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Category: Web Development

Web Design: Using Mobile Devices to Your Advantage

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Credit: Smashing Magazine — According to Pew Internet, in 2012, 55% of mobile-phone owners went online. 17% of all mobile-phone owners went online mostly via their phone.

Credit: Smashing Magazine — According to Pew Internet, in 2012, 55% of mobile-phone owners went online. 17% of all mobile-phone owners went online mostly via their phone.

With seventy-two percent of cell phone owners connecting to the internet via cell phone, it should come as no surprise that a Hilton Head web design project would benefit greatly from a responsive web design.

However, the mobile user experience is no longer comprised of useful add-ons and apps, it is all-encompassing from the layout of a responsive website to the accessibility of content.  A 2012 Google survey of smartphone users found that seventy-two percent of users find mobile-friendly sites to be extremely important. But what exactly makes a website “mobile-friendly?”

The content you place on your mobile website should be straightforward and precise. In fact,  the same Google survey found that over one third of respondents prefer to have only “one or two clicks” for more information when using their mobile device. If your mobile visitors have to drill too far down for general information like an address or business hours, it may deter them from utilizing your services.

Our Hilton Head web design experts are constantly researching new ways to enhance the mobile user experience. Other tips to ensure you have a well-designed mobile website is to include large, “finger-friendly” buttons in your layout, use non-scrolling forms and add the option to switch to the full non-mobile site at the users discretion. The “click to call” feature is also important to mobile users because it allows them to easily contact the business if a question was not answered on the mobile site.

Have a Hilton Head web design responsive project on the horizon? Our experienced team at Robmark Interactive would love to help you get started!

Web Design Tips for Mega-Site Navigation

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Many websites have a fairly general and non-challenging format: a main navigation bar at the top followed by a sub navigation off to the side. The main navigation at the top will usually stay the same allowing users to easily move between sections throughout the website. However, if you operate a large business or organization with content that will exceed more than three levels in the development phase, it is important to find a Hilton Head web design expert that can design a mega-site that maintains context to increase user experience.

Maintaining the content context for the user is the most important aspect of designing for mega-sites. For example, if you operate a University website, each college program website should contain a navigation that is independent in content from the main site navigation, as the user will not be immediately interested in the broader mega-site. This enables the user to gather all the information needed on one specific topic without being taken to an unneeded portion of the site.

There are many ways to tackle a mega-site. The most commonly used method is to splitting the mega-site into smaller micro-sites while maintaining consistency in top-level navigation. This allows each micro-site to have its own look and feel that can cater to different audiences without compromising the user experience overall.

Planning a mega-site for your business or organization? Let Robmark Interactive’s team of Hilton Head web design experts help you with your next multi-level web project!

SEO Social Snippets for Web Design

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Today’s SEO structure is being shifted as social signals gain momentum in the world of web development. The creation and application of the Social Snippet is becoming the ‘new normal’ in maximizing visibility of content through social media vehicles like Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

savannah web design social snippets

Social Snippets are developed using meta tags and are based on the Open Graph Protocol, which enables the page to become a rich object on the search engine results page. The average Social Snippet provides a title, link, thumbnail photo and a brief synopsis of the site, allowing users to obtain more information about the company or product prior to clicking. The ultimate goal of a social snippet is to persuade users to click on the proposed website and view its content. A poorly designed social snippet can ultimately cost a company visitors and potential clients.

The Social Snippet and its functionality are one of the many potential methods SEO Savannah web experts in our office are continuously researching for our clients. Not only is it our job to make sure your Social Snippet is aesthetically appealing to visitors, but to also make sure each element of the Social Snippet is accurate, functioning properly and represents the company’s brand effectively.

If you are interested Search Engine Optimization using social signals like Social Snippets, the SEO Savannah web design experts at Robmark Interactive would love to help you on your next website optimization project.

Mobile Website Design

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To understand the basics of mobile website design and how it affects your business, we first need to visit why maintaining a mobile website is essential to the success of your online presence.

Image: Mozilla EU/Flickr (Creative Commons)

Why Mobile?
Approximately 55% of people who use cell phones use their phone to browse the web. In addition, 31% of mobile Internet users say they mostly go online using their phone. This means that a great number of your customers may never see your desktop website. If your website is not optimized for mobile viewing, you are losing potential customers every day. If the sheer number of potential mobile visitors isn’t convincing enough, it has been reported that approximately 34% of mobile web users would visit a competitor’s mobile website after a bad mobile experience. By not considering a mobile web design Savannah, you are driving your customers elsewhere.

Local Search Results
Mobile web user experience is exponentially more influenced by physical location as compared to desktop viewing. Thanks to modern GPS tracking capabilities, the content that visitors see on social networks, search engines and native applications are all influenced by where they are currently located. For example, if a user is searching for “web design” on Google, a desktop user may see search results from generic websites that specialize in web design, but may not necessarily be located in Savannah. If, however, that same user searches for “web design” on a mobile device, they would see a listing of companies specializing in Savannah web design. When searching on a mobile device, the GPS location has a great influence on the search results.

Designing for Mobile
Unlike designing websites for the desktop, designing for mobile platforms brings many more constraints to the table. A smaller screen size, slower internet connections, touch-sensitive screens and browser incompatibility must all be considered in order to communicate effectively.

Savannah web design professionals realize that they must be thoroughly experienced in designing for mobile devices and understand the requirements that mobile environments present. We realize that content has to be tailored for the mobile experience and that the design must be simplistic and provide ease-of-use all while matching your brand image cohesively.

If you are interested in building a mobile website for your business, feel free to contact Robmark Interactive via our website. We look forward to providing the best possible user experience for your potential clients online: on desktops and mobile devices!

Choosing a Web Design Company: Part 2

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In Part 1 of the “Looking for a Web Design Company” series, we discussed the importance of industry experience and versatility. In this part of the series, we will discuss how an agency’s creativity and personality can make or break a project’s success.

Design Style
It goes without saying that design style is an extremely important factor in choosing a Hilton Head web design company. Not only must the company produce professional and visually appealing designs, but they must also be able to create easy-to-use websites that ultimately generate profits for your business. In addition, the web company that you choose must be able to design a website that matches your brand image and performs successfully within your industry.

Personality
The Hilton Head web design company that creates beautiful designs and receives hundreds of nominations and awards may also be the most difficult to work with. In order to experience a pleasant website development process, the company you choose must be personable, professional and understand your needs as a business owner. They must also understand the importance of a deadline and a budget. If you cannot find proof that a web design company has all of these attributes, it could lead to a miserable design process for you and your business.

The Results
Ultimately, choosing a Hilton Head web design company is not as difficult as it seems if you look for all these attributes when making your selection. The design agency should have adequate experience, have a courteous and professional demeanor, consistently create great designs and be versatile enough to manage all of your business’s marketing needs. Investigating all of these things before committing to a project with a web design agency will help to ensure your satisfaction throughout the design and development process.

If you are currently seeking web design and web development services, Robmark Interactive in Savannah, GA provides a wide range of web services to clients in Hilton Head and throughout the Southeast. Feel free to request a quote online or contact us directly at (912) 921-1040.