Web Design Blog
Our web design blog features basic web design tutorials covering everything from basic HTML and CSS, to server side languages like PHP and the all important issue of Search Engine Optimisation. To make it a little more interesting we'll also be casting our critical eye over the websites of businesses in the Telford area picking up on both positive and negative aspects.
The site also features our web design link directory which indexes links to the very best web design articles the web has to offer - allowing them to be found by category or tag.
Web Design Articles
How to choose an SSL certificate
Date: Friday 14th MayIf your website is taking sensitive or personal information from your users you should consider encrypting this data in transit using SSL. However choosing an SSL certificate can be a confusing business. This week we try to help you understand the technical jargon surrounding SSL certificates.
A beginner's guide to search engine optimisation
Date: Tuesday 4th MayA lot of website owners know that having a high Google ranking can be important to drive visitors to their site, but have little idea how they can get to the top without paying a company to help them. In this post I’ll outline how, with a basic understanding of how Google search results work, anyone can boost their Google rank.
The key ingredients of e-commerce design
Date: Wednesday 28th AprilWe’ve got initials meetings coming up for two e-commerce websites, and so as normal we’ve been doing our homework and refreshing our knowledge of the basic principles behind improving sales on websites. Although a multitude of elements contribute increasing to conversion rates certain elements require particular attention, and we’ve summarised a few of these below.
Does your site give an effective first impression?
Date: Thursday 22nd AprilOur weekly blog returns with a look at the impression your site gives to first time visitors. We have only a short opportunity to persuade the user to invest their precious time and attention in your site. Rob takes a look at a few aspects of creating an effective first impression.
Creating Effective Calls to Action
Featuring: Sian Phillips Coaching, Stoke on TrentDate: Monday 1st March
This week's web review takes a look at the website of careers and business coaching mentor Sian Phillips. The review focuses on how to create effective calls to action, something extremely important to any e-commerce website.
Making the most of Google Local Search
Featuring: Ashley's Bridal Box, Market Drayton, ShropshireDate: Tuesday 16th February
This week we feature local Wedding Dress provider Ashley's Bridal Box in Market Drayton, Shropshire. The site has obvious SEO issues as we struggled to find the site through Google will all related broad searches. However because the site is under development we thought it unfair to review this aspect of the site and have instead chosen to focus on how to use the Google Local Business Center effectively.
Optimising images on your website
Featuring: Bouncy Fun, Telford, ShropshireDate: Saturday 6th February
This week's web review takes a closer look at Telford's premier bouncy castle hire firm - Bouncy Fun. Their website hasn't changed since 2003 and so has obvious design issues. However that is not the focus for this weeks website review. Instead we take a look at the basic steps to ensuring your images are optimised for the web and give a warning about the use of frames in youe website.
Handling Old Websites with 301 Redirects
Featuring: I Will Print, Telford, ShropshireDate: Thursday 28th January
This week's web review takes a closer look at the website of a Telford based printing firm called I Will Print. Topics for discussion include what to do with old websites when you create a new website on a new domain and we also take a look at the importance of search engine optimisation to local businesses.
How to create an IE6 upgrade message
Date: Wednesday 20th JanuaryDevelopers waste hours of time and businesses waste hundreds of pounds fixing and hacking together code to make a site compatible with Internet Explorer 6. Here we show you how to build an IE6 upgrade message to encourage users to upgrade to a newer browser and get more out of your site and the web.
