Kansas City Missouri

On the Go With Jefferson City Magazine

Posted on 08/09/2013

Whether at home, at work or at ease, Jefferson City Magazine provides compelling stories and news from around town. Wanting a modern, responsive website design Jefferson City Magazine called upon us to help.

The need for responsive design

With the majority of readers of Jefferson City Magazine on the go, adding a responsive web design was a must, allowing easy viewing on all devices.

Since the launch, an overwhelming majority of visitors have viewed the site from mobile devices, proving websites cannot be made for only one platform. Accompanying the responsive design, custom forms were created, allowing user voting and newsletter signup.

“This project really allowed us to try new things with a magazine website,” said Dak Dillon, creative director at Hub & Spoke. “They really had a blank slate from a web perspective, so we made the site simple and easy to navigate, along with working on all devices.”

Ready to go responsive? Let’s talk.

We believe your website should represent who you are and what you do, intersecting great design with user accessibility. We strive to meet the needs of each client no matter how unique. Contact us today to schedule a meeting or just to talk.

Trends

Explainer Videos

Posted on 07/25/2013

Explainer Videos Provide Maximum Return on Investment

Explainer videos are short online videos created to promote and explain a company, service or product while engaging viewers. Professional videos that are designed with engagement in mind capture an audience’s attention and are more successful at delivering their message than regular word content because humans absorb more information and remain engaged longer when several of their senses are used at one time to process information.

One of the reasons explainer videos have become wildly popular is because they produce high conversion rates. Studies have shown that 85% of consumers are more likely to purchase a product or service after watching an explainer video because they have a better understanding of what they are buying. Other studies have shown people will watch an explainer video two or three times when it is done well and will share the video with their peers if they find the information useful.

What Makes a Great Explainer Video?

A great explainer video is comprised of three main components that are designed to stimulate the senses as the information is being delivered: Entertainment, motion and information. By creating a professional video that is able to entertain your audience while delivering the who, what and why of your business, product or service while incorporating motion you will set your explainer video apart from the masses.

More than just relaying information in an entertaining format, great explainer videos will evoke an emotional response in your target audience and influence them to take action. In a survey conducted by Forbes, 52% of high-level executives said they were influenced to make a purchase after watching a great explainer video because they felt they understood the product or service and were compelled to make the purchase.

Benefits Beyond Conversions

High conversion rates are the obvious benefits to great explainer videos but there are others that are not immediately apparent. Websites that include video in their content consistently place higher in search engine rankings. Dated websites that feature endless text and images consistently perform lower in search results than sites that incorporate engaging video content. Videos also help lower your site’s “bounce rate” (viewers that click onto a page in your site and leave immediately) because they tend to hold the viewer’s attention, which also contributes to higher search engine rankings.

A great video will maximize your exposure as people view it and share it across their social media platforms or with people they believe will benefit from seeing it. Think of how many videos you have heard of going viral, meaning an exploded number of views in a very short time period. Those videos have provided immense exposure for the companies that created them.

Finally, explainer videos are an easily measured marketing device. You can quickly determine how many people are interested in your product or service by monitoring the number of views your video receives. Building your marketing platform around these products and services will greatly enhance your sales.

Web Design

The Value of WordPress

Posted on 07/15/2013

With 58,000 of the top 1 million web sites and more than 20% of all sites in the US powered by WordPress, it has become the most popular content management system (CMS) on the web. Originally created as a blogging platform, WordPress has used information gathered from bloggers’ extensive use of content to create a CMS that is not only powerful, but also easy for people without programming degrees to use.

At one time, updating your web site or creating new content required either a programmer or knowledge of programming to be able to get your content live on the web. WordPress has made this process as easy as creating and sending an email, meaning even those with limited computer knowledge are able to provide their users with fresh content. The platform operates on the WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) principle much like a simple word processing program.

As an Open Source project (read FREE), there are countless numbers of themes and plugins that make creating a website or blog possible within a few minutes of downloading the software. If you prefer a completely personalized site, you should consider having a custom site designed for your business. Once the design or template is complete, creating the content management portion of your WordPress is a breeze.

Adding categories, pages and posts are as simple as pointing and clicking on your desired action, and entering the relevant data. Once you have created your basic framework, the addition of content and media is a matter of selecting the appropriate heading and saving the content after it has been modified. It is due to this ease-of-use that WordPress has become the most popular CMS on the web.

From shopping carts to photo galleries, WordPress plugins make adding special features to your site extremely simple. Once the plugin has been installed, most features can be implemented using drag-and-drop to put them where you wish on the site. Adding comment boxes and feedback forms work in the same manner.

Perhaps one of the most important features of WordPress is its reputation with search engines. Fresh content with high engagement will keep search engine crawlers active on your site, which means your rankings will be higher. WordPress’ design and add-on features make search engine optimization a natural process rather than another full-time job.

Creating a web site that is easy to update and including a blog to create a farther reach does not have to be a difficult process. To create a site that will not only stand out from the rest, but also to rank high in search engine results, Contact us today to schedule a meeting or just to talk.

We believe your website should represent who you are and what you do, intersecting great design with user accessibility. We strive to meet the needs of each client no matter how unique.

News Web Design

A responsive upgrade for the Columbia Business Times

Posted on 07/02/2013

The Columbia Business Times needed an evolution of their website.

At the forefront of Columbia business news, the Columbia Business Times needed to match their publication’s feel and style and bridge that experience to the web. We were eager to help create the new website.

Adding a flexible mobile experience was crucial, as readership is always on the go. With a responsive web design, reading articles and staying current is now accessible on all devices.

A choice between using a mobile site or desktop version is no longer needed. Now, it just works. We wanted to keep the design clean and simple, matching the same fonts and finishing touches of the printed magazine.

News Web Design

Trey Bistro debuts new, image driven, website

Posted on 06/20/2013

It doesn’t take long after meeting Trey Quinlan, owner of Trey Bistro, that you become enthralled in his journey to restaurant entrepreneurship, as well with his son, Landon, whom seems to a constant fixture in and around the restaurant.

Recently having the pleasure to work with Trey and staff, we are proud to show off their website.

Trey Bistro features local farm fresh ingredients, offering a wide array of entrees and savory specials. Being frequent guest of the bistro, we loved having the opportunity to work along with them to create a modern website that captured their businesses energy and feeling.

Starting with a website he designed in his spare time, Trey wanted a website which represented the restaurant and its atmosphere. Something that would stand out, yet be polished with a modern look and feel. The new website needed to be clean, simple and match the style and brand he had established. We knew we had an open playbook to draw from, so we let our creative juices flow.

We crafted a responsive website that features large imagery of the space while being simple and easy to navigate. Being flexible and adaptable, the website can be viewed anywhere by any device. Including dynamic photos, we were able to create a refreshing and welcoming feel.

We had a great time working with an amazing group of people and we are excited to show off their website.

Internships News

Welcoming Our New Interns

Posted on 05/22/2013

We are pleased to introduce two new interns, Kaylyn Crane and Nic Ford.

Joining our graphic design team, Kaylyn and Nic will get the opportunity to learn and further their knowledge in print design, web design, Adobe Creative Suites and whatever fun stuff we can think of.

Kaylyn is a senior at Stephens College majoring in graphic design.

Why did you choose to go into design

From my time spent in finance with the Air Force, I knew I wanted to do something creative. There are so many aspects of graphic design it will allow me to get a job anywhere.

What do you like most about design

I love the ideation part, getting to come with really creative ideas and designs.

Outside of work

I like to run. I’m currently preparing for cross country and just completed my third marathon. I really love cats too.

Favorite superhero

Catwoman, even though not a superhero, I like her the best.

Favorite movies

Lord of the Ring and Moulin Rouge

Nic is a senior at the University of Missouri majoring in graphic design

Why did you choose to go into design

I’ve always loved art and computers and I found a perfect match between the two.

What do you like most about design

I like how I can convey a particular message or promote a certain feeling with design.

Outside of work

Play sports, be around family and friends and play video games

Favorite superhero

Flash

Favorite movies

Lord of the Rings and Hot Rod

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