The last few months have been a busy few here at this end. With so many project startups and launches, I have really let Open Square slide by the way side. This post is a showcase of what’s been on the up and up around here project-wise. For more information on these and any other of our projects please see our portfolio at http://simplesquare.com.

1. Corrosive Studios

With the ground work laid out for Corrosive Studio’s new corporate image, all was a go with the development of their new online presence. The desire was to follow the pre-established corrosive/corroded look without making the site look too ‘grungy’. By keeping the site bright and working with a contrasting color pallet this desired effect was accomplished.

It has been a goal of mine to offer graphic apparel for some time now. However, personal projects as such always seem to fall by the wayside while client’s projects get all of my attention. Originally I wanted to build and manage a separate online store for this, after quite a bit of research I chose to use CafePress.com’s services. It’s so easy to use and make products available to the public that I jumped on board almost immediately. Within an hour I had 4 products available for sale. Granted I have had the designs completed for some time now.

Over the past year I have given much thought to minimizing the amount of paperwork and files on my local computer. My reasoning for such thought is simply to alleviate my worries about computer theft/fire and to make myself more mobile.

The first reason is rather self explanatory. In the event of a fire or system theft I would lose all local files. While I do make regular backups and store these in a fire safe, nothing is better than keeping duplicates of important information off site. After all my livelihood resides on my computer, losing this would be catastrophic for my business.

Part Two; Creating the Right Online Presence

In the previous part of this post (Part One; The Importance of Having an Online Presence) we explore the importance of having an online presence. Here in part two we take a closer look at creating that presence and the process involved.

a. Approaching the Right Designer/Developer

Finding a Designer/Developer who possesses a solid understanding of online trends is crucial to the success of your new site. Finding and working with someone whom you trust and feel confident with is equally important. Any well established, creditable agency will want, and need, to spend the time getting to know you and your product or services. Properly establishing an online presence for your company should not be a templated process, each online solution should be uniquely tailored to a client’s needs.