There are 51,442,100 Internet users, 82.5% of the UK population (ITU June 2010).

There are 19.2 million households with an Internet connection in 2010, representing 73% of households. The region with the highest level of access is London, with 83%; the lowest was the North East, with 59%. (Office for National Statistics).

The number of adults who bought or ordered goods or services online within the last 12 months reached 31 million in 2010. These Internet shoppers represented 62% of all adults. The most popular products bought online were clothes and sporting goods, with 52% of Internet shoppers buying these products. (Office for National Statistics).

In 2010, 30.1 million adults in the UK (60%) accessed the Internet every day or almost every day. This is nearly double the estimate in 2006 of 16.5 million. (Office for National Statistics).

Around 80% of UK consumers turn to the Internet first when looking for a product or service.

About 42% of those searchers never look past the top 3 search results. 85% never look past the first page of search results.

Over 83% of a company’s potential customers will visit its website at least one time before making a decision to do business with the company.

UK online advertising spend increased 10% to nearly £2 billion in first half of 2010 (IAB).

Search engines accounts for 56% of all online advertising; classifieds 13%; content 12%; mixed (search and networks) 7%; Social and affiliate networks 12% (IAB)

If you need an Internet marketing campaign that is effective and produces more income for your business, give us a call on 01202 773213 or fill in the form  online and we will get back to you shortly.

In this article we are going to look at three specific areas of graphic design: logo design, website design and online shop (or e-commerce) design.

Consider for a moment what elements go into graphic design and how these can make or break the success of the product or company it is meant to promote.  Graphic designers have to consider the ‘elements’ of design – the lines, direction, shape, size, texture, value and colour of the design. The correct text size, the colour of the text, what background to display the images on and how everything flows together.

Next comes the composition, how those elements are drawn together in a cohesive fashion, to make sense of the core elements. The colour of the logo design could become linked to the brand it represents. The website design may incorporate elements of the logo, such as a particular pantone colour that extends to the background of the website, the text colour itself or the font.  There has to be a marrying of the elements and the composition to avoid a website becoming, well frankly, nonsensical and downright offensive to the eye!

Let’s look at logo design first.

What makes a good logo design? Think of the logos that have been designed and appear in advertising. They are subliminal messages planted in your brain that make that logo synonymous with the product. What’s the hidden element? The graphic designer behind the logo. The logo design that sticks in your memory is the winning element of any campaign. The music may fade, the actors go onto different roles, but the logo remains etched in your brain and the moment you see that logo the brand springs to mind. That’s some powerful graphic design work. It has to be simple yet stylish, eye catching; an at-a-glance summary of what the brand represents.

Now we move onto the website.

This is almost viral advertising. Get a great website designed, publish it to the web, promote it far and wide and the website itself can become part of your brand. Move over logo only recognition, your website now becomes your best promoter. If the website design is not carefully thought through - with easy to follow hyperlinks, clear information and compelling text – you have lost a large percentage of your revenue stream. This takes skill and experience.

Last but not least, the online shop or e-commerce site.

What elements do you need to design an online shop? You have to put yourself in the virtual world and imagine you are physically entering a shop. Would you be able to find what you wanted easily? Can you find the price quickly? How easy is it to buy the products and is there a secure method of paying? The graphic designer becomes the virtual shopper, testing out these elements prior to ‘opening up shop’ on the internet.

Whether you are looking for logo design, website design or online shop (e-commerce) design, whatever your graphic design needs you can always trust Alpha Studios, your local graphic design studio based in Bournemouth and Poole area.

Business website templates are an easy and cost effective way to create an online business. There is a wide range of free website templates available online, and they cover every conceivable website design, including E-commerce. Website templates provide a highly professional look to a start-up site, without being particularly expensive.