Graphic Design

Sites We Love: SVPPLY

It’s true, we love finding new websites and today we’re going to show you one that really stands out. Ladies and gentlemen, please help us welcome SVPPLY. Their unique site helps you find the products you love, from the people and stores you find interesting. They represent over 70,000 stores and brands. Let’s get to it, here’s why we love SVPPLY.     Much like Facebook, Twitter and other popular feed-focused sites, SVPPLY helps you post and discover new products. In light of the simple and sleek site design, you’ll notice that a lot of young creatives from all industries are using … read more

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Non-Profit Web Design: Acumen Fund

After Hurricane Sandy tore through Brooklyn a few weeks ago, we’re more aware than ever of how much we need the helpful companies out there who are doing everything they can to help the world. This month we’re taking a look at some companies who are doing just that – and backing it up with awesome web design and UI/UX. Acumen Fund is a NYC based non-profit that has been working to combat poverty on a global scale. Their investment of time, energy and resources has continued to create awareness and generate funds to better the lives of millions of … read more

Posted in: Content Strategy · Graphic Design · Tips · Web Design · Tags: acumen fund · command c · command c design · custom website design · interface design · web design · website redesign · Leave a comment

To Redesign or Not To Redesign?

How do you know when it’s time to redesign your site? Marketing research has shown that redesigning every 2 to 3 years is most effective, but following generic rules like that can sometimes lead you down the wrong path. After all, there’s no sense in changing your site just for the sake of change.  As Paul Scrivens says in What is Design, “Don’t redesign just to do something new, redesign because you have a better answer to the question.” It’s also important to note that humans are averse to change! We are. As quick-thinking and innovative as we can be, we still … read more

Posted in: Graphic Design · Interface Design · Web Design · Tags: command c · command c design · custom website design · redesign · responsive design · website redesign · Leave a comment

By Design: My Role at Command C

I’m rolling into my sixth month here at Command C, which seems like a good time to reflect on what it’s been like for me, as  a Fiction Writer, to get involved with a web design team. I’ve learned a lot these past months and been met with many perks and many  challenges (like how I’m currently resisting  the urge to use allegory and metaphor to further explain this feeling). Sara and I crossed paths through a 3rd-degree connection – one of those “Hey I have a friend who has a friend who runs a rad company who needs a … read more

Posted in: Graphic Design · Interview · Web Design · Tags: command c design · custom website design · entrepreneurialism · interface design · mary barbour · Website Design · Leave a comment

Engaging a Design Firm: Step by Step

We hear a lot of stories from people who have searched and searched for a design firm to work with, only to end up having a crap experience that leaves them disappointed.  We want to save you the time and money wasted in this process by clarifying what exactly is important to look for in a designer and how to make sure you find a client/designer relationship that really works. Step 1: Don’t jump into a relationship too soon. This is possibly the most frequent mistake people make,  and it’s a big one.  You don’t decide to get married on … read more

Posted in: Graphic Design · Tips · Web Design · Tags: command c design · custom website design · interface design · web design · web design tips · Leave a comment

Sites We’re Itching to Redesign: The Olympic Ticketing Website

We’re well into the 2012 Summer Olympics and the internet is buzzing with up-to-the-second reports on everything from fashion to bottle throwing incidents. One thing that has caught a lot of slack on Twitter is the design fail of the Olympic Ticketing Website. Nick Donnelly already posted a play-by-play of his hellish ticket purchasing experience, so we will spare you the gory details and touch on a few basic things the site designers could have done to spare their users a whole lot of agony. The first, overarching problem with the whole thing is the complete lack of Information Heirarchy. Logically, a … read more

Posted in: Graphic Design · Redesign · Tips · Tags: sites we'd love to redesign · Leave a comment

Case Study: Just Salad

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

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 · 1 Comment

Case Study: The Brookeside Group

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 · Web Design · Tags: brookeside group · case study · ui design · ux design · web development · Leave a comment

Teamwork

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 · 3 Comments