Friday, October 20, 2006

Content management

Recently we’ve had clients ask if they could maintain their own websites and we’re happy to oblige. Having the power to update your own site gives you the freedom to make adjustments or new content anytime you like. The term used to describe this type of control is content management system (CMS).

As has been explained in previous articles, by using CSS to separate the content of your site from its structure, management of information becomes much easier. Imagine if you were to take that a step further by creating containers for your information which could be arranged anywhere on your site and to which you could add content as easily as typing a letter in your favorite word processor. That’s the power of a CMS.

By creating the site with a CMS engine no matter the size, the ability to update many areas of the site is in your hands - without the need for knowledge of any complex code.

If that sounds like what you’re looking for, contact us today!

Thursday, August 31, 2006

Web Standards Benefits

Now that we’ve explained some of the history of the web and defined what web standards are lets take a look at how you could directly benefit from the use of web standards in your web site.

Lower Development Costs
By using web standards your site’s appearance can be crafted much faster than with older methods. The key is the use of CSS to control the entire design of the site vs making changes to every singe file on the site. 

A simple example of this would be the design of your site header. Previously the code to build the header would be complex and would have to be repeated on every page. If you needed to change a part of the header (make it larger/smaller) each page would have to be individually edited. By using web standards you could define the header once in the pages and once in the CSS. Then you could instantly change the header in the entire site by altering the single CSS file.

Using web standards makes building a website faster and thus cheaper. And that’s something everyone can appreciate.

Faster Loading
Sites built with web standards load faster - sometimes much faster - than sites built with older methods. The reduced but more elegant code used allows browsers to draw the pages faster.

Better Search Engine Rank
Having a higher search engine rank can drive more business to your door. Search engines can understand sites built with web standards much easier than their older counterparts. Instead of having to wade through invalid markup a search engine can “see” your pages much more clearly. Having the content separated from the design lets the search engines get right to the “meat” of your site. This allows your site to rank higher and thus can drive more visitors to your web site.

More Accessible
Web standards were created with accessibility in mind. By making a site accessible to disabled visitors you get a larger audience. Blind visitors use screen readers to understand web sites. A well designed site is easily understood by these screen readers. In addition you would be in compliance with any anti-discrimination legislation.

Cheaper to Update
Websites need new content added from time to time in order to keep the site fresh.  An occasional site redesign also keeps a website interesting and more efficient. Because the content of a web standards site is separate from the design its is far easier to make these type of changes.  Adding or editing text is quite simple. And giving the site a new design is also made much easier since the single CSS file controls the look of the whole site. Conversely, outdated sites are very costly to make changes to and redesigns are like starting the job over.

Universal Language
When a site is created with modern web standards it’s much easier for a new developer to understand and change. This means you are not locked into using the original developer for changes should you need to change.

Designed for the Future
As new technologies and browsers emerge they will support web standards. It’s likely they will not be forgiving to incorrect and outdated methods of design. Building a website on these standards ensures compatibility for the years to come. 

Why Use Web Standards?

Many clients ask us - why should we have our site designed or re-designed using web standards? It’s an excellent question. The benefits of using web standards are so numerous it’s hard to know where to begin. First, a bit of history.

Back in the web’s infancy web pages were very simple black and white pages with text only. As the web became popular designers started using more images and tried to create complex layouts using archaic tools.  The sites they built sometimes looked OK on the surface but underneath they were a huge mess. Nested tables, spacer gifs and invalid markup are just a few of the scary sounding terms used in this era. This resulted in reduced usability and exponentially increased development and maintenance time. In other words, the sites of old were built like a house of cards - problematic to change and inherently unstable.

Little did most web desigers know that the W3C - the governing body for web formatting - had developed a set of web standards that would make their sites much more effective.  The W3C set out best practices for designing web sites according to internationally agreed upon rules. These rules are like buildng codes for construction - giving us the blueprints for quality construction. The guidelines are somewhat nerdy web developer code but their benefits will be attractive to any business owner.

One of the best parts of the web standards is the use of CSS or Cascading Style Sheets to separate your site contents (text, images) from the design. This allows site changes to be much more efficient than older methods since you are modifying much less information.

Getting back to the contruction analogy - the old methods of web design (and what some still employ today) will work in a limited sense. Any hatchet carpenter can build a primitive hut that will suffice for a short term dwelling. However, it takes a qualified builder adhering to building codes to create a lasting structure that will be safe and work properly for the future.

Hiring a web design company that follows web standards can benefit you in many ways as will be explained next.

Friday, August 11, 2006

Search Engine Optimization

You’ve finally got a site. Now what?! How do you get noticed among the
millions of other sites out on the web? Specifically, are there ways
to rank highly in search engines when someone wants to find your
site? When it comes to search engine ranking, there are both free and
paid ways to help your site stand out from the rest.

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Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
or how to help your site get ranked higher for free

Search Engine Optimization has gotten a lot of publicity lately both
through news of people and companies incorrectly trying to fool the
search engines into ranking them higher (aka black hat SEO) and from
many who are just catching on to the power of search engine generated
leads. In reality, it boils down to correct design using common sense
with emphasis on a few key points.

KEYWORDS
All major search engines — Google, MSN, Yahoo, etc. — are most
concerned with providing relevant content. So if you’re providing
content on your page that’s fresh, relevant and useful to the user,
you’re off to a good start. That sounds very obvious. However, when
you start looking at content delivered on many home pages and read it
from an SEO or content perspective, you actually realize many aren’t
doing that.
Rotating the content and keeping it fresh can be a huge boost to your
site ranking. After all, who wants to come back to a site that has
been the same for months? Search engines are designed to recognize
that, too, and give priority accordingly. You’ll see immediate
results if you update your content faithfully. We suggest that
content be changed every other month at a minimum. There are
different options to accomplish this which are discussed in detail in
the Application section below.

Also, use normal speaking language in your text. (Again, something
that seems obvious.) Don’t over-saturate your content with the
keywords you want to feature and don’t ever list one keyword after
another in a list somewhere on your page either visibly or invisibly.
(eg, white text on a white background) It’s true that you can see the
jump in search engine rank happen relatively quickly. The downside to
that is that you will eventually get caught and can be penalized by
the search engine — even banned and removed completely. However, do
use your keywords regularly though tastefully so it is obvious your
content relates to what the site is publicizing. Additionally,
keyword phrases are better than single words since it is much easier
to be found with a specific phrase than a single word which could be
used in many different ways.

LINKAGE
Not only is the number of relevant keywords on a page important as
far as search engines are concerned, linking is as well. Google is
particularly interested in a site’s links — specifically a site’s
inbound links. These are more important to Google than outbound
links. It’s not just about getting an inbound link, but a relevant
inbound link from a site that is reputable — not some massive free
listing service which dilutes a links effectiveness.

APPLICATION
Pioneer Design Group uses XHTML/CSS to design search engine friendly
sites from the start. Sites designed in this way are easy for search
engines to index which makes them easier for everyone to find.
Additionally we add code into the titles and around the graphics used
throughout the site so that search engines can tell what a graphic is
for since they can’t read them. Lastly we give the search engines
specific descriptions of the content on the site (aka meta tags) so
they will know what to look for and how to sort it.

Now for some practical steps you can do. When writing the copy for
your site, focus on communicating a direct message to your intended
market or audience. Use the main keyword or keyword phrase you feel
relates to your subject matter both in the title of your text and in
the first or second sentence in the first paragraph. Keep your
sentences simple and to the point with logical flow to the subject
being communicated. Oh, and another hopefully obvious point, use a
spell-checker or a good second person’s opinion before showing your
text to the world!

Communicate with others in your industry and exchange links from each
other’s sites. Confirm first that they are not using any black hat
SEO techniques to boost their page rank or their link to you could
lower your page rank. Make sure the links stay on topic and check
them every so often to make sure they still work.

On the point made earlier regarding regular fresh content, blogs (web
jargon for online journals) have become a popular way for those who
do or don’t know anything about actually designing a website online
to keep their content fresh. Writing a new entry on a regular basis
will accomplish this nicely. Pioneer can either give you a custom
look for your blog or add a blog to your existing site as an
additional feature.

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Search Engine Marketing
or how to help your site get ranked higher for a fee

Though handled differently, getting your site ranked higher for a fee
pretty much boils down to pay-per-click services. Pay-per-click
essentially means an auction-style bidding for how much value you
place on your ranking for results to those phrases. Google has their
own proprietary method they use for themselves exclusively and
currently Yahoo Marketing services most of the other big names.
Basically, the way it works is you choose a list of keyword phrases
you think would help people find your site. You enter (or hire
someone else to do it for you) those keywords into whichever service
you choose and you are told how valuable they are by how high other
people are willing to pay to be ranked first when one of those words/
phrases are chosen. Some words/phrases cost pennies and others can
cost several dollars. As you can imagine, your fees could add up
quickly if you want to be placed highly for a popular keyword though
you can limit your budget spent per month.

As with the free techniques to boost your ranking, Pioneer can also
handle your fee-based online advertising. Please contact us with any
further questions and to sign up.