Archive for the ‘Web Site Design’ Category
Wednesday, November 17th, 2010
When dining at a nice restaurant, it’s more than the food and presentation that makes for an experience. It’s the ambience, the wait staff, the manager and those little extras that will motivate us to tell others. There’s a charming restaurant in an old house in Littleton, CO that has amazing food and ambience. The main reason I like to go there is because of Lou – he is a poet/actor/waiter. He has so many poems in his head that he can recite one for just about any occasion. Yes, the food is great, yes the ambience is great – but it’s Lou that keeps me coming back. He adds immensely to the dining experience. It’s the same with a website. You want more than just a pretty picture sitting there. You want people to keep coming back and buying your products or using your services because of the experience.
How can you enhance the “experience” the visitor will have at your website?
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Tags: attracting clients, Business Strategy, effective web design, marketing ideas, Web Marketing
Posted in Effective Web Sites, Web Design Ideas, Web Marketing, Web Site Design, Web Trends | No Comments »
Wednesday, November 10th, 2010
Several times a day I’ll get an email or phone call from a client asking if I have heard of “SEO Company #3,000”. They are guaranteeing top placement in the search engines for only $29 or $229 or some other enticing amount. Isn’t that a smokin’ deal? What do you think I should do? Hmmm, hang with me while I muse about this.
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Tags: effective web design, internet marketing, search engine optimization, SEO, Small Business, Web Marketing
Posted in Effective Web Sites, Web Design Ideas, Web Marketing, Web Site Design, Web Trends | No Comments »
Wednesday, October 6th, 2010
The dictionary uses these words to describe “conscientious” – honest, responsible, reliable and straightforward. In a nutshell, that sums up our work ethic. We respond to all emails and phone calls within minutes or hours. Completing requested tasks in a prompt, efficient manner is standard operating procedure. While this sounds like Basic Business 101 – it apparently is uncommon.
We work well with a variety of professionals throughout any given day. Whether they are Domain Registrars, Hosting, SEO, Pay Per Click, Adwords, Marketing, Public Relations, Printers, Web Companies, Programmers, Virtual or Administrative Assistants and more. I was appalled when I phoned a web company to fix a scripting error on their client’s site for us. (We’re doing some updates on that client’s site). I was told they couldn’t take my request over the phone, I would need to email it to support@ – what the heck? I received an automated email response assigning a case # and saying if it took longer than 72 hours a rep would call me. Well, that didn’t happen, so I emailed again, a new case # was assigned and again no response. I then emailed the person I spoke with initially on the phone. To make a long story short – my request was totally ignored and to this date, the problem still exists on their site. How do they sleep at night?
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Tags: Business Strategy, client communication, Client Relations, customer service, Small Business
Posted in Effective Web Sites, Entrepreneurs, Small Business Owners, Web Site Design | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 29th, 2010
I would say YES and it’s so much more. There are over 6,500 “plug-ins” or features and more being added. Our clients that are using WordPress are just delighted at how easy it is to update their own sites, add images or upload videos. If you don’t have a WordPress site yet, then we can install links via www.cushycms.com for you to update pages in your site.
Why is it important to Validate Code?
It is our standard practice to validate code on sites we design. The reason we do this is to ensure your web pages are interpreted in the same way (the way you want) by various machines, search engines, as well as users and visitors to your webpage.
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Tags: effective web design, web site usability
Posted in Effective Web Sites, Web Site Design, Web Trends | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 9th, 2009
Have you noticed all the makeover shows lately? Total home and room makeovers, body makeovers from losing weight to plastic surgery, wardrobe makeovers, cosmetic makeovers from new hair to new teeth. We seem to be fascinated with improvements and making things better. Below are top five questions to ask yourself and you’ll know for certain when your website needs a makeover.
- If it was designed more than 3 years ago, it most likely needs a new look. Technology has changed with programs, coding and search engines. Also, people want instant gratification so text-heavy, slow-loading sites are a thing of the past.
- If you had a friend or relative design your site. There is much more to designing an effective website than creating a Word document or Illustrator drawing. Friends or relatives most likely will not have extensive knowledge and experience with html coding, search engines and usability. Also, they may not have the time to devote and your website becomes a low priority. (more…)
Tags: effective web design, Web Marketing, website redesign
Posted in Web Site Design | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 2nd, 2009
Do you know how powerful the colors are on a website? Colors make a first impression and also evoke emotions. Sometimes a simple change of colors on a website can create a whole new look and feel while keeping the same basic design.
It’s a good idea to have the colors of your logo be represented on the website. This creates a branding image in the mind of your customers. Whenever we see yellow & red & the golden arches we know what famous fast food chain that represents.
As with everything, there are positives and negatives to each color. Knowing your target audience will determine which colors you’ll choose to convey. When you’re appealing to a global audience, knowing the color meanings of different cultures will be beneficial. See a Cultural Color Chart.
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Tags: attracting clients, effective web design, website colors, website redesign
Posted in Attract Your Ideal Clients, Effective Web Sites, Law of attraction, Web Design Ideas, Web Site Design, Web Trends | 13 Comments »
Wednesday, July 8th, 2009
Are you a creative type? Me too! Having a creative mind can be both a curse and a gift. With so many ideas and business offerings buzzing inside our heads, we often experience headaches and euphoria simultaneously. We want to tell or show everyone all the many things we do.
Those of us with websites, blogs and ezines may want to showcase lots of products or services with too much text. You’ve seen the websites I’m talking about – too much text, too many calls. The reality is that simpler really is best.
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Tags: Add new tag, effective web design, marketing ideas, Web Marketing, web site marketing, website marketing
Posted in Artists, Effective Web Sites, Small Business Owners, Web Site Design | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, June 24th, 2009
1. Big Red Flag. No website? If the person you are planning to hire doesn’t have a site of his or her own, this is a big red flag. How will they know what works or doesn’t work if they haven’t tested it on their own site? If they are a professional in business they will have a website. Their website is a true reflection of them – study it carefully looking for anything that may indicate “this company looks great!” to “I have some doubts in working with this company”.
2. Listen to me. Can you hear me now? Are they really listening to what you want/need? OR immediately writing out a prescription like a bad doctor based upon what they think you need. If it is the latter – run-Forest-run.
3. Experience. How many years of experience does this person have? How will this benefit you?
4. Resources. How many resources does this person utilize? If they work only with one program or have one resource and derive all information/facts from that one source – probably not in your best interest to hire someone with such limited resources.
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Tags: Business Strategy, internet marketing
Posted in Effective Web Sites, Small Business Owners, Web Site Design | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 27th, 2009
Flash, Frames & Blinking Banners – Avoid building an entire site in Flash. Search engines cannot find or read a site built totally in Flash. A good alternative is to create an html site and implement Flash elements inside this type of site. Frames are difficult for users and search engines can’t read sites built in frames. Avoid frames completely! Too many blinking banners, moving text or images can be distracting to the visitor and give the wrong impression. Too much bling is not a good thing for a website.
- Poor Content, Too Much or Not Enough – What you say on your site is extremely important. Be brief and get to the point with effective, powerful words. If a visitor has to scroll multiple times to read all the text they and move on. People are typically in a hurry and want the info fast. Have you been to a site with no text and wondered what they were all about? Text on the home page is important for the visitor and for the search engines. Don’t make them guess what’s behind door #1, tell them what you are about so they will want to explore further. (more…)
Tags: effective web design, web site mistakes
Posted in Creative Marketing, Effective Web Sites, Small Business Owners, Web Design Ideas, Web Marketing, Web Site Design | No Comments »