web development – Page 2

7 Basic Fundamentals for Creating a Great Website

Posted on May 15, 2016 by Forward_Web

Are you looking to build your first website? Today, there are many options which allows people to build/manage their own website but frankly, so much information can get overwhelming. To simplify this process, Forward Web has put together this guide, which provides 7 basic fundamentals for creating a great website!

Effective web design is judged by the users of the websites (not the website owners) therefore, it is important to consider the many factors that affect the usability of a website because it’s not just about how good your site looks, but functionality plays a major role.

Websites that are not designed properly will experience poor performance and have less than favorable Google Analytics metrics such as high bounce rates, low pages per visit, low time on your site and low conversations. What makes a website design ideal? Let’s take a look at the 7 basic fundamentals, which consists of making yous site not only aesthetically pleasing but is also easy to use, effective and engaging:

1st Basic Fundamental: Purpose

What is the purpose of your website? For example, is your website intended to provide information, some type of interaction or entertainment? Or perhaps your website is designed to transact with your business? A good web design always caters to the needs of the end user and each page of your website must have a clear purpose in order to fulfill your website user’s specific needs (in the most effective way possible).

2nd Basic Fundamental: Communication

One of the most important aspects of your website is effective communication. The internet was created to provide information and internet users want information quickly, therefore, it is imperative to communicate clearly (making sure your information is easy to read and comprehend). With this in mind, some effective tactics you can incorporate into your design includes: organization through the use of headlines and sub headlines, use bullet points instead of long run-on sentences, and being concise (keep it short and to the point).

3rd Basic Fundamental: Navigation

Navigation is essential to the success of your website because it determines how easily people can take action and move around your website. We recommend incorporating a logical page chain of command, using bread crumbs, designing clickable buttons, and following the “three click” rule (which means that users are able to find the information they are looking for within three clicks).

4th Basic Fundamental: Images

We’re sure you’ve heard the expression “a picture can speak a thousand words” and it could not be any truer when it comes to web development. Choosing the right images for your website is going to help with brand positioning and connecting with your target audience. Make sure to use high quality professional photos, and if you don’t have access to any of them, consider purchasing stock photos to improve the look and quality of your website. Another thing you could consider is using graphics, videos and infographics because these can be even more effective at communicating than the most well written piece of text.

5th Basic Fundamental: Typefaces

When considering fonts, Arial, Verdana and Sans Serif are generally easiest to read online. As far as sizes go, ideally, 16px is a font size that is easy to read. We also recommend sticking to a maximum of 3 typefaces in a maximum of 3 point sizes to keep your design streamlined.

6th Basic Fundamental: Color Choices

You might not have considered this to be one of the basic fundamentals, but a carefully selected color palette can really go a long way to enhance the user’s experience. To create balance and harmony, using complimentary colors is key! Contrasting colors (for the text and background) makes it easier for the user to read the content. And while vibrant colors add life and can create emotion, they should be used sparingly (just a pop of color) such as for buttons and call to actions. Lastly, if you are aiming for a modern and uncluttered look, consider using white or negative space, it is very effective. Who knew colors could do so much for your site!

7th Basic Fundamental: Mobile Friendly

If you do not already know, 80% of all web traffic now comes from mobile devices, thus, including a full mobile version of your self storage facility website is a necessity. Nowadays, it is very common for users to access websites from multiple devices with multiple screen sizes, and for that reason it is imperative to consider whether or not your website is mobile friendly. If your website is not currently mobile friendly, you can approach this matter in two ways: you can either re-develop your website in a responsive layout so that it can accommodate to different screen widths or you can build a separate website dedicated specifically to be optimized for mobile users. As you can see, this is a very important factor to consider!

Knowing and understanding the basic fundamentals of creating a great website is the first step and now, you can build your first website successfully using this guide, just follow these steps. If you are having a difficult time setting up your website, do not have the time or you would like help improving the website you or someone else developed, contact Forward Web and we will be happy to discuss your project and answer any questions you may have.

The 3 Services You Need to Start a Website

Posted on April 3, 2016 by Forward_Web

So you want to start a website. Now what? What do you need? Where do you even begin? Forward Web would like to guide you through this process by providing you with information about the 3 basic services you need to start a website!

The three parts that make a website are: A domain name, web-hosting servers and site files. What on earth does that mean? Well, if you are a beginner and new to the world of web development that might sound a little intimidating but we will try our best to help you understand.

When someone visits your website they use your domain name to view your website. A domain name is unique name that identifies a website and there is a process that occurs from the time the site visitor types in your domain and presses enter; When a visitor enters your domain name into the browser, your domain is then translated into your server IP address and then the server send the user your site files (which their browser represents to them as a regular web page).

Basically, having a website is not possible unless you have each of these three basic elements. Let’s explore each of these areas for further clarification:

Domain Names:

Did you know that computers have their own language? That’s right, computers communicate by using numbers (called IP addresses) to contact each other, much the same way we use phone numbers to dial a specific person’s phone. Just like a phone book has entries and tells people looking for a business what the entries are, the internet has domain names which tells people (via their computers) that a domain is hosted on a server.

Not having a domain can actually hurt your business because you would have to explain to your clients that your site is located in a temporary url, which can make your website appear unprofessional and useless.

Web Hosting Servers:

The web hosting server is simply a space. Without the hosting service, you will not have a place for your files to reside therefore your domain would then become like a disconnected phone number in the phone directory, and your website files would have nowhere to stay. Think of the web hosting server as the space you would rent out to have your business in. A rental space does not come included with furnishings (such as shelves to display your products) and similarly, a web hosting account does not include a site for you to sell your products.

However, unlike a rental space for your business, in the web hosting world it is very easy to furnish the space provided by your host. This is possible through the installation of numerous framework applications which are available through the “QuickInstall” icon within your cPanel.

Site Files:

The site files are what your website visitors and potential customers actually see when going to your website (such as your products and services).

Website files are the same as any other file you normally use (like a .jpg is a photograph file and a .mp3 is a music file). Website files are .php files or .html files, which are PHP scripts or html pages just and the web hosting server knows how to read these files. They explain how the webpage looks or instructs the server to do a series of computations. Examples of these computations include determining what forum post it is supposed to send back or figuring out what blog article it is supposed to send back to the viewer.

Are you ready to start building your website? If you still have questions, are having a difficult time setting up your website, do not have the time or you would like help improving the website you or someone else developed, contact Forward Web and they will contact you to discuss your project!

Recommended Security Plugins for Your WordPress Website

Posted on March 20, 2016 by Forward_Web

Most of the time we do not worry about the security of our WordPress website until it is too late but it is important to remember that your website is your piece of valuable property in the Internet and therefore, you want to ensure that it is safe from intruders, thieves or hackers.

Although some believe that the WordPress software is not secure, it is actually quite the opposite. WordPress is built with a solid and secure framework, but that does not mean that it is impossible for hackers to sneak their way into your website. Breaches to WordPress may occur due to weak user passwords, not keeping the software up to date and vulnerabilities in plugins or themes.

Forward Web encourages you to be proactive when it comes to your security and we highly believe that investing a small amount of time planning and preparing ahead can reduce the risk of your website being hacked. With that being said, we recommended the following security plugins for your WordPress website:

All in One WPSecurity & Firewall

All in One WP Security & Firewall is great and one of the features we really like about it is the meter on your dashboard that gives your site a score of how secure it is. You can increase your score by adding additional security options.

BruteProtect

A common way that hackers try to gain access to your site is through something called a Brute Force Attack. It is possible for a hacker to gain access to your site the passwords are weak because in a brute force attack, bots are sent to your site to try different combinations of usernames and passwords (over and over again) and because it is a computer running the attack, it can try countless combinations in a short period of time.

Brute force attacks can cause issues on your site even if you have created a solid password. Due to the numerous attempts the bots try to log in, the server can overload and can cause your website to go offline. To protect your site and prevent this from happening, BruteForce works by identifying these bots and blocks them from your site. If somebody tries to log in to your website and fails too many times, their IP address is restricted from your site.

Additionally, once BruteForce has identified the IP Addresses of the bots, it keeps track of them in a network. This is a great feature because if a bot tries a brute force attack on one website on the BruteProtected network, all websites on the network will block that IP address!

iThemes Security

Overall, iThemes Security is the best security plugin you can find! That’s because it’s powerful but yet super user friendly. This plugin not only hardens the security but it will also fix many issues that leave WordPress sites vulnerable which includes: scanning your site for any vulnerabilities, hide the login and admin pages, make regular backups of your database and remove information hackers use to gain access to your site.

Another great feature of this plugin is the checklist of action items presented on the dashboard. These action items are listed from most important to least and you can click each item which will take you to a page where you can enable that security option. If you are a more experienced WordPress user, there are also a number of advance options available.

Google Authenticator

Even if you create the strongest password possible, hackers have several methods they can use to find your password and gain access to your website. Using the 2-factor authentication to log into your site is a great tool. This can be set up very easily using the Google Authenticator plugin.

With Google Authenticator you still have your username and password to log into your site but your login form will also ask you for your Google Authenticator code. If you have a smartphone, there is a Google Authenticator app available which is very simple to use. It cycles through a sequence of numbers and when you need to log into your site, you open the app and enter the numbers shown.

This additional security measure is terrific and makes it nearly impossible for a hacker to get your Google Authenticator code even if they do happen to gain access to your username and password.

Sucuri Security

Sucuri Inc. is well known as one of the top experts in website security. Not only do they offer premium services but they also offer this free security plugin that comes with some really great security features! One of the features scans your core WordPress files for any abnormalities and if it finds anything, you can quickly restore a copy of the file back to how it is supposed to be.

The Securi plugin also tracks all activity on your site including changes made to your site or when users log in. If there is a breach in security you will be able to review the activity logs and find out what happened. Sucuri even scans blacklist monitoring sites to see if they flag your website for security issues. Security issues is an indication of possible malware on your website.

Another great feature this plugin offers is a section of suggested actions that you can take to harden your site’s security. These actions are simple yet effective and can be completed with just a click of a button.

Well, there you have it, there is no reason why your website should be unprotected. You literally have amazing security options at your fingertips! It really is just a matter of investing a little time to prepare ahead and avoid the risk of your website being hacked. Please feel free to contact Forward Web if you have any questions or for any of your website needs!

Five Ways to Help Increase Your Website’s Search Rank

Posted on March 13, 2016 by Forward_Web

Do you have a current website but are not sure how to improve your search engine rankings? This article provides you with five ways to help you increase your website search rank. Now, you may ask yourself, what’s the big deal about about website search ranks? Well, there are many reasons to consider but one thing is certain; how your website ranks in the online world can be the difference between your business being a success or a failure.

ForwardWeb.net believes that your website’s search rank can raise your website’s profile, delivering more traffic and more customers which means larger revenues.

Watch your website rise the ranks to the top of search-engine results with these five basic fundamentals:

Have a link-worthy site:

Direct your attention on creating relevant links within the text rather than having “click here” links which have no search engine value beyond the attached URL. Instead, try writing out the name of the destination (such as Forward Web Development) because complete and significant keywords will improve your search engine rankings as well as the ranking of the page you are linking to.

Publish relevant content:

There is no substitute for great content therefore quality content is the single most important driver of your search engine rankings. Your site’s authority and relevance improves when quality content is created specifically for your intended user and it also increases site traffic. Identifying a keyword phrase for each page and then repeat that phrase several times throughout the page is also very effective (for instance once or twice in the opening and closing paragraphs and two to four more times throughout the rest of the content). Remember to use heading tags, bold, italics and other emphasis tags to highlight keyword phrases.

Update Your Content Regularly:

It is imperative to keep your content recent because updated content is viewed as one of the best indicators of a site’s relevancy.

Alt Tags:

Alt tags allow search engines to locate your page, which is essential (especially for text-only browsers) and for that reason you want to make sure to always describe your video and visual media using alt tags or different text descriptions.

Metadata:

Metadata is a set of data that describes and gives information about other data. During the creation of your website, each page is designed to contain a space between the <head> tags to insert metadata (or information about the contents of your page). Metadata breaks down to the following sections: Title Metadata, Description Metadata, and Keyword Metadata.

Title Metadata is the most significant metadata on your page because it is responsible for the page titles displayed at the top of the browser window.

Description Metadata consists of the textual description that a browser will use in you page search return. This is a description of what is contained within (that is appealing, short and to the point) with the intention of encouraging people to enter.

Keyword Metadata is substantial because this is the search phrase that people type when they want to find your page. Ideally, you want to incorporate various phrases and keep them at about six to eight phrases with each phrase consisting of one to four words (you don’t want to exceed this limit because if your list becomes redundant, it’s possible that the browser may completely ignore the data).

Keep in mind that these are not the only ways to increase your website’s search rank, but they are definitely a solid foundation. By following these five steps, you will without a doubt not only increase your website’s search rank but also your chances for success. If you have any questions regarding the information discussed in this article, don’t hesitate to contact Forward Web, they are willing to assist any time!

Websites are not easy or free to build

Posted on November 19, 2015 by Forward_Web

As the title reads, websites are not easy or free to build. However this article is not intended to discourage you from attempting to build your own website (but rather to give you a more realistic approach to what it takes to develop a website) with or without the help of a professional.

With that being said, now that we are in the full blown digital age, there are many misconceptions about website development. Many of which are promoted by domain registrars and “free” website builder services (which can be very misleading to the consumer). Often times these misconceptions lead to wasted time and frustrations, leaving the consumer back where they started (without a proper web presence). Surely you have seen the ads, the slogans often times come in the form of “build your own website for free” or “build your website in minutes”. All great ideas that sound enticing to the consumer, however none of which are actually true or realistic.

To further elaborate, regardless of whether or not you decide to build your website on your own (or with the help of a professional). If you want to have a proper and effective web presence, you will need to take many items into consideration, such as:

What is the purpose of the website? Are you going to sell items online, is the website going to be strictly informative?
Who will your primary audience be? Business Professionals, Women, Men, Age Groups..ect
Once complete, wow do you plan on promoting your website? Organic Search Results, Paid Advertisments, all of the above?

The above are just a few items (on a very long list of items) that should be taken into consideration (before) you start building your website. As you can see, if done right, you are already going to spend a few hours on your project (not minutes).

Yet, if you are willing to put the time and effort into properly building your website (or at least to the best of your abilities). Developing your own website can be a very rewarding experience. Or at worst, you will walk away with a higher level of appreciation towards web development. Truth be told, if you are looking to build your own website, think hours/days vs minutes, along with preparing to spend a little money to get your website off the ground (as nothing is truly for free).

With the above mind, here is a short list of services you will need to establish your initial web presence.

Domain Name: There is no way around this, if you want to have a successful website, you will need to have a domain name). Average cost for a domain name on a year to year basis can range between $15-$20.00 per year. Forward Web does not recommend spending more than $20.00 per year on your domain name. You can register your domain name with Forward Web anytime for only $15.00 per year by clicking here.

Web Hosting: Probably the most overlooked service (yet arguably the most important) is web hosting. Without a proper web host, your website will either load slow or will be inaccessible all together. To learn more about web hosting, click here. Pricing for ideal shared web hosting (Forward Web)recommends cPanel Shared web hosting) can range between $50.00-$150.00 per year (however many service providers usually and should include your domain name in the yearly service fee). You can set-up your cPanel web hosting account with Forward Web (domain name included) for only $100.00 per year by clicking here.

Website Builder: At last, now you have your domain name and web hosting account set-up, you will need a website builder to build your website with. This is where you should choose very carefully because not all web site builders are created equal. Also, not all website builders allow you to transfer your website away from your web host (which is very important and unfortunately, where many of the free site builder services will hook you in).

Forward Web recommends using WordPress to build your website, however if not WordPress, please make sure your website builder is open source (where you are able to move your website freely) and not proprietary (where you are restricted to where you can move your website to). With Forward Web (assuming you have already ordered your cPanel web hosting service, you can easily install WordPress within a matter of minutes (using our One Click auto installer). If not, our friendly staff is always available and willing to assist where needed (at no extra cost).

Still have questions? Do not hesitate to contact Forward Web at your convenience, we are always here to assist you with all of your web development needs.

When Hiring a Web Developer (ask questions)

Posted on July 15, 2015 by Forward_Web

Most of what you see on the web today is point and click (as intended). The back-end however (the engine), like always, consists of very little point and click (coding and programming make the www go round). It is this basic understanding that essentially separates a true web developer from someone who is simply building websites as a hobby.

Before hiring a developer to build a website for your business, do not be afraid to ask questions. Some good questions to ask before hiring a developer:

– How do you plan to build our website?

– How long have you been developing websites?

– Do you develop websites for a living or part time?

– How many websites have you developed?

– What will happen to my website if you disappear or become unavailable?

The above are some great starting points and do not be afraid to trust your gut (end of the day, its your money and you should feel good about your investment).