Working with her was genuinely refreshing. She was knowledgeable, professional and authentic. While putting the technical pieces together, she always kept my vision and message intact. She has a great eye for adding little graphic touches that enhances the overall impression. I also loved that throughout the process she conveyed her marketing ideas for the latest trends happening online and what would serve us in the future. This, I appreciated very much, as it is often difficult to keep all this in mind while engaged in the unending details of running and building a business.

I would highly recommend her services and insight to anyone looking to create a quality online presence, while keeping their personal vision, integrity, and lofty ideas open to grow in to the future.

Working with her is a personal and business decision we made that we’re very proud of!”

Jennifer Becker
Inspired Action Living
Phone: (503) 332-1784

Web Design: www.inspiredactionliving.com
May 2013

In recent weeks, news has started to circulate about ongoing attacks against WordPress sites using a Botnet – a network of virus or malware infested computers. Basically, a hacker or group of hackers is using computers they have already infiltrated to crack passwords into WordPress websites around the globe. Being as there are more than 150 million such websites, it is an extensive effort.

There are quite a few articles written on this topic. This one in particular goes into great depth on what the attack means, how you can make it harder for your site to be hijacked, and what weaknesses those individuals are looking for when they try to hack your site. Worth reading if you own one or more WordPress sites.

But beyond that, I want to talk about best practices in terms of who you work with and how to avoid all of this happening in the first place.

The Benefits of a Security Partner

Whether you work with someone who actively manages your sites or you hire someone to oversee the security requirements of your website, having a dedicated professional whose job it is to keep your websites safe from outside influence is a good idea.

There are many reasons for this, even without considering major campaigns like the brute bot hacking attack.

To start, WordPress is updated almost monthly. Every few weeks small security updates are made to the platform that patch potential exploits and block viruses that have been let loose on those systems. Running WordPress for your website is like using Windows on your home computer. The number of people using it makes it a target, and therefore it requires additional protection.

A dedicated security partner will ensure those sites are updated when necessary and that all security precautions, including deleting old theme and plugin files, running scans on your servers, and checking for weak passwords, is done regularly. Not only does your WordPress site need to be updated whenever an update occurs; all of your themes and plugins need to be updated at the same time.

What These Bots Are After

These bots are after low hanging fruit. While the size of the botnet and the sophistication of the hackers makes it possible for them to hijack even some well secured sites with enough effort, it is those sites that offer little or no resistance that fall first.

Sites with user names like “admin” or “editor” and passwords like:

password, 123456, pass, abcdefg, test…and so on

Weak user names, weak passwords and no active security systems, combined with infrequent updates can make your website very easy to hack.

If you have a professional who handles all of this for you, you’ll greatly reduce the risk of your site being compromised. That alone will save you a lot of money, because hacking can lead to any number of issues from illegal acts being carried out on your website to loss of your data and potential business.

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I’m often asked what it costs to have a website developed and built. It’s a fair question, but also a very broad one. It’s easy to associate the cost of website design and development to marketing – that this is just a tool you will use to drive prospects to your products or services.

But a website is more than just another marketing tool. It’s a part of the company the same as your brick and mortar location or any one of your products. It should therefore be treated as such. There are, of course, marketing components involved in developing an effective website. You need to develop a strong brand, create powerful, engaging content, and drive traffic to that site – all factors that must be included in the cost – but the actual site design is a completely different animal.

What You See and What You Don’t

There are two major components to website design – the stuff you see and the stuff you don’t. Think of it like a building. How long does a construction crew spend digging out a foundation, laying concrete and preparing to build a new house? Weeks, right? But, you’ll never see the foundation. It’s behind the scenes, despite being the most important part of the house.

The same is true for your website. The actual functionality of your website – the research that goes into the development, the customers you target with your messaging, the actual design developed to drive a certain kind of traffic – this is all foundational.

Then there is the stuff you DO see. The buttons, images, flash animations, forms and copy developed to have a visual impact when someone lands on that website. These elements are easier to associate a cost with. The former not so much.

Other Components of Website Design Cost

Even still we’re not done. Even after designing, developing and populating a website, there are other tasks that need to be performed that make it effective as a prospect-magnet. Search engine optimization is one of those things – getting your pages listed highly in search engines so you get lots of organic traffic.

Another is the lead funnel you build into the site. It’s all fine and good if you drive 10,000 visitors per day to your site, but how do you capture those leads? What do you do to get them on an email list or entice them to keep coming back? This factor alone is probably the single best investment you can make. The more you spend to capture leads so you can continue communicating with them in the future, the more valuable every single visitor to your site will be.

The Bottom Line – Cost

I see numbers thrown around a lot. Most peg the cost of website development, branding, messaging and creation of a lead funnel at between 2% and 12% of your gross sales, possibly higher for companies new to their market.

I say it depends on what you want to get out of your website. If your website will one day contribute to 50% of your total sales, it should be a significant component of your business. The actual cost of web design & development can range from $2,000 to $50,000, but the long term value of the site you create will depend almost entirely on the goals you set, the tools you develop to meet those goals and the investments you continue to make in backend tools like your prospect list and branding.

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Ask any small business owner whether they’d like to get more web traffic through higher search rankings and the answer will be simple – “of course!”

But, when it comes to how they will do this, most small businesses don’t know where to start. Technology and the value of high rankings online have become a regular concern for nearly 85% of small business owners according to a recent survey, but nearly half of those business owners are neglecting a very important part of the process – one that would help them surge ahead in the rankings.

The Information Gap with Online Listings:

Small business owners may be well aware of the value of a strong presence online, but beyond “rank well in Google” things get fuzzy. In the same survey, more than 3/4 of businesses didn’t realize the full potential of local business listings as a tool to drive people to their storefronts.

A lot of businesses understood the value of mobile search, of ranking on page one of Google for their search terms, and that traffic online would convert to foot traffic offline. But fewer than half could answer the question – “do you maintain your local listings online?”

Some claim it’s a lack of time and others that they don’t realize those listings are there. Whatever the reason, millions of business owners are leaving money on the table by ignoring the very real value of a simple, updated online local listing for their business.

Solving the Problem:

It starts with education. If you own a local business or work with someone that does, it’s time to speak the truth about local listings. Regularly updated information in Google+ (previously Google Local), Yahoo!, CitySearch, Yelp and other online directories can have an immediate, positive impact on your search rankings.

Moreover, those updates provide a valuable tool to customers on mobile devices searching for small businesses. In fact, beyond the core elements of a website, local directory updates are among the most beneficial tasks any business owner can perform. It needs to be higher on the todo list.

As more businesses learn the value of online local directories, the competition will become stiffer. Until then, any business savvy enough to take action will surge ahead of other companies in their niche. It’s time to be that company.

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What Is Responsive Web Design?

Responsive web design is a phrase you see being thrown around a lot these days, but what does it really mean? Why is it so important and what kind of impact can it have for your website if implemented properly?

In short, a responsive web design is one that automatically adjusts various components based on the size and type of device being used by the visitor. Meaning someone viewing your website on a desktop computer will see and experience the same website that someone using an iPhone or iPad will.

StudioPress.com has a very useful page that allows you to view websites in the most common mobile formats. It is important to remember if the url has a mobile redirect to a mobile application it will not show in the demonstration / desktop view.

How to Get A Responsive Design

In 2012, responsive web design became a hot trend – largely in part due to the fact that nearly 20% of all web traffic is now coming from mobile devices. People don’t want to pinch and zoom to see a full sized site on a 4-inch phone screen, and the responsive movement solves that problem.

If your website is still plain old full-size there are a couple of options for making the shift:

• Start over with a Responsive Theme – If you are building a new website right now, you can purchase a theme (for WordPress) with responsive features built-in.
• Install a Responsive Application – There are applications like WPTouch and Jump Mobi-Redirect that will automatically redirect visitors to alternate versions of your site.
• Install a Responsive Plug-in – Handheld is a plugin developed by ElegantThemes that allows you to create a responsive variation of your core site that dynamically changes based on screen size.

All reasonable options, but there are some issues of course.

Application and Plugin Problems

Applications and plug-ins are not perfect. They are workarounds, and because they are developed with a one-size-fits-all approach, they have issues. These include:

• Redirect Issues – Some applications will change the URL, list portions of the redirect URL first or not redirect properly.
• Access Issues – Other applications will only pull posts, limiting what users can see when they visit the mobile version of your site.
• Most applications and plugins won’t pull Custom Pages or Shortcodes – A lot of applications don’t yet have the option to use custom pages or shortcodes in the responsive version of a site.
• Many applications won’t allow custom menus for mobile only.
• Coding Knowledge Required – For almost any plugin or application, to get the most out of it, you’ll need some HTML or CSS knowledge (or you’ll need to hire someone who has it).

Integrating Responsive Design in Your Site

Responsive design is the future, but it was rarely included prior to two years ago, and websites built with the old models will eventually need to catch up. For now, if you’re not in a position to rebuild your website a mobile website provides a patch.

Most major brands, top-rated blogs and top trafficked websites use responsive design. Visit any Google property, Facebook, Twitter, or the website of a top brand like Coca Cola or Gap and you’ll find a responsive website that adjusts according to the device you are using.

Estimates vary, but most experts agree that responsive design decreases bounce rate on mobile devices significantly, but it needs to be smartly done. If content is just as inaccessible, the results don’t change much.

Options vary and your budget will ultimately determine which you select, but whatever you choose, responsive design will play an important role in making your site mobile friendly for the next generation of smart phones and tablets.<

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Pantone recently released their fall colors and that means we have a new color of the year. With a sharp turn from last year’s bold and exciting, Tangerine Tango, the color of the year for 2013 is Emerald Green.

Plenty of you are already eagerly comparing swatches and evaluating your wardrobe plans for the coming year, but for anyone without a keen eye on fashion and design trends, what exactly does this mean?

Pantone’s Commitment to Design

Pantone has been around for a long time, providing some of the most advanced color matching technology in the industry and maintaining a finger on the pulse of public mood, perception and color choices.

So as you can imagine, a lot of thought goes into selecting the color of the year each winter. What is the public mood? What trends have been developing in fashion, advertising, home decor, and even web design? These are just some of the things they take into account. Pantone’s selection has a big impact on the styles and decisions made by designers.

Just ask a wedding planner what impact trendy colors or Pantone picks have on their choices for wedding invitations, linens, flowers and even catering. You’ll be shocked to learn how carefully they follow these announcements.

Measuring the Public Mood of the Day

Ask any 20 people on the street. Unless you’re at Fashion Week, most won’t know why, or how the “color of the year” selection is made. But there’s a very real psychology to the choices. Take Tangerine Tango, the color of the year in 2012.

Orange is associated with happiness. It is a naturally happy, relaxing color, while at the same time this reddish shade was engaging and uplifting. It makes people think of summer parties, tropical locales and refreshing meals. In a time of economic uncertainty and political gridlock, it was a perfect mood-booster.

Emerald Green is similarly soothing, but in a different way. It reminds people of a more elegant time – of balance and harmony with nature. Of the Wizard of Oz and the promise of a brighter tomorrow. It’s a color used frequently by Van Gogh in his earlier works and it is iconic in American pop culture as a symbol of grounded opulence.

How Pantone’s Pick Affects Your Website

It’s fun to evaluate what this all means for society as a whole. What will people wear? What variations will be used? How will September weddings look?

But for people like me, it’s all about web design. What impact will the shift from Tango to Emerald have on new designs developed in 2013?

As a whole web-design is much less reactive than you might expect. New technologies flare up every year, but in terms of color choices and design elements, the classic, clean looks of the aughts are still hot right now. Where color trends tend to pop up is in subtle redesigns, advertorials, banners, and images used within content.

There’s a reason these colors change every year – they reflect the times and mood of our society. A website can’t morph to reflect that – especially not when it has been developed to reflect your brand.

However, by integrating certain elements of trendy colors and design choices, you can stand out with your call to action buttons, landing pages, ads and inbound materials. It’s just a matter of balance between what your visitors expect and what guidelines you have set for your site.

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2012 Web design trends saw a lot of changes in the way people access websites and what they expect from a design. New technology emerged as well, giving designers more powerful tools to create unique and beautiful sites.

Those changes aren’t about to slow down. In 2013, it will be even more important for websites to be accessible on a variety of devices and for web designs to be dynamic and interactive.

As if that wasn’t enough to keep web designers on their toes, 2013 will also see huge shifts in the design paradigm at both Microsoft and Apple. New ideas from both companies are sure to influence web design trends.

Responsive Design

Responsive design was developed to deal with the large number of different devices people are using to access the web. Rather than create different versions of the same website for smartphones, tablets and computers, web designers turned to the tools offered by HTML5 and CSS3 to create a single site that would adapt to a variety of screens. This responsive web design strategy was one of the major trends of 2012, and it shows no signs of slowing in 2013. That’s because the number of mobile internet users is expected to increase through 2014, according to Statista, an online statistics portal.

Responsive design is in high demand because it saves money for business owners who only have to pay for a single website design. It also makes life easier for designers, who can adapt a single design to multiple devices rather than creating multiple different designs.

Typography

A picture may be worth a thousand words – if those words are typed in a generic font like Arial or Helvetica. Words written in a custom font and designed to fit a certain brand may say a lot more.

2012 saw custom typography become a trend in web design as designers were no longer restricted to generic fonts if they wanted to benefit from SEO and make their site load quickly. In 2013, you can expect typography to play an even bigger role in web design. Some designers are even moving away from using images as the main features of a page, replacing some or all of them with type to create a simplistic, spacious design.

Large Buttons

Big buttons were once used occasionally as a design choice, especially if they fit a particular brand or site. But the more people navigate the web with their mobile devices, the more oversized sized buttons have become a necessity. Without a mouse, it’s hard to accurately select text links, or even smaller buttons.

In 2013, text hyperlinks will be on their way out, replaced with buttons designed to fit a website’s brand or theme. And the bigger the button, the better, especially for e-commerce sites where designers want to remove every obstacle to users making purchases.

Parallax Scrolling

Parallax scrolling, a technique in which the background moves at a different speed than the foreground, was originally used to animate early video games. In web design, parallax techniques are used to make different design elements move or change as the user navigates through the site.

As we approach 2013, we can see the parallax scrolling trend picking up speed, with no sign of slowing down. This technique appeals to designers because it makes a website attractive, dynamic, and responsive to viewers’ actions. Despite the cost, businesses are increasingly interested in parallax design because it does an excellent job of engaging users, keeping them on the site and interested in the content.

The Rise of Authentically Digital

For years, Web 2.0 was a widely used design style built around sleek buttons, rounded corners and smooth textures. The result was a very modern, almost futuristic style with surfaces that looked like glass or polished metal. Many Apple designs were created with this aesthetic.

In 2013, Web 2.0 will be on its way out, and Microsoft has a new design style ready to replace it.

At Microsoft, the authentically digital style is a radical departure from Web 2.0 design. It features flat square tiles in bold colors arranged in a grid. This design seems very simple, but it is remarkably fluid when paired with movement. And other designers are taking notice.

Tile-based interfaces and bright colors will be a major trend in 2013. Pinterest and MySpace have already picked up on this idea, and more major sites are sure to follow.

The End of Skeuomorphism

Skeuomorphism is a complicated word for a relatively simple concept – the idea of using design elements in software that look like real world objects. For example, an image of a trash can is often used as a symbol to indicate where to delete items.

As anyone who has used an Apple device knows, this has been a large part of their recent design strategy. On the iPad, you can take notes on a yellow legal pad, store downloaded magazines on what look like wooden shelves, and record your contacts in a small spiral bound book.

However, recent changes in Apple’s executive leadership may change the course of their interface design. It’s likely that in 2013, we’ll see Apple return to the clean edges, flat surfaces and sleek design that have defined their brand. Where they will go from there is anyone’s guess.

Image Backgrounds

The background of a website, until recently, did not receive much attention. It was usually not a significant part of the design. A new trend, one that will likely grow in 2013, is the use of a large image as a background.

This design strategy is popular because a large image immediately grabs attention and makes a site both attractive and memorable. Image backgrounds are best suited to sites without a lot of content, such as portfolios, that benefit from an artistic vibe.

2013 will be a year that challenges designers to adapt to new devices and new design ideas. Trends like full image backgrounds and parallax techniques require innovation and creativity to use effectively. The limitations like font restrictions that once defined web design are falling away as technology advances, shaping the trends we’ll see in 2013 and beyond.

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Thank you Debbie!

Amy Laskye | Galena Bridal Fair
View Website: Galena Bridal Fair
Phone: 815-947-2878
Jan, 2013

It’s fun on occasion to sit and look at what has come before and how that has formed the current designs we’re seeing on new websites – not only for custom sites but with templates and base themes.

How the web looks changes about as often (and to the same extremes) as hairstyles, clothing and the gaudiness of a pair of shoes. So, let’s take a look back at which trends made 2012 unique and how they might continue (or not) into the future.

Vector Art Supersized

It’s all about the brand and when it comes to design, that means making an impression front and center, usually with a banner across the top of the page. Whether it’s the full screen banner or oversized vector art, this has become increasingly popular. The trend is toward those massive, interactive banners and sliders:

Or banners like this:

A mascot front and center to draw attention and create a recognizable, persistent brand image on the site.

Infographics

Infographics are by no means new – they’ve been a popular design tool for years now. But, in 2012, they came into their own in large part because of how useful they are in obtaining guest posts and getting reshared on social media sites.

At the same time, the glut of infographics has raised the game of some designers, creating beautiful data visualizations.

The Vintage Look

People love to reminisce, so even in a space that is defined by its ability to look to the future, we are seeing a surge of interest in vintage designs using those cowpoke fonts, parchment backgrounds and handwritten notes. Whether it’s 1880’s western or a more contemporary nostalgia for the early bits and bytes of the 60’s, 70’s and 80’s, vintage has been hot in recent months.

Especially popular have been references to early TV and radio personalities and imagery, the flyboys of the 30s and 40s and the Mad Men style advertising of the 50’s.

Responsive Design

To be fair, responsive design is not a trend – it is a necessity. But in 2012, it became more prevalent than ever before and probably best represents the shift we are seeing in design and where it will head going into 2013.

According to Stat Counter, a site that measures page views across a number of browsers and operating systems, the share of browsing via mobile operating systems has increased from 8% to nearly 15% in the last year. And with 30% of Facebook users logging on via mobile, it’s going to keep growing.

Responsive design is a simple, effective, and increasingly necessary tool during this transition.

Ribbons

We’ve seen ribbons before. They are one of the oldest design elements in the book, but in recent months they have really exploded as a popular addition to many sites. They’re easy to make, plentiful on design sites and, when used properly, look professional.

Ribbons are used as banners, search bars, video containers a much more, depending on the goal of the site’s design.

Single Page Continuation Design

Whether you like them or not (I do not), the single page website has grown in popularity in recent months as well.

You know the type. A single scrolling website that goes on and on forever with graphical breaks and bookmarks at the top for navigation. It’s not attractive but it is very popular.

Social Integration

Timelines pulled from social media accounts are also increasing in popularity rapidly.

Plugins for WordPress, themes that integrate the technology directly or widgets from social media sites are all making this possible as companies seek more effective ways to add social tools on the home page of their sites.

Dynamic Typography

Fonts are immensely important, but until recently the vast majority of web content was produced in one of the major fonts – Arial, Helvetica, Trebuchet MS or Georgia among others. As technology advances, it becomes increasingly possible to integrate custom fonts into a webpage, whether your visitors have the font installed on their machines or not.

Using TypeKit to append a couple lines of code to your site’s head or CSS, you can customize the fonts on your site without losing the SEO benefit of the text on the page by converting it all to graphics.

This is a huge growth area. Expect it to continue expanding and becoming a more significant source of innovation in 2013.

It’s impossible to say one way or another what will be a trend from one year to the next and what will become a permanent part of best practices? However you look at it 2012 was a good year and 2013 is shaping up to be an even better year.

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Last week I received a handwritten thank you note from one of my clients – it wasn’t anything special. Just a quick note thanking me for the work I’d done and wishing me happy holidays.

But pulling that note out of my mailbox, I suddenly got a warm feeling inside – you know the kind – when you were a child and a letter appeared from your Grandmother, filled with candy or a bit of money for a holiday or your birthday. It was a strange feeling, if only because it has become so rare.

If you’re lucky you remember how to write one, but the vast majority of people don’t do it any more. Email, text messages and smart phones with cameras make it possible to send a quick message digitally, without interrupting your day. There was a time when these quick-reaction communication methods were better suited for business, but today, it’s become a universal catch all. I can’t remember the last time I hand wrote a note to even a member of my own family.

Let’s Bring Back the Handwritten Note

There is something special about a note like the one I got. It’s personal, it’s unique, and it shows that the other person went out of their way to sit down and write it. You can’t fake that kind of intent. No autoresponder being sent to 100 people on a list. No preprinted postcards with coupons to drive sales. Just a personalized note, however short, thanking someone for being a customer, working with you, talking to you on the phone, or heck, just being a good friend.

This is more than just gushy warm feelings, though. It’s good business. In a world increasingly dependent on digital interaction and communication methods and in a time when you rarely wait longer than a few minutes to contact someone if you have a question or need to tell them something, a thank you note has a ring of old time cheer to it that will resonate with the recipient.

When you get a text message or email thanking you for something, it goes straight to Archive. You receive dozens of those every single day and most don’t elicit a response. But, when you receive a short note, handwritten, you KNOW that the other person cares and really appreciates what you did for them.

You can elicit that feeling from the people in your life and in your business. It’s about creating relationships and generating positive emotions to go with your name when someone considers who to hire next. So, if you’re getting ready to send a holiday message to business contacts or friends or if you’re filling out end of the year forms and want to make a real impression, consider sending a quick thank you note, to really drive home how you feel.

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