Here is  a great collection of Useful Web Apps for Freelance Web Designers to help you increase your productivity.

In software engineering, a web application or webapp is an application that is accessed via a web browser over a network such as the Internet or an intranet. Web applications are popular due to the ubiquity of web browsers, and the convenience of using a web browser as a client, sometimes called a thin client. The ability to update and maintain web applications without distributing and installing software on potentially thousands of client computers is a key reason for their popularity, as is the inherent support for cross-platform compatibility. Common web applications include webmail, online retail sales, online auctions, wikis and many other functions.

Here’s a great starting compilation of web apps that every web developer, designer and freelancer should consider.
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I’ve put together a list of 5 must-haves that every small business website needs to include. Whether you’re building a website yourself, or have a web designer to do it for you, work through this check list and you won’t go wrong.

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What does a small  business gain by having a website? Customers! Small business owners need to realize that people aren’t using the yellow pages for anything other than door stops these days (except maybe my wife…that’s another story). In the past year, all three major search engines are skewing search queries towards local even when a user doesn’t include a local modifier. Small Business Owners owners need to not only create a Web presence, but they need to control it as well! It’s possible to create a Web presence without a full site thanks to things like Facebook, Yelp, Manta and other social media outlets. However, you have no control on any of those outlets. You have no say on how they’ll let you connect with customers. You can’t create an email list on Twitter. By relying on “other” sites to house your conversations you’re severely handicapping yourself.

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One of the great things about promotional pens is that they get around. Most people only expect their pens to be seen by the first recipients they give them to, but this usually isn’t the case. Pens exchange hands often – about 5 times on average – throughout their lifetimes. This is great news for any company that uses custom pens as brand awareness or marketing tools. As the pen makes its way around the globe, exposure to your custom imprint doubles, triples, quadruples, and so on. READ MORE →

Whichever business you’re in, and especially for anyone in the field of design, such as web designers, a business card can be as important as your website identity.

A business card creates a physical connection and bond between you or your business and your customers.

Just like in a website, business cards can become great interactive elements, but with the added ability to have real textures, different materials and shapes.

Here are some great examples of the creativity used in business card design, to help set them apart from the norm!

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This setup is a perfect solution for users who would like to sync appointments and calendar data between their iPhone and their desktop. You will need a Google Calendar account for this to work and these instructions are for a PC only.
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Ultimate list of top WordPress plugins arranged by category and providing description, information, and links to the download page. These several WordPress plugins will help you in developing and optimizing your WordPress blog.
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For many small businesses, the initial lack of customers and cash flow often causes them to put off designing a logo and marketing materials professionally, at least “until they get a few clients”, or “until they get up and running.”

Often, as a cost-saving measure, many opt for creating their own designs. Many times, designing your own marketing materials when you launch your businesses – rather than having them professionally created, can make getting those initial clients more difficult, and may work against your business’ success.
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Creative block is horrible. Facing a project or deadline, without a clear mental vision of your project is one of the most frustrating feelings you can experience as a designer. Creative Block is like a black hole in the middle of your day, collapsing on all of your time and process.

At these times, this is usually when I walk the dogs through my small town. There are many small shops and restaurants, with unique antiques and trinkets. One shop had a set of old typesetting blocks from a printshop. Looking at these, I found myself thinking of a usable idea for a logo project on which I was feeling quite lost.

Where do you turn for inspiration? Have you found ideas in unusual places? Most of us turn to online sources, where we can find stories like this one, with examples of others’ inspiration, to help us along our way. I found an excellent listing of online resources for Design Inspiration when I was last in this position, and thought I’d share!

Hopefully, one or all of these will bring you a glimmer of hope. If all else fails, get a dog and walk….
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