Below is my presentation from WordPress Nashville Meetup on February 22, 2011. Comment below if you have questions or comments.
Nashville WordPress Meet Up 2-8
February 8, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Below is my WordPress presentation from February 8th. Enjoy and please comment below if you have suggestions of improvements!
Is your website site mobile friendly?
January 31, 2011 By Leave a Comment
It’s estimated that by 2014 half of Americans’ web browsing will be done on mobile devices. Today more and more of your customers are using their iPhones, Blackberrys and Androids to search for you and your competitors. Companies who don’t start catering to these mobile surfers may find themselves behind for too long.
This isn’t a lose-sleep-over-it-tonight revelation – but definitely a hot 2011 trend that small businesses should consider. A mobile optimized site can help differentiate you from your competition. Optimizing websites for mobile devices a few years ago was expensive, complicated and daunting, but things have changed.
If mobile visitors land on your site and see your “full web” screen, chances are that shrinkage will render the navigation impossible (and pretty aggravating) to use. Then, they will leave your site. Keep in mind mobile devices are not desktops. Mobile versions should help turn your regular visitors into actual customers. This is accomplished by less copy, more calls-to-action (like coupons and promotions) and condensed quick links, like ESPN.com:
Optimizing websites for mobile devices a few years ago was expensive, complicated and daunting, but things have changed. There are a slew of services that help make “mobilizing” (ha – shameless pun!) easier and affordable for small businesses, including WordPress plug-ins.
To upgrade or not upgrade (WordPress). That is the question
January 25, 2011 By Leave a Comment
One of our frequently asked questions from clients is should I update to the latest version of WordPress? Great question, with a few different answers depending on how you’re using WordPress and what the upgrade entails.
There is usually a new major release of WordPress three to four times per year – a lot to digest and keep tabs on. The urgency and necessity of an upgrade/update depends on a few key factors:
Reason for the upgrade
Take a moment to review the reason for the update in the release notes or announcement explanation. Minor updates generally don’t “break” any plugins or themes. They tend to be limited to security fixes or minor bugs – which may or may not affect your site. If your site isn’t affected by the bug, chances are you don’t need to bother with the update.
But security updates (like 3.1 to 3.2) should be handled more urgently to ensure your site’s safety and security. Security shortfalls can turn you into prey for bad people interested in inserting spam links on your site – which could (in worst case scenarios) make Google or other search engines drop you. Not good.
Extent of the upgrade
Major release upgrades are a different story. We recommend upgrading but there’s no big hurry. These pose a greater risk of compatibility issues, so you need to due your due diligence by testing plugins and themes. An example is major release versions 2.0 to 3.0, where features were added and common bugs fixed.
How to upgrade seamlessly
So you’ve decided to update/upgrade. Now what? Depending on the version, there are a few things you can do to ensure compatibility and success. Ah So can walk you through those safeguards or point you to a quick step-by-step guide if you’re a do-it-yourselfer.
Camels and Chocolate
December 27, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Two-time Webby blog award winner Kristin Luna needed help re-designing her 3-year-old travel website, Camels & Chocolate. The already-successful site was averaging about 75,000 monthly page views but needed a fresh look and strategy. Enter Ah So. We spearheaded the site’s blog strategy, design (minus the header), development and analytics.
Execution: Ah So’s design included a right-hand sidebar on the home page and inside pages for ads, enabling Kristin to sell more targeted advertising for increased revenue. Information architecture reorganization helped visitors find content and calls to action more quickly and easily. The site’s pink accent colors were replaced with a more gender-neutral blue.
Results: Since the redesign, Kristin’s advertising queries and sales have increased. In addition:
- Bounce rate decreased by 25%
- Time on the site increased by 19%
- Page visits increased by 28%
- Page views remained consistent
Want to see more? Check out our work here.
