The color palette for your website is extremely important. It says a lot about your company and your culture.

Colors bring out emotions and your visitors will relate those feelings toward your company. Make sure you are giving your customers the right feeling. A recent study found that 90% of snap judgments made about products can be based on color alone.

Yet another found that purchasing intent is effected by colors due to the impact they have on how a brand is perceived.

Here are some of the emotions associated with each color:

Yellow: Optimism, clarity, and warmth

Orange: friendliness, cheerfulness, and confidence

Red: Excitement, youth, and boldness

Purple: Creativity, imagination, and wisdom

Blue: Trust, dependabilty, and strength

Green: Peace, growth, and health

Gray: Balance, neutrality, and calm

Another thing to keep in mind is color preferences based on gender. Joe Hallock’s Colour Assignments pegged the favorite for both genders as blue, with purple coming in as a close second for women and green for men. Both genders aren’t very fond of orange.

When you are designing a website or determining your color palette be sure you keep these colors in mind and what your visitors will feel from each color.

With so much of the Internet’s content now focused on imagery, what are some SEO strategies for ensuring your website will be noticed by your target audience?

First off, remember that behind every image is a snipped of HTML code. You may not see it unless you click on the source code, but Google, Bing and other search engines crawl that code continually as they index websites. That’s why you should always use alt tags, encoding these in every single image on your site. Even though these tags are typically short, make them count. Really focus in on those keywords you see as most relevant to your site.

What kind of images should you use to increase traffic? A search engine cannot ‘see’ like the human eye. Even so, avoid boring, blurred or copyrighted imagery because your hope is to do more than just boost SEO. You also want to have real, live human beings looking at those images and sharing them with others.

Introductions matter a lot, and that first use of a link sets the stage for engagement. Make sure the link is meaningful and pertinent to the topic.

Web search algorithms simply detect code and rank its importance. So it’s up to you to ensure the images you post are sufficiently engaging to others who will hopefully share them through social media. Imagery including humor, surprise and stunningly beautiful photos are more likely to be circulated on social media channels. Nothing could be better for upping traffic to your website, thus increasing your SEO ranking.

Many photographers use WordPress as their website engine, and this proves immensely beneficial for photographers in garnering more look-sees. Improve your analytics by placing your blog and main portfolio on the same domain. For example, this fictitious website address — http://www.greatpicsforeveryoccasion.com/blog — illustrates the most SEO-friendly way to format a URL and draw more traffic to an image-focused website. Just make sure you’re not overly aggressive in cramming internal links with too many keywords.

Here’s one more tip: Post images on a schedule. So many merchants simply lose track of the time, and as a result, months may go by without uploading a single photo. Aim to upload a new image every two weeks, and when you do, make sure you share it on your social media accounts.

Most businesses see the importance of social media, but don’t have the time or the resources to conquer them all. Here’s a little cheat sheet:

Facebook

Everyone should be on Facebook, no matter what field of business you’re in. It has the most widespread demographic of any social media platform, which makes it the best place to increase your brand awareness. In addition, Facebook ad targeting allows you to attract your audience with more than just demographics.

The only real downside of Facebook is that younger generations are becoming more and more leery of it, thanks to an increase in use from older generations. Using Facebook to target younger demographics can work, but there are other platforms more suitable for reaching that specific audience.

Twitter

Users are more likely to follow brands on Twitter than on any other platform. This is because Twitter provides the most up-to-date and current information. If your brand is constantly posting new updates and information, this is the platform for you.

Another benefit of Twitter is relationship building. Users are more likely to interact and tweet at brands. Just make sure you’re tweeting back! This will go a long way when it comes to building a loyal customer base.

Unfortunately, only about 18% of the US adult population is on Twitter. While those numbers are sure to increase, it can be hard reaching as many potential customers as you’d like. Another downside is that individuals tend to follow brands only to get exclusive deals or to participate in contests.

Instagram

If you have a very visual business, it should be on Instagram. The dominant demographic is between the ages of 18 and 29, so if this is your target market it’s a great place to be.

The downside? Only 17% of US adults are on the site, and it’s a very specific group of individuals. You also need to consider the time it takes to make your photos stand out. You can’t have bad quality photos, and if you rush into Instagram posting (without putting in the time) you can cause unintentional damage.

Pinterest

Pinterest’s users are 84% female, which makes it a prime place to be if women are your target audience. It also has a high percentage of users with a high income. Looking for customers that will buy your product? Pinterest is the place to be. Another fun fact: 70% of users are on Pinterest for inspiration on what to buy.

Unfortunately, Pinterest has a very unpredictable algorithm. Sometimes something you post will get tons of engagement, and other times it won’t get any at all. If you have an awesome product, idea or concept, chances are good that you’ll benefit from using this platform.

Most businesses see the importance of social media, but don’t have the time or the resources to conquer them all. Here’s a little cheat sheet:

Facebook

Everyone should be on Facebook, no matter what field of business you’re in. It has the most widespread demographic of any social media platform, which makes it the best place to increase your brand awareness. In addition, Facebook ad targeting allows you to attract your audience with more than just demographics.

The only real downside of Facebook is that younger generations are becoming more and more leery of it, thanks to an increase in use from older generations. Using Facebook to target younger demographics can work, but there are other platforms more suitable for reaching that specific audience.

Twitter

Users are more likely to follow brands on Twitter than on any other platform. This is because Twitter provides the most up-to-date and current information. If your brand is constantly posting new updates and information, this is the platform for you.

Another benefit of Twitter is relationship building. Users are more likely to interact and tweet at brands. Just make sure you’re tweeting back! This will go a long way when it comes to building a loyal customer base.

Unfortunately, only about 18% of the US adult population is on Twitter. While those numbers are sure to increase, it can be hard reaching as many potential customers as you’d like. Another downside is that individuals tend to follow brands only to get exclusive deals or to participate in contests.

Instagram

If you have a very visual business, it should be on Instagram. The dominant demographic is between the ages of 18 and 29, so if this is your target market it’s a great place to be.

The downside? Only 17% of US adults are on the site, and it’s a very specific group of individuals. You also need to consider the time it takes to make your photos stand out. You can’t have bad quality photos, and if you rush into Instagram posting (without putting in the time) you can cause unintentional damage.

Pinterest

Pinterest’s users are 84% female, which makes it a prime place to be if women are your target audience. It also has a high percentage of users with a high income. Looking for customers that will buy your product? Pinterest is the place to be. Another fun fact: 70% of users are on Pinterest for inspiration on what to buy.

Unfortunately, Pinterest has a very unpredictable algorithm. Sometimes something you post will get tons of engagement, and other times it won’t get any at all. If you have an awesome product, idea or concept, chances are good that you’ll benefit from using this platform.

In our world, a solid and well designed website is absolutely crucial for any business, big or small. Because of this, choosing the right designer and developer can be a nerve wracking responsibility. 

You want and need the right skill set and the best price point, but you may not even know the other things you’re looking for, not to mention all the right questions to ask. 

So how do you choose? Here are a 10 tips to help you along the journey.

1. Beware of designers that only use industry buzz words and fads, but that only focus on the feeling and vision of your brand without specific attention to measurable goals and specific calls to action.
2. Brand recognition is important, but for many small businesses it’s initially more about traffic, lead collection, and conversions.
3. Request a portfolio. Ask your designers for examples of work they’ve done for similar organizations or brands that may have the same objectives or goals. Don’t be afraid to ask for referrals.
4. Ask if their pricing is firm or an estimate. Be sure you know financially what you’re getting yourself into.
5. Request some information on their team. Are they outsourcing part of your project?
6. Discover how they anticipate measuring your results, and ask for this information in plain English. Be sure you understand their approach to the expected success of your site.
7. Understand the process post-design. Maybe down the road you want a tweak or two made. Be sure to get up-front information about how this process works.
8. Understand their approach to usability. Your site isn’t going to be successful if it’s not tailored to the user. Design is important, but great design is intuitive and impacts your organization exponentially.
9. Request a written contract. Be sure your agreements are clear on both ends. This is a benefit to both you and the designer.
10. Follow your gut. If something in your quote or initial consultation doesn’t sit right with you, don’t forget that there are many resources out there. Seek another one.