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February 6, 2012

What to Think About when Selecting Images to use in Website Design

There is a well-known saying that says a picture is worth a thousand words. This can be very true for images that are used in website design. If you want to make sure that your site is able to sell the goods and services that you offer you need to make sure that you are choosing the right images. Here are a few tips that you can use to ensure that your pictures will be able to send customers the right message.

Use High Quality Images on your Site

You need to make sure that you are using high quality images on your site. You want to make sure that the images you use are not grainy or out of focus. A poor-quality image can be more of a problem than no image. An image of a product should be well lit and it should be possible to see as much of the item as possible. If you can, it may be helpful to have images shot professionally and it can also be helpful to have shots of the same image from different angles.

You do need to balance the quality of the image with the file size. If you use large image files you may find that it will take too long for these images to download and it can cause customers who are on slower internet connections to simply click on a different site. This can end up costing you business.

Use a Mix of Vertical and Horizontal Images

You should use a mixture of horizontal images and vertical images. A good website design will use a variety of image sizes, shapes and orientations to add interest to your web pages. You want to make sure that the images are placed so that they will draw attention back to the text and will not allow it to wander off the page. If you have a variety of image sizes, shapes and orientations you will be able to choose the best ones rather than using poor quality images that do not fit your needs in order to fill space.

Use Colors That Work Well With Your Website Colors

It is important to use photographs that work well with the colors that have been used in your website design. Some colors will allow the photographs to pop and be extremely visible without clashing or conflicting with your website.

By choosing your images carefully you can give your clients a better idea of what your products and services are and can give them a feel for your company that may lead to brand loyalty and increased sales as time progresses.

Understanding stages in Website Design

If you are hiring someone to perform website design services for you it can be difficult to know whether the process is going smoothly if you do not understand the basic process. A competent and experienced website design company should be able to help you with the design and development process but if you have a few ideas about what the process will entail it can help you be better prepared and may enable your site design to go much more quickly than it would otherwise.

The Look
The first thing that will be established in a website design is the look of the site. Generally, a client will speak to their designer in order to tell them what colors they would like to use, whether they want any illustrations or images used and what logos will be used on the site. A graphic designer will usually be involved at this stage and may give tips and suggestions about what will look best.

The Functionality
After the look of the website has been determined it will then be time to program it so that it functions properly. This may involve using multiple programs in order to incorporate animation, ecommerce functionality and content management. Some website design professionals may use a template that can then be customized to meet their clients’ needs and others will work from scratch and build a site that is completely unique and original.

The Content
The final step is adding the content. Once the site’s functionality has been tested and there are no problems the content can be added. Content can include sections of text as well as images. Good content will help your site stand out on search engines and get you the visibility you are looking for. Good images can help you sell goods and services quickly and effectively.

Communication is Critical
You should expect several meetings or conversations to take place at different stages of your website design. There will often be an initial consultation where you will discuss exactly what you are looking for. There will also be periods of communication when you are presented with a website design and when you are working out exactly what you are looking for in terms of content.

By deciding to use an experienced and talented website design company who can design and develop your site you will often find that the process goes very smoothly and that you get a site in a very short period of time. Then, you can sit back and enjoy the increased exposure that your company will enjoy.

A Look at the Website Design Process

If you have never been through the website design process you may be feeling nervous about what you may have to look forward to. Although every design company works differently, the website design process is often quite similar from company to company. Before you meet with your website design company, you may want to do a bit of research and thinking about what you want to include on your site. Do you want ecommerce solutions that will make buying and selling products easier? Do you want a content management system that allows you to update your site quickly and easily? Are there specific websites that you like the look of? The more information you can give to your website design company the better your chances of getting your site completed quickly and satisfactorily.

The First Meeting
At the first meeting or consultation, a website design company will likely try to get a feel for what you are looking for in your site. This is a good time to let them know what you have found in your research and it is a good time for you to show them links to sites that you like. They may also ask you questions about what you want to use your site for, what colors you like and whether you want to use your own images or stock images on your site. The more information you can give them about how you want your site to look the better.

Later Meetings
Later meetings will usually take one of several forms. A second meeting may involve looking at initial design mockups that the company has created. They will want you to look at the designs so that you can tell them what you like and what you do not. If you want to take some time to consider what you like and what you do not it is possible for you to do so but you may find that this slows down the production schedule.

Once a design that you like has been created developers will begin to write the code that will turn the concept drawings into a functioning site. You may find that several different programs will be used to create the finished site especially if there are components such as shopping carts and content management systems. They will also work with you to ensure that good search engine optimization techniques have been used so that your site will be easy to find once it is up and running.

A good website design company will test the site to make sure that there are no programming errors and that the site is easy to use. Finally, you will choose the domain name for your site and, when all is said and done, it will go live. Then you can sit back and wait for visitors to view your site and enjoy the increase in business that it can bring you.

Mistakes to avoid making when planning your Web Site Design

If you are going to be engaging a company to complete a website design for you, you want to make sure that your site is functional and that it can be used to promote your company effectively. Here are a few mistakes that people make when getting a website design. Some of these mistakes can be quite expensive and time consuming to correct while others are more cosmetic problems that can be fixed more easily.

Creating a Site That Is Difficult To Navigate
If you create a site that is difficult to navigate, this can be devastating to your chances of success. If your customers cannot find the information or products that they are looking for they will often simply stop visiting your site and will give their business to your competition instead. It is better to choose a site that is more simply designed that your customers can navigate around easily. You want to make sure that the navigational buttons on your site are easy to find and that they are clear about what they will lead your customers to.

Not Utilizing Proper Search Engine Optimization Techniques
Proper search engine optimization techniques are critical to your website’s chance of success. Search engine results are what determine how easily your potential customers can find you if they are unable to search for you by name. Search engine optimization techniques include using terms commonly used to find your products and services. However, these techniques are not limited to the text content of your website. They also include the use of links both to and from your site, proper use of html tags and other elements that can help your site rank higher on a search engine result.

Not Using a Content Management System
If your site does not use a content management system that you are able to use on your own, it can make your site very difficult to update or alter in any way. A content management system allows you to change text, images and html portions of your website so that you are able to update it and make alterations to descriptions of your products and services. If you are unable to use the content management system that is used to create your site you will often be forced to rely on your web design and development company to make these changes and that can end up being very expensive in the end.

Why good Website Design is so important to your company

If you think that good website design is not important, think again. Some companies may charge a very low amount for website design but if they cannot deliver you a site that is attractive and which functions properly it is actually a waste of money. Here are a few of the main reasons why good website design is so important.

A Good Design Can Help Customers Find You
If you have a well designed website, it actually becomes easier for your customers to find you. This is because a website that uses links, text and html tags properly can actually get a better result on search engines than one that does not. Good search engine optimization can be the difference between a website that helps you bring in a lot of business and one that may not be worth the money that you paid for it.

A Good Design Can Help Sell Your Products or Services
A good web design can help you sell your products and services. The use of good quality photographs and accurate and well-written product descriptions can be much more helpful when it comes to interesting customers in what you have to offer. If your images are small or they are of poor quality or low resolution you will find that it can be one reason that some people may choose another service provider even though your price or selection may be better.

A Good Design Can Make Purchasing Items Much Easier
A good website design that includes features such as ecommerce solutions and file upload functions can make it much easier for your clients to conduct business using your website. If you are able to streamline financial transactions this can help to convince a potential customer to work with your company rather than another company that may not offer these options even though they have similar products and services.

A Good Design Gives a Feeling of Professionalism
A good website design will give a look of professionalism and competence to your company. If you have a well designed site you may find that you can attract customers looking for an established company even if you have only recently opened yours. A site that looks amateurish or cheap may drive customers away even if you have been in business for some time and have an excellent reputation with your existing customers.

There are many different features that can be helpful when it comes to promoting your company. A good website design company will work with you to find out which ones will help your business most and will incorporate those into a functional and visually attractive site that will increase your customer base and your income at the same time.

Why a content management system is important to Website Design

Do you want to be able to have a website design that allows you to alter the content of that site? Many people seriously underestimate how important a CMS can be to the functionality of their site. Here are a few of the reasons why a CMS is so critical to ensuring your website’s success.

It Can Make Your Site More Affordable To Maintain
A good CMS can ensure that your site is as affordable as possible to maintain. This is because you will be able to do much of the maintenance yourself and leave only the most difficult tasks up to your web design company. Many website design and development companies will charge you a certain amount for ongoing site maintenance. The less they have to do for this, the lower the cost will be for you.

You Can Make Changes Very Quickly
If you are running a site where you are selling products, a CMS is important. This is because you may need to add, remove or change certain items. If you are waiting for the company that created your site to make changes to your products or other areas of the site you may find that you lose the chance to sell new items simply because your customers do not know about it. A delay can actually cause a new product to fail and this can be a costly problem for many people.

Even if you are not selling goods, it can still be worthwhile to have a CMS system built into your website. If you have a portfolio of work you will want to be able to alter the items that appear in that portfolio. You will be able to remove older items and replace them with newer work that better shows your evolving skills and abilities.

It Can Give You a Feeling of Control over Your own Site
Having a good CMS in place can really give you a feeling of control over your own site. Instead of simply handing it over to others to alter and maintain you can do this work yourself. This can make you feel as though you are in charge and are not relying on people who do not have the same dedication to your company to maintain your website.

You want to ensure that you understand completely how to use the CMS that is built into your site. The good news is that many of them can be learned in a few short lessons as they use controls that are familiar to many modern computer users.

Important elements you need to include in your Ecommerce Website Design

If you are planning an ecommerce site, there are a few things that you need to ensure are included in your website design. They will ensure that you are able to use your website effectively in order to generate income. They may seem obvious but it is surprising how many different ecommerce sites do not have some or all of them.

A Good Content Management System
A content management system allows you to alter or update the text and images on your website quickly and easily. You may wonder why this is so important. The fact is that if you are changing the items you are offering, you need to make sure that you are able to change or update the entries yourself. Paying a web company to maintain your site can get overly expensive if you need to change the contents several times during the year.

Space for Large Images
If you are trying to sell merchandise, it is important that you have good quality images that are large enough for people to see them clearly. People will not buy if they cannot get a good idea of what they are paying for. Remember that not all of your viewers will have great eye sight. To go along with these images, proper item descriptions are important so that people can get a more complete mental image of what they may be buying.

A Properly Functioning Shopping Cart
It is important to have a properly functioning shopping cart attached to your website. Many people are now doing a lot of purchasing online and want to be able to point and click in order to buy. If they have to phone the company in order to give payment information they may simply choose to go with a more conveniently designed website.

Good Search Engine Optimization Methods
It is important to use good search engine optimization with your eCommerce site. This is important because it is through SEO that you can draw customers to your site. Remember to use specific keywords since this can help winnow out a lot of other sites that you may be competing with. A good website design firm should be able to offer you SEO services as well.

Taking the time to check that your website design has all of these elements is important. You want to make sure that people can find your site, locate their products and pay for them as quickly and conveniently as possible.

How to Use Your Website to Communicate With Your Customers As Effectively As Possible

A website can be a great way to reach potential customers and give them a clear picture of your products or services. It seems obvious that you would want your site to be as clear and easy to understand as possible and yet, the sheer number of unclear or confusing websites is truly amazing.

Here are a few ways that you can ensure that your site will communicate with your customers as effectively as possible.

What you should think when planing to have a website

You want to make sure that your website is easy on the eyes. This means that the colors that you use and the style and size of the lettering must all be easy to read. The last thing you want is for potential customers to click on your site only to turn away because they were unable to read it. Remember that a creative font may look great but they can also make a site look old and unprofessional far more quickly than you may like. Also make sure that you use different sizes of font to draw attention to headlines and other important elements that can help you get your company’s message across quickly.

A picture really does say a thousand words. By using images properly you can end up communicating a lot to your customers without a lot of text that can drive them away. A perfect example of this is a company that wants to showcase its portfolio of work. A larger series of images will help communicate your work and talents more quickly than smaller images will.

Designing the Website correctly

A website also needs a design that uses clear direction. By minimizing the number of areas where customers can click and ensuring that the design has a logical flow from one page to the next it can make it much easier for your customers to look for the information they need. A frustrating or confusing web design may make them pass you by in favor of a much more logically designed site.

You want to ensure that your website design uses links and text phrases as effectively as possible so that you get your site noticed by as many people as possible. This will give you the best chance of attracting new clients, something that every business is looking to do.

Good website design should be simple, clear and memorable. If your site seems confusing, hard to look at for any length of time, or does not display your work and your products effectively then paying for website design will simply be money down the drain.

What you need to ask your designer when it comes to the Website Design process

Many people hire website designers to create websites for their companies. This can be a fantastic method of attracting the attention of a wider audience than would be possible using any other advertising methods. However if you do not know anything about website design, you may not know that there are questions you should be asking your designer. Knowing what to ask can help you understand the process and ensure that you get the site you want as easily and quickly as possible. Here are a few things that you need to ask about at different stages of the design process.

Before You Hire a Designer

Before you hire a website designer, there are a few things that you should ask them. The first is how much it will cost to design the website itself. You should be aware that there can be quite a range when it comes to price. Some sites may be quite inexpensive but these are often very basic sites that may not have the functionality you need your site to have. Ask your designer how many pages the site will have and what the price they have quoted you will include. It can be very helpful for you to have a few ideas about what you are looking for specifically when you speak with your designer.

You should also ask how long the web design process will be and when you get to see mockups of the site. Ask what other costs (such as hosting or a domain name) will be charged to you and what you will need to pay to keep your site live and accessible by the public.

Once You Have a Designer

Once you have a designer that you will be working with, there are other questions you need to ask. One is who will maintain the website and deal with any updates that need to be performed. Often a site design will be one price and maintenance may be a completely different price. Ask if your site will have a content management system (CMS) that will allow you to update your site yourself, giving you the option of maintaining it yourself.

If you know the questions you should ask at different stages in the website design process you have a better chance of avoiding unwelcome surprises. There is nothing worse than finding out that the site you have paid for is not the site that you are getting. Taking the time to learn how to talk to industry professionals and get the results you want is truly time well spent.

What not to include in your Website Design

You may know what you need from your website design. You know that you want it to look good and contain content and links that will allow you to rank highly on search engine results. However, there are a few things that you need to avoid when it comes to website design. This can help to ensure that your site functions well and that viewers will be able to see it and get the information they need as quickly and easily as possible.

Complicated Animation
Animation may look good to some people but you need to be careful about how it is used in your website. At best it may simply look unprofessional or childish. At worst, it may cause your site to fail to load properly or to take so long to load that people using slow internet connections may just click elsewhere. This can cause you to lose out on potential business which is something which you want to avoid.

Bad Images
A website is only as good as the images that are used. Illustrations should be well done and look like they are in keeping with your site and company image. If you are using photographs they need to be clear and highlight what you are trying to sell or demonstrate. This is especially important if you are selling items directly from your website. Bad images will make people go elsewhere as they will be unable to tell what you are selling.

Illegible Text
Everyone loves fancy lettering but there can be a problem if you decide to use it. Some styles of lettering are so fancy and complicated that they can be difficult to read. If you have a lot of text on your page it can be hard on the eyes. The color of the text is also important. You want to make sure that there is a good contrast between the color of the text and the color of the background. Pay attention to whether or not your images make it difficult to read the text as this can be an issue on some sites.

Confusing Layout
Some sites are nightmares when it comes to finding the products and information you are looking for. We have all experienced websites that make it impossible to use quickly. If people cannot find the things they are looking for it may drive them away and cost you valuable business.

Taking the time to learn what not to include in your website design is just as important as knowing what to look for. It can help you avoid costly mistakes that may even cause your site to fail if they are serious enough.