I have written a series of articles outlining these steps. This is part 2 of the series.
What is a wireframe?
Wireframes are basic sketches of the elements for each page. This is incredibly useful for focusing on the content of each page without being distracted by the design.
At this stage I like to make sure we have appropriate headlines, appropriate copy, effective call to actions, and the necessary elements to make each page’s user interface effective, complete, and easy-to-use. Wireframes are especially useful when creating a responsive website where it is necessary to illustrate how we arrange the content appropriately for a particular resolution. Wireframes are essential to a complicated user interface, whereas they are less essential to a simple, brochure site.
By using wireframes we focus on determining the best information design for each page for an effectively functioning web site with a positive user experience.