There are so many things you can do to get inspiration for your website. Get your ideas flowing with this list!
Online Resources
Your Competitor’s websites.
This is probably a no-brainer, but it’s nice to find out what your competitors are doing online. Are you keeping up? Are you ahead of their game? What features do they use that you can see incorporating into your website? For example, do they have product reviews, a news blog, a rotating slideshow? Contact us to get help implementing the features you see. If you’ve already invested a lot of money into your website or marketing materials, updating your site piece by piece may be a better solution for you than a complete redesign. For example, your bathroom is old, so do you sell your house? No, you renovate your bathroom and put your own twist on it. The same thing can go for your website.
Big names in your business.
If you are a small boutique selling children’s clothing, maybe check out what Babies R Us is doing on their site. What would work for you on a smaller scale? Use these larger companies as models for your business plan. There’s a reason they are successful. Find out why.
Websites you enjoy/follow.
Are you a fan of Martha Stewart’s blog, or ESPN.com? What features about those sites make you come back for more? Getting your customers or visitors to keep coming back to your site is KEY. What are you doing to make them come back?
Website galleries.
Sites like CSS Mayo have complete galleries of inspirational websites. You can filter results by category, or even search for a keyword. If you are looking for logo design ideas, check out Logo Pond. Communities such as deviantART will give you many ideas. Artists upload their own creations in this exciting community.
Go Offline
Not so interested in being online? There are plenty of ways to get ideas without ever logging onto your computer. Every day, in every way possible, I’m finding inspiration. Whether it be the color of someone’s roofing, a cool billboard along the highway, some graffiti under a bridge, the spread of food at a local buffet, there are millions of ways to find ideas related to color & color combinations, pattern, texture, layout, and scale.
Visit an art gallery.
Take a stroll around your local gallery. If you are in Scranton, like I am, a great way to discover art is on the first Friday of every month. “First Friday Art Walks” are held at galleries and businesses all through the downtown. Paintings, photography, scultpure, music, and performance art fill the streets. It’s a great way to become inspired.
Check out an antique or second-hand store.
Lots of the items in these types of stores are unique and interesting. Also, many of these store owners have to get “creative” when organizing the items and fitting everything. Take some tips from them. Look at groupings of items. What colors and patterns work together?
Go to a Record Store.
A record store is a great place to get inspired. Check out the album artwork on different genres of music. What are their similarities and differences? Is there a particular genre of music that you are drawn to, just by looking at the artwork? A trip to the local Gallery of Sound can help you get a better grasp on your design styles and tendencies.
People Watch.
This is one of my favorites. Find a nice park bench downtown on a sunny Saturday, or sit in the mall in the evening. Watch what people are doing. What are they wearing? How are they acting? What is drawing THEIR attention? These people can be potential customers. Sometimes at our local mall I sit next to the Old Navy entrance. Old Navy always has interesting marketing, so I watch how people react to their newest setup. Are they paying attention? Is it working? When they leave the store, do they have those items in their bags? It’s definitely an interesting afternoon (for me, at least!).
Wrapping Up
From online galleries to visiting a record store, there are so many online and offline ways to get some creative inspiration. These tips should help you get the creative juices flowing. Once they start, get in touch and I’ll help make your new vision a reality. What’s your favorite way to get creative inspiration? I’d love to hear from you in the comments!
