How do you come up with a great design? There are many aspects that have to work well on their own and look even nicer when put together.
Process
Designers approach a project by breaking down the various design aspects and then working with the team to define what fits the client's desire.
Here are some major components that are considered as part of a design:
Color, typography, layout.
By making good choices in these areas, you can assemble some great looking pages and components.
Start by laying down some concepts, mock up some potential site content and components. Apply the color and typography you came up with and massage the results.
Inspiration
How do you know what you're looking for? How do you know what your client is visualizing when they're explaining what they want?
It's a good idea to collect inspirational pieces that showcase what you're thinking and can be used to discuss what the client wants. Put together a mood board that categorizes different stylistic choices. and help your client understand the design aspects highlighted by each option in order to choose a direction.
Design has both classical and trendy styles and guidelines. You should be frequently looking for inspiration in other sites and design projects in order to build up your eye for good design.
Growth
Great design doesn't have to be complicated. Start with a basic home page with a header, title, and some paragraphs about the company. Define some color and layout guidelines and apply them to new components as you create them. Look for ways to refine the design and keep your templates and css up to date. Do some browser testing to make sure it looks good on all devices.
For a new project, there is a rush to design a large number of components. What you are also doing is making the foundational design decisions for the project that will be expanded on as needed. Over time, you will transition into refining existing work and expanding to new items.