Welcome to Michael's Article Collection

Free Online Tools to Design (and Maintain) Your Website

These days, it seems that everyone has a website. Unfortunately, many of these websites are either bland, or sloppily designed by people who don't understand how to use HTML effectively or are intimidated by it. And, they don't have the money to spend on a good page editor, so they limp along using the page templates that their website might provide, or they attempt to use programs like MS Word. . .

Ten Basic Steps For Building A Web Site That Works

1. Assemble a web site development plan that is integrated with your overall marketing processes; the content should be consistent with offline materials, the graphics/images don't have to be identical with traditional media, but should be consistent with your overall branding, style guide, usage of colors etc. 2. Hire a web site design firm that understands your market position and one that wo. . .

Bad Web Design: ActiveX

ActiveX uses an interesting method for enforcing security ... it doesn't. Well, that's not exactly true. What happens is when a web page requests an ActiveX control the browser determines if that control is already loaded onto your system. If it is the ActiveX control is executed. If not, the user is asked if it is okay to install the control. Additional information about where the control came. . .

Keep Them Coming Back - Update Your Site

If you are anything like me, your website is a reflection of yourself. It contains your thoughts and communications, exposed to the entire world at all times. Look at virtually any non-commercial web site and you will get a glimpse at the person behind the monitor. I look at web sites all day long, and I am constantly amazed by the things that people reveal about themselves without saying anyth. . .

Transforming A Site From Good To Excellent

One of the challenges of moving a web site up from good to excellent is transforming it from just a bunch of web pages and graphics to an interactive experience. Another term for this is community - a place where people can come to communicate with others. The very best web sites have mastered this transformation, thus attracting return visitors again and again. The whole point of a web site is. . .

Fun CSS Tricks You Can Use

CSS or Cascading Style Sheets allow you to implement a few neat effects on your webpages easily. You can implement these CSS effects on your site by simply copying and pasting the code.ROLLOVER COLOR TEXT LINKSHave your text links change color when the mouse passes over them by inserting this code into the HEAD of your document:re<style type="text/css"><!--A:hover {color:red}. . .

Why You Want to Include an FAQ In Your Site

Congratulations! You've got a brand new site and it's doing pretty well. You check your statistics every day and the hits and page views keep climbing, your links are all in order and everything looks very good. On top of that, your guestbook is filling with great comments and you're getting a few emails now and then with praise and perhaps a question or two. Now is a good time to sit back and . . .

Autoresponder Tips

An autoresponder is useful for, well, responding to people who send you inquiries through email. They are actually more than just merely useful - they are an essential tool in any webmaster's toolbox. Used properly, they can enhance your visitors experience and virtually guarantee that they will come back time after time. Used improperly, they annoy people and push them away from ever coming ba. . .

10 Web Site Design And Writing No-No's

1. Don't load your web site with a lot of high tech clutter. Your visitors may miss your whole sales message. 2. Don't use unnecessary words or phrases on your site. You only have so much time to get your visitor's attention and interest; make ever word count. 3. Don't make the mistake that everyone will totally understand your web site message. Use descriptive words and examples to get your po. . .

Website Design Basic Concepts

So, what's in a website design anyway? And, how do you get a design that is appealing to the broad and varied tastes of all those Internet surfers out there? This is critical. Your website design is the first impression you make on your customers and visitors. There are a few sites in my favorites and bookmarks that I consider poorly designed. I still have them, because they have information I . . .

Some Useful Common Site Ideas

In my web surfing adventures, I've found a few site elements which make surfing easier and more enjoyable. There are no concrete, hard- and-fast rules to follow - these are just observations of some things which I virtually always look for in a site. So without further ado, here is my list. I often look for a way to contact the webmaster. I may want to tell him something about his site (priv. . .

Website Polls For You And Your Visitors

Setting up a survey on your site is extremely simple and many times just as beneficial, for two main reasons. One, they let you create a more interactive website for your visitor. Choose interesting topics, poll opinions on recent events related to your site, and people will participate to find out what other people on your site think. Second, if you write your surveys in a way that keeps them . . .

Choosing A Color Scheme

When you begin the design of your Web site, one of the first things you need to do is decide on a color scheme. Although choosing colors seems like a relatively easy proposition, it's not easy at all. In fact, it's hard. One of the pluses we have as Web designers is that millions of colors are at our disposal. Unlike the print world, we do not have to pay for each color we use. If we want to us. . .

Tips For An Effective Website

A successful website is something that everyone venturing into the new arena of Internet marketing and communications wants to have. Your website will often be a potential client’s first impression of you and your business. That being said, it is vitally important that your website represent you in a favorable manner. Your website is a component of your overall marketing strategy and should be . . .

How To Choose A Website Designer

Now that you have decided that it is time to create a website for your business there are many questions you must answer. One of the most important questions is "Who should create my website?"I like to use the analogy of playing music; in as little as a few hours, some people can strum a few chords on the guitar and play a song. But to really play the instrument and make your instrument sing re. . .

How Much Does A Website Cost?

To receive a complementary consultation and free quote for your website project, complete our project survey form located here.As a website designer, this is often the first question that I am asked by a new client. The simple answer is that it costs whatever you are willing to spend; anywhere from free to millions of dollars. A more productive process to address the issue of cost is to answer . . .

The Essential Conflict in Humans is between our Species N...

The two parts of our beings:One part of our beings is our DNA-based species’ nature, which includes the elements of our brain activity and awareness that evolved to contribute to our survival in the world and especially, the survival of our unique individual DNA, generation to generation.The other part is an “accidental” outcome of DNA’s survival activities in the world – Consciousness.The natu. . .

Superior to Dreamweaver?

I've heard a lot of good comments regarding Macromedia's Dreamweaver site building tool.Does anyone use Site Build It!?, It's a website building tool that includes hosting and allows you to research profitable keywords, run a search engine optimization test, build beautiful graphics, automatically and periodically submit each page individually to the search engines, and it handles everything fo. . .

How To Write An Effective FAQ Page

Websites that have multiple pages usually have a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)page. There are several good reasons why you should have one. An FAQ clears out any confusion your prospect might have about buying product. Remember, a confused mind always says no. It lets a prospect grab key information quickly. It creates a positive impression with your prospect because you’re acknowledg. . .

How to successfully market your website...

Special Requirements For Reprint: Article may be freely reprinted in your ezine, in your e-book and/or on your web site with the authors resource box included and without any changes.How does a online marketer gets his site to rank high in the search engines ? That's a question alot of marketers ask themselves everyday.Online marketing is successful when tackled from several angles.You may be a. . .

How To Build Your First Web Site

Getting Started!Most Internet service providers offer their customers a space to place a basic site on the World Wide Web. With this basic site you will get your very own URL. (Universal Resource Locater) This will be your business address on the web. Now, anyone who knows your URL will know how to contact you on the World Wide Web. Even if they are on the other side of the world!Many other pla. . .

50 Surefire Web Design Tips

Tips to brand your website Include your logo in all pages. Position it at the top left or each page. Complement your logo with a tagline or catchy sentence that summarizes your business purpose. For example "Always low prices" is the tagline for Wal-Mart. Create a favicon. A favicon is that small graphic that appears next to the URL in the address bar. Have a consistent look and feel in all. . .

Can They Use Your Website In A TV Broadcast About Scams?

When you designed your website, you probably dreamt about how wonderful it would be if one day a popular TV program featured it, and you would become famous overnight, and make lots of $$$.Well, practice shows that your dream for your website to be featured on national TV can indeed come true, but NOT exactly in the way you imagined!A couple of questions for you to answer: Can your website be u. . .

Creating A Quality Web Site Design!

In this article, I will attempt to cover the basics of creating a great quality web design template for your site. Now it's a known fact that the layout or "eye candy" as I put it will determine whether your visitors will stay more than 15 seconds or they will just become another statistic.That's right, if you don't catch your visitors attention right away, statistics shows us that your visitor. . .

Bulk Email, Spam, and Email Marketing

Excerpted from PlanetLink's Enews - an email newsletter delivered for FREE to your computer. To subscribe, go to www.planetlink.comThis issue focuses on the effective use of email lists and bulk email for website and business promotion. Bulk email essentially consists of sending the same message to some number of recipients at the same time. Spam is characterized as sending bulk mail to recipie. . .

Email tips and tricks

Excerpted from the upcoming book The Busy Person's Guide to a Profitable Website and PlanetLink's Enews - an email newsletter delivered for FREE to your computer. To subscribe, go to www.planetlink.com.We'll explore the use and abuse of email and discuss how you can use it more effectively in your business.Email has become the most used service on the Internet. According to a Gallup Poll survey. . .

How Can I Stop Getting Spam?

Are you getting too much spam? We all are, but if you're a webmaster the word spam takes on a whole new meaning.It’s not uncommon for the luckiest of email users to receive a dozen or so spam messages each day, while those of us who aren’t so fortunate receive hundreds. The casual home user tends to be more fortunate, so this article is devoted to those of us with one or more website because w. . .

Make Your Navigation Highly Visible

Effective navigation stands out. It's clear, obvious, and highly visible.You'll need to have a clear section of the page designated for navigation--one that a visitor will immediately recognize as the navigation area when he arrives at the site. Navigation should not necessarily be the prime focus, but it must be highly visible.On many sites, the main navigation is overly subdued. It sort of "l. . .

Keep Your Navigation Simple!

Navigation must be simple. Since it's the backbone of your site, it's imperative that visitors be able to understand it. Here are two tips on how to make simplicity a reality in your site:1. Your link titles need to be understandable.Visitors need to know exactly what link to click on for the info they need. Unfortunately, visitors frequently get confused and don't understand what a link means.. . .

Keep Your Navigation Consistent!

One of the single most important aspects of effective navigation is consistency. Why? There's a simple reason.Visitors want familiarity.They are more comfortable and more trusting if they know things are going to remain the same from page to page. They have a certain sense of confidence from knowing what to expect.If a visitor can quickly become familiar with your navigation, it's much simpler . . .

Questions to Ask when Designing a Website for clients

Questions to ask when designing a Web Site for your client (s).“Excerpt from the book: Graphic Artists Guild, Handbook Pricing & Ethical guidelines Written by: Brent ParkerThese questions are a great tool to use when trying to develop your clients website. It gets down to the roots of web design, so there is a clear and precise understanding of what needs to be done. You can either make yoursel. . .

Web Accessibility. . . Making your Pages Friendly to Peop...

Did you know that nearly 20 percent of all Web users have some form of disability? “Making your site accessible for all is a matter of courtesy, is good business practice, and is not difficult,” explains Robert Roberts, a professional SEO who owns the SEO Toolbox (http://www.seotoolbox.com).In fact, Roberts believes that Web accessibility issues are so important that he’s been having monthly ch. . .

Some Basic Tests To Check Your Website For Accessibility

The Disability Discrimination Act says that websites must be made accessible to disabled people. So how can you check that your website is up to par? There are a number of basic tests you can make to address some of the main issues. Webcredible (http://www.webcredible.co.uk), a web accessibility and usability consultant, suggest a number of guidelines that provide a good start in increasing acc. . .

Tapping Into The Visual Stimulus Of Your Web Site Visitors

"Oh, my eyes, my eyes! What an eye sore. Quick, click away! Click away!" Suddenly I wake up in a cold sweat. What happened. Oh, then I realize: it was just a nightmare. O.k., I'm not crazy, and no I haven't had this dream before. But think about this: what would you do if you came to a site littered with either tons of different colors, loud pinks, purples, greens and reds mixed incoherently, o. . .

Website Maintenance: What does it take to manage your web...

Every action has a beginning phase where you launch your activity, a middle period in which you must sustain and develop it and a conclusion. Many people set up a website enthusiastically but then they find that they don’t have the skills or knowledge to maintain and develop it. So, what are the challenges in this middle phase of a website’s life and how can you meet them? Updating . . .

How to Create a Useful, Popular Website

In this free email course, I'll tell you everything I know about setting up your website and placing it highly in the search engines. Everything I tell you will also be free. You'll spend some time, but you won't spend your money. Your two goals, useful and popular, are related. Search engines can bring you a lot of first-time users, but quality will keep them coming back. How technical will I . . .

5 Simple Steps to Protect your Digital Downloads

A couple of days ago, I was searching for a popular eBook online. Now I'm not going to tell you the name of this eBook for reasons you'll understand in the next few minutes. Okay, so here I was, opening Google, entering the name of the eBook - clicking search, and checking through the first few pages of search results. -> Forward to Page 5 of Google I saw a link that looked like a PDF docume. . .

Why Re-Design?

My site is working fine. The links work. Content is added regularly. We have new features. Why does my company need a re-design?Those are all great things. Sites should be updated regularly, have new features added, and by far have working links. However, as the site grows it soon outgrows its foundation. Leading to an unorganized use of content, poor usability, and eventually chaos. A re-desig. . .

2 Tips On Effectively Organizing Your Navigation

Not all links are created equal.While all of your links may be important, you must sort and prioritize to come up with an effective navigation scheme. Here's what you should keep in mind:1. Sort your linksYour links should be organized according to their relationship to each other. Any time you can find a way to divide your links into two or more categories, do so.If you have more than 5 or 6 l. . .

How to Boost Your Chances at Having a Successful Web Site

New Web sites are springing up online by the millions. However, when they don’t reach a level of success, the Web site owners assume that they can’t make money off the Internet.Wrong.The one thing that is important to know, however, is that you do have to work to make money online. Just like having a regular offline business, the online business needs to be taken care of, the Web site continual. . .

Key Facts you should know about Web Site design and Searc...

1. Web site File Structure / File Naming Most search engines do not recognize beyond two directory levels. Make sure to name your files and directories with keywords. Don’t separate keywords using the underscore instead use hyphens. File names should be not too long. 2. Load Time If a page doesn't load in 8 seconds, Web site will lose 1/3 of the visitors. Images and Graphics -Image optimi. . .

How To Get Banned From Google Adsense In Just 2 Clicks

The darkest nightmare a hardworking affiliate webmaster fears is receiving a dreaded Google Adsense Warning, or even worse, a notice that Google Adsense has been disabled for the entire account. The notice starts out like this:"It has come to our attention that invalid clicks have been generated on the ads on your web pages. We have therefore disabled your Google Adsense account. Please under. . .

Why Stock Photography is a Great Resource for Web Business

A picture is worth a thousand words.And it still is today. With the media changing everyday photography has changed along with it and as a result is still a valuable resource for web business. Photos enhance the look of a website. Communicate so much more than words, they communicate emotions. Photos can be customized for borders and backgrounds. Photos have more impact than clip art. (They te. . .

Graphic Design Using Color

Color is everywhere and conveys a message even if we don’t realize it. While this message can vary by culture it pays to know what colors “say” in your own corner of the universe, and even what color means to your target market.If you don’t think that color speaks just complete this sentence, “red means ---- and green means –“ even a child will know what red means stop and green means go.. . .

Basic Graphic Design

Wether you design your business brochures, flyers, web page, or ads there are some things that you need to know. There are some basic graphic design principles that those of us trained in the commercial art/graphic design field don’t always share. Here’s a short list of elements of graphic design that you can use today.ColorThis is the first and most important. Color is everything. It’s why we . . .

How to Create a Links Page and Build Page Rank

One of the hardest achievements for a webmaster to obtain is a solid links page and great web site page rank. You know as well as I do that it is very difficult to obtain well page ranked reciprocal links. Especially when your actual links page is PR 1 or 2! There are ways to construct a links page with good page rank and reach a great page ranked web site.The first step to take would be to add. . .

What Hosting Companies Don't Tell You, Could Hurt You

Did you know that hosting companies overcrowd their servers despite all the issues caused by servers running hundreds of accounts? Are you aware of what happens if your website is hosted on a server thats overcrowded? Youre probably thinking to yourself, what do you mean overcrowd their servers? Overcrowded servers mean big money for your hosting company, but also big problems for your website.. . .

Building Web Sites Using Web Templates

Gone are the days when you had to rely on a web-designer to design your websites. New technologies with innovative ideas have brought out a new variant to this trend in the form of ready to use website templates.So what are web templates?Well, to put it in a simple way, web templates are nothing but readymade web-pages that can be used to create websites in seconds! How you ask? Web templates a. . .

Top Five Most Profitable Color Combinations Used In Cover...

"Two days ago, an old man stopped me on the street and asked me who my stylist is. I was surprised at first by the situation. But after a couple of seconds, my answer was: - ""I don’t have a stylist. I dress myself!"" That's when it occurred to me that there are many people that match their clothes colors in a bad way. And guess what: the same thing is happening with many e-book covers that ar. . .

The Next Marketing Tool: Deisgn

Design sells. It’s something that all of us know, but few of us consciously acknowledge. There is an age old adage that warns people not to “judge books by their cover.” In other words, we shouldn’t judge people or products by their appearance. But this isn’t true in America. We do judge books by their cover – in fact we spend billions of dollars on products that have prettier “covers.”Man. . .