Perhaps the most underestimated component of a website is its content. Like print, radio, and television before it, the internet is a unique information-sharing technology with its own advantages and challenges. Yet many web studios inadvertently teach their clients that the presentation matters a lot, and what is being presented matters far less. I believe […]
Content First Web Design
Using Adobe Color (Kuler) for Web Design
Update, May 2015: Adobe changed the name of this product from Adobe Kuler to Adobe Color CC. Adobe Color is a visual tool that lets you create and save color palettes, with up to five colors in each. I like using Adobe Color for web design, especially in the planning stages, because it allows me […]
Why Web Design Research Is Necessary
Your website is a big deal. It is your number one marketing tool, so getting it right is important. Many small and mid-sized organizations have to align their internal forces and gather their resources to get a web project in motion. If a web project is executed ineffectively, it may be a while before the […]
Design And Creativity Are Not The Same
Many people talk about designers or anyone else in the web industry as creatives. This enforces a destructive fallacy. Design and creativity are not synonymous, even though that’s how they are perceived. Allow me to explain.
2013 Year in Review
2013 is coming to a close, and seems a good time to reflect on what I accomplished professionally this year. After seeing many other web industry leaders tabulate their last 365 days, I thought it might be fun to do likewise. I will be doing this every year around the end of December, or the […]
Why Responsive Design Matters
Responsive web design is a skill set and methodology that has been increasingly in demand. The phrase was coined in a 2010 article by Ethan Marcotte, and since then it has become a bit of a buzzword. Many web designers still mobile design as something you add later to a desktop site design. Conversely, practical […]
Why Your Website is Important
Your website is one of the biggest keys to your success and your #1 marketing tool. It is how potential customers will find you and judge your business. If you do not have a professional looking website, customers will presume your business is not professional. Investing in your website is something that you have to […]
Add A Map Marker To Google Maps Embedded iFrame
Embedding Google Maps into a page is fairly easy, but there are little things you can do to improve the appearance and usability. There are also several things you can do if you dig into the API, but the fixes this article covers are fairly painless to carry out. The default Google Maps iframe embed […]
The Importance of Web Design Ethics to Real-World Projects
Published October 12th, 2013No Comments on The Importance of Web Design Ethics to Real-World ProjectsThere are many types of design. Web design, interaction design and user experience design are processes that web agencies deal with every day. But all sorts of things: products, transportation, architecture — had to be designed as well. These are part of a larger ecosystem of systems design. Governments, currencies, systems for measuring distance and […]
How To Create A Custom WordPress Login Page
Creating a custom login page for your WordPress site is a small enhancement that makes your site feel unique. This modification won’t make your website rank higher in Google, but your internal team will appreciate the change. Trading in the default white login screen for your brand colors, fonts, background, and logo lets everyone know […]