The Making of Stickies!

nospam@example.com (Josh Cramer) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 11:49:00 CDT

Introducing Stickies!, a visual team interaction tool for web projects in progress.

On September 11th we had one of our quarterly rumbles in Chicago. During these times, our distributed team comes together for a one day jam session. We try to pick something fun and out of the norm to build together as a team. The goal of this time is to take a break from the norm and engage in a low-stress, fun team project that we complete in one day and an outcome that will hopefully be useful to someone when we're finished. Normally we work together at the beautiful COOP in chicago, but due to a misfire on scheduling, we took over a corner of the Starbucks down the street.

During our last rumble, we revamped the cramerdev.com website. We've since received lots of great feedback on our site and it has been listed in numerous web design galleries.

This time, we built Stickies!, a web app designed to simplify client and team interaction on website projects in progress. Simply put, Stickies! is Sticky Notes for Your Website. This is an idea that we've had on the back burner for a while. We actually used a primitive version of Stickies! on a project some time ago. Today, we re-created the product and launched it as a free web service that anyone can use on any website. We built Stickies! using Persevere (a JSON database and JavaScript application server), Dojo Toolkit, HTML5, and 960.gs. By using all these tools, our 5 person team was able to essentially design and build the entire application and public website in a short work day.

Using Persevere's object storage engine, we were able to quickly create a working API without having to spend time working on data architecture. This translated beautifully to the client side when it came time to make the AJAX interactions that create and save the notes.

We wanted Stickies! to be very easy for website designers to use, so we released it as a web service. This means that we store all of the sticky note data for you on our servers and you don't have to worry about installing an application or database or anything like that. One of the technical challenges involved in building Stickies! was getting around the Same Origin Policy, which prevents JavaScript on one website from accessing methods and properties on different websites. This is a useful security measure, but didn't make our task any easier. With Stickies! we are not breaking this policy, but working around it with some handy features of the DoJo Toolkit. The important thing for you is that it works and it is safe.

You can try out Stickies! for yourself by visiting the new Stickies! website at http://websticki.es.

Great Commission Churches Project

nospam@example.com (Jade Sokoll) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 09:48:00 CDT

As a movement of churches with members stretching all across the nation, Great Commission Churches was in need of a website that would help to centralize and unify their movement. While they had a website in place at the start of the project, they desired to update both the design and the organization in order to produce a tool that would be useful to all members. Our goal was to provide a content architecture that would aid visitors in finding the information they may be looking for while also giving them an opportunity to express themselves through a sharp, unique design.

Initially, the organization of the content was the greatest need. With a large amount of content that is unique to numerous audiences, it was necessary to break down the information and prioritize the target audiences. As a result, the homepage itself targets 2 audiences, new visitors and current members. Using the section of the website that is above the fold, GCC gives a basic description of who they are and provides several opportunities for visitors to find a church near them. The slideshow allows them to target both new users and existing members by including slides that point to resources for both audiences. In order to target existing members, recent news articles and upcoming events are made immediately available.

The design of the website was another important aspect of the project. GCC wanted to keep things simple, but allow the design to project a youthful, modern look. With these things in mind, we took their current logo as well as a few colors from their existing website and produced an design that would easily adapt to the large amount of changing content, yet still maintain a clean look. In addition to the general design, it was important to pay attention to the details of each page and make sure that as the content is updated and changed, the design attributes will be maintained.

GCC is thrilled with the completed project and their ability to easily manage and update their website using the Markup Factory platform, while maintaining a design that reflects the personality of the movement.

The Making of Cramerdev.com

nospam@example.com (Josh Cramer) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 10:07:00 CDT

Our core five member dev team is spread across in three states (IL, NH, and IA). There are both benefits and drawbacks to this arrangement, but I actually think we are more productive being set up this way as opposed to everyone being in the same location. This is mostly due to the lack of interruptions and the opportunity for greater focus for each member of the team. Others have realized this same phenomenon. One of the drawbacks of being apart, as I see it, is what I call "the dehumanization of work" coming from the very isolation that adds to our productivity. This phenomenon is becoming more common today with more people telecommuting and working from home. I think we're figuring out a number of ways to remedy this including coworking, video conferencing, and collaborative online work spaces, etc.

Another thing that we do to re-humanize the work experience to a degree is get together once per quarter and work along side each other in the flesh. Lately, we've been trying to devise a one-day, bite sized project to tackle together during these times.

About a week and a half ago on May 29th, we all came together at the Coop in Chicago for one of these projects. Our goal was to redesign our development website, cramerdev .com, which was badly in need of some love. I'll confess that we did have a design concept and information architecture in place before the day of the project, but the building of the site all took place in one shortened day (with a little polishing on the following Monday).

For such a short project timeline, I think we're all very pleased with the results. In sum, the project consisted of a bit more than a simple redesign (we needed something for the developers to do):

Total Site Redesign
All New Content / Copy
New Information Architecture
Rewrite of the Blog Formatting Engine in Markup Factory

We built the site on our hosted content management system, Markup Factory, using the blog engine for our latest news section and Datasets, MFScript, and Dynamic Snippets for the Our Work section of the site. We used the Form Builder to create quick contact form for requesting quotes and information.

VetRx Direct Project

nospam@example.com (Jade Sokoll) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:36:00 CDT

VetRx Direct approached Cramer Development with the desire to produce an online pet pharmacy. In addition to providing customers with the ability to order pharmaceutical products for their pets online, VetRx Direct had a goal to become the most respectable online pet pharmacy in the world and to create a supportive relationship with local veterinarians.

One particular challenge in this project was to create a platform that would efficiently collect additional customer information like pet name, vet name, and prescription information. The platform had to then manage the approvals of prescriptions before orders could be shipped. These requirements among others lead us to create a custom e-commerce platform that was built from the ground up with SEO in mind. We engineered a checkout process that set the bar for usability in the online pet medicine space.

In addition to launching the e-commerce website, we collaborated in launching an SEO campaign that propelled VetRxDirect.com to the top of Google search results for terms like "Pet Medicine" and "Dog Medication". All this has translated in to making VetRxDirect.com one of the fastest growing online pet pharmacies online today.

On May 11th, the National Association of Boards of Pharmacy awarded VetRxDirect with the first ever Vet-VIPPS accreditation. This award represents a milestone in the online pet pharmacy space and puts VetRxDirect in the lead as the most respectable name in online pet pharmaceutical providers.

Find Out Where Iowa Is

nospam@example.com (Jade Sokoll) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 16:38:00 CDT

"Iowa?" you ask, "Where the heck is Iowa?" Many have joked, including our good friends over at Smash Online. We are not Ohio, that is a few states east. And we are not "the potato state," that would be Idaho. We are Iowa, an agriculturally focused state nestled in the heart of the midwest. We are south of Minnesota and just west of Illinois.

As you are reading this, you may be thinking to yourself, "Well, what does Iowa have to offer? Anything!?" Little do you know, this state has probably touched your life in more ways than one. For starters, you may be familiar with the famous Iowa Caucuses, a well-known first step in the presidential nomination process for both the Republican and Democratic parties. We've even grown a president of our own here in Iowa. Herbert Hoover, our country's 31st president was born and raised in this heartland state.

While we are on the topic of famous people, here is another name that may ring a bell, John Wayne. Surely you have seen or heard of the award winning actor. Too young for John Wayne movies? You may be more familiar with Elijah Wood whose acting career exploded when he played the role of Frodo Baggins in "The Lord of the Rings" Trilogy. Honestly, who hasn't seen those movies? Ashton Kutcher, Johnny Carson, and Buffalo Bill join the ranks of famous people born in Iowa.

Grant Wood, the well known painter of American Gothic is also an Iowan. (We do want to note, however, that we don't all stand around carrying pitch forks.) If you are more familiar with musicians, you may recognize Glen Miller or Slipknot. Those corn-fed boys sure know their music!

So now you know where Iowa is. You even have a few facts about the state. These will come in handy at your next dinner party or public event. Share them with your friends and family, and be sure to stop in and say hello on your next vacation!

Ramsey Creek Cabinets Project

nospam@example.com (Jade Sokoll) — Fri, 29 May 2009 15:04:00 CDT

Ramsey Creek Cabinets contacted our company with the desire to create an updated website to aid in marketing their exotic wood cabinets and countertops. While they already had a website, they wanted to update the site to include more images, implemented SEO best practices, and clearly defined their products and services.

After our initial meeting, we created a home page wireframe that would meet the desires and needs of the client. First, we wanted the page to include a slideshow of completed projects. This was to give the visitor a quick idea of they type of projects they could accomplish with their company. Second, they wanted to highlight their 3 most important products. A section was set aside for each product to give a brief description and link to more detailed information. Finally, they wanted to provide a quick and obvious way for visitors to contact them. The sidebar area was designated to providing this quick access.

In addition to the design, the implementation of SEO best practices was an important aspect of the website development. Our goal was to focus marketing efforts to target potential clients looking for exotic wood counter tops and cabinets. Keywords and phrases were inserted in meta tags, content, headings, and more.

Overall, the website has been a success for the client. The design truly reflects the personality of the business.

Mars Hill Church Project

nospam@example.com (Jade Sokoll) — Fri, 29 May 2009 13:38:00 CDT

When it comes to church websites, it is vitally important to understand your audience. As a growing church in the Iowa City area, Mars Hill Church needed to produce a user friendly, informative website that would meet the needs of both new visitors and existing members. Our solution: a unique blend of content and functionality matched with a sharp new design.

The home page is organized in a way that provides recently updated content and information all in one place. New visitors can find service information, brief descriptions about the church and its beliefs, and ways to contact the church. Current members can stay up to date with the latest news feed and an events calendar. In addition, anyone can access recent publications or listen to the latest sermon podcasts right from the home page.

In addition to reaching a split audience, the website also needed to be designed for ease of navigation. The information architecture was created to allow all visitors to quickly navigate to the information they need to find.

After launch, the Mars Hill website was featured on several design websites including CSS Beauty and Best Web Gallery.