Your blog and website need that decluttering/sorting/purging action too. The new year is a perfect time to do just that!

As per the norm, with WordPress, there are a variety of ways that you can update, speed-up, maintain etc. Take a look at the list below to get started with some easy-to-do fixes on getting your site/blog in tip-top shape for the new year! If you’re unsure, give us a call or signup for our Update, Security & Maintenance program.

Blog & Website Maintenance Checklist

Erase Unused Plugins

Check out your plugins menu and see what’s adding unnecessary bulk. A major cause of slow site speed is too many and unused plugins. Look for unused plugins or ones you’ve replaced. If you’re not using it, erase it!

Erase All Unused Themes

Go into your themes area and make sure that the only themes you have are the one you’re using and one default theme (Twenty Ten or Twenty Eleven). Having unnecessary theme files on your server opens you up to hackers, so its a good thing to remove them.

Update All Your Plugins and Themes

One of the major causes of WordPress sites getting hacked is out of date themes and plugins. Always make sure you have the most up to date installations so you avoid getting hacked!

Update WordPress Core

For the same reason that updating your plugins is important, so is updating your WordPress. Updates to any files are often security fixes and if you ignore them, hackers can exploit that to insert Malware to infect your visitors and hijack your site. When you log into your dashboard, you may be prompted to update (if one is available) make sure you do a backup and then follow the steps and you’ll be all set!

Do a Malware Scan

Your blog can have malware hanging out in the files and you will not necessarily notice right away. Google won’t blacklist your site immediately either so you have time to correct the issue before the search engines will restrict access to prevent visitors from getting inflected. Get a free scan at Sucuri.net and if you do have malware, they can remove it super fast.

Remove Post Revisions and Spam Comments

Everytime you save a draft or your blog auto saves your content, you make an entry in your WP database. Over time this creates a huge amount of information that is just sitting there (taking up space). By removing all of those excess files, you will free up a lot of space. Make sure you stop by the comment section and wipe away all of those spam comments – if you don’t already, consider installing Akismet to help combat spammers!

Consolidate Plugins

Do you have multiple plugins that do the same thing? Maybe you’re running a Facebook plugin, one for Pinterest and one for twitter? Look for an all-in-one option (Sexy Bookmarks is good!) and use that instead, not only will that save you some space and cut down on load time, but it will make managing your site much easier!
Perform these checks every once in a while to help remove (but not eliminate) the likelihood of hacks and to help your site perform better.

If you read through this list and thought to yourself, “No way, no how am I doing that!”, never fear, we have our Update, Security & Maintenance program to keep your site/blog covered and running at it’s best!

Read on and find out how YOU can use Social Media for your business..

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When you hear “Social Media Marketing”, you think of Facebook. Don’t you?

Well, although Facebook certainly has a stronghold on the world of Social Media, they aren’t the “end all, be all”.

If your customer base is business-to-business, Facebook is probably not the most useful tool.

So what other options do you have?

Read More on Leslie’s Blog

Just a few little conditions:

• Services are scheduled on a first come, first serve basis
• a 50% non-refundable deposit and completion of the web questionnaire is required to secure your project
• Hosting/Domain name are not included
• Price is applicable to basic site only (see above for package details & inclusions)
• Content inclusion or training is not included

Want to secure your spot?? Shoot me an email at me@arianegriffiths.com and we’ll get the party the started!!!

Talk to you soon!

I did, and I pushed it out of my brain for the past 30 years.. Until I got a Facebook message from my friend Jim.

I messaged Jim and was inquiring about a local television show that had (unbeknownst to me) been discontinued. I expressed my dismay and it was then that Jim responded to me ” I would love you to pitch an idea for a show that you would produce and host. Small business, social media, something we could spin into 13 shows. Give it some thought.”

*Backstory notation; Jim is the Supervising Producer for Rogers TV Georgina and he was on the hunt for TV Hosts and Community Producers. People who had an idea (or a skill/knowledge) for a TV show.*

I replied with – “Thought has already been given!” (The details hadn’t been thought of, but I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to pass up, so I feigned preparedness!)

A few weeks passed and emails, phone calls and coffee shop meetings were held. A name was debated and decided upon, graphics were thrown about via email and then approved and then last Wednesday, I tried to get some sleep, knowing the next day, my dream – my ultimate dream – would come true!

I walked in to the TV Studio on Thursday morning, more nervous than I have ever been in my entire life and was excited to see what awaited me.

My “desk”, three cameras, a couple TVs and a Crew (I had my own Crew!!!). The next few hours flew by in a nervous blur (I have to say that I was pretty sure I blew the first episode) and then the day was over.. Three episodes wrapped and three to go!

My guests were great! We talked about everything under the sun (for what we talked about on the air, you’ll have to stay tuned ) and had a great time filming the episodes. They helped me ask pertinent questions, and gave me informative answers and generally eased my mind (and fears!)

That night, I went home, had a glass of wine to celebrate my experience and then slept like a baby in anticipation for the next day’s episodes (3 – 6)

We shot the 6 episodes back to back over the two days, so I had a “wardrobe” and was required to change in between the episodes so to make it look like I wasn’t wearing the same thing throughout the 6 weeks (the magic of TV eh?)

Once the end of the 6th episode was taped, we shot 6 weeks worth of commercial promo spots where I announced who “Next Week’s” guest would be.. That was nerve wracking and for some reason, it took me about 5 tries each time I did a spot.. I just couldn’t get the words out – we’re talking like 10 words max and it just couldn’t come..

Finally, I finished the last promo and Jim yelled from the sound booth “That’s a Wrap!” and my awesome crew all started clapping and cheering! What a cool experience!

A HUGE kudos goes out to my first guest, Jennifer Anderson of Talk of the Town Events – As the former Host of The Parenting Show and current Host of That’s My Story, she knew all the ropes and made me feel so at ease.. even though I was (or so I felt) a blubbering fool!

My crew was so fantastic and I’m pretty sure the end result would’ve been a disaster without them;

Ron, Lou and Alan – My Camera Geniuses – Thanks for making me look good (and for only shooting “my good side”)
Alyssa and Kimmie – My Floor Directors – Without you, I’m sure I would’ve stared blankly into the camera stunned or even worse, talked straight through the commercials!
Nicole – My CG Guru – Thanks for putting up with the slew of links and websites URLS – Sorry for making your eyes tired
John – My Graphics and Animation God – Thank you so much for taking my vision and turning it into a wicked intro!!
To everyone else that I KNOW I missed – Thank you so very much for making this experience an super awesome one!!

and last but not least…

Jim – My Supervising Producer – For giving me this opportunity, I cannot thank you enough, my only hope is that you let me back on the air!!

To stay up to date with the show, please visit the Social Scene’s website or become a Social Scene Fan on Facebook!

• What should I start with? They’re all important points!
• How should I go about the flow of the content so that it makes sense?
• What if I offend anyone?

All of these things pop up into my head, but it has been a constant “Want to do” post that keeps coming up! I really feel I need to write this post and that you need to read it.

It may or may not make you choose me as your designer, but it will leave you informed about what you SHOULD be looking for in terms of the person you WILL end up working with.

I stumbled upon this article that honestly says 99% of what I wanted to write – rather than recreate the wheel, I shall point you to that!

How to Pick a Great Designer

@SachaGreif for Folyo is the author behind this great article and touches on everything from Visuals and Structure, Insight and Style, to Communication and Experience and even  things I didn’t even think to talk about (when I visualised my article [that of course doesn't exist]) like Personality and Passion.

The only thing that wasn’t covered was budgetary requirements; something that I feel needs to be discussed, (even though it is a widely hated topic) so I will do so here!

Budget

Do NOT pick your designer based on budget.

All too often I have heard horror stories of someone picking a Designer because he was “cheap” or “more affordable” only to have the site of their nightmares come to fruition. There are a few things to keep in mind when you opt for a “cheap” or “more affordable” Designer…

• Chances are good, the Designer is just desperate for the cash – Once you give them their deposit, you may never hear from them again (or worse, they’ll throw you a “freebie” template and slap their name on it.)
• Their method of communication that follows is lax simply because they don’t really care about you (as a customer) or your project.
• They are quite possibly working with the wrong industry tools, which could result in an inferior, usually shoddy end result (read: something that doesn’t work properly)
• You could be their guinea pig – I’ve seen this, where the “Designer” thinks that they “might” want to try a new skill and then proceeds to use you as their test subject. (Don’t even get me started on those “Designers” who aren’t even in the same industry [You know the one where your Mechanic says that he can build you a website for "Cheap"? That's another post for another time!])

I could go on and on about low budget Designers, because I have heard it all.. That said, you could very well find a “budget” Designer who ends up giving you a gem of a site (it’s VERY rare, but it does happen), so it’s important that you take the information from the How to Pick a Great Designer article and use all of the points (including my budget section) to make your very informed decision.

I’ll even go so far as to offer you my assistance in helping you evaluate your potential choices – Honestly that is how much I want your experience with a Designer to be a good one! So, go forth, arm yourself with plenty of information and then give me a call… I have no problems putting myself through the rigors of your evaluation and would be honored to do so!

Until then,

1. Don’t Hide the Navigation Bar
   Visitors expect to see a navigation bar either near the top of the page or running down the side. Don’t make viewers play hide-and-seek searching for it. Also, include a site map with text links for an additional way for visitors to navigate. Example: Mamas Cheesies
2. Don’t Centre Text
   Having all the text centred on the page makes it hard to read. Text should be aligned left or justified left. As an exception, headings can be centred, but be careful not to overdo it.
3. Don’t Make Your Visitors Squint
   Combining colours and busy background patterns can cause eye strain for your visitors. Examples include the use of red text on black background, red and blue text and background combined, and some tone-on-tone that has only a subtle difference in the shade. High contrasting colours, like black on white, work best. Having a background image that is too busy will make it difficult to read the content and strain people’s eyes. Stick to clean and simple graphics. Check out Subtle Patterns ( http://subtlepatterns.com/ ) and BgPatterns ( http://bgpatterns.com/ ) for lightweight tiled graphics.  Example: Heterodoxus
   
4. Don’t Use A Multitude Of Fonts
   If you throw too many fonts into the design it will be distracting and hard to read. It is good practice to stick with just one or two fonts, with one to three variations of those fonts. Example: use a serif font for the header in bold, that same font used for the sub-header in regular, and a sans-serif font for the body content.
5. Don’t Use An Under Construction Page
   If a page isn’t ready then don’t put it live. Doing so may make visitors think that the company is unprofessional. Until that page is complete, disable links to it, or take it out of the navigation completely.

*Top 5 Web Design Don’ts is part 2 of a 3 part series on best practices for the web. Check out part 1, Top 5 Web Dos and Stay tuned to find out the “Must do / Must Not Dos” for the web..*

We have all come across websites that make us say “Nice!” and other websites in which we cry “My eyes are burning!”, but what really separates the two? The copy may be similar, the images alike, and it may even have a comparable skill level of code.

The difference lies in the design, which can either make the website or destroy it.

Whether you are a web designer, or are hiring a designer, there are some things to keep in mind when it comes to the look and feel of the site. Creating a well-designed piece, with proper functionality, will guarantee happy end-users, resulting in return visits.

1. Do Leave White Space
   There should be adequate white space (the space between margins, graphics, copy, etc.) to create good composition in the design, thus making it easy to read. If no white space exists then the design may look cluttered, making it difficult to read. Note: “White Space”  refers to spatial layout – not the colour “white”.
   Good Example: Tweetdeck
2. Do Keep Your Design Consistent
   You want visitors to know they are looking at the same website no matter what page they are on. Keep the header, navigation, and general layout consistent throughout the site.
3. Do Watch Your Colours
   Too many colours can look like an abstract painting, which is great in the fine art world but not for websites. Stick to using one or two colours with shade variations of it, or complimentary colours. If you are having trouble choosing a palette, try using COLOURlovers ( http://www.colourlovers.com/ ) or Color Scheme Designer (http://colorschemedesigner.com/)
4. Do Make It Clear Who It Is And What The Site Is For
   Have the logo clearly visible, in either the top left corner or top centered. Also, make sure that the home page expresses what the company does or what service the site provides.
5. Do Keep It Below The Three-click Rule
   The three-click rule is the process of having a visitor click no more than three times to get to the information they want. Anything more than that will frustrate them, which may result in them leaving the site completely.

It goes without saying that first impressions matter, always keep your eyes and mind open for inspiration, and, when you find some, record it. Use a notebook, a photograph, or a bookmarking site such as Delicious ( http://www.delicious.com/ ) to help remember things that may have moved you. Follow these simple guidelines to create a well-designed website and guarantee return visits.

*Top 5 Web Design Dos is part 1 of a 3 part series on best practices for the web. Stay tuned to find out the “Top 5 Don’ts” and the “Must do / Must Not Dos” for the web..*