I’ve had the opportunity to work on a few website re-designs over the past year. Several of my clients have allowed me to be a part of the process. I’ve been really happy with the results, especially http://www.itsazoo.org.

Designing or re-designing websites is tougher than you might think. One tool that is often used for designing websites is mind-mapping. Basically, it’s a brainstorming exercise that starts with one, central idea, then branches out into sub-categories, then sub-sub-categories. What’s great about this tool is that it allows you to see the big picture (literally!). And it’s good for more than just building websites.

Darren Rowse, who writes ProBlogger, uses this technique extensively to help come up with new topics for blogging.

Read about his technique of using Google’s new Wonderwheel feature for mind-mapping blog topics.

Check out FreeMind, a free mind-mapping software program.

For the Mac: Omnigraffle