Good Website Examples & Design Tips

What makes a good website?

I'm so glad you asked!

There's no point in designing and publishing a website that doesn't do anything but look pretty. If you get nothing else out of this article, get this: "If you build it, they will come" is not the right sentiment for anyone looking to design a website that actually helps you make money.

Good Website Examples

It's tricky finding good website examples to model your own after. Just looking at a website it is impossible to tell if it's profitable or not, unless they tell you straight out. But that doesn't mean you can't find websites in your industry to learn and take example from.

Here's a few things to look for:

- Appropriate Design: While some people might argue over the importance and degree of quality of design it's important that your design fit your market. What I mean is if you are starting a blog about art then yea, graphics should be more high end and design consideration more thorough. If you are starting a website for work at home moms then your design may be more geared to that market, homemade looking even, since most moms are do-it-yourselfers!

- Ease of Use: Can you find what you are looking for? What kind of layout do the website examples that you like have? What are the key links they are using to direct people through their site. An experienced and savvy website designer will have a good idea of what their visitors are looking for and give them a clear and easy to follow path straight to the goods.

- Community: Right now the internet is all about social media and community. Have a look at website design examples that give you ideas on how to integrate community into your own business. There are many ideas: Membership sites, blogs, Ning-style communities, twitter integration and more. Just make sure that you choose something you can keep up with. Getting on all the social media sites but keeping up with none won't do your business any good.

When building your own website it's great to look to others for design tips and examples but in the end you need to blaze your own trail and build a site that is unique to your business, skill set and market.

There are many ways to design a website and many software programs you can use. For all my websites I use a program called WordPress. It's free with any good hosting company and it allows you to get a website up and running very quickly.

Do You Have A ? The Secret to Mental Agility

We all know to exercise our bodies to keep fit, but how often do you think about exercising your brain? And what type of exercise does it need anyway? What are the facts? What is the secret to mental agility?

Keeping mentally active will keep your brain in good shape. Getting older does not mean that you have to be forgetful!

Recent research into Alzheimer's disease found that people who were less active between the ages of 20 and 60 years are almost 4 times more likely to develop the disease. The brain, like the rest of the body, needs to be kept active to keep healthy.

You exercise your body to keep it in shape. Now it has been shown that exercising your brain can keep it in shape too.

That leaves us with the question of what to do to keep our brains active. The research discovered that how you spend your leisure time can affect the health of your brain.

Leisure activities can be divided into -

Passive activities, which include watching TV, participating in social activities, and listening to music.

Intellectual activities are reading, painting, playing a musical instrument, woodworking.

Physical activities, for example, gardening, playing sport, working out at the gym, walking, jogging.

The only 'activity' that the Alzheimer's patients had performed more frequently than the control group was watching TV!

The research team was lead by Robert Friedland, professor of neurology, University Hospitals of Cleveland. He said "A relative increase in the amount of time devoted to intellectual activities from early adulthood (ages 20-39) to mid-adulthood (ages 40-60) was associated with a significant decrease in the probability of having Alzheimer's disease later in life."

An intellectual or physical hobby stimulates the brain and may reduce neurodegeneration as seen in diseases such as Alzheimer's. So sitting watching the TV isn't enough for your brain, you need to keep it active. One way is by learning new things.

Many of the finalists in the Learning in Later Life Campaign 2000 to find England's oldest and most inspiring learners had art and painting as their hobby.

England's Oldest Learner was Fred Moore who was then aged 107 years. Fred continued with art classes until he died at the age of 109. The manager of his residential home said "Fred was a remarkable chap. He kept his memory, going back to the death of Queen Victoria, and always retained his great sense of humor."

So it's official then, learning a new hobby is good for you. Fancy learning to paint? Painting can be done indoors and outdoors, as well as by yourself or in a group.

It is never too late to start. Local night classes offer a range of options. Have a look online too.

Remember you can have a healthy brain and enjoy a hobby too. Don't leave it until tomorrow, begin today!

Catherine Calder is the author of the Acrylic Painting Course, a No-Draw step-by-step course ideal for anyone who wants to learn how to paint.

The Acrylic Painting Course is available at http://www.LearnAndDo.com

A free preview of the course showing all the stages for painting your own picture is available there. Also, the Top Ten Tips for Using Acrylic Paints.

Sign up to receive a gift of the 'How to Paint Abstract Art for Pleasure and Profit' report while you are there.

How to Look Younger With Skin Care Anti Wrinkle Cream

I bet you're frustrated over how your skin looks.

As you age and get to be 30, and then 40 and beyond, you notice your skin doesn't have the same glow. It doesn't feel as firm. So you start to buy skin care anti wrinkle cream and cosmetics.
 
But be careful not to get the two mixed up.
 
Professional anti aging creams should not feel greasy on your skin. When you apply them to your skin, they should be absorbed immediately. It shouldn't feel like a heavy coating on your skin. After you put on your anti wrinkle creams and lotions, then you can put on cosmetics.
 
If you use it consistently, you'll achieve fantastic results, assuming you buy an effective product.
 
Most cosmetics for younger skin, however, don't contain the powerful natural substances often found in specially formulated anti wrinkle creams. This is why you I recommend using separate products. For example, the one I've been using has an ingredient called Cynergy TK. You won't find this natural substance in many skin creams, let alone cosmetics. It's just been developed in New Zealand.
 
Cynergy TK, in clinical trials, has been shown to stimulate the regrowth of collagen and elastin in human skin. Collagen and elastin are the two skin proteins chiefly responsible for young, smooth, supple, skin.
 
When you're young, you don't have to think about things like collagen and elastin loss. You don't have to worry about age spots, wrinkles, and sagging skin either. But, face it, now you do.
 
Only anti aging skin care creams, not cosmetics advertised for "younger-looking skin", will contain the ingredients that improve skin tone and feel. Ingredients like Phytessence Wakame, which is an extract from Japanese sea kelp. Good luck finding that on a cosmetics label.
 
Wakame helps control inflammation (a big skin ager). It regulates the level of hyaluronic acid in the body. Hyaluronic acid, along with collagen and elastin, act like "glue", keeping skin smooth.
 
Visit my website and learn about more natural substances in the most effective skin care anti wrinkle cream.  And remember, in the morning, always put on your anti aging skin cream before your cosmetics foundation.  

Carol Truesdale passionately believes in vibrant health through prevention. She's a lifelong consumer of natural skin care products. Visit her site now to discover the skin care anti wrinkle cream [http://www.dietary-supplements-guide.com/Quality-Skin-Care-Product.html] she recommends after extensive research.