Atlantic Business Technologies, Inc.

Category: Strategy & Design

Why You Need a Responsive Web Design Now

If you’ve been doing your web design research, and we’re sure you have, you’ve heard this before. Responsive web design is very important for your business or organization. The question now is do you need to follow this advice or should you consider it only if you have the time and money?

Before we get to the answer, let’s make sure we’re speaking the same language. Responsive web design adapts its appearance and functionality based on a user’s device. It will match a visitor’s screen size and operating system. In other words, someone using a laptop computer would use one version of your website. Another user on a phone sees an optimized layout developed for them.

Now that we’re on the same page, let’s go back to the question at hand. Do you need a responsive, mobile-friendly website? The answer is a resounding “Yes!”. Let’s look at a few of the most important reasons why.

Your Users and Customers are on Mobile Devices

Many surveys and audits have confirmed one undeniable fact. More than half of all web traffic now originates from phones and tablets. That trend will only increase over the next few years. By 2020, two-thirds of your users will most likely be on smaller screens.

In case this isn’t clear, the majority of your customers or visitors are on mobile devices. Without a responsive website, how can you reach them with a positive experience? You will risk having them take their time, attention, and money elsewhere.

Mobile Functionality Affects Your Online Marketing

Hey, guess who’s well aware of the trend towards mobile usage? Google. Shocked? We didn’t think so. As a result, they’ve programmed their search engine to adapt accordingly. Google now prioritizes websites that have full mobile functionality.

Of course, anytime you find a reward, you’ll also find a punishment. Marketers with mobile-friendly websites are seeing a boost in their search traffic. But, those without responsive websites are losing ground in the search engine listings.

You may not have any concerns about giving customers a great user experience. (Oh, come on, now, of course you do). But, it’s worth upgrading to a responsive web design for the online marketing benefits.

It’s Better to Have One Website Than Two

You could get around the problems of having a website that isn’t phone and tablet-friendly. How? By launching a second mobile version. In fact, that used to be a popular solution in our industry.

We’ve learned a thing or two, though, and the best answer is clear. It’s easier (and cheaper) for companies to maintain a single website than two. Also, with a single site, you only have one set of backups, analytics, and security concerns to think about. There’s no need to create a brand-new website when you can add responsive coding to the one you already have.

Getting a Responsive Website Won’t Kill Your Budget

There’s a common misconception floating around about responsive design features. Some believe that adding them to your website means having to start from scratch. It’s true that many of our clients do decide to make other upgrades and improvements at the same time. But, that’s not required.

You have a lot to gain from making your new website responsive. And, you won’t have to give up nearly as much as you think from your marketing budget. So, responsive web design is cheap, easy, helpful, and necessary to stay up to date with modern users. What are you waiting for?

Want to Learn More About Responsive Web Design?

If you want to know more about responsive web design, or have your web presence reviewed by a team of expert designers and programmers, contact Atlantic BT to schedule a free consultation today.

August 10, 2018
Happiness Can be Found, Even in the Darkest of Web Projects

Institutional web projects are a beast. Revamping a website for Higher Education or Government is no easy feat. But, there are many business owners, CEOs, and executives who will say it was the best decision they ever made. Alas, there are just as many, if not more, who will report that their projects failed. It took too long, cost too much, and left them feeling disappointed or underwhelmed.

There are a lot of reasons why a new website might not succeed or the process will drag on longer than expected. But, the happiest web development clients always have a few traits in common. If you want to avoid the major pitfalls associated with putting a large website together, read on. Here are a few examples you should follow.

Begin With a Firm Set of Goals

All successful web development projects begin with a firm set of goals. These goals are measurable. There is another plan in place to assess if the website has met or exceeded expectations. Knowing the specifics of what you want your website to do, puts everyone in a good starting position. A strong development team can generate a plan that moves you in the right direction.

Without concrete goals, there is nowhere for your project to go. If there is a great deal of ambiguity about what would constitute success, then real results will be hard to see. Also crucial to your projects goals are the stakeholders. If they disagree on what the priorities should be, then no one will be able to move forward and be productive. It’s likely that the project outcome will be disappointing.

Get Participation From Many Levels of the Organization

You can’t handle complex web development in a completely top-down fashion. Senior executives might be responsible for approving the project. But, don’t forget to allow middle managers, employees, and users to have some input. They all have different perspectives that can be valuable. Creating your website based on the needs of those who access it, is the whole point. As a result, these insights may end up having the power to turn your project into a success or failure. With the participation of your users, you have a lot of great information to build on. Without them, how can you understand the ultimate purpose of your website?

Be Involved in the Development Process

Some new clients come to us with many assumptions. One of them is that we can work from start to finish with only a set of design concepts and a wish list. That would be nice. And flattering, even. But it never leads to happiness. That’s why a good web development team is going to dive into an extensive discovery phase. Every piece of information, forwards and backwards, is valuable.

Web design projects, however, are evolving things. There is a clear path for the team to follow, but new discoveries will occur along the way. Ongoing decisions will pop up and the direction may change here and there. This means that consistent communication is key to the success of your project. Timely and insightful feedback will help your team stay on track with your vision. As a result, you’re going to be more pleased with the work they produce.

Choose a Vendor Based on ROI

There will be many proposals that come your way (you lucky duck). But, as tempting as it may be, you don’t want to choose the one that looks too good to be true. Because it is too good to be true. The lowest investment? The fastest delivery time? Can we all be honest with each other, here? And do these things really matter?

Successful clients make their decisions based on different criteria. What matters to them is the returns they expect to reap from the project. It’s more important to pay attention to results. Minor differences in your short-term budget do not have the same long-term affects. Expenses and deadlines matter, of course. But, not as much as the quality of work you’ll receive in return.

Want to Make Sense of the Complex Web Development Process?

At Atlantic BT, we’re not fans of bombarding clients with technical jargon and computer gobbledygook. We help our clients find real-world answers to the questions and challenges they face. If you’re considering building or overhauling a large website, there is a way to make it easier. Schedule a free consultation with our team. We’ll be happy to address the issues that are on your mind. Even better, we’ll give you some customized recommendations to move forward with. That’s how we roll.

August 9, 2018
Why It’s Easy to Love Higher Education UX

Here you are. You’ve worked through every step. Established funds? Check. Gathered a team of dedicated superstars? Double check. Written your overarching goals? Mic drop. You’ve packed your metaphorical bags like a pro. Now, you’re eager for an excellent digital product at the end of this journey. Vital to your cause will be your ability to stay focused on the user experience (UX).

Ah, yes. You know what the future holds before you reach your end goal. Complicated strategy sessions will be plentiful. And mind numbing conversations about data feeds will be impossible to avoid. But, these less than glamorous tasks are important. Your user focus will make or break your efforts. Every decision you make should aim to better the experience for your users. Especially in the field of Higher Education. By prioritizing your users’ needs and experience, you will know your project is worth every drop of sweat you put into it.

I love user-centric projects in Higher Education. I hope that I can inspire you to stay excited about your project from start to finish. Think of this as a homemade meal you have before heading out on the long road trip that is your project.

Get Excited about Higher Education UX!

At Atlantic BT, we often start our Higher Education projects by evaluating everything. We look into the scope of research, content, design, governance, and marketing efforts. And we love it! Deep research is the best entry point for setting up a solid user centered process. Here are some of the very best reasons for you to share our excitement about your project.

Higher Education Has Dynamic Users

If you have been working in the Higher Education community for a year or more, you are going to have a solid foundation of user understanding. So, congratulations! You are your own subject matter expert. You probably also know you are working for a HIGHLY diverse set of users.

Students, faculty, and administration staff have unique motivations and objectives. In addition, technology norms are being redefined as quickly as digital progress itself. In any other space, this would be a daunting array of humans to try and understand. The education sector is unique in that it’s a highly studied topic with a litany of resources to glean insights from. When I want to better understand digital learning trends, I pop over to an open sourced journal, like informingscience.org, and do some light background reading.

[pull_quote]As a researcher, it’s interesting to have such a broad range of users to consider, including students (both current and prospective), parents, faculty, staff, alumni, and community.[/pull_quote]Randy Earl, Senior Business Strategist & Research Manager, Atlantic BT
Lesson: Make learning about your users a regular practice. Start your user research with some informative reading on your target audiences. Check out some user research studies from the education sector, as well. I’ll kick you off with a great article from the famed Nielsen Norman Group on research design principles: University Websites: Top 10 Design Guidelines.

Higher Education Has Meaningful Outcomes

The prospect of changing someone’s life when you’re building a cat toy eCommerce website? Not high. The prospect of changing someone’s life when you are helping them decide on their future college, submit assignments, or present research? Pretty good! When it comes to long term outcomes, few UX projects have the same impact as those in the educational sector. In Higher Education projects, it’s a good bet that any new design or technology we implement will make a big difference, impacting the lives of thousands of students and faculty in their education and research.

This makes every UX decision even more meaningful. When we develop a school or college website, we are empowering current and potential students to make the best decisions regarding their academic future.

[pull_quote]The cause of Higher Education is close to my heart, so I’m always excited to help college and universities adapt to their nuanced and rapidly changing needs.[/pull_quote]Gordon Chadwick, Information Architect, Atlantic BT
Lesson: Build strong, motivational objectives for your project. Being specific about the greater good your project offers will help steer conversations away from low-priority rabbit holes. When setting up success metrics, don’t get trapped focusing on standard conversion statistics. Seek to validate the project mission at every turn.

Higher Education Gathers Many Voices into One Solution

Let’s be honest—Higher Education projects can be complicated, especially if you are redesigning your web presence as a whole. We often work with stakeholders across departments who each have unique perspectives and needs. We understand that listening to every voice and working to balance concerns involves not only strategy but emotional labor. Forming a consensus can be a huge problem. That’s why it’s a great place to put the bulk of your planning and energy. In fact, this challenge can be a primary driver to your project’s success.

When our team took on the redesign of Campbell University’s website, there were 10 academic divisions (including a brand new engineering school) that needed to be brought under one domain. Each division had unique needs for what their portion of the website needed to convey, as well as their own ideas of how to convey it. By incorporating stakeholder feedback into the early planning stage, we were able to create a singular online presence with a consistent focus on content and quality.

[pull_quote]Higher Education projects so often involve the process of unifying experiences across many associated agencies. The result is simplified interactions that encompass the learning institution’s brand.[/pull_quote]Corey Brinkmann, Creative Director, Atlantic BT
Lesson: In addition to their beliefs and opinions, collaborators have rich insights that might save the project from heading in the wrong direction. Digital projects are interdisciplinary ventures by nature. Ensure that insights are gleaned from a variety of experts before you get started.

Higher Education Staff Have a Lot of Passion

When it comes to Higher Education professionals, we often find their passion for the user experience matches ours. We have never been turned down for assistance in obtaining relevant data, recruiting for testing, or making time for design brainstorming sessions. Those who work in Higher Education are clearly dedicated to engaging with their academic community and are always eager to utilize the resources at hand. They strive for excellence in everything they work on, including their projects with us. This inspires us to rise to a high bar of expectation.

[pull_quote]One of the best things about our Higher Education clients is they love to learn about their users. When we present our finding from analytics, surveys, or reviewing social media trends, our higher ed partners waste no time digging into our analysis and applying it to their work.[/pull_quote]Ernesto Frausto, Data and Content Strategist, Atlantic BT
Lesson: Keep your fire stoked as you work toward your goals. Enthusiasm and integrity will not only keep you on the right track, it will diffuse throughout your larger team. Positive outlooks are contagious.

Let’s Hit the Open Road!

The success of your higher education project will rely on how well you define your objectives, understand your users, and execute your solutions. Perform user research, stay focused on your end goals, and gain consensus early. This will help you travel smoothly from project kick-off to product launch.

Above all, stay excited! You are doing amazing and important work. If you’d like more inspiration, please learn more about our passion about Higher Education!

August 6, 2018
Make Your New Digital Dream Big With a Surprisingly Small Plan

In the world of complex web development, many new digital projects are born of big dreams. When it seems like the sky is the limit, it’s hard to remember the ground. As organizations begin to develop their objectives, grand ideas are front and center. Anything is possible to build on the Internet, right? Clients will come to us brimming with creativity, hope, and drive. They have concepts for new apps, fresh content, and sites with hundreds, or even thousands, of pages.

This enthusiasm is healthy and can lead to wonderful things. But, at the beginning of a project, we often invite executives to take a deep breath. Then we ask them to consider taking a lean approach to their conceived digital solution. That means taking their big ideas and slimming them down to size, at least for an initial website release.

There are tools available now that allow us to do more than we ever could before online. If bigger web design projects mean more business for our company, why do we encourage our clients to think smaller? We’ve known this is the secret to success for a while. There are significant advantages to building a big project by thinking small.

Working Lean Frees Up Resources

We’ll start with the most obvious and straightforward advantage. When you work on a leaner version of your website, you’re using fewer resources. Smaller budgets and less time needed to complete tasks all help you save in the long run. And it’s all you need to get things moving.

If you work in a stretched thin organization or department, this is a significant benefit. You’re already making the most of every hour and dollar. Starting a big web project that, at first glance, looks like a total drain? Terrifying. Starting a big web project that keeps all resources in check? Relief. This approach allows you to spread out the cost of your project over several time periods. This is very beneficial from a financial planning point of view.

Smaller Projects are Easier to Manage

Let’s be honest. Stress is a factor in every project we take on, no matter how simple or complicated. When you choose to conquer your big digital project in a smaller way, it becomes less overwhelming. A larger, more encompassing plan might involve hundreds of different choices and elements. When you bring your vision down to size, it becomes easier to oversee the entire process. Soon, the designing and programming become more accessible to everyone. That’s a stress reducer.

There are real risks in biting off more than you can chew when you tackle your complex web development. Digital projects can becomes delayed and hold up the entire team and company. They can go past their allotted budgets, causing financial strain and diminish investment. The whole thing can grind to a halt if stakeholders can’t get on the same page or even know what page they’re on. These are less likely to happen when you’re focusing on something that is more manageable.

It’s Easier to Keep a Successful Project Moving

When you set out to build a leaner, smaller first version of your website, it’s easier to make progress. Additionally, it becomes easier to see that project to completion. The results of your team’s work is more obvious to see and shorter milestones are easier to reach. This keeps everyone moving forward and with high morale. That, in turn, gives you the confidence and credibility you need to take the next step.

This is a snowball effect that you can use to your advantage. Especially when you need to get funding and approvals for a second round of web development. A plan with noticeable and documented success always stands out. It’s easier, then, to get others on board. They can feel assured that you are moving in the right direction and prepared to continue upward.

Looking for the Best Way to Build a Big Website?

At Atlantic BT, we are experts in complex and institutional web design. If you’re ready to turn your vision for a larger improved web presence into a reality, talk to our designers and programmers to see how we can help.

August 2, 2018
4 Need to Know Rules for Supporting and Loving Your Mobile Apps

Communication technology continues to change and grow at a faster and faster rate. It has been 11 years since the original iPhone made its entrance, ushering in the age of the smartphone. Today, between smartphones, tablets, and smart watches, these tiny computers are everywhere.When it comes to maintaining mobile apps as they age, there are 4 critical rules you need to follow.

Are Your Mobile Apps Up-To-Date?

TIP:
Developers get early access to new features, and can give you a heads up on what changes are on the way.

When your mobile app was first built, it was on a platform that most likely doesn’t work like the ones used today. The capabilities and features of the mobile platform were very different than now. The most dominant players in the mobile market are Google and Apple. They release software updates like clockwork. Apple releases major updates each year. Google releases updates roughly every six months. In other words, if you haven’t updated your mobile app in the past year, it’s likely that users can see its age.

We, as consumers, look forward to the features these new platforms will offer. When those changes take place, it’s a good time to review what your mobile app needs to stay up to date.

Four Rules for Maintaining Your Mobile Apps as They Age

1. Make Sure it Doesn’t Break

The world of mobile apps is very different from the real world we live and work in. In the real world, the laws of the universe have been around since the beginning of time. We expect them to continue unchanged. In the world of mobile apps, laws are changing at the whim of the company that develops the platform. Imagine if there were a law of physics that determined that all doors must open a certain way. One day, you learn that if you don’t change your doors to open a different way, they might stop working. Sure enough, a week later all unchanged doors are stuck, closed, and unusable.

TIP:
Update your apps frequently to ensure they continue to work on new devices.

As crazy as it sounds, this is the way the mobile apps industry works. Google and Apple will decide to change a feature in an upcoming software release. Then they will tell developers to stop doing something they’ve been doing. It’s on them, now, to make an immediate switch. Finally, if the switch doesn’t happen, Google and Apple will let the feature break. This has happened time and time again.

By updating your apps frequently, the developers can make sure to heed the warnings of the companies that control their universe. Keeping the apps within the guidelines of each platform ensures that you can always make small updates when you need to. Then, the application will continue to function when new devices are released.

2. Look Like You Care

When companies make updates to their mobile platform, they often change more than just the functionality. Even if your app survives the change in features, it will still look like the era that it was designed for.

No matter the functionality, an app that does not update the visual and navigational structure to match the current generation of the mobile OS will feel like it’s outdated. Often, these are relatively simple changes, updating icons and design elements, and can be done incrementally as each new version is released. Be cautious about letting the design get too old, however, or you may find that it will take more work than you expect to update it to modern standards.

3. Show Your Users You Care

“…a mobile app more than anything else is there for the users.”

Even if your mobile app continues to function as expected, and even if you believe your design still works, users expect updates. That’s part of what keeps them using your app. By keeping your app updated with new features, however small, and embracing the design language of your target platform, you will let your users know that you care.

When it comes right down to it, a mobile app, more than anything else, is there for the users. Without them, you don’t have an install base. When you push out an update you let them know that you haven’t forgotten them. They know that they can continue to rely on your app as they get new devices with new operating systems. Any data stored in the app that they access on a regular basis will continue to be available to them. Having the confidence of your users means less uninstalls, more market penetration, and a better reputation.

4. Create a Culture of Continuous Improvement

TIP:
Maintaining your apps well is more cost effective in the long run and improves your ROI.

Compared to the cost of releasing a new app, or of letting your existing app stagnate to the point where a new one needs to be built to accommodate a backlog of features, simple maintenance is cheaper and has a higher ROI. Determining how to implement a continuous update schedule, though, can be daunting.

The mobile ecosystem is one of the fastest changing in the technology field. It is a field of fierce competition, and it’s always evolving. Once you acknowledge that it is time to update your app, it can still be difficult knowing where to begin. In this case, though, you don’t need to begin, only to continue.

“…most developers don’t just create mobile apps for their platform of choice, they are also some of the most dedicated users.”

Let your developers know up-front that you want to keep your app fresh and update it frequently. It will change their mentality when they develop it to make sure they won’t mind working on it in the future. Trust them to lead you in the right direction. Remember that most developers don’t just create mobile apps for their platform of choice, they are also some of the most dedicated users.

When new versions of mobile operating systems that you support are released, ask your developers for a list of highlights that affect your mobile app. Very often, the requirements for the update write themselves.

Want to Know More?

At Atlantic BT, we monitor the changes that are coming up from the earliest rumors, to the day of release. Our dedicated team of mobile developers and user experience specialists are always ready to help you make your mobile app grow better with age. Contact us to find out how we can help you with your mobile app needs.

August 1, 2018
How Nature Can Inspire the Best Digital Design

Nature has a lot to teach us about well-adapted and responsive web designs. The solutions produced by the natural world have survived every test they’ve faced. Millennia of evolutionary trial and error has bested the most powerful of forces. That would be nature itself. We can glean inspiration and education from the designs nature has developed. Biomimicry is the use of these natural designs in our own digital design work. It can make our designs more effective and beautiful. It also provides services that users intuitively connect to.

Bio-What? Definitions and Origins of Biomimicry

Biomimicry is a big word for a basic concept. It’s the application of nature’s forms, processes, and ecosystems to our design work. As a result, we can design elegant, natural solutions to problems we face every day.

The idea of using nature as inspiration for design is not new. Leonardo da Vinci applied it to his Fibonacci Series and Golden Ratio. It revolutionized how innovators create aesthetically appealing designs through the mathematics of nature. Consider the art and design we’ve seen throughout the years. The spiraling shapes of nautilus shells, budding flowers, and more, have inspired design. It’s an integral part to our history.

This anatomy sketch by Leonardo Da Vinci shows a clear inspiration from nature. (Credit: JanakaMaharageDharmasena)

Biomimicry in Modern Times

In recent years, biomimicry has become more and more crucial to the design world. It’s continued to play a large role in the development of the next wave of sustainable solutions. This is being seen in nearly every field of design. In Japan, the Shinkansen Bullet Train took inspiration from a unique source. The train’s design mimicked the narrow profile of a kingfisher’s beak. This resulted in a quieter and more energy efficient train.

The engineering firm Arup built an entire shopping center in Zimbabwe based on a…deep idea. The center emulates the natural convection ventilation system of termite mounds. The building has no conventional air-conditioning or heating. Yet, it stays regulated year-round. On top of that, it produces 90% less energy consumption than a conventional building its size.

Speedo made a now famous design choice for their line of swimsuits for the 2008 Olympics. They incorporated biomimetic sharkskin into the suits. 98% of the medals won in swimming that year were by athletes wearing the sharkskin. Due to its insane efficiency, the Olympics banned it from the competition.

So, what can we web designers draw from nature as inspiration for digital design? Here are my observations and ideas:

The Innovation Engine of Organic Design

Natural selection is an innovation engine, pushing the development of species. Advantageous traits give one organism an edge over the others. Natural selection is the reason nature is the master of innovation. It’s trial and error on a massive scale. The internet has its own evolutionary system. Trends rise and die out, leaving only the strongest. It’s a tough world out there, to say the least. Take Reddit for example. It’s not winning any beauty awards. But, Reddit thrives because it’s an incredible source of knowledge. It covers almost every field imaginable. Like the Blob Fish (yes, it’s really called that) Reddit is ugly because it doesn’t need a pretty digital design to survive.

Apple has long understood how effective the right shape can be in design.

On the other hand, animals have also developed a sense of beauty. Consider the beautiful plumes of birds or the large antlers of stags. Even some insects have striking colors. These are all examples of traits that have evolved to attract attention. Apple employs this technique very well, with exceptional image-driven design. They curate beautiful photography with care and choose purposeful color palettes. This all comes together to draw attention to sparse yet crucial content.

Sensing, Responding, and the Power of Shape

Many creatures have innate abilities to sense and respond to their environment. Locusts have the ability to see many more images per second than humans. To us, it would be like watching everything happen in slow motion. In the digital design space, this is like algorithms that sense user behavior. Or interfaces that adjust to meet their needs. Like a crab leaving trails in the sand, users leave behind tracks. We can use this pathway to determine their behavior on a given interface. Then, we can design to meet their specific needs.

Organic code-generated art in web design created this biomimicry example.
(Design: musHo, Art: Daniel White)

The shapes of objects in your digital design can send messages to the user that they may not even be aware of. Organic shapes, representative or inspired by things found in nature, are more free flowing and less symmetrical. These types of shapes add innate harmony and visual interest to a digital design. A spiral, for example, is often found in nature. Think of snail shells and hurricanes. This shape continues to represent growth, life, and transformation.

Fertile Ground for New Digital Design Ideas

Like nature, digital design must take into account both functionality and beauty. Atlantic BT has given me the opportunity to find the balance between aesthetically pleasing and functional design to produce the best possible result. In my work, slowing down like a locust flying through a swarm of data, and observing patterns of behavior is key to designing for the needs of the user. Adding elements of nature to design interfaces, even in abstracted forms can inform the way a user feels and even interacts with a system.

How Nature Inspires Me

If the sky was the limit (pun intended)… I would design like a tree. When the conditions are right, life flourishes; as does design. Like a tree putting down solid roots in the soil, I put a heavy emphasis on the beginning of every project. The firm foundation of brainstorming and early concepts allows my digital design process to move and grow. Trees may seem immovable and rigid at first glance, but on the contrary, they are quite dynamic. When you look closer you will see that trees are constantly adjusting to their environment. They adjust how much water and nutrients to absorb, where to spend their energy and even pivot towards the sun to get the right amount of light. That is how I approach my projects; flexible yet sturdy, efficient yet thorough, functional yet beautiful.

The ecosystem of a tree gives me all kinds of ideas that I’d love to incorporate in my design work.

Humans have the distinct advantage of being able to learn from nature’s masterful application of design. Nature has essentially done all the hard work for us. It has had all the time in the world (literally) to make the most effective and beautiful design solutions. So take a look around, no really, look around you! Great ideas await you outside of your computer screen.

July 31, 2018