December 1, 2011

For those of you who have been living under a rock, .net magazine is the biggest selling magazine of its kind in the world. So imagine my surprise to get the chance to be featured in the ‘website build off’ section in issue 223.

Website build off?

The website build off is a monthly article which gives 3 designers/developers the chance to submit their interpretation of a brief. The theme for my build off?…wedding sites. The brief didnt go into much more detail than that so I decided to create a fictitious site aimed at getting the bride and groom to the church on time, with all the details in place so they can relax and enjoy their big day.

Its a simple concept and an even simpler design but I think there is an idea there that has the potential to grow into something popular and profitable.

The website design includes all of the usual suspects such as social networking and submissions but also has a few cheeky extras thrown in. For the description and to see the other build offs (which are awesome by the way) you will have to buy the mag. Issue 223 is out now.

September 18, 2011

What does it do?

WordPress is such an awesome tool that it even strips some HTML, such as iframes, as a security measure. Unfortunately sometimes we need to use iframes so Aye Aye Frame gives you back that freedom with the use of a shortcode [ayeframe]. For more information on WordPress shortcodes click HERE.

Usage

To use Aye Aye Frame simply insert the url or code you would like to appear in your iframe between these shortcode tags

Download the plugin

Download the plugin from the WordPress community – Aye Aye Frame

[ayeframe]YOUR URL HERE[/ayeframe]

The code or url you insert between the shortcode tags is the equivalent of the ‘src’ section of the iframe code.

Customise your Aye Aye Frame

As with normal iframes, extra parameters can be added to customise the size, borders and other elements. Any, all or none of these parametres may be used. A full list of these parameters is available in the Aye Aye Frame menu after plugin installation.

Extra parameters
‘width’ = Takes a number to customise the width of the iframe. Default = 250
‘height’ = Takes a number to customise the height of the iframe. Default = 250
‘frameborder’ = Specifies whether to add a border to the iframe (0 = no, 1 = yes). Default = 0
‘marginheight’ = Specifies the top and bottom margins of an iframe. Default = 0
‘marginwidth’ = Specifies the left and right margins of an iframe. Default = 0
‘name’ = Specifies the name of the iframe. Default = No default
‘scrolling’ = Specifies whether or not to display scrollbars in an iframe (yes, no, auto). Default = auto
‘id’= Specifies the id of your iframe. No default
‘class’ = Specifies the class name of your iframe. Default = No default
‘title’ = Specifies the title of your iframe. No default

Example usage of extra parameters

[ayeframe width=500 height=500 frameborder=1 marginheight=5 marginwidth=5 name=myFrameName scrolling=0 id=myFrameID class=myFrameClass title=myFrameTitle]http://www.myframeurl[/ayeframe]

Any questions?

Aye Aye Frame was created just for fun (thats right, FUN!) by Christian Senior at UTC Web Design but if you have any questions or suggestions you are welcome to get in touch using the contact information on the website.

August 19, 2011

I have recently been working on a few e-commerce websites which required the products to be listed under different categories but also needed to be searchable on both criteria. So to solve this little issue,  in walked WordPress and its cool ‘custom taxonomies’.

What are WordPress custom taxonomies?

In short, ‘taxonomy’ means to categorise or group things together. So everytime you create a post in WordPress and put it into a category, thats taxonomy.

You can read more about WordPress taxonomies on the WordPress Codex site

Custom taxonomies are an extra way of categorising your WordPress posts. So you can add extra grouping for your posts. I have found it handy on e-commerce sites where products needed to ‘grouped’ in sizes and ‘colours’ but everytime I wanted to create this extra categorising of products I had to recall the function in the functions.php file and and then add code into the sidebar etc etc etc.  So I have created a simple WordPress plugin that does it for you.

What does Simple-Custo-Taxo do?

Simple-Custo-taxo (Simple Custom Taxonomy) is a simple (as the name suggests) plugin that adds an extra taxonomy option for your posts and can be added to your site by adding the widget to your sidebar.

Simply create categories in the ‘custom categories’ section that will now appear in your Posts main menu and add posts to that category as you normally would.  The widget then creates an unordered list of your custom taxonomies. Simple.

Hey if your a WordPress user give it a try, and let me know if it was useful.

Full installation instructions and download link are available HERE

Simple-Custo-taxo (Simple Custom Taxonomy) is a simple (as the name suggests) plugin that adds an extra taxonomy option for your products and can be added to your site by adding the widget to your sidebar.

Simply create categories in the ‘custom categories’ section that will now appear in your Posts main menu and add posts to that category as you normally would.  The widget then creates an unordered list of your custom taxonomies. Simple.

Download the plugin

First you need to download the plugin from the WordPress plugin repository and extract it from its .zip shell.

Installation

To install the plugin manually:

1. Extract the contents of the archive (zip file)
2. Upload the folder and its contents to your ‘/wp-content/plugins’ folder
3. Activate the plugin through the Plugins section in your WordPress admin panel

Usage

Once activated you will see a new menu option appear in your ‘Posts’ main menu called ‘Custom Categories’. Add custom categories as you normally would.

Go to the ‘widgets’ in the Appearance menu. Add the ‘Simple Custom Taxonomy’ widget to your sidebar. *Please note – your theme must be widget ready to use this plugin.

Enjoy your new plugin

July 25, 2011

Well I finally got there. After much hardship and late nights the new UTC Web Design website is up and running.

There will be more content to go on here so keep checking back to see more improvements and more pictures and goodys. The ‘photography’ and ‘films’ sections of the site are not up and running yet where I will be showcasing some of my (you guessed it) photography and film making talents. Its just a hobby but Ill let you have a look since you asked nicely.

Some of the more seasoned veterans to UTC Web Design will also have noticed that I am now offering printing services for business cards and flyers and brochures so if you want a quote give me a shout. I will get some printing prices on here for those I promise.

So have a look around the new site and if you like it give the Google +1 button (in the footer of the page) a click to show your appreciation.

Enjoy!

July 20, 2011

Remember the Yellow Pages? Well believe it or not its still going strong and loads of people spend their time flicking through the big luminous book for useless numbers.
However, it seems that 80% more people are using the internet to find that same number. No wonder Google are rolling in it! But more astounding than the 80% of people scouring the internet for your business information is that 60% of those people are already holding the cash by the time they get on the blower!
So it seems that those businesses without a website dont stand a chance.

Im not telling you anything new here, we all know how the internet has taken hold of everybodys lives in one way or another but I think what we can say here is that, if you have been asking yourself the question,
“Can I afford a website for my business?”
the answer is simply, you cant afford NOT to.

Now Im not saying that getting a website is going to make you as rich as Google (although I suppose thats what worked for them…mmmmm) but its a step forward for your business.
So dont be a fool and miss out on all those people that cant wait to spend their hard earned dosh, give me a call and keep me in business.
And when the winter comes and your feeling chilly, reach for the yellow pages…it burns for hours.

October 10, 2010

So you are having a new website designed and built eh? It’s going to be fancy and do all the things you wanted it to do isn’t it? The web design guy is going to put together this perfect website for you that sings and dances and does all the things you always dreamed of, right? Well how does the website guy know what you want?

Here are 8 things you should think about before you have your website built

1. Company Image  - Think about how you want people to see your company? We have all heard the phrase ‘first impressions count’ so you have to make that first impression give the right message. Do you want a ‘corporate’ image to give off the BIG company vibe or a ‘family run’ business image to create a more friendly yet trustworthy appeal? Try to think about, and include, the product you sell. If you specialise in a product with a familiar brand name, thats been around forever, dont try to give off a ‘new and innovative product’ vibe because that’s not going to work. Likewise if your product is a a brand new, state-of-the art widget, a ‘traditional and old-fashioned values’ image is not going to hit the spot.
2. Logo/Branding – Your website should look like it belongs to your company so try to include company colours and make it recognisable. Tie all your promotional material together, business cards, brochures and your website should look like they are in the same family. If your logo is blue and yellow then a primarily red website wont look the part, and you want to look the part don’t you?
3. A call to action - What is the purpose of your website? Now this may seem like a ridiculous question, you want a website to sell more stuff, right? But you need ask yourself how your website is going to sell more stuff for you. Is it a brochure site where potential customers can come and see what you have on offer before contacting you for more information? So do you need to try and get some contact details from these people before they get away? Do you want to sell direct from your website whereby customers can buy your widgets online, part with their hard earned cash and receive the product in the post? Whatever your website does for you you need a ‘call to action’, tell people what to do, dont leave it to chance. ‘Fill in the contact form’ or ‘Buy Now’, put the action out there so it is only a click away.
4. What’s the budget? – How much does a website cost? How long is a piece of string? A website can cost as much or as little as you want it to. The more bells and whistles you have, the more it will cost. Try to balance your budget with what you want the site to do. Dont use up all your website design budget getting the little man to dance across the screen and then not be able to get the shopping cart put in place, remember your websites primary function.
5. Know your audience – I assume since you are in the business (or starting up in the business) that you know who will buy your product? What age group your customers are or will be? What the background of your customers is or will be? Have your website designed to reflect this. Your stair lift busienss website might not go down so well with your audience when the ‘techno’soundtrack kicks in on the homepage.
6. Let them know about your website – Okay so lets lay one popular myth to rest straight away. Just because you have a website does not mean people will find you on the internet and start buying things from you. You have to market the website, just like anything else, otherwise how do people know you are there? So how are you going to market the website? Think about your audience and your product. If you sell a digital product you might want to advertise on the internet using Adwords or something similar. A restaurant might be better suited to a local newspaper. Eventually you will build up a brand and people will start to find you on search engines or review sites but this will not happen overnight and will not happen without some marketing.
7. To CMS or not to CMS – CMS or Content Management Systems are becoming very popular as it allows you to take control of your own website without having to rely on your webmaster or design team. CMS sites allow you to edit the content of your site or add content or take it away. So if you have a website with constantly changing information this maybe the solution for you. The initial website design may cost a little more but if you do update the website information on a regular basis then the long term benefits will outweigh the start up cost. Your web designer will be able to advise you on the right solution for you.
8. Picture this – I just wanted to finish off with one of my pet hates. You spend time and money getting your website built. It has all the bells and whistles and it looks the business. Everyone looks at your new website and says ‘wow, that looks awesome’. You take control of your new website, you log in and start adding content. And then you commit the ultimate sin, you stick in half rate images of your products. Your product is the most important thing on your site, that’s what people are buying. Your product is the one thing on your site that people are parting with money for, dont’ make it any harder for them. You dont need to spend lots of money getting your product photographed by a professional photographer, just spend a little time on your product images. So many websites have dark or blurred product images which have quickly been taken on a kitchen table with a phone. If you dont have a camera, do you know someone that has who might lend it to you? A picture paints a thousand words, dont let those words be ‘ I cant quite tell what it is’.

There are of course more things to think about than those I have mentioned above and as usual there are exceptions to the rules but before you go and see your web designer just try to be a little prepared as to what you want from them. They are not mind readers so they need infrmation from you. But more importantly you should think about these things so YOU know what you want from your website.

August 2, 2010

Contrary to popular belief there a number of things that I know nothing about. Some of the more notable ones are:

1. Directions – I’m a man and I should be an expert at this but I have walked away on more than one occassion to avoid the inevitable conversation ending in something like “head over snakes pass onto the b741 and drop onto the ring road, or if the ring road’s busy take the next slip road, behind Tescos and up Gary Baldi Street or….”.
I cant talk directions and I certainly cant follow them so finding my own way by stubborness and sheer will power still tends to be quicker than following some garbled directions from an old lady, that only popped out for a stamp, and ended up in a large debate (with herself) about whether one should head over Snakes Pass or drop onto the ring road.

2. Gardening - You have to take your hat off to the green fingered types. The skill that is actually involved in planting something at the right time, just watering it enough and feeding it when necessary is one which has yet managed to evade me. Everything I have ever planted has ended with a drowning (with the exception of a small pot of cress which I was forced to plant in school. The after care of which, was not done by me and 3 weeks later I enjoyed the only cress sandwich I have ever had). It worries me that one day I might get a bit over zealous and drown myself in a glass of Ribena.

3. Drawing Horses – It seems strange that at some time in your life you will find yourself saying “Why the hell are horses so hard to draw?”.  The horse is such a fine elegant animal with it’s strong muscular body ready to work in the fields or carry you to your destination but the horse should be the ugliest, most deformed creature on earth. When you try to draw one you will realise what I mean. It’s limbs dont follow the pattern of other animals and seem to bend in places they shouldnt. The neck is a width that can’t be put on paper, it’s either too fat or too skinny making it look like  a giraffe thats been the victim of some sort of amputation. I know you’re thinking that you will manage to get through your life without having to draw a horse but at some point it will happen.

A child will say “please Mr Jones please will you draw me a horse?”, and after a few vain attempts you will sit the child on your lap, look into their innocent eyes and say “Why the hell are horse so hard to draw?”.

I know nothing about these things (and the list could go on for some time), I’m not very good at these things and therefore I dont get involved in these things. You will find that most people are the same. We like to sit in our comfort zone talking about things we like and know about so when average Joe needs a website  for his business who does he talk to?

So the conversation goes like this;

Joe – “I need a website please”

Webmaster – “Ok what kind would you like?”

Joe – “What?”

Webmaster – “What kind would you like?”

Joe – “erm…..what kind can I have?”

Webmaster – “Well you can have a CMS based site, or a just a static HTML site, or a Flash site with actionscript functionality. Or you have a fulminator quadrohydranthosyourfatheryourturntogetthedrinksin if you prefer. Or you can have……”

Joe – “I’ve got to go I think I’ve left the oven on”

What may seem simple to you may be a foreign language to other people. I once overheard two truck drivers talking about the best way to get to Gary Baldi Street and I’m convinced they were talking in Chinese.  Every business now needs a website, thats a fact, so lets approach the approach. Instead of saying ‘Just go up the 471 and head north‘ lets just say ‘turn left at the end’. Simplicity in design, simplicity in talking about the design.

So if you need a website drop me a line or am I talking Chinese?

July 18, 2010

It seems that the answer to all our questions is in the statistics. If 85% of people do it, then it must be good. If 15% of people barfed up after eating it, it’s probably not a good buy. But then we have to ask ourselves ‘who carries out these surveys?’ and ‘who benefits from them?’

According to a survey (those famous words), going to Weight Watchers is twice as successful for losing weight as it’s competitors.
This is ground breaking stuff. And the reason they know this is….
Weight watchers did a study. Its difficult to imagine that the results could have been a lot different and Weight Watchers could have been sticking a leaflet through our door saying
“Lose half as Much as Weight in Twice the Time”.

Anyway the point is you can use this information to your advantage on your website. Now I’m not saying you should go out and knock on everyones door to ask whether they like their eggs boiled or scrambled but if your product is at the top of one of these ‘surveys’ then tell people.
If your product is as good as one these ‘top’ products for half the price, then tell people.

Be creative with the survey results and increase your sales, after all, 85% of people cant be wrong!

July 7, 2010

A few years ago I did the travelling thing and fell in love with a town on the East Coast of Australia called Port Macquarie. I worked at a backpackers hostel there called (surprisingly!) ‘Port Macquarie Backpackers’ and what a time I had.
Anyway I just thought I would draw your attention to their new website. It hasn’t been done my me unfortunately but I think it does show how simplicity can still look good. Its easy to use and its based on a WordPress CMS which, in my humble opinion, is always the way to go.

Take a look at it, book yourself a bed and take that well deserved holiday that you’ve been promising yourself.

Port Macquarie Backpackers