We have four ways to make a website for you! One that I can design from scratch and directly upload to your web host, and 3 types where you make your own changes, called CMS sites. These sites are especially good if you want several people to be making updates, or if you want certain people to have access to only certain parts of the site. CMS means “content management system” and originated with the publishing industry, where newspapers needed to allow many reporters to add their articles, without altering the main template.

There are many types of website. One is a Blog, like this one. This is a CMS site, using “WordPress”, which is considered the best blogging software. A basic company website can be called a “Brochure Website”, where it basically stays the same, and tells all about your company or organization. There are also Forums, Wikis,  Photo Galleries, Family Tree, Catalog, and many other types of sites. Different website building tools may work better for one or the other type. The most well known, large CMS site builders are named “Joomla” and “Drupal”. These are heavy duty CMS’s that are complex for the client to learn. These would be best for large organizations, who need a lot of functionality. “Google Sites” give you a small amount of data storage for free. You have a lot of functionality with Google Sites, including permitting certain people to have access, being able to add maps, calendars, and all sorts of neat functions. But Google does tend to abruptly pull some of their services or aps, so you have less control. CMS Made Simple is my latest and greatest website builder. It is better than WordPress at making a standard website. It offers lots of color themes and allows many contributors. It also allows your content to be timed, so if you have an article that needs to disappear on a certain date, no problem.

My latest effort has been to re-vamp the look of the Yellow Dot website and design new business cards and letterhead. Last year I added the most popular social media pages to Yellow Dot’s online presence, which made my business cards out of date! The new cards are full color on the front and on the back have Yellow Dot’s QR code, twitter, facebook, YouTube and Blog addresses. I’m not sure if anyone actually scans QR codes, but we need to know how it works anyway, so adopt it, we shall!

The amazing thing is how cheap it is to print 2-sided, full color cards. My cards cost less than $100 from local printer Lettercomm Printing, here in Alexandria. Several years ago these cards would have easily cost $300 or more. (This generation does not know how good they have it!) The cards were digitally printed, so no plates are made, and no presses inked. It works like a giant, high end color copier, using toner and a fuser. My letterhead and envelopes however, will be printed 2 color offset (traditional), on a nice letterhead paper in bright white.

I always prefer to use local printers rather than online ones. You have more choice in paper, for instance, mine are uncoated, or not shiny on the back because people always want to write on the back. The cards are done quicker, you can see a proof, and I pick them up myself, so no shipping fees. And the cost was the same or less than the online company.

A new WordPress website has been done! Also, I went to a WordPress “Meet-Up”, which was great – learned lots of new stuff and met folks. Many web development companies are doing nothing but WordPress websites! “WordPress” is a framework for a website, which the designer customizes by chooosing a theme, adding pages, choosing colors, etc. The owner can go in and easily make their own text changes.

So, I have created another family website, for my husband’s side of the family. This one was inspired because I had a short video taken from the small digital camera (almost everything take video these days!) And I wanted to show the video to my mother and father in-law, without posting it to YouTube. The other nice addition to this website  are voice recording that I made from his family members, last Summer. I really love the old idea of “taping” people. It makes for a great memory later. Like the ones I have of my Grandfather from the 60′s. Hearing my Grandfather’s voice, who passed away when I was about 5, is an amazing thing.

My husband likes to use an online company for his Christmas cards – “Zazzle”.  He orders cheesy cards and then types his own silly message on the front of the card. The other day, I got a mailer from Zazzle, showing their card selection. But wait! What? An online company sending a mailer?

One day, I got a mailer from Amazon. Wait a minute! I thought Amazon was the online retail behemoth!

But it is! And, it finds sending paper mailers to people’s homes is an effective way to draw them to the Amazon website! It must be effective, since the cost to print and mail is, as I call it, “a budgetable item”.

This new reality of our internet society includes BOTH PRINT and ONLINE marketing! Don’t go away, Post Office! We’re going to need you!

One of my website clients, Brooke Stoddard of Archon Editorial (www.archoneditorial.com) has come out with his new book, World in the Balance: The Perilous Months of June-October 1940.

This, turns out, is quite a good read! I am zipping through it, held in suspense over events which Brooke lays out quickly and directly. I grew up in Germany, age 12 – 17. We learned extensively about WWII. However the early part of my learning in the German school, how the political situation lead up to Hitler’s taking over, was hard for me to understand. It was in German, for one thing. And government words, at the age of 13 or 14, didn’t mean much to me. I wouldn’t have really known them in English. When you’re in a foreign language environment, you have hundreds of words coming at you daily. Some, you don’t understand, and never take the time to look up, being young.

Anyway, having grown up there, and this history being so immediate, with many familiar names which I’ve known nothing about ’till now, this book makes me feel like I am finally catching up on history I really should know better.

We just posted this image of the book on Brooke’s website yesterday. We added ordering instructions, and Brooke has a paypal button for credit card payments.

www.archoneditorial.com

This poor little Blog page! What with all my new social pages, started this year, I am not paying as much attention to this Blog! Partly, because I’m not sure if anyone ever really reads it! Also, there’s the feeling that I should be coming up with a grand article to write here! Well, grand articles are more difficult to come up with, so instead I’ll just impart the latest news, for anyone who does stray into here. Probably just my competitors, to see what I’m up to… Hi, competitors!

So, news is, that I just sent out the Yellow Dot Holiday Newsletter, at long last! What with doing some work downtown this Autumn, my newsletter got delayed a bit. I usually try to send it towards the end of November.

And for this newsletter, I did something grand indeed! I have been working for DAYS, on this video.  There is a link in the newsletter, that takes folks to the Yellow Dot YouTube page, where they can see my video.

My purpose with the video, is mainly to show off cool motion graphics, which include cool art, done by me, of course. It’s been part of my business plan all along, to get into motion graphics. The dream/hope/goal, is to do neato artsy intros and endings for movies!

So, over the years, I’ve figured out what software does motion graphics, bought the software, paying for the software, and have been learning the software. The capabilites are incredible. In fact the capabilities of your cell phone  probably way out-weigh what you know how to do with it. So bit by bit, bouncing ball graphic by snow effect, I am delving into this world of motion. Most of my instructors are young guys who have put up instructional videos on the internet. Some better than others. One guy had his grunge music playing in the background as he mumbled away. Actually, I am amused and impressed by these young men, who take the time and care to create these thoughtful instructions. Often they are far better than Adobe’s completely obtuse help page. I was going to post here, the outrageous incoherent Adobe instruction, but now I can’t find it…

Here is the video link:
http://www.youtube.com/user/YellowDotDesigns

Bert and Ernie, 2011. Butternut and Spaghetti Squashes.

A little creative fun this October 31st. For some reason, pumpkins are in low supply this year? So, I got squashes and found them to be great for carving! And, the seeds roast up real well too!

(This photo was taken using a tri-pod and a super long exposure.)

Ellen

Yellow Dot Designs would like to feature a photographer in the next newsletter for Nov/Dec/holiday season. Not just any photographer, as today, many people with a camera call themselves a photographer. No, I mean a professional, who would like his or her work featured, and a small article about their business, in the next Yellow Dot Designs newsletter. There is a fee involved, so please contact me if you or someone you know is interested! 703-328-8046 or email creative@yellowdotdesigns.com.

It is rainy and cool, thanks to Hurrican Lee, which is further south, but sending us its effects. Just the way to launch back into work after Labor Day!

I have recently been preparing documents for print for a trade association client. They gave me their text and a simple lay-out they imagined would work. I looked at their other marketing and membership materials, and knew that in the recent past their materials were bright, dynamic and modern looking. So I borrowed from that look, the fonts, and surprised them with a full-color layout which was much more exciting than the proposed one. They are thrilled, and the brochure is off at the printer’s now!

Recently, I went to a talk by Marc Willson, former marketing guru for businesses like Britches of Georgetown, Crown Books and others. Marc talked about how not only is the design of your logo and business cards important, but as a retailer the design of your space and arrangement of your products is crucial.

He suggests having a focal point for your products. Chose something large and eye catching. Put smaller products around it to draw the eye. Even your store lay-out should take into account that Americans walk in, turn right, and circulate counter-clockwise.

The outside of your building makes a huge impression on future customers. Clutter, scotch tape or hand-written signs will not do.

In addition to your store name being visible, your web address and a printed “QR code” should be in the lower part of your front window. Your customers can scan your QR code with their smart phones even when you are closed. That code can take them to your website, or even a video, showing a personal introduction to your products and services! What better way to connect, immediately, with future customers? Contact Yellow Dot Designs for more information on QR codes or sign design!