On Microsites

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Posted by admin on August 21, 2010 – 1:57 pm
Filed under Coding/Web Design

This post should have come out a month ago, but I’ve been intensely busy with work and other events, so here it is now.

Let’s talk about Microsites, and why you should have one.

Ugly Car, Great Site

Microsites are exactly what they sound like: a short and sweet collection of information that has everything you need to know on one page. Think of it as a digital resume, without the flashy content or twitter add-ons. On their screen, without even so much as to blink, a potential client knows everything about your business. It’s the quickest, most efficient relay of information.

Unfortunately, designers and users alike have lost touch with the concept of Microsites. With the dawn of Flash integration on sites, fancy jquery scripts, and “jpeg sites”, most Microsites are large, cumbersome beasts which end up being confusing to to navigate. Because of this, it’s hard to find one of these sites, let alone appreciate one.

An example of one would be www.shaveeverywhere.com.

Shaving. Something I have to do every day.

The Pros: It looks good.

The Cons: Pretty much everything else. New pages open inside the window but over the content, which could be pretty confusing for visually impaired users. Sure, it’s designed for a 1024 x 768 + screen, but anyone with less (or with mobile browsing) could be thrown off. Oh, did I mention it relies on Flash elements?

That being said, I think a well designed, well written “one-hit-wonder” is a great solution. But, I think more importantly, they should be designed in such a way that they are pleasing to the client in every way, shape, and form. And, the greatest way to please a client is not with good looks, but with accessibility.

Enter, Thy Beloved and Minuscule Creation!

Shades of gray with red highlights, just the way I like it.

The Cons: Currently it’s lacking some portfolio images and a contact form (I haven’t gotten around to that, sue me). I never got around to really “designing” it.

The Pros: Pretty much everything else. Regardless if you’re on your phone, your 1998 CRT, your sleek HD 1900×1200 screen, or your iPad (lol!), you’ll never be at a loss of what you see. All your questions are answered right away, and as a firm believer of copy-writing being the strongest form of design, simply listing examples (and linking to)  your accomplishments would be enough to intrigue any user.

This baby was made with complete accessibility. So it’ll appear the same on IE6 as it will on Firefox 4. It also adheres to  Section 508 accessibility checkpoints, which guarantees that users with visual impairment that this site is not going to be a nightmare like the rest. In terms of speed this site loads in 4 seconds on Dial-Up. That alone is convincing enough for a user to decide whose services to employ.

Speed. Reliability. Accessibility. With a properly made Microsite, there’s no room for error. With some visual touch-ups, I know that this small, seemingly meek page could provide a powerful punch against the competition. Mobile users, renderers and emulators for accessibility-needing clients, and other unique media-viewing tools can finally rest their eyes on a website: Mine.

Haters gonna hate.

Of course, now you’re all jealous.  Don’t worry, I’m ultimately here for you guys, so here’s some tips for when you create your very own Microsite.

  • Use a text-based template (at first). That way, when you do insert images and other visual elements, you’ll have something to fall back on if you realized the site now takes 10 times as long to load, or doesn’t show right for some forms of media.
  • Proofread said text. I cannot stress enough that strong copy-writing makes a strong site.
  • Try to have everything visible on one page. There’s nothing wrong with having additional pages (say, more info, view all portfolio pieces, FAQ, etc), but having 60-80% of all your information on one page will be enough for most users.
  • Get this Speed Emulator. With it you can manually slow down your connection to see how long it takes for a page to load. Use it on your current site for terrible results.
  • Go visit Cynthia. There’s a list of checkpoints to improve accessibility. It isn’t perfect, but it’s one of a few credible out there.
  • Visit W3.org and check out all their tools. Aside from their more famous validator, they offer a whole slew of tools that can really broaden your perspective.
  • Vischeck for the color-impaired. Here you can see how images and your site alike show for certain users (such as myself). It can even “fix” images to be optimized for these users.

And now you know.

I’ll end this with saying that I lied. My Microsite is far away from completion and being perfectly accessible as I make it out to be. I have very little time to work on my own things with an 8-5 web development job, but I do plan on completing it eventually.

So I challenge all you designers out there to come up with your very own Microsite before I get around to implementing mine. Go for it!

9 Useful Website Checklists

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Posted by admin on July 4, 2010 – 7:17 pm
Filed under Coding/Web Design

Whether or not you’re a graphic designer, web developer, company manager, or another body involved in the process of publishing content to the web, there exists certain key points in the project, known as milestones.

As both a freelancer and an employee with only a few years of experience under my belt, the quality of my work needs to be impressive. I can’t afford forget a single alt tag, can’t afford to skimp on SEO content, and certainly can’t afford to forget to include my client’s specific color scheme in every element of the overall design. In most cases, neither can you.

So what’s the best way to cope? Checklists. You can always fall back on these babies when the situation gets tough and re-orient yourself with ease.

Here’s 9 or so of these checklists here. Although most of these are related to website design, some of them apply to graphic design, content management, and other important parts of the process.

1. Launchlist

Recommended for: Web designers, web developers.

Launchlist is possibly the most interactive and customizable checklist we have yet to see. It’s all very direct, and easy to use. Plug in your name, the project name, the site’s url, and start scrolling down to the 28 default milestones, which you simply “switch” to YES once the milestone has been reached. Launchlist focuses generally on copywriting, SEO and browser-optimization goals, with some advanced code validation (javascript, form-based php). Once all 28 elements have been completed, a green light pops up and you’re free to send a detailed report to up to three recipients.

Not satisfied?  You can include comments with each milestone or cancel them out completely if its not pertinent to your job. Oh, and you can add up to ten of your own unique milestones. Sweet.

2. Terry Morris’s Web Design Best Practices Checklist

Recommended for: Web designers, graphic designers.

A little more of a standard list than Launchlist, this checklist is unique because of its focus on the graphic and color elements of the site. It’s a friendly reminder to web workers out there that graphic design still plays a strong role on any website, and one shouldn’t overlook the basics of design (such as good background/text contrast, use of less than 3-4 colors, etc).

This list also takes a look at several accessibility goals, and reminds us of the small things such as the use of textual links, and specifying the pages language with xml:lang.

3. Vision4Dezign Comprehensive Checklist

Recommended for: Market managers, company representatives, web & graphic designers.

In some cases, a checklist should be filled out by the client rather than the company, in order to best assess his/her needs. Some people call this a project spec. sheet, some call it a comprehensive review, and some, such as Vision4Dezign, call it what it really is. This checklist, filled out by the client (and hopefully audited by a company representative for optimal results) to tell the company the fine details of the job, such as the target audience, marketing plans, what graphics are to be used, etc. With such an emphasis on the marketing aspect of things, we are reminded that a website is simply an advertising tool which needs to generate leads and end up giving money to the client.

Using a checklist like this is effective for the company, as this list can be brought to every employee to review over a coffee break, or simplify the life of an already-overworked freelancer.

4. Soh Tanaka’s CSS Bugs and Debugging Checklist

Recommended for: Web designers

In comparasion to the other checklists mentioned, this one is short, sweet, and focuses on CSS debugging rather than the whole project itself. Although most of this is old news to the design guru, some of these problems frequently get overlooked even by experienced designers. I am sure half my graduating class at the time didn’t know at the time that a CSS class can’t start with a number, and they’ve since  integrated into the field with ease.

Even in its simplicity, Tanaka’s list could save a beginner or intermediate coder hours of frustration. Used with Firebug, a CSS problem can be found and cured within the minute.

5. Maxdesign Web Standards Checklist

Recommended for: Web designers, web developers.

True to its name, Maxdesign’s checklist deals with practically every aspect of  web standards and quality. Though long and intimidating, this checklist brings forth some interesting points which could be easily overlooked. When was the last time you checked the speed of the website? How about how it’s usability in the mobile world? Can the CSS be turned off without completely destroying the site? These things should always be looked at when making a medium to large sized project.

What’s special about this checklist is that each “milestone” has detailed information and even a few links to help you out per section. Those guys at Maxdesign deserve a genuine round of applause.

6.  TGOden Webdesign Usability Checklist

Recommended for: Graphic & web designers, web developers, copywriters.

The Great One, the self-title imposed by The Great One’s Design team, holds possession of a (by-now) very familiar looking design checklist. What this checklist has that most don’t is an emphasis on actual content styling.  Designers tend to overlook “text” guidelines in their designs, such as the use of serif/sans-serif fonts when appropriate, or having less than 78  characters per line, or setting the leading and tracking to improve legibility of the page.

There’s also a few points on navigation elements which are equally as useful. A definite recommendation to any designer checklist.

7. Web Pages That Suck (Website Redesign Checklist)

Recommended for: Project managers, web & graphic designers.

Possibly one of the most intensive checklists out there, this 149 point list is only one of two available for viewing courtesy of WPTS. As unconventional as the language here might seem, they provide the ultimate array of problems that cover all aspects of the project, such as design, coding, and overall organization of things.  With some overkill examples of these blunders provided, these mistakes are of the worst kind and can easily show up in any project.

This checklist is recommended to the project manager, the reason being is that with every other employee focused on their specific role, the big picture can end up being skewered and lost in the final revision; With this list a manager can easily identify potential problems with the site and correct them before they “slip through the cracks”.

8. Webconfs’ 15 Minute SEO List

Recommended for: Marketing managers, web designers.

This checklist is all about SEO. Yes, there are plenty of SEO checklists in the webwater, but nowhere near as advanced as WebConfs. Here, every little detail, every plus and faux-pas is explored in detail, with a simple grading system attached to each element to show its importance in the overall scheme of things.  A definite must for any designer or even marketer looking to get leads and results for their client.

What’s also pretty cool about this one is that Webconf’s list includes things which don’t affect SEO, dispelling many myths and overall educating you on the matter.

9.  Internet Evangelists Day (Church Website Design)

Recommended for: Copywriters, project managers,  web designers.

Yes, this checklist is optimized for the production and management of church and religious-based websites. Deal with it. However, this list in the hands of a smart project manager can be easily converted to work effectively for any community or volunteer organization website. This list deals with presentation over technicality, such as positioning the most important elements in the first 1024 x 768 px frame for screen optimization, the little need for splash pages, the speed in relation to dial-up, etc. These elements are graded based on an overall score, which is an effective way of letting you know how you’re project’s coming along.

What they focus on especially is the copywriting aspect of the project. Having done work for a few volunteer organizations myself, these groups use slogans, mission statements, and volunteer forms, all which must be written effectively to appeal to their community. This list shows you how.

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Keep in mind these useful milestones when making your own checklist. They can help you stay organized, save you hours of work, and make your website delivery more satisfying.

Some changes

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Posted by admin on June 2, 2010 – 6:58 pm
Filed under Coding/Web Design, Contracts/Questions, Newsfeed

Hey all,

So a few changes have happened around at Fame Designs. Most of them are pretty obvious to notice, such as a general design update to both the site and the blog. Personally, I find they’re a little more web 2.0 and they’re more ascetically pleasing.

For those smart cookies who found that I was using transparency .pngs and cried out about IE6 usability, fear not: users with an IE6 client or emulator will be redirected to a “web-safe” version of the site, which is essentially the previous layout I had designed. I find that redirecting with a meta-tag or javascript is an effective way to increase the boundaries of design rather than have one design that MUST cater to users who have yet to click the “update” button for their browser.

A few smaller changes include an update to my CV, a few more recent portfolio pieces, and my (FINALLY) Project Specification Sheet which will be useful in helping me find out what detailed services you require from Fame Designs.

The most influential change to the company and to my individual person is that I am now a full time employee working for website developer Geoff Brown. I’ll be working with Drupal and other CMS to make stunning websites. While this may affect my availability to take  several contracts at once, I will still take a few to increase my own portfolio and client base on the side. From what I gather, Geoff understands this and appreciates my loyalty to my own company, and so it will continue to function as expected in the meantime.

So, like every good post, there should be some reward for you for reading this far, like actual world news. Here goes:

So that’s all for now. You’ll be hearing from me soon,

Jeremy

From Vancouver, with love

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Posted by admin on May 16, 2010 – 9:37 pm
Filed under Newsfeed

Hey all!

So I’m writing this from across Canada. For those who don’t know, I am currently on my last leg of my academic stage for John Abbott College. The stage is being done with Kevin Shum-lok, who is the person running Half2Design. We’re working for That’s My Ball, a golf ball design and printing company.

Although the work does sometimes vary, for the most part I’ve done alot of database and css work. Kevin and I pretty much translated the site (including the pictures, alt tags, product information, etc) in under three days.

Currently we’re building an e-commerce site using a CMS and it should be completely ready within the next few days.

I asked to be forgiven for the lack of updates on my site. I know things have gotten a little static, but fear not, for when I return from Vancouver and my personal trip (don’t ask where) in first few weeks of June, I will have some design work to upload from my previous semester as well as a wave of new work, thanks to a wave of clients that I will be doing things between now and fall. I have something akin to 5-6 contracts lined up which I hope to get done before fall, as well as a possible job opportunity as a web technician/designer someplace in Laval.

I went to Emily Carr’s graduating Communications Design Exhibition, which is currently being held on Granville Island in Vancouver, and I urge anyone who can look them up to do so. You will learn something, be you designer or client. I know I did.

I also wanted the chance to thank both my school and my community for most of these clients. I got many through teachers and peers, and I wanted to thank them for the opportunities that you have given me.

Ultimately, this post has three goals. The first is to redynamatize my website, as it’s been looking a little uncared for recently. The second is to proudly deliver you an update on the future of both Fame Designs and myself. The third, which I will go over very briefly because Kevin is demanding I put my laptop down and eat dinner, is to give back to the community.

How will I do this, by telling you some good old fashioned, gossiping advice:

The price of computers have dropped between 30-50% in price in the past few months. If you want a computer, be it desktop, laptop or notebook, go get one now.

I was checking out Futureshop downtown as well as Best Buy online. The price for a  Gateway 4gb sdram, 750gb hard-drive touchscreen is going for 800$, and although I am pressed for time, I urge you to check out retailers and online stores and get some amazing quotes on some previously untouchable systems.

That’s all, I am literally being pulled away from my computer, take care all!

Jeremy

A Post Long Overdue

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Posted by admin on March 27, 2010 – 1:25 pm
Filed under Newsfeed

Hey all,

It’s been a little over a month since Fame Designs has been updating its newsfeed, but it has not been due to lack of concern! In truth, I, along with my peers, have been working non-stop on the many school projects needed to complete my DEC. That, and several other things on the side of course:

  • So far, we’ve worked on two projects that go right into our print portfolio, a poster set and an annual report.
  • I chose to do an autism awareness campaign for these posters, as autism and the effects autism have on an individual and his/her family hit a little close to home for me. To be honest, it was quite emotional to make these posters.
  • The annual report was not a light endeavor: we created a grid, baseline, tabular info, and a design which respects the three. But to see the final product printed was comforting. Comforting, because my confidence in my print design / specification skills sky-rocketed. I actually cannot wait for a client to ask me to make one.
  • I had a new, contemporary layout made for the site. I was on the verge of implementing it, but my print portfolio got the better of me. I may upload it sometime in late April. And no, no pictures, no exact date, no warning. It’ll be a welcoming surprise, I’m sure.
  • Sometime soon I will be posting a bunch of new portfolio pieces for both web and print.  Aside from compulsory school work, I have still been working with clients such as Becoming Butterflies, volunteering print pieces to the UCIC, holding seminars and tutoring sessions for other PDHT students, and preparing for my Vancouver stage! All of these have some sort of impact on my portfolio. I also plan on taking existing entries and spicing up the graphics. And of course, the awareness posters and the annual report will be viewable there.
  • I am pleased to inform you that both AtomicBird and James Mann have updated their sites. Also, enter Half2Design, Kevin Shum-lok’s spanking new portfolio website!
  • I am aware some updates I previously promised have not gone through yet: The project sheet had some compatibility issues when tested (Mac seems to have compatibility issues with just about everything MS-Office related), but it should be uploaded along with the availability meter soon. About my secret project which I mentioned in an earlier post… I won’t divulge any secrets to the public yet.

Tuesday April 13, 2010, from 1pm – 4:30pm, in the Agora at the John Abbott, Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec.

This is the date, time, and place for PDHT’s Annual Exhibition. I will be presenting my print and web portfolio at its finest. Aside from spending your afternoon looking at some pretty awesome stuff, there will be food and drink served, as well as gummy bear shots at my own table.

Which table is mine, do you ask? You will absolutely know which one it is the moment you walk in. The Half2Design vs Fame-Designs – Vancouver 2010 Stage table. You won’t be dissapointed.

I think that’s all for now. Soon I will actually write an educational post rather than an informative one, and give you more incentive to actually read my newsfeed.

Take care all,

Jeremy

Just some thoughts

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Posted by admin on February 6, 2010 – 2:07 pm
Filed under Uncategorized

Hey all,

So I admit, this post doesn’t have much educational merit to it, it’s pretty much a composition of a few thoughts and the latest news of what’s been going on with me and the company.

Wednesday I had the chance to work on my public speaking at John Abbott’s open house. I think I was successful in inspiring interest for the program, but one particular “client” had his doubts. Says client:

“What’s the advantage of hiring someone who graduates this program when I can just buy a template and get a website up in 27 minutes?”

As aggressive as the question may be, it’s a good one. It is one that sits in the back of a designer/developer’s mind, only truly revealing itself in the middle of a panic attack. My answer, if I remember correctly, was something like this:

“A template is often limited when it comes time to edit it. True, a standard template costs between 20-80$, but the moment you realize your content / graphics aren’t compatible with it, you have to shell out money to a web designer anyways, or buy a customized template which can sell up to $1000, if your lucky.

Also, there’s no guarantee with the template that your site will work correctly in every browser and operating system, whereas a designer can promise you just that. Template(ed) sites will probably have a hard time getting picked up by Google, too.

Also, a designer designs with marketing in mind. That is the role of the designer, to not provide something that “looks good”, but to create an effective marketing strategy in which standard templates would not.”

Surprisingly, client didn’t like that answer; he walked away without saying another word. No losses here. I went home thinking about my answer and realizing just how valid it was. I ended up making peace with the fact that there are cheaper and quicker methods of establishing a website, but, like anything, the cheaper the service, the lower the quality.

Anyhow, to less serious stuff. I’ve been incredibly busy with school as well as a few small client projects. I’m still doing volunteer work on the side too, and I’m prepping for a three-week stage in Vancouver, which I’m pretty excited about. Nonetheless, its alot to do. Of course, it all in the end affects my business, and so there will be an update soon involving a few more portfolio pieces as well as a new, solid resume on the about page. I’m also of revamping my portfolio page a bit, I’ve been looking at some professional ones and I think mine’s a little amature-ish. I’m open to suggestion!

Another thing I’ve been thinking about. I met with a client recently whose website ideas bordered on advanced web design to web development and e-commerce. The ideas are actually quite intense… if only I had the knowledge how to implement them. I think its imperative as a web designer to know how to, say, implement a blog into a static site, or make a working e-commerce page. We haven’t really dealt with Content Management Systems either. It makes me feel, well, uncomfortable.

So, if anyone stumbles across any resources from which I could learn a little more about these topics, please send them my way. I’ve had a lot of trouble finding information on programs after college that involve web design / web development in the Montreal area, so if anyone has any leads, don’t hesitate to send them here either!

I think that’s all for now. Have a good weekend everyone,

Jeremy

Important for PDHT

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Posted by admin on January 15, 2010 – 6:51 pm
Filed under Uncategorized

Attention all PDHT students of all semesters.

I just came back from the PDHT Committee Meeting, which essentially discusses course outline / planning / schedule revisions and full-out changes, and votes on them. Most of these changes only come into effect Fall 2010; however there was some information for all years, especially those currently in third year of PDHT that they should absolutely pay attention to.

For the first years:

— Web Design I is now a pre-requisite to Web Design II.
— Drawing Software has replaced Digital Photo Processing as the pre-requisite to Graphic Design.

For the second years:

— Customer and Technical Support (which you would have had in the 6th semester) has been split into two classes, Client Support and Technical Support.

— Client Support is about how to interact  bilingually with clients in a number of ways. This class will be taught primarily with french client support in mind, and will be taught during the 4th semester.

— Technical Support will be dealing primarily with software (anti-viruses, faxing, photocopying, etc). This class will be taught during the 5th semester.

— Students are recommended to take gym prior to the 6th semester, either during regular school session as an additional class or through intersession.

—Scanning and Prepress is no longer a  pre-requisite to Stage; Instead, there are 3 co-requisites that must be taken during the 6th semester (Electronic Portfolio, Print Portfolio, and Integrated Project). It is undecided if French Translations and Publications will be a pre-requisite as well.

For third years:

— Students who do not pass Customer and Technical Support will instead take both Client Support and Technical Support for an additional two semesters. (DON”T FAIL CUSTOMER & TECHNICAL SUPPORT!!)

— The biggie for third years:

(For those who are taking a GenEd course during the 6th semester must talk immediately to the teacher to see if they may miss the last 3 weeks of school to take stage. Currently, the general PhysEd position is against this. However, some teachers are willing to make an exception (with makeup classes, condensed work during periods, etc).

If this is not possible, then the GenEd must be taken either during intersession or the semester after. A Stage-friendly gym class is being looked into, however most accelerated courses are already out of the question. If you are doing Stage outside of Quebec (France, Vancouver, Toronto, etc) then it may still be possible to take your GenEd,  as you will probably attend Stage after classes end in May. If this is the case, speak to Ginette immediately to confirm that you are going to national/international stage and to find out if you will be going in April or May.)

Other news:

— Additional French classes are to be introduced to the college for students who are weak in the French language (less than Level I). This class will precede the already-established two french classes.

— PDHT students cannot take Flash as a complementary. (They had to re-confirm it for some reason).

So I know that’s a lot to process. I will send this message out on facebook as well as post it on my blog and on your mio. If there is something that is unclear please message me and I’ll come up with an edit and a better explanation.

Please forward this message to all PDHT students who this message was not addressed to.

Take care all,

Jeremy

The Browser Market Share of 2010

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Posted by admin on January 7, 2010 – 2:39 pm
Filed under Coding/Web Design

Hey all,

With the end of possibly the most over-hyped decade of all time, many are anxious of the future. Others are also hopeful. Especially web designers who are tired with the current browser stats.

So far, how do things add up?

IE (all versions) still holds up to 64% of the market. One third of these users still use IE6, which means 21% of the world will celebrate its nine-year anniversary soon.

Firefox holds just under a quarter of the world (24.6%).  That’s something to be pretty excited about.

Considering Chrome was released less than a year and a half ago, it’s done pretty well with a 4.6%.

That recently outdid Safari’s 4.4%, which leaves me with a satisfied smirk on my face.

Finally, Opera struggles with its 2.4%.

Although that adds up to 100%, there are a few minor browsers approximates which are rather amusing. Netscape, even now, still holds a 0.32% of the world in its downwards spiral of deprecation. The Mozilla browser (not to be confused with Firefox for those non-techie readers out there) holds even less.

This is all fine and dandy, but you want to know what’s to be expected in the years to come.

Analysts are estimating that total support for IE may fall to under 50% by as early as May, and very well may be a minority browser by next year. Why?

Microsoft’s campaign to get users to upgrade ie6 has had a bit of a backfire. Those who have been convinced to upgrade more often than not head to another browser entirely. Considering that IE7 wasn’t perfect either, and that the first few editions of IE8 were a hefty failure as well, its understandable as to why some users have made the switch. Don’t forget that the clock to total IE6 shutdown is ticking.

Firefox is always on the rise, which is good. As a web designer, I don’t necessarily favor Firefox over other browsers, but it does offer many advantages which its competitors have not yet matched.

Chrome could also be a reason to Microsoft’s decline. It has one of the fasted growing rates ever seen. It also really helps that there’s a nice big link to download Chrome from Google’s homepage. Considering that Google Search is the closest thing this digital age has to a deity, that’s a pretty powerful way to advertise.

I.Could.Not.Care.Less.About.Safari. It offers no advantage to any browser, and how in the world it aces the ACID tests is an absolute mystery. Its MS variation is a pretty bad joke. Despite it being a native browser to Mac systems, hopefully market share for this browser will drop, although it seems doubtful with the increase of Apple sales that we will see the last of Safari any time soon.

Opera will probably hold its small share for some time. Personally, I don’t think that Opera is a bad browser. It has a unique interface which I’m sure many users switching from deprecated browsers may or may not like. Also, Opera Mini is holding a solid place in the mobile industry, something which IE hasn’t really looked into.

So just, to re-iterate, the next decade will hold many surprises, hopefully some great ones. With IE shares dropping at a fast rate, and Chrome’s share explosion, we may very well see a complete reversal of power, and ultimately, an entire change in how we look at and perform web design. How will middle-man Firefox respond to this change? Will Safari and Opera get lost in in the archives of the World Wide Web? How will an increase of mobile support and other devices shape overall market share? I think we’ll find out sooner than we may think.

The Value of Words in Design

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Posted by admin on December 12, 2009 – 2:38 pm
Filed under Coding/Web Design

Hey all,

So I’ve been perusing some magazines these past few days, and I’ve found a few things that turn me off not only as a designer, but as a potential consumer of a product or service.

Something that bothers me the most, more than a bad design, or bad specifications: Text. Language. What you tell the client.

Graphics and other forms of media are meant to reinforce your text, plain and simple. Words should be one’s selling point. A person can consciously or subconsciously learn about someone just by the way they write, and can just as easily associate that understanding with a service.

A direct, to the point example of what a client would think of a web designer who typde liekthis: “How can you write my code if you can’t even write a generic sentence?”

The article in question La Boutique Journal of Christmas 2009. Barring the few typos throughout the catalog and the distasteful H1N1 joke that will enrage a select few, the subject in question is on the back, the non-justified, right-aligned description of “what the heck” a Sonos actually is. With no alterations made in this retype (I guarantee it), here goes:

“Where do we begin…………..

Ok think of it as a CD player from Heaven!
It is a wireless multi-room music system that can deliver wirelessly Free Internet radio plus music from your computer it even lets you access music services like Napster so you can easily look up and listen to just about any piece of music ever recorded!the best part? It’s so simple to work by using either the sons color controller or by using an iPhone!”

Since no other element of this advertisement stands out, we can say that this description is the closest thing to a focal point. Clearly, the writer attempted to make the text personal, as if this person was casually conversing with you. This, when done right, is usually a far better approach than the mechanized concept of simply listing product specifications to sell itself.

So, why was this ineffective? Simply put, if it sounds like a fourteen year old girl’s myspace rant, people will think exactly that of the product. The minute I saw the 14 periods in the first sentence, it lost all credibility. The personal approach fails when the writer appears to not really care about the message he or she is sending.

The only, plausible reasoning to why the writer would choose to write this way is to reach out to middle-school students whose eyes generally glance over the standard approach looking for something “cool”. This is shot down by the fact that no middle-schooler has between $479-$1,199 to spend on a product that is a far cry away from mainstream media.

Here’s how I would have worded it:

“A good place to start? Imagine a CD player from the Heavens. It’s a wireless, multi-room music system that will keep your house rocking throughout the holidays. Free internet radio, wireless streaming from your computer and access to music services like Napster makes your Sonos completely unique. The best part? Control it all through your Sonos controller or your iPhone!”

This isn’t the most perfect description, but its more effective than La Boutique’s. Why?  It uses a personal tone. It answers the question of how it benefits the consumer and affiliates itself with the consumer’s needs. It’s shown as a unique product, which every Christmas shopper hopes to get for their loved ones. The use of the word “your” several times gives the client a feeling of comfort, seeing this product not as a cost but as an investment. In many ways, this paragraph has convinced you that you’ve already bought this product. You will enjoy the holidays with Sonos. You will please your loved ones with Sonos. You need Sonos. That is the message you have to get across with your writing.

Run-on sentences, bad syntax, and obvious typos will leave your credibility in the dust, regardless if your portfolio’s quality is “that of the Heavens”

Maybe it’s true that a picture is worth a thousand words. Truer still is the probability that a great sentence is probably worth a few of those same pictures.

End of Semester – What we learned.

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Posted by admin on December 9, 2009 – 5:06 pm
Filed under Newsfeed

Finally, the end of semester.

I think I speak for everyone in my program when I say that this semester was the most challenging yet. Projects on top of one another, short deadlines, rep meetings, volunteer work, and alot more that I won’t bother to bring up here. But it is the semester that I am the most appreciative of. Why?

1. It pushed my comfort zone.

As designers, we all have styles of design that we are most familiar with, and fall back on during stressful times. How many times have you been creating a design for a project or client and realized it looks annoyingly similar to something you previously created? We all have re-occuring elements in our design, whether its a font, color scheme, or layout. I’ll admit, you’ll probably find a lot of monochrome and red in my design, because I’m drawn to those colors and I feel as if they’re more malleable.

However, the mission of the designer is to accurately portray the client’s message. If every site and logo I did had red, black, and white elements, would I make for a successful corporate designer? Probably not. When I update my portfolio with my latest work, I think you’ll see how I’ve increased my understanding of harmony between psychology and design.

2. It made me more aware of what my abilities and strengths are.

Especially in terms of graphic design. Advanced graphics were never my forte, so when I first saw the course outline for Graphic Studio, I was a little dubious of my own abilities. At first was a design banner, not much of a problem. Then it was a 3D environment, something I had never done before, which ended up not looking half bad. Then it was the 40 hour car trace, a project which I had never, ever had seen myself doing in my life, which at the end of it all turned out…not half bad. Finally, a little less terrifying but still a theme unfamiliar to me was an antique book jacket for the novel “The Picture of Dorian Gray”. For a designer who primarily involves himself with web design, these were challenging hurdles that I feel that I have overcome, and as a result I feel more comfortable in my skills.

Many of my peers have felt this same way, with web or packaging design. Either way, I feel that I have discovered a little more about my abilities and I am more confident as a designer that I can better fulfill my client’s needs.

3. It helped me better understand what to expect on the field.

In both Project Management and Web Design classes, realistic expectations were set. Specifications of projects were no longer simply a guideline, they were the project. Even in web, sites that weren’t properly validated were given low marks despite its ascetic value. You can have the most extra-ordinary package with authentic design, but the moment the package doesn’t fold in the right place, its game over. As a designer, I strongly believe in form with function and more often than not you’ll see more function than form. What’s the point of painting a table if it doesn’t even support its own weight, right?

4. The working environment is never perfect, not even in school.

As a student rep, there were many complaints in which I had to personally bring up to the teachers, the coordinator, and even the dean of our program. The fact that we spent so much time learning how to format tables in Excel, create quieries with Access, and learn how to work a finicky program like MS Project rather than work on something directly related to our portfolio was a major turn-off for most students. Even entire classes such as Scanning and Prepress caused (and is still) causing grief for most students, many of which will probably have to return to retake the class. (According to my group’s survey, 60%. The other group  has an even lower average)

However, despite the apparent unfairness of the situation, it has undoubtedly made us stronger. When it’s time to either deal with a client or get to work in a future firm, I think we will be more understanding and tolerant than any other student designers out there. We won’t whine, complain, or give up when our boss/client calls at 2:30a.m. wanting to update a design for their afternoon presentation. Our advantage over the competition, regardless of our designing abilities, will be our soft skills.

5. Volunteering is more fun than you think.

I had the privilege this semester of volunteering my services to John Abbott’s University & Career Information Centre.  I had designed, among a few other things, a 48″ by 36″ presentation board. For some of you who may think this was a waste of time, think again. Here are some advantages in volunteering:

  • You get more experience from every project you do. Since volunteer work is usually not a rush, this leaves you time to really explore your design and perfect it.
  • In some situations, since your work may be presented at a fair, you get to see first hand if your project was effective and attracted an audience.
  • You get your name out; when another place looking for volunteer work  requires a re-design, they know who to turn to.
  • You get a nice, fuzzy feeling of warmth.

Personally, I think the last reason was the most pertinent.

So that about sums it up. If you agree or disagree, comment! Speak your words of wisdom and we will all listen.

As for myself, I have a few clients to get to as well as some updated which I mentioned in an early post. I hope to see all my peers next semester.

Take care world.