This cartoon is too true for most websites!
Usability? Target? Utility? Most don't give what users want...
~ Jeff
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Public Relations & Social Marketing Insight
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Social marketing, PR insight & thought leadership - from The PR Coach
Curated by
Jeff Domansky
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The Text100 Sydney team recently launched a brand new design to its blog.
...Text100 Sydney team decided to move from our old blog to something new. We hired a web development team and gave them our specifications; they both created the new blog’s current design and offered to host it on their servers (an offer we gladly accepted). Since we were using WordPress on both our sites, importing all our posts and pages to the new design was only slightly more complex than a cut-and-paste job. No coding, no tinkering with firewalls, and no stress.
[Good blogging case study ~ Jeff] 
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In today’s post we’re going to go over 10 websites that have left a lasting impression on their visitors. Now, they are not all business websites – but they are inspirational.
On this blog we talk a lot about websites that have effective calls to action, non-cluttered home pages, and trustworthy designs with the intention of showing what techniques help improve conversions.
After years of showing our readers examples of what works and what doesn’t, one thing we have noticed is an awful lot of similarity between website designs in the same space.
My hunch is that either: 1. After years of people copying each other’s designs, SaaS businesses have determined that this is what a SaaS website should look like.
But why not make your site unforgettable?
[This is a terrific post by @seanvwork. The 11 examples show website design, creativity and usability best practices. Lots of great lessons! ~ Jeff ]
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...Jakob Nielsen was a household name in web development teams – and "Information Architect" and "Usability Expert" were considered careers for the future. Then one day usability started to fade into the background. It became more of an afterthought. When is the last time you saw any job with "usability" in the title on any sort of list of jobs for the future?
The irony is that usability never became less important – it was just that marketing people moved on to promoting sexier things … like social media and focused on buzzwords like "engagement" and creating "conversations." The after effect of this focus is still evident all around us:
United Airlines has a website that is a towering monument to what happens when no one listens to the usability experts. Tasks are impossible to complete without too many clicks, the interface is completely non-intuitive, and your logged in profile is inconveniently forgotten before any transaction....
[Rethink & a social media reminder - JD]
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Robin Good: If you are looking for free tools that can help you draft the design of your web site or application, look no further as this is a good collection providing ten wrireframing alternatives.
Definition of Wireframe:
It’s simply meant to illustrate the features, content and links that need to appear on a page so that your design team can mock up a visual interface and your programmers understand the page features and how they are supposed to work.
Source: usability.gov
Full guide: http://speckyboy.com/2010/01/11/10-completely-free-wireframe-and-mockup-applications/
[Useful tools for some content producers - JD] Via Robin Good
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I know there are some really bad small business websites out there, but some fresh numbers paint an alarming picture.
The stats come from “SMB DigitalScape,” a data tool that’s being jointly promoted by BIA/Kelsey and vSplash, the company that created the tool. The numbers were distributed Monday in conjunction with the beginning of BIA/Kelsey’s ILM East show. How bad is the picture? Consider these pullouts...
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Picking out the latest trends in branding, identity and logo design in 2012.
Logo design and branding trends are all around us - and whether you work as an identity designer or are just interested in the intricacies of branding design, we've trawled the web and blogs to bring you the latest trends in logo and branding design.
Notable sources are Bill Gardner's excellent Logo Lounge and its 2012 trend report, which includes many excellent insights – and is pretty much the authority on logo design trends) and Franklin Till's trend report for Computer Arts Collection.... Via brandideas, mojo3
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A good portfolio website can be one of the most effective marketing and business tools a designer or agency can have. Whether potential clients are specifically searching for a designer or whether someone comes across your site while casually browsing, the portfolio site is often the first impression for potential clients.
Because portfolio sites can be so important for designers, they also tend to be great sources of inspiration. Most designers want their portfolio sites to represent the best that they have to offer, so the end result is that there are thousands of amazing portfolio sites out there. If you’re browsing for inspiration to use in your own work the portfolios of other designers can be a great source of the inspiration. You may be inspired by the work being shown in the portfolio, or you could be inspired by the design of the portfolio itself.
In this post we’ll showcase 25 outstanding portfolio website designs for your own inspiration. [Great deesign ides and inspiration ~ Jeff]
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Want to learn or hone your skills in the art of Typography? Then check out these top online typography resources, where you'll find tons of advice and inspiration.
The web is a wonderful thing, literally brimming with resources and tutorials for people wanting to learn about the art of typography. But, sometimes, too much choice can be confusing, so we've picked five top sites that will really help you get to grips with it....
[Tantalizing typography resources ~ Jeff]
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Robin Good: A great short video from PBS brings together the views and opinions of three great web designers: Jason Santa Maria, Jeffrey Zeldman, Whitney Hess.
Web designers have adapted through the technological developments of html, CSS, Flash, and JavaScript, and have mastered the balance between creativity and usability.
Now with the advance of mobile, the greatest websites have taken user experience and responsive design to the next level, and continue our evolution from print to a digital world."
Good stuff. Interesting. 8/10
Original video: http://youtu.be/3iVVM_DgWY4 ;
[Really enjoyable video if you like web design - JD] Via Robin Good
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...Do public relations executives and firms have websites that communicate differentiators instead of clichés, engage their readership (prospective clients for public relations firms and personal branding visibility for public relations professionals) and, most importantly, what is the main objective of a website in an overall digital strategy? My sense is that the website is dying a slow death as a centralized hub for branding. Contributing to this includes the availability of multiple social media platforms and the expense/effort, i.e. perpetual care, required to keep it fresh and up-to-date....
The amount of maintenance or perpetual care required to maintain a “proper,” updated, digital profile is significant. In other words, you must continually post new and fresh content to keep your readers engaged! What can you do to ensure that your investments in perpetually maintaining and updating your online content is “worth it” – that your ROI on all this effort it positive?...
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Simple, clear as a bell. Today the English version of Wikipedia is closed to protest two bills currently in Congress that are intended to stop or curtail online piracy.
If you haven’t done so already, click over to Wikipedia and you’ll see the power of good storytelling design...
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