Website Design Folio

STOP PRESS
Exeter based Design Credo have once again brought web-hosting in-house.

We recognise that for many businesses funds are tight at the start.

With that in mind DesignCredo have a starter site, typically three or four pages long with simple navigation and a simple contact form, we don’t recommend overly complex forms anyway

Though simple the site will still present a brand image for the customer and can form a platform to build on.

…case study: Serendipity

Serendipity is a holiday cottage in Ilfracombe, North Devon and a new venture.

The image to the side formed the basis of the overall look of the site, colours were chosen to compliment the beautiful North Devon coast.

In this instance customer provided text and photos, both of which we developed. The images are presented through a simple slideshow viewer that adds movement to some of the pages. We have recently posted an article about how the Serendipity text has been developed to offer good search engine results. You are able to re-cap here.

Although a starter site we are able to offer a highly searchable structure with good levels of functionality. Images aren’t static and simple interactive tools such as Google maps are embedded. A number of contact methods are provided including a form, email link and phone details. Further to this a downloadable PDF brochure is provided which will link back to the site.

As with any good website this one is work in progress and will be developed further.

Serendipity Ilfracombe

…case study: Renslade House

A slightly more developed basis underpins the Renslade Houe mini-site recently created on behalf of Turner Locker, Alder King and Urbina.

The site is a fluid two column design related to the Techserv design (see below). Although a slightly stripped down design this still packs a punch with Lightbox image displays and prominent downloads of the brochure that DesignCredo have designed as part of the project. Of course this site has been optimised for search engines and within days of going live the site was returning great search engine results.

…case study: Health & Safety First

Built on exactly the same underlying technology as the Serendipity website, this simple, text only website ‘does what it says on the tin’. With a brief to provide simple straightforward information about a series of training courses the site relies almost entirely on text. The courses are all listed on a single page accessed through a simple drop-down menu.

Simplicity in itself, three pages finishing with a simple contact form that people use. This is what Les Barrow says,

Andrew using his wealth of web design expertise delivered exactly what was required, furthermore his price was very affordable.
Now I know its one thing getting a site up and running but what counts for me is the after sales service, some companies can be a complete let down when it comes to making those minor adjustments and additions to the site, not so for Andrew Butler at DesignCredo, responding to any emails within 24 hours and any amendment being made quite prompt.
Les Barrow: Health and Safety First

The three column design is often seen and described as the Holy Grail of website design. The aim is to create a website design that will spread to fill a browser window at whatever size it is set a. Our 3 column websites are based on Matthew James Taylor’s layout and follow a large amount of research to get a website that will work well on as many browsers as possible, including the troublesome IE6.

Often customers come to us and say things like “our site sits in one corner of the screen, we don’t know why”. In truth this isn’t a fault, low resolution screen used to be the norm nowadays screens are higher quality, frequently widescreen and can display more information at once

Techie Moment, glaze over and snooze

It is more than looks though, this site design works well down to the code. The important site text (generally the central column) sits towards the top of the page code. This is where Google pays most attention. As such, by design this site will perform well with search engines

…case study: Techserv

Techserv make plasma, gas and water-jet CNC cutters from a factory in Yorkshire. They sell throughout the world. They have high standards of design and a large, though specialised market. They understand the value the web plays in potential sales, machines can cost in excess of £50k.

This website uses photography and YouTube videos as well as PDF downloads. Further to this there is a high level of functionality including;

Of course all of this would be of little use if people couldn’t find the site. We have spent time structuring the site so that keywords, titles, headings, meta-tags and body text work together to aid our organic marketing targets. This is an ongoing process but we are off to a good start.

Why Twitter isn’t that for kids?

Twitter is fun communication but it is a form communication that is used predominately by a more mature demographic. Although great for a range of communication needs there is a solid business sense to using tweets. The weekend that this site was uploaded a solid business potential contact was made via Twitter, this has been mentioned in a blog posting and can be read here

Techserv: Yorkshire

This site is a WordPress site, a ‘blog’ (short for weblog).

So why do DesignCredo use an off the shelf site when they have a perfectly good website?

Quite simply the sites serve different functions and putting it even simpler, WORDPRESS IS GREAT!

WordPress comes in two fundamental flavours, hosted and self hosted. If you have a mind to, you can go to WordPress.com and sign up for a blog now. Look we’ve even given you a link, have a go? If you have something interesting that you want to share you can be up and running, for free. This is what the web is about.

If you take to it though, there is a fair chance that you will outgrow the free service and will need to consider self-hosting. At this point you can get a WordPress site, download it to your own webspace and customise it to meet your needs. You can add static pages, change the way it looks, change it back again, add contact forms, get great statistical feedback, communicate, share, learn. There is a huge amount of functionality built into a WordPress site and you are able to extend it to meet your individual needs.

So Where do Design Credo Come In?

Quite simply we can set it up for you, make it do what you want and look how you like. The bottom line is that you will be able to be part of a dynamic marketing tool that will comunicate effectively with your audience.