By lucia martinez

Case Study: Just Salad

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When Just Salad came to Command C for a full redesign, their site needed some updating and cohesion. Based on an old-school computer game feel, it was cute and kitschy, but distractingly busy in concentrated areas, leaving a lot of dead visual space. Our first major revision was to make the site responsive, so it would translate well to mobile browsers and focus on the essentials for those users: menus, orders, locations. The mobile view also leverages geolocating and Google Maps to find the location closest to the user. Next, we added a pretty sweet Google maps integration so customers … read more

Posted in: Case Study · Graphic Design · Interface Design · Responsive Design · Web Design · Tags: case study · interface design · just salad · responsive design · Leave a comment

Responsive Web Design 102

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Last week we touched on the very basic basics of responsive web design, i.e. what exactly it is and why you probably want it for your site.  Now let’s go over what it involves. Responsive web design isn’t just about changing the display size of a page, since that would do nothing to facilitate user experience (UX) on mobile platforms.  Responsive design’s most important element is the design, not just development or building.  The information on the page has to be scaled just like the display does: the most important elements on the page have to be identified, and those … read more

Posted in: Graphic Design · Interface Design · Responsive Design · Tags: graphic design · interface design · responsive design · Leave a comment

Responsive Web Design 101

by lucia martinez on · 2 Comments

“Oh, and I want a mobile site, too.” This is a request that web designers hear all the time, and one that can open up a world of pain (and questions).  Do you mean an iPhone-friendly site, or a Blackberry one?  Maybe you meant iPad?  Kindle Fire?  Android?  Some other obscure and/or yet-to-be-invented tablet? But here’s the thing: maybe you don’t actually want a mobile site.  No, really, stay with me.  Because in order to reach the most mobile users, you’d have to have various mobile sites ready for various mobile devices, each with its own set of files and … read more

Posted in: Interface Design · Responsive Design · Top Posts · Web Design · Tags: responsive design · web design · 2 Comments

Font Allergies

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Technically these are typeface allergies.  Why?  Because fonts and typefaces are not the same thing.  Typeface refers to the design of the character, whereas font indicates the particular combination of typeface, size, and effect.  So Times New Roman is a typeface, but 12 pt. Times New Roman is a font. But basically they’re used interchangeably nowadays. The point is, whether you call it a typeface or a font, Comic Sans is nauseating.  

Posted in: Typography · Tags: terrible fonts · Typography · Leave a comment

Case Study: The Brookeside Group

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We’re really proud of our latest site launch, client relations firm The Brookeside Group. This was a full-scope redesign and development project that included rebranding, UI/UX design, and custom development on the WordPress platform.  Our mission was to create a fresh and cohesive look and feel that communicated the company’s accessibility and professionalism. We leveraged WordPress’ flexibility to create unique page templates for each interface, and built a custom demo plugin that allows users to register for demos directly through the website.  On the UX side of things, we strategically placed testimonials and calls to action to establish trust more … read more

Posted in: Case Study · Graphic Design · Interface Design · Top Posts · Web Design · Tags: brookeside group · case study · ui design · ux design · web development · Leave a comment

Teamwork

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It’s kind of a glorious thing, being an independent creative.  No one to report to, no one to monitor, no other opinions to consider, just you and, if you’re lucky, the client.  This is great if your business is as specific as your talent: you devise logos, or make letterpress stationery, or code sites. For web designers, things can get a bit stickier. There’s a very real possibility that as your business expands and your client list grows, you’ll be asked to do more.  Maybe you’ll start by farming out odd-jobs to freelancers here and there, and that might work … read more

Posted in: Business · Graphic Design · Interface Design · Tips · Web Design · Tags: Teamwork · 2 Comments

Recruiting New Clients: Do’s and Don’ts

by lucia martinez on · 1 Comment

As Head of New Business, reaching out to prospective clients is (duh) a major part of my job description.  For a boutique web design firm like Command C, mass generic emails just aren’t part of the game plan, ever.  There’s a lot of preliminary research involved on this end since we’re pretty picky about our clients—I like to get a feel for their communication style and what their businesses entail before making contact.  This kills two birds with one stone: I can make an initial assessment of who the company is and how their web presence could be improved, and … read more

Posted in: Business · Tips · 1 Comment

Networking Basics (And Then Some)

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Networking is my personal nightmare.  There’s something about putting yourself forward, about self-promotion, that really makes me uncomfortable.  What if you’re annoying?  Too pushy?  What if the other person is just listening politely and can’t wait to get out of there?  What if everybody hates you? Bad news first: if you want to make it in web design–or in almost any field–you’re going to have to network.  The more competition you have, the harder you’ll have to do it.  Yes, the first step is producing good work that you’re proud of, but if no one is aware of it, you’re … read more

Posted in: Business · Tips · Tags: Business · entrepreneurialism · Networking · 1 Comment

The Web Design Process: Critiques and Edits

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Critiques and editing are two absolutely essential steps of any creative process. They are also potentially the most difficult ones. Critiques—actual critiques, not just positive reinforcement—involve feelings and egos, whether they’re yours or those of someone else.  Editing requires cutting, and cutting your baby brainchild is never easy. (At least not for most of us.)  We’re closely tied to the work we produce, and accepting that it needs to change and that other people see flaws that we’re unable (or unwilling) to see is really, really hard.  Unfortunately, most of the things we produce as professional web designers (or musicians, … read more

Posted in: Graphic Design · Tips · Web Design · Tags: Critiques · Editing · Leave a comment

Creatively parched: Brainstorming tips and tricks

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For many people (myself included), the most difficult part of any creative process is taking that first step.  Whether you’ve been asked to redesign a website from top to bottom or devise a logo from scratch, you have to start with an idea.  A fresh idea. How to find it? Here are some things that might help: 1. Go 1.0 and use pen and paper. Even better, use index cards and a Sharpie. Write out all the keywords relevant to your project in big, clear print. (Your client will have probably given a list of what they’re looking for. Start … read more

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