Why I Love WordPress (and why you should, too)
March 23, 2010 by lauren
Filed under Blog, Santa Clara Design
Over the past year and a half, I have tried my hardest to convince all my clients, new and old, to use WordPress for their site creation. So far, I haven’t had one complaint. Why? I’ll tell ya…
Most Common & Familiar
Even if you don’t know it… you probably view several WordPress sites each time you’re on the internet. Here are just a few businesses/organizations who use WordPress: Fisher Price, National Geographic, Best Buy, Jane Fonda, NY Times, Wall Street Journal, Danielle Steel, etc… see for yourself.
Fully Customizable…
I’m a designer at heart. I love beautiful things and if I can’t create exactly what I want for my client, I’m not happy. WordPress allows me the freedom to customize the code and templates till my heart’s content. Thus, I create lovely sites for my clients… and they’re happy!
There are also a zillion plugins and theme variations out there for WordPress users, many more than any other CMS. Simply search the Wordpress Plugin page and you’ll probably find exactly what you’re looking for!
Amazingly Easy to Use
As I just said, I’m a designer at heart…. If I can’t figure something out with relative ease, then I know my clients won’t be able to either. Those problems were solved when I switched over to WordPress. After using Druple and Joomla for other sites, and spending hours on end training my client’s on the ins and outs of the administration side of the site… well, we were all about to pull our hair out!
Then WordPress waltzed into my life and it’s never been the same. WordPress calls it like it is… the admin navigation is straightforward and help is really only a click or two away. More on that later…
Really though, I’m so thankful that WordPress (developed by Matt Mullenweg) is both robust and user-friendly. My clients can pick up WordPress after just an hour of two of training.
Blogging & SEO
As most know, WordPress was first created as a blogging tool. So… you should blog. No matter what your organization or industry, blogging can only help, not hurt you. I strongly encourage all my clients to have a blog page on their site. A regular commitment to blogging will naturally increase content. Content is king! Honestly, that’s the best SEO to have!
Community
Since using WordPress I have actually met some amazing people – both in person and online. The WordPress community is amazingly generous. Since WordPress is open-source (read: free!) users and developers seem more than willing to share their thoughts, tricks and tips with others. So, if you have a question, there are numerous help forums and experts out there to help.
More questions about WordPress? Feel free to contact me and I’d be happy to chat with you!
Portraits for Kendra H. …
February 16, 2010 by lauren
Filed under Blog, Santa Clara Design
Here are some of the results of my photos shoot with Kendra, a local realtor. We had a lot of fun, even though it was VERY cold! She has an easy smile ~ which made my job a LOT easier!
Freebie – Piano Lover’s Print
January 14, 2010 by lauren
Filed under Blog, Santa Clara Design
Here’s a freebie for all those piano lovers out there. I made this to frame and put up on the top of our piano. Just to make my kids smile as they practice.
The quote reads, “There’s nothing remarkable about it. All one has to do is hit the right keys at the right time and the instrument plays itself.” Johann Sebastian Bach.
I just love the quote and my kids think it’s pretty funny!
I hope you can enjoy it as well.
If you end up downloading the print, I’d love to hear back from you. Let me know where you put it or who you gave it to!
amazing cards
January 8, 2010 by lauren
Filed under Blog, Santa Clara Design
Get ready to be inspired and break the bank to order a whole new set of business cards.
This is one of my favorite new sites: CardObserver.com
I visit when I’m bored. Need inspiration. Or just want to be happy.
These are top of the line, stunning business cards.
You’d frame ‘em if you had the privilege of getting one handed to you!
Enjoy!
a bit of beauty…
November 11, 2009 by lauren
Filed under Blog, Santa Clara Design
Recently, my husband and I went to Carmel for my cousin’s wedding. This is one of the photos I took… They were finally done with all their portraits and were walking back up the hill to the reception. I was stalking the professional photographer – I’m sure she loved that! Well, I’m glad I did!
