The Benefits Of Using Professional Web Design Agencies

Professional web design agencies are admired because they utilize an extensive array of web designing skills, promotion and maintenance service for the benefit of their client’s short term and long term requirements. They combine their specialized knowledge of web technology with the theme and content of your business to materialize into a unique web presence.

The professional web site agency knows the importance of having a unique web-presence. Having no presence is almost equal to the site being redundant. Thus as a part of effective marketing strategy, the agency does enough research with relation to the product or service the client wants to promote online. The agency works on the Search Engine Optimization (SEO) to ensure which words are used by people to find information about the product or service you are dealing with. After finding the words or phrases, the agencies work toward the appropriate keywords and phrase which make the customers track your website. The professional web site agencies make sure that the website is search engine friendly with the right kind of content, key word and phrases.

Here are some more ideal benefits gained by using professional web design agencies:

Makes the site look professional: If a website is designed poorly or haphazardly your prospects will understand one thing: if the website and content is inferior then there is not much one can expect from the products or services the company handles. In the cyber world too, the first impression is the last impression. The web home page is the first impression. Based on the home page, any one can figure out what is the level of service that will be offered and how much will be the rate charged for it. A professional web design agency believes in making the home page and the content of the webpage as customer friendly as possibly without being dull or gaudy at the same time.

Long list of satisfied clientele: A professional web design agency has a long list of satisfied clientele and customers. There is a track-record, a body of work behind it which you can look at and then make an educated decision. In other words, you are not risking your money and time.

Getting your worth: The web design agency may charge you higher fees than normal, but you are being offered high quality work. This high quality work will pay you for years to come.

Abiding of the contract: Professional web-design agencies agree to a set time frame that is decided mutually by the web design company and the client; taking into consideration the specifications and the standards you have set for the website to be built. They make it a point to deliver before or within the time frame with the requisite terms and conditions.

Continuous assistance: Professional web design agencies have a business contract with you and they will not leave you in the lurch after the web-site is designed. On the contrary, they will work with you and consistently meet your future web-requirements. You are their privileged customer and they are sensible enough to know that it costs less to retain an old customer than invest in another one. If they stick with you and handle all your web-site needs and do maintenance on your website to make it dynamic, then naturally you will be impressed and recommend them to your friends and business associates.

Indemnity insurance: There are some web design agencies which also offer indemnity insurance for loss of business due to slow Internet speed because of various reasons. Check the terms and conditions of insurance policy of the web-design agency.

Minimum Web Accessibility: Professional web designers endeavor to make every one and all have access to use and access the product or the service on the website, regardless of any kind of handicap or disability. Web accessibility implies designing web pages that people can use, operate and interact with according to their tastes and preferences. It is thus important that to make a website presentable and comprehensible in terms of usage and access. By virtue of minimum web accessibility standards, professional web designer work on designing a user interface which is easily comprehensible, accessible, user-friendly and satisfying to one and all.

Using "Titles" With Your Web Links & Images

Using "Title Tags" for your web links & images is an arsenal many companies fail to utilize. These tags will help search engines to navigate through your information.

In the last topic we talked about Meta Tags within your web site source code. We also discussed how important it is to use the same words in your content that you included within your meta tags.

Another tip for your to complete your web page optimization is to include title tags for your relevant images.

Title Tags For Your Images:

It's well known that more and more people are now searching "Goggles Image Search Engine" People love to find images, why not help them find the images related to your business?

Let's say you sell cars, wouldn't it be nice to have all your cars listed online found within that "Goggles Image Search Engine"? This feature will allow more people to find your web site.

Tip #1 When Utilizing Titles On Your Images:
Creating titles or utilizing the "Alt" command as we say will let a search engine know what the image is about.

Like mentioned before, search engines are nothing more than robots going through your web site. They don't stop to look at your images, they only see the code.

Providing a title or Alt command for your image will allow the search engine to know what the image is all about which will increase your web sites content relevancy.

Tip #2 When Considering Image Links:

When using an image for a web link to another page, give your image a name that is meaning full to your service or product.

Ex. Well use this image below that will link to this page!

Using Title Tags

1. I've linked the image button to this page called "Using Title Tags"
2. I've named the image button "using_title_tags.gif"
3. The title of the image is: "Using Title Tags"

All of these steps will let the search engines know exactly what the image is about! Yes, I agree all these steps seem like a lot of work but in the end, when your sales are up, you won't be thinking about how much work it took but how successful you have become.

Notice how all these steps have given 3 "Key Phrases" for search engines to look at to determine the meaning of the image.

1. ( a href= ) - The web link command to another page
2. ( img src= ) - Where to find the image and what it's called
3. ( alt= ) - The title of the image

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Let's recap what you've learned so far...

- Search Engines are robots that look for "Meta Tags" & "Web Page Content"
- Meta Tags include: 1) Title, 2) Description, 3) Keywords
- Make sure your Meta Tags describe your web page content
- Add a relevant Title to your web links
- Add a relevant "Alt Title" to your images for more visitors

Using Animation & Rich Media In Web Design

Using Animation & Rich Media In Web Design

Word Count:

420

Summary:

The use of special effects on web pages has literally exploded. Special effects are used either to draw potential client's attention to a web site or to show off technical expertise. However, many web site designers, graphic designers, and programmers, or HTML "newbie’s" often use special effects without considering how their target audience will react to them. Ultimately, using advanced technology can alienate the very customers designers are trying to attract because they want their web site t

Keywords:

using,animation,and,rich,media,in,web,design

Article Body:

The use of special effects on web pages has literally exploded. Special effects are used either to draw potential client's attention to a web site or to show off technical expertise. However, many web site designers, graphic designers, and programmers, or HTML "newbie’s" often use special effects without considering how their target audience will react to them. Ultimately, using advanced technology can alienate the very customers designers are trying to attract because they want their web site to look "cool."

BEFORE you add any special effects to your web site, especially your home page, is your site easy to read, easy to navigate, easy to find, consistent/coherent in design, and quick to download? If the answer to all of these questions is yes, then adding special effects to your web site can be a good idea.

Special effects add to a web site's download time, and you don't want potential customers clicking off your site before viewing its content because you wanted "cool" effects on your web pages.

Some special effects require a plug-in. Here's a typical scenario. Let's say that some of your visitors do not have the plug-in required to hear the sound. Again, before they see the content of your site, they're probably going to see a pop-up asking them if they want to download the plug-in. Do you want your potential customers to see that pop-up right away? Or do you want them to see your products and/or services that they are searching for? If visiting your site means potential clients will have to download a plug-in first in order to view your site, products and/or services, they will probably continue to navigate your site. It means that you were thinking more of your corporate image than of your potential customers.

Some special effects, such as animation and music, might be cute and impressive at first. However, after the initial impact, it can become irritating. So irritating, in fact, that some people actually unplug the speakers to their computers.

To show design, technical, or programming talent, we recommend dividing your site into individual pages that showcase one particular talent per page. Doing this can greatly increase your pages' download speed, and your visitors will know what to expect when they go to a special effects page. An added bonus to this layout is that you can code (meta-tag, descriptive titles, etc.) and promote each talent page differently (i.e. emphasis on different keywords), possibly resulting in better, targeted traffic to your site.

Increase Sales and Make Money Using Google’s Adwords

Most Internet users use Google and other search engines on a regular basis to find information, products, services and more. Most website owners will find that Google directs 2 to 3 times as much traffic to their website than Yahoo and MSN combined. Therefore, it may be a good idea to pay Google to send focused traffic to your website. This can be accomplished by registering for Google’s advertising service – Adwords.

You may already be familiar with this service and don’t even know it. Adwords are the paid advertisements that show up on the right side of Google’s search results under "Sponsored Links.". Adwords also appear on many commercial and personal pages as a way for the website owner to make a little money from their website. These advertisements usually carry the caption, “Ads by Goooooogle” at the top. The service is termed a pay-for-click service because Google will charge you each time an Internet User clicks on your advertisement and visits your website.

Adwords is a terrific complement to any existing advertising campaign, but probably should not be used as the sole marketing channel for your website. This program allows you to control your advertising budget by giving you the ability to set the maximum price that you’re willing to pay, per click, and also a maximum allowable daily advertising budget. You choose the keywords that you would like to target, bid on the maximum per click price you’d like to pay, and Google will send focused traffic to your website. According to Google, Adwords text advertisements boast a standard click-through rate four to five times higher than traditional banner ads.

Because you are paying Google per click, you need to ensure that your traffic is highly targeted for your website. It doesn’t make sense to pay a lot of money for a lot of click-troughs and not generate any revenue for your business. It is important that you follow a few guidelines to ensure that you don’t waste your precious advertising dollars:

Choose Specific Keywords

It is smart to avoid choosing keywords that are too vague or general. To generate highly qualified prospects you have to choose very specific keywords. This way, competition for the keyword will be lower, and it will cost less per click, and you won’t be throwing money away on expensive, unqualified leads. For example, if you only sell Green Widgets, don’t bid on the term “Widgets” it is too broad and you’ll pay for clicks from people searching for “Red Widgets”

Use Geographical Targeting

It is smart to start small by limiting your advertisement’s reach to a selected area. This way you can see the effect it will have on sales without spending a lot of money. Later on, you can expand to other regions; go national, or even global. If your business only caters to the local community, then you should only advertise in your city and surrounding localities.

Use Proper Grammar and Spelling

This tip may sound like a no-brainer, but it sometimes goes neglected. Whether they want to admit it or not, a lot of people are terrible spellers and possess poor writing skills. But, a text advertisement that has misspelled words or doesn’t read clearly is not going to get clicked, and it reflects poorly upon your company. Make sure that you check your ads for both spelling and grammar errors. Have a friend, co-worker or employee proof read your ad before submitting it.

Look at the Competition

No matter what kind of product or service you are promoting, chances are, someone else is doing something similar using Adwords. Search for the terms you are likely to use in order to size-up the competition. Pay attention to their ad’s wording, titles, or incentives they use. You don’t won’t to make your ad exactly like the competition, but it’s smart to know what their doing to ensure that your advertisement is going to be effective.

Stick to Your Budget

Create a budget and stick to it. In marketing, there is a saying, “I waste half my advertising dollars, but, the problem is, I don’t know which half”. It’s difficult to know how effective the Adwords program will be if you’re also utilizing other marketing channels (as you should be). When checking out, give your customers the option to let you know how they found your website. If you find Adwords is paying off, then it may be smart to increase your budget. It also may not be very cost efficient to bid for the #1 spot for every keyword. The #2 position may be almost as effective, but cost only half as much.

If your website doesn’t sell or promote anything, then it doesn’t make sense to pay for traffic. If this is the case, Google will actually pay you to display Adwords advertisements on their websites. To find out more information regarding the Adwords program, Visit Google’s Advertising Programs.

Using XSAS to develop multiple XOOPS sites locally

This tutorial provides step-by-step instructions for how to develop multiple XOOPS websites locally using XSAS (XOOPS Stand Alone Server). I use this information pretty much on a daily basis, and I hope you find it helpful, too. As always, I welcome any feedback or suggestions you may have.

(It is assumed that the reader has a basic knowledge of folder structures, permission settings, how to perform basic operations in phpMyAdmin, and of course, how to install XOOPS.)

1. Create a folder on your hard drive called Localhost

2. Run the XSAS Setup program in that folder

3. Create your folders in the www root of XSAS to represent the different sites you will be developing (i.e.: Clients, Personal, etc.)

4. Extract a fresh distro of Xoops in a temp folder

5. Copy the html folder from your Xoops package into the various folders you created in step 3.

6. Rename the html folder to represent the particular site to be developed (i.e.: Client1, Site2, etc.)

7. Start the XSAS server on your local machine

8. Open PHPMyAdmin from the advanced tab of the XSAS GUI

9. Create a database that has the same name as the database used for your published website (the site on the Internet)

10. Open a browser and navigate to http://localhost and select the folder of the site you want to install (ex: http://localhost/clients/somecoweb/). This will begin the installation of Xoops as usual.

11. Setup Xoops as you normally would

12. Put the database name of the site you want to develop in the appropriate field, but put root as the database username with no password

13. Make sure you change the prefix for the tables to match the database you will import later (if applicable)

14. Complete your installation as usual

15. Export the database from your site that is on the Internet into a text file. (Be sure you export it with complete inserts and add 'drop table'. This will insure a proper import later.)

16. Open the text file in a text editor and do a find and replace for the url

(i.e.: Find the Internet url that the site would use online and replace it with the local url.
ex: Find: http://yourdomain.com/
Replace with: http://localhost/the_directory_where_you_installed_xoops/) Save your file.

**The copy and paste method works best for the aformentioned step.**

17. Open PHPMyAdmin in XSAS and import the database you just edited.

18. Now test your site out.

**If you will be developing multiple sites, I've found it quite convenient to keep a bookmark of http://localhost and I add a bookmark for each additional site when I begin development (i.e.: http://localhost/clients/client1, http://localhost/clients/client2, etc.)**

Now, after you've made all the changes you want to your site locally, you only have a few steps to follow to publish your work online.

19. You essentially repeat steps 15-18, but instead, you export from localhost's database, edit the sql file to change the url to the Internet url, and you import the database into the online SQL server.

**It's also important to note that, if you have added any additional files to your website while developing it locally (i.e.: themes, modules, hacks, etc.), you'll want to upload those files to your web server prior to updating your database.**

On another note. If you want to work on your website away from home, if you've setup your local server as I've outlined, you can just copy the entire Localhost folder onto a USB Pen Drive and take it with you. Then all you have to do is just execute XSAS directly from the pen drive on any Windows 98 and above system. Since XSAS always creates a virtual w: drive, this method works quite well for portable development and demonstration.

This article mainly focuses on XSAS and XOOPS, however, similar steps can be used for virtaully any standalone server software and content management system. These two were used because it is a combination I know to be relatively bug-free and easy to use.

Using Stock Photography In Your Design Projects

Nееd а great image fоr уоur latest design project оr newest website? Thеn stock photography іѕ thе answer. Stock photography іѕ images thаt аrе sold оvеr аnd over. Thе images соmе іn mаnу dіffеrеnt forms. Traditional stock photography includes images thаt аrе sold fоr а оnе time оr limited time uѕе only. An ad agency nееdѕ а photo оf а couple fоr а print ad. Thеу pay thе stock photography agency а fee tо uѕе thаt photo оnе time іn thеіr ad. Thеѕе types оf images аrе vеrу high quality аnd uѕuаllу vеrу expensive. Thеу аrе restricted іn thеіr uѕе аnd hаvе оthеr limitations.

Thеn thеrе іѕ Royalty Free stock photography. Thеѕе images mау nоt bе thе ѕаmе quality but аrе muсh lеѕѕ expensive. Thеу mау оr mау nоt hаvе restrictions оn use. Thеу соuld hаvе nо restrictions tо uѕе оn а web site but thеrе mау bе а fee іf уоu wanted tо uѕе іt іn а print ad оr package design.

License free means thеrе аrе nо restrictions оn whеrе уоu саn uѕе thе images. Uѕuаllу thеѕе аrе lоw resolution images suitable оnlу fоr thе web.

Yоu саn find images аt аnу number оf stock photography websites. Sоmе individual photographers hаvе thеіr оwn websites whеrе thеу sell оnlу thеіr photos. Thеrе аrе а number оf large stock photography websites thаt handle images frоm mаnу sources. Yоu wіll аlѕо find collections оf stock photography оn cd’s, оftеn themed based. Thеrе аrе аlѕо а number оf free stock photography аnd clipart websites аnd specialty sites thаt deal іn dіffеrеnt themes ѕuсh аѕ vintage photos.

Thе costs fоr stock photography wіll vary frоm site tо site. Sоmе sites offer dіffеrеnt sizes оf thе image аt dіffеrеnt resolutions. Thе higher thе resolution аnd thе larger thе image, thе higher thе cost. Thеѕе images аrе uѕuаllу fоr print use. At thе lоw еnd аrе images suitable fоr а website. Yоu саn pay реr image оr buy а subscription thаt wіll аllоw уоu tо download mаnу images оvеr time. All sites hаvе а search feature ѕо уоu саn find thе perfect image fоr уоur project. Sоmе sites specialize іn сеrtаіn types оf image, whіlе оthеrѕ hаvе images іn mаnу dіffеrеnt categories.

Sоmе sites wіll аllоw уоu tо download а comp оr sample оf thе image уоu аrе interested іn ѕо thаt уоu саn trу іt оut іn уоur layout оr design. Thеу wіll hаvе а watermark оf thе stock photo agency асrоѕѕ thе image, ѕо іt іѕ оnlу suitable fоr testing аnd nоt thе final layout.

Remember, images уоu find оn thе internet аrе nоt free fоr thе taking. Mаnу images аrе copywrited ѕо whеn уоu find а great image іn а Google image search, thаt doesn’t mеаn уоu аrе free tо uѕе іt іn уоur project. If уоu find аn image уоu like, thеn buy it. It іѕ thе rіght thіng tо do.

Great images wіll give уоur nеxt design project а fresh nеw lооk ѕо give stock photography а try.

Using Graphic Images On Web Pages

Perhaps one of the biggest mistakes web page designers make is to misuse or overuse graphic images on web pages. Designers become so enthusiastic about using new technology that they tend to focus on "look what we can make for you" rather than a web page's functionality.

Web page graphics must serve a function. If a graphic image's only function is "to look cool," you are unnecessarily increasing the download time of your web pages. "Looking cool" can ultimately cost you more money and make you lose potential customers.

The following list is a summary of the types of graphic images that are acceptable on a web page:

Navigation buttons - Used to help visitors navigate your web site. If designed well, these buttons can be much easier to read and find than text links.

Image maps - Also used to help visitors navigate your web site. If designed well, image maps greatly add to the visual appeal of a web page but can considerably increase the page's download time.

Logo - Used for your corporate or business identity. Logos increase brand name recognition and add visual appeal to any document or web page.

Bullet points - Used to draw your visitors' eyes to the main points of your document. Also used to break up a web page full of paragraphs.

Mastheads - Also known as a title graphic. Main function is to let your visitors know which web page they are on. Adding clip art or an illustration to a masthead adds more visual appeal.

Divider lines or horizontal rules - Commonly used to separate footers, categories within a single web page, and FAQ questions and answers.

Background images - Used to enhance the visual appeal of a web page and make a web site easier to navigate. One of the most common background images is a sidebar which usually contains the links to the other pages in your site.

Headings (text graphic) - Commonly used to preserve a typeface that many people do not have on their computers.

Photos - Commonly used to make your web pages seem more personal and more inviting. Visitors' eyes are naturally drawn to photos of people. An absolute necessity to showcase products on certain e-commerce sites.

All graphic images on your web site should match in colour, typeface, and special effects. For example, the text in all of your navigation buttons should use the same typeface and have the same special effects on them (such as a drop shadow). Your navigation buttons, mastheads, bullet points, and divider lines look best if they are designed using one of the colours in your logo.

For a truly professional-looking web site, the minimum set of graphics on web pages should be a set of navigational graphics, a logo, bullet points, and set of mastheads. If this set of graphics does not significantly increase a page's download time, then you can add other graphic images to enhance your site. The general rule is to keep web page size between 40-60K. If you are a graphic designer, photographer, architect, or programmer, a 75K web page will still give a relatively fast download time on a 28.8 Kbps modem.

Any extra graphic images on your web pages should serve a function that is directly related to your business. For example, on a web site, you can have illustrations serve multiple functions:

If a design firm has professional illustrators in its staff, they should showcase this talent in some form throughout the web site.

Illustrations can also serve a navigational function. In some web sites, you can tell which section of a web site you are in based on the illustration shown.

A talented web graphic designer can design graphic images which download quickly and look good. Graphic images should be sized down without losing the integrity of the graphic image.

Remember, graphic images are primarily used to enhance a web pages function. If graphic images considerably increase your web pages' download time, you will have to either size down the graphic images, replace them with smaller images, or replace them with the HTML default bullets, horizontal rules, or coloured heading text

Using MySpace Codes to improve your MySpace page

MySpace is a great place for meeting new friends and keep in contact with relatives and friends who live far away. Everybody wants to enhance the MySpace profile in order to have a unique and attractive MySpace page.




Usually you want to keep some details private which are avaiable only by a few friends or relatives. But how can you do this? Myspace codes assist you in personalization of your profile. Here are some examples for codes which are quite useful.




Centering the profile - many of us want to keep our profile in the center of the web page just because it looks good. The code for this is available on many Myspace Codes websites. You just have to copy the code and paste it into the appropriate section of your MySpace profile. Then just save it and refresh your profile in order to see the centered page.




Hiding the contact table - What if you do not want to be contacted by others? Just use a MySpace Code snippet and paste it into your profile. You are still able to communicate with each other, but they can not contact you. This protects against a lot of spam. You can delete the code at any time and your profile is visible for other members.




Image Codes - you can use these types of codes in order to use your own images in your profile. Just upload them to one the the free image hosting websites and copy the URL of the image into a text box which comes up when choosing this option at one of the MySpace codes websites out there. They will provide the final code snippet which can be used in your MySpace page.




Hide myspace comments - you can hide you comments section of your profile just by using the appropriate MySpace cpde.




Remove add a comment link - If you do not want to receive feedback you can use a code snippet and disable the comments section for other members.




There are many other codes available which can be used to improve your MySpace profile and make it look better. It just takes a couple of minutes...