By Alyssa Udall (@udallyss)
Eight seconds.
No, I’m not talking about bull riding or that 1994 movie with Luke Perry. I’m talking about the amount of time you have to convince visitors to your website or blog to stay visitors on your website or blog.
For blogging, this is especially important. If you want your visitors to turn into readers, and your readers to turn into regular readers, your web design needs to be user friendly and interesting. To give your blog a quick makeover today, try out some of these free Wordpress blog themes. These are just some of my favorites that I’ve come across recently. Your readers will thank you 
Business Themes
Desk Mess Theme
Coffee Desk Theme
Trendy Themes
Decayed Theme
Dark Splash Theme
Magazine Themes
Daily32 Theme
Turnout Mag Theme
Some Others
Imprezz Theme
Ahisma Theme
Another thing to remember is that clear web design can also help your site get ranked better in search engines like Google and Bing! If you are having trouble getting your blog ranked, try visiting our SEO blog to read helpful articles on how you can optimize your web page. You can also visit our free search engine submission to get your blog listed in over 100 search engines and directories!
By Robert Lockard
In Internet marketing, your website can be your first and best defense against lawsuits or it can be a huge liability. It depends on how strong your disclaimers are and how carefully you check to make sure your statements are all factual and ethical.
I bring this up because I just read an eye-opening article on InfoWeek’s website, entitled “Website disclaimers – yes, they do work.” In that piece, author Guy Burgess describes a recent case in New Zealand where an ecommerce website had given customers the wrong impression about the soundness of some of the companies it advertised.
A customer sued the website owners when he received the short end of the stick on a deal with one of the companies the website advertised. But a judge ruled in favor of the owners because they had included a provision on their website to protect themselves. The judge found the owners to be both negligent in their faulty information and protected by their admission that their site didn’t have all the information customers would want to make a final decision.
We all make mistakes, and it’s unfortunate when others are negatively affected by our errors. If we want strong relationships with our customers, we have to make sure our ecommerce websites are accurate and that our products or services are as good as we say they are.
The InfoWeek article suggests three things every website owner should do:
1. Publish a disclaimer on your website. It can be brief and it should simply suggest customers not just look at your site for credible information on whatever topic is the focus of your business.
2. Be honest. This seems like a no-brainer, but you should try to include the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth on your website. Try to make sure you information is as complete as possible and you’re leaving out important details people need to know.
3. Carefully review your website and update it when necessary. It’s hard to catch every mistake, especially as laws change and you introduce new products or services. Make an honest effort and your customers will appreciate your diligence.
This is a complete version of the post on the eHarbor Blog: “Protect yourself with a strong website disclaimer.” The photo of the zombie warning sign is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of rchurch74.
By Alyssa Udall (@udallyss)
What does your blog design tell your readers?
If you still have that generic blue and white WordPress theme that is standard on all newly created blogs, you probably won’t get the chance to say much. An unchanged, sterile design not only gives off an air of neglect, nonchalance and antiquity, but it also gives your readers no reason to stay! This is mainly because so many spam blogs out today keep generic themes like this. If your reader’s first perception of your blog is that you look like a spammer, how likely is it that they will read on to discover that are not one? However, a lack of focus in the design of your blog may also force readers to think that you are an amateur blogger and your content will be as uninteresting and unprofessional as your theme.
In short, web design for blogs should be just as much a priority as the content it offers! Why would a visitor take the time to read your blog posts when it is physically straining on their eyes, due to bright colors, lack of color, inconsistent formatting or poor layout? Poor design forces the visitor to seek more interesting content elsewhere.
It is so easy to fix this problem! There are hundreds of sites out there offering a wide variety of free WordPress themes to plug-in to your blog.
One of the best free blog theme sites I’ve come across recently is ThemeFury. ThemeFury just launched dozens of high-style WordPress themes that fit every blogging niche. All in all, it’s just a simple blog-theme site. However, that simplicity is what draws me to it, for unlike most sites boasting “free” items, ThemeFury does not attack their visitors with banner ads, pop-up ads, or other annoying marketing campaigns.
Here at Submit Solution, we love to stay up-to-date on the latest news in online marketing, social media and technology. Stay tuned for more posts highlighting recent sites, products or trends that we’ve discovered! We love to share our passion for the industry. Thanks for reading!
By Britnee Nguyen
Barack Obama may not only be known for being the first African-American president of the United States, but also for his innovative presidential campaign using great design throughout it. In looking at the history of Obama’s website design, we can learn the lessons behind each design that was created. Websites need to cater to the audience at the time being and sometimes those audiences change over time; therefore, the website needs to change too.
Nov. 3, 2004: During the days when Obama was running for Illinois Senator, his website looked like this below. This is an archival shot of the website some some of the link buttons are missing. Other than that, I’d say his website is pretty average. There’s no dominating colors he’s chosen to use throughout his site and no logos. I also didn’t see any catchy phrases used. So overall, it got the job done of electing Obama as a senator, but it was probably other efforts more than his website that impressed the voters.
Feb. 6, 2007: Here’s Obama’s website wiped clean almost 2 1/2 years later. All it reports is that Obama is starting a presidential exploratory committee. I think this was wise to clean his website from his last campaign and start new. To only have a small explanation of Obama’s plans at that time was good for the time being as he prepared to go out with a bang when he started his presidential campaign. So although the website design was pretty much nothing, it worked for his purposes at the time.
Feb. 24, 2007: As Obama announced to start a presidential campaign, his website transformed into this. It has the Obama ‘08 presidential seal and has several places to click to watch “BarackTV”, news reports, upcoming events, and how to get involved. The best parts of this website is the red “donate” button they’ve created. Drawing attention to that helps guide potential donors to quickly see where to donate their money. Another great part about this website is the toolbar at the bottom that gives easy access to the user to register to vote, Facebook, Youtube, and Flickr about the website and campaign.
July 11, 2007: A few months later, the website still looked the same, but with extra features added such as more social networks were added to the bottom tool bar. “The Obama Story” is a new button on the page as well as “Obama Store”. If you notice in the picture, they are reporting on “Where We Stand” and thanking their current supporters. This website was designed this way to cater to the current supporters. After Obama had announced his campaign and people jumped on board, the website changed by providing ways for people to support more such as with Obama store items and mobile campaigning. Compared to the last website design, they were just trying to get the word out and get Obama’s stand on issues out. Now, they are thanking supporters and essentially supporting their supporters in their efforts.
Jan. 16, 2008: The final design of Obama’s website is the most consistent. It was consistent not only through the website, but also with his messages of “Hope” and “Change”. His website evolved from telling every issue he stood for and seeing if people would support him to a website with simple messages of hope and change. By this time, most of America knows who Barack Obama is and what he wants. So the website doesn’t really need to delve into that fact like it did in earlier designs. He just needed to stay consistent in his mission and goals and convey that through his design. In this campaign, (unlike his Illinois senator campaign) his innovative web and graphic design played a huge part in him winning the U.S. presidential election.
By Robert Lockard
In honor of Submit Solution’s newly redesigned website, I will talk about four Web-design strategies you can use to make your website look more pleasing and hold viewers’ attention longer. These strategies come from a blog post on the Think Vitamin Blog, entitled, “How to Make Your Web Design Stand out from the Crowd.”
The first strategy is not to be afraid of empty space in your Web design. On news sites, like CNN, you won’t find a bit of open space; all of it is taken up with headlines, graphics and numbers. That is useful for people looking to cram as much useful information as possible into a confined space. But it can feel cluttered and overwhelming on ecommerce websites that are selling products and services.
Giving viewers space to breathe can create a relaxed atmosphere on your website. We’re already bombarded with information, so it is refreshing to find a website with some elbowroom.
This goes along with the second strategy, which is to try something new. If you always follow current trends, you will wind up looking like everyone else. Try something different, flex your HTML muscles and show off your creativity. It’s your Web design – have fun with it!
The third strategy is to carefully choose your site’s colors and images. These have a big effect on the overall look and feel of your website. Make sure they are interesting to look at and that they show your clients what to expect from your company. Creativity comes into play in this one, as well.
The fourth strategy is to pay attention to the little details that can turn a good website into a great one. Give visitors a reason to come back often and reward them with a bit of wit and style they won’t find anywhere else. Make sure your site is free of grammatical errors as best as you can, and be sure to put your best foot forward at all times.
Follow these steps and you’ll be well on your way to making something special out of your website. Remember that having a great website doesn’t mean customers will be able to find it. You’ll have to invest in search engine optimization, paid-search campaigns and more to help that happen. You can find SEO and PPC strategies in Submit Solution’s SEO and PPC blogs.
This is the full version of a blog entry on the eHarbor Blog, entitled, “Simple is better in Web design.” The photo of the spider web is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of dann solo.
By Britnee Nguyen
The layout of your website plays a vital role for those who visit it. If it’s cluttered, hard to navigate, or just isn’t pleasing to look at, then your viewers will not bother to look around the rest of your website to see what it offers.
There are some quick, easy guidelines you can follow when designing your website. Many free wordpress themes follow these guidelines, and if you’re making your own design, you can follow them too.
Don’t Be Scared of White Space: Look through any magazine and you’ll see how things are laid out nicely and the use of white space is apparent. White space makes for a cleaner look. White space is good, there’s no need to cram all of your information, pictures, graphics into one area.
Make it Easy to Navigate: Navigation should be consistent throughout your website. If your navigation bar is at the top on your homepage, make sure it’s the same on all your other pages so your users know where to look to find what they’re looking for. Consider adding in a search box to make it even easier to find stuff for users.
Don’t Use Large Files or Graphics: When you put large files or graphics on your site, it can take some users forever to upload the images. This increases download time, and frankly, internet users are not patient and will not wait. Be sure you use average-sized files that will work for all your visitors.
Use a Normal Font; it’s Hard to Read Fancy Ones: Use a simple font so it is easy to read on a computer screen; also, use a simple color like black. Keep the same font through out your website to maintain consistency.
Don’t Go Crazy With The Colors: Come up with a color scheme to use through out your website. It should convey your brand and is pleasing to the eye on the computer. Don’t use too many colors, or else that will create a chaos look on your website.
Follow the above guidelines for simple website designing. If you want a professional web designer to do more amazing things to it, visit Submit Solution where website design is one of our specialties.
Flickr Photo Credit: yellowbrother
By Britnee Nguyen
“Never judge a book by its cover” is nearly impossible when it comes to making first impressions of a website. In fact, researchers in Canada did a study in 2006 which showed participants making a judgment within 50 milliseconds of viewing a website. This means accurate judgments were being made as quickly as the eye could take in the information.
Participants were shown only glimpses of utah websites for 50 milliseconds and then asked to rate the aesthetic appeal of it. They found that many of the quickly-made opinions were the same as those who analyzed the website at a longer time. Participants judged each website according to several characteristics such as the interest level, design, color, layout, and imaginative content.
Many aspects are important when dealing with utah website design. A site may have a great layout, but lack in good colors and designs, therefore, loses the viewer’s interest quickly. When the qualities of design, color, layout, and content are integrated, then your website will be more pleasing to the eye and come across as imaginative and interesting. The viewer will more likely stay on the website longer and explore the information in depth.
Remember that website design is important for first impressions. The study noticed a “halo effect” created when a viewer came across a good website design. People want to be right about their first impressions and look for things to validate their impression. So if a viewer came across a website and had an initial reaction that it was good, it will lead them to believe the rest of the website is good and they will use more of it.
Keep this in mind as you create and update your website. You may think design is not an important factor and that your service or product is so great that it will sell itself without the help of a good website. But if you don’t have a good website, the viewer will tend to think whatever is offered on there isn’t that good either. Don’t make this mistake, and make the most out of your website.
By Robert Lockard
The new Submit Solution website is quite amazing, isn’t it? Be sure to take a look at all the great Web design, SEO and other services we provide right here.
In fact, Submit Solution’s new website is so cool that we actually held a launch party in its honor on Monday, September 21, 2009. Alyssa Udall and Britnee Nguyen, the other two writers on the four ecommerce blogs on Submit Solution, and I planned a company-wide get-together in which we enjoyed refreshments and gave out prizes. The refreshments were made up of drinks, as well as orange and white donuts, which were shaped like the new Submit Solution logo. See for yourself below.
That S-shaped group of donuts was one of my favorite parts of the celebration. After that, we held a fun scavenger hunt. Employees had to search the Submit Solution website for clues to lead them to prizes cleverly hidden throughout our eHarbor, Inc. office. We hid clues on Submitsolution.com in the site’s blog tags, image titles and in the text of Web pages.
The prizes people could win by finding and unscrambling the clues included toys, candy bars, eHarbor mugs and Bigler Bucks, which we affectionately named for Oliver Bigler, the CEO and cofounder of eHarbor, Inc. We use Bigler Bucks to buy company products, like pens, mugs and shirts. Our employees enjoyed this friendly competition. Most of them are used to playing foosball, so this scavenger hunt was quite tame in comparison.
You can read more about this website’s great features in my blog entry, “Submit Solution launches updated website with new design features.”
By Robert Lockard
Do you feel lost when it comes to Web design? You don’t need to be an expert on HTML, Ruby or other programming languages to end up with an effective design for your ecommerce website. You can use Submit Solution’s custom-design services to handle the actual design part.
But there are four steps you can take before you go to the experts to make sure your site does precisely what you want it to. These steps come from an Examiner article entitled, “Website design starter plan for clients.” That article has horrible spelling and grammar, but it has a few good ideas I want to share, so I’ll cut its author a little slack.
Anyway, here are the four steps you should take before requesting help from a Web designer:
1. Look at what your competitors are doing. Plagiarism is illegal, but finding good practices and Web-design ideas is perfectly legal. This will give you a good starting point to see which elements of a website you would like to use in your own. Try to stick to general ideas, such as navigation, structure and what subjects are covered in the text.
2. Once you have an idea of what others are doing, start mapping out your website’s outline. Start with the main pages, such as home, services, products, about us, etc. Then add subpages under the main pages to build on more specific topics. Fill in as much detail as you can about what information and messages you want those pages to contain. This will help the designers be more precise in meeting your needs.
3. Write down other tools you want to include in your website. If you want to add tutorials or other videos to your site, you should mention that you’ll need a media player in your site outline. Depending on your needs, you might consider adding any number of specialized tools to your site, such as forums, blogs, audio, etc. Make sure whatever you add actually helps visitors and doesn’t distract from your site’s overall theme.
4. Create an overall theme for your website. This includes color schemes, logo, content placement and more. Like a wedding, a website needs to have its colors chosen ahead of time to make sure everything matches and works well together. Having a strong logo is a good starting point in creating your design and, once again, Submit Solution’s logo-design services can come in handy.
When you’re armed with research and a plan, you can confidently approach a designer to begin building your website. Some of your plans might have to wait because of budget concerns or other reasons, but you will definitely have a much stronger final product than if you went into the design process with no preparation.
This is a complete version of the post on the eHarbor Blog: “What to do before you hire a Web designer.” The photo of the blue dog is from Flickr, and it is the copyright of lepiaf.geo.
By Robert Lockard
In case you haven’t noticed, Submit Solution just released an advanced new version of its website, submitsolution.com. Doesn’t it look great? The updated site now includes two new services – custom Web and logo design – as well as four ecommerce blogs and free search-engine submission, in addition to its search engine optimization and paid-search packages.
Submit Solution is already an expert at getting qualified traffic to clients’ websites via SEO and PPC campaigns. By adding custom website design and logo design to its services, Submit Solution can now help turn a higher number of site visitors into customers.
Submitsolution.com has a more user-friendly design, allowing visitors to quickly navigate its Web pages. The site boasts free search-engine submission, as well as four new blogs focusing on SEO, PPC, social media and Web design, respectively. It also provides additional Internet-marketing tools, definitions of ecommerce terms and FAQs to help newcomers learn the ins and outs of Internet marketing.
“The new Submit Solution website helps potential clients understand both the intricacies of a successful search-engine marketing plan and what we can do to help,” said Oliver Bigler, chief executive officer and founder of Submit Solution. “Internet newbies can often be drowned in a sea of conflicting information. Our website helps clients navigate their way toward information and services that fit their needs best.”
For 14 years, Submit Solution has worked in the Internet-marketing industry. Its SEO packages were recently updated to add social-media posting and inbound linking to its traditional tactics of optimizing site content, such as adding Meta tags. Other new or improved services include:
- Website design
- Logo design
- Paid-search advertising
- Competitive analysis
- Website consulting
This launch of Submit Solution’s new website makes this the second week in a row in which we’ve introduced an innovative product or service. Be sure to check out my blog entry on Magellan Commerce’s new online merchant service: “Magellan Commerce offers low-cost ecommerce and merchant services.”
