Dev Resources
Dev Weekly Newsletter
6/21/24
Featuring
Weekly Tips From Your Leads!
Jeff
Does your site have a GS video? If so, please ensure that it is added to the dynamic pages in addition to the homepage.
Including the GS video on the dynamic keyword pages will help enhance the SEO of those pages, resulting in increased traffic and more leads for our clients. Videos are highly engaging and can significantly improve user experience, reducing bounce rates and increasing the time visitors spend on the site. This not only boosts SEO rankings but also builds trust and credibility with potential customers, leading to higher conversion rates.
Emma
Canva is continuously enhancing its platform with a variety of AI-driven tools, AKA "Magic Studio," which can prove immensely useful for editing logos and photos. It's important to note that many of these tools are currently in beta stages, meaning their performance and user-friendliness may vary. However, when these tools function optimally, they can significantly enhance the quality of your work. In the next few guided tutorials, I'll showcase the latest integrated features that I have found particularly beneficial and how I incorporate them into my design process. This week's tool is called "Magic Grab," and I'll demonstrate a couple of ways it can be used. See More >>>
Nick
Do you frequently use Google Sheets for your collections? Some of you may prefer to use that program for building out larger collections as opposed to Duda's internal collection system. If you do utilize Google Sheets, there are a few things that you should be aware of/on the lookout for when filling out a collection.
- When filling in the SEO Title column (or any other column that has a number in it), you may be tempted to use the fill-down function—this is when you click on the blue circle on a cell and drag it down to fill in the other cells. However, pay extra attention to the phone number when you use this feature. Google Sheets will treat the phone number as relative data and will increase the last digit of the phone number by one
(see an example of this here).
- The work around for this is to simply hold down Ctrl if you are using Windows, or Command if you are using a Mac, while clicking and dragging to fill in the other cells. This will treat the phone number, or any other numerical value, as an absolute value and, therefore, make it stay the same.
- One other tip that I have for you when using Google Sheets is a way for you to speed up your workflow by using the Insert Link hotkey. When you are working with a lot of images in your collection, it can be tiring to have to select the image URL that you are creating a link for, find the insert link button, and paste the URL in the corresponding field. Luckily, there is a quick fix for that.
- To quickly insert a link or URL for a selected string of text, simply use Ctrl + K on Windows, or Command + K on Mac. This should significantly increase your workflow when you are filling in your next collection on Google Sheets.
Sophie
This week, let's review best practices for creating a
background video:
1. Create a new project
- Name your project "Company Name - BG Video".
2. Clip Selection:
- Use 4-5 clips from WeVideo's stock footage library.
- Choose clips relevant to the client's location.
- Avoid using clips with actors providing the client's service unless the footage is significantly cropped to maintain anonymity.
- Steer clear of messy process clips. Instead, select footage showcasing the finished product. For instance, for a dental client, avoid clips of dental surgery and opt for images of bright, healthy smiles or clean dental tools.
3. Clip Duration:
- Trim each clip to be approximately
4-5 seconds in length.
4. Editing:
- Place the clips in the editor without transitions, using hard cuts to move directly from one clip to the next.
5. Exporting:
- There is no need to export a BG video to Vimeo, since there is no dialogue to transcribe with Vimeo's closed caption feature. Simply export as a full HD download.
6. Apply Video to the Site
- Upload the BG video to Duda and apply the file to the background of the hero banner's row.
**If the template site's BG video works for your client as well, you will still need to create a new BG video. This is because the template site's name will appear in the source code since the client's name is used in the BG videos's file name.**
Carissa
How to fix glitches in Duda's contact form? Checking the design settings of your contact form is a small detail that I forget sometimes, but it's a well-underrated component when it comes to creating a professional site. Sometimes within Duda, even when we adjust the design settings to our liking, the edit doesn't seem to stick. For example, when we set the field text to be black and the text on the live site shows up white...something doesn't make sense. It's strange how Duda works, but going on the published site and typing into the form to double-check that the field text is visible is a quick tip to make sure the design is appearing as we want. If the text does show up white, go into the widget's setting, under "Field Text," and reset the edit by making the font white and then black again. Sometimes it just needs a little attention to get the design to stick properly. If you're more of a visual learner, like me, click here to see the steps in action.