Wieting Design

What Does It Mean To Be American Disabilities Act (ADA) Compliant?

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Are Your Business Digital Products (Mobile App, Website) ADA/WCAG Compliant?

In other words, is the disabled population able to access every feature and function of your website, mobile apps, PDF files, graphics, and other digital offerings? We all know the Americans with Disablities Act (ADA) has mandated the disabled to have full access to any public setting where non-disabled people are accessing, but what about the virtual world? As you remember, originally the ADA brought in the advent of parking spaces, wheelchair ramps, and rails.

The History of the Americans Disability Act

As technology evolves, so does the ADA civil rights legislation first established and signed into law in 1990. The Dept. of Justice notified the public in 2010 that it fully intended to bring the ADA up to par with the technological age by considering how people with disabilities would be digitally accommodated in relation to websites. Some businesses adhered to the recommendations and guidelines right way. However, most either did not pay attention to the new laws, didn’t think they were important, or thought they were already compliant, when in fact, they were not. In 2016, the accessibility issue blew up after a huge lawsuit involving the University of California, Berkeley went public.

The Department of Justice Ruled the Roost

The Dept. of Justice ruled in the University of California, Berkeley case that the school would adopt the WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) of the World Wide Web to make their website accessible to all people. Nowadays, the WCAG is considered the standard among businesses and organizations, where it is widely accepted.

Who WCAG is For?

WCAG is primarily intended for:

  • Web content developers (page authors, site designers, etc.)
  • Web authoring tool developers
  • Web accessibility evaluation tool developers
  • Others who want or need a standard for web accessibility, including for mobile accessibility
  • Related resources are intended to meet the needs of many different people, including policy makers, managers, researchers, and others.

WCAG is a technical standard, not an introduction to accessibility. For introductory material, you can start here

America’s Disabled Population Demands the Virtual World Catch Up to Them

The minority of minorities are demanding the virtual world to catch up with them and the ADA law established for their protection in 1990. Every person who enters your website, mobile app, or other digital product should be able to access every function, every feature, and every image. Furthermore, specific steps are to be taken to ensure people prone to seizures are not triggered into having one by the website’s flashing or blinking.

Having Good Intentions Mean Nothing in Regards to the Law

While many business owners intend for their website to be ADA compliant, not all are. Regardless of intention, any ADA non-compliance of business digital products is against the law. Unfortunately, more and more business owners are finding this out the hard way. They are finding out in a courtroom in the middle of a lawsuit because of laid-back good intentions.

The Department of Justice published its ADA Best Practices Tool Kit. You can read it here:

 

Wieting Design offers Graphic Design, Website Design, Search Engine Marketing, Video Production and Logo Design in Fairfield County CT. Contact us for more information on the specialties we bring to your business!

 

Website Launch for Nathaniel Witherell

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At Wieting Design we believe consistency is key to marketing communications. Your brand needs to reflect professionalism, purpose and stability across all platforms. The following new launch for Nathaniel Witherell demonstrates just that.  When Harrison Edwards, a PR firm based in Armonk, NY approached us to work with them in developing a new website for Nathaniel Witherell we jumped right in! The Nathaniel Witherell is a exceptional, compassionate state-of-the-art nursing home offering services such as Skilled Nursing, Short-Term Rehabilitation, Memory Care and Caregiver Support.

Working with Harrison Edwards we designed and development a new ADA Compliance custom website with a robust content management system, with highly customized features to ensure a unique user experience and to fully explain what they have to offer through copy content and videos.  The services we provided were: concept, website design, website development, logo redesign, video integration, and setting up forms for scheduling tours and donations.

Take a look at what Nathaniew Witherell has to offer.

Wieting Design offers Graphic Design, Website Design, Search Engine Marketing, Video Production and Logo Design in Fairfield County CT. Contact us for more information on the specialties we bring to your business!

 

 

6 Signs You Have Outgrown Your Website

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Websites are never truly complete. You should always be adding to your website and tweaking the design and language to meet the needs of your customers. Without regular updates, you’ll fall behind the times and miss out on opportunities due to limitations in SEO, user experience and load speeds.

Each day, website trends adapt and change. You need to constantly evaluate your website to see if it’s adapting and changing with the trends. If not, you’ve likely outgrown your website and it’s time for a new website design.

For many business owners and marketing managers, undertaking a website project doesn’t sound like fun. So you want to make sure it’s time before embarking on such a project. We outline ways you can tell you’ve outgrown your website.

Your Website Design Embarrasses You

When you share your website, does it come with caveats of you saying things like “here’s my website, but it’s a little outdated.” Or do you find ways around sharing your website by guiding people to a Facebook page, Medium article or another third-party resource?

This is a big red flag that it’s time for a new website. As your business grows and changes, you want to make sure the look, tone and functionality of your website adapt and grow with you.

You should never be ashamed of your website. In fact, it’s your greatest marketing tool and the resource that most marketing activity points to. Upgrade your website if you’re ashamed of it or make excuses for why it looks or sounds a certain way.

You Don’t Know How Your Website Works

There are so many tools on the market today that make website management simple. If your current website’s operations are a total mystery to you, you’re likely avoiding updates and upgrades to that site. Fix this problem with an update to a WordPress website or other easy-to-use platform.

Outdated websites are also a huge security risk. You could become a victim of hacking, phishing or other security concerns. And if you collect customer information through your website, that could leave your customers vulnerable. One data breach could put your company out of business.

Take the time to discuss with a website designer an easier process for website updates. That way, you ensure the long-term viability of your site and protect your company’s online identity.

Your Website Features Old Branding and Messaging

Many businesses go through an evolution of how they talk about themselves and their overall look and design. To keep your visual identity consistent, you need to make sure your website matches your current branding standards.

If your website features an old logo, colors or design elements, it’s time for an update. And while you’re updating to a new look, you can upgrade your tools to make your website simpler to manage.

Your Competitors Are Using the Same Templates and Design

Some templates and designs become quite popular within an industry. While your website might have been unique a few years ago when you got started, today it looks just like everyone else’s website.

Popular WordPress themes can make your website feel stale. It won’t stand out among your competitors or be memorable to your customers, enticing them to come back.

While the theme you chose for your website might be attractive and function well, don’t forget to consider how well it portrays your brand and what makes you unique. Market differentiators should jump off the page and make it clear that your consumers should not shop anywhere else to meet their needs.

Professional website design gives you a custom website that helps you stand out and clearly communicate with your customers. You won’t find another website like yours on the web when you work with these professionals.

Mobile Optimization is Lacking on Your Site

Mobile website traffic grows each year. In 2013, the worldwide percent of mobile users was only 16.2 percent of total website traffic. By 2019, that percentage had skyrocketed to 53.3 percent.

It’s no big surprise that Google puts so much weight on mobile optimization when ranking websites. If your website doesn’t look great or is not easy to navigate from a mobile device, it’s certainly time you update it.

According to research, 54 percent of customers indicate that they won’t recommend a business with a poor mobile website design. Referrals and recommendations mean a lot in today’s connected and social online environment.

When evaluating your mobile website, don’t forget to think about its speed. Slow websites harm conversion rates immensely, but website speed also impacts search engine rankings and your relationships with your customers.

Use Google PageSpeed Insights to learn more about your website’s performance to evaluate if it’s time for an update.

Lack of Modern Website Technology is Holding You Back

An outdated website generally has slow load speeds, limited functionality and makes it challenging to rank well for SEO. If it seems like you’re working extremely hard and have a good online strategy but you aren’t seeing results, it’s time to modernize your website.

Review your Google Analytics for big changes from when you first launched your website. If you’re seeing valleys of low traffic from sources that had always served you well, it might not be your marketing efforts that are lacking, but your website.

Websites from just a few years ago might run on outdated templates, technology or formats that hold them back based on today’s standards. Heavy CSS files, weighty JavaScript and poorly optimized images and videos can do a great deal of harm to your traffic and website performance.

Captivate Your Audience with Modern Website Design Services

When a user lands on your site, you have only a few seconds to captivate them with your design and messaging. Don’t miss out on opportunities due to a website you’ve outgrown or that has become outdated.

Wieting Design provides outstanding website design services to delight your customers and earn more business through your online presence. Contact us to learn more about how we can improve your online presence with an updated and modern website design.

5 Reasons Your Website Needs a Website Designer

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With so many website templates and simple tools like WordPress on the market today, many business owners and marketing teams think they don’t need a website designer. It’s an area where these businesses choose to save some money.

While just about anyone can create a standard website from a template using today’s technology, that doesn’t mean the website will perform well.

The standard templates lack a few key aspects that help engage viewers and get ROI for your website expenses. Good website design has a huge impact on:

  • SEO
  • Lead generation
  • Site speed
  • Customer engagement
  • Repeat customers

If you’re evaluating whether a professional website designer is worth it, read on for the 5 reasons your website needs a designer.

We Know How Design Impacts Customer Engagement

Website designers spend their workdays learning about how customers interact with websites and what makes those websites succeed. We know how to place calls to action in the right places.

Did you know that 57 percent of internet users won’t recommend a business if the website is unattractive or has a poor mobile experience? Website design is about more than just attractive colors and neat designs. It’s about encouraging your customers to keep coming back and engaging with you.

Most website templates scale accordingly on mobile. But have you considered how your website forms perform on mobile? And if you’re an e-commerce website, have you thought about your checkout process on mobile?

That’s the great part about hiring a designer is that we think through all that for you. We’ll ask you questions and help you create the right experience for your specific customers.

Website Designers Know the Latest Requirements

From site speed expectations to SEO standards, we know how to create a website that meets the latest requirements. That way, you aren’t prepping to change your website again in a few years, which is a lengthy and expensive process.

Website infrastructure is like the backbone of your website. It includes lots of technical information in the background that you probably never see or interact with. But it’s just as important as the front-end pretty design. The more modern your website’s infrastructure is now, the longer it will perform well for you.

When using pre-built templates, you might be also basing your website on technology from many years ago. That means you won’t see the same performance you would from modern website infrastructure.

We’ll Help Promote Returning Website Visitors

Ensuring website visitors return means having some way to stay in contact. One way of doing that is to gather their contact information when they first visit your website. Or, getting the customer to follow social media sites.

Ecommerce websites can do this through popup notifications at the end of the checkout process and an effective follow-up strategy.

At Wieting Design, we ask you questions about your goals for the website to make such recommendations. That way, you don’t have to be the expert about every aspect of your website.

You Won’t Have to Worry About Website Support

Websites are never complete. As requirements change and trends adapt, you’ll need to update your website. Knowing a good website designer who understands the ins and outs of your website will help you immensely.

Building such long-term relationships will help as your business grows. Our website design team can make minor changes for you to update your website according to new needs or requirements.

Perhaps you start your website without online chat but realize it’s an essential way to connect with your customers. Your website designer can work with you to get this new feature added and looking great. And the chat won’t look out of place at all because your website designer knows how to integrate it into what you already have.

Long-term, Hiring a Designer Will Cost Less

The price tag of hiring an expert is normally what leads people to do-it-yourself solutions. But the investment in website design is one that really pays off. Using an expert means your website will be up and running sooner.

If you do it yourself or have a friend do it on the side, it will take you a great deal of time to get your website ready and operational. And not only that, but the end product might lack an attractive design and strong user experience.

Budget website solutions can mean you just end up paying for a proper solution later, which costs you even more long term than just doing it right the first time with an expert.

Wieting Design provides expert website design and maintenance plans to help your business succeed. Contact us to share the details of your project requirements and get started working toward a modern, attractive and high-performing website.

Wieting Design offers modern websites that delight customers and turn website visitors into prospects. We have experience designing websites for a variety of industries and would love the opportunity to discuss your project with you. Contact us to learn more.

Wieting Design offers Graphic Design, Website Design, Search Engine Marketing, Video Production and Logo Design to our clients.

 

Website Launch CransBaldwin, LLC

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We are very excited to announce the launch of CransBaldwin a Luxury Design Collection company based in Darien, CT. Crans wanted to make his new website faster, easier to navigate, and more user-friendly.

Our goal with this new website is to provide his visitors an easier way to learn about CransBaldwin’s services and to browse information based on their own choice. The new website gives better access to Who He Is, How They Work, Contact Information For Each Supplier, Galleries, Expertise & Services. VIEW WEBSITE

Benefits of bundling design and marketing services with one agency

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Small to mid-sized companies have so much to gain from outsourcing marketing efforts. Not only is paying an in-house marketing professional expensive but finding one person with expertise in all areas of marketing is difficult. And that’s why outsourcing makes sense.

And yet, when you have one marketing company producing videos, another designing the company logo and someone else creating a search engine marketing strategy, it can become a full-time job just to manage the various outsourced professionals that you work with.

Instead, the solution lies in finding marketing agencies that can take on more than one area of your creative needs. At Wieting Design, we have five areas of expertise that go hand-in-hand with one another: logo design, graphic design, website design, video production and search engine marketing.

Companies who use multiple services or all of them find that they reap great rewards in a consistent look and feel to their marketing materials. Here’s a look at each service area and how it impacts the other areas.

 

Logo Design

Strong branding and a clean, recognizable logo are important for helping a business stand out. You want consumers to remember your company with a logo that speaks to what you offer.

But a logo is more than just a good-looking piece of marketing. It can also show off the brand’s personality and tell consumers a great deal about your company in a second or two. And because your logo is presented on so many branded items, you want it to be bold and beautiful.

Pride in your logo is important to exuding confidence and authority in your industry. Whether it’s a plumbing business committing to round-the-clock service when you need it or a new SaaS offering that transforms the way people do business, your logo says a lot.

There are many logo designers out there. Some execute exactly what you ask for, and others guide and provide expertise to help ensure your logo stands up to modern trends while looking timeless 10 years from now. Afterall, no one wants a logo that looks like someone else’s logo because that makes it hard to point out in a crowded marketplace. Your logo should be simple, memorable and enduring.

 

Graphic Design

Once you have a logo in place, you’ll need to add it everywhere! From packaging to social media, graphic design is a crucial aspect of your overall branding and marketing. Much of the customer buying journey starts with great visuals. From the moment consumers see your post shared on social media to purchasing your product, graphic design plays a role in their decision making.

Whether it’s a whitepaper you use as a lead magnet or fliers you hand out at an event, the initial graphics are what draw in the customer to read more and learn about your company. And believe it or not, customers do judge your business by its looks.

Graphic design that is well executed guides the reader’s eyes from element to element as they learn about important facts and details to drive them toward making a purchasing decision. Graphic design tells the eye where to go and what the most important details are.

 

Website Design

Company websites serve as the hub of a company’s online marketing. In fact, most offline marketing still leads to a website, making it one of the most important aspects of your business.

And while you could use a generic template for your website, it won’t speak to the customer in the same way a custom-designed website will. A well-designed website makes calls to action (CTAs) clear and directs the visitor to them. Just like graphic design leads the eye where you want it, website design leads the user to click and explore where you want them to.

According to Forbes, brand storytelling is no longer a nice to have; it’s crucial to success. Website design also plays an important role in telling your brand story effectively. Consumers want products and brands they can rave about, and that’s great news for you. Your brand story gives consumers something to latch onto and care about, which can make them brand advocates, translating into referrals.

You have 15 seconds to grab a website visitor’s attention. While the words on the page matter, so do the design, typography and presentation. Use those 15 seconds wisely, and if you’re seeing a high bounce rate on your website, it’s probably time to consider a redesign.

 

Video Production

Want to make your website and social media stand out? Videos are a strong and effective communication tool and can make your website more interactive. And when you work with the same marketing agency as the one who created your logo and other graphic design, you won’t waste precious time explaining your brand guidelines.

Video production is an art. It’s about more than just picking up a video camera and framing the subject well. It’s guidance on the right setting, mood and tempo. Strong music, stunning visuals and proper pacing make all the difference when you represent your company on camera.

Plus, you’ll want your video production team to have a firm grasp on who your business is and what matters most about the work that you do. Using an all-in-one marketing and design agency can help ensure you get your message across.

 

Search Engine Marketing

Once you have a stunning logo design and website design targeted at converting visitors into customers, you’re ready to start marketing your business. Driving traffic to your website through SEO is crucial to bringing in new business and making your company discoverable.

Your search engine marketing is an ever-changing aspect of your online strategy. As algorithms change and competitors adjust, you’ll need an expert to help guide you in ensuring you stay at the top of results. Driving high quality leads to your website should be the top goal of your search engine marketing initiatives.

Just like other aspects of your marketing, it’s great to have a partner who already knows and understands your business. The company that creates your website design has a deep knowledge of your goals and online strategy. When you hire the same company for search engine marketing, you get an integrated approach to your online marketing strategy.

 

Wieting Design offers Graphic Design, Website Design, Search Engine Marketing, Video Production and Logo Design to its clients. While we’re open to all types of projects, we do love it when we get to see marketing initiatives through from design to search engine marketing and everything in between. Contact us for more information on the specialties we bring to your business!

CONTACT US

Wieting Design, LLC
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o: 203.414.9692
e: cindy@wietingdesign.com

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Serving: CT, Fairfield County CT
Hartford  CT, New Haven County CT