Business Articles
What is a Web Design Professional?
In today’s digital age, having a strong online presence is crucial for businesses and individuals alike. A well-designed website can make the difference between attracting customers and losing them to competitors. This is where a professional web designer comes into play. But what exactly does it mean to be a web design professional? Let’s delve into the world of web design and explore the roles, skills, and importance of these experts.
The Role of a Professional Web Designer
A professional web designer is responsible for creating visually appealing and functional websites. Their primary goal is to ensure that users have an excellent experience when navigating through the site. This involves several key tasks:
1. Visual Design
The visual aspect of a website includes everything from layout and color schemes to typography and imagery. A professional web designer must have a keen eye for aesthetics and understand how different elements work together to create an engaging user experience.
2. User Experience (UX) Design
User experience design focuses on making websites easy to use and navigate. A professional web designer conducts user research, creates wireframes, and tests prototypes to ensure that the final product meets the needs of its target audience.
3. Responsive Design
With the increasing use of mobile devices, it’s essential for websites to be accessible on various screen sizes. Professional web designers employ responsive design techniques to ensure that websites look great on desktops, tablets, and smartphones alike.
4. Coding Skills
While not all web designers are required to code, having a basic understanding of HTML, CSS, and JavaScript can be beneficial. It allows them to communicate more effectively with developers and make minor adjustments without relying on others.
Essential Skills for a Professional Web Designer
To excel in their role, professional web designers need a diverse set of skills:
1. Creativity
Creativity is at the heart of web design. A professional web designer must be able to think outside the box and come up with innovative solutions that capture users’ attention.
2. Technical Proficiency
Understanding various design tools such as Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator), Sketch, or Figma is crucial for creating high-quality designs.
3. Communication Skills
Effective communication is vital in translating client requirements into actionable design plans. Professional web designers must be able to articulate their ideas clearly and collaborate with other team members.
4. Attention to Detail
A keen eye for detail ensures that every element on the website aligns perfectly with the overall design concept.
5. Problem-Solving Abilities
Web design often involves overcoming challenges related to usability or technical constraints. A professional web designer should be adept at finding solutions that enhance user experience without compromising on aesthetics.
The Importance of Hiring a Professional Web Designer
Hiring a professional web designer offers numerous benefits:
1. First Impressions Matter
Your website is often the first point of contact between you and potential customers or clients—making it essential for your site’s appearance reflects your brand’s values accurately from day one.
2 .Improved User Experience
A well-designed website ensures visitors can easily find what they’re looking for—leading directly towards higher engagement rates & conversion rates over time!
3 .Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Professional designers understand how important SEO practices are; they incorporate these strategies during development stages so search engines rank sites higher organically!
4 .Consistency Across Platforms & Devices
Ensuring consistency across different platforms/devices helps build trust among users while providing seamless experiences regardless if accessed via desktop/laptop/mobile/tablet etc., thus increasing overall satisfaction levels significantly too!
Conclusion
In conclusion: being considered “a true” professional within this field requires more than just artistic talent alone—it demands comprehensive knowledge spanning multiple disciplines including UX/UI principles alongside technical proficiencies coupled together seamlessly underpinned by strong communication/problem-solving abilities throughout entire project lifecycles consistently delivering exceptional results time after time again ultimately driving business success forward exponentially faster than ever before possible previously imagined! So next time when thinking about revamping/updating existing site—or even starting fresh altogether anew—consider investing wisely upfront hiring experienced professionals who know exactly what takes achieve desired outcomes efficiently effectively every single step along way ensuring maximum return investment long-term basis guaranteed!
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News From The Studio
Open To All
Thank you all for being such wonderful clients, customers, supporters and friends of Shadowbend Studios. During these recent tough times, we value your support more than ever, and we want to let you know that we support and welcome you—no matter who you are, what you look like, who you love, what you believe in or where you are from.
Joining Open to All® means we are making an explicit commitment to maintaining a welcoming and safe environment for people—including employees, visitors, customers, vendors, and clients—regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, immigration status, religion, or disability. Not only that, we’ve signed the Open To All pledge not to discriminate against any individuals or deny them goods or services based on any of these characteristics, and to provide all goods and services to everyone on the same terms.
We joined the Open to All® coalition of hundreds of thousands of businesses nationwide because we believe we all have something to contribute. We believe we can all learn from one another. We believe that when we work together, when we value our employees, when we care for our customers and one another, we all thrive.
The Open to All® campaign is also supported by more than 200 national and state civil rights and racial justice organizations; LGBTQ organizations and community centers; health and healthcare advocates, disability advocates, and inclusive faith organizations; and more.
Of course, we know that this is just a step on the long road towards achieving full equality for all. Shadowbend Studios is in this for the long haul, that’s why we’re committing to listening, learning, and continuing to find ways to better serve you.
If you’d like to learn more about this campaign, visit www.OpenToAll.com.
#shadowbendstudios, #opentoall, #enddiscrimination, #equality
Monday Morning Marketing
Optimize Your Site – Shadowbend Studios Monday Morning Marketing
Optimize your site – Most of us have heard about Website Optimization, Search Engine Optimization, Mobile Optimization etc. Website Optimization is the process of testing a new site using multiple platforms and devices to make sure that the site does not have any coding issues that are browser specific. There are instances where a site will look perfectly fine on one particular browser but may have some quirks when being presented on a different browser. Website Optimization is the opportunity to address and correct those quirks.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is used to help websites get found and ranked by search engines (such as Google). There are many elements which comprise an effective SEO optimization campaign such as relevant keyword research, backlinks, onsite optimization (alt tags for images, meta descriptions, header tags, etc.) and the appropriate amount of text on your pages with a good keyword density. Luckily there are many excellent tools out there to help you achieve this: From Yoast SEO and Schema – All In One Schema Rich Snippets to Majestic and Moz, there are ample resources to get your site in tip top shape.
Mobile Optimization is the process of making sure that your site loads quickly, looks good and is easily navigable on mobile devices like smart phones and tablets. Here are some interesting statistics according to an April 22nd, 2020 article on Oberlo:
- There are 3.5 billion cell phone users worldwide.
- Adults in the United States spend an average of 2 hours and 55 minutes on their phones daily.
- 2/3rds of people shopping on the internet use apps on their mobile devices.
- Mobile web traffic accounts for 52.6 of global web traffic.
- 69% of users shopping on the internet prefer to look up reviews on their mobile devices rather than asking in-store staff.
Optimizing your website is a critical step in the foundation for an effective business marketing strategy!
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Client Showcase
Shadowbend Studios Client Showcase – Advanced Eyecare Optometry
Our client showcase posts serve as an opportunity for you to meet and get to know some of the wonderful people and businesses I have had the chance to work with over the years. This week’s post features:
Advanced Eyecare Optometry
I have been working with Dr. Robert and Janet Turcios over at Advanced Eyecare Optometry for the better part of 10 years. We have provided photography, videography, graphic design, web development, website hosting, search engine optimization, web security and social media marking services for the entire office in their previous location as well as their new location right here in Pleasant Hill! On a side note, my family goes to Advanced Eyecare Optometry for our annual eye exams! It’s always very satisfying when business services can go both ways!
A little bit about Advanced Eyecare Optometry
(from the “Our Office” page on the Advanced Eyecare Optometry website)
At Advanced Eyecare Optometry, the doctors are thoroughly trained in the detection, diagnosis and treatment of vision disorders and eye disease. They utilize state-of-the art equipment such as the Zeiss OCT Optos Retinal Scanning Laser, and Humphrey Auto-Refractor and Visual Field Analyzer, which provides a higher level of care. This facilitates the early detection and management of eye diseases such as glaucoma, macular degeneration, and cataract which helps preserve your vision!Examinations also include the detection and treatment of eye muscle imbalance, poor eye coordination and reduced focusing ability, which are common problems among children and 40+ year olds.When indicated, the doctors fit any contact lenses required, including specialty lenses for astigmatism, monovision, (simultaneous far and near vision), or bifocal needs, as well as colored contact lenses for those who desire a “different look”.
If you are interested in laser eye surgery, (LASIK), the doctors will determine if you are a good candidate, and will provide the pre- and post-op management to insure a good outcome for this procedure.
Should you choose to wear eyeglasses, Advanced Eyecare Optometry offers a modern eyewear boutique with hundreds of styles to from which to choose. The licensed opticians are trained to help you select fashionable eyewear that compliments your lifestyle and fashion sense, all in a relaxed, friendly, caring atmosphere.
If you are looking for someone to help you with all your eyecare needs, then call Advanced Eyecare Optometry today. We’ll put your needs in focus!
You can visit the Advanced Eyecare Optometry website here.
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Wednesday Wisdom
Shadowbend Studios Wednesday Wisdom – Compress Your Images
Good morning and happy Wednesday everyone. This week’s bit of Wednesday Wisdom is about compressing the image files that you plan to use for your website to help keep your site load speeds fast and effective!
Nearly every website contains media files: pdfs, videos, photos etc. and an often overlooked aspect of web design and development is image compression. Websites like MachMetrics monitor site loading speeds and mention that the optimal time for a site to load is 3 seconds or less. I checked the Shadowbend Studios website on Pingdom and found that it loads in 2.97 seconds!
Why is this important?
Your website load speed is important for a few reasons. First of all your visitors attention spans are getting shorter every day. You want you site to load quickly so that your visitors can begin enjoying your site right away. Slow loading speeds can also trigger server time outs which will cause your site to lag or stop loading completely.
Compressing your images is one of the easiest and most effective way of speeding up your website load times. Websites rarely need an image file with a resolution larger than 72 or 96dpi and I try to keep most of my images under 1900 pixels wide. This helps to keep your file sizes under 100-200kb. There are many ways you can achieve image compression. There are WordPress plugins like Optimole, Imagify and Smush and you can always utilize software like Photoshop to get your images the right size before you even upload them to your site. On a side note, if you do compress your images before uploading them, always make sure to save a copy of the original (pre-compressed) image.
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