Sizzle is proud to announce the completion of its most recent project - the new website for Astra Signs! As one of the UK's premier signage agencies, Astra have created impressive displays for clients as influential as the University of Manchester, Manchester City Football Club, H&M, and Manchester Arndale.

The new website reflects the business's public image - sleek, refined, and contemporary. Fancy Javascript effects courtesy of the incredible MooTools library make navigating the site a visual treat, while slick XHTML and CSS (backed up by ASP.Net wonderfulness) ensure the site displays consistently across a wide range of end-user devices. The site features a host of dynamic features, including a Content Management System, gallery and portfolio functionality, and an on-site price calculator.

The site was completed as part of Astra Signs' total rebranding initiative, and was built around their specific corporate identity. Here at Sizzle we don't try and force our clients to change their style to suit our websites - your website should reflect your brand, not the other way round!

Creating an effective website from scratch is no easy feat. Anyone can create a basic web presence using off-the-shelf software, but for something that’ll deliver the marketing results you’re after, you’re going to need to get a little more technical.

Here at Sizzle Media, we love ‘technical’. We live for technology. We’re nerds. We know how the Internet works, and we know what does and doesn’t work in terms of web design. Your site might be funky looking, but if you don’t know what you’re doing on a technical level, it could be less than useless.

Search engines hate sloppy code, and if your site wasn’t written by nerds like us, it’s almost guaranteed to be built on a sloppy base. And if search engines don’t index your site, nobody’s going to find it. And if nobody can find your website, why have one in the first place?

Sleek designers might be able to wow visitors once they’re on your site, but it’s the geeks that got them there in the first place. At our Manchester-based studio, development nerds and design jocks work in harmony, creating very cool websites backed up with solid, un-cool code. We use xHTML and CSS for our sites - xHTML pages for content, external CSS files for design. This combination has a few major benefits and tonnes of minor ones.

Firstly, unlike its precursor HTML, xHTML is a ‘strict’ language with no ambiguity. A well-coded XHTML site will look the same on your PC as your Mac, and will even look good on your mobile phone or PDA. It can even be easily interpreted by non-visual devices, like screen readers for blind people.

Secondly, CSS is really efficient. Without going into too much boring detail, using a CSS file means the site’s design only has to be defined once, rather than the old-fashioned method of including the style alongside the content of every requested page. This makes each page smaller, and small pages download faster.

Thirdly, search engines love it. Search engines aren’t interested in style, only content. By separating the two and adhering to universally-accepted web standards, you ensure that search engine spiders aren’t going to get confused or lost when indexing your pages.

If your site is nice-looking, fast-loading, and easily indexed by search engines, you’re all set for web success. Don’t get complacent, though! This is only the beginning. Unless you’ve got a really stunning idea, a website alone isn’t going to catapult you to superstardom. For real business glory, you’re going to need some sort of marketing campaign, online or otherwise.

Fortunately, you’re already on the website of the best web development and marketing team in the North West and maybe the world – Sizzle Media! Whether you want a basic web presence, a full e-commerce site, or you just need someone to help you get some business cards printed, we can help. And, as a final treat, our ingenious 'Pay Monthly' scheme means that even the fanciest websites can be developed with a minimal financial impact!