2024 Hello CharlieIt took longer than expected, but the new Hello Charlie Coloring Books website is finally live. It was a process that extended beyond a month, partly because I’ve shifted my focus from intensive web design to creating clean, easy-to-maintain, responsive, and quick websites. This approach required updating my knowledge on search engine functionalities and adhering to the latest standards like GDPR compliance, not to mention learning to use modern website builders.
Once, flaunting one’s web design skills was a mark of pride. However, the internet evolves rapidly, and maintaining websites has become more cumbersome unless it’s a full-time endeavor. Regrettably, my other site has been neglected for years, now appearing outdated even to me—it wasn’t even optimized for mobile devices.
You might find it interesting that my old LunarStudio website was once a uniquely designed site, centered both vertically and horizontally, a departure from the typical upper-left-corner layout. It was minimalistic in text but managed to secure the top spot on Google for numerous key terms, a status many companies would pay dearly to hold. This visibility was crucial in attracting numerous clients.
Life, however, tends to redirect us. New people, projects, marriages, home purchases, and even children have led to my main site falling embarrassingly out of date. Despite this, my work in creating realistic and cutting-edge renderings continued, although updating the site became a lesser priority.
But now, with the Hello Charlie coloring book project, I’ve found a renewed reason to dive back into web development. Writing PHP scripts and manually coding HTML and CSS are long gone. I recognized nearly 15 years ago the need for responsive web design, as advised by Matt Cutts from Google. Web design has evolved from simple layouts to complex structures accommodating numerous devices and screen sizes, necessitating a well-thought-out approach for the new site.
These days, I prefer using WordPress along with builders like Divi or Elementor, which simplify much of the previously manual and tedious work. This setup also facilitates easier updates. The downside is that many WordPress plugins have shifted to paid subscription models, and the code can be bloated—less of an issue now with powerful mobile devices, widespread CDN usage, and faster internet speeds.
The search engine landscape has also shifted. Google now prioritizes dynamic and fresh content over static content and has adapted to the dominance of mobile usage over desktops. Google Blogs are out, while Google Local and schema have become essential. Traditional search engine crawling has been replaced by more efficient methods like IndexNow.
In conclusion, while I could delve deeper into the myriad tips and tricks that once helped launch many careers, I’m currently focusing on revamping several outdated websites (except my LunarStudio, which needs a complete overhaul) and designing a new website that appears simple yet is complex under the hood.
Please take a moment to visit Hello Charlie Coloring Books. If you’re inclined, your support through purchasing our new book titles would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.