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TOPIC: design

How to Prepare Your Site for a New Design

How to Prepare Your Site for a New Design

One of the most exciting things you can do for your blog / business is get a new design. Trust me, I’ve both spent lots of hours on the edge of my seat while working on my own site. There’s something about having that new look that makes me feel inspired and ready to go after our goals all over again.

Even though it’s really exciting to get a new look, there are a few things that you’ll want to consider before just diving right in. It’s not quite as fun to spend time thinking about these things, but stopping to prepare will help you make sure that you really need a new design and aren’t just getting one because you feel like you should.

It’s also a good reminder that getting a new design isn’t necessarily a quick or easy process. Since you’re investing money, you want to make sure that you’re really intentional with your decisions and getting something that’s not just visually pleasing but will also help with your goals.

So let’s dive in!

Get an idea of the style you want

Before you pick a designer or start looking for a theme you can purchase, you have to know the style that you’re looking for with your site. Obviously if you’re not planning on updating your brand, then this will be obvious: you want something that’ll work with your existing brand, but if you’re ready to update your brand as well, then you don’t have to consider that.

If you don’t know what style you want, you’re likely going to end up changing your design more often until you find something you really like.

So, how do you discover your style?

A great place to get started is by collecting inspiration on Pinterest. Most designers are going to have you do this anyway, so even if you’ll be hiring out for a custom design, this will be beneficial. All you have to do is create a new board and just fill it up with things that speak to you. This would be fonts, colors, photography, other designs, etc. Once you get 20-30 pins on your board, you’ll likely start seeing a pattern.

Decide if you’ll hire out or DIY

Once you know what style you like, it’s time to decide if you can do it yourself or if you can afford to hire out the process. A lot of people think that you always want to hire out, but that’s just not the case. When you’re just getting started with your blog, you’re still figuring out if this is something that you’re going to be doing long term. If it ends up being a short-lived hobby, you don’t want to have spent a thousand dollars for your design.

When should you DIY? Well, if you’re within your first few months to even a year or two of blogging, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with simply picking a pre-made theme and even a pre-made logo. These things are usually pretty customizable, so you can make it work for the style you want.

When should you hire a professional? If you’ve been blogging or in business for a few years and you have the budget to hire who you want to work with, this is a great time to hire a designer or team to take care of creating a custom design for you. Having that custom design will boost your blog / business, so if you can’t (or don’t want) to do it yourself, think about working with someone else.

Preparing your content

Regardless of whether you’re working with a designer or team to create a new design for your site or if you’re simply installing a theme you’ve purchased, you want to make sure that as far as your content goes, you’re ready for it.

The first place to start is to understand that your content and brand make affect the way the overall design appears. When you’ve been looking at mockups or a theme demo, it’s easy to think that your site will look exactly as good once your theme is on your site with your content. If you’ve purchased a theme, it’s important to keep in mind that unless your content looks identical to that on the demo site, your brand and content may make the theme look a little different. Instead of trying to recreate the demo, look at it as an amazing opportunity to make your design, which isn’t one-of-a-kind, more unique and work for you.

It’s also important to make sure that you’re saving your content before any design is installed. Install a plugin like BackWPup or BackupBuddy so that you can get a complete backup of your site and save it in a few different places. A good designer or team will do this for you, but it’s good for you to have a copy as well. If something goes wrong during the install process, you want to have the peace of mind that your content is going to be safe and sound.

Moving forward with your new design

Just because you have a new design, doesn’t mean you’re done! If you rebranded while getting a new blog or web design, now is a great time to update your graphics with your new fonts and colors. If you have time, you could update all of your graphics, but at least start with your most popular posts.

Getting a design is also a great time to make sure that your links and any other graphics around your site are still linking and working properly. It’s not uncommon for something to break in the update process, so make sure you check your most important links and images.

Lastly, as your blog and business grows, make sure that you’re checking in with your design and whether or not it’s still working for the goals you have set for yourself. After more than a year, it’s not very surprising that your design may need a few small tweaks at the least to keep working right for you.

Ready for a new design, but can’t decide on a theme?

I have the perfect thing for you! I’ve created a 3-day mini series to help you figure out what you’re looking for in a theme, mistakes to avoid, and my process for picking a new theme. Click that button below to read a bit more about the series and sign up!

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I'm Kory, the color and design loving gal behind Coded Creative. I'm ready and excited to help you create a beautiful and strategic design for your blog and business.

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Did you know that Black Friday is coming up next w Did you know that Black Friday is coming up next week? 😝 Okay, I know - we ALL know that it's coming up. Some businesses are already doing their Black Friday sales, and those who aren't are letting you know that their offers are coming soon.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Since we're in the middle of this digital product sale season, I thought it would be good to talk about investments you can make right now to help grow your brand in 2021. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Stock photos⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Beautiful, high-quality images go a looong way in making your brand look professional and getting attention on your content. Two of my favorite stock photo memberships (@hautestockco + @socialsquares) have special offers this week if you need some photos!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ A new website design⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
If you haven't changed your site design in a while or you're ready for a more professional look, this is a great time to grab a new premade theme! (Pssst.. my themes will be on sale next week)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Social templates⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The BEST way to grow your business is by showing up and getting your content in front of people. Instead of starting from scratch, grab some social graphic templates to make graphics a breeze. (My templates will be on sale next week, too!)⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Topic-specific courses / trainings⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
If you're struggling with outsourcing, copywriting, or something else now is a great time to invest in a course on that topic since most course creators discount their products for Black Friday.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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What offers are you looking for this Black Friday?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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#shesacreative #workfromhome #goaldigger #shediditherway #womenwithambition #empoweringwomen #entrepreneurwoman #creativeentrepreneurs #creativeentrepeneur #creativewomen #creativepreneur #mycreativebiz #entrepreneurlifestyle #communityovercompetition #femaleentrepreneurassociation #staybossyladies #herbusiness #sayyestosuccess #thisgirlmeansbusiness #womenwithaplan #femaleceo
Today, on my oldest daughter’s 3rd birthday the Today, on my oldest daughter’s 3rd birthday the first woman officially became the first Vice President Elect of our country. For the first time in 4 years I feel hope for my daughters’ future.

There is still so much work to be done. So. Much. I hope that we, as a nation, will continue to do that work.

To protect Black lives.
To listen to Black women.
To care for our neighbors (and keep wearing a damn mask).
To protect our planet.
To move our nation forward.

I pray, and fight, and speak up, and donate to make sure my girls get to grow up and live in a country that makes them proud to call home and a country they feel safe in. Because that’s what our kids and our neighbors deserve.

So let’s celebrate today. But keep the fight going tomorrow.

📷 by @zoeghertner
Now, more than ever, I’m grateful for my right t Now, more than ever, I’m grateful for my right to vote, and you can bet your 🍑 I voted for #bidenharris2020!

I’m going to be quiet on the feed for the rest of the week to make space for rest and self-care. Next week I’ll be back here to share my normal content.

Until then, go vote!

graphic by @madebyeli 

#rockthevote #votesaveamerica
Stop 🛑 waiting until the perfect moment to show Stop 🛑 waiting until the perfect moment to show up and start working toward your goals.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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As a perfectionist and a painfully indecisive person, I've spent so much time waiting. Waiting for the perfect idea, for the perfect time to post, for the perfect design, for the perfect collaboration, for the perfect offer, for the perfect audience.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Does that sound like you?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Are you stuck in a holding pattern, waiting for everything to be just ✨ right ✨ or perfect before you take action?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Be honest... how's that working out for you?⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Let me give you some tough love, friend. If you want to grow your business, get those dreamy clients, make consistent sales, and hit your goals... you can't sit around waiting for perfect. 🙅🏻‍♀️⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Listen, I've been there. But if you want your business or your blog to look like hers then you have to do SOMETHING. You have to start right now... show up today for your audience. And then again tomorrow. And then the next day. Share your new piece of content, show off your latest offer.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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👉🏽 Stop hiding and waiting for perfect before believing in yourself enough to make things happen for you. 👈🏽⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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You're worthy of everything you dream of and so much more, so let's start doing what it takes to get there!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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#wearethecreativeeconomy #createyourpurpose #creativecultivate #fempreneur #womenwithaplan #businessownerlife #herestothecreatives #sayyestosuccess #hustleandheart #findyourflock #thegramgang #hersuccess #dreamersanddoers #createalifeyoulove #calledtocreate #creativeentrepeneur #creativebiz #creativepreneurs #createlounge #thecreativegrid #savvybusinesswomen #intentionalbusiness
THE SECRET TO GROWING YOUR BRAND IS…. 🤫 ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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👉🏽 PAUSE! Save this post for later so you can come back to it!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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If you want to keep growing your brand, the secret is that you have to keep showing up for your people. How? Well…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Show up as the expert you are⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Make sure you’re mixing in content related to your products and services with the personal content in stories + on your feed.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Create more Pinterest graphics⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The queen of Pinterest @meaganawilliamson has shared the fresh pins are proven to work the best on the platform, so create new graphics for your posts and get them on Pinterest!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Grab attention on Instagram⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
The algorithm rewards you when your people engage with your content (saves are the best right now) and stay on the app. Grab attention, and get your audience engaged. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Highlight your freebies⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Want to know why your lead magnet isn’t working for you? Because you’re not promoting it. Make it a habit to share your freebie at least 4x per month on Instagram, and create pins for the landing page.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Improve your SEO⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
Search Engine Optimization is a long game, but it can pay off for years if you take the time to work on improving it for your content now. Check out @mariahmagazinestudio for all the SEO tips.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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✨ Launch your offers⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
I won’t lie - this year has felt totally weird when it comes to launches. I’ve launched 2 products this year, and they went better than I could have imagined. So it’s time to launch 👏🏼 the 👏🏼 dang 👏🏼 thing.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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What do you need to work on now to grow your brand? Share in the comments! ⬇️⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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#wearethecreativeeconomy #createyourpurpose #creativecultivate #fempreneur #herestothecreatives #sayyestosuccess #hustleandheart #findyourflock #therisingtidesociety #bloomyellow #intentionalbusiness #creativeatheart
When I set out to create the June theme, I started When I set out to create the June theme, I started thinking about what bloggers, specifically want to accomplish with their site and what they'd need to accomplish that.
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I know most bloggers are trying to earn an income through sponsored posts and ads, and to do that you need a certain audience size and page views.
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Let's talk about page views specifically. One way to increase views is to work on keeping your audience on your site longer by making relevant content easy to find.
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You can make relevant content easy to find by:
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1️⃣ Showing related posts at the bottom of your individual blog posts. Most of my themes automatically have this feature built in, but I also like the Related Posts for WP plugin for this!
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2️⃣ Linking to related content within your blog posts. If you're working on seasonal content right now, think about how you can link back to some of your Fall or Winter posts from last year in your new blog posts.
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3️⃣ Add a link to your categories to your menu or your sidebar. This will make it super easy for your readers to click through to a category they want to see more about - like chicken dinners or cool weather outfits.
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4️⃣ Swap out your featured content. Another thing you can do is show off your seasonal content in featured areas on your site. If you're a craft blogger, maybe over the next month and a half you link to Halloween-themed crafts with kids.
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Which one of these things do you want to improve or implement on your site? Tell me in the comments ⬇️
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#bloggersgonnablog #bloggervibes #bloggersgetsocial  #bloggerstribe #bloggerdiaries #theblogissue #blogginggals #blogandbeyond #thecaptionclub #shinyhappybloggers  #theuncoolclub #creativegalgang #microblogger #bloggergram #personalbranding #gritandvirtue #createcultivate #colorjoystock
GIVEAWAY CLOSED: The winner is @ramblingrose.farmh GIVEAWAY CLOSED: The winner is @ramblingrose.farmhouse! It’s here, it’s here! No, I’m not just talking about October or Fall (two of my favorite things). Today I’m celebrating the launch of a brand new theme: June 🎉🎉⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Even better? Because this is the first new theme to hit the shop in over a year, I’m giving away a FREE copy of this design bundle (the theme, Pinterest, and Instagram templates).⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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To enter, first make sure you’re following me @codedcreative, then…⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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1. Like this post, comment, and tag a friend that you think would love the June theme. Each comment and tag is an additional entry.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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2. Share this post on your stories and tag me! This is worth TEN extra entries!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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The giveaway closes on Sunday night at midnight EST.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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If you’re itching to get the theme right now, head to the link in my profile (or go to codedcreative.co/june) to learn more, check out the demo, and purchase June for your site today!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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#theeverygirl #theeverydaygirl #bloomyellow #creativityfound #pursuepretty #smallbiz #mycreativebiz #fromwhereiwork #creativelifehappylife #handsandhustle #creativeentrepeneur #womeninbusiness #communityovercompetition #risingtidesociety #savvybusinessowner #thatsdarling #flashesofdelight #goaldigger #shediditherway #womenwithambition #empoweringwomen #entrepreneurwoman #creativeentrepreneurs #creativeentrepeneur #creativewomen #creativepreneur #mycreativebiz
So you want to take your blog from hobby to money So you want to take your blog from hobby to money maker.... raise your hand if that's you right now... 🙋🏽‍♀️⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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At some point every blogger faces the decision to keep blogging for fun or to turn your blog into a money making brand (not that doing that isn't fun though).⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Making that transition from hobby to brand can be a bit confusing. Here are a few quick ways you can start working on that transition:⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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1️⃣ Decide how you want to monetize. There are so many ways you can do it - from ads to digital products and more. Think about what makes you excited and what you feel comfortable doing.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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2️⃣ Create a content strategy. What do you want to be known for? Don't forget to include your audience - what do they want to see more of? If you don't know, ask them!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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3️⃣ Consider your brand + blog design. If you've been using a free design, it's time to consider working with a designer or getting a premade look for your site!⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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Taking your blog more serious and turning it into a money making brand can be overwhelming, but start slow and with intention and you'll be more successful along the way.⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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#alifeofintention #authenticliving #wholeheartedliving #pursuewhatislovely #createyourhappy #theeverygirl #theeverydaygirl #bloomyellow #seizetheday #darlingwomen #bloggingforbusiness #9tothrive #seizetheday #darlingwomen #sayyesstosuccess #makeithappen #dowhatyoulove #gritandvirtue #womenwithambition #createcultivate #makersmovement #handsandhustle #calledtobecreative #creativepreneur
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