Tag: Web

Categories
web design

How to Be a Web Developer in 2022

[ad_1]

In today’s day and age, we are all surrounded by technology. Technology is everywhere, from basic applications to ground-breaking inventions such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (MI), Robotics and others. Even the social media sites and search engines we visit and consume content come from technology.

The eCommerce sites that we use for purchasing items and company websites we visit for information require technology. If you are a technocrat or looking to build your website, get on the bandwagon with web development in London; it is on an upward slope.

What is Web Development?

To start with the basics, first, understand what web development is. It is the process of creating websites and applications and includes both – ones curated for open-source use, that is, the Internet, and for private networks – commonly seen in large corporations – that is the Intranet. The advent focuses on the coding and programming of sites that drive functionality and operation.

To further delve into this arena, web development comprises three layers: client-side coding (frontend), server-side coding (backend) and database technology.

The Three Layers of Web Development

Front End Development

Front end development concerns the features directly visible and easily accessible by the end-user. What you experience upon website loadings, such as user-friendliness and aesthetics, are done by front end developers. In simpler words, they incorporate the visual components that go into websites, including buttons, navigation and other aspects.

If frontend development is something that entices you, then HTML, JavaScript, and CSS are paramount. Mastery of these languages is a prerequisite. In addition, you also need to be well-equipped with the know-how about creating responsive designs, testing, and debugging. More so, familiarise yourself with tools such as content management systems, APIs, and frameworks.

Back End Development

Back end development caters to the behind-the-scenes of websites and focuses on server-side logic and integration for web applications. To put it in simpler words, it works on customer-facing products and programs. These developers handle servers, databases, and applications; these are aspects that are unseen to the end-user.

For aspiring backend developers, languages and frameworks such as Java and Ruby on Rails are a must-have. Secondly, getting acquainted with some skills will come in handy. Job providers typically look for knowledge of database management, framework utilization, programming, and security compliance.

Database Technology

Think of database technology as the support system or backbone of web development. It makes for the repository that stores and manages multiple contents such as codes and files paramount to the optimal functionality of websites. Most websites today use some form of Relational Database Management System (RDBMS) that enables this trifecta of web development to synchronize seamlessly to create fully functional websites.

For those looking to delve deeper into database technology, the Structured Query Language (SQL) is deemed easiest among the varied options. It is similar to English, which makes it easy to read, write, and comprehend. Also, familiarise yourself with some of the mainstream relational database management systems such as MySQL, PostgreSQL and Oracle DB.

Difference between Web Design and Web Development

Although often used interchangeably, there is a stark difference between web design and web development. Web development caters to the functional aspects of websites such as servers and applications. Web design with the look and feel – or vibe – of the website. That is, web design caters to color schemes, fonts, drop-downs, scrollbars, and touchpoints. If you need further support from an experienced agency, you can check the web design agencies in London.

Now that you are familiar with what web development entails, we now delve into how to go about acquiring these skills. If you have come this far, then you’re probably intrigued to learn about web development, no?

The Learning Curve for Codebreakers

Thanks to the Internet for putting forth a plethora of online courses. These online courses are referred to as Coding Bootcamps. Application and practicality-driven, the learning curve is intense, and you can get job-ready even in twelve weeks.

Further good news is that you need not belong to a tech-related field such as engineering, computer science or software engineering. Even those belonging to diverse areas can develop proficiency in coding and web development. Breaking the traditional bulwark where web developers spurt out through their higher education pursuits from tech-related fields, there are immense opportunities for you to start anytime and anywhere. According to Switchup, several coding boot camps such as Le Wagon and General Assembly help hone your skills and abilities in web development.

According to research published by Brainstation, a growing number of web development professionals start later in their careers. Around 55 per cent of respondents hail from a different field.

The Growth Areas of Tomorrow

More than skill-building, one should look out for relevant skill-building. While already in the market, the phenomenon AI, ML, Internet of Things (IoT), blockchain, and augmented reality (AR) are in the nascent stages. The future holds tremendous growth in these areas, and upcoming web development enthusiasts should get on with pursuing proficiency in languages in these aspects.

The area-specific coding languages are Ruby and Solidity for Blockchain, JavaScript and PHP for IoT, Lisp and Prolog for AI and ML, and JavaScript and Swift for AR. Moreover, Cloud infrastructure is among the growth areas, and HashiCorp Configuration Language (HCL) is the recommended coding language.

Final Comments

Technology is prevalent and is everywhere, from brand websites to social media platforms to eCommerce websites. Web development creates applications and websites and comprises the three pillars of front end development, back end development, and database technology.

Web development differs from web design in that the former caters to servers and applications and the latter to the visual aspects such as color schemes, fonts, and touchpoints. Learning web development today has become easier than before and can be pursued through coding boot camps. More so, with immense growth potential in blockchain, IoT, AR and others, one should get on the bandwagon with these as well.

[ad_2]

Categories
web design

Web Design Fundamentals – How to Smash It With User-Friendly Website?

[ad_1]

The Internet opens up a world of opportunities for forward-thinking businesses. Online marketing is the way of the future – and the first step to establishing a foothold online is to have a good website.

Nowadays, there is no shortage of ways to get yourself a website. A business could bring a whole IT team on board to take care of the task. On the opposite end of the spectrum, you can just use a website builder and make yourself a serviceable website in no time. However, by far the most impressive and cost-effective way to go about it is to hire professional WordPress developers to get the job done.

Regardless of which path a business chooses, the fundamentals of website building are still the same. To be successful, a website needs to be well-thought-out, solidly designed, and most importantly – user-friendly.

This last bit is more important than many businesses realize. Making a site as user-friendly as possible is a must nowadays as the Internet is an attention economy. Studies show that user attention spans are getting shorter and shorter. With this in mind, here are the main components you need to focus on to get the most out of your website.

Ensure Website Stability

To make your presence online felt, your website needs to be up and running at all times. It doesn’t matter how good your website looks and how user-friendly it is if users can’t see it because it is down all the time. This means that it needs to be well developed and optimized to achieve the lowest downtime possible.

Website development is not a straightforward task, even for seasoned professionals. Things “break” all the time. It’s an iterative process that requires a lot of time, effort, and dedication that can achieve astounding results. The first step on that path is to hammer out what the exact parameters of the job are.

What are the goals and objectives for the project? What can actually be accomplished, and in what time frame? What happens if plans change mid-development? All those questions need to be answered if you are to end up with a functioning website. Failing to do so at the very beginning results in instability in the development process. This inevitably causes complications, which in turn result in downtime – which you want to avoid.

The way to deal with potential issues is simple. Get good developers and hammer out the details of the project carefully with them before you start. Be honest and upfront with them as the project goes on and treat the task at hand with the seriousness it deserves

An important factor for website stability is how the website itself is hosted. Nowadays, there are plenty of free hosting services out there that you can use if you’re aiming to go as cheap as possible. However, if you want to avoid server issues, you’d do well to consider spending some money on a hosting service.

Focus on Accessibility

Another crucial aspect that should be bumped to top priority when designing a website is accessibility. This means making sure that your website works well on all platforms and on all browsers.

For many companies, getting a website that’s really good-looking on desktop devices comes first. The goal of it being accessible on mobile, or through less popular browsers, is often something of an afterthought. This way of doing things is counterproductive in the extreme in today’s online environment, for a few reasons.

Firstly, a staggering amount of searches, and therefore – traffic – actually comes from mobile devices. Users stumbling onto your website on their mobile devices are the norm, rather than the exception. You need to make your website as appealing to them as possible.

What’s more, as of mid-2021, Google has made mobile-friendliness a ranking factor for searches. This means that making sure a website is optimized for mobile users is not only crucial for user experience, but for SEO as well.

This is why companies who want to do well online should focus on making their websites as accessible as possible from day one.

making-websites-as-accessible-as-possible

Design for Navigability

Making sure your website is stable and accessible should be your first priority when planning it out. Taking care that it is designed to be as easy to navigate should be your second order of business.

True, there are many aspects of website design that need attention, and at the end of the day, you need to cover all bases. Still, as the cornerstone of a good user interface, navigability is probably the most important. Luckily, achieving it is not that difficult, if you put your mind to it and stick to what works.

Use the color palette on your website to emphasize certain elements on each page. There is no hard and fast rule as to what colors you need to use and where to put them. Using bold colors and contrast on certain elements of your design creates a clear visual hierarchy. Incorporate striking design to emphasize the elements that a user would find most useful.

Make sure everything on your website is clearly labeled. Every detail on every page should be marked out and be immediately recognizable at a glance. Achieving this effect without making your design too intrusive or aggressive may prove to be a bit of a challenge, but it is by no means impossible.

Make sure you incorporate a working Search function into your design. It doesn’t necessarily have to be the focus of user attention at all times, but it should be easy enough to find. This is just one of many tried and true methods of dramatically improving the UX on your website.

Design the structure of your primary navigation with simplicity in mind. Put it near the top of your page, and make it straightforward to use. Don’t cram all the navigation options into it, as that will make it clunky, not to mention unaesthetic. Remember, although you want to establish a clear visual hierarchy, you don’t want your website to be too “top-heavy.”

Incorporate a secondary system of navigation in the footer of your site, or in another section. Any other part of the site the user may want to visit should never be more than two to three clicks away from their current view.

Finally, limit the use of lead-generating strategies on your website. Landing pages, pop-ups, and live chat can work wonders for converting clicks into sales. Still, bear in mind that if you overdo it, this strategy will backfire. Aggressive pop-ups, in particular, are an instant turnoff for many users. This is why you need to find a balance, and include just the right amount of them when you’re designing your website.

[ad_2]

Categories
web design

11 Web Design Trends to Power Up Your Website in 2022

[ad_1]

Website composition patterns are continually evolving. Simultaneously, there are some mainstream styles that just will not disappear – like the pervasive moderation and vivid level delineations that we’ve been seeing for quite a while.

1. Dark mode

Dark mode, which was at that point a major pattern in 2020 on account of OLED screens, will turn out to be significantly more famous one year from now.

It looks simple, nice and elegant at the present day. Telegram, Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and Apple are only a couple of examples of the large brands that offer elective topics on their foundation. If you are interested in more design solutions, check the iPhone mockup collection.

2. Human touch

Hand-drawn design elements bring emotion and humanity to websites, something that deep down users who are tired of technology crave.

In fact, this rebellious trend is almost the opposite of pixel-perfect, so flaunt your ragged edges and exposed shapes to show how human and realistic your brand is.

3. Immersive 3D elements

Volumetric graphics have always fascinated people; it’s a trend that’s only been held back by technology and cost. Until virtual reality becomes more pervasive and cost-effective, hyper-realistic 3D imagery, which often spans the entire screen, is the best way to create an immersive experience on your site.

Thanks to advances in web technology and the constant refinement of their games, web designers are increasingly using 3D elements as VR/AR technologies gain momentum and add beauty and impact to 3D elements.

4. Delicate shadows, layers and drifting components.

Delicate shadows and drifting components make a pseudo-3D impact and make plans more layered and fascinating.

This pattern expects to make profundity. It works with the image, yet additionally with text and photographs, and gives the plan a feeling of daintiness, as though the components were coasting on top of one another.

5. Mixing Photography with Graphics

Using real photographs mixed with illustrations or graphics really captures the spirit of the brand. The style of these visuals can influence how people interpret the photo – cartoon swirls are better used for something more playful, and geometric swirls for something more complex. High-quality photos already look great on their own, but adding cool graphics will really show off your creative flair.

6. Solid frames in a single colour space

Layouts with a full crop release have long been a trend in web design.

Designers are now gravitating towards solid structures and playing around with different ways of using lots of white space (and space of any colour, for that matter) to give their designs more structure and use clean framing, in order to give the design a sense of stability and solidity, order and neatness.

7. Light and neon

Futuristic full colours like blue, purple and bright pink give the design a sense of radiance for the future. Professionals use bold colour combinations to make web design literally jump off the screen. This trend is particularly evident in duochrome web design.

It blends perfectly with other uptrends like extreme minimalism and dark mode. And luminous colours can really shine.

8. Ultra minimalistic navigation

Website content gravitates towards more voice-scripted video and less text. Over the past few years, navigation has become easier to adapt to very small devices and even less attention span. Extremely minimalist navigation removes much of the difficulty in usability.

9. Frosted glass effect

Recent advances in web technology have made it easy to implement a frosted glass effect on websites. The blurred appearance of elements behind the frosted glass overlay helps add colour to the area, as well as allowing text or objects to appear in the image and remain legible.

10. Photo art

The main idea is to dazzle customers and grab their attention by showing interesting and unrealistic elements. They make potential consumers use their imagination and stay on your website longer. In this way, you can increase your average session time and possibly increase your conversion rate.

11. Realistic textures

After years of ethereal gradients and smooth isometric objects, textures are making a comeback. You can get users to reach out and touch textures by creating outlines and grains. However, try not to overdo it. You may end up diverting visitors’ attention to the wrapper rather than your brand.

After all, the major web design trends of 2022 look less like a design from a science-fiction film and more like the real thing we might encounter in everyday life. It shows how increasingly simple websites are becoming part of our lives, and the designers of 2022 are bringing them to life.

[ad_2]

Categories
web design

Skills and Tools You Need for Efficient Web Design

[ad_1]

Web design and website design require a specific skill set from the designer. You also need to make sure you have the right tools so you can implement the latest web design trends for 2021 and future years.

In this article, we’ll briefly touch on the skills and tools required for you to become an in-demand website designer that gets paid handsomely for their projects!

What Skills Do I Need for Modern Web Design?

Modern web design means knowing how to work with layer-based composite designs to leverage the impact of parallax animation, a knowledge of skeuomorphism and neumorphism to stay ahead of the curve, a deep appreciation of and familiarity with eye-strain-reduction color schemes, and all the following skills:

  • Knowledge of emerging and popular website design trends
  • Familiarity with design and prototyping best practices
  • An eye for detail
  • An appreciation for modern color schemes, Pantone color of the year, and so on.
  • Experience working on small and large projects
  • Knowledge of design thinking concepts

If you have these requisite skills, you can command a high salary relative to your peers. It also helps to be news-aware so you keep learning about new ways to enhance the user experience with your website designs.

What Tools Do I Need for Efficient Web Design?

Additionally, you need the right tools that offer these capabilities for designing and prototyping your website before it even goes into the development stage. Remember: as a UI and UX designer, you’ll need to know how to create interactive prototypes that are life-like, and you should be familiar with the tools and skills required for efficient web design.

The best tools are usually cloud-based SaaS applications so you can work from anywhere. It’s an important consideration whether your design team members work remotely from home in different parts of the city or across the globe. However, there are some highly collaborative desktop options as well, as you’ll see. Here are some of the best tools for your design software arsenal:

Wondershare Mockitt

Wondershare Mockitt

Mockitt from Wondershare takes advantage of the company’s extensive software development skills in the SaaS space. As such, Mockitt is hosted on the cloud and easy to access on any modern browser on a connected device. This gives users the flexibility to access the platform from anywhere in a secure manner using their unique Wondershare ID. The best part is that this ID also works across all of Wondershare’s other products. Let’s look at some of the best features of this creative and versatile UI/US design and prototyping application.

  • Rich libraries of platform-specific assets for iOS, Android, and web
  • Dynamic widgets, page states, and extensive gestures and transitions with animations and effects
  • Rapid prototyping using drag-and-drop linking to create intricate interactions
  • Real-time preview with live review and commenting for other stakeholders
  • Easy project sharing using secure and permission-based URLs and QR codes
  • Ready-to-inspect HTML and style code for developers – smooth handoff
  • Extensive options for design systems and UI kits for specific devices and platforms

Wondershare Mockitt offers the widest range of features at this price point, which is much more affordable than many other SaaS design applications like Figma. This makes the product appealing for several types of business all the way from one-man shows to large enterprise-level corporations with huge design teams spread out all over the world. The collaborative nature of the platform and the intuitive, easy-to-use features makes it one of the best web design tools on the cloud today.

Webflow

webflow-dashboard-web-designwebflow-dashboard-web-design
Source: Medium

Another great website design tool is Webflow, which has been developed along the lines of WordPress but with a lot of additional capabilities. The Webflow Designer utility allows you to use JavaScript, CSS, and HTML5 elements in your design, giving you the tools to create stunningly lifelike prototypes. It is also highly suitable for dynamic content that works off your databases, making it ideal for eCommerce websites and such. Some important features:

  • Comprehensive website design, development, and deployment utility
  • Web hosting platform integrated with Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Fastly CDN
  • Compliant with HTTPS/2 standards
  • Drag and drop interface with no coding knowledge needed
  • No prototype but there is a staging server to test your site

If you need to go directly from web design to web development, this might be the tool for you. Ideal for smaller eCommerce sites, blogs, etc., and scalable to larger needs over time.

Balsamiq

balsamiq-dashboard-1balsamiq-dashboard-1
Source: Balsamiq Wireframes

When you think of wireframing, Balsamiq is the desktop tool that comes immediately to mind. There is now also a cloud version but the classic desktop version is the one most people are familiar with. Balsamiq allows users to create wireframe prototypes that you can click through to test your logic flows and other interactions. Here are some core features of Balsamiq:

  • Intricate wireframing with extensive ready-to-use components
  • Ideal for wireframe mockups and user testing
  • Drag-and-drop editing
  • Linking to databases
  • Feedback mechanism built into the platform
  • Version history – ideal for iterative and rapid prototyping
  • Click-through prototypes

Balsamiq is all about bringing simplicity into complex interactive scenarios. It helps stakeholders assess the core capabilities of a website or application without wasting money on developing iterative versions for testing and feature validation. Though not an ideal design platform for high-fidelity prototypes, it captures the essence of the site in terms of functionality.

UXPin

uxpin-featured-imageuxpin-featured-image
UXPin dashboard

This is a hybrid model where desktop applications are available alongside the web version. All platforms are collaborative by design, and UXPin is one of the most professional UI/UX design tools around. The best part is that it is code-compliant with prevalent standards, and is deeply integrated with code-ready features that are constantly being introduced. The conditional logic flows, variables, and states allow you to create vivid prototypes that mimic the real product. Key features include the following:

  • Extensive asset libraries that are platform-specific
  • Deep interactions with multiple flow options
  • Integration with Slack and Jira
  • Create intricately interactive prototypes quickly
  • Collaboration tools for sharing and feedback collection
  • Easy developer handoffs

The only drawback with UXPin is that advanced features are only available in the more expensive price tiers, which could make it prohibitive for smaller companies with limited budgets.

Summary

In short, the right tools, the right skills, and a knowledge of what’s happening now in the world of web design are all critical components in the website design process. The right tools will give you all the features you need at the price you expect, and Wondershare Mockitt stands out as the best one in any scenario, whether you belong to a large and global design team or you’re a one-person design team.

[ad_2]

Categories
web design Website

Web Design Prices and Costs – How to Get A Fair Web Design Quote

Website Developer umuahia
Web designing and development nigeria

[ad_1]

If you’re looking at commissioning a web designer to build you a website, one of the first things that you will need to know, is the monetary cost. This article will explain to you why there is such a huge variance between web designers and their quotes and will give you some advice as to how much you can expect to pay to contract a competent web designer in the UK.

First of all you have to have a rough idea of ​​what it is that you want from your website. You have to have thought of what you want to achieve with the website. What are its objectives? You will then need to have thought of a basic structure for your website. There are many website examples out there for you to have a look at; the important thing is to have an idea about what structure you want for the site – meaning a rough outline of the numbers of pages and the content (text and images) that will make up each page.

Once you have your project objectives in mind and a rough idea of ​​your websites structure you are in a position to start contacting suppliers. There are multiple types of web design companies everywhere and in our particular area of ​​the UK – Doncaster there are lots of web design companies to choose from. The key thing to remember is that everyone wants your business. The web design marketplace is completely designed so as you the buyer have the upper hand!

As in all other industries there are people who provide excellent service, there are people who provide an average service and there are also cowboys (people who sell web design services without the necessary knowledge and experience to do so).

What you have to think to yourself is this: If a person promises me the earth for £ 1 does that mean to say that they can deliver it? The best advice I can give is to be realistic. There are lots of really good city based web design companies throughout the UK that provide excellent services. They are always there to take your calls and you even get your own personal account manager to handle your requests and hold your hand through the entire web design process. The services of such companies are wonderful but this clearly comes at a price. City based offices, account managers and admin staff are large overheads and the prices charged by large city based web design companies reflect this. If you have a modestly sized website, which needs to be under content management system control, do not be surprised if the web design quote runs into tens of thousands of pounds from a major city based web design company. If you are looking for a top quality 100% inclusive, comprehensive service and your company can afford this kind of bill then I would suggest using a big city company every time.

Then there are the smaller companies that are made up of just a few individuals. These types of companies have much lower overheads and frequently have very knowledgeable and capable staff. The service level can be much lower than that of major city based web design companies but you can get some excellent work done by such companies at a fraction of cost of the large city based companies.

A much overlooked group of web designers that can produce some excellent web designs are the wide community of freelance web designers. Freelance web designers are private, self employed individuals who work from small offices (they frequently work from home). Freelancers have very low (mostly non existent) overheads. As such they can provide quality web design work for much lower costs than larger web design companies. If you are looking for good quality web design for less money then it definitely work looking at using a quality freelance web designer.

The people that you really need to avoid are the web design cowboys. As stated above cowboys are people who sell web design services without the necessary knowledge and experience to do so. If you are unfortunate enough to have contracted someone like this in the past you will be aware of the low quality work that they produce and the lack of significant results that they achieve. Cowboys invariable promise you the earth for a £ 1. Use your common sense and if someone is quoting you £ 100 for something that 5 other companies are charging around £ 4000 for, you know that something is not quite right. Remember the old adage – buy cheap, buy twice!

Conclusion:

You will find a great deal of variance between web design quotes depending on what level of web designer you choose to contract and what level of service you require. Always make sure to get as many quotes and talk to as many people as you can so a) see what’s available on the market and b) get an unbiased idea of ​​the likely costs involved. There are lots of good web designers out there but there are also a lot of less skilled web designers and even some of the proverbial cowboys. Make sure to use good common sense and get a feel for the web designer’s skills and experience when you meet them. No matter how charming a person is, experience is very hard to fake. Ask to see examples of their work and where they have done similar work to your proposed project. Remember – you have the upper hand!

[ad_2]

Categories
Content Design

96 Resources for Web Designers, Developers, Project Managers and Marketers

[ad_1]

Clique exists for a simple reason: we want to do work we can be proud of, with people who inspire us. Our values are a reflection of that mission.

Our second value at Clique is: Be a student and a teacher.

There is no such thing as “self-taught.” Directly or indirectly, everyone learns from someone. Recognizing that reality, we resolve to be the best at getting better. Technology, after all, is the most rapidly evolving industry in the world. To stay on top of it, we are committed to learning and improving, and building it into what we do — not as an “add on,” but as part of our daily work. We recognize that any minute spent teaching one another will pay itself off tenfold.

Thus, we wanted to put together a resource hub, not only for internal use, but also to share with the world.

Want to see what we’re reading and learning from right now?

Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Clique’s top resources for designers, devs, project managers, marketers, and digital professionals:

Resources for designers

Professional organizations for designers

Where designers share their work

Designers who do a great job sharing their work

How do these people do that?

  • Instagram posts
  • Go live on Instagram/Facebook or videos showing process – not just the finished product but how they do it (step by step)
  • Live critiques on youtube/FB where people can show their work and get design advice or resources
  • Agencies that get their names out at events / in organizations like AIGA
  • A strong social presence, posting regularly, and consistent series that focuses on the process (and isn’t overly designed)
  • Not being afraid to show unfinished products

Design inspiration resources

Want more resources for designers? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Resources for developers

lines of computer code

Professional organizations for developers

Where developers share their work

What web developers do a great job sharing their work?

Web dev inspiration resources

Want more resources for developers? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Resources for project managers

person talking to group

Professional organizations for project managers

Project management (PM) at Clique is vastly different from a traditional project management role. Our PMs feel we’re more aligned with the people and conversation topics in UX groups and startup groups (multidisciplinary roles that cover operations as well as strategy).  They’re more of digital product strategists than traditional project managers.

If you’re our kind of PM, here’s a few resources that you’ll find helpful:

  • PM Meetups on Meetup.com – groups to be wary of The bad groups are → What enterprise resource management tools are you using? Most PM is herding cats
  • WeWork meetings – There is a Product School that they do along with free presentations by Product Managers
  • Car Building and Motorcycles – On of our PMs likes to see their process of what they’re doing in a waterfall-esque feel
  • Coffee meetups that talk about coding and also have a PM session
  • Chicago Meetups at tech companies

Who inspires our project management team with how they share their work?

Standup comedians – working in small clubs, honing their next big set; then roll out the big product in an album or special. Somewhat how we operate with learning individual components (learning about integrating with a CRM) and what does and doesn’t resonate in how you explain things to a client. Through those conversations, you should hone your way of gathering information and delivering information back to the client.

DJ Premiere collab with berkley symphony orchestra – ReGeneration.. Educating each other is super interesting to me

Issa Rae – Insecure show on HBO – shows that she’s a real person and not just somebody who is on TV

Vlog style videos

Facebook groups for comedians and improvisors

Tim Ferriss

Quincy Larson from FreeCodeCamp

Sara Mei

Project managers’ inspiration resources

As you’d expect, our project managers see inspiration and resources a bit differently that you might think.  Here’s a tip from one of our senior project managers:

“The thing that’s made the biggest connection has been making Product Hunt my homepage. It’s amazing how relevant looking at sites for products and startups is for what we do.” – Kyle Jacobson

Other resources for project managers:

Want more resources for digital project managers? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Resources for copywriters and content creators

person highlighting paper with writing on it

Professional organizations for content creators and copywriters

Coming soon

Where content creators share their work

Content and copywriting inspiration resources

Want more resources for content creators and copywriters? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

Resources for marketers

phone with a google search analytics

Professional organizations for marketers

Traffic Think Tank – A premium SEO community

Marketers’ inspiration resources

What I’ve found is that if you’re seeing anybody’s work anywhere, there’s probably a marketer or a smart content creator behind it.  That said, here are a few communities that have helped our marketing team grow and learn alongside some of the world’s best digital marketers:

The “Dream” Link Building Strategy – A smart SEO link building strategy that we implement at Clique to focus only on the most important SEO relationships.

5 Essential Podcast Tips – Article about how to grow your podcast to 200k+ downloads

GrowthLab – If you want long-form articles that actually teach you what the title promises to teach, this is perfect for you. Also, an incredible case study of what type of content performs well in 2018.

The Sunday Dispatches by Paul Jarvis

That Seems Important by Margo Aaron

Tradecraft – A highly-produced publication from Convertkit.  If you’re looking for the signal amongst the marketing noise, this is it.

Want more resources for marketers? Sign up for our weekly newsletter.

[ad_2]

Categories
Uncategorized

The Evolution of MVC Architecture and the Web

[ad_1]

As the web evolves, so too is our concept of MVC (model view controller) Architecture. As web applications has become increasingly complex and interactive, more and more logic is added to the browser side of the application. As a result, web applications are beginning to better simulate desktop applications. These types of applications are called RIAs (rich internet applications) and are going mainstream fast. Javascript is being pushed to its limits, and new RIA technologies like Flash 4 and Silverlight are slowly taking over the web. What's going on here?

How was MVC Architecture implemented in the past?

In the past, all three components of MVC Architecture, the model, view, and controller, resided on the web server (see the figure below).

Old MVC Architecture Implementation:

When a request was made to the web server, the controller decided what page the user should be directed too, what data to pull from the data server, how to build the model, and how to build the view. Once the view was created, HTML would then be generated and sent back to the client machine as a response. This was the fatal flaw of web applications in the past. Unlike desktop applications, if users needed to interact with the interface, the application would have to reload the entire page, because all of the components of the MVC architecture were stuck on the web server.

This is why AJAX was born in 1995. Ajax allowed users to somehow interact with a web application's interface much better than before, because individual requests could have been made to the web server, which would then turn in response with new data to update parts of the webpage without referring the whole page. AJAX still was not a perfect solution however, because every user interaction still had to make separate requests to the web server.

How is MVC Architecture implemented today?

Once the web world began to embrace AJAX, a new movement began to unfold called RIAs. With this model, the user could have a rich application experience without making requests to the web server with each action because the view component of the MVC architecture resides in the client (see the figure below)

New MVC Architecture Implementation:

This is a big deal because it means that we are rethinking how MVC architecture is implemented for web applications.

Here's an example. Let's say that you are using a web application that displays data. You enter some inputs, press "Enter", and the web application sends a request to the web server. The controller then gets the appropriate data from the data server, creates a model of that data, and sends it back to the client via JSON. The client receives the JSON and replicates the model as native objects. If the user wants to see this data as a pie chart, the native model can be used to generate a pie chart (which is a view) without making a request to the server. Likewise, if the user wants to see the data as a bar graph, the native model can be used to generate a bar graph, again without making a request to the server. All of this is done without referring the page, and only one request was made to the web server.

Click here to read more about MVC.

[ad_2]

Categories
Uncategorized

Old School Techniques for Modern Web Design

[ad_1]

Websites have become the latest way to sell yourself or your company; in fact, it's easily the most likely channel for customers, fans or whatever to find you and share your work with others. With websites now a main feature in the way things are done, the matter of web design comes up.

Web design used to be a highly specialized area, especially when the internet was still young and building a site was a much more complicated task. Nowdays, the actual process is much simpler, to the point where pretty much anyone can do it, at least from a technical aspect. However, there are other things that need to go into the creation of a successful website that often get forgotten about.

Aesthetics are incredibly important, especially when it comes to matters of business. No matter how good your services are or how much experience you have under your belt, it's all for nothing without a strong brand and consistent projected image to back it up. Even if you end up with a site that's well designed from a technical aspect, if there's nothing of worth on the site in terms of content and images then no body's going to visit it.

So what sort of approach should you take? Even though it's on the internet, it can be beneficial for businesses to view their website as Traditionally printed media, like a billboard, a pamphlet or a yellow pages entry. Use your site to advertise and attract new customers through modern marketing methods.

Take the 'Web' out of 'Web Design'

Do not sweat the small stuff and worry about every little decision that goes into building a website. Professional web designers understand that designing a good website really means following the rules of good design in general, with some technical considerations thrown in for good measure.

Treat your site like an advertisement for your company and the rest will follow naturally. Populate your site with valuable, useful content that up sells your services to the customer and give them a site that is easy to navigate and use. Do not obsess too much over how everything looks; what matters is that you're able to create a good balance between visuals, text and technological responsiveness.

Keep It Simple

Attractiveness and appeal do not always come from using bright colors and clashing shapes; you do not have to shout above the competition in order to be noticed. What matters is that the brand is consistent and confident, and more often than not the simple approach is often the most effective one. Though eyes may be drawn to noisy imagery, it tends to only serve as a mild distraction rather than compelling them to stay and look further into it.

A strong brand is what catches the eye and keeps it. Text should be presented in a way that is clear and easy to read, while images should be used appropriately rather than stuffing the page with them.

Whether you're based down south or are looking for something more specific, there are plenty of professional web design companies ready to help you showcase your services in style.

[ad_2]

Categories
web design

Hiring Professionals for Custom Web Design Services

[ad_1]

Is your business website failing to grab the attention of Internet surfers? Are the web designs capable of meeting the customers’ expectations? Is your website lagging behind to give considerable business leads? All these serious issues need to be resolved before they start hampering your business. And, to run an online business successfully you may require professional web design services.

Neverheless, each business follows unique ideas and strategies. From small companies to medium enterprises to large organizations, industry owners keep interest to have custom website design services for their online firms. After all, a website represents the professional image of the company in the virtual world of Internet. Once introduced over the web world, a site comes across scores of its competitors in the search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo etc. And, in this competitive edge an effectively configured website can only find a remarkable virtual space.

With the large selection of web pages over the Internet, visitors are likely to switch on from one site to another. They usually tend to spend reasonable time on that site which appears to be visually appealing and interesting. The graphics, logos, flash, banners and many more elements within a site should carry the potential to catch the eye-balls of the visitors and compel them to click on to its several other internal pages. The more a website carries the ability to hold its visitors, the maximum profit it assures to its owner.

While looking for business web design services, you will find a good number of professionals offering assistance at the expense of minimum budget and time. Before associating with them, it is necessary to understand that your business stands apart from your competitors and contracting with its quality may ruin your industry in the long run. Beside, you might have specific thoughts to put down into your online identity. By hiring inexperienced web designers, you may fail to bring your creative thinking into your business websites.

In order to get flawless website design services, you can consider looking for those companies that have adept web designers and developers. You can look for some web-based companies who have gained remarkable name in the market. There are a few companies which undergo research and analysis on vendors to provide web-based services. You can contact them to get detailed information about the professional web design services available in and around your city.

A few reputed service providers offer quality web-based packages to their clients. Other than designing services, their package is inclusive of content development, search engine optimization, social media optimization, web application development, web hosting and many more. They have various kinds of custom web design services to fit into the varying needs of their clients. You can consider contacting them to experience smooth operation of your online business firms.

Besides bringing down your creative business ideas, a few adept professionals are known for giving counseling services. They have in-depth understanding of website designing with respect to the ongoing market trend. They take pleasure in making the clients comfortable with the various designing themes to make the best selection as per the specific business interest.

[ad_2]

Categories
Uncategorized

Easy to Use Web Design Software

[ad_1]

If you’re looking for an easy to use web design software that will not take you a couple light years figuring out how to operate, then keep reading. Today we’re going to go over a few things you should keep in mind when looking for an “easy to use” web design software.

1.WYSIWYG

WYSIWYG is the acronym for What You See Is What You Get. It’s a system that allows for non-technical users to design and build web pages without knowing any HTML. The most common web design software that uses WYSIWYG technology is Microsoft Frontpage, followed by Adobe Dreamweaver.

While these types of web design software can help the non-technical user to create a simple website, the learning curve for more complex websites will likely turn off many non-technical users.

2. Web vs. Desktop Software

We’ve already talked about software such as Frontpage and Dreamweaver, these are considered to be desktop software because you download it to your personal computer and install it on your hard drive.

These days we have the option to also choose web based software that resides on another computer other than yours. One of the most popular examples of this is a product called SiteBuildIt!

Web site design software that is web-based will typically be pretty easy to use, but they can also be somewhat pricey considering they usually charge a monthly or yearly charge to use their software or “script”.

3. WordPress CMS

WordPress is not a web design software. It what’s called a “content management system” (CMS). So why then am I mentioning it in this article? Because you can create a pretty technical website / blog without knowing a lick of code.

Since WordPress is “open source” we all have the luxury of benefitting from the hard work 1,000’s of programmers put in to create specialized WordPress plugins that make it easy for the average joe to bring cutting edge functionality to his web site or blog.

Another benefit to WordPress is that you can easily change the “design” of your entire web site or blog simply by changing out your “theme” with the click of a couple buttons.

In conclusion, it’s important to keep in mind that while there are many “easy to use” web design software solutions one could use to create his or her own web site, you’ll need to examine your own situation to determine which solution is right for you.

If funds are limited, but still want unlimited possibilities, I would look into WordPress, but hey I do not need to tell you twice, right?

[ad_2]