Shiny Magic

10 Tips On Choosing Web Design Templates

September 1, 2017September 21, 2017

Are you excited to create your own website? Well, there are plenty of website builders on the internet that are free and are easy to use. They also come with unique templates and framework that match your taste.

The design of your website is a crucial element that attracts customers. Here are 10 tips to consider in choosing web design templates:

Website Field Match

The template should match your field or industry. Website builders appropriate templates for specific fields like food and restaurant, photography, travel, lifestyle, fitness and more. If you are confused, you can choose more generic templates that are still professional-looking.

Valid HTML and CSS

It’s important that you are aware of the coding of templates. You must test the validity of the codes and check if there are less to zero errors. There are sites that offer free markup validation service like this one. Moreover, most website builders provide a live preview of templates so you can easily check the validity.

Easy Customization

Choose a template that is easy to customize. There are website builders that have drag-and-drop editors. Make sure that the interface of the editor can be easily understood. Make sure that the template can easily be modified or changed once your website goes live.

Aesthetic Design

Look at the design as a whole. Check if everything goes in place. Make sure that there is balance, harmony and rhythm in the templates. Check the placement and sizes of certain portions, tools, and features. The website shall look beautiful in general.

Appropriate Color Scheme

Of course, part of the website’s aesthetics is the color scheme. Choose colors that match your field and the personality of the website. The color matching should be fitting, as it is one of the elements that customers notice. Choose colors that are not too bright or check out proper color combinations.

Right Visual Language

The ideal template should have display interface, fonts, icons and stock images that fit your field. Your visual language is your abstract connection to readers. Readers should be comfortable looking at your website.

Content Friendly

Most websites contain content, like blog posts to provide information for readers. Choose the templates that include a smarter layout for your content, especially for complex and informative websites. For more static content, choose simple templates.

Compatibility

Your beautifully-designed website will be useless if it will be distorted in other devices. It is important that you test your websites in various devices and web browsers. Open it in smartphones, both Android and iOS devices. Make sure that the style and functions remain the same in various environments.

Responsive Design

The website shall be user-friendly. It shall be responsive and fast loading. Users shall also have easy access to the website’s content. If your website is not responsive, most likely users will exit your site.

SEO-Oriented

Lastly, make sure that your website builder is SEO-oriented. There are free website builders that cover search engine optimization. This allows your website to perform well in search results ranking, keeping your online presence and visibility.

The Best Free Website Builders of 2017

June 20, 2017September 21, 2017

Most of the people online are into creating a platform that will showcase their likes, interest, and hobbies. Through the Internet, they explore blogging or social media, for example. For businesses and official groups and organizations, they take advantage of websites as a digital avenue for them to highlight their products, services, their brand or company.

Creating a website is made easy now. In case you do not know how to code and build a website, there are free website builders available on the web.

Wix

“Create Your Own Beautiful Website.” Wix is a popular free website builder that is very easy to use. It has advanced drag-and-drop site editor and thousands of website templates to choose from.

WordPress

According to WordPress, they power “28% of the internet.” WordPress is ideal for online blogs and shops, static sites and portfolios. WordPress also has another version that has beautiful designs and more powerful features.

CoffeeCup

CoffeeCUp is a free HTML editor that does not use a content management system (CMS). It has a responsive layout maker that allows editors to split screen and preview website output easily.

Joomla

Joomla is very popular in the CMS world. It has a web app and software that allow you to build and host sites. Joomla also features thousands of free extensions and templates that are customizable.

SITE123

SITE123 makes website building as easy as 1-2-3. You begin by selecting a general format – simple or complex. Then you can basically fill in some basic information and start customizing.

Website Builder

Website Builder features more than 10,000 templates, analytic tools, and social media integration features, among others. This website builder is perfect for both amateurs and professionals.

IM Creator

IM Creator is a state-of-the-art website builder, but easy to use as it comes with built-in tools and hosting options. More than 11 million websites are built using IM creator.

SiteBuilder

SiteBuilder is another easy-to-use website builder perfect for individuals and entrepreneurs. This platform offers free web hosting and domain registration. It also allows you to make blogs, portfolio, online stores and more.

Sitey

Sitey is an HTML5 website builder that features interactive and responsive editing tools for customizing and templates and designs. According to their site, it is the most favorite website builder in the Philippines.

Weebly

Weebly also covers web hosting and domain registration, as well as web design and marketing functions. It is also very versatile as it is compatible with every device and platform. It is perfect for businesses.

Jimdo

Jimdo has creative and professional templates that can be customized. It is already integrated with e-commerce and marketing tools, best for commercial businesses. It has launched more than 20 million websites.

Ucraft

Ucraft features a block-based framework. It also has artistic customizable templates. This platform is perfect in building blogs, online stores, portfolios, and forms. It also covers web hosting and domain services.

WebNode

WebNode is perfect for beginners and professionals alike. It has a house editor that makes your website compatible with smartphone devices. More than 27 million customers worldwide are using WebNode.

Which among these free website builders do you use?

The 8 Phases of Website Design and Development

May 15, 2017September 21, 2017

The beginning of the Internet was also the birth of websites. Websites remain a very popular tool in publishing various multimedia content. Websites are used in various applications – arts, music, entertainment, businesses and so much more. The moment you opened the browser, that’s a website.

Websites come a very long way. When Sir Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web (www) in 1989, it had paved way to the first ever website – CERN, a website for the European Organization for Nuclear Research published in 1990.

Now, according to Internet Live States, there are almost 1 trillion of websites on the web. That’s huge! Of course, creating websites is not easy.

Let us take a look at the phases of web design and development:

Identify your goals

The initial stage is for you to identify and set your goals in creating the website. You should know the purpose of creating the site and who will be your target audience. Visualize what kind of content you are going to publish and what your target audience will expect on your website.

Plan the design and structure

In planning the website, you need to create a sitemap and wireframe. This includes the order and the structure of your website, and the details about the information architecture. This will guide you in the flow of designing and developing your website. You can just write the structure on a piece of paper or use available software.

Design the website

After careful planning, you can start designing and developing your website. Make sure your design fits your target audience. You can first create prototypes of design, usually in .jpeg form through graphics software.

Create Content

Of course, you need to create content for your website. Basically, it should have text from articles, blog posts, and lists. It should also have graphics and multimedia content – audio and video. Remember that your content should be interesting to attract customers.

Build the website

Now, let’s start making your website plan into a reality. There is a wide variety of web development tools to choose from – HTML, SCC, CGI, JavaScript, PHP and so much more. Essential elements like content management systems and interactive forms are implemented during this phase.

Test the website

Conduct a series of website testing to ensure that all links are working, webpages load properly and the website is error-free. Take a look at every detail on the site. Also, check its compatibility in various devices. Website testing tools include W3C Link Checker and SEO Spider.

Launch the website

You’re almost done! Launch the website. Do not expect that everything will be perfect. Just check how your website looks like for online users.

Maintain the website

Lastly, you have to make sure that you always update your website. Your website should always deliver fresh content. It’s time for you to do link checking, content maintenance and series of redesigns. Web designing is a fluid, continuous process of constant maintenance until you achieve perfection.

Have you tried creating a website?