Our freebie for today is a simple login form, for your web app or CMS. So if you’re looking to change your login or simply make it more interesting, then fill your boots!

The icons are created using the Font Awesome Icon font, which must be installed before using this PSD. You can download the font at Font Awesome GitHub . The base text font is Open Sans which can be downloaded at  the Open Sans Website.

Read the rest of Simple Login Form.

1. Jetpack by WordPress.com

Jetpack is a plugin created by Automatic Inc, to add some of the default functionality of the hosted WordPress.com to a self hosted WordPress.org site. Some of jetpack’s features include adding a contact form to a site, a better commenting system, a mobile theme, sharing buttons and much more. So by using Jetpack you can add many common features of any website to your site quickly and easily.

Download Jetpack

2. W3 Total Cache

Now that google are now using page speed as a ranking factor, it more important than ever that your website is fast, and using a caching plugin can increasing the speed of your site. So how does a caching plug in work? WordPress is a dynamic system so it relies on querying a database to retrieve information to populate a page, a caching plugin , will save these queries locally and use them until the query changes. So instead of constantly querying the same information, it will use the existing information, so speeding up your site.

A plug-in like this will also minify, concatenate and compress resources such as css and javascript. So instead of requesting 10 css files on each page load it will only request one, thus making the page quicker to load. The plug-in will also compress the requested files, and reduce the file size, which will decrease load times and save bandwidth. This plugin will also allow the use of a CDN or content delivery network. A CDN works by mirroring your resources such as images, CSS and Javascript to a server location closer to the visitor, which will reduce lag and download time.  I managed to reduce the load time of my homepage from 6 seconds to around a second by the use of this plugin and targeted optimisation. This plugin has many benefits so why not try it on your site.

Download W3 Total Cache

3. Yoast SEO

Yoast SEO is one of the best WordPress SEO plugins around. This plugin has a huge amount of options and is used by many sites both large and small. You can optimise your SEO on a post or page basis, it will even generate your social media links allowing the correct images to show on your Facebook posts and display your profile image beside your Google+ link when searching. You can also generate an XML Site map for your site with this plugin.

Download Yoast SEO

4. Simple Image Sizes

One of the great features to WordPress is it’s ability to create multiple image sizes when adding a resource to a site, but most people think that you are limited to the 4 sizes that WordPress ships with as default. WordPress has the facility to create many image sizes by adding a few lines of code to your functions.php. Simple Images Sizes takes all of the guesswork by adjusting the image sizes by using a set of options. It can also regenerate your thumbnails if you decide that a different size of image is required at a future date. This plugin makes it simple to create multiple images sizes for you posts or pages.

Download Simple Image Sizes 

5. BackWPup

One of the most important rules I follow with every site, is to create regular backups. This makes it simple to restore your site should the worst happen , such as being hacked or a database crash. I have spent more hours than I care to remember restoring failed sites that have not been backed up, so it’s so important  to find a regular schedule and backup constantly.

BackWpUp makes it very easy to do this, with set of comprehensive but simple options. One important thing to remember is to save your backups in multiple locations, including a location that is separate to your site install. If a hacker gains access to your site, they may have also gained access to other folders on your hosting package. This plugin allows you to backup via ftp to another server, or to a service such as DropBox or Amazon s3 but to name a few. So you really have no excuse not to make a regular.

Download BackWPup

So I hope you enjoyed this list and feel free to add your own favourite plugins to the comments below, I love to try new and useful plugins.

Read the rest of 5 WordPress Plugins for Every Website.

When I am using Twitter or LinkedIn, I often hear complaints about non business related tweets being posted to LinkedIn.

I am a firm believer that if you run a small business that you should be personable and it’s always good to see a personal side to a service or business. This can often lead a person to a small business for the personal touch that is often missed by most large corporate organisations.

A good question to ask is at “At what point do my tweets become too personal?”

We all know LinkedIn as a business focused environment and if you have a large number of connections there can be a large amount of information to sift through on a regular basis. It can also be beneficial to keep your connected Twitter updates strictly business related and this can also create a more professional image to your business. On the other hand if a person wants to read the lighter side of your tweets, then it is very simple to follow you at Twitter.com.
So I thought I would give a little tutorial on how to selectively post your tweets on LinkedIn and show a technique that a few people never use or even know exists.

Step #1 – Login to LinkedIn

Lets start by logging in to your account, and you should be greeted with your updates. Go into you settings, by going to your name in the top right hand corner, and selecting settings from the drop down.

Step #2 – Navigate to Your Twitter settings

Then further down the next page select “profile”, then “Manage Your Twitter Settings”

Step #3 – Registering your Twitter Account

If this is the first time you have registered your Twitter with LinkedIn then you will be asked to add your account. If you have already verified your Twitter account with LinkedIn, you can skip this step.

Step #4 – Your Twitter Settings

When you click to add your account you will be sent to Twitter to verify your account and then be returned to LinkedIn. You will then be greeted with the following dialogue box.

This is a very important step which will allow you to selectively post your tweets to LinkedIn. If you check the box “Share only tweets that contain #in“, this will mean that any tweets that contain the hashtag “#in” is then posted to LinkedIn, and any tweets that do not contain this tag are excluded. If you leave this box unchecked then every tweet that you post is sent to LinkedIn. This gives you the power to post only the tweets that you want your contacts to see, and by having to add the hashtag,  this will make you think twice about posting that unwanted tweet to LinkedIn.

All done

In the meantime please feel free to look at the Blue Signal Design Facebook page.

Read the rest of How to post you’re tweets to LinkedIn.

Here is a quote from Wikipedia to explain:

A QR code (short for Quick Response) is a specific matrix barcode (or two-dimensional code), readable by dedicated QR barcode readers and camera phones. The code consists of black modules arranged in a square pattern on a white background. The information encoded can be text, URL or other data.

So what does this mean in plain English? A QR code is a type of barcode that can store information and then be scanned by a mobile phone or a barcode reader. They started out in manufacturing to help track parts or items within a factory environment. Even though they are quite new to us in the UK, they have been in use for over 10 years in Japan. QR codes have seen a resurgence in the last couple of years mainly due to the boom in smartphones. There are over 50 dedicated iOS applications and the Android operating system has a system default application that can read these codes.

Why should this interest me and my business?

QR codes have increased in their usage as a marketing tool. They can be seen on advertising, newspapers, posters, and other forms of print media. The benefit of these codes is that they can store a website address which can be tracked, so it is simple to discover the number of visits generated and can gauge the level of marketing activity for a particular advertisement.

A QR code is also useful when space is at a premium on a poster or in a place where it could be difficult to note a Website Address such as train station or bus stop. The code is easy to scan and then stored on a mobile phone for later use, using the right application. If you have ever been in a situation where your grabbing for a pen, then this is a simple alternative! Just grab your phone, scan and store for later!. The great benefit is that they are free to create, and this also creates a shortened URL.

Where can I use a QR code?

Here are a few real world examples of QR codes.

On your business card or your print based advertising
Use them as a link to specific instructions, or certain parts of an online manual
Use them on a brochure or restaurant menu to give access to a website
Put them on a printed invoice, to enable quick access to a payment gateway

The list is endless, but they do have useful possibilities in the right context.

How do I generate a QR code?

There are countless number of applications out there that can generate these codes, but the simplest way I have found is to use a URL shortener. If you visit sites such as Bit.ly or goo.gl to shorten your links then a QR code is generated automatically by this service. A downloadable image is also available and these services offer useful stats on clicks, which could be used as measure of targeted advertising.

Misuse of QR Codes

Recently due to the rise in the use of these codes, I have seen them used more and more in the incorrect context. One example of this is on webpages, I have seen a QR code used instead of Contact Information on websites. If you consider the amount of time it takes, to take out a smartphone, open a QR reader application then save it to your phone, it would be far simpler to add a vCard entry to your website which allows the information, to be easily read by most address book applications on Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Using a QR code can be beneficial in the right context, but think twice about their usage. At the end of the day, they are free to use and very simple to implement, so why not try them out.

Read the rest of QR Codes? What are they and what do they do?.

Defining the homepage.

When a visitor first discovers a website, they are often guided to the homepage, whether it be through Google, Twitter or Facebook. There are various estimates about the amount of time it takes to engage a visitor when viewing a site, but this will depend on the type of visitor and what they are looking for. If a visitor has to go looking for what you do or what you’re website sells, then you are doing this wrong.

Try to sell what you do?

So what do I mean? If you sell a service or trade then the first thing a user should see is examples of your work. If you’re a photographer then you should have you’re most popular images large and prominent on the homepage, if you work as a builder, then take photos of your completed work and display it on the homepage in a prominent place. Let you’re work do the talking.

The most common example of this technique can be found on photography websites. An great example of this can be found on image sharing site Flickr.

I am often wowed by a great photograph of a model or a cute photo of an animal if you do portraits. Another thing to consider, make sure that this image has a click-able link to the gallery page. This will create a natural path to your gallery and if your image page has a link to the next photo in your set, this provides the perfect progression to navigate your image gallery with ease. If you let you’re visitors go out and search for your gallery then this may cause frustration, if this cannot be easily found.

Keep you’re text clear and to the point.

Another example is a website with large blocks of text. When a visitor or a user, is greeted with a large block of text they will quickly skim over the text to find certain words that are right to them. An example, could be a visitor who is looking for an extension to their house. They will skim the text looking for words relevant to them and this will quickly engage them. Try to keep you’re text on you homepage short and to the point. Make use of prominent keywords in your headings and place emphasis on links within your text.

Always have your services prominent and make sure that they stand out. Try to visualize how you would navigate the site and translate this to how your visitors would navigate.

Defining the call to action.

When planning a website try to imagine what you want the prospective visitor to discover when navigating your site. This is where the call to action comes into play. You may be thinking “What is a call to action?”

A call to action is a request or a direction for a user to carry out an action or “Do Something”.

So what does this mean for my website?

Try to set clear goals for your users. You may have a form that a visitor can use to request a quote for your services, the link for this could be displayed in a prominent place or could be contained in a bright, vivid colour, which will make the link stand out from the rest of the page. The user will be drawn to the difference in the page, and using the correct text could encourage a click through to your quote form.

Think about the text for the link? Using the words “Get a quote now” could be deemed as pushy or aggressive, where “Hire Us” could be friendly and inviting.

A last point to end, remember that you’re homepage is your virtual shop window, and try to make this as inviting as possible. Try to imagine what you’re visitors may be looking for when entering you’re site, you could even write these down.

Remember! Don’t forget to sell yourself!

Read the rest of Why you’re homepage should scream what you do!.

I have recently read, that some can build the same website as their rivals but at a lower price and this state of affairs has left me disheartened about the quality level of these sites, often built to fit a reduced budget. I have often questioned whether I should keep up a high quality when I build a website and often refuse to lower my standards just to meet a certain cost. I often feel that lowering the quality often hurts the user experience when browsing a site.
Here’s the scenario, you’re a small business and money is tight. You take the usual steps and contact a few web design agencies or freelancers, getting a few quotes in the process. Each quote offers a 5 page website with the usual additions such as hosting, domain name, and integration into a content management system. You look carefully at all the quotes, and narrow it down to 2 quotes that fit your requirements. Now here comes the difficult decision, the first quote is priced at £400 for the package, the second priced at £700. You then think “I’ll take the lower quote and save a few quid!” Just take a moment to think why is there such a different in price.

Having a poorly designed site can turn users away and can affect the amount of traffic that you’re site receives. Here are a couple of reasons why a poorly designed site can affect your business :-

Usability

The way that a user interacts with your site can be very important to your business. If a site is well designed and easy to use, this will encourage a visitor to return to your site at regular intervals. Every site should a clear navigational structure, so not to confuse the user on how navigate the site. If the navigation is not correctly implemented, then this can often frustrate the user and could lead to a refusal to visit your site again.

I recently came across an example of this recently, where a site designed completely using Adobe Flash (if you’re unfamiliar with Adobe Flash, then think of some of the games that are offered through sites such as Facebook or MiniClip) . When I viewed this site on a desktop browser the site was all singing, all dancing with full size images, and the main navigation was part of the Flash image. The problem I faced when I first found the site, was that I was using an iPhone which is well known for not supporting this technology. On entering the site I was greeted with a few links of introductory text and a download link to the flash plugin. I could not view any products, I could not see any contact information which made the site defunct to me. So the moral is that you can have the grandest, all singing, all dancing site in the world but if a user can’t see it or interact with it, its pretty useless.

You could be fooled into thinking that I don’t really need to support Flash. In a recent announcement it was noted, that Apple has sold over 250 Million iOS devices since the first iPhone, so you could have the potential to exclude 250 Million users by following this choice of design. You also have to consider that a desktop user may have disabled Flash due to security concerns, some system administrators may choose to not allow Flash on their systems and that users may have not updated their flash plugin for a very long time, which could be excluding your site from them.

Just remember, if they can’t see an item, they won’t buy, and may go elsewhere, so you could be losing sales. So if you do choose to use a technology like Flash then you need to consider this choice, for all visitors of your site and always have a fallback if this technology is not available. The moral of the story is, make a site functional before you make it pretty.

Trustworthiness

If you decide to get a site built by an inexperienced designer, and the site is poorly designed you could be losing the trust of your visitors. As we have seen in the news over the last 12 months, data security on the web has become a big issue with some major companies being compromised and with the rise or Internet Scams/Phishing. So it is more important than ever, that a site looks trustworthy. A modern well designed site can raise the profile of your business, and using images that portray the use of secure encrypted connections can help install trust in a visitor. You will often find that most scam or phishing sites are very poorly designed, can often contain broken images and spelling mistakes. This is due to these sites being built quickly and by inexperienced people out to make a quick buck.

So by paying a low price for a site, can often mean that a site is often rushed, less time will be taken on refining the site and often uses an inferior product to keep the costs low. A site that costs £200 pounds to build at £30 per hour is obviously going to have less time than a site that costs £500 at the same hourly rate. This extra time often includes browser testing, copy refinement and user/accessibility improvement, which could often be overlooked as the budget is simply not there.

As is the case with many items that are purchased, it is often worth spending a little extra to get a better quality product and to help enhance the trust in a site. If you do this, the you could save expensive redesign costs later down the line. A website should be treated as a long-term investment that is constantly updated and improved. As the old saying goes ” You get out what you put in”

On a final note take a moment to think, you may be getting a bargain now, but it could cost you a lot more over the life of you’re website.

Read the rest of Affordable Websites – Are they hurting your business?.

“I can save money by doing it myself!”

So many new start up businesses build a site with great intentions then are often dismayed as why the site doesn’t make the necessary returns expected. Here are a few reasons why you should hire a web designer.

1. Time

A good quality website can often on average 20 hours to build, and countless hours to maintain. This time is often taken away from activities normally spent developing your business and performing duties such as selling goods, speaking to customers and other day to day activities. I ask the question, can you afford to lose one or two days sales while you are busy building your site? If you hire a web designer to build and maintain your site, you could be speaking to your customers and putting money in the bank while the designer is working in the background.

2. Cost

You may be thinking that building a site yourself could save you money, but think about it another way and factor in your hourly rate for example?

If your hourly rate is £30 per hour and it takes you 2 days to build your site at 7 hours per day that’s £420. Also think of the amount of time to maintain the site and add new content for maybe 2 hours a week that’s another £60 pounds a week. Lets face it can you afford to lose £480?

Here at Blue Signal Design, we can design and build a custom, bespoke site for as little as £395. We can also maintain your site for as little as £30 a month. So why not leave the hard work to us and spend the time doing what you know best, promoting your business.

3. Expertise and Knowledge

Let me ask you a question? Would you employ a builder to build your house or a plumber to fix your plumbing? The answer is simple, you would hire an expert as they have the required knowledge and expertise to do the best job possible. The same goes with building a website, yes it may be simple to build a website using an online editor, but you need to ask a few important questions. Will it be listed on Google, will it conform to accessibility guidelines, will it look the best on every computer or to every visitor? These are some of the questions that you need to ask yourself when developing a website.

There are other factors such as website speed, image/code licensing, and Search Engine Optimisation to consider. If you decide to hire us to build your website you will be guided through the whole process and every question will be answered no matter how trivial.

Just a few things to ponder, What would happen to your site should an online service go out of business or be discontinued by a company? Do you know how to move your site to another provider? Do you make regular backups of your site and content if the service goes down?

We offer maintenance packages for as little as £30 pounds a month dependent on the level of service provided. These packages include a full monthly backup of your site, which can be sent to you to keep or stored in secure location of your choice. Your site can be restored to a new provider quickly should any problems arise. Just a little peace of mind should the worst happen.

I’ll leave you with something to think about?

Is it as simple as you thought to build your own website?

Read the rest of Why should I hire a web designer?.

Image courtesy of Svilen Milev http://efffective.com

A blog can offer the perfect engagement , allowing you to communicate with your customers on an informal basis. You could write about any new features or services that you are thinking of introducing, and ask for feedback which will allow you to gauge if a service is worthwhile or cost-effective to introduce. This could also provide a source of marketing for the next version of your product or software, and could offer a great deal of buzz around a product. If you allow comments on your blog this allows your customers to comment on your post in a controlled and easy to manage environment. Many users may be happier to post a comment rather than give feedback by email. You could introduce items such as a like button or provide a way to pre-order your product, which is a good way to gauge popularity of a product.

Knowledge and expertise

If you are passionate about a service or product then it may be beneficial to write about the area of work that you provide, this could attract visitors to you’re site that are interested in your products.  If you are knowledgeable about the service you offer this will further enhance the trust that a customer will have in you. We all have at least one person that we know that has a good knowledge in a certain field, so why not become that person. Don’t be put off by thinking that nobody will be interested in what you have to say but be open to share your knowledge and expertise.

Search Engine Optimisation

There is a great deal of discussion about Search Engine Optimisation around the web, but the general consensus is that good up to date content can improve your ranking in search engines such as Google or Bing. By choosing to write a blog post on a weekly basis, this can serve the up to date content that a search engine requires, and can generate more results when searching for a particular term. When writing a blog post try to pick a subject that is very close to the service you provide and by using natural keywords that are related to your subject then this could elevate you up the search rankings. If you write a blog that becomes useful or popular then users will link to this on their own blogs, which in turn could offer more places for your content to show in a search engine. A recent update to Google has shown that Social Networking is going to take a bigger role in search engine ranking, so by writing a useful blog post could generate a great interest when posted to Twitter or Facebook and could also drive traffic to your website which could result in greater sales or demand for your products.

Say a little more.

Have you ever decided to share some thoughts on Twitter and then realised that 140 characters is not enough? Then a blog is a perfect place to share this information, where you are not limited by a number of characters.  When writing a blog post you can write a long detailed post and illustrate it using images or diagrams, that can communicate a better message than you could on Twitter. Also when blogging it allows you to use better language instead of shortened words to fit the space allocated, it also allows you to proofread what you have written, and maybe think twice about that comment you were about to post.

Building a following.

When you decide to blog on a regular basis, then readers will check back at regular intervals to see what new content you have posted. If you engage them with a earlier blog post then they will definitely return to check your next post. A good idea is to offer a good way for somebody to subscribe to your blog, this can be done via Twitter or RSS.  If a user reads a blog post that they find useful then they may recommend your post to a friend so thus building up a following.

So I hope these reasons inspire you to start writing your own posts, please let me know how you get on in the comments, it’s a simple easy way to increase you business and once setup it can be very low-cost to run and it’s also a lot of fun. Enjoy!

Read the rest of 5 reasons why you should have a company blog.

You assess your business and you see your competitors with shiny new websites, and you think to yourself “I need a website”. When thinking about a website for your business, there are few factors to consider? Why do I need a website, what will the website provide for my business, will it generate new business or sales, and how much will it cost?

Many businesses decide to commission a website, because they feel that they have to match the competition without thinking about the reasons why a website would be beneficial for their business. Yes a website could generate new leads or sales, and could earn the business a great deal of extra revenue, but you need to consider all the details before investing the time and resources into a website. By deciding what you want from a website, could mean a smaller cash injection in the initial development and less time being wasted on sections of a site that are unsustainable, profitable, difficult to maintain or serve no meaningful purpose.

So before you decide to commission a project, think about why you need a website and what features/sections your website should have? Also consider your target audience and users. If you consider these factors then this will enable you to make the decisions before any money is spent.

A couple of examples to consider:-

Example #1

Your product or business may be targeted to users in a younger age demographic, so it could be beneficial to build a website that is optimized for a mobile device such as the iPhone or iPad. This group of users may do more browsing on the move which means the site will simpler to use. A recent press release stated that the high street store Debenhams generated 1 million pounds worth of sales through it’s dedicated iPhone application. So it’s worth considering other outlets when designing a website.

Example #2

Your business may serve a less technical audience, so the way that your website is designed could have harmful effect on this. A good example could be a computer help site, which may offer a more user friendly design and some helpful tips on how to browse the site. As the user may be looking for help using a computer, it can assumed that a they need some help navigating the site. You may offer an option for more advanced users to turn off this feature as they become more accustomed to the site. So by considering your user demographic can influence the way a site is designed.

So with this information, you should be better equipped to decide what you want from your website, and be able to ask more questions of your web designer when your site is built. On a last note, think about what you need and want from your site?

Read the rest of What do you want from a website?.

This will involve editing your functions.php file within a code editor. Lets get started.

1. Enable post thumbnails in WordPress

First we need to tell WordPress to use post thumbnails, as this is not enabled by default. You can enable post thumbnails using the following code.

add_theme_support( 'post-thumbnails' );

2. Add new image sizes.

WordPress creates three different sized images by default.This includes thumbnail, medium and large image sizes which can be changed by going to Settings > Media and adjusting width/height for the corresponding sized image. Although this is a great feature these sizes can be constrictive in your theme, and can create images that are larger than the container in which its held. This can often lead to a messy looking site.

The following code is added to the functions.php file for each image size you wish to create and is duplicated for each subsequent image.

add_image_size( $name, $width, $height, $crop );

Lets explain the attributes.

The name attribute defines the name of the thumbnail used by WordPress, this does not amend the name of the uploaded image. The significance of this name will become clear later in this tutorial. Be sure to avoid the following names when using this code, as these are the names used to define the default image sizes in WordPress.

thumb, thumbnail, medium, large, post-thumbnail

The width/height attributes are self explanatory and are set in pixels.

The crop attribute is used to define how the image is cropped. If this is set to false the image will be proprtionally cropped using the largest attribute of the height/width settings. If this is set to true this will create an image the exact size depending on the width and height set. You may lose some part of the image using this setting so this should be tested before use.

Here is an example of this code with the attrubutes completed, which will create an image size of 210px x 140px.

add_image_size('thumbnail-210px', 210, 140, true);

3. Add the image to a template file.

So we have now told WordPress to create the new image size, now we need to place it in our template file so that it will show on your site. Open up the corresponding file for where you want to place the image and add the following code.

<!--?php if ( has_post_thumbnail() ) { 	the_post_thumbnail('thumbnail-210px'); } ?-->

The first line checks if a post thumbnail has been set using the feature image on the post screen. If you choose not to set a thumbnail then this will not produce an error.

The second line displays the thumbnail using the name specified earlier using the name attribute within the quotations.

You know need to define the image on the post by using the featured image tab in the write post section of WordPress.

One last point to remember, is that WordPress will generate these additional images on upload only so if you have existing images when adding this code, you will need to regenerate these images using a plugin such as Regenerate thumbnails or Simple Image Sizes Plugin. Also try not to use too many diffrent sized images as this may cause errors when uploading the image. WordPress has to create each sized image on upload and your hosting setup may not be able to manage this creation. This will also take additional disk space on your server.

I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and be sure to leave a comment below.

Read the rest of How to create multiple image sizes in WordPress?.