Month: March 2023

We have blogged before on this site about why a validated* website is important. I’m not going to go over the post again but I was looking over it the other day and it made me want to to find out some stats on how many websites are validated. We all know about it and talk about it but do we all do it? While researching, I came across a survey from late last year that had just what I was looking for.

It found that only 4.13% of websites they tested (out of 3,509,180) passes validation tests. A small number but still a large increase from 2006 where it was valued at 2.58% and even greater than the 0.71% of 2001.

On top of this, they found that 50% of the websites displayed the validation link despite not passing validation**.

It would seem that website owners are gradually seeing that validation is important but it is also proving to be an incredibly slow process.

It got me thinking about the reasons why it is such a low percentage. I know the stats are there after research but I just find it hard to believe it’s so low! Maybe there are perfectly good reasons that could excuse some of these results..?

Easy to lose

While a site can go live, all singing, dancing and validating, it can be very easy to do a quick update and lose validation for a period of time. For instance, we recently added an alert to our site which lost validation for a month (something we were willing to sacrifice for this short time). Could some of the sites in the survey have been reviewed at just the wrong time?

E-commerce / Content Managed Websites

With websites that are managed through content management systems I have seen website users copying and pasting from word or another website and in the process they have pulled over formatting from there source. It’s been this formatting that has lost the validation.

A last on the list thing

Ok, so this comment may be controversial but other than personal pride in one’s work and a better chance of optimisation there is not much incentive for web designers and developers to validate their code. Yes it can help render code more universally through the different browsers but it’s not as if a website just won’t display at all if it isn’t validated.  Forgetting Alt attributes for instance won’t alter the way the site looks on screen but will fail validation (for accessibility reasons) so I can see how validation may not always be top of the list.

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* If you’re reading this and are unsure of what I mean by validation, go here and click the XHTML validation link in the footer of the page.

** Web content providers are granted the right to use the “W3C valid” logo on pages that pass validation (through the use of the W3C Markup Validator) for the W3C technology represented by the icon, and only on pages that pass validation.

Over the years we have been asked many a time to create a few mock-up/speculative website designs to present during sale time (and pre sign-up). In the past (and previous positions) we were always made to do it, being told that it could be the deal clincher. I have always had a problem with these for reasons I will go into in a minute but first let me reinforce that when I say mock-ups I actually mean non-charged for/free work (an important point in my argument).

Before I begin my article in full let me also explain that by refusing to carry out speculative design we have never (as far we are aware!) lost out on the opportunity to tender. Potential clients have always reacted positively when we explain our reasons and I know other agencies who have had similar experiences.

Deal clincher…what about deal breaker?

Anyone who has ever gone through the design process be it for a website, business card or their own living room decoration will understand that a hugely important part of the process is the initial design meeting. It’s where the designer has the chance to get a feel for you and your business, find out what your looking to achieve, discover who’s the target market and generally start to understand your likes and dislikes.

By offering a mock-up without any kind of design meeting can be hit and miss. So many things could go wrong and you’re really relying on the first impression allowing you to have a second chance. If you have inadvertently designed a mock-up that’s red for someone who detests red then, rather than being a deal clincher it has more potential to be a deal breaker.

False negatives

By offering speculative design we felt we were short changing the client on the important design meeting stage. They could have been put off by something as simple as an irrelevant stock image, a wrong colour choice or us not getting in a call to action they wanted. That one design could give a client the impression that the design company was just not up for the job.

W.R.O.N.G.

The design process is so much more than a pretty site and requires an understanding (on the designers half) of how the business runs and it’s objectives online. Any designer will need to know what these are before creating a mock-up. Without a design meeting, these objective could be missing from a speculative design and encourage the client to form a ‘falsely negative’ opinion.

Free stuff devalues stuff

Discounts are great aren’t they? Everyone loves to grab a bargain but the trouble with a discount or a freebie is that the value of that item is equated to the actual amont paid not what it is actually worth.

We had a chat in the office and this may be a bad example but it’s just to give the gist of the idea so…if you get a pair of shoes for £10 that should have cost £100 you’re more inclined to think of them as being ‘only a tenner’ rather than ‘worth £100’ and thus, devalue the shoes. The same can apply to mock-ups, if a designer ‘knocks up a speculative design’ prior to any contracts being signed then the value of that design is cheapened’.

We hate wastage

Leading on from that point is the wastage:

• If the design isn’t accepted and you do win it then that’s hours that need to be re-spent thinking over the design.
• If the design isn’t accepted and you don’t win then that’s hours that will have been spent needlessly on a non-client.

Either way it’s wasted time, effort and cost to the business.

What can you do other than speculative work?

Portfolios are great to show customers you can make a pretty site but what we find works better are straightforward testimonials. Client who are willing to talk to potential clients about their experiences are far more valuable to us as it demonstrates that not only have we made something they like but also, we have created a design that met their business objectives.We see this as being far more important to both parties than an ill-informed, non-briefed speculative design.

We all know what it’s like to live with something and being to get tired of after a while – it’s why my first flat was re-painted 6 times in three years and why I’ve never been able to grow anything from seed (I get bored before the seedlings have even emerged!).

Recently we wrote an article on why it was not always necessary to rebrand or completely redesign your online presence and it led to this post. Obviously there are some reasons why a complete overhaul is necessary for example:

• Website technology is out of date
• Website is not user friendly
• Website is not converting visitors
• Maybe your corporate identity is being re-developed

But before you dive in at the deep end and become convinced that the only way forward is through dramatic changes consider these points below. And if you would like to read more then look at some of our previous posts:

• Re-branding : Is it always a good thing?
• Why do you need a validated website?
• Redesigning V’s Revamping Your Website?

1 ) What do you currently like or dislike about your website?

If you are just a little tired of the design or colours etc then maybe it’s time for a freshen up rather than a rebrand. Maybe you could learn to love your website again with and updated colour scheme or fresh images.

2 ) Is there something fundamentally wrong with the design or are you just tired of the branding?

If you really hate your website and can’t bear to go on it or it’s not brought you any business then maybe it is time for change after all. Maybe the navigation isn’t working for you or you’ve never had a single enquiry through the site. If you really can’t live with it and feel it’s negative for your company then re-brand away!

3 ) What do you hope to achieve and what do you hope visitors gain from visiting your website?

When redesigning your site consider what your aim is. Is there a particular form you want completed, do you want the customer to contact you, or do you want a purchase to be made? If you have these goals clear in your mind it will be easier to get your website working for you.

4 ) Is your current site working and converting for you?

Spend some time looking into your current website and it’s performance. Be really honest about what’s ‘wrong’ with your site, if it does a good job and clients like it then maybe you need to leave some of your personal preferences aside, you need to be careful not to change a part that’s successful just because you’re bored with it! What are your future goals for the website? Do you have a new brand due to be released or maybe you would consider selling online at some point.

5 ) How are your clients reaching you?

Consider how clients contact you, if you notice they are contacting you with queries that are easily available on your website then it may be time to look at the navigation. What’s easily noticable to you may not be to a visitor. Focus groups are great for getting a fresh perspective on your website or branding.

It can be a hard decision to decide to completely redesign your company website. Sometimes there are several decision makers all vying for their say, maybe your web designers are pushing for a redesign or maybe you just know it’s a little outdated but are unsure whether it’s outdated enough to warrant a new design.

We’ve written a previous post on how to evaluate whether your site needs a faceliftand so we won’t go into that again so soon. What we do want to talk about is the difference between a redesign and a revamp, the positives and negatives of each option and a few points to think about to help you evaluate the best option for you (to give you food for thought before your website consultation).

Redesigning V’s Revamping

Firstly, when talking about a website redesign we are referring to a complete overhaul of the site. Assessing it’s navigation, it’s design, it’s call to actions – really everything that could be re-assessed with a view to giving a more effective user experience.

With a revamp, your website structure could remain the same or maybe some new pages, corporate colours etc could be incorporated. It’s about giving your site a more up-to-date look and tweaking bits here and there to make it perform better or serve a purpose. For example, in winter we revamp several of our e-commerce website with a Christmas theme to put customers in a Festive mood, this is a temporary revamp and will see the site returned to normal in Spring.

Website Redesign

• Start afresh : With a website redesign you have free reign to start again and create a spanking new website without having to hold on to previous layouts designs etc.
• Cost : Sometimes a complete overhaul is money saving in the long run. It can let you start afresh with up-to-date technology rather than making you go back again and again to a web designer for further updates. You could redesign the site with a CMS for example and put the maintenance of your website in your own hands.
• Standards : Imagine your website was built several years ago, chances are it will be in tables and might not be the most accessible of sites. At a basic level, to redesign the site could mean rebuilding the site in CSS, validating it to professional web standards and making it accesible for all.
• Effectiveness : Are you monitoring your website visits and conversions? Do you know the site is working for you? If not then it is a good opportunity to evaluate the site, see what is and isn’t working and redevelop a new website based on your findings. After all, if it isn’t working for you then why stick with a failing design or layout

Website Revamp

• Familiarity : A website revamp is great for keeping the structure of your site consistent to let regular users of your site know where to go to get the information they want.
• Cost : A revamp can be cheaper (particularly in the short term) for example, if you want updated colours of a replaced logo.
• Time : Generally a website revamp will take far less time to carry out than a complete overhaul.
• Effectiveness : If your website is really working for you in terms of visitors and conversions then why fix it other than to update it’s ‘feel’?

Which is for you?

When you’re thinking of a new website consider these points to help you decide whether you need your site redesigned or whether you could be as effective with a revamp.

1. What do you currently like or dislike about your website?
2. Is there something fundamentally wrong with the design or are you just tired of the branding?
3. What do you hope to achieve and what do you hope visitors gain from visiting your website?
4. Is your current site working and converting for you?
5. What are your future goals for the website?
6. Is your branding changing and therfore forcing a redesign?
7. Does it meet all the standards you need it too (is it accessible)?

Creativity is an important factor in designing graphics and websites. There can be days when creative juices don’t seem to flow however. In it’s inherent nature creativity is something that you can’t pin down but there are things that can be done to nurture a creative side. To be creative on demand takes a bit of time and I’ve always looked at it as something that can be learned to a certain degree. It just depends on a number of factors.

There are a few things that I’ve picked up which help me to be as creative as possible. It doesn’t always work. Some days are a lost cause but most of the time they help. The first is to try to take in as much as possible from as many sources as you can.  So if you’re composing music listen to as much different music as possible.  If you’re designing sites or graphics take in as many as you can from as wide a source as possible. Take note of print and media graphics and adverts you see on a daily basis so you have a general awareness of what the industry is doing.

The second thing is what makes number one work.  Analyse what you like or dislike about the creativity you’ve witnessed. Understanding the reasons why a design does or doesn’t work is crucial. The more you come to understand the flaws and strengths the easier it will be when trying to create something you’re happy with.  I’m not talking about looking at other peoples designs and then ripping them off but instead using other examples of work to inspire you to create to a certain standard. By constantly comparing your work to other professionals it will be easier to guage whether your work is of the same standard.

Create often
By creating as often as possible you give yourself the opportunity to see what you’re capable of. This only works if you throw things away, always re evaluate, by constantly discarding designs you can create better ones.

Go too far
Go too far with a design, its only once you’ve gone too far that you can see where you should have stopped. This may not have been as easy with paint on canvas but with photoshop its easy.

We’ve recently added a post about ‘10 (more) questions to ask your web designer‘ aimed at helping you get the most out of a meeting with a potential web designer. Following on from that we have decided to write a post to give you tips on getting the most out of your initial design interview (once you have signed up to a website design).

We always ask that a client meets with us to discuss requirements, their likes and dislikes and to talk over expectations.

A face to face meeting like this is the most productive way to make progress with a design and to hit the nail on the head as early as possible.

After years of these design meetings we descided to put together the following tips so you have an idea of what to expect.

1) Talk to us

Simple isn’t it! We want to hear what you have to say, what you are looking for, what your business does. The works. You should be the one talking and we should be listening (and possibly taking a few notes!) If you are stuck with how to begin don’t worry, we will have a few questions to start you off and get you chatting.

2) Show us

One of the most telling parts of a design meeting can be hearing what you do and don’t like. Whether it’s websites, logos, flyers or even magazine layout. It all helps us get a feel for what you are looking for. You may think that everything is a ‘hodge-podge’ of unrelated ideas but with seeing just a few examples we can immediately see a theme. It can really help us to see straight away that you like simple designs, bright designs, a classic or a grunge look and can be easier for you to tell us what you want without actually telling us!

3) Wait fo us!

This design meeting is not about having an immediate solution or design before you leave the office. We need time to digest what you have said and played about with a few ideas before giving you your first webdesign sample. This is a normal process so don’t be disappointed! It gives us time to really think about what you want and to give you a considered design.

4) Be a little prepared

To really get the most out of your design meeting you can prepare yourself. Before the meeting take a coffee break and consider a few points:

• Do you have a colour scheme in mind?
• Do you have images you would like to use or have to use?
• Do you have set fonts?
• Do you have a logo designed? If so then bring a samples long with you.
• What websites do you like and dislike?
• Who’s going to prepare the textual content?
• What message do you want to get accross? Any call to actions you need to include?

When we think of copyright we generally thing of DVD’s, music and books. We all know the issues and are well aware if we are doing anything we shouldn’t. With more and more media turning to digital it seems that it is becoming increasingly difficult to protect ownership of digital works.

With the seemingly endless increase in the number of websites and blogs out there, how does this affect them and how do you protect your hard work?

The short answer is that there is no 100% safe way to protect your websites copy or images. There are things you can do to hinder it but that won’t phase the most determined of ‘borrower’ so the best thing to do (if it is important to you) is to not publish it in the first place. However, if you decide to go ahead (and why souldn’t you!), there are a few steps you can take to at least make things a little more difficult.

TEXT

In terms of text there is really nothing you can do to protect your content safely. Sure you could put your text in images, PDF or Flash BUT it’s not very user friendly and it’s not what you could call search engine friendly either!

You can try leaving a copyright notice on the page. If you’re running WordPress then you can use a plugin like Simple Feed Copyright but you are relying on the ‘thief’ actually acknowledging it.

Checking every now and again using a tool such as Copyscape lets you see if one of your posts or pages has been copied. If it has, then your option is to approach the company and ask for them to remove it.

IMAGES

No right click : You can add a no right click to your pages to stop someone from saving your image.

A blank pixel : It is possible to cover your images with a single repeating, transparent pixel layer. Then, when someone right clicks to copy your image they will be saving a single pixel.

These techniques have their downfalls, such as only working if Javascript is turned on and also they do not stop someone from saving your webpage and grabbing the image from the saved files.

Disallow : You can also use your robots.txt to disallow images from appearing in search engines by using

User-Agent: *
Disallow: /images/

Watermarking : You can also add a layer of text through your image with a copyright notice. This will degregate the actual look of the image on your website so is far from ideal.

Being an Accessible Web Design company and concerned with all aspect of providing a good experience for people with any visionary impairment or disability, I had my first ever eye test the other week!

Working through some website builds and ticking off all of the accessibility elements like text size, alternative views and image replacement I decided that I should put myself (and Lynne) through an eye test, so I duly signed us up!

I had pretty spot on vision and no need for glasses and Lynne had a similar outcome with a very slight ‘stigmatism’ in her left eye, but still no need for glasses. The actual process itself was fun though, with your face in a contraption and then having to read different sized text and what not and give an idea of visual clarity back to the optician.

There was a colour test involved where I was to read out text behind different colours, this is exactly the same when people may be having difficulty reading text on your website because you have decided to have a red background with green text, for example – a very error basic and obvious ‘no-no’! Also when reading the tiny text, I was rhyming off with great accomplishment, each individual letter. Now, that was fine for me with perfect vision (although I was still having to squint to see it) but imagine someone with a lesser eyesight having to do the same on your website, they’d end up leaving in an internet induced huff!

Could this be the way forward for website owners who fail to understand the requirement for accessibility in web design? It can quite easily occur that the owner of the website is so concerned about getting their company message/salespath correct that they neglect to think about these elements.

I vote we send any of our clients who aren’t ‘sold’ on accessibility for an eye test in future because then it is easier to put yourself in the shoes of someone with a visionary impairment (or other disability) and understand exactly what needs to be addressed when building your website. Putting yourself in your clients’ shoes for successful accessible website development.

Way back in March 2007 I sat down one evening and wrote an article entitled 10 Questions To Ask Your Prospective Web Designer. It was aimed at helping potential clients who were looking for a website but weren’t sure where to start or what to ask first. My recent post on finding blogging inspiration from old posts gave me the impetus to go back over my first posts.

The ’10 Questions’ post was a great success for me so I have decided to build on it and add another 10 questions that should be considered. So here goes:

1) Will my site site be built to professional standards?

All designers should now be building websites that validate to professional web standards. Put simply, this makes your site as ‘clean’ as possible to increase performance and cross-browser compatability. You can check a website site here.

2) Will my website follow accessibility guidelines?

By accessibility guidelines we  mean making your website as usable as possible to an many user groups as you can. In the words of W3C:

Following these guidelines will make content accessible to a wider range of people with disabilities, including blindness and low vision, deafness and hearing loss, learning disabilities, cognitive limitations, limited movement, speech disabilities, photosensitivity and combinations of these. Following these guidelines will also often make your Web content more usable to users in general.

3) Is my site a template? Will I see the design elsewhere?

While templates are not detrimental to the actual build of your website they can cheapen your site if there are loads of other sites with an identical design. Find out right at the start whether you are paying for a bespoke website design or a template.

4) Does the copyright lie with me or will I see the design elsewhere?

As with templates, you want to ensure that if you have paid for a bespoke design that that’s what you are getting and more importantly, that it isn’t going to be re-used. Also, find out whether you get a copy of the website when it’s signed off just in case you decide to go elsewhere at a later date.

5) Will my domain name be registered to me?

We came accross several companies last year that had difficulty moving their website to a new provider as their previous one had registered their domain name in the web companies name and not the clients. Although you can generally get round this (if you have your original order form and details of the name being bought on your behalf) it is still hassle that could be avoided. There is no need for the domain to be registered in anything BUT your name so don’t settle for anything less.

6) Do I need a support contract?

If you don’t have a support contract have a chat with your developer about whether you actually need one. With a small static site you may be happy to pay each time you need a small change but with a large, high-functionality website it is more than likely a necessary. Websites do go down occasionally (usually hosting) so if you have your own hosting and no one you can call on to help you out then a support contract could give you peace of mind.

7) Do I have a support contract?

Make sure you know exactly when the need for a support contract would kick in and whether you have one. Find out how long it lasts for and what isn’t covered.Remember, if you don’t see a mention of it in your contract then chances are you aren’t covered after sign off.

8 ) Will I be No.1 in Google?

Beware the company that promises this! We have written several posts that go into this in detail but for this post we’ll just stick to saying that NO ONE can promise this or guarantee it – no matter how much you pay!

9) Do you provide the content for the website?

The speed of the build depends on two things:

• the speed of the webdesign company in designing and building stage
• the speed of client feedback and content.

For SEO, content is king but for a designer content is a killer…if it isn’t received. Find out from the start what your commitments are and whether you can pay extra for a copywriter if you don’t have the time.

10) What else should I ask?

Ok, so this is a cheat but I wanted to hammer home the importance of some of the questions from my original article:

• Do I own the site and it’s copyright at the end? – Do not get in the situation where if you decide to change hosting after a year you suddenly discover you can’t because you don’t own the site.
• Do you have testimonials? – reasearch the company to within an inch of it’s life, bad reviews can be nothing more than a misunderstanding but if a company has several then it’s worth being cautious.

Above all, anything that you have confirmed like this, get it in writing before laying down a deposit.

If you run a blog you will know exactly what I am referring to when I say the phrase blog-block…it’s like writer’s block but with blogging. It happens to us all and can cause a lot of stress as the more you try the stronger the block becomes.

Blogging has come easily to PoLR these last few months, you could say we’ve been a lean, mean writing machine! But talking in the  office the other day I wondered out loud when this run of ideas would slow (as I know it will at some point).

Never one to miss out on a blog post, I have compiled a list of 5 inspirational ideas about what you can you do when you’re faced with the dreaded block.

1) Stop what you’re doing.

A tired mind is a blocked mind. Stop trying to force your blogging, put your computer to sleep and go do something else. Read a book, go for a walk, plan your next holiday…anything that takes your mind off the job. A 10 minute break does the power of good and when you do go back to the computer the words should flow.

2) Go Retro.

There is nothing worse than staring at a blank screen. Unless you’re and artist, in which case there’s nothing worse than a blank canvas – I could keep going with this one…Anyway, what we mean is once again closing your laptop and do some retro-writing. Grab a pen and paper (that’s the retro part) and a cuppa. Sit down, relax and start jotting down ideas as they come. As with art, a change in medium encourages you to think in a different way and with a different viewpoint.

3) Play some ‘Mallet’s Mallet’

As with point two, grab a pen and paper and start brainstorming. Start with a single word and write everything you can think of relating to it, in any haphazard manner. Don’t worry about forming an actual blog post, the aim of the game is purely to get ideas and phrases down to build on later. If a blogging idea becomes obvious at any point then go back to your comuter and get writing. Save the notes you have taken and go back to it later on – you never know what gems it might throw up later.

4) Brainstorm with your friends.

I have been known at the start of a night out to whip out a pen and paper and start quizzing my friends on Intenet issues. Do they know what X is? Are they fans of Y? You get the picture. They hate it but just remind them they are supporting a friend’s business 😉  Talking to people who don’t work in the world of web puts a whole new slant on things that we may assume is common knowledge. For example, until the other day I assumed EVERYONE knew what RSS was. Turns out they don’t (hence this blog post!).

5) An old ‘un but a good ‘un.

Go back in time and read over some of your first blog posts. Is there anything that wasn’t clear in your first attempt? Maybe a left comment could give you inspiration for a post? Maybe what you wrote is already outdated and needs a fresh slant? Maybe you’ve just changed your views from the first post? Don’t just re-word the initial post (where’s the imagination in that!) but try to think of another angle.

Word of warning when looking for inspiration though…

Although reading other people’s blogs is great for sparking off an idea, never and I repeat, NEVER copy other blogs posts or even structures. Not only will it be demoralising to you after a while but it will also be noticed eventually. Preserve your reputation and use your fabulous imagination! Hopefully these tips will help you do just that!