothes use original patterns and underlying design. The type of thread used, the way the material is cut, the material involved this is the foundation for the end result.
Bespoke website design means not paying for someone else's template. While designers learn from previous projects and will remember particular coding structures and techniques for future reference, most of your code should be built from scratch.
The overall look
Nobody wants to bump into someone wearing the exact same shirt, tie, shoes and suit. So nobody wants to see their web graphics elsewhere online. It dilutes individuality and dents your online brand.
All graphics should be unique, from the navigation bar to the logos. Ask your website designers how they create icons and graphics. If they use stock images and icons, that's tantamount to wearing the same tie as the person across the table.
In the end, bespoke website design means getting what you want. It means that you're not forced into templates or functions that were designed for other sites. And yes, bespoke web design is the difference between an ill-fitting suit that hangs off your limbs, or a perfectly cut work of art that brings out all your best features.
