Ensure your site is crawlable March 18, 2010 No Comments
Site architecture is one of the most important things to get right online, Spending money on usability and marketing is a waste if your site cant be seen by Google.
I know this is web basics but if you look around the internet there are many websites including big brands that have sites that are not crawlable. The old hat way of developing dynamic websites is to have selectable categories and a search box so that users can find products using a search query. This architecture is outdated , all pages need to be physically linked to enable the Google spiders to race through your site and pick through all the juicy content.
What else can assist the spiders in indexing?
Correct Robot text – Robot text basically gives the spiders instructions on which pages to crawl and which to not. Insure this is correct
Create an XML site map. An XML site map is a good way of giving Google a map of your whole site architecture, ensuring that no pages are missed in the index.
Ensure that any flash navigation is also linked through HTML. Although some people suggest Google is reading flash with varying success i am a firm believer that flash doesn’t assist speed indexing.
Using geodata to your advantage March 17, 2010 No Comments
Geodata is simply data that has a specific location attached to it, typically a latitude and longitude. It is important that data is tagged with this information as the web becomes more and more geo centric.
Say for example you run a photography website that you allow users to upload to. By tagging each and every image with a latitude and longitude, you can start to build a picture of where you users come from, where they like to visit and so on. This can useful for advertising purposes.
Make a webpage printable February 18, 2010 No Comments
This week I have been working on an interesting tool that enables the users to print the output. Introducing the print style sheet. Most people assume that printing web pages is a simple task , but when they come to print the page they might find table cells printing across pages or print margins skewing the design of the sites layout. This is where the print style sheet comes in. Read the rest of this entry »
Creating Sitemaps January 28, 2010 No Comments
When developing huge sites or sites that have frequently updated pages , such as new product pages in a shop. It is important that you make it as easy as you possibly can for the Google spiders to crawl and index your page.
Creating a site map should be your first job when finishing development or creating new pages.
There are generally two approaches to creating xml site maps, one option is to create you own from scratch and the other is to use an xml site map generator then edit the output before submitting. The latter is usually favored unless you are making a small change to the structure of your site. Read the rest of this entry »
A profile of the developers at redsauce January 27, 2010 No Comments
Here is a glimpse into the department that is – “the development team” here at redsauce. ‘Small but mighty’ is the phrase I would use to describe us. Consisting of just two members: Tim and Chris, we have managed to create and sculpt the structure of some of the biggest sites in the industries we are involved in.
Understanding DNS January 13, 2010 No Comments
DNS can strike fear into even hardened web veterans (take our boss as an example), but it’s really nothing particularly complicated. I’m going to provide a quick guide, which hopefully by the end, you should feel a lot more comfortable using DNS.
Considered Site Design December 31, 2009 No Comments
Taking a good look at how your site is designed could be the start of a journey to profitability. Human computer interaction is often the last thing that developers think of when making a site and often business managers and owners are unaware that design tweaks can have a dramatic effect on customers decisions to buy products. The role of HCI is to enhance and bridge the level of interaction between humans and computers , in this case your website.
HCI is a massive subject area that has been researched in great detail. I suggest if you havent before to get some books on the subject. Here are a few simple things to condsider. Read the rest of this entry »
Tools of the trade November 26, 2009 No Comments
Like any skilled tradesman a busy office can’t do without their tools. This week we have been looking into finding or building some tools to support everyone at red sauce. We already have a great tool called task freak which enables us to keep track of tasks and enables us to project manage. Exploring the net we have found some great tools, that help us schedule our time and share our calendars with each other, not only is this very clever but will undoubtedly boost our efficiency in the future. Read the rest of this entry »
How Widgets Can Help Your Website November 18, 2009 No Comments
Building widgets and tools are among the most interesting things the programmers at redsauce get to work on. From mapping tools to quizzes and questionnaires, there is almost nothing we can’t develop. But why would you want us to build a tool or widget for you? And how would it help your website?
First of all, our tools are incredibly easy to install. Usually, with just a few lines of code, your website can be sporting a fully customised and funky little widget that can blend in with the rest of your site. Want to display the latest news from another site or your blog? How about a scrolling window displaying testimonials from your most loyal clients? All this is possible – the sky is the limit.
Ways to speed up your website November 5, 2009 No Comments
User’s thirst for finding information on the internet is at a all time high and as this trend increases studies have shown that internet users patient levels have been decreasing.
As websites become more media rich it is important that you optimise your site correctly to ensure that users don’t become frustrated with slow load times. Slow load times can in turn correlate to high bounce rates and lower sales. The report also suggested that a sites performance (sales and returning visitors) can be directly linked with page. There are many more theory’s on how slow loading times can affect your business that I won’t go over , today however I am going to give you a few tips on how to speed up your site. Read the rest of this entry »
