Freelance graphic design for WordPress

by | Apr 2, 2017 | Freelancing |

GRAPHIC DESIGN FOR WORDPRESS

  1. As WordPress (WP) evolves in 2017 to be more responsive, what are the best techniques for graphic design to create “cutting-edge” sites?
    1. Start with a responsive template, doesn’t necessarily have to be a pre-built theme. I prefer Bootstrap. Trust me, save yourself hundreds of hours of frustration trying to get responsive actions correct. Don’t reinvent the wheel.
  2. What are your best tips for designing for speed?
    1. Save for images web – down-size images. Make sure you are using 72 dpi.
      How to save for web (In photoshop – File: Save for web.)  If you are doing anything with web development, invest in the program. The basic version is $60 on Amazon.
    2. Combining CSS files – by combining the CSS files you speed up every action. You could do this through Speed plugins, but is usually cracks your theme if it wasn’t made properly.
    3. Using gradient CSS colors instead of images, use as little of images as possible. Need help? I like this tool. https://www.colorzilla.com/gradient-editor/
    4. Design for speed – using minimalist styles. You are in luck, “flat” themes are “in” for 2015. Take advantage of their load time.
  3. How to design in WordPress for Google’s new update and guidelines?
    1. Make sure everything is responsive – images as %, buttons in CSS, etc. Google will penalize you for everything that doesn’t shrink or expand basically. Their new update only says you have to be mobile, but they have not told you all the “tricks” that they want you to conform to yet.
      1. hide majority of images on mobile
    2. If your site isn’t responsive (and it should be), but you have a mobile site – add Google robot tag for mobile device switch. This is an awesome tool for making sure you have the right crawler code: https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/1061943?hl=en
    3. For the web developers out there. Have you seen this? https://www.google.com/design/
      “At Google we say, “Focus on the user and all else will follow.” We embrace that principle in our design by seeking to build experiences that surprise and enlighten our users in equal measure. This site is for exploring how we go about it. You can read our design guidelines, download assets and resources, meet our team, and learn about job and training opportunities.”
  4. What are your predictions for WP design?
    1. More HTML5 – more object movement. Then eventually, designs for wearable media (glasses, watches, etc…)
      For the Developers – Have you seen this, anyone tried it yet? https://www.google.com/webdesigner/
  5. What are the best design practices for WP? (Contributed by Matt Pendleton from Oyova)
    1. Good designers put a lot of research and testing into the design process. It’s important to know your audience and WP is no exception. Here are a few tips for variation designing.
      1. You can subconsciously lead the prospect, by following the eye path. The average person read from top left to bottom right. So you would be better off putting your Call To Action (CTA) on the bottom right of the screen.
      2. Younger audience prefers more whitespace
      3. Older audience prefers larger fonts (16px vs 14px)
      4. Younger audience prefer visual content, when older will want more text
      5. Orange buttons are statistically more of an effective button color

 Written By Erin Gordon