Category Archives: Website Design

A section dedicated to discussions about website design.

The Elements of Web Design by Malcom Chakery

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Your website is an extension of your company. Or, in some cases, it may be the primary location of your company. So, as the virtual representation of your business it is vital that your website be all it can be in order to build a successful business. So, if you are designing your own website, it is important that the final product contain 4 essential elements, so let’s get started.

  1. Balance- A webpage should have visual interest. From colors and shapes to the sizes of your graphics and fonts, your website should encourage guests to interact without being distracting. This best accomplished by having a balanced appearance. You may chose a symmetrical  plan in which elements of your site are evenly spaced (e.g. a graphic on the left with text on the right) or perhaps you will opt for an asymmetrical plan in which unlike items of equal weight are used.  As you design your webpage, try several design layouts to find the one that encourages guests to stay.
  2. Repetition- Sometimes referred to as rhythm, repetition is the use of a pattern that gives a consistency to your site. This rhythm makes it easier for your customers to understand. Having sudden changes in the patterns, size or spacing will create an exciting rhythm but may not impart the feeling you want for your company. Keep in mind the features of Gestalt-proximity, similarity, continuance, closure uniform correctness and 1+1=3 effects.
  3. Emphasis- Often called dominance or the focal point, this is the element that lets people know who you are. Some ways it can be accomplished are through semantic markup, changing font sizes or images, the use of bold black type for headings, contrasting colors, putting important info in a text box or written on a curve or by using an unusual font for the most vital information.
  4. Proximity or Unity- Be sure elements are placed in such a way that they belong together. Use visual cues to let readers know an article is a unit-item near each other are related; those far apart are not. Unity can be established by consistent fonts, repetition of shapes, color or texture and thematic visuals of similar colors, sizes or shapes.

Using the principles is a must for having a website design that attracts and retains guest to your site. Each of these elements work together to create a site that is sure to encourage guests to spend some time getting to know you.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of website design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.comor www.chakeryseo.com.

 

Hide or Seek: 7 Steps to Ensuring People Find You On The Web

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Having a website is one of the most important things you can do for your business, This is because it allows you tell people everywhere what you do, where you are and who you are. However, a website is only good if people can find it. So, how can you ensure your website is found and that it does not require an elaborate game of Internet Hide and Seek? Here are 7 Google approved guidelines as shared in Web Designer magazine.

  1. Provide quality content and services so that PageRank represents good quality sites linking to you. Remember, PR analyzes how many human generated links connect to your site.
  2. Actively promote your site through social media, non-competitive sites and link bait so that you are actively letting people know about your website.
  3. Be sure you have page titles that are interesting and accurate. They should have a title tag that tells both users and the Google search engine what each page is about.
  4. Make sure your Metatag descriptions show a clear summary of what the page is about so Google will be better able to rank it.
  5. Have a domain name and page URLS that are structured to convey content information easily.
  6. Have an HTML sitemap on your website and use an XML sitemap file so users and Google can find all the pages of your site.
  7. Make sure that Google is aware of your mobile sites, as soon as you have them.

Don’t play Hide and Seek with your website. If your site is difficult to find (or navigate once it is found), then your potential clients will soon become someone else’s customers. Use these 7 principles to make sure your site is “it”.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.comor www.chakeryseo.com.

 

 

Time to Make the Doughnuts: Dunkin’ Donuts Goes Local

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For several years, Dunkin’ Donuts had a rather generic website that served as the go to place for all information on Dunkin’ Donuts. And while the site had great information about Dunkin’ Donuts  from a national viewpoint, there was little information regarding the local shops. However, not too long ago this lack of local focus changed.

The new site was inspired by feedback from Facebook fans who wanted to know more about what is going on at their local Dunkin’ Donuts store. The result is that Dunkin’ Donuts redesigned their site to meet this interest and made it available via Google Local to both the standard PC and their mobile devices. To learn what is happening at your local store, simply enter in your zip code or use the GPS function on your smartphone. This local feature also allows you to keep up with store openings, hours and ultimately, special promotions.

In addition, Dunkin’ Donuts has also added a blog and is streaming content from feeds on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. To make Dunkin Donuts more appealing to the health conscious consumer, the company has also added an “eating smart” menu along with an assortment of iced coffees around the holidays.

Dunkin Donut’s move to being a Google Local site is one that many businesses are making. After all, when your business is listed on Google Local you have an even larger customer base resulting in more consumer awareness and ultimately higher revenue. If you are interested in joining Dunkin Donuts and many other businesses by having a customized Goggle Local site, be sure to talk to the professionals at Chakery Design. We will be glad to talk to you and help you determine how to make the most of a Google Local site for your company.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

If it’s not Broken-Don’t Fix it! Does Your Website have Findability?

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Have you ever decided that your webpage needed to updated/upgraded? Maybe you feel like you have been looking at the same graphics, colors, blog posts, etc. for months and it’s time for a change. Perhaps, you have been getting numerous site visits and sales are up, so you decide that if you make some changes this increase in revenue would be even higher.

Before, you call the website designer consider this: Does the website look old and boring because you look at it every day or do you really feel that some upgrades are  a must? Remember, while you may think that the site lacks something it may simply be because you see it all the time.

However, if you look at your website and feel it needs to be improved or have more Findability, then take some time to note what elements of your site are working well, keeping in mind the following:

Take emotions out of the equation! When it comes to evaluating your website, be sure you look at “Just the facts.”  Marketing guru Orvel Ray Wilson says, “Just about the time you are ready to throw up when you use your brand one more time, that is when your audience starts remembering and connecting to it.” If what you are doing is working and attracting customers, then it might be best to leave it alone!

When determining if a change to your webpage is necessary, don’t overlook the tools at your disposal. Run your site through tools such as Sitetuners.com’s Tuning Engine, the Google’s Website Optimizer or their Analytics tool and see how your site ranks. If everything is high, then leave your site alone. However, if there are a number of bounce-backs, a lessening of social media traffic, a decrease in time spent on site, then change may be in order.

If change is needed, create the new version of your homepage while saving a copy of the old one.  Put the new one in active rotation and do a split test. Use analytics to see which page gives you more desirable results. Once the data shows which page is more effective make any other changes based on the information gleaned.

Not every website needs to be updated-especially if all is going well. You want your website to have Findability and if changes will not improve this, then don’t fix what isn’t broken.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com orwww.chakeryseo.com.

 

 

Dealing with Disaster: When Your Website Gets Fired On

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When it comes to show business, many would tell you that there is “no such thing, as bad media attention” because publicity is a good thing. However, in the world of the Internet, this is not always the case. Thanks to sites such as Yelp, RipOffReport.com and others, dissatisfied consumers, or perhaps former employees, are able to blast your business from the privacy of their homes. Before you know it, your business website may be at the top of a search list—just not for the reasons you would desire.

If this has happened to you, then you are likely looking for ways to overcome the problem. If you have not needed to deal with being blacklisted online, then count your blessings and file the following information away in case you should have to deal with a disgruntled former employee/customer later on.

  1. If you have not already done this in building your brand, go to sites such as Yelp, Google Local, City Search and others and identify yourself as the official business owner. Be sure that the company profile, policies and resolution records are up to date. If possible, link to your BBB ranking or RatePoint status.
  2. Be sure your profiles are current and that you have used keywords for your site in them. these keywords should be a part of your Title, Company Description and other elements listed.
  3. Reach out to loyal customers, explain the situation and ask if they will help you by posting reviews on Yelp or  Places.Google.com . You may even want to offer them a small gift or gift card in return for their support. You could even add a comment to your voice mail that says something like, “Post a review online and get a gift. Thanks for allowing us to serve you!”
  4. Use social media sites to promote your product and to track what people are saying about it on Facebook, Twitter and others. There are many tools available to help you keep up with what is being said about your company.

As you begin to recapture your audience, you will soon find your company website ranking back where you were before the damage. In fact, it may even surpass its previous ranking, as now there have been so many additional reviews and comments left online.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

 

Do You Know the Code?

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If you have paid much attention to packages, magazines and even billboards these days, chances are you have seen a few QR codes. The QR code, standing for quick response, is a square shaped black and white symbol that in many ways is not much more than a kicked up barcode. However, thanks to their design, they can do more than simply identify what and how much and item is.

A QR code, unlike a barcode, can be used to encode information in a 2-dimensional space that can be read both horizontally and vertically in a tiny grid of squares. This difference offers a great deal of potential to anyone looking to market their business using a more advanced technology. Some of the ways you can a QR code are:

  • Contact info for an individual or company
  • Phone numbers that are embedded can be dialed automatically
  • URLs are immediately connected
  • View a calendar event with full details
  • Coupons
  • Sign-up forms
  • GPS/physical address
  • Product information
  • Customer Support information

This information is accessed when consumers use their mobile phone to decode the QRs. This ease of access makes the QR code one of the most beneficial tools available for promoting a business. But even better than the multiple uses of a QR code is that it is free.  If you are considering a QR code for your business, then you can check sites like:

Once you have created a QR code for your business or event, then you will be able to include it on items such as invoices, event tickets, assorted signage, email signature lines, on your website and on virtually any item that can be printed. In addition, when you use a QR on your website you are showing search engines that your web pages have changed and they will index it accordingly.

So, if you are looking for a way to update your website as well as promote your business, check out one of the preceding sites and design a QR code of your own! With just a few minutes of your time, you can have a QR code that can promote your business anywhere you want.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

Is Your Website Mobile?

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Recently a friend shared an experience with me regarding internet use. She had wanted to download tickets for a local event. Unfortunately, the site was not compatible for mobile users, so  she was unable to follow the link that was sent to her for printing the tickets. Happily, she was able to contact the person heading up the event and get her tickets that way, instead.

However, her frustration made me wonder how many sites there are that have not updated to suit the needs of today’s mobile consumer. After all, if you are trying to sell a product or service you don’t want to lose customers simply because your site cannot be navigated on a mobile device.

If you have yet to update your website for the mobile user, consider this. Cisco has predicted that worldwide mobile traffic will increase by 25 times between now and 2015, largely in part to the extensive amount of video consumption on today’s mobile devices. (Website Magazine, April 2011) So, if you have a company that is primarily a web-based business and have yet to make your website mobile-friendly, then you will ultimately loose a large percentage of new customers—and perhaps some of the existing ones.

In a day where money and budgeting is tighter than it has been decades, this is not the time to decide that upgrades are unnecessary. After all, you want your website to be user –friendly so your sales increase and your site guests can’t wait to come back and visit again. Make sure your website is on the move so your customers will not move on to someone else!

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

3D Website Design and Motion Websites (Wii Like)

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Today, Chakery Design is pleased to announce the introduction of 3D Website Design and Motion Websites. No more bland websites where you point and click your way from homepage to blogs. Now, your website can be the total interactive experience as your products are seen in 3D and site guests can test them out before they buy them.

The Motion Website works much like playing your Wii. Rather than just clicking the “Next” button to go the following page, now you can hop, skip, run or perhaps surf your way to the next page. You can even design the site so that you can go to the next page by moving hands like you would turn the pages of a book. The possibilities are endless!

The 3D feature allows you to make invitations and newsletter more personable. Site guests don 3D glasses (available at numerous locations) so that rather than getting a printed invitation on the computer, now they can have someone “in person” sharing the information. Do you want your customers to experience how your latest improvement to your skill saw works? Now they can try it out before purchasing without fear of damaging the product.

Basic requirements for the 3D and Motion Website designs are Wii controller and balance board or the Kinect game system and you are ready for a totally interactive experience on the Web. Contact us today for more information on how you can convert your website to a 3D or Motion website!

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

 

How Google Search Is Changing

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Have you been posting articles on your favorite sites, or writing blog post but have not seen any increases in revenue, site guests or SERPs in the past few weeks? If so, don’t despair. At the end of February, Google changed their algorithm, which affected websites of every type and size. This algorithm, dubbed by many as Farmer, is designed to weed out sites where there is an abundance of duplicate and less than stellar quality content. As a result, many site owners saw a significant downslide in revenue and a lowering in page rank.

When asked, Amit Singhal  of Google, explained that the weeding determinations were made by sending  questionnaires to testers and asking them to rate sites based on questions such as “ Would they be willing to share their credit card ?”, “Did they feel there were more ads than content?” and “Do you feel that this site is authoritative?” Once they had their answers, Google made changes.

To fail to do so, will mean one’s site(s) will rank low. If you are one of the 1,000’s who were affected, you may be wondering how to climb back up the page rank ladder. Here are several steps to help you recover:

  • Trash any web content that does not add site value.
  • Protect what is yours. If you run across content that was unique to your site on another page, run a WHOIS search to locate the site host is, then firmly request that your material be removed from the site.
  • Be creative! While imitation may be the highest form of flattery this not so on the web. Write original articles and blog posts so that your site will stand out from the crowd-not blend in at the bottom of the list.

By making just a few changes in your style, before you know it, you can soon be back where you were before the “Farmer” weeded the Web.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

Chakery Design and FMC Financial Services Team Up

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FMC Financial Services, a leader in the small business financing market, has announced that they will work with Chakery Design to redesign their company’s website and make it easier for prospective clients to find online.  With nearly 200 years of combined experience in the field, they help companies find the capital, tools, and advice they need to leverage competitive advantages and keep from becoming another story about “what could’ve been.”

The management team, which has a long and successful track record, notes that even though small businesses make up the bulk of the US economy, roughly 4 out of 5 fail within the first five years. And even worse, most of these failures could have been prevented with the right funding and insight – exactly what FMC provides.

In order to help them share what they know with more companies, the new website will focus on clear navigation and an eye-catching design, while keeping the breaking news and informational resources that existing customers have come to love. It’s a unique design challenge, but one that we at Chakery know we are up to. From our past work with smaller clients, to larger projects with organizations like American Airlines, Lockheed Martin, Georgetown University, and Texas A&M, we’ve developed the skills and expertise to get the right results.

Look for the new FMC Financial website in January at http://fmcfinancialservices.com/. And, if you’re running one of the millions of small businesses that could use help finding capital – or the best way forward – consider using them as a resource… they truly are the small business experts.