Website Design Coquitlam

Does website design really matter? Despite your skepticism, studies show that a well-designed website will generate more traffic and increase conversions. Ultimately, this increase in conversions means more sales for your business.

How can website design impact the success of a business? There are many reasons why a well-designed website will attract your ideal customer and prompt them to convert on your website.

Are you a business owner in need of Website Design Coquitlam? Continue reading to learn how Longevity Graphics can help you.

Website Design Coquitlam

Navigation

The most important aspect of a website is the navigation. Website navigation typically includes a navigation bar or a list of different pages on the website. Good navigation should be easy to find and comprehend. In most cases, over-simplified navigation allows for ease of use for a wide range of users.

Branding

It is important for your clients to be able to recognize your company’s brand in all its forms of communication. When elements of the visual communication changes, it can create confusion. When designing a new website, your company’s logo, brand colours, brand messaging, and imagery must be used.

Trust

Trust is incredibly important on the web. It is often the limiting factor that determines whether a user will perform a desired action, like filling out a lead form or making a purchase.

Content

Most users don’t read each web page they visit; rather, they scan each page instead. Eye tracking studies show that most users scan computer screens in an “F” pattern. Because of this, effectively designed websites will display information in order of importance (left to right, and top to bottom).

Some effective tactics include using:

  • Headlines
  • Sub-headlines
  • Relevant images
  • Numbers and bullet points
  • Sans Serif fonts

Search Engine Optimization

Search engine optimization is a way for your website to get traffic from the results pages on major search engines – for free! How does it work? Visit our Search Engine Coquitlam page to find out.

It’s easy to create a beautiful and functional website, simply by keeping these elements in mind.

Are you looking for Website Design Coquitlam services? Longevity Graphics can help! View our Pricing Packages or Contact Us to schedule your FREE 1-Hour Consultation, today! 

FREE 1-Hour Consultation!

10797544894_c14c97cb1dAre you thinking about starting a business in Port Coquitlam? We’ve gathered some resources to help you get started.

Visit the City of Port Coquitlam Website

The City of Port Coquitlam  website is a great place to begin when thinking about starting a business in Port Coquitlam. The website has many resources that will help you, prior to ‘opening your doors’.  Click here to visit the City of Port Coquitlam’s Starting a Business page.

Get to know the area… and your competition

If you don’t already live in Port Coquitlam or the Tri-Cities area, it is a good idea to spend some time in the city. This will allow you to get a sense of the successful businesses that are currently operating in the area – including businesses that you will be in competition with. If your business is going to have a store front, you can use this time to search out potential areas for your business to operate.

Create a Website and Social Media Pages

If you’re thinking about starting a business in 2016 – you MUST have a website and social media pages. There is a vast amount of competing businesses in Port Coquitlam and the surrounding areas.

In order to be discovered by potential customers online, you must have an experienced, knowledgeable online marketing company who will be able to optimize your website and social media pages for optimal rankings.

Your online marketing company should be able to:

  • Help your website gain top position in search result lists
  • Perform keyword research to discover vital search combinations for your business
  • Perform meta and title tag development
  • Establish HTML code optimization
  • Perform inbound link building

If this sounds like something that you will need help with, contact Longevity Graphics for a FREE 1-Hour Consultation. We specialize in working with local clients and helping them rank for their industry specific keywords.

Are you considering outsourcing your website design?

Below are some Pro’s and Con’s of hiring a local web designer vs. outsourcing your web design.

Pro’s of hiring a local web designer:

  • Personalized, one-on-one service
  • It’s easy to get in contact with your web designer if you have any questions
  • You know exactly who will be working on the design of your website and social media pages

Con’s of hiring a local web designer:

  • Well, we sure can’t think of any con’s!

Additional Resources

  • Sign up your business on the Shop PoCo BIZ Directory; Click Here
  • Join the Port Coquitlam Business Improvement Association (BIA); Click Here
  • Join the Tri-Cities Chamber of Commerce; Click Here
  • Contact Longevity Graphics for a FREE 1-Hour Consultation to learn about the online marketing services they offer; Click Here

Responsive Design – What is it?

Responsive design is having a website that is coded so you don’t have separate mobile, tablet, and PC versions of your site: the site adapts to whatever size screen it’s being displayed on. With a responsive web design, visitors will get all the content they want, in a format they can read. If you don’t have a mobile site at all, 61% of visitors will return to Google to find a site that is easily readable.

Moving forward, it will be extremely critical that your website provides mobile users an easy-to-use experience as this directly impacts the growth of your business. Despite the impressive points shown below, many businesses still do not yet have responsive friendly websites or communications.  Here’s why we think you should upgrade to responsive today:

1) Mobile usage is booming.

•    Over 20% of Google searches are performed on a mobile device.
•    The average amount of time spent on mobile / tablets is about 3 hours a day.
•    Almost 60% of all website traffic is from mobile devices
•    25.85% of all emails are opened on mobile phones, and 10.16% are opened on tablets.
•    80% of internet users own a smart phone.

2) Higher conversion rates & happy visitors.

A well structured and user-friendly responsive website will drive more sales and also make it easier for visitors to find / share information. Responsive design helps modern websites appeal to modern users. According to a calculated figure, 5.1 out of the 6.8 billion-world population are smart phone users. If a user lands on your website and is confused or doesn’t see what they are looking for, there’s a 61% chance they will leave immediately and go to another website (most likely a competitor). It’s also said that if they have a positive experience with your mobile website, a user is 67% more likely to buy a product or use a service.
Mobile users that find your business online have a conversion percentage nearly three times higher than the same search done on a desktop or laptop. Why? Mobile users are on the go. They grab their device and have a specific intent in mind. Mobile searchers are buyers,  assuming you can meet their needs. With 80% of consumers regularly using their smartphones to shop online – this isn’t something you want to miss out on.

3) Search engine optimization.

Responsive development is Google’s recommended approach for mobile web design. Responsive websites will perform better in search rankings because they provide a better user experience than sites that are not mobile friendly.

Going responsive makes it easy for search engine robots to crawl and index your website, ensuring that your page rankings are as high as possible. If you’re sharing links (especially through social media) to your website and it’s responsive you will experience improved brand perception, less bounce rates and boosted website conversions. If you don’t have a

responsive website, not only will you have a lot of frustrated visitors but Google will interpret the high bounce rate as a sign your website isn’t offering relevant content, which is likely to drop your rankings. Mobile phones have a separate Google search algorithm than desktop searches too; so you will want your rankings high for both desktop and mobile searches. Most people do their browsing on mobile and complete their transactions on desktop, so the marriage of the two and having a responsive friendly site is important for complete conversions.

Are you ready!?!

As you can see responsive web design plays an integral role in the level of success of your business and search rankings. Switching over to responsive web design will be a big challenge, but it will prepare you for the future and put you a step ahead of your competitors.

If you are looking for an expert in Responsive Website Design then collaborating with Longevity Graphics is the right choice for your business. Contact us today to get a no obligation quote for your next responsive web, SEO or marketing project.

Responsive Web Design


Responsive Web Design
Responsive web design is the newest online craze.

Nearly every new client of ours asks us if we can build them a responsive website, and we don’t blame them. With the sheer number of different media that can access the internet in today’s society, it is important to have a website that can be accessed by users on their computers, phones and iPad alike.

A large chunk of traffic is generated through hand held devices and if a business or website owner does not have a site that is compatible with all media, then they will be losing out on business.

What is responsive web design?

A website that has been built using responsive web design will be able to operate on any device that can access the internet, without losing its form and becoming unusable.

Previously, the only way to enable mobile access to a site was to create a specific mobile site; this technique has merit, but responsive web design is a visually appealing alternative.

Adaptable To the Device

Web designers are currently plagued by the constant invention of new mobile devices. Every year new technology is created that is no longer compatible with their previous work. Responsive web design solves this problem by creating a malleable page format that simply conforms to the screen size of any new device. This way designers don’t have to constantly go back and make changes to their mobile sites because responsive websites can do the adaptation themselves.

One feature of responsive web design is that it works across all platforms, while separate mobile sites need to be tweaked for different devices. A mobile site will not perform the same way in Google chrome as it will in Safari, and for novice developers this can be troublesome to deal with.

However, if you can create user friendly mobile sites, they will often be more aesthetically pleasing because they won’t be adapting their screen size.

So, How Does Responsive Web Design Work?

The way that responsive web design works, is the screen literally grows and shrinks depending on the screen it is being used on. This is fantastic technology because the website literally knows what it is being viewed on, and behaved accordingly.

The drawback to a responsive website is that sometimes a website might expand or shrink in a way that doesn’t line up with your vision for your website.

Who Needs Responsive Web Site Design?

When thinking about adding a responsive design to a site that currently doesn’t support mobile devices, or is using a mobile site that they want to switch over, it’s important to look at the individual’s business model:

  • If you look at your analytics, do the figures show that the site is attracting mobile users?
  • If the site is already working well on mobile with solid conversion rates, then maybe the client doesn’t need a responsive web site after all.
  • Other factors to consider are how the site looks aesthetically when viewed on a mobile device. If the site completely loses shape and becomes either unpleasing to look at or difficult to read, one might consider having the site redone responsively.

Success Online Coaching- A Case Study

We built a responsive site for Success Online Coaching recently, and we are proud of the results.

Responsive Web Design

It was important for Success Online Coaching to have a site that could be accessed through mobile because their business model relies almost entirely on online sales. They also have an app that provides access to their website, so it was important that they had an aesthetically pleasing site for customers to navigate.

The SEO Project Details

The Last Door contracted Longevity Graphics 2 years ago to help with organic SEO, Paid Advertising optimization, and landing page creation/onsite conversion optimization.

The goal of the original contract was to increase traffic by 200%. We were able to blow that goal out of the water with a 500% increase. Needless to say, Last Door is very happy with the results, and we look forward to continuing working with them on their online presence and organic SEO results.

See below for the amazing SEO review provided by Last Door

About the Last Door

The Last Door is a non-profit organization that has been working with youth, families and adults for almost 30 years.

“The provision of the therapeutic environments where individuals and families experiencing addiction can gain support and guidance to restore themselves to mental, spiritual, physical and emotional health.”

Here is the SEO review:

“To Whom It May Concern,

I am writing a letter of reference for Longevity Graphics, they have managed Last Door Recovery Society’s SEO Optimization and Google Ad Words/Organics Account for two years for a website we had designed 5 years ago from a different web designer. Their services have been professional, efficient, productive and beneficial to the organization.

Since the website www.lastdoor.org was optimized for Google and Bing, the number of unique hits to the website rose 500%. Last Door is listed on page one for our target market in Google Organics, while our paid Google Ads are receiving maximum exposure with “call to action” per click.

Last Door intends on renewing its annual monthly maintenance contract with Longevity Graphics and has requested a quote from them to redesign our entire website due to their creative solutions for optimal web traffic. Last Door Recovery Society operates residential treatment programs for individuals with substance abuse issues for 30 years and relies on the internet for informing the public of our services to ensure our programs are utilized every day.

Giuseppe Ganci
Director of Community Development
Last Door Recovery Society”

Thanks again Guiseppe for your kind words!

What You Didn’t Know That You Need to Know

It’s common for a business or organization that is new to the web to be unaware of what’s best for their website. It’s even more difficult to know this when you might be lead astray by web designers, web developers and web hosts who don’t really understand or care about your needs. Several of our clients cursed the names of their website hosts or previous developers and designers once we informed them of the limitations of their website. In an effort to help others avoid this, I have a few recommendations for anyone who is looking to have a website built.

Choose Your Host Wisely

Some of the worst horror stories I can tell are to do with the poor quality of our clients’ website hosts.  From hosts just being unreliable – meaning the site is down several times a month with no explanation and the technical support is impossible to get a response from – to being outright destructive, sometimes the stories are truly appalling. In one recent case, one of our clients contacted their host to inquire about the frequency with which their site was down. The technical competence or comprehension of the representative they spoke with must have been limited, because our client’s website ended up being deleted. There was no apology, but they did add some time on to our client’s hosting (which really felt like an insult).

The fact is that anybody with an internet connection and some hard drives can be a website host. Regardless of how professional a host’s site appears, the truth is that it might be one guy with 3 computers in a basement who only sidelines as a web host. Protect yourself and do a search for reviews of a website host before you decide to go with them. Also, if you know someone who is a professional web developer, they would be the best people to ask for recommendations. As web developers, we hate dealing with unprofessional website hosts and would be happy to offer our opinion.

Get FTP Access (Please!)

As a web developer, there is nothing more limiting than being forced to work entirely within the confines of a CMS, be it WordPress, Joomla, or something else. For this reason, we like to have FTP access to our clients’ websites so we can take customization to the next level. This will make any additions to the website much easier for us to implement. Of course, you might not realize that your website would benefit from such additions when you first have your site built, but for the sake of conversion optimization and SEO, we often need to get at the bare bones of a website rather than approaching it through the CMS.

It is also useful to have FTP access because it provides to access the .htaccess file (or the equivalent). These files allow us to tell search engines when files or sites have changed names in order to preserve the ranking of the original page or doman. This can be crucially important for SEO. In addition, having FTP access allows us to maintain backups of our clients’ websites, just in case something goes awry (see the anecdote about the crummy web host for an example of what “going awry” can mean).

Use an SEO-Friendly CMS

If you choose to have your site built using a CMS, check the forums on the CMS’s website to make sure it is SEO-friendly. Generally speaking, WordPress, Joomla, and Drupal are SEO-friendly to varying degrees (varying based on what themes and plugins you choose to install).  However, there are a seemingly limitless number of custom CMSs out there that do not take SEO into account much or at all. The SEO limitations of a CMS are another reason why we like to have FTP access – if the CMS doesn’t provide us with what we need, we can sometimes modify the CMS to do what we want it to.

Our favourite CMS to work with is WordPress. While no CMS is perfect, and WordPress can certainly be the source of much frustration, it has proven to be the most user-friendly and the easiest to customize.  SEO with WordPress is a breeze compared to some other platforms out there.

We’re Here to Help

If you’re thinking about establishing a web presence for your business or organization, I hope you will keep my advice in mind. We can help with every step of the process, so don’t hesitate to contact us. We love helping people get established on the web and especially helping them to avoid the pitfalls that some people aren’t aware of because they lack the guidance of a professional web development and web marketing team like Longevity Graphics.

A Poorly Designed Website Can Kill Your Sales

It is very important to have a website, and now more than ever, it needs to reflect your business, service or product. Having a professional website can make or break a sale. Your website is usually the first or second contact with a new customer. They either find you by doing a search within a search engine like Google or Bing, or they find your business via another source and they look up your website to find out more information about your business, product, or service.

Have you ever done business with a company that offers an amazing product or service, and their website just doesn’t reflect amazingness? They could be losing new business daily! Do them a huge favour, and let them know about the experience you had with their website. They can not change something that they are not aware of.

Tips for designing a killer website that converts into positive ROI!

1. Use Great Graphics

Having poor graphics can decrease the value of your website. Make sure your graphics are high quality and are not pixelated. If you are designing your website on your own (which some small businesses do) make sure you get someone to help with the graphics that you design or choose. iStock is a great place to purchase high quality graphics.

2. Make Sure It Looks Professional

I know that lots of business owners like to save money. Realistically, we all do. Having a budget to have your website designed professionally is important. Cheaping out and getting your site built by a friend, a student, or your own kid who took a course in high-school will only cost you money and sales in the end.

I have worked with many businesses that had their first website designed by someone new in the design industry, and I have found that the level of professionalism was just not there. Having a website that isn’t functional, or looks thrown together is only going to leave a bad impression with your potential customers about your product or service.

3. Spell & Grammar Check Your Content

How many times have you gone to a website and found errors throughout the content? It doesn’t reflect well on the business. The impression that you are giving is that you don’t care to do things well. Again, have someone go over the content to correct the errors. It can be a friend, colleague, employee or spouse. It takes just one look-over to find some errors that you just didn’t see because you had been staring at it for too many hours. It is worth it in the end.

4. Easy To Navigate

Help your user find what they are looking for easily. Implement a user friendly navigational system. Have people test it out and provide feedback. Using a tracking program like crazyegg can give you some great feedback on the usefulness of your navigation.

5. Make it Easy For Them To Contact You

Your website is the perfect place to interact with your new customers. I have had many consultations with new clients that complain about their existing website not doing anything for them. When I look at the website, I find their contact information buried in their contact page. I recommend placing the business phone number dominantly in the header of the document on every page so that the user doesn’t have to search for it. Also, I always add a simple contact form to every page. Yes, I said every page! Most importantly, make sure that it is above the fold. This will definitely increase the chances of your customer contacting you. We have seen a website go from 0 calls to action to over 60 in 1 month just by adding a contact form. It’s not rocket science, it’s just smart design.

Remember, when designing your business website, it is always best to hire a professional, so make sure that you set aside a budget when planning your marketing strategy for the year. Spending your marketing budget on great sources that drive traffic to your website is a worthwhile investment, but only if your website is setup to convert the traffic once it gets there.