As a communications designer, I am occasionally called upon to perform acts of magic. Most consultants will know what I am talking about: asked to exert considerable effort and deliver significant results on a short schedule, often with little or no warning. While I am no magician, I do keep a number of tricks up my sleeve for use in select times. This past week presented such a time.

A client contacted me late Wednesday afternoon with an urgent need to upgrade his web presence. This client needed a new website by the following Monday at the latest.

Such a request was a tall ask, but I knew that it was definitely possible given one of the aces I keep in my back pocket. WordPress.

My client was running a WordPress.com website. As a free service WordPress.com is a fantastic way to get a very functional website and up and running in minutes. Yet my client’s needs had outgrown WordPress.com, so I suggested that we go with a self-hosted site with the same WordPress software, offered for free through WordPress.org. The approach agreed, I was off and running.

Within a short while, I had the latest version of WordPress software running on my server — I had lent my client web space given the short timetables — and had begun to make edits to the selected WordPress theme. I didn’t make a lot of edits to the theme, just enough to make the look and feel of my client’s website not look so ‘out of the box’.

The theme edited, I used the export/import functionality on WordPress.com to bring all my clients website content to the new site. I made a few more design and functionality edits to the PHP templates and the CSS, then called it a day.

The following morning, I showed a draft version of this new site to my client. The words of praise that I heard on the phone gave me much reason to expect this client to continue to rely on my services for years to come.

What sort of image works best?

Anything! Well, almost anything. It’s best to use a photo that is directly on point. For example, if writing a blog post about how to get more life out of one of our products, then a photo of that product is a great fit. If announcing the arrival of our newest employee, then certainly a photo of that new staff member would work wonderfully.

Yet, if we’re blogging about a concept that is less tangible, then consider using a photo of a related topic. Consider my post about tangible benefits of blogging: I snapped a photo of US dollars and British pounds to represent the commercial value of the tangible benefits.

Shooting your own

With the quality of digital cameras and the cameras on smart phones, it’s now easier than ever to take your own pictures for your blog. No, not everyone can be David Bailey just because they own a camera. Then again, most blog posts do not require breathtaking imagery. All they require is a visual complement, a graphic anchor to capture the reader’s attention. That can often be achieved with a simple camera (or an iPhone) and various objects from around the office.

The following images are just of sample of photos that I’ve used on my own blog:

All those photos were shot in my office, with items that I had laying around. Sure, I used Photoshop to digitally enhance some of the photos, but those tweaks are not really necessary. I edited the images because I am a communications designer. The native images, as they came off the camera, would certainly have worked.

So, as you focus on getting a few more blog posts up before the start of holiday season, why not try to add some of your own photos to your blog posts?

In sharing the Life of a Blog Post that my colleagues and I at lbdesign recently created, I am asked repeatedly: What is DuckDuckGo? None of my clients or close friends seem to be aware of DuckDuckGo or how it could benefit them. Why did we include a relative unknown like DuckDuckGo in an illustration with such big hitters as Google, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn? To answer those questions, I thought it best to publish a detailed answer. (Not familiar with the full illustration of Life of a Blog Post?)

In the interest of transparency, the timing of this post is aimed at taking advantage of a competition from DuckDuckGo. While I’m not overly concerned about winning the competition, I wouldn’t mind a t-shirt.

DuckDuckGo in a nutshell

As a search tool, DuckDuckGo (DDG) harnesses the powers of a number of important sites like Wikipedia, About, Bing, and Yahoo to deliver a more comprehensive and perhaps a better rounded list of search results to its users.

The Google search filter

As a communications designer, I work with businesses to develop and implement their online marketing strategies. A key part of that work entails blogging, targeting specific topics and keywords to help clients grow their respective online presence. As Google tailors search results based on how a user interacts with the delivered results from a search, a sort of bubble develops around that user. The more a user clicks on a certain type of result, the more that Google delivers that sort of result to the user. While that can be helpful at times, but it can also hide key content from a user.

DuckDuckGo looks to counteract the Google bubble by not filtering our search results. It does not record or track our searches, or our search result selections, so it avoids closing us off from potentially relevant and useful content.

As a blogger and as a consultant offering online marketing strategy advice and implementation assistance, I think it’s important for my clients to be aware of the filter bubble. The filter certainly affects search engine optimization (SEO) tactics. Placing the DDG logo on our Life of a Blog Post has enabled me to introduce filter bubbles to my clients, and to explain about DuckDuckGo.

A matter of privacy

About six months ago or so, I suddenly began noticing how ads related to my previous Google searches started appearing in the margins of my Yahoo mail account.

What I discovered is that Google uses my search information to help advertisers direct what Google believes to be relevant ads to my attention. While this isn’t the post to consider whether or not I approve of what Google does with my search information, I decided that I wanted a different experience.

When I researched DuckDuckGo, I discovered a thought-provoking web page detailing how privacy concerns could prove difficult. The possibility of real world hurdles that might evolve as a result of Google searches is a bit scary.

So, I started using DuckDuckGo as my primary search engine. I’ve updated my Firefox settings to make DDG the default search engine for Firefox.

More bits about DuckDuckGo

There is definitely a lot more to DuckDuckGo than I have detailed here. Below are just a few links to help you learn more about it.

1. DuckDuckGo does not track users: http://donttrack.us
2. It offers a number of enhancements allowing for shortcuts and quick access to our technical stuff.
3. It was started by a local developer and businessman, Gabriel Weinberg.

Some of my favorite shortcuts

Although I am still learning my way around the many shortcuts available on DuckDuckGo, here are a few that I use regularly:

• !m = Google maps
• !gi = Google images
• !yt = YouTube
• !whois = Who Is search

Go on, give it a try

My suggestion is that you give DuckDuckGo a two month trial to see if you like it better than Google. And do let me know your thoughts.

Get directions on how to change the browsers default search tool.

The power of WordPress has long influenced me as a designer and a blogger. Although I have used other content management systems (CMS) to build websites and write blogs, WordPress stands out among many in part because of its amazing community. Having just returned from WordCamp Philly, I was very impressed not only by the skill of many of the designers and developers using WordPress, but also by their willingness to share their respective expertise. It was an exciting and productive learning environment — and I feel lucky to have been able to attend.

As a conference, WordCamp Philly was aimed at WordPress people of all levels: basic users, designers and hard core developers. During the day I met a number of users who rely on WordPress for promoting their small businesses. The power of its CMS, combined with the dynamic and generous support community, make WordPress an ideal choice for many smaller businesses considering how best to manage and grow their web presence.

As a designer who considers the on-going needs and requirements of clients on a daily basis, I was heartily impressed by the WordPress community at WordCamp. From the organizers (none of whom were paid), to the event sponsors, to the presenters, to the attendees, the day was a series of insightful exchanges of knowledge, experience and best practices. I was surprised by the lack of ego at the conference — it really was as though everyone was in the same boat and rowing in the same direction. That community strength made a powerful impression on me and will definitely figure into my conversations when discussing CMS options with clients.

In the coming days, I shall be reviewing my notes from the sessions that I attended over the weekend. I aim to post a more detailed synopsis of my experience at WordCamp Philly. I’ll be sure to include links to the presentations and other cool stuff that I encountered.

Over at lbdesign, my colleagues and I worked very hard towards the end of the summer to create a detailed infographic entitled Life of a Blog Post. The stylised illustration, complete with the detailed steps on the progression and value of blogging, is now available on lbdesign’s website. You can enjoy the infographic, tweet about it, like it on Facebook or request your own PDF version of the illustration.

Of course, I welcome comments and feedback on the infographic: Comments via the form below or drop me an email if you prefer.

See the Life of a Blog Post »

A late convert to the wonders that are Apple products, I wanted to pay a small tribute to the man whose influence on my own career flows through my office on a daily basis.

Others will be more eloquent in their eulogies. Others will be more profound in their reflections. My own tribute to Steve Jobs is small and will definitely go unnoticed by most of the world. Yet that is a testament to the ubiquitous presence of Steve Jobs in this world — he spread design, innovation, enthusiasm and more into every corner of the world.

Photo: Shot on and emailed from an iPhone 3Gs. Edited and posted to the internet on a MacBook Pro. Says it all, doesn’t it?

It’s an insightful read and certainly is well-written. Ethan Marcotte’s Responsive Web Design is even delightfully comedic and very informative. But surely, most reading goes better with a small cocktail.

Recently, I obtained my very first piece of art. More specifically, I am now a proud owner of a John Gwinn original. It hangs on the wall in my office. The painting is one of chickens, painted in John’s unique ‘Flashing Exuberance‘ style — a style that dances on the border of realism and abstract.

In considering the painting as it hung on my wall for the first time, I experienced an epiphany. The beauty of art does not rest solely in the beauty of the finished piece. Rather, the creative process by which the artist crafts the art is very much a part of what makes art beautiful. Yet, there is even more than that when it comes to art, at least in my humble opinion.

Working with the artist

Over the past few months, I have had the pleasure of working with John Gwinn on a marketing project. John and I met at Franklin Commons, where many of his paintings grace the walls with stunning effect. John asked for my help in creating an online presence for his work.

This project was my first opportunity to work so closely with a painter of such talent. In the months that passed after our first meeting, we chatted in person, over the phone and via email, developing ideas and designs for a website, business card and promotional postcard. Working with a true creative was such an exhilarating challenge.

Connecting via art

In reflecting on the painting on my wall, the piece seemed all the more amazing and engaging because I personally knew the artist. I knew of his story and of his creative process. Through my work, I had learned what makes John ‘tick’ as an artist. In studying his painting within the confines of my office, I made such a strong connection with the art. It really spoke to me in ways that I had not experienced when viewing the wonderful masterpieces that grace London’s art museums.

“Huh?”, you ask, sounding slightly confused.

This weekend, the good people at Pintley launched a new iPhone app. In looking to download the app, I saw that my review of Guinness had been the screen shot chosen to be used in the app overview. That makes me famous now.

I’ll be available for interviews and other PR opportunities on Tuesdays and Thursdays. For appointments, please contact my agent.

As the summer races to a close faster than many of us would like, I am really excited to tell everyone that we’re looking to hire a web designer for our London office. If you’re a great web designer, big on web standards and are interested in working with clients in the UK, US and beyond, then I’d love to hear from you.

Surf over to the job advert on the lbdesign website and read more about it.

While you’re there, you can also check out some photos of our London office that we’ve just posted. Our offices, based in Nice Studios, are a bright, vibrant and happy place — great for delivering creative solutions to clients around the world.