Splash pages

In a world where content is king your homepage is one of the most important pages on your website, so forfeiting this prime space for a splash page is something we would advise against. Instead, we would recommend clear messages that sum up your company so that visitors can instantly see what you have to offer.

Related content and accessible navigation are key and play a big part in your SEO campaign too, if search engines can’t find your content or your navigation because you’ve got a splash page in the way then your site is less likely to be crawled and indexed.

Pop ups

There are a number of reasons why pop-ups are not recommended, the main one comes down to user control. Using links to open new windows, pop-ups etc without first informing the visitor can be extremely annoying; the user no longer feels in control of their browsing experience. I feel this annoyance is by association, as pop-ups are commonly used by spam posts and advertisements.

As well as this, many browsers will block pop-ups through spam filters, so if it’s important information don’t run the risk of your visitors not seeing it. If it’s additional information, consider using a tooltip or similar instead.

Auto sound

A pet hate of mine is sound that plays automatically when the website loads. My reaction is to instantly navigate away from websites that do this, and if that’s your website then you’ll be losing out on potential customers. It will also do no favours for your website’s bounce rate.

If you must have sound on your website then put the visitor in the driving seat and give them the option to play / stop any sounds.

Flash websites

Flash can be a sticky subject, there have been many improvements over the years from the first instances of flash websites so not all drawbacks still exist. However, for the most part these improvements are not implemented.

The main issue with flash websites is that it’s not fully supported across the board, and if you want to reach as many potential customers as possible then your website needs to work on all the main browsers, and all platforms – this includes mobiles, pcs, macs, tablets, netbooks etc.

But then, even if your website does load, using flash has set backs in terms of SEO. For the main flash is typically image based so for search engines to index your website they’re going to need some alternative content to crawl. This has an impact on search engine positioning.

So, what’s the alternative? There are a couple of different options that will recreate some of the desired effects; one is to use jQuery which will allow you to add a bit of movement to your site. Another is to just use flash for certain elements on the page and not for the whole website. One alternative which is taking the web and turning it on its head is the new developments with HTML5, though this one may need a little more time to be totally compatible.

Summary

As with most topics related to website design, there’s a time and a place. I’m not ruling out any of the features outlined above but their use should be limited to where it’s effective / required. Use them wisely and your website will be an accessible, crawl-able, user friendly place to be.

Given that people are willing to shop for gifts, store owners are keen to turn those people into their customers. One of the most effective ways to do that is to create a special Christmas/Winter/New Year theme for their ecommerce solutions. This is something we regularly do for our customers. We prepare special magento web design themes for Christmas but also for Easter and other occasions per clients’ requests. Lately we have prepared such a design for PicStop – the digital accessory specialist and MS Wooden Blinds.

Our clients mention that after going for a special Christmas magento web design their sales go up, often more than 50%. We always advise to introduce some sort of special promotion or clearance offer in time for Christmas in an effort to try to get even more sales in this highly profitable period.

- Marqiis, individually tailored property solutions
- Chefmate Ltd, catering engineers in Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire
- ExecAmourDating, a dating site for the over 30s
- Unique Soles, independent shoe shop specialising in children’s shoes
- Merlin Fibreglass Technology, fibreglass installation and repairs
- Grapevine Network Management, IT company specialising in IT support around Nottingham
- Lotus Hats, hats and fascinators for special occasions

Any designer can tell you how great it is to have great features like rounded corners, gradients and drop shadow at your fingertips but working with any Internet explorer up to version 8 has involved massive headaches through creating hacks and workarounds to achieve these effects.

The Beta version is currently only available to Windows 7 users and the full release is scheduled for next year. If you’d like to bring your website into the new age, get in touch for a website design quote…

It had been suggested that this is an early example of HTML5, the new programming language currently in development for creating web pages but it has since been confirmed that Google have achieved this effect using Javascript. It has though, already been duplicated using HTML5 which looks to show some significant advances in comparison to it’s predecessors including being equipped with better audio and visual capabilities without the need for Flash player or other third party software.

From the looks of Google’s example, it seems there may be exciting times ahead for website design!

To the uninitiated, SEO seems a mysterious and complex process and find it easier to outsource to specialist optimisation companies to get the best results fast. In reality, this can be very expensive(literally thousands of pounds) so we’ve come up with a list of helpful tips for improving your sites visibility without the hefty pricetag:

1. Get Your Site Indexed – once your site’s up and running, you can submit your domain details to Google who will then index your site based on it’s content. This can reap almost immediate rewards but beware, Google will not always index your site if they feel that your content is not relevant enough compared to the keywords and phrases contained in your site. Which leads us on to point two…

2. Make Sure Your Content is Relevant – Search engines are constantly evolving and if you cram your site with popular keywords that are not relevant to your products and services, services like Google can now recognise this and it can actually have an adverse impact on your site.

3. Build links – Link building is one of the key ways to increase traffic on your site. Lots of SEO companies will charge good money for this but with a little effort, it is something you can do yourself for free. Do a little research on similar sites within your industry and contact their administrators to see about building reciprocal links ie: you’ll link to them if they’ll link to you and contact organisations which might want to link their users to your services.

4. Keyword Research – Finding out which keywords generate the most traffic, yet have the least competitivity can dramatically increase your sites popularity. Type your keyword into google Adwords keyword tool and it will give you all the information you need to make an accurate assessment of whether it is the right one for you.

5. Write a blog – Writing a blog allows you to use keywords more frequently on your site and also to link into particular pages you might want to promote. It can also increase traffic in itself if you have something interesting to say.

6. Build a great looking site – This is where we come in offering low cost but amazing quality website design

These are just a few of the main points to look out for when it comes to SEO. Remember though that it is ever a quick fix but is more of a gradual process that you will need to keep working on to increase the popularity of your site.

What are the advantages?

• Break the progress of your website up into bitesize development cycles allowing it to stay fresh and relevant at all times.
• Avoid large redesign costs which may be difficult to get financial approval for.
• Take the pressure off your in-house web staff by letting them get on with the day to day changes, while you and your design firm can take a more objective view on things.
• Build a positive relationship with your design house. The small design cycles also give you the opportunity to move to a different company if you are not happy with the results.
• Work on immediate fixes as well as long term strategy.

If you’d like to discuss working with WebCatch, contact us on 0115 9738074. We’ll be happy to make your acquaintance!

With the advent of J-Query and Mootools, designers now have a library of routines which are compatible across all platforms without the use of Flash. These tools offer functions to handle many routine tasks making programming with Javascript faster and easier to pick up. But does this signal the end for Flash?

Flash Pros & Cons:

Flash provides a consistent appearance accross supported browsers as well as providing tools for advanced animation, slideshows, game development and supporting both vector and bitmap file types. On the other hand, a lot of new technology such as mobile phones and i-Pads don’t support flash content and file sizes compared to Javascript can often be a little on the bulky side.

Javascript pros and cons:

Compatible with a wider range of browsers than Flash, quick and easy to implement on a site and small file sizes although the features aren’t always as powerful or extensive as Flash and source code can’t be protected.

If you are considering implementing either Flash or Javascript into your site, why not check out our prices at Webcatch?

1. DO – Take your time to read the application requirements in full, and make sure you meet them before applying. If you’ve been asked to supply particular information don’t overlook this as it could be seen as a lack of attention to detail.

2. DON’T – Forget to spell check!

3. DO – Provide a well written cover letter specific to the role. Avoid using generic cover letters for your applications as the company will see straight through this.

4. DON’T – Apply more than once. It sounds obvious but only apply for a job once. If you’ve not heard anything back be patient, the company has probably received a ton of applications.

5. DO – Work on your portfolio. Your online portfolio is one of the most important parts of a web design application and could make the difference between getting an interview and not. Show off your skills and any previous websites you’ve completed.

6. DON’T – Apply after the closing date. You’ll most likely be discounted on the spot.

7. DO – Research the company you’re applying to. Showing an interest in the background of the company lets them know you’re keen.

8. DON’T – Use humorous email addresses. There are many free email accounts around so get yourself a professional one to use for job applications.

9. DO – Tailor your CV to the role, if you’ve got previous experience in areas required beef these details up in your CV and perhaps leave out information which is irrelevant. Try to keep your CV to a maximum of 2-3 pages long, putting the most important and recent information first.

10. DON’T – Lie. If you get the job you’ll soon be found out.

Modification: Template File

Q:

I am a newbie at Magento and i need help. Can anyone guide me how to display the search form at the header?

A:

Put this code:

<?php echo $this->getChildHtml(‘topSearch’) ?>

Inside /app/design/frontend/default/your_skin/template/page/html/header.phtml. Then style it so that it appears exactly where you want it. It’s as simple as that!