SEO Web Design Blog: Search engine optimization, web design, and webmaster tips

I’m placing these links here primarily for my own usage; they will disappear from my admin console soon.

“You ALWAYS need to be in the know when it comes to SEO!“

SEO Ultimate WordPress Plugin

The search engine optimization articles below are from SEO Design Solutions, the company behind the SEO Ultimate plugin that I use. If you want an ultimate plugin for SEO, this one is truly superior.

• SEO Keyword Research: Educational vs. Commercial Queries August 31, 2010
  There are two types of people online (1) people looking for something with the intent to purchase or (2) people perusing the web searching for information (entertainment, social or otherwise). The key to SEO is keyword research and knowing which category of consumer your website appeals to and how to bridge the gap from educational […]
• Google Website Analysis: Live Site Review August 27, 2010
  Watch over my shoulder as I perform a live site review touching on topics such as shingle analysis, visual page segmentation, link flow, server side includes, keyword prominence, keyword proximity, link flow and more – in this 10 minute walk-through behind the eyes of an SEO optimizing a website for optimal performance in Google. Shameless […]
• Using The Google Wonder Wheel August 25, 2010
  Several months ago Google introduced a new feature to their search results called the Wonder Wheel. SEO Design Solutions provided a great post on how to use the Wonder Wheel to improve link building with the use of keyword clusters. This tutorial provides insight in how to use the Wonder Wheel to improve your site’s […]

OK, so you gotta website up for your company/products/services. That’s good, you’re in with the shakers and movers.

But are you aware that that’s not enough??

Today’s technology is ever-advancing, and now internet traffic is received from a high percentage of mobile users. According to a report published by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, Mobile Access 2010, in the past year 38 percent of U.S. cell phone users accessed the internet from their phones.

So what does this mean to you? Please excuse the design of this widget – best I could do with what they have!!

Mary Meeker of Morgan Stanley, predicts that the mobile industry will soon overtake desktop usage (I imagine she includes laptop). So whad-a-ya gonna do? What CAN you do? Continue reading “Make Your Website Mobile Friendly” »

A website is more than just text and media. There’s a process involved in order to publish your web pages. Basically, you need a domain name registered, and a website host to serve your files on the internet.

Domain Names

Website domains are purchased through a domain registrar on a yearly basis, and pricing can go from $12/year to over $35/year. Here’s a few facts about domain names and registration:

• The name you choose should be selected carefully to represent your product or your company brand.
• In choosing a domain extension, the dot-com is the most highly recognized, but dot-org and dot-net are also highly regarded by search engines. Dot-biz and dot-info extensions in my opinion, shouldn’t be considered.
• For optimal search engine recognition, you should purchase and renew your domain for at lease two years.
• Having multiple domains isn’t usually necessary; the quality of your content is most important. But  if you want to have multiple domains, country specific domains are great to have, such as dot-us, dot-ca, and dot-fr.

Website Hosting

For small companies, shared hosting is the best choice, as it’s economical, and managed. Shared hosting companies place several websites on one server. You should expect to pay under $15/month for this. Once a company develops beyond the capacities of shared hosting, virtual private servers and dedicated servers are a couple of choices to go with, but there’s a lot you’ll need know before this decision is made.

Deciding factors on choosing a website hosting company

There are many deciding factors that go into choosing who to host your website with. Although the most highly recommended may be satisfactory, you should be aware of these crucial factors.

1. The server uptime should be 99.99%.
2. The bandwidth (ability to serve), and the web space (file storage capacity) should be able to handle more than you require, and you should be able to upgrade or downgrade without trouble.
3. Customer service and response time is very important and can be crucial. With more personal and knowledgeable providers, your website problems can be more easily resolved.
4. There are two basic server platforms to choose from: Windows and Linux. The platform you choose has to match with your server side requirements and hardware. The most popular is Linux, as it uses the free open source PHP language.
5. Over-crowding servers. Sometimes hosting providers will try to cut costs by over-crowding their servers with too many websites. This can lead to slow loading web pages.
6. Miscellaneous considerations: easy to configure forms for email, web statistics, error logs and reporting supports, support forums, and different web mail services.

The first web design job I had, while I was still in school for web developer, was for a Filipino woman, who owns a high end furniture store in my home town. Being my first job, I quoted her a price at about half of what it should be. But it was fine for me, as I needed to get a portfolio built.

Besides making the design, she had me take pictures of her furniture, which needed modifications in Photoshop to look right. I should have charged extra for that (now I do), so now I was making even less. Getting a payment was also time consuming. I had to remind her several times before she’d pay me, and she always wanted me to come to her store to receive the check, of which wasn’t ready. Then to top it off, I would have to wait as she tended to her customers. This usually took half an hour to an hour.

And her method of giving me the content was also a time buster. I would have to sit there at her store as she wrote up her content – with pen & paper, which obviously needed to be converted to a word document. I let her do that three times. She also had me get item descriptions and images from her supplier’s websites, permissions granted. End result: poshhomedesigns.com. There was other pages, but the navigation was removed as they never got finished.

That was all back in latter 2006. Flying forward to August 2009, I get a call from Jennifer. She wants to finish the store! I didn’t have any jobs going, so I contracted to redesign her website using this osCommerce template, saving her some bucks. This time I was aware, and she wasn’t able to take advantage of me – except for the initial consultation that I do for free, anyway. If I had to visit her at her store, she got charged for that.

We modified the website template and uploaded to her server, and now the catalog had to be populated. I had no way of knowing how much time it would take, so we agreed to an hourly rate. But of course, she had disagreements when the bill came later. After a few uncomfortable payment meetings, and having Jennifer do some catalog populating herself, she finally realized how much was involved, and and our working relationship advanced to satisfactory.

So I did some more additions, and correcting her mistakes, and sent her another invoice – twice. Finally, after several reminders and two months later, I received payment. Damn, I could have really used that little bit of change 30 days prior! Meeting again at her shop to receive the check, I told her that our relationship wasn’t worth it for me and she would have to get someone else. And today as I write this, the door that opens her eCommerce store is still closed. But you can see it here.

First, you need to decide what type of display you’re looking for.

Do you want …

• to place your slideshow inside of your content?
• to devote an entire page to pictures?
• a “slider” for just a few images that will link to other pages in your website?

Next, you need to decide how you want them displayed.

Do you want …

• thumbnails, image numbers, or text links?
• a short image description?
• a lengthy description with links?
• a boxed type of display that will have the first image loaded?
• a thumbnail display with a pop-up full size image?
• the thumbnails running horizontally or vertically?
• multiple galleries?

Then there’s the installation and editing of your images.

This can be done several ways:

1. Content management: You have an editor that takes care of all the coding. All you need to do is choose images from your files, and set a few variables. These may not have all the features as the following types.
2. Image storage API scripts: using images stored at public websites such as Flickr, Picasa, and PhotoBucket. These will update when you make changes to albums at the website.
3. Gallery plugins for WordPress: some are easy to use, others require coding.
4. XML files: These are relatively simple, and even a novice can edit these. You simply open up the xml file with notepad, go to the file path you want to change, and insert a new path/file name. You can also copy the code, paste it where you want to insert a new image, and change the path/file name. Save the file, and upload it to your server.
5. JavaScript and HTML: You’ll need to know where and how to place the coding and how to load it to your server. You may be able to change images for this if your image files are sequentially named – just change the file name, and upload it to your server.

Now you need to know where to get the right photo gallery.

Continue reading “Selecting the Right Photo Gallery – Slideshow” »

Love it when I get to do artsy websites!!

Look at it this way, if you were a website designer, what would you rather do:

1. A boring website for a dentist, a lawyer, or a historian
2. A creative website for a band, an artist, or a designer

Time’s up!
If you choose #1, you must send me 100 Brownie Points. If you choose #2, GOOD DECISION … 5 stars in your crown!

Darius Cordell Inc: New Website

Darius Cordell Inc: Current Website

This article sparked my interest today, from RediceDesigns.com, What a Client Must Include in a Design Agreement

I’m always trying to better myself and my services, so I thought I’d see just what is expected in a web design contract. Maybe I wasn’t including some things. Turns out, I do include all they talk about here – cool! Be sure your designer includes all of these – it’s your duty to yourself.

Below is the outline from their post:

Must #1 – The Designer’s Services…detailed

The designer should breakdown what service you are receiving, not summarize it.

Must #2 – Design Rates or Fees

The designer should specifically explain their rates for the project and fees.

Must #3 – Cost Breakdown

Along with a explanation of the fees and hourly rates, you should know the total estimated cost.

Must #4 Ownership of Work

You should have a clear explanation of when and what is yours when the design job is complete.

Must #5 Post-Project Duties

The designer must specify what his/her job entails after the design has been complete, if any.

Some Additional Agreement Tips – view this post.

Visit Albert Hallado’s blog.