With the holidays approaching - is your website ready? By now you should made some changes to your web site, a holiday promotion, thought, image... something to update your website to keep it fresh and interesting for your web audience and the search engines. These ongoing changes, be they small blurbs or big announcements are very important in keeping your website alive! Think of it like other media industries , print, TV or radio. You would not keep picking up the same magazine, or watching the same TV program if it was the same every month... ditto for your web marketing!
LuLu Wow includes monthly maintenance for all of our web design clients. If you happen to have a website that is basically dead because you have no way to add fresh information, give us a shout. We can provide you with this valuable service at a very reasonable fee.
11/30/07
10/12/07
Vision...
Vision - n.
The faculty of sight; eyesight: poor vision.
Something that is or has been seen.
Unusual competence in discernment or perception; intelligent foresight: a leader of vision.
The manner in which one sees or conceives of something.
A mental image produced by the imagination.
Creating a website begins with "vision." A spark, an idea that flows into the mind. What creates this "spark?" For me it is usually something as simple as a word, a picture or a color. Turning that VISION into a workable and awesome CONCEPT come from communication with my web client. Every client has a vision of what they desire their website to look like. Since we all see things differently, communication is the key to a beautiful and positive result. We will talk about color, shapes, style, emotion, and all possible aspects to have a genuine meeting of the minds. Then OUT vision begins to unfold and ultimately produce the desired outcome. Talk to me about your VISION!
LuLu
10/6/07
Using old browser platforms.
Okay, I have a huge pet peeve! Why in the world would anyone not update their web browser?? It's fast and FREE. Who would choose to keep an old - outdated browser? As a web designer I am not fond of Internet Explorer to begin with. Yes, IE7 has made progress, but they have a long way to go! Firefox renders properly and is totally up to speed. I know that I am supposed to work like hell to make my designs cross-browser compatible, but why should I have to continue to do this. Honestly, if someone is still stuck with IE5 I don't care how their web page looks. That may sound rude, but I will not cater to those that can not keep current with simple technology. I am starting to feel this way about IE6 users too! I would love to hear how everyone feels about this!
10/3/07
Go PINK for October!
I am "going PINK" for October breast cancer awareness month! Come on women of the web, and men too ... swap out your background webpage color to pink (I just did) add a "going pink" graphic, spread the awareness and be part of a solution! Let's PINK it up!
Visit http://pinkforoctober.org/ and get involved.
9/28/07
New SEO and Marketing Project
I am always excited when I get a new project, design, marketing or search engine optimization. Each project lends a new opportunity to be creative, solve problems and help clients with their web presence. This SEO project is for a major Art Appraisal website and will be a great challenge!
9/6/07
Niche marketing for women
As defined by Wikipedia - A niche market is a focused, targetable portion (subset) of a "Market sector." By definition, then, a business that focuses on a niche market is addressing a need for a product or service that is not being addressed by mainstream providers. A niche market may be thought of as a narrowly defined group of potential customers.
When I created http://www.luluwow.com/ a little over a year ago, I quickly realized that I wanted to focus on marketing to women. I defined my target audience into this smaller sector for several reasons.
When I created http://www.luluwow.com/ a little over a year ago, I quickly realized that I wanted to focus on marketing to women. I defined my target audience into this smaller sector for several reasons.
- I felt there was a real need for the focus on women
- I knew it would be extremely difficult to get the attention and clients I wanted if I was vague, ie; website design.
- I understood the old saying "you can't be everything for everyone!"
This marketing strategy has proven to be wise and successful.
I currently rank #1 on Google out of 133,000,000 for "web design for women!"
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=web+design+for+women&btnG=Google+Search
I firmly believe that the first step of business, on the internet or off, is clearly defining your marketing and goals. The 5 W's, who - what- where-why - when , have got to be completely understood before you begin and then completely conveyed to your potential market.
You really can not do it all and be everything to everyone, so DEFINE what your great at and what you are passionate about and do it right!
8/22/07
New Web Design for LuLu
Fresh new web design look for http://www.luluwow.com/ I am liking this new design and felt it was time for an overhaul. Change is good and I like to keep things interesting. This web design CSS validates and is easier to navigate than the last design. Soon I will re-design this blog - again! I selected colors and content that i felt women could easily relate to. Let me know what you think!!
8/14/07
Relax~
I take an honest and genuine approach to doing business. First of all, I LOVE what I do, so it does not seem like "work." This is important... one has to like doing their livelihood, or they will stress out and not do it well.
I want my clients to know that when we work together it is their best interests and goals that are priority. Buying a web presence should not be difficult or stressful. This is an enjoyable situation that will benefit the client as needed. So, relax and lets have some fun with this! I will do whatever I can to assist and make your web site a pleasant experience.
6/29/07
Work at your Web marketing...
"If you build it... they will come." Ha, wouldn't that be nice, IF it were true. The fact is, having a website designed and out on the big wide web will produce little if any results... UNLESS your web site designer knows what they are doing with design search engine optimization , and YOU, yes you, spend some time working at getting and keeping your URL on the web map and keeping it there. What, you mean I have to be involved in all of this? Yes mam, or sir, you do! Unless you want to spend oodles of cash on paid advertising... and who really clicks on those anyway?
I can not stress the importance of you being involved in keeping your website fresh and interesting and your roll in helping lead people to it. Here are some sweet tips!
1. Update your web content regularly. No one likes to see or read the same ol' stuff. Google as well as many other update their "look" daily. Provide your web designer with new images, text, or ideas often, or do it yourself with a content management system.
2. The Blog. This has got to be the easiest way to make changes and provide interest to your website audience. I suggest having one on your website and several others.
3. Social networking. Find forums related to your web market and make posts. Write articles about your area of expertise and submit. Join groups or start one related to your market and share information.
4. Press releases to your local print media. When you have something going on with your business, release the news to the press.
5. Be sure to always cross market your web site with all other forms of marketing, print, TV, radio, you may be doing. I can't believe how many times I have seen print ads where the company did not list their website in the ad!!
Yes, marketing yourself or business is work, but the rewards will be plentiful.
Feel free to contact me if you have a question, idea or just wish to chit chat!
I can not stress the importance of you being involved in keeping your website fresh and interesting and your roll in helping lead people to it. Here are some sweet tips!
1. Update your web content regularly. No one likes to see or read the same ol' stuff. Google as well as many other update their "look" daily. Provide your web designer with new images, text, or ideas often, or do it yourself with a content management system.
2. The Blog. This has got to be the easiest way to make changes and provide interest to your website audience. I suggest having one on your website and several others.
3. Social networking. Find forums related to your web market and make posts. Write articles about your area of expertise and submit. Join groups or start one related to your market and share information.
4. Press releases to your local print media. When you have something going on with your business, release the news to the press.
5. Be sure to always cross market your web site with all other forms of marketing, print, TV, radio, you may be doing. I can't believe how many times I have seen print ads where the company did not list their website in the ad!!
Yes, marketing yourself or business is work, but the rewards will be plentiful.
Feel free to contact me if you have a question, idea or just wish to chit chat!
6/5/07
Setting the mood~
mood~ creating an emotional tone or general attitude.
With web design, creating the mood is done with color, images, sound, font type and the over all layout of the design. creating the correct feel for your audience that really relates to your business is very important. It will set the tone for the way your web presentation is viewed and reacted to.
A well versed webdesigner will have studied color theory and typography, design elements and art composition. Designing an attractive website is like painting a picture, or taking a great photograph. All the elements need to convey the right message.
Keep this in mind so your are prepared to work together with your designer to produce optimum results!
With web design, creating the mood is done with color, images, sound, font type and the over all layout of the design. creating the correct feel for your audience that really relates to your business is very important. It will set the tone for the way your web presentation is viewed and reacted to.
A well versed webdesigner will have studied color theory and typography, design elements and art composition. Designing an attractive website is like painting a picture, or taking a great photograph. All the elements need to convey the right message.
Keep this in mind so your are prepared to work together with your designer to produce optimum results!
4/20/07
Marketing for Women and Color
I have a new website design for a Sarasota business that will be marketing exclusively to woman for sports wear. All I have to go on is a black & white logo and figures of women, so I did some research. What I found was very interesting. Some generalizations are possible based on various color studies.
Female Top 3 Favorite Colors: Blue, Purple, Green (all cool colors)
Purple stands out as a feminine color because it is chosen almost exclusively by women as a favorite color and is disliked by men. Women tend to prefer cool colors over warm and soft colors over bold full tones.
When marketing to women color is one important aspect of the design.
LuLu
Female Top 3 Favorite Colors: Blue, Purple, Green (all cool colors)
Purple stands out as a feminine color because it is chosen almost exclusively by women as a favorite color and is disliked by men. Women tend to prefer cool colors over warm and soft colors over bold full tones.
When marketing to women color is one important aspect of the design.
LuLu
2/9/07
PRE-Website Design 101
Not just another pretty face/space. You need a website, or you need to "spruce up" your existing one. What should YOU do first to ensure that your website will portray the web image you want?
1. Research your competition.
Sit at your computer and type in the key words and phrases that you personally would use to find a product or service similar to your own. Study the results on the first 1 or 2 pages. This IS your competition that you will be trying to beat with search engine ranking. Click the "view source" tab from the View menu at the top of your browser. Notice the TITLE, DESCRIPTION and KEYWORDS these websites have in place. Take note of which sites you like and dislike, the style, the tone and the content.
This research is the foundation of your website presence, and must be considered prior to thinking about design.
2. Now it's time to get 'physical."
What type of designs please you? Simplistic, complex, straight forward? Modern, retro, technical? What colors best suits your image. It is best to stay with no more than 3 or 4 main colors. Do you like horizontal or vertical menu navigation. Do you like a lot of white space?
3. Words, words & more words.
In most cases you will be responsible for writing the content of your website.. it is your business after all, and you should know it best!
Do you prefer the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd person? Do you want to be more conversational or informative in your tone. What writing style best suits your image? When writing good web content, remember to answer the users question of "so what?" Remember the rules of "who, what, where and why." Involve the user.. don't go on and on yourself. The "me-me" approach is most always a turn off. What can you do for THEM? Remember those keywords and phrases noted earlier.. use them, but only in the correct context.
4. Every picture tells a story.
Photographs, graphics and images give your website "personality." Do you have good quality images? Is your logo and branding material up to date and appropriate? You can purchase affordable and quality images for your website. Be very selective in your images. I personally like Stock Exchange or DreamsTime
5. Now you've got it!
After this careful consideration defining your website marketing and presence goals, you are now ready to select a web designer that will listen and respond to YOU. I take my clients vision very seriously and then through communication we come up with a smashing result!
Give me a shout so we can talk about it!
1. Research your competition.
Sit at your computer and type in the key words and phrases that you personally would use to find a product or service similar to your own. Study the results on the first 1 or 2 pages. This IS your competition that you will be trying to beat with search engine ranking. Click the "view source" tab from the View menu at the top of your browser. Notice the TITLE, DESCRIPTION and KEYWORDS these websites have in place. Take note of which sites you like and dislike, the style, the tone and the content.
This research is the foundation of your website presence, and must be considered prior to thinking about design.
2. Now it's time to get 'physical."
What type of designs please you? Simplistic, complex, straight forward? Modern, retro, technical? What colors best suits your image. It is best to stay with no more than 3 or 4 main colors. Do you like horizontal or vertical menu navigation. Do you like a lot of white space?
3. Words, words & more words.
In most cases you will be responsible for writing the content of your website.. it is your business after all, and you should know it best!
Do you prefer the 1st, 2nd, or 3rd person? Do you want to be more conversational or informative in your tone. What writing style best suits your image? When writing good web content, remember to answer the users question of "so what?" Remember the rules of "who, what, where and why." Involve the user.. don't go on and on yourself. The "me-me" approach is most always a turn off. What can you do for THEM? Remember those keywords and phrases noted earlier.. use them, but only in the correct context.
4. Every picture tells a story.
Photographs, graphics and images give your website "personality." Do you have good quality images? Is your logo and branding material up to date and appropriate? You can purchase affordable and quality images for your website. Be very selective in your images. I personally like Stock Exchange or DreamsTime
5. Now you've got it!
After this careful consideration defining your website marketing and presence goals, you are now ready to select a web designer that will listen and respond to YOU. I take my clients vision very seriously and then through communication we come up with a smashing result!
Give me a shout so we can talk about it!
2/6/07
VISTA
I just purchased a new computer (long over due) and am getting acquainted with "her" and the new VISTA os. So far, I like VISTA... it is sleek, more convenient, even friendlier and snazzier to look at! As for my new computer? Well, the online world is a prettier place with a 19" wide screen, and FAST is always a good thing!
This will allow me to do twice the research, studying, and web productivity in half the time!
LULU on steroids... *smiles*
How did the human race function pre-computer technology? Isn't it wonderful that that will never be a concern again.
On live technology!
This will allow me to do twice the research, studying, and web productivity in half the time!
LULU on steroids... *smiles*
How did the human race function pre-computer technology? Isn't it wonderful that that will never be a concern again.
On live technology!
1/31/07
New Web site Launch!
Just launched a very nice and informative web site today for a local (manatee/sarasota) arts council. The design elements are based upon our local artist Herbie Rose. The site was a re-design project that needed a whole new look and feel to better convey the Art Council of Manatee County's vision.
Another enjoyable web site to create - great people to work with! Gathering and collaberating ideas for their new look was easy and straight forward. I feel this design will be very benificial for their web audience.
Have a look!
www.manateearts.org
Another enjoyable web site to create - great people to work with! Gathering and collaberating ideas for their new look was easy and straight forward. I feel this design will be very benificial for their web audience.
Have a look!
www.manateearts.org
1/14/07
Finished Web Design!
I finally finished a long - but completely joyous web design. This is a lovely site for a very nice and intelligent man! The web site is a weight loss hypnosis program primarily marketed to women with rich images, CSS and eccomerce. I am very happy with the results!
This web design was wonderful to do because my client did his homework! He new exactly what he wanted to portray, his target market - women - and had all the materials needed for me to work with. We had excellent communication skills the entire time! I can not emphasis enough how important planning, communication and being prepared is when designing your web marketing presence.
I built the site to be search engine optimization ready... now, I am BUSY doing the ongoing & continual SEO project!!
Check out then new web design!
The Weight Loss Mindest
This web design was wonderful to do because my client did his homework! He new exactly what he wanted to portray, his target market - women - and had all the materials needed for me to work with. We had excellent communication skills the entire time! I can not emphasis enough how important planning, communication and being prepared is when designing your web marketing presence.
I built the site to be search engine optimization ready... now, I am BUSY doing the ongoing & continual SEO project!!
Check out then new web design!
The Weight Loss Mindest
Web Design Ethics
I have had the pleasure of designing websites for some awesome clients. I feel a bond with every client I design a website for.. or should I say with? You see, as they say, it takes two to tango. Great ideas and communication go along way. When I design a website I think of the whole picture and the broad spectrum. I want to really get inside your head and capture your vision of what you want to portray. From the very beginning, I have the after effects of the web design in mind... I truly want it to be as visible as possible to the intended audience. I want the website to succeed! A beautiful and functional design that adheres to web standards is only the beginning. The next mission is to make sure that the search engine optimization is excellent. Then the search engine marketing comes into play. I want your web visitors to love your website, linger and like being there. That involves giving the web guest a reason to want to stay, and a reason to come back! Ultimately, our goal is to create a reaction.
LuLu
LuLu
Search Engine Optimization
I am working on 2 new SEO clients, both Sarasota FL REALTORS. It is an interesting challenge as they both have the same target market, and both have very similar, almost the same web designs, that were designed by a rather shady web design firm here in Sarasota. It upsets me when web design firms sell a website to a client as a "custom website," then turn around and sell it out as a template. Bad web design business ethics and very unfair to clients.
This makes my search engine optimization job more difficult, but an interesting challenge. I am in the process of re-designing both websites to eliminate duplicate content, which destroys SEO efforts. Adding a real estate blog to one for fresh content, and going through word by word and optimizing. The websites also had a bunch of un-needed tables..yuck..tables, so I converted to CSS coding, which will also boost my SEO.
Keep it clean
Keep it fresh
Keep it relevant
3 SEO rules!
LuLu
This makes my search engine optimization job more difficult, but an interesting challenge. I am in the process of re-designing both websites to eliminate duplicate content, which destroys SEO efforts. Adding a real estate blog to one for fresh content, and going through word by word and optimizing. The websites also had a bunch of un-needed tables..yuck..tables, so I converted to CSS coding, which will also boost my SEO.
Keep it clean
Keep it fresh
Keep it relevant
3 SEO rules!
LuLu
Women
When I design websites for women clients, or clients that market with "women" as their focus audience, I like to include design elements that are statistically more pleasing to women. Brighter and more complex colors, softer lines and edges, and images that are attractive and bold. Women also like to have their web content text more casual and directed to them, not "at them." Women tend to favor clean spaces that are easy to look at... less clutter.
Just using these few simple factors will produce a website that will be more effective in your web marketing campaign for women.
Just using these few simple factors will produce a website that will be more effective in your web marketing campaign for women.
Seo
I have been fortunate enough to get two new accounts for web design and SEO for women retailing children's clothing! Both web sites will be ecommerce with coldfusion programming.
Just finished doing the search engine optimization for a medical supply company.
Finishing up the web design and SEO for an excelent weight loss and healthy lifestyle hypnosis program. The web design worked beautifully.
Tips and points for those needing a website to assist the webdesigner:
Do your research - look at websites that you really like, decide on web design elements that are important to you.
Understand your target market and write web content that is compelling, factual and keyword rich.
Have your images/photos ready and in a high resolution for the designer.
Make sure you submit all your web elements in a timely fashion.
COMMUNICATE! :)
Being prepared ensures a great web design that will optimize for the search engines!
Just finished doing the search engine optimization for a medical supply company.
Finishing up the web design and SEO for an excelent weight loss and healthy lifestyle hypnosis program. The web design worked beautifully.
Tips and points for those needing a website to assist the webdesigner:
Do your research - look at websites that you really like, decide on web design elements that are important to you.
Understand your target market and write web content that is compelling, factual and keyword rich.
Have your images/photos ready and in a high resolution for the designer.
Make sure you submit all your web elements in a timely fashion.
COMMUNICATE! :)
Being prepared ensures a great web design that will optimize for the search engines!
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