Yearly Archives: 2013

The Website of Your Dreams

December 30, 2013 in Content and Format / Design & Development / Website Management tagged Black Cap Design / branding / mockup / PDF / web design / web developer / web development / wireframe by Carrie

If you’re considering having a website designed or redesigned, selecting a Web Designer is just the first step. Imagine you have just commissioned a painting. The artist will need to know what you have envisioned – portrait, landscape, abstract… A Web Designer is like an artist staring at a blank canvas. You really don’t want your Designer jumping in without any guidance from you, especially if you are working to a deadline. In most cases a Web Designer will start […]

If you could do just one thing to improve your SEO, what would it be?

December 18, 2013 in Content and Format / Search Engine Optimization (SEO) / Website Management tagged AdWords / blog / blogging / Search Engine Optimization / Search Engines / SEO by Pat

We recently conducted an experiment. It wasn’t the kind of experiment you read about in the daily news. It was more of a “oops, I wonder how long that tub of yogurt has been hiding at the back of the fridge” sort of experiment. Several years ago, I had a bit of spare time, and a few ideas, so I started writing articles for the Black Cap Design website. A few months later, I noticed a big improvement in our […]

New Site for the Lakefield Horticultural Society

December 15, 2013 in Design & Development / WordPress Development tagged Lakefield / web developer / websites / WordPress by Pat

We recently had the pleasure of working with the Lakefield Horticultural Society to design and build their new website. We communicated closely with the Society’s Past President, Brenda Ibey who provided a clear vision for the the new website, and contributed many of the beautiful images featured on their site. Lakefield Horticultural Society volunteers work hard each year to beautify the village of Lakefield, Ontario and provide a trove of information about gardening and horticulture, including hosting monthly speaking engagements. […]

Improving your Website SEO?

December 11, 2013 in Blogging / Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tagged CMS / keywords / organic search / Search Engine Optimization / Search Engines / SEO / sitemap / social media / web content / web developer / webmaster tools / website / WordPress by Carrie

Your web developer may have already explained that your website will move up and down in search. For example, today you may be on page 1 and tomorrow you may find your site on page 3 of a Google search. Your search results will also vary depending on which search engine you’re using, e.g. Google, Bing or Yahoo. Where your site shows up in search will depend on the specific combination of words you’re using, however there are many other […]

WordPress: Pages vs Posts – What’s the Difference?

December 4, 2013 in Blogging / Content and Format / Website Management / WordPress Development tagged child page / dashboard / how-to manuals / menu / RSS / Search Engines / social media / Web page / Web Pages / WordPress / WordPress training / XML by Pat

For people who are new to WordPress, one of the first questions that arises is “what’s the difference between Pages and Posts?” The next time you’re poking around the administrative dashboard of your new website, have a look at the navigation menu. You’ll see several tabs including a ‘Posts’ tab and a ‘Pages’ tab. If you click on each of those tabs in turn, you’ll notice the settings for pages and posts look pretty much the same. You can create […]

Master of my Domain (Name)

November 27, 2013 in Hosting and Domain Registration tagged domain registration / Namespro by Pat

One topic that always comes up when talking with customers about starting a new website is what to call it. In Web Developer terms, this is called assigning the site a Domain Name. The Domain Name is the www address that appears in the address bar of your Web browser. I suppose assigning names to websites is an extension of our natural impulse to name things (children, puppies, the pet hamster). Giving each website a unique name also makes it […]

WordPress Security: Fact or Fiction?

November 20, 2013 in Hosting and Domain Registration / Website Management / Website Security / WordPress Development tagged CMS / Hosting / Plugins / static website / web host / WordPress by Pat

One of the biggest shifts in website development in recent years has been toward sites that can be managed independently – commonly referred to as Content Management Systems (CMS) or “dynamic” websites. WordPress has emerged as the leader due to its flexibility (with over 27,000 free plugins available for download), its intuitive administrative console and huge developer community. What many people don’t realize is that any website that enables browser-based editing (the ability for you to manage your own content […]

Selecting a CMS (Why WordPress is King)

November 12, 2013 in Blogging / Hosting and Domain Registration / Website Management / WordPress Development tagged CMS / Drupal / Hosting / Joomla / Linux / Open Source / PHP / Search Engine Optimization / SEO / static website / WordPress by Pat

“I need a website that I can update myself, but I have no idea where to start.” This is something we hear a lot from people looking to establish a presence on the Web. It’s not surprising given the range of options available. A quick search for “Choosing a CMS” will return a mind-boggling amount of sometimes conflicting information. So, where to start? Selecting a Hosting Platform (Choose Linux) It actually doesn’t matter if you’re opting for a static website […]

Web Design 101: Don’t Leave Your Visitors in the Dark!

November 5, 2013 in Content and Format tagged branding / breadcrumbs / content / fonts / navigation menu / Usability / user interface / web designer / web developer by Pat

How many times have you arrived at a website and asked yourself, ‘ok, now what am I supposed to do?’ Many people jump to the conclusion ‘geez i must be really dumb if I can’t figure this out!’ when the unfortunate reality often points to a poorly planned and executed design – what I call the ‘user interface’. In my work as a Web Designer & Developer, I visit a lot of websites. Out of necessity, I’ve learned to quickly […]

The Power of Open Fonts

October 29, 2013 in Content and Format tagged Open Fonts / Typography / W3C / WOFF by Pat

When we recently launched the redesign of the Black Cap Design website, I remember thinking ‘this wouldn’t have been possible a few years ago’. I’m referring specifically to the use of open fonts. The distinctive look of our new site is due in large part to the use of open fonts. In fact all of the fonts you see on this page are open fonts! Until (roughly) 2010, the Web supported just a handful of fonts. The reason? To work, […]

I found this really cool image… Some advice about stock images

October 23, 2013 in Content and Format tagged copyright / Fleming College / Image Search / iStockPhoto / Royalty-free images / Stock Images / Stock Photography / TinEye / Toronto by Pat

“I found this really cool image online and I want to use it on my website.” This is something we hear quite a bit when we’re designing or updating sites for our clients. I had a professor at Fleming College when I was studying Web Design there who went to great lengths to stress the importance of taking copyright issues seriously. I took her advice, and in turn advise my clients to take it seriously as well. In the early days […]

Building a Website: Your Role in the Process – A Great Webinar

October 21, 2013 in Website Management tagged branding / CMS / Content Management System / Open Source / TechSoup / WordPress by Carrie

At Black Cap, we regularly get questions from clients like “what’s involved in getting a website project rolling?”, “what do you need from me?”, and “what’s better – a custom-built CMS or an open source CMS like WordPress?”. So, we were excited to find this great webinar – because it covers these questions and many more. The presenter takes a common sense approach, using plain language…no technical jargon! When we first listened (it’s audio with PowerPoint) we wondered if the […]

New Logo, New Site!

October 14, 2013 in Black Cap Design - An Introduction tagged Black Cap Design / blog / CMS / web developer / website / WordPress by Pat

Hard to believe it’s been 8 years. Black Cap Design started unofficially in 2005 and officially in 2006 and the little Black Cap logo has been our emblem from the start. What’s that old saying about the ‘shoemaker’s children having no shoes’? So true! We’ve been so focused tending to our clients’ websites, the Black Cap site and logo were needing a fresh coat of paint. With a little help from Adobe Illustrator and a large pot of coffee, the […]

Web Design Resource for Non-Profits

September 26, 2013 in Content and Format by Carrie

Before launching Black Cap Design, Pat and I both worked for not-for-profit organizations. We also have experience as volunteers on fundraising committees and on non-profit Boards of Directors. This gives us insight into the unique challenges social service agencies face when it is time to design or redesign their websites. We developed this PDF checklist for our not-for-profit clients to help them identify some of the common decisions they will need to make. This list also includes steps that will […]

What is this “Hosting” thing and why should I care?

September 25, 2013 in Hosting and Domain Registration tagged dedicated hosting / Hosting / Internet Service Providers / ISP / My SQL / PHP / server / shared hosting by Pat

What is Web hosting? Every site you visit on the Internet – including this one – is stored on a computer somewhere. And all of those computers link together to weave the fabric of the World Wide Web. Web hosting companies exist to store website files and make them available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week – for a fee. If you want a website to profile your business, show photos from your latest trip, or publish your […]

Domain Registration vs Hosting: What’s the Difference?

September 25, 2013 in Hosting and Domain Registration tagged domain name / url / web hosting by Pat

What is domain registration, exactly?In our previous blog post we discussed Web hosting. If your Web host is the physical location where your website files are stored, your domain name is the address needed to find those files. A Web address (also known as a URL) looks like www.yoursite.com. If you are in the process of setting up a website, you will need both Web hosting and a domain name. If you don’t have Web hosting set up already, consider […]

What is SEO? How to Get Found By Search Engines!

September 25, 2013 in Search Engine Optimization (SEO) tagged alternate text / Bing / Google / HTML / keywords / meta tags / organic search / reciprocal links / robots / Search Engine Optimization / Search Engines / SEO / site redesign / text / web crawlers / web design / web developer / WordPress / XML / Yahoo by Pat

What is SEO? SEO is an acronym for Search Engine Optimization. It’s nerd-speak for making your site accessible to search engines. Popular search engines like Google, Yahoo! and Bing are massive catalogues (think the phone book on steroids) of information about the websites that comprise the Web. Just how many sites are out there? As of October 2013, there are an estimated 767 million active websites! (Source: http://news.netcraft.com/.) No wonder it’s tricky getting your favourite search engine to find your […]

Web Page Layout – How To Create a Welcoming Web Experience

September 25, 2013 in Content and Format tagged branding / copyright / navigation menu / responsive design / web content / website design by Pat

Are you considering having a website designed or re-designed? Page layout is something most end-users seldom think about. People are likely to have a “yuck!” or “hmmm nice” reaction to a given website, and don’t give it much more thought. Good page layout keeps visitors at your site. Nothing gets people running for the exit doors faster than bad layout. So, what is page layout? Simply put, it’s where stuff is placed on your site’s Web pages. It’s a bit […]

5 Reasons Why Your Site Should Be Standards-Compliant

September 25, 2013 in Website Management tagged assistive technology / Cascading Style Sheets / CSS / Flash movies / Google Chrome / HTML / Opera / operating systems / PDF / Safari for Mac / standards-compliant / Unix / W3C / WaSP / Web Browser / Web Validator / Windows / World Wide Web Consortium / XHTML by Pat

Web Standards: Test Before You Buy! The last time you purchased a vehicle, it’s a safe bet you took it out for a test-drive first. After all, you’re not buying it just to have it look good sitting in your driveway! In the early days of the Web, the only way to test-drive a website was to visit the site, look at it, and test the links to make sure they worked. The Web has come a long way since […]

5 Things to Consider When Planning a Website

September 25, 2013 in Content and Format tagged target audience / websites by Pat

If you’re like most people, you’ve been thinking about having a website developed for a while. And, like most people, you’re wondering where to start. We’ve compiled a list of 5 important things to consider to help you get started. Answer these questions and you’ll be well on your way. Make sure to jot down your answers. It will help when it comes time to consult with us about planning the construction of your site. 1. What is the purpose […]

Can I Update My Own Web Site?

September 25, 2013 in Website Management tagged CMS / HTML / self-managed websites / SEO / software / websites by Pat

One of the most common questions we get from our clients is “will I be able to update the site myself?”. The short answer is “Yes!”. We can add a customized, browser-based Web Editor to your site that you can access from anywhere with an Internet connection or you can select a powerful Content Management System (CMS) like WordPress providing you the ability to manage every aspect of your site independently. Having said that, there are a number of things […]

Finding the E-Commerce Solution that Works for You

September 25, 2013 in Website Management tagged E-commerce / online sales / Payment Gateway / PayPal / Plugins / selling / shopping cart / WordPress by Pat

If you’re in the business of selling goods or services, or looking to raise funds, the Internet can be a powerful tool. E-commerce provides you with instant access to a global marketplace at a fraction of the cost of a brick-and-mortar store. If you already have a storefront, an e-commerce site will allow you to expand your reach and offer your customers an alternative. But just having an online store isn’t your ticket to instant success. Like brick and mortar […]

Web Security: 5 Tips for Protecting Your Site

September 25, 2013 in Website Management by Pat

Identity theft. Online fraud. Phishing. Spam. If you’ve been following the news lately, these are terms you’re familiar with. It’s no secret that the Web is all about the sharing of information. If information is power, plugging into the Web is a good thing. Right? Unfortunately, the Web has proven an effective tool for criminals and people engaged in unethical business practises. So how can you actively participate online and protect your website from spammers, hackers and other bad actors? […]

Creating Effective Web Content

September 24, 2013 in Content and Format by Carrie

Writing Web content is easy right? Actually, one of the most common challenges people face when creating or updating their website is the written content. Here are some tips to help with crafting effective written content for the Web. Before you begin writing ask yourself: Who will be visiting my site? What is the likely purpose for the visit …what are visitors going to be looking for? How can I make it easy for them to find the information they […]

Client Questions

September 20, 2013 in Black Cap Design - An Introduction by Carrie

Traditionally, the Black Cap Design team has responded to our client’s questions by email; providing information and instruction. Over the years, we have come across many common themes. People often ask functional questions like: Should I use a content management system like WordPress or ZenCart (for e-commerce) or do I go with a static site? What steps do I need to take to prepare? How do I register a domain name? Does it matter where my site is hosted? What […]