Design | Internet Marketing Blog

A day in the life of a... Lead Digital Creative

Will Aslett is Lead Digital Creative at The Good Agency, based in London. Here he explains what he does for a living, and what a typical day looks like.

If you like the sound of Will's role then do check out the range of design and production jobs we have on our digital jobs site.

by Chris Lake 01 May 2013 11:53am 1 comment

Using human motivation to assess website optimization

When evaluating the influence and quality of your website, sometimes it helps to take a step back and prioritize the site’s fundamental needs from the ground up.

Often times we get so entangled in optimization tactics that we don’t realize that the most vital elements of our websites can be what’s hindering its performance.

Before you start investing a lot of time and energy into improving advanced characteristics of the website, it’s important to ensure the most basic needs are met.

Mapping web optimization priorities in an anthropomorphic manner can help to understand the best way to prioritize website improvements.

by Phillip Klien 14 March 2013 09:51am 5 comments

14 lousy web design trends that are making a comeback

I was on the verge of writing a post about the joys of HTML5, which when combined with CSS3 and Javascript can do some very impressive things. However, having visited a bunch of ‘inspiring’ HTML5 websites I’ve ended up with a slight headache. The truth is that many of these sites leave a lot to be desired.

It’s a case of déjà vu. A decade ago the rise in popularity of Flash steered many web designers down the wrong path. It wasn’t the fault of the technology, but of the people using the technology. Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. I'm all for innovation, but innovation should not be regressive.

Make no bones about it, HTML5 design is a massive, musty elephant in the room, and it is about to charge. In its path lies a flailing, unarmed Jakob Nielsen, backed up with legions of user experience professionals, who are gently sobbing. GoDaddy CEO Bob Parsons, the noted elephant slayer, is nowhere to be seen.

So, below are some examples of user experience badness. The irony is that I spotted many of these examples in posts like this one, dedicated to ‘fresh HTML5 design inspiration’. For the purposes of clarity I am not pointing the finger of blame at HTML5 itself, but the 'HTML5 design' themes seen on lots of sites which suffer from the issues outlined below.

by Chris Lake 13 March 2013 12:31pm 130 comments

Facebook changes its look for U&I

The interwebs have been ablaze with news of Facebook’s newest change for a good week. Today, they made their official announcement about upcoming changes to the News Feed.

We knew it was coming, but what does it mean?

by Gary J. Nix 07 March 2013 23:19pm 6 comments

Five steps for working successfully with creative teams

Want to get the best from your design studio?

Whether they’re newly hired or long-standing partners, here are five top tips, based on 15 years of agency-side experience, that will get you results, rapport and respect (and possibly even access to their stash of brightly-coloured confectionery).

by Luke Brason 06 March 2013 10:00am 2 comments

Three essentials of Android design DNA

For many years since its release, the Android OS has been behaving like a teenager in the grip of raging hormones. Growth has been nothing short of explosive and the changes have been sweeping and profound.

With the release of Ice-Cream Sandwich OS, the UI standards and design elements have changed dramatically and the platform has really matured and even stabilized somewhat.

Nevertheless, the OS has retained it’s rebellious hacker DNA with unique features that are authentically Android.

by Greg Nudelman 25 January 2013 15:29pm 0 comments

Embarrassing predictions: a foray into mobile and tablet optimisation: part two

In my last blog I looked at why mobile and tablet optimisation was imperative to businesses.

In the second blog of the series I’ll explore why the time is now to optimise and I will also provide you with two of my top four considerations for tablet and mobile optimisation.

by Tom Waterfall 06 January 2013 09:03am 0 comments

Stop wasting your marketing dollars: Build your brand first

Although it may seem seamless to the naked eye, branding that is truly on-target is no easy thing to master. But effective branding can save you hundreds or even thousands of dollars in the long run.

In fact, let’s imagine for a minute that you’ve just spent those thousands and as many hours working with a web developer on a website or a mobile app, or even that you’ve just created a physical product that fills a gap in the marketplace. Essentially, you’ve created the thing you want to sell to consumers and you know it can make their lives better.

So you’re all ready to go out with promotion, right? Sell that product to its fullest potential – you’ve finally perfected it, so why waste another minute? Stop right there, though. Before you spend another marketing dollar, back up and make sure your brand is solid - or risk throwing your hard-earned cash down the drain.

by Julie Cottineau 28 November 2012 14:42pm 6 comments

20 experiential web design trends for 2012

Web design by its very nature continues to evolve, as it must, to make the most of modern browsers and the likes of HTML5, CSS3 and JQuery, and to provide a wonderful user experience for tablet and smartphone owners.

Nowadays there is plenty of opportunity to stand out from the crowd, by being ahead of the curve, or by embracing new techniques that can help you to improve the performance of your website.

So I thought I’d round up some of the more recent trends in experiential web design. I say ‘experiential’ because I’m less interested in seeing whether drop shadows have made a comeback.

The focus of this article is primarily about the aspects of web design that directly affect the user experience, rather than particular stylistic trends to do with the look and feel.

Great designers understand how to design for user interaction, and how to encourage new user behaviours and habits. World-class designers introduce emotion and have fun along the way.

Some of these trends aren’t just-out-of-the-oven new, but they’re in here because they’ve become adopted by the mainstream. I have included other design features because they rock, and I’d like to see them on more websites.

It’s worth pointing out that user experience professionals are on the fence about some of these things. Do leave a comment if you feel strongly, one way or another, and be sure to let me know what I’ve missed.

by Chris Lake 31 October 2012 14:59pm 23 comments

Designing for the iPad Mini: best practice tips

The new iPad Mini presents another set of problems for websites looking to appeal to mobile /tablet users, as it's a new screen size between iPad and smartphone.

Having been released in time for Christmas, it's likely to sell like hotcakes, so the number of potential users means companies need to consider how they will adapt their websites for the device.

It's a challenge, since existing mobile or desktop sites won't necessarily adapt well to the screen size. It may be too small for desktop, yet too large for mobile sites.

I've been speaking to James Sherrett from Mobify, who has some suggestions on early best practices for iPad Mini design...

by Graham Charlton 25 October 2012 10:17am 5 comments