RWD: The Revolution of the Smart World

One of the hot topics for website design is responsive web design. There’s been some buzz about it ever since the explosion of the smart phone, tablet, and other “smart” technologies. But what does it mean for a website to be responsive?

You know how sometimes you pull up a website on your smart phone and the picture looks distorted? Well, that website isn’t responsive. The goal of RWD is to make websites viewable from different windows of technology. Whether you have a tablet, an iPhone, or a laptop, a responsive website will appear equally clear on all mediums. These days, a lot of web designers recognize the importance of RWD, but it’s still a pretty advanced technology. In 2012, more website design companies will be investing time in responsive sites to increase the viewing population of their clients’ websites. At CODANK web design, we work with our clients to ensure their designs are responsive to a variety of forms of technology.

There are three important things to consider when dealing with RWD: flexible grid, responsive images, and media queries.

Flexible grids make the template of your website moldable on different technologies. You can download flexible grids, or make them yourself from scratch. There are also several types of tools to help you sketch out your templates. First, there are sketch sheets and sketchbooks, which allow you to see what the template will look like before your website goes live. You can keep the designs just like a real sketchbook. Responsive wireframes and multi device layouts also help you see what your template will look like before you proceed with other steps in your responsive web design.

Once you’ve laid out the template in a sketchbook, you can proceed with a template. There are lots of tools out there for making flexible grids.

Next you have to consider responsive images. You don’t wait your images to be distorted when viewers see your website on their smart phone or iPad. There are tools to help convert images on your website as they move from the computer screen to the smart phone. Responsive images are adaptable no matter what the viewing device.

Lastly, media queries help shift your web pages’ elements to make them responsive and adaptable.

Read these articles for suggestions on the specific tools that are out there to help you with responsive web design. As technologies become more advanced, and screens become smaller and more portable, responsive web design is going to become essential in the world of web design. Getting Started with Responsive Web Design: 50 Fantastic Tools for Responsive Web Design:

One of the hardest and most frustrating things about blogs is breaking the 100 views per day threshold. Your blog has quality content, it’s intriguing, and you have a steady following. But you want to make the leap to get thousands, not a hundred, views a day. So, how do you do it?

The first step is to write one killer article per week. A killer article is a really informative, creative, and alluring article that is sure to capture your viewer’s attention and keep them reading. It’s an article that’s so helpful, so enticing, that viewers will tweet it, facebook it, and repost it to their own blogs. Killer articles take a long time to write; you’ll want to work on it for one hour every day of the week until it’s finished.

Unfortunately, posting one killer article a week won’t be enough to get you lots of exposure, even if the article is earth shattering, life changing, or the best thing you’ve ever written. You have to make sure you network with other bloggers in you niche. You can comment on other blogs that relate to your company, post links to other blogs on your website, or contact other bloggers about their work. Build relationships with people in your blogging niche so you can create a support system. These people may start reading your blogs and reposting them on Twitter or adding your link to their websites. You can also post your own blog on social network accounts so that your friends and followers can get access to it. Do these networking activities every day.

Along with networking, promote your blog. It’s important to take advantage of social networking accounts so that your friends and followers have easy access to your blog. Get friends to submit the articles to bookmarking sites or put links on their Twitter and Facebook. Send out a mass email to your friends and family telling them about the blog and encouraging them to tell their friends. You can also post the article in online forums as to expand your readership.

Killer articles are a great way to attract readers and promote your blog, but also remember to post daily. Each blog doesn’t have to be a work of genius; you can post just a few thoughts or a link to a relevant article online. You could even start a discussion and ask readers to respond. Write a smaller article to get people’s thoughts flowing.

It is definitely frustrating to see that the views on your blog are stagnant. But if you dedicate time and energy to promoting, networking, and writing quality articles, your hard work will pay off. It’s all about making those connections and engaging in a conversation with your online niche.

For more blogging and website design tips, contact Codank Web Design. We are dedicated to helping you create a successful web presence with our custom designed websites. 

Web Design Tips Centered on Usability

Websites should always be easy to use. Studies show that the reason a viewer abandons a website is either because the page will not download or they are confused by the website. Don’t make the mistake of underestimating the power of usability. Here are a few tips on making your website as user oriented as possible.

We Hold These Website Design Elements to Be Self Evident:

Everything on your website should be visually clear to the user. Create a visual hierarchy using font size and prominence. The headlines should always be larger than the content and they should stick out to the user. Always place a headline or a main idea higher on the page so that the user knows it is important. If you want certain content to receive visual priority, place it higher on the page. Also, make sure you group your pages according to similar content. Each page should have a clear theme, idea, and purpose. Each page should also have similar style, but at the same time be definitive so that the user knows the difference between an FAQ page and the shopping cart checkout page. Links should be clearly defined and clickable items should be obvious.

Break it Up:

When users are searching for something in particular, they will seek the page link that corresponds most to their needs and ignore the rest. Separate content by page and make sure there is little or no overlap. Also, avoid hiding advertisements in your content; keep ads separate as they can distract from the content and force the user to ignore the page altogether.

Follow Conventions:

Breaking from convention is good in many instances, but web design isn’t one of them. There are certain things users expect when they go to a website. For instance, navigation links are usually on the left side of the page, log in and username input is located at the top right of the page, and navigation links are usually at the bottom of the page. Hyperlinks are underlined in blue (or some other color that stands out) and, if you are selling online, always use a small shopping cart logo in the upper right hand corner. Following these conventions will prevent users from having to search for elements of your web pages that should be obvious to them.

Don’t Underestimate Simplicity:

It’s tempting to create a web design that is a work of art with lots of colors, font styles, and words. But to make your website more user friendly, tone down the number of words, font styles, link styles, colors, and images. Keeping it simple will allow the content to stand out while the design serves as a compliment. Minimize the use of background images and background colors. Don’t be afraid to use white space and allow the text to speak for itself without the help of too many additives.

User friendliness should be the number one priority when you design your company’s website. Creativity and captivation are important, too, but the user wants to feel welcome and confident when they visit your website. Follow these tips on maximizing usability on your company’s website and ensure that your website gets traffic and viewer satisfaction. For more website design tips and solutions, contact Codank Web Design. We are dedicated to crafting custom websites that consider both your company's business model and the importance of usability. 

Combat Writer's Block

Blogs are a great way to attract viewers to your company’s website. They are continually being updated, which keeps readers coming back for more, and they help you enter into a conversation with those who visit your website. Website design needs to be eye catching, but don’t forget to keep your content alluring as well. Blogs help keep your website’s content fresh and exciting. But blog writing can also be hard. Here are a few tips on how to combat writer’s block, creativity lapses, and anything else that might stunt your blogging.

The dreaded writer’s block. It happens to all of us. Sometimes we sit down to write and nothing comes to us! We have no ideas, no thought provoking conversations we can enter into, and no motivation. Well, there is no cure for writer's block. However, there are some things you can do to help overcome it. First of all, if you are having one of those writer’s block days, just take some time to walk away from the computer or notepad. Give your mind a break from thinking, and just relax. Think about what you’ve written in the past, what subjects have attracted readers before, and what sort of things would be relevant to write about today. More than likely, you will be able to think of something.

If that fails, try free writing. Write down ideas or sentences or paragraphs of different things. One of your threads is bound to take you somewhere, and you may be able to flesh out an entire blog post. Free writing is a great exercise to do before you even sit down at your computer. It gets the creative juices flowing!

When you’re out and about, keep your ears open and have a pad of paper and pen with you at all times. Inspiration can strike at any point, and if you catch wind of any good ideas for blogs topics, you should write them down. It will help you in those moments of writer’s block.

A good blog always needs a good title. Some writers create a title after their blog is complete. For others, the title is the first thing they write down. Whichever camp you fall into, make sure your title is catchy and informative. It should draw the reader in without being misleading. You can use catch phrases, old sayings, or alliterations; the more creative your title is, the better. Another good tactic is combining a catchy title with a subtitle that describes more what the article is about. For example: From Riches to Rags: The Story of the Kardashian’s Fall from the Top. The Kardashian’s, of course, have not yet fallen from the top, but if they had, people would be interested in reading about it. This title would definitely peak some reader interest.

When you are writing, make sure spelling and grammar is in check. Have someone proofread your work, or enable spell and grammar check on your computer. Everyone makes mistakes, but you won’t earn credibility among your readership if you have poor grammar.

Blogs have the potential to attract lots of readers to your company’s website; just make sure that you have interesting things to write about. Anything that you have to say that is relevant to your company and your audience is worth sharing with your readership. So start blogging, and keep these tips in mind.