Outdated Web Design Trends That You Need to Abandon

Seven Design Trends to Abandon Now

Is your website looking a little dated? A terrible website is one of the easiest ways to destroy a potential customer's interest in your business. Most visitors won't stick around for more than 15 seconds if your website looks like it was last updated in 2007. Too many companies still use obsolete, unappealing website design components and functionalities, which causes visitors to bounce before they even learn about what you're offering. If you find that you're using some of these, we urge you to ditch those outdated web design trends as soon as possible.

7 Outdated Web Design Trends That You Need to Abandon ASAP

Does a lot of traffic quickly leave your website? Are you unhappy with the number of monthly visitors you receive? It might be the antique design techniques you're using. Or the fact that you haven't changed a single thing in years. You might not notice, but cryan.com has been around since 1998. And, we have got plenty of chances to learn what our audience likes and what they find infuriating. Here are the seven outdated web design trends you need to abandon the first chance you get.

1. Aggressive Pop-Ups

It's doubtful that a visitor to your site is just killing time. They probably have some information-gathering mission in mind. We've all been there: you've finally found the website you've been looking for, only to have your browsing pleasure rudely interrupted by a window that claims to be from the site's owner. It's OK to seek user emails or other information, but there are more subtle methods than forcefully displaying a pop-up. Instead, you should include a subscription form on your site in a prominent location.

Any pop-ups, whether pop-up ads or the subscribe button, are annoying.

2. Too Much Design

Visitors will leave in droves if your website is poorly designed and too busy with content. They will go elsewhere if they cannot quickly and easily grasp the essence of your brand. Your company's identity, brand values, and the products and services you provide will be more effectively communicated with a clean, uncluttered design. The typical internet user lacks the patience to comb through irrelevant material to get what they need. They will leave your site immediately and visit a rival.

3. Ultra-minimalism

To understand why minimalism has become so widespread, you need only consider a few fundamental factors. Users get frustrated with too complex websites. Some programmers have been cramming as much information as possible into the designs for years. But when minimalism expanded too far, it bred monotony and sameness in appearance. With this goal in mind, designers have started using bold color palettes, asymmetrical layouts, and unconventional design approaches to grab the attention of their users.

Experts at wpfullcare.com are very against this method. You have to make your website recognizable at all costs. A super minimalistic approach just won't cut it. Your website will look too much like a thousand others. However, that does not mean you must give up on simplicity altogether. Still, a good structure and a non-distracting backdrop make information easier to take in. No matter the topic, whether it is how to boost your self-assurance at school or the top five detective books, the website in question should be straightforward. So, be sure to provide visitors with the information they need. Remember that people have come to you for knowledge; if you don't find it, they will go elsewhere.

4. Flash

Since the invention of HTML5, Flash has mostly been rendered obsolete. Flash used to be the most cutting-edge technology of its day. It allowed web designers to add moving images, music, and interactive features to their sites. But it also had a lot of problems, and the frustration for users has gotten even more intense. Plus, Flash is incompatible with mobile devices. But the biggest issue with Flash is that it slows down search engine optimization (SEO). And it also requires a plugin for the browser and is notoriously difficult to install, and has serious security concerns. After you're done reading this, we're sure you'll run to ditch these outdated web design trends. If you want some inspiration for your website's new design, feel free to get inspired at Dribble, where you can find some amazing ones.

5. Cheezy stock images

Using stock images is not necessarily wrong. Stock images are an excellent option for customers that lack the resources to produce their own business photographs. However, there was once a period when "poor" (read: very corny and unrealistic) stock images were the height of fashion. There is still a widespread presumption that a shot of two people shaking hands in a bright conference room indicates trust. So you'll see websites using this style of photo nowadays. But you'll be so wrong if you believe this. Sometimes, it's just better not to use pictures at all and add a random background generator to make your post look more attractive.

These cheesy stock photos are a prime example of outdated web design trends. Using your own images is better if you plan on including something like this.

6. A Never-Ending Scroll

An endless page with a list of items is advantageous if you manage an online business. However, this is not the case for an informative or business project. This page prevents users from accessing the footer, which includes valuable information and connections. Because of this, it is crucial to analyze user behavior; otherwise, how can you foresee their requirements?

7. Desktop Hamburger Menus

The "hamburger" menu on websites consists of three horizontal lines piled on top of one another and located to the right of the main navigation bar or menu. When a visitor clicks on one of these menus, a submenu appears, providing even more options for them to explore. This icon is great for mobile devices since it makes navigating a website's layout easier. On desktop PCs, however, the hamburger menu is more of a distraction than a help.

Save the "hamburger" menu for the mobile web.

The bigger display of the desktop version might make the hamburger menu a challenge. Many people would be surprised to see it appear on their desktops, and some may not know how to use it. Web visitors are far less inclined to look around if they have trouble navigating your site's design. When designing for a bigger screen, don't utilize the hamburger menu; instead, save it for mobile web design. Although this is not precisely one of the outdated web design trends, it's best used only for the mobile web.

Taking Care of Your Most Valued Business Asset: You!

Tips on Better Health Care

The work of an entrepreneur means constantly trying to figure out ways to be better, faster, and stronger. It's essential for entrepreneurs to make time for self-care so they can maintain a good state of mind.

The term self-care is defined as a conscious act a person takes in order to promote their own physical, mental, and emotional health.

There are many benefits for entrepreneurs who take care of themselves. Self-care can help with stress relief, boost creativity and productivity, improve mental health and reduce the effect of burnout. But not all business owners are willing to take time out of their busy schedules for self-care. Some feel like they can multitask and put their mind on autopilot. This is not a healthy way of thinking, only serving to make time for self-care that much more difficult.

To help you get a better handle on self-care, we put together the following tips.

Sleep

It???s common for entrepreneurs to get too few hours of sleep per night. Not getting enough sleep can cause serious issues with your mental and physical health. To get enough sleep, it's important to set a schedule, like going to bed and waking up at the same time each day. Create a bedtime routine that would give you enough time for relaxation, and remember to limit your screen time before bed, usually turning off all your electronics one hour before bedtime.

Diet

It's also common for busy people to eat poorly, often going for whatever is fast and convenient. The long-term effects of this type of lifestyle exact a heavy toll on your health, however. Make it a point to eat more leafy green vegetables such as broccoli and spinach, which provide folate and iron, while spinach has antioxidants that may protect the brain from Alzheimer's disease.

Dark purple, red, blue, and orange fruits contain carotenoids, which are known to help prevent eye diseases like cataracts in aging adults. Fruit also provides fiber, which is great for lowering cholesterol levels, and it gives us vitamins C, A, B6, and E, all of which have powerful antioxidant properties that fight cancer cells.

Exercise

Exercise is not only important for your health but also for your mental well-being. Whether you want to escape from stress or just want to be able to control your emotions better, exercise is essential. Exercise is proven to increase focus and productivity as well as improve mood and creativity and relieve pain and tension.

It isn???t necessary to have a gym membership, though there can be real value in having one, but regular exercise can simply be a daily walk or run at your local park or even around your neighborhood. Or you can look for ways to set up a workout space in your own home. Invest in resistance bands, dumbbells, a medicine ball, and a yoga mat.

Tap Into Business Tools

There are several benefits of forming an LLC if you're running a business With an LLC, you???re not personally on the hook for business expenses. LLCs have simpler record-keeping rules and you get to decide how you???re taxed. Not only can forming an LLC be good for business, but it can relieve stress as well. While you can do this work on your own, there are affordable services online that make business formation easier and quicker. These services will file all the necessary paperwork with your state and then provide you with the documents you need.

Online tools can also limit your work stress. For example, if you're communicating with remote freelancers or employees about ideas and you have a large PDF file with many images, you can edit a PDF by utilizing a free PDF editor tool to add text, sticky notes, highlights, drawings, and more to these files. This allows you to easily specify any suggestions or changes you might need without having to send lengthy emails.

It is easy to let the day-to-day responsibilities of running a business take over your health and well-being. However, for long-term gains, it???s crucial to make self-care a priority. Focus on getting better sleep, eating healthy foods, exercising regularly and using helpful online tools. The results will be worth the effort!

Pictory.ai

How Poor Boys Become Successful Men

Over the next few week, I'll be exploring some of the features of Pictory.ai.

About Pictory

Pictory is the essential tool for ambitious, growing businesses. Create powerful videos with Pictory. Convert Blogs, Articles, Press Releases, and Case Studies to Short Summary Videos. Online software. Free Sign up. Easy To Use.

First Sample Video

For starters, here's a sample video that I created using the "How Poor Boys Become Successful Men" from the quotes section. I only used the first 30 tips.

Factors to Consider When Creating a Mobile SEO Strategy

Creating a mobile SEO strategy.

Mobile SEO refers to the practice of combining search engine optimization with responsive design in such a way that the site's text and visuals can be viewed in an optimal manner on handheld devices. This type of SEO can produce a fantastic consumer experience if you can execute it properly. Sites that adhere to mobile-first SEO strategies look great on any device, regardless of the size of the display they are viewed on. However, mobile SEO can be quite complicated if you have never done it. Therefore, if you are looking for a way to make your website look better and run more smoothly on mobile devices, here are some factors to consider when creating a mobile SEO strategy.

Why Is Mobile SEO So Important?

The number of active handheld devices in the country has increased dramatically over the years, and this trend is expected to continue. This is not surprising. The smartphone has become an essential part of people's daily lives and the primary channel through which businesses can promote and, more importantly, build relationships with the public. This is without even mentioning how big social media is. It means that the focus of SEO will increasingly shift from the desktop to the smartphone. In fact, Google's mobile-first index is already laying the groundwork for this to occur.

To create a mobile SEO strategy, you need to understand how different desktop and handheld users are.

Because of this social landscape, many businesses have modified their strategies to meet the needs of this new customer. However, most companies attempt to do so without understanding the fundamental differences between handheld and desktop users. We're not just referring to the fact that the screen sizes differ. Customers also approach the two distinct forms psychologically. For example, when it comes to PPC, the same rules don't apply between the two groups. Smartphone users are much more impatient; they are not confined to their homes and can leave whenever they want. Only if you understand the differences will you be able to plan your approach to mobile SEO accordingly.

Your Website Needs To Load Quickly

The loading speed of your website is a critical aspect of the mobile experience. Even more so than on desktop. When people look for information on the move, they want it quickly. If your website does not load quickly, they will leave. Therefore, the best thing you can do to retain leads on your mobile site is to enhance its load speed. If you don't know how fast your website is loading, you can find many useful tools on Google that offer you some insight. You may use these tools to determine where your site performs well and where it needs to improve. In mobile SEO, loading speed is essential. However, if you want to keep the load speed of your website quick, some of the things that you can do are:

• Reduce the number of redirects that you have
• Keep the design simple
• Avoid using uncompressed images at all costs.

Mobile users will not wait long for your page to load before leaving.

It's possible to hire a digital marketing firm to handle your mobile site's page speed optimization if you don't know much about coding or don't have the time. This is great because it will allow you to focus on running your business instead of worrying about the technical aspects of it.

It Needs To Have a Responsive Design

A mobile-friendly website requires responsive design. When you employ responsive design, you guarantee that your website adjusts to whatever device a user is on. When we are talking about mobile devices, we are not just talking about smartphones. You will need to ensure that the viewers get the optimal mobile experience, whether it's a smartphone or tablet. Integrating responsive design makes it easier for your audience to navigate your site.

If you don't do this, you could find yourself in a situation where your website looks great on some devices while it is crammed and illegible on others. Forcing your viewers to constantly zoom in and out to see your website's content will increase your bounce rate. If you don't want this to happen, you need to make sure that you have a responsive design for a wide range of screen sizes, not just the regular 5.5-7.1 inch smartphone displays.

Create Material With a Focus on Mobile Readability

As we've already mentioned, visitors should not have to pinch-zoom, squint, or do anything else to read the material on your mobile web page. If they have to do it, most of them will leave. There is nothing worse for your mobile SEO than having visitors leave because of such a simple and easily correctable error. However, many small businesses make this mistake when developing a website. Therefore, examine your website's content using a handheld device to see how it reads.

It is critical to ensure that your content is readable when creating??a mobile SEO strategy; otherwise, your visitors will not want to read it.

If you want to ensure that your mobile website is easy to read, try to keep paragraphs short. This allows your readers to read your content in small doses. It also allows them to take their gaze away from the device and check their surroundings without losing track of what they are reading. You should also use a 14px font because it is easy to read on a small screen. In addition to that, make sure your text and background have a lot of contrast to make it easier for mobile viewers to see your material outside.

Conclusion

Utilizing every one of the strategies, tools, and configurations we have discussed up until this point should be a part of your effort to optimize your mobile website for search engines. However, it is crucial to remember that Google continues to emphasize the information above all other factors. Therefore, don't just ignore the quality of the content you produce. If you can create engaging content while also incorporating everything else we've discussed today, your mobile SEO will benefit greatly. With that said, hopefully, now you know what factors to consider when creating a mobile SEO strategy and how best to implement them in the future.

Meta Description: If you want to improve your rank on Google, here are some of the factors to consider when creating a mobile SEO strategy.

Improve Communication, Productivity, And Company Culture

Why Your Business Needs Intranet

An intranet is a valuable tool that can help pave the way to business success. Businesses that implemented a social intranet, for example, experienced a 20% increase in employee satisfaction, and an 87% increase in employee retention, a survey by Deloitte found. With the intranet, you can effectively improve employee communication and productivity and strengthen company culture.

Boost communication and productivity

Poor communication hampers communication, productivity, and your bottom line companies with around 100,000 employees lose around $62.4 million every year because of inadequate communication to and between employees, while smaller companies with 100 employees lose an average of $420,000 annually. The average employee, for example, wastes around 3.1 hours every day on emails, and, even so, important announcements can easily be overlooked this way. Intranet, on the other hand, lets you pin headline news and FAQs to the top of the page, making it ideal for company-wide sharing. It can also enhance collaboration between employees; with an intranet, multiple people can work on the same file at the same time without needing to worry about whether they have the latest version. Real-time discussion is also facilitated, so everyone can come to an agreement on the work that needs to be done.

Make information easy to find

Your intranet can function as a trusted knowledge repository for all company information. It is a central location that houses all up-to-date company documents, policies, and procedures, which can be accessed as needed by all your employees. Not only does this streamline your operations and save time, but it also helps ensure compliance (as employees can access current information needed to perform their jobs correctly). Moreover, modern intranet tools like Microsoft PowerApps lets you create custom low- or no-code business apps, which can pull multiple data sources into one platform to be easily accessed daily. A PowerApps Collection can also be used, for example, to save and organize employee information by their names, roles, departments, and so on. Once you have this data collected, you can take it offline and edit or otherwise use it for your business needs.

Strengthen company culture

56% of workers say a strong workplace culture is even more important to them than salary, with over three-in-four workers saying company culture plays a key role in their decision to apply for a position. Fortunately, an intranet can help strengthen your company culture as it offers an easy way for your team to interact and get to know each other in one space the option for employee social media feeds is even available. You can also use the intranet to give props to your employees. By using the intranet to post praise of employees, everyone across the company will be aware of others achievements. The intranet is undoubtedly still relevant in the modern-day. By boosting communication and productivity, making information easily accessible, and strengthening company culture, the intranet can help you pave the way to greater business success.

Top Ten Lessons Learned

Lesson List from the 1990s

Top lessons we've learned about large-scale internal Web deployment.

Web deployments can be tricky, especially when you???re dealing with a large scale. Here are some of the top lessons we???ve learned about deploying Web applications:

• Web use has a very different dynamic than other services - publishine and browsing are much easier, base technology is simpler, so many will
• Your focus will need to be on how to sustain this work over the long term, and for many people.
• A combination of risk-taking, planning and ongoing attention are needed.
• Focusing on one group (at least to start) helps to simplify/focus.
• This is more than just a technical challenge, and will require a cross-functional team.
• End users want it to be as simple and straightforward as possible, and won't share your enthusiasm for details, neat tools.
• Anticipate new roles and skills - information finder, information seekers, information designers, graphics people, integration experts....
• Keep up with the constant changes in technology.
• Contimually push thinking - see how others are using new tools (e.g personalized newspapers, subscriptions, audio, movie, new categories....)
• Sell, sell, sell - be an evangelist! Listen to what people need! "Just do it!"

Personal Trainer Apps

Benefits of Top Personal Trainers

A few years ago, the idea of??an ice skating rink??in your own home would have sounded like something only a millionaire could afford.?? Today, innovations in synthetic ice have made it a possibility for anyone. Besides being extremely fun and great for your health, what???s also great about it is that??synthetic ice is easy to clean??and has a significantly reduced carbon footprint. This makes it perfect for families who like to stay active together.

Personal Trainer Apps

Thanks to ever-evolving updates in the world of technology, our exercise routines are becoming more and more efficient every day as the??benefits of top personal trainers??become widely accessible and affordable via smartphone apps. Not only does this mean that individuals can receive exercise tips, guidance, and routines based on their unique set of needs. It also means that individuals can complete a satisfying and effective gym routine wherever they are, whenever they please. Only those in top income brackets previously had access to the benefits of regular meetings with a personal trainer to help them meet their weight-loss, fitness, or strength-training goals. However, this has been truly revolutionized with modern technology as new apps come out every month with AI virtual personal trainers designing routines that cater to individual needs, and push notifications that keep users motivated and on track.

The times have never been changing quicker, and the technological advances at our fingertips are making exercise, health, and wellness easier to achieve than ever. Consumers now have more options than ever to complete their exercise and aftercare routines at home - or wherever they are in the world, whenever they like.

How to Optimize Your YouTube Videos for SEO

Make your videos more visible and optimized for Google

People often overlook the importance of SEO when making videos on YouTube. It's not hard to see why. There are many more aspects to making a video than there are to making a simple blog post or an article. That being said, if you use SEO in your video strategy, you can improve the visibility and reach of all of your videos. This will not only increase your video view time, but it will also catch the attention of your target audience. It is something that will aid you in YouTube retargeting as well. For this reason, we would like to tell you how to optimize your YouTube videos for SEO.

You must optimize your YouTube videos for SEO if you want to benefit from your efforts.

Focus on Your Keywords

Back in the day, all you needed to do was make a quality video, and you would be able to gain traction. However, even though being prolific is essential these days, you need to do more to stand out. When it comes to SEO, it may seem like a losing battle for someone just starting out. There is too much competition from other creators, products, and services. But that is precisely why you must find a way to stand out from the competition. It starts with choosing your keywords as best as you can. Search for the best possible keywords for your video but avoid too popular ones because if they are tied to a competitor who is more prominent than you, they won't have as much of an effect.

Keywords are the most critical elements of optimization because they are how you connect with your audience.

Include Keywords in the Title of Your Video

To make any form of SEO work for your YouTube video, you need to understand what your audience is searching for. If you don't know for sure, maybe it will help you to know that among the most popular search intent on Google are informative, commercial, navigational, and transactional searches. Once you have figured out what your audience is searching for, you need to make a video about that. The next step will be to add the search keyword to your title. This way, when your target audience is looking for something specific, they will come across your video.

Second, according to Movers Development experts, one of the most important things you need to do is to understand who your target audience is and how to get to them. For example, include the product name in the video title and description if you want to highlight a product review. This may seem like an obvious thing to do. However, many amateurs and even professional creators often forget to do this, which usually results in less than stellar reach and views.

Improve the Description of Your YouTube Video

If you make sure to write a well-optimized and clear video description on your video, you will most likely have a better SEO ranking for your video than if you failed to do so. YouTube will review the video whenever you modify or update any YouTube video aspect, including video descriptions, subtitles, closed captions, and video thumbnails. With that said, this can easily backfire if you don't know what you're doing. That is why it's so important to do it correctly. We suggest you include your most important keywords in the first couple of phrases of your description. Other than that, it would be best to keep your description to a maximum of 200 words in length. In general, you should make your description helpful. If it does not assist your viewer, it would be best to get rid of it.

Don't Forget to Use Hashtags for All of Your Video Content

These days hashtags are synonymous with social media, and many people don't usually think about YouTube as a social media, so they avoid using hashtags. Hashtags are there to help people locate the material that answers their requests across a variety of platforms. With that said, you can use hashtags in the descriptions and titles of your YouTube videos. This will help your audience find your video when searching for a specific hashtag. Tags, in particular, assist in boosting search by making relevant trends more evident. Including a hashtag in the video description will appear above the title and get hyperlinked. It's also vital to remember where you put video hashtags in this section. If you include a hashtag in the video title, hashtags from the description will not be shown next to the video title.

Hashtags are important because they make it easier for your audience to find you.

Make Your Thumbnail Unique

Thumbnails are, in a way, much more important than your video title or the description. The first thing people will see when they find your video in their feed is the thumbnail. For this reason, you should make sure that your thumbnail is catchy. Additionally, if you can't naturally incorporate your keyword into the title, you can place it into the thumbnail. As long as you make something that catches people's attention and stands out from the crowd, you won't have any issues.

It would be best to do the same with your channel's logo. If you have an overarching theme for your business or content that you create, your logo can be something that links everything together. For this reason, it is crucial to think about creating a logo. If you have never thought about this, you will be surprised how much of an increase in reach your videos will have once you do something as simple as implementing a logo.

Conclusion

We have covered how to optimize your YouTube videos for SEO, so all you should do is try some of these methods out. As you can see, making your videos reach a larger audience is not that hard. However, it will take a lot of experimentation and patience. Therefore, don't give up if you don't notice huge changes immediately. Give it time, and you will soon be happy with the results.

Improving Speed and Slashing Carbon Emissions

Drone Delivery Is Transforming The Supply Chain

Drone delivery is a promising solution to America s supply chain crisis. As increasing demand combined with growing customer expectations for next-day or even same-day delivery continues to push the supply chain past its breaking point, current ground vehicle-based logistics networks are proving inefficient. Fortunately, drone technology is helping to transport goods with on-demand, just-in-time access, while also improving speed and convenience and slashing carbon emissions.

Drone delivery service live in Virginia

After getting the green-light from the government, Wing, an autonomous delivery drone service, successfully began delivering goods to residents in Christiansburg, Virginia over two years ago. They ve now made over 100,000 commercial deliveries. Walgreens, the first retail pharmacy to team-up with Wing, provides customers with over-the-counter medicines and health and wellness items, while FedEx Express are also working with Wing to provide some of their shipments via drone. Local Virginia retailer, Sugar Magnolia, is also selling gifts, sweets, and birthday cards with the option of Wing drone delivery. In fact, most orders within the four-mile radius of Wing s distribution facility arrive at customer s front doors in just 10 minutes.

Innovative technology

Wing s drones can travel at impressive speeds of up to 78 miles per hour and for around six miles in between charges. Two propellers and a dozen vertical rotors equip them with the ability to take off and land vertically. During pickup, the drones hover around 20 feet in the air, before a tether drops and a human operator connects the package to it. Next, the drone secures the package before delivering it to the recipient (it lowers and releases the package in the correct designated location). After sensing the package has been delivered safely, the drone continues to the next pickup destination. Routes are planned with automated flight-planning software, while a camera and in-built sensors help the drones avoid obstacles.

Improving efficiency and sustainability

Drones are just one piece of technology helping improve speed and efficiency in logistics. For example, rail freight is also becoming increasingly automated. In fact, 43% of rail operators intend to invest in artificial intelligence and machine learning to improve efficiency within the next three years. But, when it comes to drones, 87% of Christiansburg residents are happy with the service as it s convenient and reduces traffic congestion. In fact, drone delivery in a single U.S. metropolitan area is estimated to take the equivalent of 25,000 cars off the road and slash carbon emissions by up to 113,900 tonnes every year. Drones are also energy efficient and use far less energy than electric vehicles. As Wing explains, It takes more energy for you to boil pasta on your stove than it does for us to deliver you a box of pasta .

Although drones clearly aren t capable of handling all logistics, they re playing a key role in optimizing modern supply chains. By improving sustainability, speed, and resiliency, drone delivery services are set to become a lot more commonplace across the country in the near future.

Declutter Time

Take Time to Declutter Now

Are you feeling overwhelmed by the amount of stuff in your home? Are you struggling to find a place for everything? If so, it may be time to consider donating some of your belongings to a declutter donation center.

Donating your excess stuff can be incredibly freeing. It can help you get organized and make space for the things that matter most to you. Plus, it's a great way to help those in need.

There are many declutter donation centers out there, so do your research and find one that best suits your needs. Some centers accept donations of all kinds, while others specialize in certain types of items. Be sure to read up on the center's policies before making any donations.

If you're not sure what to donate, here are a few ideas:

• Clothing: Donate clothes that are no longer wearable or no longer fit. Hey if your not going to wear it anymore, why are use still keeping it.
• Books: Donate books that you've already read or don't plan on reading again.
• Toys: Donate toys that are no longer played with or have been replaced by newer versions.
• Household Items: Donate unused furniture, appliances, and kitchen supplies."