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Interesting musings from us to you
A Refreshing Take On Logos From A 5 Year Old
1
Feb3
Posted by: FHOKE on 1st February 2012, 12:40 pm
A great video doing the rounds today from Cincinnati, Ohio based designer Adam Ladd. What started out as a fun Sunday project with his daughter on brand logos has turned into a YouTube hit with almost 500,000 views (as of 01/02/2012 12:30GMT). What's so great is the simple take on these logos and its clear some brands have been more successful than others in appealing or exposing themselves to such a young audience. Scary or not? Feedback with some comments...
Oh Yeah. We Did That.
20
Jan2
Posted by: FHOKE on 20th January 2012, 10:40 am
Back in November we found out that one of our sites ‘Fashion Photography Exposed’ won an Awwward, which was awesome news and a great honor. This month see’s the release of their book ‘The Best 365 Websites Around The World’ in which our site appears on page 168.
Holiday Closing Times
19
Dec0
Posted by: FHOKE on 19th December 2011, 3:05 pm
What seems like the shortest year so far we round off 2011 with some fantastic clients, new and old, who we'll be taking into 2012 and beyond. With another busy year ahead we are slowly winding down over the week and we thought it a good idea to let all our clients know that we will be closing the offices over the holiday's from 5:00pm Thursday 22nd December and opening the doors again on Tuesday 3rd January. If you have any questions or work you need please get them in before 3:00pm Thursday so we can book it in for the New Year.
Categories: News & Articles
Help Change Lives With Pinpoint Pixel
7
Dec0
Posted by: FHOKE on 7th December 2011, 2:35 pm
Pinpoint Pixel is a new site we've helped launch this month. It's been an interesting project, a first for us, and one that we want all our clients and followers to get behind. They promote and work with some awesome charities to help change peoples lives and with the help of some conscientious sponsors, Pinpoint Pixel offers you the chance to win brilliant prizes for free! And if you fancy helping out, they'll never turn down a donation!
Categories: News & Articles, Site Launch
Awwwards. Site of The Day.
23
Nov3
Posted by: FHOKE on 23rd November 2011, 10:25 am
Amazing news just in. The recently launched Fashion Photography Exposed has won Site of the Day at Awwwards with a pretty solid 7.5 out of 10 all round. The awards recognize and promote the talent and effort of the best developers, designers and web agencies in the world.
Categories: News & Articles
Creative Living Blog hellobrit.com Launched
17
Nov1
Posted by: FHOKE on 17th November 2011, 11:35 am
Today, well rather yesterday, saw the launch of a new lifestyle brand, Brit. The brand behind the website hellobrit.com which was designed, built and launched by our team seeks to provide busy, but inspired people with innovative ways to live more simply, beautifully and creatively in and around the home.
Fashion Photography Exposed of New York Launches
10
Nov1
Posted by: FHOKE on 10th November 2011, 2:25 pm
Melissa Rodwell is a Los Angeles fashion photographer with over 21 years experience in the industry. World renowned for her work on campaigns for Virgin, Playboy and Ralph Lauren Melissa now lives her life in New York. In 2008 she set up the Fashion Photography Blog for amateur, student and professional photographers, gossip mongers, groupies, fashionista’s and just simply fans of her work.
FREE Amazon Kindle With Every Order Over £300
13
Oct0
Posted by: FHOKE on 13th October 2011, 1:35 pm
Lighter, more compact than ever and weighing in at less than 170 grams the Amazon Kindle fits straight in your pocket and holds up to 1,400 books. Best of all we're giving these Amazon Kindle's worth £89 away for FREE when you spend over £300 with us on your next project.
.Net Magazine Feature Issue 221
21
Sep1
Posted by: FHOKE on 21st September 2011, 8:50 am
Following on from our excitement at appearing in .net magazine issue 216, we've been invited again to feature in issue 221. This time around we were approached by Ryan Taylor from Havoc Inspired to write a short piece for his monthly CMS Gallery column. Ryan has worked for Headscape and also produced on Boagworld and since 2010 has sat on the judges panel for the annual .net Awards.
Categories: News & Articles
Team JB Finish The 2011 Mongol Rally
22
Aug0
Posted by: FHOKE on 22nd August 2011, 2:05 pm
The team finally made it. They've completed the 2011 Mongol Rally. A huge congratulations to the boys for completing one of the most gruelling team events any amateur driver can compete in and to top it all off they finished a hugely respectable 33rd place out of 350 entrants.
Categories: News & Articles
Pennant Joinery of Andover
22
Aug0
Posted by: FHOKE on 22nd August 2011, 1:45 pm
Pennant Joinery of Andover is a new business born with over 30 years of genuine hands on experience. Their traditional wood working methods are enhanced by modern machinery and an up to date knowledge that has trained a number of successful apprentices.
FHOKE Turn Three
1
Aug4
Posted by: FHOKE on 1st August 2011, 1:05 pm
FHOKE hit the digital scene back in the Summer of 2008 and are still based locally to Andover and Salisbury. We may remain a small team of four but our portfolio of projects is impressive and we've coped with some demanding web design and branding projects over those years.
Categories: News & Articles
Mongol Rally Team Update
1
Aug0
Posted by: FHOKE on 1st August 2011, 10:05 am
With 2,805 miles down and over 10 tanks of fuel spent the boys at team Jenson Baatarns are doing well. Traveling through Turkey at this very moment they hope to hit Iran before the end of the day. No major reports of accidents or breakdowns yet, just a puncture to deal with. The choice of a Hyundai Accent seems to be paying off.
Categories: News & Articles
Andover Challengers in the Mongol Rally 2011
11
Jul0
Posted by: FHOKE on 11th July 2011, 8:55 am
Imagine you're lost in a massive desert, hundreds of miles from civilisation, driving a car even your gran would be embarrased by. One of your wheels just fell off and a search for tools turns up a dirty sock and two dried apricots.
This is what the Mongol Rally is about. Getting stuck, lost and in trouble, then finding your way out armed with just your wits and the sock and apricots.
Categories: News & Articles
The New Cake Sweet Cake of Oxford Launches
14
Jun0
Posted by: FHOKE on 14th June 2011, 2:50 pm
Cake Sweet Cake is a small bakery kitchen in Kidlington, Oxfordshire. Having had an existing site that just wasn't working for their needs Cake Sweet Cake approached us to re-design and re-vamp there existing site and brand with a full content management system sat behind it.
FHOKE Feature in .NET Magazine
25
May3
Posted by: FHOKE on 25th May 2011, 8:30 am
We were pretty excited to have been asked to feature in this months issue of .net magazine (Issue 216, July 2011). For those that aren't in the know .net magazine is 'The' world’s best-selling magazine for web designers. We were invited to feature in their 'How We Built' profile for the branding, design and build of Boob Baby's eCommerce site. The article also features a quick tutorial on creating some stylised web buttons which can also be found in our blog post .Net Magazine Feature. Stylish and Detailed Web Buttons.
Categories: News & Articles
FREE Apple TV With Every Order Over £600
20
May0
Posted by: FHOKE on 20th May 2011, 10:55 am
Apple TV has been designed to be small in size but big on entertainment. Stream films, TV, music, photos and more to the smaller, redesigned Apple TV. And all you need is a single cable to set it up. You can either user the remote or download the free Remote App. You can also rent from a selection of the hottest HD films and stream photos and music from your computer to your widescreen TV. Best of all we're giving these Apple TV's worth £101 away for FREE.
Angry Birds: Worldwide Domination
12
May1
Posted by: FHOKE on 12th May 2011, 8:50 am
The guys over at Mail Chimp have put together a great video featuring some of the people behind the hit game Angry Birds. What was once a humble Finnish game about launching birds at pigs with slingshots has quickly become the insanely popular multi platform game. In just 18 months it has sold well over 12 million copies of the game on the Apple's App Store alone.
Categories: News & Articles
OZ for iPad Now Available on iTunes
12
Apr0
Posted by: FHOKE on 12th April 2011, 11:30 am
Today we announce the launch of our first collaborative interactive book, OZ. Available now exclusively for the iPad, OZ is a remarkable re-working of the original book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum, telling the story in a way never experienced before.
3Live Shop. Minority Report Salesperson.
5
Apr0
Posted by: FHOKE on 5th April 2011, 9:20 am
We read a short article today on a piece of technology and some interesting interface design we felt should be shared. A new service from 3 mobile in Sweden, 3Live Shop, is like its name sake, a live online shop where customers of 3 can interact with a real salesperson. Putting it simply, a video call but with an almost futuristic twist. The twist being a customised multi-touch experience that allows the salesperson to interact with products on the display while it’s all recreated on the customer’s screen. Think Tom Cruise goes phone salesperson in Minority Report.
Categories: News & Articles, Interface Design
Web Design in Salisbury
1
Mar0
Posted by: FHOKE on 1st March 2011, 9:05 am
We've just launched Web Design in Salisbury. A microsite for FHOKE in Salisbury and the Wiltshire area. Why? We'll we're well known in the town of Andover for creating great cost effective web sites for local businesses and have started to become known in the Salisbury area after moving offices to a rural location between these two great towns.
Site Stitcher Building Affordable Websites Quickly
8
Feb1
Posted by: FHOKE on 8th February 2011, 2:55 pm
Recently we took a step back to evaluate the services we had been offering. We soon realised as a design led web agency we were denying businesses with budgets of under £1000 the opportunity of having a big agency website. These customers wanted everything the larger sites had to offer but without the big price tag.
Makaton iPad App Design
7
Feb0
Posted by: FHOKE on 7th February 2011, 1:15 pm
We are proud to announce a new project win to help develop and promote a new premium iPad app. The app has been developed to help those with learning and communication difficulties to communicate much more intuitively and easily in every day life. It uses a library of Makaton symbols and graphics, sign language, sign language video and synthesised speech to aid communication.
Categories: News & Articles
New Website for Hampshire Garage JB Motors
3
Feb2
Posted by: FHOKE on 3rd February 2011, 3:10 pm
It seems Andover based businesses are starting to realise the value of having an online presence and are really starting to ramp up their online activity. Over the last few months we've launched a number of great eCommerce and Content Managed websites for local businesses and JB Motors of Andover is no exception.
Andover & Hampshire Personal Trainer Andy Hillier
1
Feb2
Posted by: FHOKE on 1st February 2011, 2:00 pm
We’ve just launched a fantastic website for Andover based personal trainer Andy Hillier. Based in the unique Infin8pulse Personal Training Studios, Andy Hillier has successfully built a reputation for one to one personal training, golf fitness and ante and post natal fitness within an excellent training environment. The unique design emphasises Andy's vibrant style to training with a mixture of photography and illustrations to bring Andy's services to life.
The Independent Featuring Oobafit
5
Jan0
Posted by: FHOKE on 5th January 2011, 2:35 pm
Oobafit is a new approach to fitness and health.They believe that getting and staying healthy needs to be both simple and fun. The team at Oobafit have had enough of fad diets and exercise crazes and wanted to give people simple, honest advice that just works. Most importantly Oobafit is run by real people for real people. They understand what it's like trying to fit exercise and healthy eating into a busy schedule. They won't preach to you, they'll just give you good advice and a set of tools that help you understand better how you're exercising and what you're eating.
Categories: News & Articles
Roundup Of 2010
23
Dec3
Posted by: FHOKE on 23rd December 2010, 10:30 am
We've seen a few posts on the more popular creative blogs over the past few weeks with a roundup of the most popular articles of 2010. This gave us the idea to delve into the stats for ours and to see what users and visitors seem most interested in, in the hope that it will help us to write more relevant articles in 2011.
Categories: News & Articles
1140 Fluid CSS Grid System
20
Dec4
Posted by: FHOKE on 20th December 2010, 11:40 am
A couple months back we offered up a FREE PSD download of the newer 978 Grid System that was orginally talked about in depth from @NickLa of Web Designer Wall fame. But just a few weeks later we became very aware that maybe there was a better alternative. Welcome to the world of the 1140px Grid System.
Christmas Closing
14
Dec6
Posted by: FHOKE on 14th December 2010, 1:50 pm
A quick message for all our customers and partners to wish you all a fantastic Christmas. Just to let you all know we will be closing the FHOKE office for the festive season from Christmas Eve, 24th December 2010, returning to business as usual from 9am on the 4th January 2011.
Categories: News & Articles
We Have Unmatched Style
9
Dec1
Posted by: FHOKE on 9th December 2010, 7:50 am
Unmatched Style is not just another CSS design gallery. They encourage the use of constructive design criticism as well as providing inspiration to their readers through brief writeups about each study. In addition to that they give the occasional video review to shed more light on the chosen design.
Categories: News & Articles
Salisbury Based Alabare Include Launch New Site
30
Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 30th November 2010, 8:50 am
We've launched several local sites for Hampshire and Wiltshire businesses recently and in the past week we've seen the launch of Alabaré Include. Based in Salisbury and Devizes, Alabaré Include are the mental health day service for the people of Wiltshire. It is funded by Wiltshire Council and Wiltshire Primary Care Trust and provide adults with functional Mental Health Issues with a number of services to help increase their independence and reduce the need for more intensive care.
Send Your Customers a Christmas Greeting
18
Nov2
Posted by: FHOKE on 18th November 2010, 2:00 pm
In the past you've no doubt been caught on the back-foot by Christmas, don’t fear – this year we'll keep you one step ahead so you can share the season with your clients and subscribers.
We've created 3 fantastic email greeting card designs for you to choose from (click the images for a larger version). All we need from you is your chosen design a list of up-to 100 email addresses, a send date and we'll do the rest. It's really that simple PLUS you'll be helping the environment, no paper waste and no carbon emissions from the postman. We'll also show you your stats at the end of the campaign so you can monitor how successful it was.
Facebook’s New Messaging System
16
Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 16th November 2010, 8:05 am
We recently kept our customers up-to-date with the new Twitter and now it's the turn of Facebook. Some of you may have heard some hype surrounding the Facebook messaging system over the past week. It was billed as the Gmail / Hotmail / Yahoo! Mail killer but that wasn't quite the whole story. Here we explain in brief what this all means for you and your account.
Categories: News & Articles
Andover Based Desina Launch Online Store
10
Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 10th November 2010, 8:40 am
Online shops are booming in Hampshire of late. With the launch of Boob Baby in the past few weeks it's now the turn of Desina. Locally based in Andover, Desina makes shopping for bras fun and easy. It's all about the girl that loves her curves. They offer a wide variety of brands, sizes and accessories (including swimwear) to cater for the bustier woman and at the same time make it easy to find your true bra size.
Versapak. Another Successful Online Shop Launch
5
Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 5th November 2010, 12:00 pm
It's been a busy time for our latest eCommerce solution just a few weeks ago we launched Boob Baby and then last week saw the launch of Versapak (International).
Versapak were established in 1973 so we knew from the off we were working with a heritage brand that was well know and loved within their industry but a company that wanted to push forward in 2010 and onwards.
New eCommerce Site Boob Baby
14
Oct3
Posted by: FHOKE on 14th October 2010, 1:10 pm
Last week saw the launch of one of our latest eCommerce sites, Boob Baby. Boob Baby is a website supplying breastfeeding equipment and accessories. The website also includes a resource centre, which aims to provide information and advice to mothers who are breastfeeding and also to pregnant ladies who are hoping to breastfeed. Boob Baby is a small, family business run by a husband and wife duo. They pride themselves in not only providing quality products (that include well known brands such as Medela and Phillips) at competitive prices, but also offering outstanding customer service.
About Twitter's New Look
6
Oct0
Posted by: FHOKE on 6th October 2010, 9:30 am
We love twitter. There we've said, and so should you. We've posted this quick blog post because a lot of you newbie clients are starting to embrace Twitter and for a very good reason. To drive traffic and relevent customers through your door. But you may or may not know there is a new Twitter? Below are answers to a few of the common questions about the new Twitter.
Categories: News & Articles, Twitter
Email Marketing
27
Sep0
Posted by: FHOKE on 27th September 2010, 3:07 pm
Start targeting your clients with email marketing from FHOKE. We've either helped you create your brand and / or your site so why not choose us to help build your brand and engage with your customers on a regular basis with email. It’s easily one of the most cost-effective solutions to online marketing and it can deliver customer loyalty.
Categories: News & Articles
The Number of The Day... Is Two
2
Aug0
Posted by: FHOKE on 2nd August 2010, 12:00 am
The number of the day is two. That's right on the second day of the month we are celebrating our 2nd anniversary (OK... we're a day late but we don't work weekends, let alone a Sunday). And on this day as we celebrate hitting two years in business, amazing clients, the great people we work with and another successful year of growth, the future of FHOKE is looking ever brighter.
Categories: News & Articles
New eCommerce Solution
12
Jul0
Posted by: FHOKE on 12th July 2010, 3:42 pm
Since the beginning of May we have been offering our new bespoke eCommerce solution to all our clients which has resulted in three project wins in as many months. With designs finalised all three projects have now been put into development and the launches of these three sites should be realised over the coming months.
Categories: News & Articles
New Sites. New Recognition.
9
Jun2
Posted by: FHOKE on 9th June 2010, 1:52 pm
So the past few months have been incredibly busy for us here at FHOKE and June hasn't disappointed yet. Last month we spoke about being recognised and awarded with the South West Top 10 Creative Companies to Watch award which is great for all of us here. After just over a year and a half its great to see we are starting to get recognised within the industry.
We've also launched two new sites this month. Both of these clients we have worked with before so its great to see them wanting to work with us again and again and to see them becoming successful enough to start new ventures
Categories: News & Articles, Site Launch
Bristol Media - Ones to Watch
21
May0
Posted by: FHOKE on 21st May 2010, 12:20 pm
This time last week we got a fantastic email from Jane Sabherwal at Bristol Media informing us that FHOKE had been identified as a creative company to watch during 2010/11. As you can imagine we are all pretty stoked here to hear the news and can't wait to see our name in print and up on the impending site.
Categories: News & Articles, Marketing & Communication
Your Brand Is Way More Than A Logo
6
May5
Posted by: FHOKE on 6th May 2010, 11:35 am
All to often we hear clients talking about their brand but referring to their logo, we then proceed to tell them that their brand is so much more. Of course their logo is a big part of their brand but that's not where it ends.
While shopping over the weekend I found a great example of what I'm talking about. Hollister is not a shop that I've ever been in, I've seen it online and on the high street but I'd never really paid any attention to it or been inside.
IE6 No More. We Drop Support From May 1st
30
Apr3
Posted by: FHOKE on 30th April 2010, 2:59 pm
It's becoming a bit of a fashion trend at the moment to drop or phase out support for Internet Explorer 6. All the big boys are such as Google, Facebook and Twitter, not to mention the 1000's of other sites already taking this stance, it looks likes IE6 days are numbered (check out the Internet Explorer Voodoo Doll).
We've already Tweeted how we've dropped support on various sites recently, to much support and praise from others in the industry, but this is it, from May 1st we will be dropping it from every site we produce*. Much rejoice can be heard from the developers corner of the office.
Categories: Trends, News & Articles
Welcome Liam - Thankyou Twitter
10
Mar2
Posted by: FHOKE on 10th March 2010, 11:45 am
We’ve recently been looking to bring someone in-house to strengthen our extended family of developers. After some healthy business growth and some very positive projections for the next year we were looking for smart creative people to fit in with the team. With that said, we’d like to say a big welcome to our new developer Liam Chapman – the newest member of the family.
Categories: News & Articles
Learning To Say No
28
Feb0
Posted by: FHOKE on 28th February 2010, 1:12 pm
Learning to say no at the right time can save you and your company time, effort and and a lot of pain. Said at the wrong time and it'll bring you all of those and more.
We were recently offered a project to work on solely as designers to another agencies project. We've worked with these guys before and love working with them and still do. The budget was great and with the business booked out for a whole week it seemed to make great business sense to take it on. We'd already figured that this project alone could easily be used to re-invest in a new mac and all the software plus more for a new employee so there was a great reason to take the project on. But things don't always run smoothly and in hindsight we should have refused the project from our original gut feeling.
New Studio - Hampshire
20
Jan1
Posted by: FHOKE on 20th January 2010, 2:59 pm
Last month we announced that we were moving into new offices. A few peeps have asked to see some pics of the work so far... so check them out here. We've only managed a lick of paint, signage and desk space but being manically busy this year and having the holiday period recently we aim to push the rest of the office outfit through next month. We'll keep you updated as the new features are added.
Categories: News & Articles
PHP/HTML Developer: 22k to 30k Per Annum
18
Jan0
Posted by: FHOKE on 18th January 2010, 4:58 pm
Yep you heard right we're employing from today! How would you like the chance to work alongside some of the most talented designers in the industry? To be pushed and find ways to solve solutions every day? To love coming into work everyday and be paid well and not having to watch every minute of the day. To be trusted in your skills and abilities and not be micro-managed.
Categories: News & Articles
Coming Up
7
Jan0
Posted by: FHOKE on 7th January 2010, 12:40 pm
So apart from the heavy snow and slight disruption to the first week back at the office we're pumped and ready to go for a great 2010. Now settled into our new surroundings (although a country location hasn't seemed too wise the past few days) what else have we got lined up in the coming months and year?
To start with let's give everyone a run down of a few sites that have gone live over the Christmas period and some exciting projects to come in the next few months.
New Studio
11
Dec2
Posted by: FHOKE on 11th December 2009, 4:45 pm
OK… we’re in! Based in-between Andover and Sailsbury our new studio is in a purpose built barn and will benefit our local clients in both locations and surrounding areas. Set in beautiful countryside with rolling hills and an abundance of fields our new studio spearheads our 2010 expansion plans.
Offering our clients a better insight to the way we work the studio is open to all and potential clients to visit in the new year. We might even give you a match on the old table football, maybe we'll give you some free web work if you let us beat you.
Categories: News & Articles
Sneak Peak at Adobe Photoshop CS5
30
Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 30th November 2009, 12:16 pm
For those that don't know the Adobe Creative Suite is a collection of graphic design, video editing, and web development applications made by Adobe Systems. The newest and most exciting suite to date is due out around April 2010 and as designers and developers we can't wait for its release. CS4 seemed to lack any real punch from the previous CS3 suite, but looking at this video there is much to look forward too.
The new collection consists of the standard Adobe applications. Photoshop CS5, Acrobat, InDesign CS5, Illustrator CS5, Flash CS5 all supporting the various technologies we've grown to know and love in PostScript, PDF and Flash.
Categories: News & Articles
3 New iPhone Apps
24
Sep3
Posted by: FHOKE on 24th September 2009, 1:45 pm
Over the past month a few exciting new apps have been released for the iPhone. It seems the current focus on the iPhone platform is still going strong and really highlights the P.R. opportunities that exist for brands associating themselves with the phone.
We've showcased three of the more high profile apps to have been released and all got much hyped media coverage when they were. At the time of writing there is also a big P.R. drive for the Vodafone 360 platform, time will tell if that will succeed in the rapidly populating app market.
Categories: News & Articles, iPhone
Times Are Changing
26
Aug0
Posted by: FHOKE on 26th August 2009, 2:57 pm
So it's all change with our site over the coming months. After a successful first year in business it's time we grew up. We've been putting in long hours to get the designs for the new site ready and our developers are itching to start working their magic over the coming few months. We can't wait to see the new site take shape and damn we're excited about it. There's going to be some big changes going on this year.
Categories: News & Articles
The Half Blood Prince
6
Aug0
Posted by: FHOKE on 6th August 2009, 8:38 am
With the recent release of the latest installment in the Harry Potter films Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince we watched in amazement at just how detailed the sets are in a recent ITV behind the scenes special, aired just a couple of weeks ago. Then out of pure coincidence we found a recent blog post showcasing probably the most amazing and detailed part of the behind the scenes special for the Weasley brother's magic shop.
Categories: Design, News & Articles
The Europas: The Winners Champagne
10
Jul0
Posted by: FHOKE on 10th July 2009, 11:00 am
The Europas, the inaugural TechCrunch Europe Awards 2009 for European and EMEA tech companies, were held last night in London. Over 400 entrants were voted on by the industry and also judged by 19 industry experts from across Europe. The results came together and awards were given to winners and highly commended companies.
As with previous TechCrunch events we appeared as a small part at the awards providing prize winning bottles for the event. We helped them design the labeling for the winning bottles which went down a storm as usual.
Categories: News & Articles
New NHS Design Approved
12
Jun0
Posted by: FHOKE on 12th June 2009, 9:36 am
After our recent design success of the new NHS Hampshire site we were invited back again to design a new intranet for the county.
Having had several meetings discussing the needs of every user within NHS Hampshire we worked with a very detailed brief and wire-frames to create a design that fulfilled every requirement which has exceeded all of their expectations.
Categories: News & Articles, Site Launch
New eCommerce Launch
4
Jun1
Posted by: FHOKE on 4th June 2009, 9:51 am
One of Hampshire's most successful businesses Elderberry Bridesmaids needed to expand their business online and take advantage of the huge gap left in the online market place for bridesmaids dresses and accessories.
The design of the e-commerce site was of paramount importance as it had to appeal to the style-savvy clientele that are accustomed to Elderberry Bridesmaids. The site we have created uses the great visual photography already used through the store, and to create a place for inspiration and information keeping visitors browsing, buying and coming back for more.
Categories: News & Articles, Site Launch
The Evil of Crowdsourcing
2
Jun0
Posted by: FHOKE on 2nd June 2009, 8:52 am
Crowdsourcing is a term for using lots of amateurs to achieve a goal for a company or organisation, usually for very little money.
For example: A company puts a brief out to a community of individuals (in this case designers), lets them know how much they wish to pay for the end result and waits for a response - if something comes in they wish to use, they only pay the person that came up with that idea.
Categories: News & Articles
Future of Web Design London 2009
1
May4
Posted by: FHOKE on 1st May 2009, 11:30 am
So with the Future of Web Design over we have a look back at yesterday's event and what we took away from it. There was a lot going on at this year’s event, from talks about typography on the web, tearing up the rule book when designing for clients through to a great talk about designing effective mobile interfaces.
Held at Kensington Town Hall, London, the event was a huge success pulling in some big names in the industry, and all credit to the guys at Carsonified for putting together a great day of speakers.
Categories: News & Articles
Tweetie For Mac
23
Apr0
Posted by: FHOKE on 23rd April 2009, 9:32 am
Monday saw the public release of Atebits.com Tweetie for Mac, the big brother to the already successful Tweetie iPhone App which for many is considered the best Twitter client on the market.
As a desktop client it has some stiff competition to the already very successful TweetDeck but we've been playing around with Tweetie the past few days and let's just say we are very impressed with the new app and it looks like it’ll be our new favorite here. The interface is sleek and oozes transitions and design ques all over the shop. It's perfect for the Mac and Atebits seem to have hit the nail on the head as it really does look as if Apple would have created it themselves. But, and yes there is a but, it's not perfect, yet.
Categories: News & Articles
Geek'nRolla Tech Startups Rock
21
Apr0
Posted by: FHOKE on 21st April 2009, 10:00 am
FHOKE will be appearing at Geek’nRolla today who are helping supplying personlised champagne to the event. Geek'nRolla is sponsored this year by Viadeo one of the largest professional social networks in the world, and supported by UK Trade and Investment, as well as NESTA, the National Endowment for Science, Technology & the Arts. They are also being supported by their strategic partner, School for Startups. And not only will they be enjoying a great lineup of tech startups, they are planning on the mother of all evening networking parties at one of London’s premier venues, Cafe de Paris.
Categories: News & Articles
New Site Updates
1
Apr0
Posted by: FHOKE on 1st April 2009, 3:09 pm
Today FHOKE got a few site updates to help make it easier for potential, new and existing clients to get in touch and to view progress on their sites.
With large files being sent by email everyday it was time to get a client area for the site that will enable clients to see the most up to date versions of their designs as well as previous variations. Another feature for existing clients is they will have their own personal library of all the projects we have worked on and will have access to this anytime of the day anywhere in the world as long as they have access to our site.
Categories: News & Articles
Choosing The Right Web Design Agency
11
Mar1
Posted by: FHOKE on 11th March 2009, 11:17 am
Your website is a virtual shop window that offers an insight into who you are, what you do and what you stand for. It needs to look right, communicate correctly and help drive business.
If your website does not effectively do these three things then you'll need to get in touch with a web design agency that can help.
Categories: News & Articles
10 Tips For Efficient Design
20
Feb0
Posted by: FHOKE on 20th February 2009, 9:53 am
A great blog from Paul Boag
Being a good designer is not always enough to survive hard economic times. You need to be efficient too.
I don't want this to be another 'recession' post. Sure, being more efficient in the way we work as web designers, makes us more competitive and keeps us employed. However, that is not the only reason we should endeavour to 'work smarter'.
Categories: News & Articles
The Power Of Facebook For Business
15
Jan0
Posted by: FHOKE on 15th January 2009, 9:16 am
The viral nature of Facebook offers a non intrusive way of making friends, clients and potential new customers aware of you and the services that you offer.
With over 150 million active users on Facebook it would be a great shame for any business not to have some form of public presence on there. Facebook is not only a great way to keep in touch with friends and colleagues – it gives you the ability to keep in touch with your clients, gather attention for your brand and provide a personal face for your business.
Categories: News & Articles
Twittering Some More
16
Dec0
Posted by: FHOKE on 16th December 2008, 3:56 pm
Looks like the marketing folks over at Twitter had the good wisdom to hire Lee and Sachi LeFever to make a Twitter video! We're big fan's of their videos, particularly those explaining Web 2.0 technologies and thought it be a great follow on from out recent blog To Twitter Or Not To Twitter?
Categories: News & Articles
Winning Big With New Client
11
Dec3
Posted by: FHOKE on 11th December 2008, 10:20 am
Graeme Levin is a true entrepreneur and world renowned gaming guru in every right. He has been running online gambling and casino portals from the mid 90's and was the founder and CEO of the very successful Gambling.com, one of the world's premier online gambling portals. Now developing a range of new prominent online gambling portals Graeme asked us to help complete a new brand for the first of these portals. The brief was to capture the excitement of Vegas and we are now rolling out their new logo across a new website, which builds on these logos and adds to that excitement and winning feeling.
Categories: News & Articles
How To Write An Effective Design Brief and Get The Design You Want!
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Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 18th November 2008, 5:36 pm
How do you get the design you want? The perfect design you envision in your head? … The design brief is the answer.
Whether you are a designer or a client, an effective design brief is the single most critical factor in ensuring that a project is successful.
Categories: News & Articles
Behance Network
10
Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 10th November 2008, 9:47 pm
FHOKE have finally joined the Behance Network!
So what does that mean!? Well put simply the Behance Network is a free community creatives can join, to share work and and gain worldwide exposure.
Categories: News & Articles
A Brief History of Communication
9
Nov0
Posted by: FHOKE on 9th November 2008, 3:34 pm
Really cool animated AD for the Carphone Warehouse - The History of Communication - - A breif...
Categories: News & Articles
Search Engines Get A Bit More Flash
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Aug0
Posted by: FHOKE on 7th August 2008, 6:49 pm
Adobe, the company behind products such as Acrobat (which is used for PDF files) and the players that allow users to view Flash files, has anounced a partnership with two of the major search engines to make it easier for Flash files (SWF) to be crawled and indexed. According to Adobe:
Adobe is working with Google and Yahoo! to enable one of the largest fundamental improvements in web search results by making the Flash file format (SWF) a first-class citizen in searchable web content. This will increase the accuracy of web search results by enabling top search engines to understand what’s inside of RIAs and other rich web content created with Adobe Flash technology and add that relevance back to the HTML page.
Categories: News & Articles

































































