News :: WebDesign.com

March 17th, 2010

I wanted to take this opportunity to welcome Benjamin Bradley to our WebDesign.com team!

Benjamin was the International Business Development Director for GarageGames.com and was instrumental in its acquisition by IAC in 2006. He also worked as the Vice President of an international non-profit responsible for training NGOs around the world in the proper uses of technology. This included the largest micro-finance organization in India. Benjamin is also a successful entrepreneur and has a wealth of knowledge in WordPress and Drupal that he brings to our WebDesign.com team and members.

We also have a couple fun facts about Benjamin …

He has traveled through over a hundred countries and was born in Karachi, Pakistan.
He was struck by lightning while watching Stephen Segal’s “Marked for Death” in a mountain cabin.
He has recorded several musical albums with some bands out of Nashville and toured throughout the South.

We are pumped to have Benjamin Bradley on our team and he has some excellent course material he will be adding to the WD Membership. He will also be very instrumental in our new WebDesign.com Certification Program which will be announced today.

Welcome aboard Benjamin!

Our Trip to SXSW

by "Professor" Benjamin

March 17th, 2010

This year part of our team had the opportunity to attend our first visit to the SXSWi Festival in Austin, Texas. It was an awesome time of building new friendships, making business contacts, learning new things, and seeing a great town with lots of character! We will definitely be returning next year.

I do want to apologize to everyone who was promised a live show on Monday. We had so many meetings scheduled throughout the day it kept us away from our computers, and there was also such a drain on bandwidth, that we couldn’t even upload our ten minute video we created. There will be some very exciting news resulting from our trip to SXSW that I hope will make up for the delayed announcement.

I’ll let you in on some new information throughout the day and the announcement will be posted soon!

New Announcements from WebDesign.com

by "Professor" Benjamin

March 3rd, 2010

WebDesign.com would like to take this opportunity to share with you some very exciting news and developments that have been brewing for several months now.

WD Certified Program

I am pumped to announce that we will be launching a WD Certified Program that will focus on two specific core tracts: WD Developer and WD Consultant. The certification is going to be a great benefit to entrepreneurs, web designers, web developers, and others who are pursuing work or a career in the web media marketplace. The official details will be announced from our live show at SXSW in Austin, Texas next week (Monday, March 15th) and then posted here on the WebDesign.com website.

BTW – If you are an WDU Annual Member, you will get a special advanced announcement on Friday, March 12th, in our Membership area. One of the perks being a member!

Consulting

Our team has been asked many times if we could provide advice or insight into how we’ve set up our live shows to website and social media strategies to how to become great bloggers. The answer is absolutely! We will now offer a limited amount of consulting opportunities for those needing help in a variety of areas. You can see the details by visiting the WebDesign.com Consulting page.

Web Design Services

We will no longer be offering web design or development services to clients. This new strategy and focus will help us do what we do best which is training, education, and consulting. Additionally, with our new WD Certified Program and marketplace, we want to be able to reward our Certified Partners with the opportunity to partner with people who have these needs.

>> WebDesign.com will also be revealing upcoming courses next week along with some other special news! So make sure to follow us with your RSS reader or sign up for our newsletter. Exciting times ahead!

Need Work or an Income? Consider Web Design.

by "Professor" Benjamin

February 26th, 2010

Are you looking for a way to make ends meet? Have you been laid off or need a part-time income to help your financial situation? Maybe you should consider getting involved in web design.

Before I get into this post, I want everyone to know there is no magic bean or secret potion to making money. I’m not trying to get you to go to a “meeting” or sign up for the latest “break through” – there is no pie in the sky dream I am selling, but I am going to share a quick idea on how you can really make a good living if you are willing to work at it.

Web design is a growing field. There are people who are experts to those who are novices making money part-time on the web. This is a fact.

If someone asked me today a sure fire way to create a business that would sustain them and allow for the flexibility that so many entrepreneurs dream of, I would say learn how to install and set-up websites and blogs on WordPress and then learn how to customize premium WordPress themes. There is a huge mass of clients who need this kind of help and with millions of people moving onto WordPress, you have a great opportunity.

Aren’t there already a lot of people doing it?

Yes there are, but quite honestly many are not doing a good job at it. There is room for leaders who can do things better or differently. And again, there are millions of people using WP. If you have an eye for design or can learn the Design Hacks we’ve been teaching, then you will really have an edge on the competition.

How do you get started?

My recommendation is visit the commercial WordPress site to learn a little about it. Then I would set up a free blog to see how WP works and watch some our free tutorials from iThemes. Get comfortable with WordPress first!

The idea is to take small steps. Once you’ve done some homework I would suggest taking a few online courses (free or paid) to learn the basics including learning how to set up a hosting account and installing premium themes. It will take an investment of time and money, but for what you do invest, you will get so much more out of it!

Final Thoughts…

I have spent 20 years in the branding and design industry and I have never seen a time where there is as much opportunity as there is today –even with the economy jacked up as it is. I’ve said this to all of the friends in our WebDesign.com community that if I wasn’t a part of this business today, I would be jumping all over the chance to get an All Access Membership and learn to customize our themes.

PLEASE KNOW that I am not a programmer and failed a class on HTML. You don’t have to be a programmer to do this, I can assure you of that, but you will have to learn some things and realize that you just can’t push a button to make this all work. Any worthy goal requires commitment and hard work, but if you are willing to do that, you could have an awesome side or full-time business in web design.

If you have questions, feel free to contact us for conversation.

3 Tips for Better Project Management in Web Design

by "Professor" Benjamin

February 10th, 2010

On Feb. 26, we’re hosting a half-day workshop called Project Management for Web Designers through our WebDesign.com University.

I interviewed Terrell Sanders, who will be teaching the workshop, and asked him to give a couple of tips from his 20-plus years of experience.

This is a can’t miss workshop for those wanting to get into freelance web design, or already doing it and needing some good tips on how to manage projects better. Trust me, you creative types need it!

One Great Business Strategy

by "Professor" Benjamin

February 9th, 2010

Are you heading up a web development firm that wants to improve your bottom line? Then here is one great business strategy to help you.

RESPOND.

One word that gets missed on too many opportunities. One action that people love and expect. One thought on how you can differentiate yourself from the thousands of other design firms or entrepreneurs all fighting for customers.

It seems simple but one of the biggest complaints I have heard over the course of twenty years is that a potential or existing client would like a timely response to their inquiry, their question, or their needs. Even if you are not interested, don’t know the answer, or cannot fulfill their request you should have the decency and courtesy to respond – with something…just acknowledge them.

You can make a fan and great impression with this strategy — or not. It’s really up to you!

A New Killer Plug-In for WordPress

by "Professor" Benjamin

February 9th, 2010

At WebDesign.com we love using WordPress as our Content Management System (CMS). WP does just about everything you can dream about and need for a highly effective website or blog – especially with the additional use of premium plug-ins! And while we promote using WordPress over any other platform on the planet, there has been one nagging problem with easily moving or backing up your entire site … until now!

Originally moving your website to a new host or taking a test site and launching it required a lot of moving parts. You would have to export your content and save it, then do a back of your images, reload all of it to your new home, and then reinstall all those widgets you set up and love. It really was time consuming and a pain (not to mention you might lose some content). Now there is a simple solution to do all this with ease.

Plug-In Buddy, the newest edition to our company, is releasing a BETA premium plug-in called Back-Up Buddy this week that will allow a WordPress user to create a back up, migrate content and complete a restore of their existing site including the content, graphics, AND widgets all in one installation! This plug-in is going to make life easier for a lot of people and ensure that your site is always ready to be restored to the original specs you have it set up to.

Visit www.pluginbuddy.com for more information on Back-Up Buddy and to keep in the loop with our other upcoming WP Premium Plug-Ins. WP enthusiasts won’t want to miss it!

The Freedom of Expression and Social Media

by "Professor" Benjamin

February 8th, 2010

Social media tools have changed the way we communicate. Now instead of getting our information from the news or other broadcasting platforms, we have become the media platform as individuals.

There are pros and cons to this ability and power that we have been given.

On the positive side we can share what we want, when we want and offer breaking news as we see it. The negative can be that our eye-witness accounts may not always be 100% accurate or that we may share our views without restraint. It really is a double edged sword!

The thing that bothers me are the conversations going on about where our freedom of expression stops with tools such as FaceBook and Twitter. Some of us might remember the fallout with ESPN and their newly integrated social media policy or maybe we’ve read the outstanding article by Michael Hyatt and their guidelines at Thomas Nelson Publishers. The truth is, athletes to business people are now under the gun to either not use these tools or if if they can, it must be controlled.

How far will we go in our digital world to keep people from sharing what’s on their minds?

I believe that every person should use their best judgment and act responsibly – in person, in the media or on the web – but wonder if we truly have a right to enforce a set of rules when it could cross the line for our Freedom of Speech, especially if a person is using their own personal account for social media.

There is, without a doubt, a time where strict rules should be in place such as when it relates to trade secrets or privacy policy matters. What if the conversation is not based on sensitive information, and instead, a personal view of an athlete questioning a bad call or worker sharing their religion? Could shutting down these comments be subject to a violation of our Freedom of Speech rights?

I am curious as to where the line will be drawn in the sand. How about you?

My Vision for WebDesign.com

by "Professor" Benjamin

February 7th, 2010

I am sitting here on Super Bowl Sunday exploring the web, doing some research, and recalling conversations I have had with some great people over the last six months since our team was able to acquire this amazing domain name. I’ll be honest…it’s pretty exciting! The hardest part for me during this transition is that a name like WebDesign.com can really be developed in so many ways, but I’ve really honed in on a few key areas where I believe our business can and will really benefit others.

Training:

I feel that web designers and developers, as well as web design firms, should always continually invest in their skills. The technology we use changes so quickly and what we know today can be outdated tomorrow. I envision our company helping people who love all things about web development to continue to build their knowledge and skills.

Resources:

So many conversations I’ve had center around the need for resources and relevant information. I would like to see WebDesign.com become a strong, passionate community where we share ideas and insight with each other. This means I will be looking for people like you to be involved in some way, possibly producing content or training web designers in the future.

Market Place:

I was a freelance designer for 20 years and it took me a lot of time to build a strong, profitable client list. There were days where I would have preferred doing my craft over making sales calls or doing the accounting. By providing and offering a market place, we can help people do what they do best and prefer to do.

Community:

The success of our businesses in the future will be based on community and relationships. I’ve always been a fanatic about these two things and this strategy is really what took me from being a struggling artist to a designer making a great career out of my talents. So again, we need to create an awesome, passionate community here.

Coaching and Mentoring:

So many designers and programmers fail as entrepreneurs because they don’t understand the business side of what they are doing. Working with clients, getting paid what you deserve, and knowing how to negotiate can be difficult and timely to learn. I believe we are providing excellent content in our courses that help with these needs now – but I want to really kick it up a notch through mentoring, coaching, and Master Mind groups.

I want our WebDesign.com Members and our community to know that every day, our team seeks to create more value for you and I envision some great things happening soon just through moving forward on the ideas above.

2010 is going to be the start of something awesome at WebDesign.com and I hope that you will be a part of the journey!

WordPress Interview with All-In-One SEO Plugin Developer Michael Torbert

by "Professor" Benjamin

February 3rd, 2010

I had a great time meeting and getting to know Michael Torbert, developer of All-In-One SEO Plugin, at WordCamp Boston recently.

As one of the top downloaded plugins in WordPress (it battles for the first and second spot with Google Sitemap Generator on the WP Repository), it was intriguing to hear his insight into WP development and also his love for the WordPress community.

Welcome to our New Team Member

Our Trip to SXSW

New Announcements from WebDesign.com

WD Certified Program

Consulting

Web Design Services

Need Work or an Income? Consider Web Design.

3 Tips for Better Project Management in Web Design

One Great Business Strategy

RESPOND.

A New Killer Plug-In for WordPress

My Vision for WebDesign.com

WordPress Interview with All-In-One SEO Plugin Developer Michael Torbert

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