Creation Studio blogs

Non Profits: Your Donors Look At Your Website

admin — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 00:00:00 +0000

It is no secret that non-profit organizations have suffered from very ugly designs for their websites. I still come across various not for profit organizations who are really great at what they do, but suffer badly in their online presence.

To be fair, non profits have restricted budgets and when allocation of funds need to be made, their websites are one of those things that just do not make the mark. I understand this. Before becoming the owner of The Creation Studio, I used to work for several non profit organizations and I know how tight budgets can be. When it comes down to funding for a critical program or updating their website, well, the program is fed because it is within their mandate to provide the service that they provide. So, some friend of a friend or family member who knows a bit of html then becomes the web guru. And how awful it is!

Let's be clear on one thing though. When donors are looking to give to a charity where do they often look to research a non profit organization? They look to their website. And that is where a simple principle applies to every non profit organization, or for that matter, small business or large corporation.

The above illustrates two differnet non profit organizations websites. We redesigned the one on the left and are in the process of redesigning the one on the right. As you can see, the website on the left looks great, and the one on the right is quite plain with just an image and text.

The business is concerned with its bottom line and a non profit is concerned with getting funding.

In order to get new business or new funding, the entity needs to present itself well. That is called marketing. Everyone needs to do it. Period. Whether a non profit organization is looking for donors to give to their cause or a business looks to gain new customers each has to put their best foot forward to provide CVP.

I am a current member of BNI - Business Network International, and we have a model known as CVP, which stands for:

Creditability
Visibility
Profitability

People will purchase or give their charity dollars to a business or non profit they trust. They gain that trust through CVP and part of that is through brand loyalty or how well the service is presented. This is also extended to online presence as well. I cannot tell you how many times I chose not to stay at a Bed and Breakfast because of how poor it was presented on their website or did not shop online at a particular online retailer or chose a competitor to purchase goods because of how bad their website was. A poorly designed website that looks really bad reflects poorly on any business or not for profit organization.

This effects one's profitability or their ultimate goal. For the charity, it effects the ability to get new funding from potential donors. Investing in your website is investing in your image and your ability to look as good as you really are.

So, take some time and put together a new fundraising campaign or allocate existing funds and invest in the future of your service by getting a new website that reflects the good works that you do. Like it or not, today's consumers pay close attention to how well you look online. Your next big donor could be that person who gains trust from looking at your website. That is the world we live in today.

Wayne Peters is the owner of The Creation Studio, a website design firm that specializes in providing professional web and graphic design services.

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The Costs Of Website Design

admin — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Years ago, when quoting on a website design project, I would take several factors into consideration. Such as how big is the company. How big is their budget. How soon do they need the site. And then I would take into consideration the options that they needed. Should I just give a lowball quote to get the contract. I really like the quote: The biggest mistake many businesses make is to believe that price alone drives sales. This is from http://www.inc.com/guides/price-your-products.html

As The Creation Studio has expanded and experienced growth over the past couple of years, I began to take a differnet approach to quoting. I began to recognize the value of our work, the quality of which we deliver the projects and the increasing demands of overhead. I also have been around enough individuals who are more business savy to understand that we cannot just give our services away. Besides, with a growing family and large student loans from years of university looming over our heads, I realize that I am responsible to the business to ensure that it does well.

Over the past while I began to restructure the business to make it better. We have developed a structured quoting system that applys to every client. It is based on a clear estimate of time for each compoent of a project times our hourly rate. There is no more guess work that comes into play. We are putting tools in place that streamline this process for both Requests For Proposals (RFP) and for short quotes or estimates.

We look forward to seeing the results in 2012.

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Why Your Company Needs a Website

admin — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

There isn't any doubt that having a well designed website is necessary for any business' future success in today's market. Our world is driven by technology, and those who aren't willing to consider the internet as being a superior marketing tool are probably going to miss out on a lot of business. However, simply having a website up and running isn't the only thing you should consider, as a unique site, that is an accurate reflection of the quality of your goods or services, is crucial for increasing sales and effectively reaching your target audience.

There are a number of reasons why your company needs a website, and why it should be professionally designed. Firstly, a website is the first sales pitch that your clients or customers are going to see. Therefore, it needs to make a great first impression. You're often only going to get one chance to make or break the sale, so it's vital that you make your online presence as effective as possible. If you have a website design that is poorly done, then you are not going to provide your visitors with an adequate representation of your brand. Also, a well designed website will give your potential customers or clients a wealth of information about your product or service. You can supply them with more more data than can fit in a brochure, and can truly allow for your product to shine using unique site features, such as integrated video and flash or HTML 5 styled images.

Another key reason why your company needs a website, is that it adds a tremendous amount of credibility to your business, if well designed, of course. Given that your target audience will be able to take a look at your company's background and what you have to offer them, they will have more trust in your brand, and are more likely to make a purchase. More traditional forms of marketing, such as flyers or business cards cannot truly convey your business' image or its philosophy.

In this current technological era, no business should be without a website, and hiring a website designer is the perfect way to accomplish this quickly and cost effectively. An experienced website designer will know which elements will work best for your company, and will be able to make your site stand out above the rest. Hiring a professional to create and launch your website is always a fantastic return on your investment.

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Drupal Vs. Joomla for Content Management Website Design

admin — Sat, 04 Feb 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Content Management is a highly important aspect of website design, and having a Content Management System (CMS) is a great way to handle the entire process, so that you can make the website more usable and ensure that is updated without a lot of hassle. If you're looking for a website that is scalable, powerful and you can manage yourself, then a CMS is definitely the way to go. In addition, most CMSs out there now even have the capability to help you with SEO, which, as we all know, is key to getting traffic to your site. Website designers often have a preference as to which CMS they use, Drupal and Joomla probably being the most popular. So, here's a brief comparison of the two, in order to help you choose, or rethink, your CMS choice.

Which is more effective at Content Management? I think that Drupal definitely wins this round. It's system allows for unlimited category levels, categorization, tagging, and gives you the ability to create different content that has a variety of different features while being able to manage pages from the front end. Joomla; however, forces one to edit content in a backend that may cause the end user to get a bit lost and not all extensions are open source. Drupal also has more flexibility in the power of its potential as enterprise solutions. Almost everything can be done in Drupal. Website design is all about CM, so this is a big sticking point.

Who has best templates and themes? Okay, so we'll give this one to Joomla. They have a great selection of templates and themes that are free, as well as commercial designs, while a majority of Drupal's designs have to be custom made. Drupal is more geared to the developer to extend and take advantage of its scalability whereas Joomla is more user friendly to get a site up quick and without much effort.

Which CMS is best when it comes to user permissions? Drupal's on top again! And yet again it's due to the fact that, with Joomla, you have to install an extension to have more than three user levels, while Drupal offers unlimited user levels (and even allows you to customize them).

When it comes to a variety of other aspects, such as Community Features, Blogs, and the General Community of the CMS, Joomla and Drupal are dead even. Though there are many things that Drupal exceeds at and Joomla lacks, there are also a number of features which Joomla does shine. However, based upon overall usability and effectiveness, Drupal would probably the one that comes out on top, especially for the more advanced website designers. Sites such as Yahoo Research, The White House, and Greenpeace UK evidently feel the same way, because they all utilize Drupal for their CMS needs.

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Five Great Website Design Tips

admin — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Given that a vast majority of today's businesses count on a unique and well organized online presence to boost their sales and spread their branding effectively, it's vital that website design be carried out properly to ensure the future or continued success of that company. Therefore, as a web designer, it's a good idea to keep a few things in mind while you're creating a site for your client or yourself. Here are the five great website design tips:

Be sure to have attractive graphics. By utilizing graphics that are both attention grabbing and pleasant to the eye, you are ensuring that the visitors to your site will not perceive the site as being amateurish or poorly executed. Due to the fact that nearly everyone has a website nowadays, yours must stand out above the rest, and the best way to do this is through well conceived and well implemented graphics.
Don't use animated GIF's, scrolling text or background music that automatically loads. There are few things more irritating or off putting then clicking on a website and being startled by background music, or to have your screen flooded with scrolling text or animated GIF's. These features prevent visitors from being able to fully view your site without interruption or distraction. This means that your message and information will not be relayed as it should be, and will fall short of successfully turning site traffic into clients or customers. If it's a personal site, it will do little to improve your traffic stats, as people will be less likely to stay on your site or click on any of your other pages because they are either irritated by these rather annoying features, or feel bombarded by their mere presence.
Be mindful of the width of the website. In web design, it is very important that you be aware of how wide or narrow your site is. If it's too wide, then a scroll bar will come in to play or part of the site will be cut off. If the site is too narrow, it simply won't look right or professionally done. That's why it's a great idea to look at your site on a number of different browsers, and even to view it on a couple of computer screens, just to be sure that certain elements of your site aren't affected by the width.
Develop a well thought out navigation work flow. By making your navigation flow, you are ensuring that it is more intuitive for the visitor, and that it will be easier for them to access various pages or features on the site. Include links wherever possible and double check that all of the menu links are working properly.
If possible, avoid Flash. Adobe has indicated that it will not be pursuing Flash in the future, but adhering to HTML5 standards. Therefore, search engines will not gather content information inside of Flash and Apple mobile devices, such as i Phone and i Pad do not support Flash, and people will not be able to view Flash on their i Pad or iPod devices. Thus, a large portion of your target audience will be eliminated by simply including the Flash element.

By following these 5 great website design tips, you are well on your way to creating a well organized, highly effective site, that is sure to achieve increased web traffic and click-throughs.

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Facebook and Skype Merger - What This Means for Business

admin — Thu, 14 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Not long after the big news of Microsoft purchasing Skype, the trending buzz is now about the integration of Skype into facebook which combines both social networking and video talking/conferencing into one social media platform. The merger of Skype into facebook has elicited more positive reactions from facebook users who now have the option to initiate video chatting and conferencing with their friends and loved ones from across the globe, making it more convenient than ever to stay in touch. On the other hand, the news also triggered reservations from Skype users, mostly small to mid size businesses, who fear that the merging will affect the Skype clientele on non-Microsoft platforms. However, Microsoft confirmed in a news release that they will still continue to invest in and support Skype clients on non-Microsoft platforms. Hence, Skype users have nothing to worry about after all.

In fact, the merger between facebook and Skype might even give way for more business opportunities and advertising tools for small to mid size businesses. Video conferencing has become beneficial for individuals who work from home, as well as small to mid size business who leverage on video communications as a good way to hold web meetings and connect with far-flung teams. It is not only cost-effective, but as well as more productive and convenient. Imagine attending a web conference in the convenience of your own house, or anywhere you might be at that time. With a laptop, smart phone, or Ipad and a Wi-Fi connection, you can get online and connect with your team on the fly.

The revolutionary video chatting application in facebook will allow facebook users to create an impromptu video chat in mere seconds. Most companies, from small to mid size, have already leveraged the power of social media like facebook to expand their reach and create an online presence. Most businesses have set up their own facebook pages and facebook groups to get more exposure and elicit more followers through online social interaction. With the new video conferencing application, this will even give way for companies to interact with their followers in a more personalized way to built trust and credibility. The same way it will be easier for “groups” to discuss and share ideas on relevant topics with the use of video conferencing. Businesses can also leveraged on video conferencing in facebook when launching a campaign or hosting an event. They can send out invitations to their followers to join them in a web conference for any product launch or promotional event. This is actually a creative way for business to reach out to their fan base or groups. A live, online video meeting will allow the participants to see their facial expression and body language, eliciting a more personalized approach. Video conferencing is also a good way to connect with business partners, suppliers and colleagues across different offices, and even overseas. It is also useful for businesses wanting to outsource staff from other countries and conducting interviews and web meetings. It is a FREE resource that any business can use to grow and expand their network of followers, secure business opportunities and outsource services from overseas, all in the same social media platform.

With the merging of Skype and Facebook, we can only expect for more revolutionary changes in social media in the future that will only give wings to businesses to grow their online presence in a whole new level.

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Five Reasons to Get An Ipad 2

admin — Sun, 10 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0000

After much thought, research and debate I have decided on which tablet I would get. The decision was not easy but here are my top five reasons why I choose to purchase an iPad 2.

1. I like the portability and size of this tablet. It was thin, the screen is a decent size and it just works well.

2. I like the fact that there are so many apps available that are free and also reasonable cost for those that are not free. Lots of choice.

3. As the project manager of a website design company, I always disliked packing the laptop, lugging it around as part of my luggage on trips, just to open it up and have it crash when showing a client their website. Now, I can conveniently showcase a website easily. We often do not develop in Flash so it is not a problem that the IPad does not view Flash applications. My strong preference would be that it does though.

4. I can connect through wifi using my iPhone 4 as a personal hotspot. My carrier allows for free tethering with my data plan. This is just awesome as I can be anywhere there is a cell phone signal and hook my iPad up to the Web. Apparently one can use the iPhone for tethering with Android tablets as well.

5. I went to our local Apple store (I do not have a Mac by the way) and they just had a new shipment in of six, but they were all spoken for. The sales lady said that she needed to phone all the customers to make sure they still wanted them as they were on order for a month. Turns out someone did not so I picked it up on impulse rather than taking time to compare.

The deciding factor? The ability to create a personal hotspot on my Iphone 4 and to link the Ipad 2 via wifi for free. This alone makes it worth it for me. I can't remember who told me my iPhone could only tether with an iPad but I should have done more due diligence and learned more about the other tablets, such as Asus Eee Pad Transformer, but really, I am loving my new iPad!

What's your reasons for choosing one over the other?

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Why Open Source Makes Sense

admin — Wed, 06 Jul 2011 00:00:00 +0000

The hubbub on the rise of open source web development programs are yet to be extinguished. The constant debate on whether open source makes sense is constantly being challenged by people of varying opinions. The clamor of each web program to claim a place in the virtual world has paved the way to the creation of open source web development program for the public and by the public. With the rigid competition in the market, people and organizations are frantic to develop websites. With the availability of open source applications that are becoming widely known and accepted, people now have the option to use them over propriety programs.

Ultimately, an open source program makes a lot of sense and more and more businesses in different spectrum use them because of the following reasons:

1. Open source is often less expensive than propriety software - While a large area of the virtual community comprises free software advocates, people still need to make a living and hence open source programs are not always synonymous to ‘free’. However, compared to propriety software, open source is a more affordable option when it comes to price.

2. Open source software has a great community for support. Due to the growing number of open source users and followers, most open source development programmers have established a solid support group that would assist the public for any customer service or technical issues that they might encounter with the program.

3. Access to the source code for modification of the software. Because of this open-editing feature, one will have the liberty to edit and change anything in the program, or even delete the web pages as well. It also provides a platform for clean and user-friendly programming and debugging.
There are many open source resources that are available in the web today. Some of the popular ones are LAMP ( Linus-os;Apache-web server), WYSIWYG (What you see is what you get) editing software and Drupal. Drupal is a professional content management system that will enable you to create professional websites and include open source codes templates or skins and many others. Everything in it can be utilized with a detailed customized option. A lot of social sites, online shops and online review sites are based on the foundation of open source development programs as well.

Taking advantage of the open source technologies will give you a creative and cost-effective experience in building your business online, especially when it comes to creating your business website. It will give you more flexibility as it can give you more customization options. With the growing popularity of open source technologies, a lot of developers and even large technology firms have grown interested in investing to the development of more open source programs. Hence, the future of the World Wide Web is expected to become more competitive and populated with various open source programs that will be continuously released in the virtual market for years to come.

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Things I like to do for Inspiration in Graphic Design

admin — Wed, 04 May 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Every work of art is a work of inspiration. Even the greatest artist of all times like Leonardo da Vinci gets some inspiration for their masterpieces. How much more for a graphic design artist like me who have continuous and repeated expectations from clients to achieve eye-popping and jaw-dropping graphic designs? Not to mention a deadline to beat. I admit, even a seasoned graphic designer like me can get stuck in the land of emptiness – the artist’s block. Every artist will somehow experience that phase at one point in their artistic existence. Lucky enough for me, I have already figured out the things that I like to do for inspiration in graphic design as to summon the creative juices back to me. I am not quite sure how ‘Leo’ (short for Leonardo da Vinci) would have done it in the past considering the scarcity of leisurely resources back then. Boy, I am just glad my artistic existence belongs to the 21st century.

Here are the things I like to do for inspiration:

Go on a vacation – It would be a sight for sore eyes to see something new such as scenery from a different culture. What could be a better way to inspire my imagination and senses than nature’s natural breathtaking beauty? Or it could also be man-made creations inspired by great artistic prowess.
Do something that I love which is therapeutic for me such as:
1. Spend a day riding my motorcycle and breathing in the fresh air - this clears my mind and allows me to talk out loud in my full face helmet without looking crazy.
2. Spend a day at the local Scandinavia spa - the outdoor hot tubs are fantastic and there is no sense of discrimination because I am a guy. I lost that stereotype the moment I first climbed into one of the outdoor hot baths during a downpour. As I never seem to really get away from running a business, it sure feels nice to think about web design outside of my office in the relaxing atmosphere that I am in.
3. Take my dog out for a run in one of the many trails in our area. This seems to get me away from the office and into the wilderness where I can see a bit more clearly amongst the wildlife in the forest.
Attend a graphic design seminar or workshop - it is amazing how much great talent is out there and to be inspired from talent that is above my own level of skill is quite humbling and inspirational. An artist like me could get inspiration from fellow artists as well whose talent are way above my category.
Look at some really great web sites. There are tons of websites that are listed in Google that showcase inspirational designs that I can get inspiration from to explore the vastness of my creativity and pave the way to creation of stunning works of art.

Sometimes, simply unwinding and detaching myself from my computer can give me a moment of serenity, where my mind is relax and at rest. Sometimes inspiration can come in those moments of stillness too. With all the hustle and bustle in my challenging job, a little inspiration is all it takes for me to answer the call of duty with a renewed vigor and creativity.

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How Web Design Can Make A Difference To Your Online Presence

admin — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Graphic design is an essential part of every website. The saying “first impression lasts” is true even in the virtual world. With thousands of other websites offering the same products and services that you have, you only have a few seconds to grab attention. Your web design will make all the difference in this situation. The World Wide Web has become the hub of the internet marketing multi-millionaires and even fortune 500 companies who are also taking advantage of the powerful influence of the internet. With the viral power of the internet, you would be amiss if you don’t have your own website. However, having a website is not enough to bring your business into a whole new level. Your website has to be user-friendly, interactive and appealing to your target audience. This is where you need the expertise of a graphic or web designer.

Your web design is extremely important especially if you are into online selling. The attractive showcasing of your products or services will heavily depend on your graphic design. Flash animation is also a growing popularity among websites. Incorporating flash animation to your sites will also create a huge impact to your online branding, especially when use for the attractive presentation of your products and services. Integrating e-commerce to your website is also vital when you are building your business online. With great graphic and web customization, you will surely be dominating your target market.

The Smart Phone Phenomenon

With the technological development in the information technology industry, the website needs to meet the requirements and level of expectations of the discriminating taste of the target audience. The growing trend of people accessing the internet through their mobile phones is increasing exponentially. The difference between the technical and structural aspect of a smart phone and a desktop pc or laptop should be taken into consideration when it comes to the graphic design of your website. If you want your website to be accessible in mobile phones as well, your web design should be compatible with the operating system and platform of the mobile phone.

There are also operating systems and platforms that are not compatible with adobe flash. This is especially the case with iphone and ipad. The apple products do not currently display built-in flash. However, the reason behind is not really technical but more on a disagreement between Apple and Adobe. Fortunately, the use of HTML5 and CSS3 will allow the user to use a new video tag for playing the video without using adobe flash. This is a good alternative solution for the issue of incompatibility with adobe flash.

The Touch Phenomenon

With the emergence of the ‘touch’ technology, more and more people are using touch screen for navigating the web than using the mouse or keyboard. The use of the same technology has already been made popular by the smart phones and pads. The graphic design and web design should be able to also adjust to the trend and allow facilitation of navigation through the use of touch screen.

With the many hubbubs in the world of information technology, you should be flexible enough to go with the various trends and adjust to any changes while at the same time turning them around to your best interest.

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