One of my web sites has been languishing for some time without a proper redesign. I made a half hearted attempt with the new Wordpress default theme, but I know it doesn’t look great.
In keeping with the business redesign I thought I’d do another clean design. I’ve been mocking something up in Fireworks. Here’s a crop from the header bar with a simple logo design.
I’ve taken the existing site design and just refreshed it a little in this mockup – nothing too radical as yet, but just something to look at for a few days…
Design on the internet moves fast, and the existing site has been up for some time now, so I thought I’d begin the process of reviewing the logo.
This is the first concept that I’ve come up with…
Let me know what you think.
Peter Holloway is the information technologist behind Datawise Computing. He has worked freelance as an independent consultant, database and web designer for over 15 years.
Datawise Computing works with businesses in the North West of England (and sometimes beyond) to provide the information technology tools that they need to run their businesses effectively. Clients include multi-nationals through SMEs to micro businesses.
Datawise Computing works hard to advise and implement the best technology solutions for your business, from simple ’shop window’ web sites to database database driven solutions.
I’ve just completed a facelift on the Dune Prints web site. I’ve moved the images to the home page and used a dark theme to keep distractions to a minimum.
On a slightly different note, I’ve just published a photo book of images taken locally. The images include the Southport coast and pier all the way down through Ainsdale Sands to Freshfield and Formby Beaches. You view and purchase the book by clicking on the link below:
One simple piece of advice for the small business getting on the web is to let folks know where you are. Whether it’s a retail outlet or a service that you provide it makes a lot of sense to make sure that your location is on the internet.
Very often folks look for services or products by adding their location to the search terms. This can give them location specific results, but you will only appear in those search results if you have taken the time to spell out where you work or sell. The more local your clientèle the more important it is to get this right.
You need to mention both specific towns and more general areas in order to catch the searchers.
For example:
Datawise Computing provides Business IT and Web Design services (including Wordpress design) in the North West of England. Based in Southport, Formby and the surrounding area Datawise Computing works in Merseyside, Lancashire and Cheshire.
The small business has many advantages in difficult economic times. The lack of size enables a greater deal of flexibility. A small business can change direction faster and with less cost than a larger organisation. Costs for the design of a large business web site can also be prohibitive as the complexity of the site and the planning and permissions required for every change make updates a major undertaking.
For the small business seeking to reach out to its customers, to build and maintain a relationship a weblog is a cost effective tool for putting control in the hands of the business owner rather than the web designer. In order for clients or customers to return to a web site there must be a good reason: information, offers, advice, updates.
Where do your clients go when they require information? Do they pick up the phone, or email? Do they ask for a fax with the information they have asked for? It is a simple matter for the business owner to add all the essential information to pages on a weblog. It is also simple to add announcements, special offers and updates in a timely fashion when the business owner is in control.
The small business blog puts the power to communicate back in the hands of those who hold the information allowing a greater immediacy of communication with your customers.
Recently Datawise Computing was asked to help a local church with a very limited budget to revamp their web site. With a combination of a basic Wordpress blog, some useful plugins and a free template communication has started afresh. The power is back where it belongs, with the providers of the information. A relationship has begun, the network is spreading…
Where do you start with a brand new web site? What is it that you want to do with it? Believe it or not, the internet is mainly all about words. You may use it to view videos or download music, but even for these you search for words.
This is where you need to start when considering your web site. What do you want to say to your audience, and what is that audience? Ultimately a web site is for the purpose of getting a message across, whether it be nothing more than the fact of your existence and availability as a business or other organisation.
So, before considering how it should look or what it should do, you should always consider the content: the words, images, ideas that you wish to convey to your target audience. Design is very important, but it still plays a supporting role to the actual content, so start with the content; all of it before considering how you want to package it.
When you have done this you will find that the message gets the priority that it deserves once you get to the design phase of your web design project.
This web site has been built on the Wordpress platform. This allows stories to be added without the need for web design. It means that it can be kept up to date by the people who have the stories rather than the technical folks.
Wordpress is very simple to install or upgrade, just remember to back up your database and files prior to upgrading – just in case.
