Technically Easy

Category: Websites and Blogging

This category will contain any blogging-related posts, that includes platforms such as WordPress and Blogger.

  • LuxuryOnly Reveals Redesigned Website to Celebrate Their 10th Anniversary

    LuxuryOnly Reveals Redesigned Website to Celebrate Their 10th Anniversary

    LuxuryOnly, a luxury cruise service provider, celebrates their 10 years with a redesigned website that has user-friendly navigation and a modernized search functionality. With these new features, users were able to find and research the most exclusive and fun cruise offers.

    Once a customer plans to book their cruise, LuxuryOnly’s team of travel agents and concierges give firsthand insider advice and knowledge to help guests create the best cruise experience based on their desires.

    LuxuryOnly has knowledge about every high-end cruise ship, travel destinations, and sailing. The team helps make vacation seamless by booking and researching the cruise; this helps with assisting users in their pre-registration process; arranging specialty dining, private transfers/cars, and helping with setting up important dates and more.

    How Can I Redesign My Website?

    Discovery

    First, you need to come up with a plan on the website redesign process. This means you have to find out what features you want to be added, what main colors you want on your page, etc. After finding out important information (i.e. layouts, fonts, and other design elements), allow your team to create a mock-up of the final result and continue from there.

    Come Up With a Budget

    When thinking about your new page, start by figuring out the website redesign cost. If you’re going for something simple, it can go for at least $500. But if you include advanced features (AI chatbots, mobile apps, etc.), prices can reach up to $5,000.

    Design

    On the design phase, your team should use multiple Photoshop mock-ups to help create the homepage. After the home page is created, allow your team to create mock-ups of the inner pages of your site. Your team should continue with the visual edits until the pages are finalized.

    Content

    Without content, your site is nothing but a blank page with no information. To make the best out of this process, you have to split this into two parts:

    1. Sitemap: Your sitemap is the skeleton and structure of your website. It represents the pages that were found on your site and how they’re related. To fix the sitemap, use Google Analytics to monitor the major pages on your site and make sure they’re easily identified in the new sitemap hierarchy.
    2. Website Content: After the sitemap is created, start making folders in Google Drive. This is where you thinking about the content of the page and organizing them into separate Google Docs. This gives you a central repository for your website content and allows you to update it quickly and easily.
    3. Development: After you finish the design and content steps, you can move onto developing the website. Once it’s completed, go through quality assurance of the site to ensure that it works on all devices and screen resolutions.

    Conclusion

    Always consider the website redesign cost when you’re updating your page. By doing this, you give your team the tools and resources needed to make it look appealing to your audience. Conclusively, keep an eye on your website to ensure that it’s fully polished and meets your design requirements of the project!

  • The Basics of Creating a Progressive Web App Using React.js

    The Basics of Creating a Progressive Web App Using React.js

    Progressive Web Applications (PWAs) are a hybrid between a standard webpage and a mobile app. They allow users to access the PWA from their computers, but they offer the sleek, fluid design of a mobile application.

    As PWAs become more popular, the desire to build them has increased, as well. If you’re wondering how to build a progressive web app using React.js, you’re not alone. The basic steps to building a PWA in React.js are as follows.

    Setting up

    Before you begin setting up your PWA, you’ll want to decide on a server in which to build. Once you know where you want the PWA to be, generate a basic React application using create-react-app.

    When you’re ready, switch to the server you want to build in and run the following.

    npm install -g create-react-app
    create-react-app pwa-experiment

    After that, you’ll need to install something called React Router.

    cd pwa-experiment
    npm install --save react-router@3.0.5

    Now you need to run the standard gist in your App.js. You can easily find the gist by searching “PWA in React.js gist” or something similar. After you run the standard gist, you’ll have created a basic layout with a few navigation options.

    If this is sounding foreign to you already, you might want to consider React 16 training before going further as it may help you fully understand the process and can better ensure success.

    Lighthouse

    Lighthouse is a free tool that Google has created for developers who are building PWAs. Google has a PWA checklist against which it tests your PWA (using Lighthouse) for quality and completeness.

    It’s a simple Chrome extension that you can get from the Google Developers suite. Just search Lighthouse and you’ll find it. Once it’s installed, click Generate Report and you’ll get a comprehensive report on how your PWA is doing.

    Service worker setup

    Next, you need to set up a service worker. It’s basically a small piece of JavaScript that exists between the network and your application. When put into action, it will receive any network requests and deliver cached files.

    Basically, it’s what enables your PWA to work offline. The process is a bit lengthy and complex, but you can find all the code you need online. If you’re not good with code or you’re just starting out, you might seek training instead.

    Run Lighthouse after each step to see how you’re doing.

    Progressive Enhancement

    Progressive enhancement doesn’t just mean to start making things better bit by bit, although you want to do that, as well. Progressive enhancement is a term that basically means your app will be able to function without having to load JavaScript.

    Once you’ve added progressive enhancement, check your app with Lighthouse again. If your score is higher, you’ve done it correctly.

    Adding home screen capabilities

    One of the main “selling points” of a PWA is the ability to save it to your home screen and run it just like an app. To do that, you have to add home screen capabilities to your code.

    Doing this requires you to install a manifest.json file to the public directory on your server. You can find the lengthy code for this online. You’ll also need an icon.png to use.

    Once you’ve done all that, you’ll add a couple more lines of code to the PWA and run Lighthouse once more. Your score should be significantly higher at this point.

    Deploy

    At this point, the only things you should be missing are caching and https, both of which can be taken care of during deployment. To deploy your PWA, you’ll probably want to use Firebase.

    You’ll want to run a new pwa-experiment in the Firebase console and run the following code in your project folder.

    npm install -g firebase-tools
    firebase login
    firebase init

    Once you complete the rest of the deployment process, you’ll have a PWA. Sort of. At the very least, Lighthouse should rank you at 100 percent. But many enhancements and design elements will be missing, even if you follow basic tutorials.

    The beauty of PWAs is that you can make them whatever you want them to be. Whether your PWA is educational or for entertainment purposes, being able to create it in such a way that it can operate with the unique functional capabilities of a PWA can only enhance the end project.

    If you’re still confused as to how to build a progressive web app using React.js, you can obtain training from a variety of services to get a better handle on the process and develop more dynamic and impactful PWAs for your audience.

  • 5 Tips for Running a Business from Your Smartphone

    5 Tips for Running a Business from Your Smartphone

    The smartphone in your pocket makes it possible to run your business from pretty much anywhere. Modern phone technology puts a world of technology in your hands, and it gives you access to software programs, information, and workers to quickly accomplish anything.

    Add to the lightning-fast ability of your mobile technology with a connection through a carrier with a reputation for delivering fast service. For example, T-Mobile was recently listed by OpenSignal as being the fastest network available, beating out both AT&T and Verizon.

    1. Choose from the four main business models

    When you’re getting started, choosing the right business model is right at the top of your to-do list. You want to choose a model you can successfully manage from a smartphone like your iPhone 7 on a 4G LTE network like T-Mobile.

    There are four main models to choose from as noted by Duct Tape Marketing. The types are aggregation, brokering, manufacturing, and reselling. Each mode of business has the potential to be successfully run from a mobile device, though one that requires a lot of detailed documentation may lend itself more effectively to legacy programs in a traditional PC.

    2. Ease of managing company communications

    Ease of Managing Company Communications
    Image via Flickr by Sole Treadmill

    It’s hard to top a smartphone when it comes to managing the lines of communication within a business. The device lets you instantly reach your contact list, plus provides access to traditional calling, text messaging, email, and even your social media accounts.

    This lets you communicate with people within your company, existing customers, and potential customers from anywhere. The flexibility enhances your ability to lead workers, manage issues your customers may have, and introduce potential clients to your product or service.

    3. Using your smartphone to market your business

    Aspects of marketing that are especially suited to mobile technology include social media marketing, videography, and photographing your products. This takes away the challenges associated with some classic time-intensive marketing strategies.

    Using your smartphone to handle these tasks means they are done instantly with the tap of your finger on the screen. This saves you the cost of hiring a large staff to handle these chores.

    Cutting costs lets you manage a lean business that’s easy to adapt to a changing market, and saving time on marketing tasks frees you up to handle other issues.

    4. Take advantage of apps on your device

    There are apps available to help you perform almost any task you need to accomplish while running your business. Apps are available for daily management tasks like tracking your income and expenses or even writing up a business plan when you’re first getting started.

    Project management apps can help you carry a new aspect of your business through each stage, from idea to completion. You can even build an app that’s specifically created for your business needs or one that addresses a common issue within your company to add value for your customers and employees.

    5. Make use of the calendar on your smartphone

    The integrated calendar or a downloaded calendar app is an extremely useful and important function when using your phone for business. It’s also an easy thing to overlook if you aren’t in the habit of using one.

    You may want to consider using it more — since being on time and meeting deadlines are two of the keys to being successful. Plus, it’s easy to set notifications on your phone to remind you of times to make important calls or head out to important meetings.

    Think of your mobile device as an equalizer. This technology levels the playing field, giving you an opportunity to manage your business on a level that’s comparable to that of a larger company.

    It opens the door for you to enter the business world even if you don’t have access to a traditional computer or a large staff. It’s also a great way to get started with the same level of technology a lot of large businesses use without the huge capital investment associated with buying computers, renting or buying buildings, and making other costly investments.

  • WordPress Paid vs. Free Themes: Which Are The Right Ones For You?

    WordPress Paid vs. Free Themes: Which Are The Right Ones For You?

    WordPress is undoubtedly one of the most powerful website engines out there. Because of its easy to use features, it takes no time for an unprofessional to build an out-of-the-box site. With this platform and a quality WordPress hosting provider, having a site up and running is not a big deal.

    With elegant and simple layout, WordPress has so much to offer to developers in order to meet both business and personal needs.

    If you are a WordPress beginner, you will be impressed with its customizable features, free themes, and so many easy DIY features. While one of the most challenging tasks is to choose a theme, however, you can check 000webhost.com if you are looking for a list of free WP themes for all kinds of different websites.

    For some, free themes are enough to develop a website, but for others, premium (paid) themes are a better choice.

    So, how do you decide which theme is right for you?

    Let’s have a look.

    Pros of free WordPress themes

    WordPress Themes

    Absolutely free. Free WordPress themes are completely free. You can download them, use them on your website and make money. No hassle and no hidden charges.

    Strict review process. These free themes tend to be bug-free and secure, all thanks to a strict review by some experts who scan and test the themes before they are added into the theme directory.

    Loads faster. Free themes come with limited features. But, it loads faster and you will get sufficient time to develop your site.

    More plugins. Because developers have to follow strict guidelines of theme review, they tend to support more plugins compared to premium themes.

    Easy to download. These themes are easy to download. You don’t have to struggle a bit to get these themes because they are available from the WordPress dashboard.

    WordPress free themes come with ample benefits. It helps developers to learn various theme development skills because, after the theme review process, the experts suggest the changes and audits the theme’s code.

    Also, it helps the developer to build their reputation, and understanding of the basics of a WordPress theme.

    Cons of free WordPress themes

    Just like many things in life, free WordPress themes come with a few disadvantages as well. These are:

    Limited functionality and features. Most of the free WordPress themes do not provide additional features like landing buttons, using shortcodes, creating buttons etc.

    Lack of professional design. Some of the free WordPress themes look unprofessional and may implement poor navigational controls. Background colors may also not be attractive.

    Limited support options. WordPress free themes come with limited options like you can’t respond to support queries.

    Zero obligation. If you are looking for a warranty, then free themes are not for you. Right or wrong, only you are responsible for it. There could be updates to the them, though, which could fix issues.

    Not a unique design. When you check the internet, you’ll find many blogs and sites that have used the same free WordPress theme. Moreover, with free themes, you’ll get restricted options to customize the look of the theme.

    Compatibility issue. Most of the free themes have compatibility problems with plugins. Many of these problems could be related to updates to the WordPress core, that causes a conflict with the free theme that may not be updated to the changes to the WordPress core.

    To make the right choice, the first thing you should know is the difference between free and paid themes and how they differentiate from each other.

    Let’s now know more about premium or paid themes now.

    WordPress paid themes come with lots of advantages like consistent updates, theme support and much more. Here are a few pros of premium/paid WordPress theme.

    Pros of premium WordPress themes

    All kinds of support like phone, email, forum etc. Whether you are a WordPress beginner or a pro, with WordPress paid themes you will get all kinds of support that suits your needs. You can contact them via phone, email or participate in the forums, the choice is yours.

    High quality. Compared to free themes, WordPress themes are higher in terms of generating value, for creating positive feedback loop, etc.

    Advanced functionality. When you opt for a paid version of a WordPress theme, you will get access to a number of advanced functionality like Elegant themes, WooDojo plugins or even advanced admin panels. This makes site configuration and customizations much easier.

    High-quality design. A good design goes a long way and it doesn’t need any proof. From backend admin menus/pages to page templates, a high-quality design can help you to improve the productivity of your site.

    Guaranteed security. Where free WordPress themes come with a ‘at your own risk’ label, premium/paid site comes with guaranteed security to their customers.

    Cons of premium WordPress themes

    Higher price. Let’s face it, premium WordPress themes are expensive. There are chances the theme you choose can be a bit high in price, and after you bought it, you need some sort of licensing fees as well. That may become a little expensive than what you could afford.

    Don’t have any official review process. Another disadvantage of premium themes is they don’t have any official review process so they can ignore WordPress development best practices in a few areas.

    Crossing over into plugin domain. It is quite common that WordPress themes can cross over a few plugins domain and offer some features that may disappear when you change themes.

    Slow loading speed. The main aim of developers is to create more themes with irrelevant features. You may not use many of those features, but the features that you don’t use can actually slow down your website.

    To sum up

    When looking for a WordPress theme, make sure you build a website that can cater to your every need. Other than browser support, responsive design, load time, it is important for you to build a website that helps your business to stand apart.

    It’s completely fine to start with a free version of a WordPress theme and then upgrade when you think it’s the right time.

    When buying a WordPress theme, it is important to understand the pros and cons of both premium and free WordPress themes. Your selection is based on your website needs, budget as well as on the aesthetic preferences.

  • How to Generate More Traffic to Your Website

    How to Generate More Traffic to Your Website

    When you are building your first ever website for your business, there are loads of different elements that you need to quickly get up to speed with.

    From knowing how to find the best web hosting service to developing an effective marketing strategy to attract new customers, you will have your work cut off for you.

    Choosing your web host comes down to much more than price and it can have a big impact on gaining new customers.

    For example, if you have an unprofessional looking website because there are loads of ads flashing up, or if your website takes ages to load up, this will put people off. The whole point of having a website is to enable people to find your services but then also to impress them and convince them that you are the right company to go with.

    So make sure that you choose a web host that will support these requirements.

    Once you have your website set up you can start on the next part, which is driving traffic to your website. There are a number of different ways that you can do this, so let’s look at some of the most effective methods:

    Paid traffic

    A lot of people are turning to services like PPC, where their website is advertised somewhere online and they pay a fee each time someone clicks through to their site from it.

    If you are reluctant to spend money then you might want to look at some of the other options but remember that saying ‘You have to speculate to accumulate’?, well sometimes you have to pay a bit to get a lot of traffic.

    You can work out for yourself whether it is going to be a cost effective solution for your business. Say you pay £1 per click but half of your generated traffic makes large purchases, then you would be making a lot more money than if you didn’t pay for traffic.

    Provide free stuff

    Everyone likes a free offer, especially if it is something that they really need. So whether you create a blog on how to rewire a plug or you offer an online guide to fitting hair extensions, creating useful, free content will draw people to your website.

    When you are writing your blog or article, remember that this is your opportunity to demonstrate your expertise. But having said that, people don’t want a hard sell so you have to get the tone and content right.

    Get all of your useful content together and then just include a fairly subtle link to your services/website etc. at the end.

    SEO

    Don’t fancy paying fees for PPC? You can always become a SEO master and get your website to appear high up in the search engines.

    Finding out which keywords to use and other techniques such as linking to authoritative sites can help you to appear higher up when people are searching. You can get a lot of traffic through organic means when you understand SEO and how to optimise your website.

    There are a lot of factors that determine where your site appears in the search engines and the likes of Google update their algorithm on a regular basis.

    This means that you should try and keep up to date with the most current successful SEO practices through SEO expert updates.

    Of course, there are lots of other ways to get traffic to your website, such as direct mail, email campaigns, YouTube videos and much more but you’ll be onto a good start with these ones listed above.

  • How to Make the Most of the WordPress Help Desk TicketLab Theme?

    How to Make the Most of the WordPress Help Desk TicketLab Theme?

    To build a strong customer base, it is very important to offer the best customer support. WordPress has various kinds of themes to enhance the appearance and functionality of a WordPress-powered website. You can take advantage of the WordPress help desk theme to deal with customer issues in an effortless, and timely, manner.

    Ticket management

    Customer issues are managed in a very efficient way with the WordPress ticket system. New tickets can be easily created with the available knowledge base and the tickets can also be resolved very quickly. Ticket management can be done effectively so that any issues are resolved within the least amount of time.

    When you choose the TicketLab theme, you will not need to depend on any additional plug-in. The theme offers one of the best end-to-end best ticket support systems available. The service offered will be transparent to the end-user so that there will be no impact to the customer experience.

    Before placing an order, you can go through the demo to acquaint yourself with the solutions offered by the WordPress theme. The product is trusted by more than 9500 customers spread across the world.

    Benefits

    There are many benefits to using the TicketLab theme, including:

    • Clutter-free management of tickets.
    • Management and update of tickets on a priority basis.
    • The ability to handle tickets from a single dashboard.
    • Support tickets can be sent to Trello so that there will be perfect coordination between the support and engineering teams.
    • The bugs are reported to Github. It will facilitate quick resolutions.
    • The theme is ideal to build a self-help community forum.
    • Pages can be created with the visual composer in a very efficient manner.

    It is very important to organize issues raised by customers in a systematic way. The issues should be resolved sequentially within a quick timeframe. The multi-lingual ticket system offers various attractive features, and the helpdesk theme can be customized by clients very easily. The SEO-optimized theme will help customers find answers that meets their requirements. The site can be prepared very quickly with the completely flexible visual enhancer.

    If you are a new user, you can get a quick insight of the help desk theme by going through the WordPress knowledge base articles. The theme is synchronized with Zendesk so that you will be able to update tickets from any location at your convenience.

    The platform is an ideal option to build a perfect workflow between the ticketing system and the forum.

    The tickets can be marked as open, pending and closed as per the resolution. The TicketLab theme can be considered the next generation of the online helpdesk with complete support from the website.

  • How Online Gaming Sites Maintain Their Security

    How Online Gaming Sites Maintain Their Security

    Most of us who have enjoyed playing at an online casino will probably be more interested in the potential jackpots than the fine print.

    But in the age of cyber-attacks and high-profile hacking cases, it seems that we need to pay a little more attention to how these gaming sites are handling our personal data and money.

    So what are the key ingredients of a secure online casino site, and how do we go about making sure that the gaming provider is legitimate?

    Encryption

    One of the simplest ways to check that an online casino site is secure is to make sure that it is protected by SSL encryption. This will mean that your personal data and banking details will be virtually impossible for hackers to infiltrate thanks to the firewall and encryption technologies.

    So make sure that your desired gaming site has an ‘https’ address with a padlock next to it in your browser. And just to be double sure, using a site like SSL Checker can tell you a lot more about the legitimacy of the online casino’s SSL certificate.

    Licenses

    All online gaming providers will also need to display a valid license that permits the gambling activity. Without a license being clearly displayed, there’s a chance that the website may be fraudulent.

    Most gaming sites will feature licenses in a ‘terms of service’ section or at the bottom of the page. And whether this license is from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement or a body like eCOGRA, it can be fairly simple to research for peace of mind.

    Recommendations

    Many online gaming sites gain a further level of legitimacy by being featured on an authoritative gaming resource. Rather than hiding their activities in secrecy, legitimate websites will be keen to advertise their operations in a transparent way.

    This is why it can be a good idea to visit respected review sites like New Jersey Online Casinos who can help point of the benefits of visiting gaming sites like Borgata rather than signing up for a less reputable gaming company.

    Third party policies

    And finally, it might be a little bit boring, but it always is a good idea to read the small print of any gaming site before you make your first deposit.

    Ensuring that your chosen online casino has a dedicated third party policy will mean that they will not to hand your personal information out to other organisations.

    Above all, it’s only by using common sense and doing a little detective work that we can see how valid sites like Borgata online casino will give us a much more safe and secure experience than other less reputable gaming providers.

  • All You Need to Know About Designing a Customer Friendly 404 Page

    All You Need to Know About Designing a Customer Friendly 404 Page

    404 pages are the most undervalued element of website designing. Nobody likes to see the “page not found” message while searching for a product or information on a website. This type of inconvenience may drive away the regular visitors of your website as well as your new clients with dissatisfaction.

    But it does not have to be this way.

    You can turn this inconvenience into a pleasant experience by designing your 404 page in an aesthetic manner.

    The main purpose of the ‘404 page’ is to navigate the user and point him or her where to go next. This can be done in a creative way which will ultimately allow you to retain your visitors.

    Although, you should keep in mind that 404 errors could occur to any websites due to some technical errors. It would be wise if you prepare yourself in case such occasion arises.

    What is a 404 error?

    In the 21st century, most of us have already seen a 404 error page sometimes in our life. When you click on a link and that takes you to a 404 error page, it means, the current page you are looking for does not exist anymore or the server hosting that page might be down for the moment.

    A 404 error page usually shows the visitor a message such as these: ‘HTTP 404 Not Found’, ‘404 Not Found Error’, ‘the page cannot be found’ or ‘The requested URL was not found on this server’, or other messages.

    These messages could appear in two ways, either on a generic 404 page or on a custom 404 page. While generic pages pay no attention to designing, customs pages can be made to reduce visitors’ dissatisfaction and encourage them to check other pages of the website.

    What to do?

    When a visitor to your website does receive a 404 page, you should help the visitor find a more relevant page, or make your visitor’s visit more pleasant. Here are several ways you can do that.

    Show a 404 page that can exhibit the personality of your business

    If you are an interior decorator and you provide the service of coloring and decorating your customer’s home, then you can show an image of a beautiful colored wall with modern patterns. Make sure your image looks professional.

    That way, a potential customer who may land on the 404 error page, will not get irritated when he looks at the sample work you have done on someone’s home.

    You may show things that are pleasant to look at and arouse a minimum amount of curiosity. Off course, make sure they are related to the service you are providing. You can also hire additional help from http://www.lasvegaswebdesignco.com/ to appear more professional.

    Be friendly

    Instead of showing a message that almost looks robotic, you should use words with a human touch. For example, ‘OOPS’, ‘Yikes’ or an apologetic ‘Sorry’,proves that there is a human brain behind the page.

    Usability

    When the users land on an error page, they will eventually want to head back to the home page or leave the web site. You could provide a link to your homepage so that instead of leaving the site; they can go back to the homepage and find something else that suits their requirement.

    You can also provide a search bar on the 404 page for their ease. Don’t forget to provide a contact link as well, so that the user can report the broken link to you.

    Conclusion

    Recent statistics have shown that engaging 404 pages could captivate a large amount of web traffic. It also has shown that simplicity and usability are the most two important factors for creating eye-catching 404 pages.

    So, keep the aforementioned points in mind while designing.