Website slideshows are frequently used these days; we use them on our websites all the time. You may even have one on your website. It is a great tool to use, and a great way to show off several images that convey your business and brand while giving your website some pizzazz.

Slideshows can make your website more interactive with endless possibilities of how to use them. The most standard use is a rotation of images to show off products or services. But this website feature can be used for much more. Your slides can include headlines and calls to action, testimonials and quotes, news articles, or other buttons. The question is when and how to use them.

When adding a slideshow to your website, it is important to consider the purpose of having it. Is it necessary? How will it enhance the user’s experience? Will it add to the overall website or take away from the more important features? After asking yourself some of these questions, you may think that a slideshow could greatly benefit your website. So, then how do you want to use it?

Rotating images are great for businesses that want to simply display several of their products and/or services. Image slideshows are great for photographers or retail companies and can be made large or small depending on how much focus you want put on the images.  Headlines and calls to action are a great way to add more focus to your slideshow. Each slide could have a specific purpose that details a product or service and then links to that page. If you display news articles or events on your home page, you could utilize the slideshow as a way to feature those and promote upcoming events. Using the slideshow for rotating testimonials allows this feature to display what others are saying about your business, which will more than likely catch the user’s attention. They will also see multiple testimonials as it scrolls through several quotes.

As you can see, slideshows are a great feature that can be added to your website. The trick is determining whether it is best for your website, and how to utilize the tool. When used to its full potential and fit to your site, a website slideshow can be an excellent addition.

It’s that time again…time to present the names of our new and newly designed client launches for the past month.

TWG Design Studio proudly shares our April launches:

Assisted Transportation Systems

Blakey Printing

Central Kentucky Distribution

Coffeys Ornamental Concrete Kreations

Green Dot Bowling Green

Leitchfeild Exterminating

Maywood U-Store-It

Nagasaki Inn

Oshea's Family of Irish Pubs

Service First Warehouse

Starkeeper

Swope Charity Cornhole Event

Tender Touch Senior Services

The Rental Stop

YPBG

There are some things that users get tired of seeing, or not seeing on websites. These things may seem like great ideas in the beginning, but really, they may just turn users away from your site. If your website has some (or all) of these things included, you may want to consider updating your website and adding or removing some of these things to create a better user experience.

1.    Pop-ups
Users generally do not like to be bombarded with a pop up windows when the first visit your site. Let them make their own decisions about what they want to do once they get to your site.

2.    No contact information
Leaving off contact information is always a bad idea. That is one of the top things that people visit a website for. You want to give them a clear way to get in touch with you. After all, you want them to buy your product or services don’t you?

3.    Automatically playing multimedia
Again, people want to make their own decisions about what they want to hear or see when they visit your site. A video or music automatically playing can distract them and make them close the window on your site.

4.    No social media links
With the ever-growing popularity of social media, people want to be able to connect with you on all levels. Plus, it is a great way to stay in contact with your customers and clients and reach them on a more casual level.

5.    No blog
Blogging is like social media. It gives you another way to connect with people in a more casual way and allows you to present more information on your site. In addition, that content is always changing and it gives people a reason to come back to your website.

6.    No call to action
It is important to show people what your ultimate goal is for them. You can guide them with calls to action on how they should navigate through your site as well as the purpose of your website.

7.    Confusing layout and content
Just like with calls to action, your content and overall layout of your site guides people to what they need to look at. If your content is laid out in a confusing way, people will get lost in the information.

8.    Flash websites
Flash websites may look cool, but they cannot be viewed on phones and tablets. This is a major downfall if you do not have a separate mobile version of your website.

9.    Slow slideshows
Let’s be honest – people are impatient. They do not want to wait for a slide to change so that they can see the next deal or special. If you are going to use a slower slideshow for a certain reason, be sure to give the user controls to navigate through the slideshow on their own.

10.    Dizzying background images
Your background image and colors should be pleasing to the eye and not too distracting from the main information of your website. You don’t want to hurt someone’s eyes because they stared at your intense red colored background too long!

These things tend to drive people crazy when they visit websites. You want to provide your users with a pleasant experience when they visit your site, so that they come back for more.

It’s that time again…time to present the names of our new and newly designed client launches for the past month.

TWG Design Studio proudly shares our March launches:

ABC Truss

Accumetric / Boss

Brangers Distributing

Chick-fil-A Veterans Parkway - Custom Facebook Page

Chick-fil-A Jefferson Mall - Custom Facebook Page

Collier Title

El Azul Grande

Etown Laundry

Emerine Glass

ITA

Kingdom Pets - Logo & Business Cards

Rent-A-Space

Trino's Italian Restaurant

You're site could be next. Contact us today to start working on your new website or online project.

Website investments are very similar to the investment you put into a home or a vehicle.  They all require regular maintenance to be in the best condition possible.  They all, when invested wisely, should yield a very good return on your investment.  And, eventually, they all hit a point where a newly invested model or a full overhaul on the original investment is necessary. 

You’ve taken the plunge and made a big investment.  Excellent!  When was the last time you had the oil changed, or your carpets cleaned?  Walls need fresh coats of paint over time, and every vehicle will eventually need a tune-up.  Your website needs adjustments along the way, too. 

If you haven’t touched your website since your original investment, and that was two years ago or longer….well, you’re overdue!    Add a new enhancement to make your website work better for you.  Purchase an email list manager application so that you can manage email blasts, add-on a blog and start posting regular pieces of information and updates to help your customers stay informed, look into a new programming piece like employee password protection sections to make your office work more efficiently.  The original investment of your website should act as a spring-board to help propel you as your business grows in the future.  Let the original investment be your foundation, and build on it as you go along. 
The regular maintenance can be something small—equivalent to regular oil changes and window cleaning.  Maybe update your website images, or staff bios.  Perhaps it’s a good time to change the font for the headlines or even add a new page to your website navigation.  The maintenance doesn’t have to be huge on a regular basis----although a full overhaul will be needed eventually.  Plan for it.  Use your regular maintenance opportunities as a portion of the plan for the big overhaul that is coming in the near future. 

With the turn of spring, it’s a great time to do some spring cleaning.  For your home, your vehicle, and especially your website!