Effective use of imagery reinforces your message.

Effective use of imagery reinforces your message.

Your website is an extension of your brand, and its look, feel and content must match the image you want to portray to your customers. Today, your website is one of your most important marketing tools, and it deserves the support of market research in order to ensure its success.

A simple, but crucial, exercise for business owners is to start by answering these three questions about the website:

1.Who are the intended audiences of the website?

This may include industry professionals, current customers, as well as prospective customers.  Prospects may not have the luxury of personally visiting your business location, so your website is an important opportunity to make a great first impression.  Make sure that you know as much about your target markets as possible to allow for your website’s design to match the needs and preferences of these groups.

W. Hirsch Oriental Rugs site targets inquisitive customers both local and afar...

2. What do these audiences need to know about your business?

The images and written content on your website must align the goals of your business with the needs of your target markets.  Your website visitors may need to know the hours of operation for your business, but may not care about the history of the building in which you operate.  Once you have a clear understanding of who your targets are, you can more accurately determine the most important information to share with them via your website.  And remember, less is more when it comes to your website – recent studies show that Internet users spend as little as 50 milliseconds scanning a website before deciding whether it is of value to them or not.

3. How to design the website to give the “who” “what” they want?

Let’s be honest, 50 milliseconds is really not a lot of time.  That means that your website has to visually grab people as soon as it pops up; the colors, images and even the logo have to instantly be able to communicate information about your business to your target audiences.  While the first two questions may seem pretty basic and can be easily answered by the business owner, the “how” of website design is best handled by a professional.  Just like you spend all day focusing on your business, professional website designers spend all day online, and they understand the mechanics and trends of a successful website better than anyone.

50 miliseconds is not much time...

As you begin to think about a new or updated website for your business, remember the importance of basic market research techniques in helping you, and a professional website designer, create the best online presence for your business.

Welcome to Multifeedia!  Brainchild Collective’s little corner of the blogosphere. Brainchild Collective is a freelance creative collaborative in Richmond, Virginia. You can find out more about us Here on our website.  Our creative skills run the gamut from graphic design, to photography, writing and marketing.

Hi There!

The Multifeedia blog provides helpful and engaging information for businesses that are curious about what to expect when hiring a freelance creative or a full-scale design or marketing firm. The articles you’ll find on Multifeedia will range from case studies of other businesses’ experiences with creative services, helpful tips on start-up marketing efforts, to behind-the-scenes explanations of design processes.

While we will occasionally feature articles that speak directly to the creative industry, Multifeedia is first and foremost a resource for the business owner wanting to learn more about design, branding and marketing.  Our Collective is working to share our knowledge and expertise to help shed some light on these subjects.

As a way to celebrate our launch, anyone who subscribes to our feed or comments on any of our blog posts (in a respectful manner, of course) will be entered into drawings to win some great giveaways!

Our first drawing will be for a gorgeous Colcasac laptop sleeve. The winner of the drawing will get to take his/her pick of any one design from their sleeve collection. Check them out here: Colcosac Website. The drawing will be held on October 30^th, 2009 – so read up on some of our posted articles and say hi, there’s plenty more to chew on!

A delicious Colcasac...

Whatever the lighting situation, "natural" is the way to go.

Something that’s interesting to consider is that the best food photography is often shot in natural light, light from the sun.  Lighting is key and if your session doesn’t allow for natural light for one reason or another, make sure your photographer is equipped with enough artificial light.

Another important factor to consider is that while the chef is the mastermind behind creating the food, the photographer is the person you’ve hired to make the photographs look good.  Good, open communication between the two of them is critical.

Photographic "Miz en Place"... EveryONE in their place.

Wide angle shots of the interior of your dining establishment help show the mood of your eatery.  It’s nice for customers to get a feel for your atmosphere from a photograph without having to be there.  Narrower shots of your food are also useful.  There’s something to being able to show your clientele how good your food looks up close.  Making them hungry by looking at a photo is important.

Please pass the jelly...

It’s good for the chef to know which menu items need to be shot.  If the aim is to have entrées, the chef should have an array (perhaps no fewer than four) that can be completed quickly so that the photographs can be of freshly prepared foods.  Moreover, the chef should have all the ingredients ready for him at the start of the shoot.

Getting good pictures of food for websites or menus is easy, as long as you’re prepared.

So you’re gonna need to have your picture taken sometime, aren’t you?  There are just gonna be times that you can’t avoid the camera.  Don’t worry! We’ve got a few basic tips to remember that will make life a lot easier.

1) If your shoot is going to be outside…

Consider shooting on an overcast day or not long after sunrise or just before dusk.  The light from the sun tends to be less harsh and shadows aren’t as much of a concern.  If midday is your only choice, look for areas of shade.  If your photographer is going to be shooting you inside, the chances are good that any time of day will be fine.  With artificial lights, there’s no worry that you’ll be cold or rained on!

© Brainchild Collective

2) As far as what to wear

Keep in mind the final use of the image.  If it’s going to hang in your house, you may be interested in dressing casually.  If your image is a headshot for a company website, more businesslike attire might be in order.  In general, colors that are complementary to your skin tone are wise choices, as well as clothing in which you feel comfortable.  It’s easier to be yourself when you look like yourself!

© Brainchild Collective

3) It’s also important to keep in mind what kind of shots you’re interested in.

Do you want images of a more photo-journalistic nature or of a more static, staged images.  Certainly, there are advantages to both types, but again, keep in mind what the final use of the images is.  Keeping that in mind, have a look at the work the photographer you’re hiring has done.  If he or she hasn’t got a lot of images that look similar to the ones you want of yourself, perhaps consider talking to him or her about his or her familiarity with images in your vein.  Moreover, it’s important to find a photographer with whom you feel comfortable.  If there’s strain between you and the creative team you choose, it can often come across in the photographs.