Archive for Project Files
Is Your First Draft Your Best Draft?
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Back when I was in high school I always did better on tests if I just went with the first answer that came to my head. If I over thought my answers, I would invariably screw something up.
I am in the process of working on a new client project and part of the requirement was that I produce three different mock ups (yes, I am being compensated for all three designs) from which the client could pick their favorite aspects.
I did a handful of pencil sketches (David Airey would be proud of me) and then set out to work. I had been given some general guidelines of what they were looking for, but nothing too concrete.
Needless to say, I loved the first concept. Coming up with two other design concepts became much more challenging. I did manage to come up with the other mock ups, but I just didn’t like either one nearly as much.
We had a meeting with the client today to review all the concepts. Guess which one they liked best? The first one I did – with a few minor tweaks.
I am still glad I did all three versions because it gave me an even better feel for what elements the client is very passionate about (positive or negative).
How about you? Are you like me – a go with your gut kind of gal? Or are you a big time brainstormer, edit, re-edit, review, re-edit kind of a person?
HTML 101 to WordPress Transformation
Posted by: | CommentsI am an HTML 101 baby. I learned to code when the Internet was young and frames were cool. Then came tables, slicing images, and rollovers. About two years ago I started working with CSS and PHP. Wow! Making site wide changes became more efficient and I suddenly had to learn a lot of new stuff. I also started working with content management interfaces and WordPress has quickly become my favorite – not just for blogging either – for building interactive, content rich web sites.
This weekend I decided it was time to take one of my old sites, Printables for Kids, that I created and maintain for fun and move it from an HTML 101 format to WordPress. Now I just want to know why I didn’t do this sooner?
Let’s take a look at the transformation. Below is the screen shot of the before – the HTML, table structured, basic site with a PR of 3 and decent traffic:
Nice. Simple. But a PAIN to update.
I decided to use the Blue Zinfandel WordPress theme by Brian Gardner as my base.
I started by going through the CSS style sheet section at a time and making my customizations. I added the header and then reviewed. Then I set the colors and reviewed. I took each piece individually and tweaked it until I got the same general look and feel as the original site, but with all the WordPress power. (Thanks Randa for your tips along the way.)
And the final product:
The site is now much easier to update and I can leverage the power of Technorati, MyBlogLog, blog carnivals, memes, and other blogging tools to increase the traffic to the site.
And if you have kids (and even if you don’t), go road test it for me and tell me what needs to be tweaked.
Project File: Score One For The Blogosphere
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A little background first
One of my inspirations for blogging was V-grrrl, a former business associate who now lives in Belgium. V-grrrl has a true gift when it comes to writing, whether for business or pleasure. Her daily accounts of life in Belgium and life in general will make you laugh, cry and think. She has a way of making every day words come to life – even in the business arena. She wrote the great copy at my main website, Keystrokes Design & Marketing.
When V emailed me about a blogging photographer she met, Di Mackey, and how Di needed some web site design, I was definitely interested.
Taking a different approach
Usually when clients approach me with a web site request, I design the layout, navigation and all the back end for them. Di had something different in mind. She had seen a website template specifically for photography sites at AllWebCo and knew that was what she wanted. I had never worked with a pre-made template before (other than my WordPress templates) and was surprised at how easy it was.
Teamwork and the end result
V-grrl wrote Di’s copy. I created the logo, cropped and placed images, and did the back end tweaking. And now that Di has got the photo part down, she maintains it. The result is a professional looking gallery for Di to showcase her talent and grow her business.
One of my favorite aspects of working on the Internet is being able to meet and work with people from all over the globe, without ever having to meet face to face. And if you are wondering whether blogging can pay off for your business or not, a big resounding YES, IT CAN comes from my desktop.
Happy Friday!
