A logo concept is more than just an affinity for a specific character. Logos represent a company's brand, and as a result, serious thought and consideration should be put into your logo. Before hand be sure to consider, how the logo will represent your organization and consider the thoughts that will be associated with specific images that you consider for your logo. Does the logo embody traits that can or should be associated with your business? If your company is global, will the image transcend borders or will some of your customers find the image offensive and distasteful?

Carefully consider what traits you want for your corporate image to convey and select a logo that represents these those traits in a meaningful way.

In addition, it is important that the logo be able to: 

Be Reproduced
When selecting a color scheme it is best to stick with pantone or web friendly colors for web based businesses. The cost of reproducing a logo with standard colors will be less than a logo that does not.

Be Sized
The logo should be easy to resize and therefore will appear attractive regardless of size. It is often best to use vector graphics so the design will not be compromised when resized. Logos are used in a variety of mediums and it is important that the logo will port to a variety of sizes to encompass all of your branding needs. 

Timeless
A logo should have a long shelf-life. A logo is something that should not be changed too frequently. In fact many of the most recognizable logos are well aged. 

Simplistic in Nature
Logo designs should not be overly elaborate. Keep the number of colors in the design to a minimum. This will be beneficial when the image is resized. Varied Request a variety of formats to make it simpler for reproducing the logo in a variety of different mediums. If displaying a logo on the web, it is important the logo be in a compressed format to make the webpages load faster. Also, be sure to have a high resolution image for print media in order that it does not appear pixelated when printed. 

Respect Trademarks
When designing the logo be sensitive to trademarked logos. Do not spend the time and energy building a brand that will ultimately cause consumer confusion. Avoid a design that may be similar to another company. The logo design should be different enough that market place confusion will not occur.

Logos will often be used to identify a corporate brand. Make sure the logo you choose represents your company in an appropriate manner.

Examples of Logos that fit the bill can be found at Logo Search http://www.logo-search.com

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Web templates expedite the process of setting up a new website. The idea behind a web template is that it will save time with the creative design and layout process

In the business world, time is money; hence, using templates can save money. It can be a challenge to find a web designer for hire, and quite often the designer's schedule will not always mesh with the needs of a small business. Time rarely controls a web graphic designer. Artists are, well, artistic, and don't necessarily work by the clock. Instead, they work when inspiration strikes, which can be problematic when there are deadlines to meet. Templates are ready-made, and can be easily edited, allowing you to instantly create a website.

In addition, webmasters that may lack adequate graphic or design skills can quickly and easily create a website themselves, simply by editing and customizing the existing HTML layout in a web template. And locating a themed web template takes far less time than attempting to create a layout and graphics from scratch. Web templates also remove any coding issues. This is especially helpful to webmasters who are just starting out and just learning HTML coding.

The bottom line is that webmasters who use web templates will have their websites up and running much quicker.  

Where To Find Webmaster Templates?

Locating a web template that meets your business or personal needs doesn't have to be difficult. There are online directories and galleries, most of which are categorized into themes or by industries. For example, a variety of themed and generic templates can be found at Webmaster Templates: http://www.webmaster-templates.net .

Other web templates can be found HTML Templates Sources - http://www.small-business-software.net/html-web-templates.htm.

What Is A Good Template, And What Is Not?

Differentiating between a good template and a not-so-good template can be difficult for an amateur. A beginner should have no issues editing the basic HTML layout, but some of the more complex graphic templates and web designs can be difficult for a novice to manipulate. If you are a beginner, stick with HTML-based templates, which can be edited with a common HTML editor, until you get the hang of web design. 

How Can Templates Be Edited?

It depends on the format of the web template, but in most cases the web templates available online can be edited using common HTML editors such as DreamWeaver, FrontPage, or Web Express. The graphics can be edited in any type of imaging application such as PaintShop Pro, Gimp, or PhotoShop. Some templates will also use CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) to control and standardize things like font sizes and colors across all web pages. These CSS files can be edited using a CSS editor like TopStyle. 

What Should I Look For In A Ready-Made Web Template?

Web templates should be editable in any HTML editor. 

What Am I Allowed And Not Allowed To Do With The Templates?

Different templates are licensed for different purposes and with different restrictions. You must carefully read the licensing agreement on the template's website to determine how the template can be used. Most licenses allow templates to be modified and customized. Some licenses stipulate that the templates are for personal use only, and not for commercial use, so be careful there.

Web templates offer webmasters a great opportunity to minimize development time and get new sites on the web sooner rather than later. The structure of web templates allow webmasters to focus on the proprietary content development, and optimizing the website for search engines, rather than struggling with layout and graphics.

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15 Important Web Design Tips

Here are 15 important website design tips that you might not be aware of or have overlooked. Consider taking advantage of them if you haven't already done so. 

1. Custom 404 Pages

Create a custom 404 web page, so that any time your website visitor mistypes or misspells a URL on your site, they will still be provided with navigation options for your site (instead of getting nothing but a "Page Not Found" error message, which is neither friendly or helpful). 

2. Redirect Non-www. To www.

Website visitors will often leave out the "www." portion when they type a URL or link to your website. Set the website up so that it automatically redirects any non-www version of your domain urls (http://domain.com) to the www version (http://www.domain.com) of your website. 

3. Properly Sized Graphics

Size and define all graphics and images on your web pages properly and correctly. Web pages will load quicker if the graphics contained on each page are properly defined so they don't require the web browser to re-size them. Properly sized and defined images can reduce the web browser workload and speed up the page loading time. 

4. Favicon

Add a Favicon (favorite icon) to your website, so that your company or product logo appears in the URL box. This icon will also show up in a bookmark list, and gives the web site an added level of professionalism.

5. Include RSS Auto-Discovery

If you offer an RSS feed for any content on your website, be sure to include auto-discovery code in the header of your website. This will allow many browsers and RSS readers to automatically detect the presence of an RSS feed and alert the visitor that it is available. 

6. Alternate Domains

Domain names are relatively inexpensive, so you should register multiple domain versions and extensions in order to protect your brand. The varied domains can be parked on the main website, simply to prevent others from obtaining them. Registering alternate domain versions will help protect your brand. 

7. Consistent Navigation

Navigation should remain consistent on a website. As a website visitor moves through the website, the navigation bar should remain in the same place on each page. This will make it easier for visitors to navigate your website, and become more comfortable as they move through your site. 

8. Home Goes Home

The main graphic, company logo, or "header" at the top of the site should be included on every page in the site, and should always return the visitor to the home page of the website. This has become a web standard, and most visitors now expect to return to the main page of the site simply by clicking on the main top graphic from any page within the site. 

9. Copyright Notice

Include a copyright notice on the bottom of each page contained on the website, and keep it current! It may seem trivial, but an out-of-date copyright notice can send a message to your visitors that the website and its content may be out-of-date as well. 

10. Meaningful File Names

Use meaningful file names for any files, graphics, or web pages. Many search engines look at file names as part of their search algorithm, and using keywords in file names may help to improve search engine rankings.

11. Hyphens vs Underscores

When naming files and webpages, use hyphens (i.e. web-page.html) rather than underscores (i.e. web_page.html) for the file names. It is much easier for search engines to separate and index the keywords when hyphens are used. 

12. Alt Tags

Use ALT tags to describe what images represent on web pages. ALT tags not only assist visually-impaired visitors in knowing what the images are, but they also help with search engine ranking. 

13. Spell Check

Use a spell-check feature on the text of all web pages in a website. A website that contains mistyped or misspelled words just shouts "unprofessional". Take the extra few minutes necessary to check the spelling of text on each page of your website.
 
14. Test

After making changes to a website, test it! Many times, a webmaster will upload changes, confident in their abilities, only to later discover that in their attempt to fix one thing, they have "broken" something somewhere else. Make testing a habit after making even the most minor changes! 

15. Keep It Simple

Simple is good. Remove unnecessary clutter and distractions from a website and navigation menu.

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HTML website templates can significantly ease the burden of designing and creating websites by providing webmasters with a ready-made web layout, structure, basic graphics, and color scheme. Templates can generally be edited and customized with any HTML editor. The biggest advantage for webmasters using ready-made templates is the amount of time that can be saved. There are a number of websites that provide ready-made HTML templates. We have compiled a list of some popular sites to make the search process easier. 

Webmaster Templates

Webmaster Templates contains themed web templates. Each template includes an HTML layout, CSS file, and graphic images. Individual templates can be purchased, or webmasters can subscribe to the website and download an unlimited number of templates for a specified period of time. The themed and industry web templates are categorized by topic, or can be located using a keyword search feature. New web templates are added on a regular basis, so check back often.

Webmaster Templates - http://www.webmaster-templates.net 

Template Monster

Template Monster is a large site that contains website templates, flash templates, and other ready-made web designs. The templates can be used as a basis for web design. Because of the complexity of many designs found on Template Monster, some layouts might be a challenge for a new webmaster to customize or manipulate.

Template Monster - http://www.templatemonster.com/ 

DesignLoad

DesignLoad is a repository of website templates, flash templates, graphic works, and navigation interfaces. All can be download and modified. All the website templates and graphic works on DesignLoad are classified under a wide variety of product categories.

DesignLoad - http://www.designload.net/home.html 

WebTemplateBiz

WebTemplateBiz offers a wide range of website templates for business and personal needs. The site contains everything from WordPress skins to sophisticated flash solutions. These ready-made templates are easy to use and can be customized with a little bit of web design knowledge.

WebTemplateBiz - http://webtemplatebiz.com/ 

Web Templates Gallery

Pre-existing, and pre-formatted web templates are available. The Web Templates Gallery has a subscription option, or individual templates can be purchased. The graphics in the templates are fairly complex, and graphic design knowledge is necessary to edit the artwork contained in the templates.

Web Templates Gallery - http://www.webtemplatesgallery.com/ 

BoxedArt

BoxedArt contains a variety of web templates. Each template includes professionally designed HTML files, and source PSD files. All templates in the BoxedArt directory are available via subscription.

BoxedArt - http://www.boxedart.com 

Elegant Templates

Elegant Templates contains cost-effective and professional web page designs. Elegant Templates offers website templates that are easy to customize, and the templates are professional without the expense of hiring a custom website designer.

Elegant Templates - http://www.elegant-templates.com/ 

The Template Store

The Template Store contains professionally designed web sites templates, saving webmasters a great deal of time and money. The Template Store contains Dreamweaver, Frontpage, Expression Web, CSS, Golive, Swish, and ecommerce web templates.

The Template Store - http://www.thetemplatestore.com 

TemplateRover

TemplateRover is a modern website template design studio that offers up-to-date website and flash templates. The templates can be customized to create unique website designs.

TemplateRover - http://www.templaterover.com 

Trendy Templates

Trendy Templates offers a comprehensive gallery consisting of HTML and Photoshop website templates. The website templates are easy to download, and easy to edit. Webmasters can use standard HTML editors like Frontpage 2000 or Dreamweaver to incorporate custom web content into the website templates. The website templates are available in various categories, which makes the gallery easy to navigate.

Trendy Templates - http://www.trendytemplates.com

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