1. Restaurant web design : Part I
Promote your business with the right logo!
A logo is a design or image that represents a company, brand or product. Its aim is to help people
identify the company with a positive customer experience. It is the basis of all future branding,
advertising and communication strategies. Therefore considerable attention should be paid by the
brand owners to develop and create an image that besides being unique will stand the test of time –
Remember a logo will outlive people, products and services and exist as long as a company continues to
operate.
Background:
The word ‘logo’ is derived from the Greek word ‘logotipos’ meaning a graphic symbol, element or icon of
a trademark or brand which is set in a unique typeface or arranged in a particular way.
The three different aspects of a logo are:
Logotype/ word mark /letter mark
Icon: symbol/trademark
Slogan: Tag line
Logos gained enormous popularity in the 19th Century after the Industrial Revolution which led to
increase in output, distribution and beginning of competitive markets. Every Company wanted to prove
it was the best. Every organization wanted to outshine its competitors which surprise, surprise has not
changed. There was a huge upsurge in the market and as a result logos were created in order to enable
people to differentiate between products, packages and labels so buyers could easily recognize the
product they wanted.
The emergence of logos brought about a revolution in the advertising world. More and more companies
began demanding a unique symbol that could be a part of their business for years to come. However,
only affluent companies could afford their own logo, crest or emblem.

2. Concept:
Concept is the most crucial aspect of logo design. The logo needs to undergo rigorous tests in order to
create a unique place in the market its brand owners operate in.
While deciding on what kind of logo you want, ask yourself about the kind of image you want to portray
about your company – For example cartoons could represent a fun filled company philosophy. Never
forget that once decided upon, your logo will be a silent medium that will communicate the company’s
ideals and philosophy.
The logo should be impressive and at the same time should not be over dramatic. The design elements
need to be as few as possible so that the logo does not appear to be packed with different image
components. It should be able to attract the customers the company wants to attract. For example,
research shows that using bright colors does not create the brand confidence in finance related
companies. Finance companies are advised to stick by the traditional grey, blues and reds (remember
the bankers’ grey and blue pinstripe suits!!) by the marketing gurus! Though for every rule the pundits
ask you to stick by, there are highly successful designs that just do the opposite - ING’s logo with its
orange color image does exactly the opposite of what research and popular wisdom suggests but still
creates a highly unique and recognizable symbol.
It is felt that certain elements make up a credible and a high quality logo. These are:
A logo should be different from your competitors. In my view there is no point being another face in the
crowd. So stand out and if you dare, be different. Sometimes breaking rules and conventions may work
in your favour. Evaluate maverick design ideas and themes.
It should reflect the companies business, products/services.
It should be easy to compress and still uniquely retain its design elements.
When finalizing your logo design think about your target market and ask these questions:
1) By looking at your logo image, will they be able to guess what the company products/services are.
2) Will they see the image as a representation of professional, reliable company – A company that
delivers on its promise?

3. Remember the logo is not to please you but your customers. Why? Because they are the ones who pay
your salaries. They are the ones who will help you buy that lovely apartment with water views!
The most simple yet difficult thing to do is to ignore and forget about what your personal likes and
dislikes are with respect to colors, images and font styles and try to see from your target customer
segments’ point of view. Easier said than done, but if you can, you will have a logo that will be
recognizable.
Significance:
A well designed logo can raise the image of a company it represents. It establishes the credibility of the
company. Potential customers form an opinion of a business within seconds and the logo plays a
significant part in determining this.
Each aspect of the logo’s design should be carefully analyzed in order to ensure that the right message is
being communicated.
Logos leave remarkable impressions that have a lasting and a deep impact on the hearts and minds of
the viewers.
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Hiring a web designer to come up with the custom solution that you need can set you back a few
thousand bucks. But you can do the whole thing yourself and make it drag and drop simple for mere
pennies with a tool like Breezy Websites. See http://breezywebsites.com for details!
Restaurant web design : End of Part I
Professional XOOPS theme design - What to look for

4. In general, prices for theme design work will range depending on a number of factors. If you don't mind
the designer releasing the theme on their site for others to purchase, then you can expect anywhere
from $20US to $50US for your theme. If the theme must be a one of a kind theme that only you use, you
could expect to multipy the fee by <em>at least</em> 10x.
Also, there is the option of finding a PSD based webiste design that you can get permission to "port" to
XOOPS. Essentially, just look for a free website template that has the design you want and write the
author asking if you are allowed to modify the template for use on your site. You may even want to
inquire as to whether or not you can re-release it to the community. Make sure you get
<strong>written</strong> permission to do this as the original designer has full copy rights to all images
in the design, even if it is a "free" template.
If you don't feel confident "porting" a static website template to XOOPS, there are some who specialize
in this an would do it for a nominal fee, usually $50-$75US depending on the complexity of the
template. Some have to be completely rewritten at the code level. Of course, those cost more because
of the labor hours.
It should be stated that the prices listed above are a general starting point. Depending on the
experience of the designer, the quality of their work and inflation, these prices may vary quite a bit. But
having a good baseline to start from never hurts when stepping up to the barganing table. ;-)
An important thing to note is that you want to verify the work of the designer. Ambitious new designers
may promise to deliver, but may find they are over their heads once the project begins. Ask for a list of
<strong>active</strong> sites the designer has worked on. Nothing speaks louder about the quality of a
designer's work than a real <strong>live</strong> site.
I hope this clears things up for anyone looking for professional XOOPS theme design services.
Hiring a web designer to come up with the custom solution that you need can set you back a few
thousand bucks. But you can do the whole thing yourself and make it drag and drop simple for mere
pennies with a tool like Breezy Websites. See http://breezywebsites.com for details!
Restaurant web design : End of Part II

5. Professional Web Development
Web development incorporates all areas of creating a Web site for the World Wide Web. This includes
Web design (graphic design, XHTML, CSS, usability and semantics), programming, server administration,
content management, marketing, testing and deployment. The term can also specifically be used to
refer to the "back end", that is, programming and server administration. There is usually more than one
member that works on a given Web Development team, each specializing in his or her own field.
These days, almost everybody relies on the internet. May it be chatting, shopping, or even just for fun;
people are very fond of browsing the net. But these people don’t have the slightest idea on how hard it
is to create, develop, and maintain a website. All they know is that if they find the site easy to navigate,
or if it is easy to find, then they will visit it. But if your site is boring, then it will remain unvisited and
your site rank will stay to zero.
For web masters, it is very fulfilling if they see their site having many visitors and their page rank is
increasing. They have to think of different styles to promote their website and of course they have to
update it at least once a month so that people who visit their site will not get tired of dropping by.
Managing a website professionally seems like a forever job. And if you’re not really into it, you might
give up easily. Most webmasters will tell you that it is not really easy to maintain and develop websites
especially if your products or the content of your website is common. What the web master usually does
is that even if your website layout and content is generic, they make it appear like its unique and one of
a kind.
If you’re a professional entrepreneur, your focus is to how you will sell the products and increase your
earnings. One way of advertising your products and/or your company is through managing a website.
But being busy will hinder you to maintain it. With this, chances are your product and your company will
not be known to many people. Don’t let this happen to you. If you are really concern with the products
you have and you want to sell it to people, use the internet! You don’t need to go through all the
troubles that maintaining a website has. There are lots of companies who offer services such as web
design, web development, and the like. However you still need to set some criteria in choosing the best
web development company for you, your products, and your company.

6. Hiring a web designer to come up with the custom solution that you need can set you back a few
thousand bucks. But you can do the whole thing yourself and make it drag and drop simple for mere
pennies with a tool like Breezy Websites. See http://breezywebsites.com for details!
Restaurant web design : End of Part III