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How do we measure web design success? What reporting is available for websites?

If you own a shop, you're aware of trends - maybe Friday evening is always busy in a fish & chip shop, as is Saturday lunchtime. You know how much you took on any given day, and how many fish you got through, but beyond that, the details of your success elude you. How many people looked at the menu on the pavement then walked away? How many people came in your shop but didn't buy? And for what reason? Which were your busiest tables? Who tried to find a seat but couldn't and went to the chippy up the road? How long did it take people to finish their fish supper and leave?

With the web and the web-tools we have available now you can find out all of that! Who came to your site, where they live, what time they visited, how long they spent on your site, which links they clicked on, how many pages they looked at, whether or not they bought anything, if they watched your video or downloaded your guide, if they read your opening spiel on your homepage and decided that your site wasn't for them.

The same applies for your campaigns. You can get any number of metrics to determine whether or not your promotion was a success, which parts of it were well received and which bits you can improve in order to make your campaign a resounding success next time.

How have web innovations advanced with time?

Websites rely on a range of technologies cooperating and working in sync to create the wonderful multimedia resource they are in the 21st century. What are these and how have they developed from the basic tool they were when the web was in its infancy in the 1980s?

Launched in 1992, HTML, a markup language that has been around since the birth of the web is the main foundation of any website. It allows web designers and developers to write code that can be sent over the internet and that can be interpreted by the browser on your local device. The code or 'markup' uses html tags to structure, style and render content in a way that users can read and enjoy, and the web wouldn't exist without it.

Along with HTML came the first browser, Mosaic, and if you saw it today, the features are such that you'd easily identify it as a browser - home, back and forward buttons and an address bar. Internet Explorer and Opera were subsequently launched, along with HTML2 which was an evolution of HTML but with a number of advancements. HTML didn't stay with us for long, and by 1997 both HTML3 and HTML4 had been released, and these included input from the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium) which ensured that HTML was developed for the good of all, and that the potentially conflicting interests of contributing parties did not take over.

HTML4 was to be the standard for around ten years, and its presence was lengthy enough that the '4' was almost universally deemed unneccessary and it was know simply as 'HTML'.

Flash, Java and Javascript were released, allowing website to feature more engaging and interactive content, and CSS came about to separate the styling of a website from its content. Chrome, Firefox and Safari were launched to give users greater options when choosing a browser software with which to browse the web. Incremental updates were made to HTML in the form of XML, but it wasn't until 2008 that HTML made a significant step forward with the release of HTML5 (and CSS3) gave the web designer a greater number of tools with which to build interactive, engaging, dynamic, immersive websites, which run client-side and which run natively in the latest generation of browsers without the need for any plugins.

2009 saw the launch of Maddison Creative Web Design Newcastle.

Currently, the primary driver of innovation change in the web industry is the advancement of mobile technology and the number of users who are choosing to consume web-data on-the-go using a handheld, touchscreen device. This has had a significant impact on who websites are designed and built.

What technologies do you use to design websites?

For functionality, we use php, an open-source, commonly used scripting language that is particularly well suited to web development and that can be inserted into HTML. For Content Managed Websites we use Wordpress, an open source, online website creation tool built in php. We use HTML5, CSS3 and Javascript to develop front-end website interaction, functionality and animation. We use SQL and MYSQL wherever we need a database, and from a design perspective we use the Adobe Creative suite to create for the web.

Why should my business have a presence on the world wide web?

In the UK, around 87% of adults are frequent users of the web, which includes over 99% of young adults from the ages of 16 to 24, who, as time progresses, will eventually replace the older generations who are traditionally more reluctant to get online.

The ease-of-use, accessibility, cost, flexibility and versatility of the web has resulted in the web being the first port of call for people considering any number of recreational and admin activities such as online banking, entertainment, shopping, socialising, dating and gaming.

It's this exposure that the web is able to afford your business that is so valuable. You simply won't get the opportunity for your business to be put in front of such a wide audience irrepsective of their geographical location, all of whom are potential customers. Additionally, should you prefer not to make your message that far-reaching, you can restrict the promotion of your website (via the use of tailored keywords and online marketing tools) to just potential customers in your area. The nature of search engines, and their ranking criteria ensures that when a customer arrives at your site, they have a fair idea of what you're all about and what they're going to get when they arrive. It's your job to ensure they're wowed when they arrive!

Can you update and develop my existing website, built by someone else?

Yes, not only can we build you a website from scratch, but we can also work with what you already have to increase performance, update any branding you might have, or bring the technology up to speed. Essentially we can give it a new lease of life!

Web development and web design - what's the difference?

To build a fully functional, beautifully designed website traditionally requires a web developer and a web designed working together, to cover off all aspects of the design and build. While it is true that a lot of developers are comfortable designing and a lot of designers are comfortable developing the two disciplines are distinctly different:

A web developer is primarily responsible for coding, server-side, in order to allow the website to function. This can include managing the server and the transfer of files and additionally some client-side scripting such as Javascript, but it is predominantly programming.

A web designed on the other hand is responsible for the aesthetics of the site, along with the user-journey and experience. This may also include client-side scripting such as Javascript and HTML, but it is traditionally about the design and layout of the page, imagery, colours, branding and user behaviour.

More answers to web design questions...

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