Should writing style be part of web design?

It's not often that we get involved in building a new site for a new brand but when it happens it can throw up some very interesting issues.

Most sites we develop are for established companies who have a style of communication that they use which needs to be catered for by any proposed new design.

For a brand new business as part of the design process, and in addition to designing a beautiful and functional site, we also need to establish what tone of voice the site and business should use in its communications.

With one new client this led to a very interesting discussion centreing around what should come first, the design or the communication style.

We came to the conclusion that what came first didn't really matter too much as long as they were closely co-ordinated and appealling to the target market.

It is very true though that whilst the look of a site needs to be visually appealling in order to grab a browser's attention. It is perhaps even more important to ensure the written word on the site is both engaging for the target audience and in tune with the look of the site.