sarah

Creating Beautiful Websites

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Capitol Electric LLC Website Image

We work very hard to create beautiful custom websites for our clients and one of the most important things we can do is listen! Often the create process for graphic and web designers begins in the mind of the developer, but it takes great listening skills before you may begin the creative process. The client or customer needs to be heard completely and understood before the hard work can begin. I like to listen first…and then listen again. After this we then need to discuss what I think has been said to ensure that I comprehend what the client truly has envisioned for their website.

Beautiful websites are created by teamwork! The colors and layout lead the way first. The logo is critical to get right the first time. Some of the obstacles that we run into are trying to launch and design to quickly. I encourage taking more time to live with the first pass at the design process and then come back to the discussion looking objectively at what is working and what might need to be changed to get to the final approved design. Some things should not be rushed!

Beautiful websites should also have beautiful text and content! The font can make the character of the website shine! The words should be easy to understand and yet the flow of the text can be beautiful too. It is important to effectively communicate through written words on the website to give the visitor a great experience. It also takes time and some serious proof reading for grammar, spelling, and punctuation. I like to have at least three people read through everything on a website before launching the finished product. It takes time to say exactly what you need to say in the best way. Never rush on getting things correct and beautiful.

Last and not the least is the create pictures, graphics, and videos that are used on the website. They should be attractive to a visitor but not overwhelming. You need to watch out that they truly fit the emotion and communication that you are trying to convey to the visitor. The size matters too. This process might take time too! Find the right pictures and graphics that show who you are and what the product is that you are sharing with the visitors. They should represent you and your organization in a beautiful way!

The picture above is one of our clients websites. Feel free to find them on the internet and see what they offer and what they do. https://callthecapitol.com

Website Branding, Logos & Colors

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Amendz logo picture

Our Approach to branding your website starts with a few important design concepts. Let’s take a look into these key components that will help you make a great first impression on your visitors and clients. Remember, you may only get one opportunity to make an impression so you want it to be great.

The first decision when branding is choosing the right colors. A good rule of thumb is two colors that complement each other and at the most three colors. These colors must be good for web design on a computer or mobile device screen as well as for printing on your marketing materials. Some colors are not good to use because of ADA compliance (Americans with Disabilities Act) as they cannot be seen correctly by those who have color blindness. In the example, ‘amendz’ photo, the colors chosen also have some meaning that is associated with the website project for reparations.

The next decision is for the design of the logo graphic. This is best if kept simple and relevant, yet eye-catching to attract attention when using social media and marketing your products or services. You want the logo branding to speak for itself in design. When I first started designing logos I did too much design and that is confusing. Some of the best logos in the world are often simple yet attractive logos that complement the text and name of your company or organization. Your logo should also look good in greyscale and black and white. I often start the logo in only black and white to ensure that it can be used for non-color printing.

The last piece of the design is choosing the right font and text to be used to stay consistent with your website or print materials. Fonts can be playful, bold, regal, thin, thick, or script, and should fit with the graphics you will use throughout your website and marketing materials. We try to use only two or three different fonts again like colors. Too many are too much! They can be the same fonts but in different weights, italics, or boldness.

As you can see a lot of careful planning and preparation can make the initial branding of your website or project a success. You do not want to rebrand your company identity and logo as that is very difficult and expensive to do well. The first impression means a lot and should last for the life of your project. It is worth the expense of hiring a graphic design firm and website developer to get it right the first time when you begin your project.

Why Use Website Developers?

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Website N2-Skin Image

So you might ask why use a website developer to do your WordPress website when you can do it yourself? You might think that having a website with little to no development cost is the best option for your project. You can pick a WordPress theme and learn to do everything yourself. You might be able to do that, but how many hours will it take to get it to look just the way you want it to look? While you’re working on the new website could you be making money or running your business more efficiently? What is the learning curve to becoming familiar with theme customization in WordPress?


These are some of the questions you might be asking yourself. I believe it is worth hiring an outside website developer to do your website for their knowledge and speed of development. If your new website is set up well in the development stage, you will be able to maintain the website with ease on your own with no problems. As website developers, we usually already pay for expensive plugins to get your website to function at a higher level. We also know which plugins won’t break your website. Many of us are also graphic design artists with the full Adobe Suite and we can do logos, pictures, and layouts that are pleasing to the eye for your potential visitors.


Another question I might ask is what is your time worth? If you run a business that makes let’s say, $55 an hour for your work with your clients. Website development and creating media and content could take more than 40 hours. The cost of possible lost work alone would be $2200 for 40 hours of work and you still may not be able to customize your theme to look how you envision it. Most good quality and functional websites will take between 60 to 120 hours in my development experience. Larger websites or eCommerce websites will take even more hours than that. I know it is tempting to try to save money where you can, but your website may only have one opportunity to impress your visitors with professionalism and functionality. Visitors may draw conclusions about your business operations based on many factors including your website on mobile devices as well as on desktops. Websites make statements about who you are as a company and organization.


Website Development is hard work! I have spent many hours learning the craft of good website design. I believe that we can help you achieve a beautiful website that is easy to navigate right from the home page. A website should be responsive, easy to navigate, have useful images and text, and not an encyclopedia of everything about you and your company. It should give the visitor to your website enough information to contact you, purchase a product, join your organization, or download the information that they need to engage with your business.