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Online Identities
In my quest to learn more about the Internet, website development, and online marketing—at first to create a site for myself—I enrolled in a three-month "boot camp" in 2001, which required a full-site design for course completion. I then began developing sites for artists, writers, and other creative professionals, as well as restaurants, b&bs, and various small businesses.
This work involved planning the architecture so that a site would be easy to navigate, designing a look and feel that left visitors feeling pleased rather than frustrated, as well as writing succinct no-nonsense copy, photographing content, coding html and building pages, writing effective meta tags, testing, setting up host accounts, launching, and optimizing for search engines.
My goal was to create "online identities," sites that truly represented the character, appeal, and success of an individual or business, without having the site call attention to itself as my creation. I learned a lot of technology, mostly by doing, but listening proved to be my most essential skill—learning about an artist or business, and translating that into a website.
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Ernest Porcelli's Art Glass Studio
The first site I created was for Ernest Porcelli, in exchange for time in his stainedglass studio doing my glass fusion. A few years later, I redesigned the site in order to improve the look, upgrade the code, and expand the pages.
What I Did
- design & content plan
- navigational architecture
- copywriting & editing
- photoshop: scanning, sizing, cropping; some digital photography
- html, javascript, cgi, and css
- meta tag key words
- set up host account, tested, and launched
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Testimonial
Leigh Wood really captured the feeling of a glass gallery in the website she created for me. I can't think of a better way to display my glass art to customers, other than having them come to the studio and see it in front of them, or to one of my shows. Also, it's a great tool for selling my work from a distance, to individuals and retailers.
— Ernest Porcelli
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New Rivers Restaurant
This site was only my third, and still gets plenty of compliments, according to the owner, Bruce Tillinghast. It was also the first web job I landed through a cold call—by going there one night for a glass of wine and chatting with Bruce.
What I Did
- design & content plan
- navigational architecture
- photoshop: scanning, sizing, cropping; some interior and exterior photography
- html, javascript, and css
- meta tag key words
- set up host account, tested, and launched
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Testimonial
Developing a web site for my restaurant, New Rivers, seemed like such a challenge to me. Even though I had been a Graphic Designer, I had no experience in the technology it takes to produce such a product. I knew we needed a site, it was a frequently asked question from callers wanting to know what New Rivers was like. I knew it would save time and give people a better sense of what we were all about rather than just a description over the phone.
Working with Leigh Wood was an easy, pleasurable experience. I had some specific thoughts about what I was looking for in a website and Leigh was able to translate the ideas into a product that I feel embodies the atmosphere here at New Rivers. We get lots of positive feedback on the design of the site. And Leigh did such a great job of capturing the warm, romantic ambience of the restaurant, that I know sending a prospective customer to the site will definitely capture them and bring them in. After all, a picture is worth a thousand words.
— Bruce Tillinghast Chef/Owner
New Rivers
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Lori Longbotham
Food Writer
Lori was a friend of a friend, whom I really didn't know. She had been writing magazine articles for years and had published a couple of successful books. One book had sparked a series, and she was advised to create her own website. This was the first site I created without meeting my client in person beforehand, so it was difficult to envision what to do, what she might like. The site has grown, along with the series! And now Lori and I break bread together on a regular basis.
What I Did
- design & content plan
- navigational architecture
- plate animation on contact page
- photoshop: scanning, sizing, cropping; some digital photography
- html, javascript, and css
- meta tag key words
- set up host account, tested, and launched
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Testimonial
I am very happy and very impressed with the website that Leigh Wood designed for me. She made a real effort to understand my business, and my needs and objectives for the site, and then put it all together in record time. She was also able to keep it simple and therefore affordable. Driven to please, she did not stop working on it, changing and adjusting design elements, until I loved it, and really personalized it for me. I use my computer like a typewriter and was a little intimidated about getting involved in something so technical, but I didn't have to understand a thing or worry about knowing anything. Instead, it was, a delightful process—fun and anxiety-free. At every stage she responsible, reliable, and able to quickly and easily solve problems. I would like to say it was a great partnership, but it wasn't—she did everything.
— Lori Longbotham
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Joanna Torrey
Fiction and Magazine Writer
The challenge here was to organize a lot of material. In coming up with the design, it helped to know that Joanna likes green, and that she received some uniquely worded reviews, which I used as art on the home page!
What I Did
- design & content plan
- navigational architecture
- photoshop: scanning, sizing, cropping
- html, javascript, and css
- meta tag key words
- set up host account, tested, and launched
- set up email account as popmail, with Outlook Express
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Testimonial
I love the design of my website. I've received a lot of compliments from other writers, not to mention everyone else. The colors and design are so unusual and every time I go to my site I feel all over again how perfectly it seems to represent me and my writing. Leigh really does my "identity" online. The site has also provided me with an incredibly useful tool for showing editors the range of my work. My portfolio is right there on line and I don't have to spend my life at a Xerox machine. Leigh figured out how to organize all the work I've done over the years into a beautiful chronology, and there it is in front of everyone — ready to get me more work!
— Joanna Torrey, author of He Goes, She Goes and Hungry
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New England Linen Supply
This site posed an interesting challenge: How to make white towels and sheets, tablecloths and napkins, and various work clothes look appealing, not to mention industrial washing machines and conveyor belts. The company already had a four-page website, which barely touched on all the industries served by this very successful family-run business. The management felt it needed upgrading, and I had a lot of ideas.
What I Did
- design & content plan
- navigational architecture
- all copywriting
- photography
- photo research
- photoshop: scanning, sizing, cropping
- html, javascript, css, cgi
- meta tag key words
- tested and launched to client's existing host account
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Testimonial
Thanks for the great job on our new site! We are very excited to use this site to our benefit and as tool for our customers
& staff. The individual pages are impressive and truly represent our company and the diverse products and
services offered.
Your drive for educating yourself in our industry, our customer base, facility and staff, as well as the actual use of
products and services, is proven in your writing and design of our site. The feedback from our newly designed site
makes us very proud to have this representing us on the internet.
Thanks again for the outstanding work,
— Ed King
New England Linen Supply
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La Cappella B&B
This site was only the second I developed, and the first for cash payment. Although very simple, it was effective, because I researched well-trafficked B&B portals on which I could create links back to this site, and kept the cost low by using only the three most popular portals.
What I Did
- design & content plan
- navigational architecture
- all copywriting
- photography
- photoshop: scanning, sizing, cropping
- html, javascript, css
- meta tag key words
- set up host account, tested, and launched
- set up pages on B&B portals to link to website
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Testimonial
I have been very happy with my website, created by Leigh Wood. I know that it has made a real difference in the volume of business I've received. Having a site that's attractive, well written, and easy to navigate, has sent an effective message to my guests. Many of them compliment the site. I really love the colors and design, and feel proud of my image online. Also, people find me! Leigh set me up with a marketing plan that works. As a result, I've received national press attention. I would highly recommend her.
— Frank "Cy" Cybulski
La Cappella Bed & Breakfast
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And A Few More Samples...
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