Wednesday, August 21, 2013

What is "Above the Fold"?

Above the Fold is one of those terms you may have heard but not really defined properly. Simple put, above the fold in web design is what can be viewed on a monitor without scrolling down with the mouse. It's also known as above the crease or above the scroll.

Originally, it was a term for newspapers. When a newspaper sat in the stand, it was folded in half, so whatever appeared in the upper half could be viewed by just walking by and not even picking up. So editors put what they thought were the most interesting stories "above the fold". Advertisers also wanted their ads in this space since their ads were much more likely to be viewed.

This concept applies directly to web design. We want our most important information to be viewed without scrolling down on the page. Typically this would include:
  • Logo
  • Phone number
  • Address
  • Email address
  • Contact form, or "lead" form
  • Banner ad
  • Important intro text
Not all of these things can necessarily all fit above the fold. There is limited space. Your website may not even have all these things. But fit what you can without it looking cluttered.

You can still use "Under the Fold"

Some people think that everything should be above the fold. This isn't true. It's good to have a lot of additional information, even if it doesn't fit on one screen shot. Just try to get your most vital information above the fold like your phone number and important call to action buttons.

Different computers have different "folds"

Not all monitors will show the same amount of information on one screen. Different monitors have different resolutions and sizes. Test your website by looking at it from many different computers, including smaller laptops.

Above the fold is a big deal in search engine ranking

Everyone wants to be #1 ranked on Google right? Well if you can't get #1, then at least go for above the fold. Appearing in the top 5 or 6 on Google makes a huge difference when you are above the fold.

Make sure you're applying this principle! Identify the 3 or 4 most important parts of your website. Make sure that they are above the fold. If necessary you can rearrange things. Good luck!

Monday, August 19, 2013

How to easily post video to your website

One of the best ways to capture your users attention on your website is with video. A video will draw your users in, show them what you have to offer, and encourage them to look further into your website. But how do you put a video on your website?

It's super easy! Just follow our 2 steps below:

Step 1: Upload Video to YouTube
  • Sign in to Youtube (or create an account if you don't already have a Google account).
  • Click "Upload" at the top of the screen
  • If it's your first video you've uploaded, you may have to fill out some basic information, such as your name and birthday. Soon you should get to the screen you see below, or something very similar:
YouTube
  • Click on the arrow, and then select the video file on your computer you want to upload. This tutorial is assuming that you already have a video file ready to use.
  • It may take some time for the video to fully upload, but once it's done you should be able to view your video on YouTube!
Step 2: Place Your YouTube Video on Your Website
  • Go to your video on YouTube
  • Click Share
  • Click Embed
  • Copy and paste the code that shows up into your webpage. You can also change the size of the video if you want. See below:
YouTube
Your video will appear wherever you place that bit of code! Good luck!

Thursday, August 1, 2013

10 Reasons Why You Should Hire Us

Our first unashamed plug of Fresh Look Web Design! If you're looking for a few tips to enhance your website, please read a different article because this one is not for you! :)

Here are the top 10 reasons why you should get a website with Fresh Look Web Design:

1. We do good work.

We do great work! Our websites are beautiful, user friendly, and are found on search engines. You can check out our portfolio right here to check out some of our websites. Want to see more? Contact us and we will give you more to look at.

2. We are reasonably priced.

Other than doing good work this is the most important thing to look for right? We can cater to any budget and the amount of website that you get for your dollar is better than anything else we've ever seen. Do cheaper websites exist? Sure, but they aren't effective. Are there slicker, fancier websites out there? Sure, but say goodbye to a whole lot of dead presidents.

3. We understand how search engines work.

Creating a website is half the battle. Making it appear well in the search engines is the other half. You want someone on your side who knows how to make both parts work together.

4. We do updates in half hour increments.

Most web development companies charge by the hour when it comes to updating your website. We charge by the half hour. It usually takes around half an hour anyway for most updates, so why charge for work we're not doing?

5. We're here to stay.

The NUMBER ONE complaint we hear from people about other web developers is that their web developer disappeared and they can't contact them anymore to update the website. Whether they were a freelancer, or a company that went out of business; they're gone and now no one can access the website.

You don't have to worry about that with us! We're extremely accessible and have no plans of dropping the ball on anyone.

6. We make quick updates when you need us.

Any time you need a change to your website it's usually hours, sometimes minutes before we get it done, not days.

7. We can do weekend updates.

Got an emergency that needs to go on the website Saturday evening? We can do it...although a heads up during the week will make us like you more :)

8. We're local (to Virginia)

Ideally you want to be able to sit down and meet with your web designer. We do a few long distance projects when necessary, but meet with 95% of our clients at some point during the process. It just works better that way.

9. Our goal is to help your business succeed both long term and short term.

We want our clients to stay with us, and the best way to do that is help them any way we can. A client is a much better revenue source over 10 years of good pricing versus 1 year of being over charged. We really want your business to grow and succeed.

10. We have very good English

There's no language barrier here when you need to call us for technical support. If you need help on your website, it's nice to have someone who you can understand!

Please contact us if you want to talk about how we can help you with your website!