Personas
One of the first steps I like to take on a project is to develop a set of personas that identifies the target audience of the product(s) or service(s) I'll be championing throughout the design process. It's valuable to integrate the client in the persona development so that everyone is in agreement as to who will be using the deliverable and how that audience should be addressed.
Interaction Maps
In this example I've illustrated how users access information through a typical sitemap hierarchy. I couldn't alter the site structure, so I demonstrated a way to let users conveniently navigate to related information that they previously had a difficult time reaching.
Wireframes
Once the user(s) and their experience through the site have been established, it's time to start wireframing key pages. This helps set expectations about where content will show up on the page with respect to imagery, navigation, and target browser display limitations. I feel wireframes are the most important step in the design process, as they can be produced quickly, allow for quick content sign-off, and provide the client a very close facsimile of how the final deliverable will look.
Visual Style Pages
Style pages are important for expediting the design process, because they quickly help a client figure out a brand-appropriate way to "skin" their site's look and feel. Given the agreed-upon style page and wireframes, the final page designs of the site should come easily for both the designer to produce and the client to approve.
