Web Design
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Choosing a Web Designing Service - What All to Look For?
When we plan to start a business, one of the first things which come to our mind is that of creating a website. But, we should have a good idea about what we are aiming to achieve with our website. A website can be used for various purposes like being a catalog site for listing all the services provided by the company and some explanation concerning each of them. On the other hand they can be full fledged interactive web sites with many online services. You should think about things like need of a separate login id for each of your workers, need of official email services for the employees, data entry forms etc.
Other details like categorizing the site based on various departments in the office and the budget for developing the website should also be decided prior to hiring a designing service. When we contact them after making an outline about our requirements, it will become easier for both of you to work together. The second thing to look for is the method adopted by a particular design team and the success of their mode of operation. This can be examined by collecting information concerning various methods used in website designing. To avoid any failure in the method used by your company, it is better to opt a service which is able to provide a website by incorporating different modes of service.
If you are having other competitors in the market, your website should be better than that of the others. For achieving this you should take the service of an experienced web designing company. Only such people will be familiar with various methods for bringing your website to top position. They will create a site with embedded tags which will aid in search engine optimization. Another feature of a good design team is related to their customer support and background monitoring services. They should be able to provide you the needed services in case you have to upgrade the site or to troubleshoot. It would be better if they could remotely analyze and solve the issues.
15 Tips for Better Web Design
The following is a small collection of web design best-practices...
No spelling or grammatical mistakes - This should go without saying, but a website with spelling or grammatical mistakes can lose credibility and look unprofessional. Thoroughly spell-check and proof read anything before putting it live on your website.
Avoid long pages - Whilst some vertical scrolling is tolerable, do not make your pages excessively long. If you have a large amount of content, consider dissecting it over multiple pages.
Harsh, conflicting colours - One of the most hated things you can do is put black text on a white background, or vice versa. There is such a harsh contrast here that some people get headaches from looking at it. You need to make it easier on the eye for the user, so if you're using black/white, considering playing around with different shades of grey.
Make sure your links are visible - The user should be able to easily identity what is a link and what isn't. Links will commonly be a different colour from the standard text and are often underlined.
Optimise your anchor text on links - When you're creating a link, try to avoid making the link something generic like 'click here'. For example; rather then saying "For a professional business website, click here", I could say "Such and such company can create for you a professional business website".
Avoid intro pages - The more steps a user has to perform to access your content, the more discouraging it will be for them. Quite often I see websites that have an 'intro' page, where all it is is their logo and an 'enter site' button. A pointless page that's only real purpose is to make the user work harder... avoid this!
Keep your website simple - This means keeping your navigation user-friendly and easy to follow, and not cluttering your website. If you have a substantial amount of content, break it up into smaller, more manageable pieces. LESS IS MORE!
Make sure your logo is clickable - Most users now have burnt it into their heads that clicking the logo will return them to the homepage, so make sure your's does this also.
Include your contact details - There is nothing worse than a website that has no contact details. It should be easy for a user to get a hold of you if they need to so make sure you have a contact page with your details, and other various direct links to that page throughout the website. If you primarily want user's to call you, consider placing your phone number at the top of every page.
Avoid audio - Most user's hate going onto a website that automatically plays off a video or some sort of audio. If you have embedded a video and music track, make sure it's up to the user to initiate it with a play button and don't force it upon them.
Do not open new browser windows - It's seems logical that if you direct links to other sites to open in a new browser window that the user won't leave your website, but there is a reason why browsers have a back button on them. Let the user control how links are opened... they will go back if they want to.
Grab their attention - Like I said at the start, you have only mere seconds to grab a visitor's attention. So whatever you have on your homepage, it must be compelling enough to make them want more. A great way to do this is with a slideshow or promotional banner of some sort. Keep the text short and to the point, and make sure there are links to the areas on the website you want traffic driven to.Also, make sure to keep the most important information towards the top and 'above the fold', as in, make sure the visitor can see it without having to scroll down. You want it to smack them in the face as soon as they hop on the website.
Simple fonts go a long way - It's easy to format your content with some new fancy font, but is it readable? There's no point in making the text look prettier if the user can't read it... There is a variety of different web fonts to chose from nowadays that are simple and elegant, but still give your website that bit of funk. A good website will probably only make use of about 2 - 3 different fonts; 1 - 2 for the headers and another for the text.
Font size - Whilst we're on the subject of fonts... make sure that the text is large enough so everybody can read it! Depending on the website, a smaller text might look better visually and fit in with the design better, however it won't be so easy for some people to read. I suppose it depends on your target audience... if its the older generation, perhaps the text should be a little larger.
Avoid flash - Flash-based websites aren't so user-friendly and can cause major headaches for some users. The occasional flash-based banner is acceptable, otherwise, avoid it like the plague.
Are Websites Really That Valuable?
Yes! A website can be an invaluable tool for any person or business. Read on to learn why...
A Website Can Help Your Business
Almost every business can benefit from starting a website. These days, 97% of all consumers use the Internet to look for products and services they want. That's a ton of potential customers! When people look online for products and services YOU offer, will they be able to find you? Will they only find your competition, because you don't have a website for your business?
A business website gives your potential customers an easy way to buy your products and services, any time, from anywhere. A website can also help with your public relations as well. For example, by posting relevant, interesting content on your website, you can show your target market that you know what you're talking about and establish yourself as an expert in your industry. This will help people trust you and your business more, which means people will be more likely to buy from you.
Even if you don't actually sell products or services online (and not all businesses do), a business website is still an important business tool. You can use your website to spread the word about your brand and establish your company's credibility. If people visit your website and like what you have to offer there, they'll be a lot more likely to visit your store or contact you about your services.
A Website Can Help You
It's not only business owners who can benefit from starting a website. A personal website it a great way to take possession of your name online. For example, if your name is Tom Brown, you could register that as a domain name (website name) - TomBrown.com - and make sure no one else can claim your name for their website address.
Plus, people Google everyone these days. Who knows who's looking you up online right now - your boss, your family, long-lost friends... the list goes on and on. The point is, people will look you up online, and if you don't have a personal website, you can't really control what people see when they search for your name. There's nothing wrong with having a Facebook profile or a Twitter account, but those aren't the same as having a real, professional website.
No matter who you are, getting a website is almost always a great idea. To learn a little more about websites and how to get one, check out this video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NZo1MxyBk0s&list=UUB1eLb-yEufIMrzCTTuEhmw&index=6&feature=plcp
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Tuesday, 30 October 2012
Build a Website From Scratch: The Best Tools and Tutorials for Beginners
When you fist begin to conceptualize what your website might look like you will have many good ideas. What will drive you to build on those ideas is your passion to bring them to reality. An integral and exciting part of this web development process is the research, learning and frustration as you seem to be confronted by difficult obstacles. Having the right tools to perform any task is crucial and this philosophy applies to when you build a website from scratch. There are various web development frameworks available and other tutorials which can provide excellent guidance for the foundation of your website.
If you consider that most new web developers began as you are and have shared their experiences in various forums and online venues, the sheer amount of knowledge and tools available to help you through the process is enormous. Gathering this experience will take some time and dedication, but it is a critical part of the website building process.
Besides the knowledge provided by the various seasoned experts, you can research the work of other fledgling website builders and designers through community directed blogs and tutorials. For difficult and seemingly unsolvable problems, forums may prove a to be an invaluable tool where you can ask specific questions and receive help from those that have gone before you. In order to succeed on the internet you need to have your finger on the pulse of all the new trends including: social media, web site building tools, keyword research tools, traffic building tools and content creation tools.
Eventually, after many hours of planning and research, you will be ready to launch your website. You will feel great excitement and satisfaction launching your own internet business as you have achieved a goal that many others would not contemplate; therefore, be proud of yourself. A universal truth is that once you build one site you will want to build others on varying subjects and it will become easier and easier.
Tuesday, 23 October 2012
Facts About Mobile Websites
Today, individuals are using their mobile phones and other handheld devices for almost everything (other than making calls and sending messages). The most important use of mobiles in the current era is that they are internet compatible and allow users to surf the web. Studies have found that one third of the population (globally); make use of their mobile phones for browsing and using the internet. Therefore, you can understand the importance of having a mobile site to capture this vast user frontier.
Half of the online searches within the local contours, whether for services or products, are carried out via mobile phones. So businesses without a mobile websites will be losing heavily on local searches. Mobile sites or mobile friendly websites have garnered higher search engine rankings than the regular ones. This is because the mobile websites offer higher speed to users, making their browsing experience a pleasurable one. Furthermore, users of mobile phones can access the internet anywhere within reason which makes a huge difference. Therefore, having mobile websites will help businesses to reach out to millions via various handheld devices.
Browsing the internet through mobile phones is easy, quick and most importantly, versatile. This assists businesses contacting their potential users and customers anywhere or time. Mobile sites therefore, must be more informative for users, so that they can easily acquire the results without going through numerous steps. Once, your user is capable of finding what he or she needs with ease via a mobile website then they may well become your loyal customer. Mobile websites get higher search engine results, especially, for local searches.
Mobile sites provide an edge to their owners and help them fend off their competitors. Furthermore, it is not at all difficult to record and analyse the success of your mobile website because there are numerous tools and reporting systems available today. So, wait no longer, get going with the creation of a mobile website and make the most out of mobile communication!
How to Choose a Web Design Firm - Questions You Should Ask Before Hiring
So that leaves most people unsure of how to proceed. It's no secret that your business needs to have a web presence in order to achieve long term success. The secret is finding a company to help you build and develop your website without taking advantage of you or misguiding you with bad information.
The following list of tips should help you to separate the good from the bad when researching potential web design companies to help you move your business online.
Ask for information about the company's track record. Any web design company worth working with will have an impressive portfolio to share with new customers, like yourself. Ask to see their past work! There is nothing better than to see real life examples of what the company has produced for their clients. This gives you a realistic idea of what level of design quality you can expect from any given company. Other important questions regarding a company's track record might include: how long have you been in the business, do you have any client referrals I can contact or testimonials I can see?
Do you outsource any of your tasks, or do you handle all aspects of my project in house? This is important to ask because companies that outsource some or most of their design or development work generally get things done at a much slower rate. Not to mention, you won't be able to directly communicate with every member of the team who is actively working on your project. The best way to avoid these pitfalls and ensure the least amount of headache is to seek out a company which offers full service web design and does all of their work in-house.
Do you offer any online marketing services to help promote my new website? This one is huge, but is often overlooked by business owners. The fact of the matter is that someone could build you a spectacular looking website that was exactly the way you envisioned it, but that website will do your business absolutely no good if it just sits there online and no one can find it. After all, when you want to find something online, what do you do? Google it. That's how people will find your site too, so be sure the web design company you choose to hire has a good grasp on SEO and uses industry standards when creating websites.
Use these tips to make a short list of potential companies and do your research when it comes to building your business online. It will only end up paying off in the end!
How To Choose The Best Source For Affordable Custom Website Design
As a consumer, it's your responsibility to shop around, do your research and choose the best source to design your custom website. This article gives you a few tips on how to choose:
Tip #1 - Who Will Be In Charge Of Your Project? Name And Number!
It's very very important to know who exactly will be in charge of your custom website design project. Is there a huge team managing your project? Will you receive a response from a different person every time you ask to receive a project update? Is the person in charge available via email or via phone? Will they be available on weekends should you need to discuss a quick problem or suggestion? It's very important to know who exactly is in charge of your custom website design project. It's a horrible feeling to NOT know how many people are developing your website, and who's in charge. If you cannot get a name and number of the main individual in charge of your project, this can only mean one thing: NO ONE IS IN CHARGE OF YOUR PROJECT!
Tip #2 - Find Out Exactly How Long Your Custom Website Project Will Take
If the company you're about to choose for a custom website design cannot give you a good and accurate estimate on how long your website project will take, take that as a huge warning sign! When working with an experienced designer or design company, they will surely know just about how long a project will take, and they should be able to provide you with a very accurate estimate. Now, don't expect them to give you a precise day and time - let's not be too anal! But do expect for them to give you a monthly or weekly time frame. And, don't be scared to move on to the next company if they cannot get the job done within an adequate time frame.
Tip #3 - Find Out Costs, And If Payment Plans Are Available
Typically a custom website design company will have contracts and other legal paperwork (whether physical or electronic) for their clients to read over and sign. When coming across companies such as these, it's extremely important to look over these documents to figure out the final price of the custom website design project. Many times, large design firms will hide the final price within the terms and conditions. You thought your custom site was only going to be less than an arm and a leg - turns out they want to charge you 2 arms and 2 legs! Read over all paperwork and be certain about how much you're about to invest for your custom website. And don't be scared to ask if a payment plan is available. And if no payment plan is available, or if they are going to charge you large interest rates, move on! Find a designer or design firm who can work with you and your financial capabilities.
Tip #4 - Is This Company Actively Involved In Creating Custom Websites?
Be sure to ask to see recently completed website designs before working with a custom website design source. If they cannot show at least a few recently completed custom projects, this of course is not good. You want a company that is highly active in the industry and familiar with custom projects. If the company you're considering primarily works with templates, you may want to look at other options. You'll want a designer or company who specializes in "from the ground up" custom work. And yes, there is a huge difference between the two!
Tip #5 - Listen And Observe - If You Get A Good Feeling, Go For It!
It all comes down to how you feel. If the company you're considering hiring doesn't give you a good feeling inside, that isn't good! You definitely don't want to settle for less than the best, or choose a company because they're good at talking over you and using a crafty-worded sales pitch. Never be afraid to say "No thanks", and always go with your gut feeling. It's usually always good to have at least a short "real" and "down to earth" conversation with the company or designer, just to get a better feel for how they really present themselves. If they're easy to communicate with, easy to understand and easy to work with - looks like you have yourself a winner!
Simply put, do your homework when picking and choosing a designer for your custom website project. Yes, they should be affordable, and yes they should be straight forward when it comes to answering difficult questions. Knowing who will be in charge of your project is critical, and their level of activity in creating custom websites is equally important. So, be sure to work out a great deal that's both affordable and acceptable and keep in touch with whoever is in charge of your brand new custom website design from project initiation to project completion!