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Déployer GitLab sur AWS EC2 avec Walrus

Déployer GitLab sur AWS EC2 avec Walrus

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Déployer GitLab sur AWS EC2 avec Walrus est une tâche complexe, mais pas impossible. Découvrez comment le faire dans ce tutoriel !

  • An AWS Account with access to EC2 and VPC.

  • A Walrus Account.

    • H2 : Walrus, plateforme open-source de gestion d’applications, équipe votre équipe avec des modèles conçus pour optimiser les meilleures pratiques. Dans cet article, nous vous guiderons à travers le processus de création d’un modèle AWS GitLab et déploiement d’un serveur GitLab sur une instance EC2 AWS.

  • An AWS account with permissions to create and manage EC2 instances.

  • A Walrus account with access to the Walrus CLI.

    • Creating the Template

    The first step is to create a template for your GitLab server. This template will define the configuration of the server, such as the instance type, the operating system, and the software packages that will be installed. You can use the Walrus CLI to create a template from scratch, or you can use one of the pre-built templates provided by Walrus.

    Une plateforme de gestion d’applications open source appelée Walrus équipe votre équipe de modèles conçus pour optimiser les meilleures pratiques. Dans cet article, nous vous guiderons à travers le processus de création d’un modèle AWS GitLab et de déploiement d’un serveur GitLab sur une instance EC2 AWS.

    Prérequis

    1. Un dépôt GitHub ou GitLab pour stocker le modèle.

    2. Un compte AWS avec les autorisations nécessaires pour créer et gérer des instances EC2.

    3. Un compte Walrus avec accès à la ligne de commande Walrus.

    Créer le modèle

    La première étape consiste à créer un modèle pour votre serveur GitLab. Ce modèle définira la configuration du serveur, telles que le type d’instance, le système d’exploitation et les logiciels qui seront installés. Vous pouvez utiliser la ligne de commande Walrus pour créer un modèle à partir de zéro ou utiliser l’un des modèles préconstruits fournis par Walrus.

    Une fois que vous avez créé le modèle, vous pouvez le stocker dans votre dépôt GitHub ou GitLab. Vous pouvez ensuite utiliser le logiciel Walrus pour déployer le modèle sur votre instance EC2. Le logiciel Walrus vous permet de définir des paramètres tels que la taille de l’instance, le système d’exploitation et les packages logiciels à installer. Une fois que vous avez configuré tous les paramètres, vous pouvez cliquer sur le bouton « Déployer » pour déployer le modèle sur votre instance EC2.

    Une fois le déploiement terminé, vous pouvez accéder à votre serveur GitLab en utilisant l’adresse IP publique de votre instance EC2. Vous pouvez également utiliser le logiciel Walrus pour surveiller l’état de votre serveur GitLab et mettre à jour le modèle si nécessaire. Vous pouvez également utiliser le logiciel Walrus pour sauvegarder et restaurer votre serveur GitLab en cas de problème.

    Source de l’article sur DZONE

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    Filtres de Bloom : filtrage de données efficace avec applications pratiques.

    Filtres de Bloom : filtrage de données efficace avec applications pratiques.

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    Les Filtres de Bloom sont une méthode de filtrage de données très efficace qui offre des applications pratiques variées. Découvrez comment elle peut vous aider !

    Comprendre les filtres Bloom

    Application dans le monde réel

    Les filtres Bloom sont largement utilisés dans le monde réel pour des applications telles que la vérification de l’identité, la détection de spam et la vérification de la sécurité. Par exemple, lorsque vous vous connectez à un site Web, le serveur peut utiliser un filtre Bloom pour vérifier si votre adresse IP est autorisée à accéder au site. Les filtres Bloom sont également utilisés pour le codage, car ils peuvent être utilisés pour détecter les erreurs dans les données transmises. Les filtres Bloom peuvent également être utilisés pour le traitement des données, car ils peuvent être utilisés pour filtrer les données non pertinentes.

    Exemple pratique

    Pour illustrer le fonctionnement des filtres Bloom, prenons l’exemple d’un système qui stocke des informations sur les clients. Pour cela, nous allons créer un filtre Bloom avec m = 10 et k = 3. Nous allons ensuite ajouter les informations sur les clients à notre filtre Bloom en utilisant les trois fonctions de hachage. Pour vérifier si un client est présent dans le système, nous allons utiliser les mêmes fonctions de hachage et vérifier si toutes les positions correspondantes sont définies sur 1. Si c’est le cas, alors nous pouvons en conclure que le client est présent dans le système. Sinon, nous pouvons en conclure que le client n’est pas présent.

    Conclusion

    Les filtres Bloom sont des structures de données probabilistes qui permettent de tester efficacement l’appartenance d’un élément à un ensemble. Ils filtrent efficacement les éléments indésirables des vastes ensembles de données tout en maintenant une faible probabilité de faux positifs. Les filtres Bloom sont largement utilisés dans divers domaines tels que les bases de données, le cache, le réseau et bien plus encore. Dans cet article, nous avons exploré le concept des filtres Bloom, leur fonctionnement et illustré leur fonctionnement avec un exemple pratique. Les filtres Bloom sont particulièrement utiles pour le codage car ils peuvent être utilisés pour détecter les erreurs dans les données transmises.

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    Mise en œuvre de la découverte de services avec Spring Cloud (2e partie)

    Mise en œuvre de la découverte de services avec Spring Cloud (2e partie)

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    Dans cette deuxième partie, nous allons voir comment mettre en œuvre la découverte de services avec Spring Cloud. Préparez-vous à apprendre comment configurer et déployer vos services !

    Partie 2 de l’Article Spring Cloud: Comment Implémenter le Service Discovery (Partie 1)

    Dans la première partie de cet article, Spring Cloud: Comment implémenter le service de découverte (Partie 1), nous avons vu les bases du Service Discovery dans le contexte de Spring Cloud. Nous avons vu que la composante Netflix OSS Eureka est toujours le choix principal. Dans ce post, nous allons discuter de certains sujets supplémentaires liés à Eureka, tels que :

    API Java Client

    API REST

    Sécuriser le serveur de découverte et les services clients

    Combiner le Service Discovery avec la Configuration Distribuée

    Service Discovery : API Java Client

    Dans les exemples de la première partie de cet article, l’enregistrement et le récupération des fonctionnalités étaient exécutés sous le capot et nous avons seulement vu les résultats des tests de l’architecture entière en appelant un point de terminaison REST client. Il existe également une manière d’interagir avec l’API Eureka de manière programmatique, en utilisant des appels de méthodes Java. Un choix possible serait d’utiliser la classe EurekaClient. Par exemple, si nous voulons obtenir toutes les instances d’un service identifié par un ID particulier, nous pourrions écrire le code suivant, supposant que nous avons un client implémenté comme une application Spring Boot exposant des services REST :

    EurekaClient eurekaClient = new EurekaClient.Builder().build();

    Applications applications = eurekaClient.getApplications(« SERVICE_ID »);

    List instances = applications.getInstances();

    Une fois que nous avons obtenu la liste des instances, nous pouvons parcourir cette liste et récupérer les informations dont nous avons besoin, telles que l’adresse IP et le port sur lesquels le service est en cours d’exécution. Nous pouvons également effectuer des opérations supplémentaires sur les instances, telles que la mise à jour des informations ou la suppression d’une instance.

    Service Discovery : API REST

    Eureka fournit également une API REST qui peut être utilisée pour interagir avec le serveur de découverte. Cette API est très similaire à l’API Java client, mais elle est plus adaptée aux scénarios où nous devons interagir avec le serveur de découverte depuis un environnement non-Java ou depuis un script. Par exemple, si nous voulons récupérer toutes les instances d’un service spécifique, nous pouvons appeler l’URL suivante :

    http://:/eureka/apps/

    Cette URL retournera une réponse JSON contenant toutes les informations relatives à ce service et à ses instances. Nous pouvons également effectuer des opérations supplémentaires sur les instances, telles que la mise à jour des informations ou la suppression d’une instance, en appelant des URL spécifiques.

    Service Discovery : Sécurisation du serveur et des services clients

    Enfin, il est important de noter que le serveur Eureka et les services clients doivent être sécurisés pour éviter toute attaque malveillante. Par exemple, nous pouvons configurer Eureka pour utiliser HTTPS pour sécuriser les communications entre le serveur et les clients. Nous pouvons également configurer Eureka pour authentifier les clients et leurs requêtes en utilisant un système d’authentification basé sur des jetons. De plus, il est possible de configurer Eureka pour

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    PlatformCréer un client de secours avec Hazelcast Viridian Platform sans serveur

    PlatformCréer un client de secours avec Hazelcast Viridian Platform sans serveur

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    Vous pouvez facilement créer un client de secours avec Hazelcast Viridian Platform sans serveur, ce qui vous permet d’accéder à des données et services à tout moment.

    Mise en place d’un client de basculement pour une stratégie de reprise après sinistre

    En tant que scientifique informatique enthousiaste, je sais que le failover est une fonctionnalité importante des systèmes qui dépendent d’une disponibilité quasi constante. Dans Hazelcast, un client de failover redirige automatiquement son trafic vers un cluster secondaire lorsque le client ne peut pas se connecter au cluster primaire. Il est conseillé d’utiliser un client de failover avec la réplication WAN comme partie intégrante de votre stratégie de reprise après sinistre. Dans ce tutoriel, vous mettrez à jour le code d’un client Java pour qu’il se connecte automatiquement à un cluster secondaire de failover s’il ne peut pas se connecter à son cluster primaire d’origine. Vous effectuerez également un test simple pour vous assurer que votre configuration est correcte et l’ajusterez ensuite pour inclure la gestion des exceptions. Vous apprendrez comment recueillir toutes les ressources dont vous avez besoin pour créer un client de failover pour un cluster primaire et secondaire, créer un client de failover basé sur le client Java d’exemple, tester le failover et ajouter la gestion des exceptions pour les opérations.

    Étape 1: Configurer les clusters et les clients

    Créez deux clusters Viridian Serverless que vous utiliserez comme clusters primaires et secondaires, puis téléchargez et connectez des clients Java d’exemple à ceux-ci.

    Une fois que vous avez créé les clusters et les clients, vous devez créer une base de données qui contient les informations sur les clusters primaires et secondaires. Cette base de données doit être accessible à partir du client Java afin qu’il puisse accéder aux informations relatives aux clusters primaires et secondaires. Vous pouvez créer cette base de données en utilisant n’importe quel type de base de données relationnelle ou non relationnelle. Une fois que vous avez créé la base de données, vous devez y ajouter les informations sur les clusters primaires et secondaires. Vous pouvez également ajouter des informations supplémentaires telles que l’adresse IP du cluster primaire et secondaire, le port utilisé par le cluster, le nom du cluster, etc.

    Une fois que vous avez créé la base de données et ajouté les informations sur les clusters primaires et secondaires, vous pouvez maintenant configurer le client Java pour qu’il puisse accéder à cette base de données et récupérer les informations nécessaires. Pour ce faire, vous devez ajouter le code nécessaire à votre client Java pour qu’il puisse se connecter à la base de données et récupérer les informations nécessaires. Une fois que vous avez terminé cette étape, votre client Java est prêt à être utilisé pour se connecter aux clusters primaires et secondaires.

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    Geo-Routing with Apache APISIX

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    Apache APISIX, the Apache-led API Gateway, comes out of the box with many plugins to implement your use case. Sometimes, however, the plugin you’re looking for is not available. While creating your own is always possible, it’s sometimes necessary. Today, I’ll show you how to route users according to their location without writing a single line of Lua code.

    Why Geo-Routing?

    Geo-routing is to forward HTTP requests based on a user’s physical location, inferred from their IP. There are many reasons to do that, and here is a couple of them.

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    Designing Cloud-Based Multimedia Solutions

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    Private, public, or hybrid, cloud solutions for any business domain are designed to provide the freedom to grow and security for the organization and customer data. For cloud-based multimedia solutions, there is cloud-based custom transcoder IP that supports automated Video-On-Demand (VOD) pipelines. Cloud services offer solutions that ingest source videos, processes video for playback on a wide range of devices using cloud media converter, and store transcoded media files for on-demand delivery to end-users.  

    Custom IP integration along with other cloud services showcases better feasibility of using Open-Source codec, to use one’s transcoder instead of cloud media-converter for multimedia solutions. In this blog, we will see how an Open-Source codec like AV1 is selected as a custom IP for encoding to integrate over the cloud as a service.  

    Source de l’article sur DZONE

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    The UX of Maps in Web Design

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    Maps are a fascinating method for delivering content. At their best, they can create an intuitive way of presenting information and interacting with it. This is the advantage that digital maps, through mobile apps and websites, have over print maps and images where no interactivity is possible.

    But it’s important to understand that more data ≠ better experiences. We all now have so much data available to us through multiple services that, arguably, the greatest challenge isn’t sourcing information but filtering it out. We can only handle so much information input before we become overloaded. This issue risks being omnipresent with maps. There are so many potential points of interest on a map that it’s essential to be clear about what needs to be exposed to users.

    Also, UX design, map design, and user interface are all critical. While maps can be a powerful way of drawing people in, if end-users feel that you didn’t even consider the visual design, they’ll ‘bounce off’ your site or app in moments.

    Common Use Cases

    When are maps useful, and what problems do they solve? Let’s dive right into the most common use cases for maps used in web design.

    Navigation and Direction

    Like Google Maps shows, navigation and direction are arguably the classic case study for interactive maps. You are in one place and need to get to another. You can enter your destination, your current location, and the map will present suggestions for getting there. You can select the method of travel and adjust desired departure or arrival times. But you need to understand first what functionality your users need. How these options are exposed to users is a critical piece of UX design.

    Also, if users are searching for options such as somewhere to eat, it’s not so straightforward. Then, how your map handles panning in real-time as users swipe around a city is going to be a big issue.

    Showing Relationships and Trends Geographically

    This is something that you’ll see in every election in any western country. We’re all used to seeing maps that give us a state-of-play for which state or seat is held by which party. Then, we might see projections based on voter intentions and projected voting swings deriving from that. Then, exit poll data can be projected with the map updated on an ongoing basis until the final result is confirmed.

    The capability to do this is essential because if a static map were used, it’d be out of date any time a new poll was released. Also, voting intentions can change over a campaign, so such maps need to be dynamic. Of course, such maps are only as accurate as the available data, as the US 2016 election map showed.

    Show Points of Interest

    As mentioned previously, there’s a lot of data that can be exposed to map users. However, that doesn’t automatically mean that it should be. Usability is key. For example, when you look at a map, you’ll typically first see key points of interest. Which points of interest are going to be presented to you can vary.

    One variant is zoom level. If your map is currently showing an entire city, the level of detail the map presents is deliberately limited. You’ll see districts, large roads, or geographic features such as rivers. If more detailed information were presented, users on mobile devices, in particular, would be overwhelmed. Even at this level, you’ll notice typography differences. These can include the city name being in bold or the names of different areas in capital letters. So the level of detail is coupled with the scale of the map. Zooming in a few notches will expose significant points of interest, such as museums. Zooming in to specific districts will reveal restaurants, coffee shops, and universities. This visual hierarchy is a critical way of managing the exposed level of information.

    But information is still being abstracted away. It’s not until you tap on the museum that you’ll see information on opening hours and busy times. This is also typically presented with user photos and reviews. Context is also taken into account, so you’ll start to see local hotels and restaurants. So it’s not just individual points of interest that are important, but the connections between them.

    6 Tips For Improving Interactive Maps

    What are the challenges of creating effective maps, and how do people address the data overload problem? We’ll answer this question and go over the must-know aspects of map creation.

    1. Ensure Security and Brand Trust

    GDPR or General Data Protection Regulation. This is a critically important European law that extends a wide range of legal protection to European citizens regarding personal data. It’s not possible here to cover the full extent of the law, but here are some quick key points:

    • Consent is required for the processing of personal data; it cannot be assumed
    • You need to have a retention policy for information that’s capable of identifying people

    Be aware that the latter doesn’t just cover commercial purposes. Research students have to submit GDPR forms that address what kind of data they’re sourcing and how they’ll be retaining it.

    But the most crucial context is commercial. If a business suffers a data breach, it can be fined up to 20 million euros or 4% of annual worldwide turnover in the preceding financial year, whichever is greater. Therefore, any business storing data that could identify their customers will need to assess risk and compliance. Remember: it’s 4% of worldwide turnover, not EU turnover.

    Also, anything of your business that you expose to your customers or users is an extension of your brand. Therefore, you need to assess your maps for brand compliance too. If you have primary brand colors and your map doesn’t abide by them, that’s a very poor look. Source the color hex codes directly from your brand team and involve them in design.

    2. Use the Appropriate Type of Map

    It’s also important to consider what type of map is most appropriate for your use case. Think carefully about what your users need, what you’re trying to communicate, what information you need to present, and how best to present it.

    For example, points of interest style maps in a tourist app will be way more helpful than heat maps: people want to know where something is, key data like opening hours, and how to get there. A heat map showing the number of visitors to each attraction or area of a city is unlikely to be useful to tourists. However, it could be useful to the attractions themselves to map their visitors by heat map over time. This could help larger museums chart which exhibits are most popular.

    Transport for London is charting passenger movement on the London Underground by detecting when a device with Wi-Fi comes into range and then passes out of range. They’re using this to understand overall user journeys and movements within individual stations to better manage disruptions.

    3. Avoid Pop-Ups

    It should go without saying by now that auto pop-ups are despised. It doesn’t matter what they’re doing or what they’re offering; an unwanted pop-up can only get in the way. The level of impact is even greater on a phone where pop-ups take up even more screen space.

    Given this, many users close them without even reading them. So if you’re using pop-ups, don’t kid yourself. You’re likely just irritating users and increasing the likelihood that they’ll ‘bounce off’ or uninstall.

    4. Avoid Auto-Geolocation

    Auto-geolocation sounds incredibly convenient but can result in some real problems. For example, if there are any bugs with auto-geolocation, you could get false results. If someone connects through public building Wi-Fi, you could get false results. If they’re connecting through a VPN then, unless you get the user’s IP address and check if it’s the exit portal of a VPN, you could get false results.

    The problem is most significant with mobile maps. If a map user is looking at a points of interest map, they likely have a specific and immediate use. This means it’s in their best to get the most accurate results possible. So why not just ask them?

    Precision and Accuracy

    These terms have specific meanings in geolocation. ‘Precision’ is the exactness of the data. ‘Accuracy’ is how closely the information on a map matches the real world. So you want precision and accuracy to be spot on, or data risks losing value. This applies not just to the gathering of data but to the representation of it. For example, if you have street-level data but your maps don’t present individual streets, then any representation of data on that map is likely to have poor accuracy. That map might succeed in abstracting irrelevant information but presenting an imprecise and inaccurate view.

    5. Avoid Map Legends as Much as Possible

    In many cases, primarily points-of-interest maps, they’re just not needed anymore. An essential part of user experience design isn’t just visual hierarchy but information hierarchy. You can mouse over on a desktop or laptop to get the essentials of a location, e.g., the museum’s name and its opening hours. On a mobile device, you can tap on that location to get the essentials, and you can tap on another location to move on; you don’t even have to press back. Given that, a legend would get in the way. So this simple piece of information design solves information overload issues.

    As with all rules, there are exceptions. A good one is a heat map where a density of what’s being measured needs to be communicated. It doesn’t matter what the data is; it just needs to be something where mapping provides greater insight, especially if it informs decision-making. Sales is an excellent example for a national or multinational company. Of course, weather forecasting can make use of literal heat maps.

    6. Accessibility Compliance

    Not everyone has perfect eyesight. Even if someone has excellent vision, they could still be colorblind (8% of men and 0.5% of women are). Given that, take the W3C’s accessibility standards into account and treat them as a baseline or minimum barrier to entry for compliance. You shouldn’t feel good about the possibility of excluding 8% of your potential audience or customers. Ensure you keep your UX designers involved and don’t shy away from creating senior-friendly web designs.

    Put simply: imagine if you could appeal to a new demographic that’s not catered to. If your competitors ignore them, you could give them a real reason to choose you instead by taking some straightforward steps. If your competitors are catering to them, you also need to. If you don’t, you’re just giving potential customers a big reason to ignore you.

    Conclusions

    The key takeaway is that there’s far more to creating good maps than just good cartography. That can be critical, too, though this may vary depending on the use case.

    This will be a team effort because your map will involve data sets, design decisions, and, yes, cartography. You’re going to need to involve brand and IT too. So think about design principles and development methodologies.

    First and foremost, what are your users’ needs? If you haven’t done any user research or taken the time to understand the customer journey, are you adding anything or getting in the way? It’s easy to see the department that requested the map as stakeholders, but you should probably view your users as stakeholders too.

    This sounds complex, but as you hopefully now appreciate, a map is probably more complicated than you thought.

     

    Featured image via Pexels.

    Source

    The post The UX of Maps in Web Design first appeared on Webdesigner Depot.

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    7 Landing Pages Comparisons To Improve Your Conversions in 2022

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    Landing pages are crucial for conversions. User-friendly landing pages rank higher in the search engines and generate the maximum leads.

    Interestingly, user behavior changes every year, and new website design trends should be kept in mind to continue acquiring sales from your existing landing pages.

    If your high-performing landing pages in 2019 have suddenly started underperforming in 2021, then it is a clear indication that your landing pages need a strategic revamp to record higher conversions.

    Landing page revisions are necessary for reduced bounce rate, more visitor time on the page, and better user actions.

    This article will discuss some of the top web design trends of 2021 that brands have adopted to revamp their landing page designs. You can learn from the trends and apply your own custom design intelligence to redesign your landing pages for 2022 and convert the maximum number of visitors.

    Let’s begin…

    Why Landing Page Design Is Crucial For Conversions

    Landing pages are the first stop on your consumers’ online buying journey and the first chance to put an impression.

    People on the internet are becoming less patient. It takes only about 50 milliseconds for a visitor to form an opinion about a brand and decide whether they want to stay or leave the website.

    Convincing modern customers to buy products or fill up query forms on a landing page is not easy with traditional website elements.

    In 2021, it is now harder to impress visitors landing on your website than in 2019. Keeping in mind the audience of 2021 and beyond, an ideal landing page should be user-friendly, engaging, innovative and should encourage users to take action.

    Here are some of the top reasons why landing page design is so crucial for conversions:

    • You get barely 7 seconds to create a strong impression. It is a time span in which visitors roughly scan the page and make their decisions.
    • Publishing 40+ effective landing pages at regular intervals can generate 12X more leads.
    • The average conversion rate from the landing page across all industries is only 2.35%.
    • Using the right types of targeting and testing can boost landing page conversion rates by up to 300%.

    Considering the above stats, it can be easily said that a landing page has to be impressive and quick enough to impact the visitors positively.

    7 High Converting Landing Pages & Lessons You Can Learn From Each

    Below are some of the best high-converting landing pages, which were just updated recently in 2021. For each page, we list a lesson you can learn to inspire your next design revision in 2021 and ahead:

    Example #1 – Replace Boring Customer Info Forms With An Interactive Quiz

    Landing Page: Nextiva’s Unified Communications Readiness Quiz Landing Page

    Industry: Voice Over IP software

    Conversion Measured By: Leads fill out a form if they are interested

    Redesign focus: Improve the quantity and quality of leads

    Solution: Substitute online form with an interactive quiz

    In 2019 and even 2020, many businesses were practicing the trend of including a customer form on their landing pages as a call to action to initiate a quick customer action.

    The customer information form was useful for businesses because it helped them generate quick leads. However, at the same time, there was no real reason pushing the customer to fill in the lead forms especially if it consisted of more than 2-3 fields.

    Nextiva used its creativity to replace boring lead forms with interactive quizzes. In its 2021 page design, the company added a quiz for visitors to participate in.

    The aim is to have interactive pages to keep visitors engaged and persuade them to stay on the page.

    Here are the comparisons of both the designs:

    2019

    2021

    Key Takeaways:

    • The 2021 landing page now has a free Unified Communications Readiness Quiz that allows business owners to fill the form interactively. Adding a quiz with the number of pages mentioned at the top tells the user how many steps are left to complete the quiz, making their waiting time easier.
    • The background image is replaced with communication icons to simplify the message of the kind of services they offer.
    • The page looks neater and appears to be easier to scan at a glance.

    Example #2 – Emphasize Strong Visuals and Copy that Stresses on Product Details

    Landing Page: Western Rise Homepage Variation

    Industry: Ecommerce

    Conversion Measured By: Apparel purchase

    Major redesign focus: Improve the number of leads

    Solution: Improve the copy and visuals

    Western Rise, a clothing eCommerce company, realized the importance of having impressive images and detailed product information on its landing page.

    The 2021 page replaced ordinary product images with strong visuals of the models wearing Western Rise clothing. Also, the product image includes extensive product details, which were missing on the older page.

    Here is a clear comparison of the 2019 vs. 2021 landing pages of Western Rise:

    2019

    2021

    Key Takeaways:

    • The new landing page has a powerful headline – Performance Clothing for Travel, Work, and Play. In just a couple of words, the brand tells everything about itself. ‘Performance Clothing’ is their unique selling proposition (USP) that tells the customers that their product is durable. Besides, the caption ‘Travel, Work, and Play’ tells what the product is about. Modern customers like products that fulfill a particular need, and Western Rise made it easier for the users to realize the importance of their products which fulfilled their specific needs.
    • The bold visuals in the new page capture contemporary shots of the models that put a strong impression on the audience. Every image is clicked mindfully to explain the style and quality of the Western Rise clothing line.
    • The products displayed on the new page include every minor detail and feature that often other clothing brands ignore, such as the specialty of the product, occasions to wear, and weight other than colors, fabric, fitting, etc.

    Example #3 – Use Strong Social Proof To Increase Conversions

    Page: Aura Save 50% Landing Page

    Industry: Identity Theft Software

    Conversion Measured By: Online registration or an inbound call

    Major redesign focus: Improve the number of signups

    Solution: Add strong social proof

    It is a known fact that social proof on sales pages is essential for increased conversions. But in 2021, the importance of social proof has gone too far.

    Aura is an identity theft protection service that aims to build trust with its prospective customers when they first browse their landing page. Take a look at how Aura displays customer reviews above the fold to catch user’s attention.

    Unlike others, Aura combined the rating stars and the review to prove customer satisfaction and emphasize their expertise in the field.

    BONUS:

    Another example of using strong social proof is the Exploding Topics newsletter landing page.

    Exploding Topics is a newsletter with a pro subscription for content marketers and anyone interested in trending topics about any topic. It’s an excellent example that uses a lot of social proof on landing pages that give something away for free, like a weekly newsletter or an eBook.

    If you could notice, the latest landing page below has multiple forms of social proof on a single page. First, they feature a list of brands that trust Exploding Topics. Secondly, they quote Wired Magazine founder Kevin Kelly’s feedback, followed by the logos and tweets praising the newsletter.

    Key Takeaways:

    • Exploding Topics uses several different types of social proof that appeal to different demographics.
    • Their “trusted by” logos of world-renowned companies stand out to potential B2B subscribers.
    • Kevin Kelly’s quote is catching the attention of tech-savvy readers.
    • Despite packing the page with social proof, the opt-in form is still well above the fold. It is the best landing page practice that applies to nearly all pages.
    • The landing page uses actually embedded tweets (not screenshots), which help demonstrate that the tweets are legit.

    While Exploding Topics have smartly used social proof on its page, the ideas of leveraging social proof are not limited to this only.

    Example #4 – Focus On Visually Appealing Above the Fold Content

    Landing Page: Perfect Keto Homepage Variation

    Industry: Supplements

    Conversion Measured By: Online purchase

    Major redesign focus: Improve the number of purchases

    Solution: Improve Above The Fold Content

    Above the fold content greatly impacts customer’s decision-making. Perfect Keto lacked that appeal on its 2019 landing page design.

    Hence, the 2021 design was revamped with better visuals and more professional looks.

    The 2021 page received major changes in above-the-fold content, such as the top menu bar with the brand name not losing the user’s attention anymore and an additional menu bar giving a quick overview of what the brand offers.

    The older page did have many social proofs, but those were limited to customers only. The 2021 design also highlighted the publications where the brand appeared, which proved exceptional in building customer trust.

    Take a look at the two landing pages of Perfect Keto in 2019 and 2021:

    2019

    2021

    Key Takeaways:

    • The 2021 landing page heading is more compelling because it clearly conveys what their product is all about. The older page was missing the actual purpose of the product.
    • An additional section on the new page to educate customers about the Keto diet and how to start it helps visitors understand the product even better.
    • The inclusion of a product image above the fold attracts user attention and makes the product trustworthy. People now know what they will be buying right at first sight of the page.
    • The new page proudly displays the products featured in the publications, such as Women’s Health, Healthline, Reader’s Digest, and Popsugar, which again helped customers trust the brand.
    • The page also features a video of the Perfect Keto founder that is brilliantly working in gaining visitor’s attention and faith.

    Example #5 – Make The Call to Action More Compelling

    Landing Page: Zendesk HelpDesk Softwage Landing Page

    Industry: SaaS

    Conversion Measured By: Online registration

    Major redesign focus: Improve the number of registrations through the website

    Solution: Make The CTA More Compelling

    Zendesk did a clever job by replacing the sign-up form with a single button. On the older page, it was unclear to the user if the company has a trial option for free unless they move to linked pages. Such confusions often resulted in traffic bounces.

    Adding the start free trial button on the 2021 page makes it easier for the users to understand that the product comes with a free trial. At the time, it helps the user take quick action.

    Similarly, the ‘Get started’ button at the top was replaced with ‘Free trial’ with the same intention.

    Moreover, chat support was added to guide users at any stage of the buyer journey. Live chats are vital to help visitors better understand the product and move a step ahead in the customer journey.

    Take a look at below two images:

    2019

    2021

    Key Takeaways

    • The CTA buttons have more actionable text and look more prominent.
    • The color choice for the button is in contrast with the background but matches the page theme.
    • The older page missed sales support, which is included in the new page for a better customer experience.
    • The tabs in the menu bar were reduced to four to make the page simple to use for users.

    Example #6 – Use Contrast To Highlight Specific Copy On The Page

    Landing Page: GetResponse Website Building Landing Page

    Industry: Online Software

    Conversion Measured By: Online signup

    Major redesign focus: Improve the number of signups

    Solution: Use contrast around important copy on the page

    GetResponse focuses on attracting visitors’ attention towards the offerings from their business. Starting from above the fold section, the landing page highlights the texts that are important and need the visitors’ attention.

    The infographic on the landing page is the next thing that promises to grab user attention while beautifully describing how this website builder works and is useful to the user.

    Key Takeaways:

    • The text highlighted on the landing page draws the user’s attention towards what the business has to offer or unique selling points.
    • The infographics briefly explain the working of the tool in an easy-to-understand manner.
    • The Yellow color is used prominently on the landing page to attract user attention and persuades users to try the tool by listing its advantages.

    Summary

    Landing pages provide the first opportunity to create an impression in the minds of the consumers. A well-structured and mindfully designed page sets the right tone for your brand message and encourages users to choose your business.

    However, the strategy for landing pages needs innovations from time to time for better results. The examples and tips shared above prove how landing pages in 2019 have seen significant improvement in 2021.

    In the coming year, use these ideas to create landing pages that influence customer decisions and encourage them to take quick actions.

    Source

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    9 Must-Install Craft CMS Plugins

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    Craft CMS is increasing in popularity, and as it does, the previously relatively scant range of plugins is growing rapidly.

    There are plugins for Craft ranging from simple field utilities to the full ecommerce solution provided by Pixel & Tonic — the makers of Craft.

    An early decision that has borne fruit for Craft has been the plugin licensing model. Paid plugins for Craft charge an initial license fee and then a reduced annual renewal price for updates. This ongoing payment structure ensures plugin maintenance is economically viable for developers, and as a result, Craft plugins tend to be updated more often and are abandoned less.

    The best plugins depend very much on the site you’re developing and what you’re trying to achieve. However, some are so universally useful that I install them on virtually every site I build; here’s a list.

    1. Redactor

    Installing Redactor is a no-brainer when it comes to picking your plugins. Maintained by Pixel & Tonic, it’s a rich text field that extends Craft‘s basic text input. It’s so useful it may as well be part of the core Craft code.

    One of the best features is the ease with which Redactor can be customized. Just duplicate the settings file inside the config directory and edit its contents to alter what editing options are available; it’s simple to create anything from a field with a bold option to a full rich text editor. In addition, each Redactor field can be set to use any of the settings files.

    Free

    2. Retcon

    When you’re outputting code from a rich text field like Redactor, you’ll get clean HTML output — which most of the time is what you want. However, if you’re using something like Tailwind, those classes are non-negotiable. I’m not a fan of Tailwind, but I am a fan of using classes in my CSS selectors instead of element names.

    Retcon is an invaluable plugin that extends Twig filters to supply a host of options when you’re outputting content. It can add classes to elements, insert attributes, modify the element type, and tons more.

    Free

    3. Venveo Bulk Edit

    During the life of a site, there’s a good chance that you’re going to have to alter fields and sections after the content is in. It’s a common problem if you’re importing data from another platform using FeedMe, or if you have an indecisive client, or even if the site is simply growing.

    Venveo Bulk Edit is a plugin that integrates closely with the Craft UI and allows you to edit the contents of multiple entries at once. This plugin has saved me hundreds of hours that would otherwise have been spent painstakingly editing entries one at a time.

    Free

    4. Super Table

    At some point, you’re going to need a configurable list of inputs. Maybe you’re creating a list of documents to download, building a directory, or even your site navigation. You could create a new channel and then add the entries as an entry field, or even set it up with a matrix field, but this is awkward to edit even with Craft 3.7’s new editing experience.

    I’m a big fan of opting for the simplest solution, and in this case, the simplest option is a table field. Unfortunately, Craft’s built-in table field has limited field type support. Super Table, on the other hand, supports almost anything, giving you a powerful, orderable set of fields.

    Free

    5. No-Cache

    Craft has a really powerful caching system. It allows you to cache whole or partial templates, and it‘s intelligent enough to know when you’ve edited content that has been cached so that it can be re-cached.

    Understanding Craft’s caching is vital; as a very general guide, dynamic content benefits from caching, but static content does not.

    However, you will regularly encounter situations where you want to opt out of the caching. A blog post, for example, could be cached, but the time since it was posted must not be, or every post would appear to have been published “today” until the cache is refreshed.

    The No-Cache plugin adds a couple of Twig tags that allow you to temporarily opt-out of the cache. This means that you can cache larger sections of your templates, simplifying your caching decisions considerably while still being able to fine-tune what is cached.

    Free

    6. Retour

    Sooner or later, you’re going to have users hitting 404 errors. If you’re restructuring a site and changing the architecture, it will be sooner. To avoid breaking the UX and SEO, you need to add redirects.

    Retour is a helpful plugin that sits in your dashboard side menu. Anytime a user triggers a 404, Retour will flag it up, so you can decide how to redirect the URL in the future.

    $59 for the first year; $29/year for updates after that

    7. Sherlock

    One of Craft’s big strengths is its security. A lot of attention has gone into making sure that the core installation uses best practices. However, as with any CMS, potential security vulnerabilities start to creep in as soon as you introduce 3rd-party code (WordPress’ biggest vulnerability by far is its plugins).

    You only need to look at the size of the vendor directory in your installation to see how many 3rd-party dependencies your site has. Even a small site is a house of cards.

    Sherlock is a security scanner that performs a number of different tasks to help you stay secure, from checking on security threats in 3rd-party scripts to checking directory permissions. The paid version will even let you limit IP addresses if your site comes under attack — although your hosting company may well do this for you.

    Lite: Free
    Plus: $199 for the first year; $99/year for updates after that
    Pro: $299 for the first year; $149/year for updates after that

    8. Imager X

    Craft’s built-in image transforms are a little limited. For example, they only work with actual assets, not remote images.

    Imager X is an excellent plugin that, among many benefits, allows you to transform remote images. In addition, its refined syntax is perfect for coding complex art direction.

    Imager X isn’t cheap, but considering the enormous importance of image optimization, unless you have a straightforward set of images to manipulate, it’s an investment you’ll be glad you made.

    Lite: $49 for the first year; $29/year for updates after that
    Pro: $99 for the first year; $59/year for updates after that

    9. SEOMatic

    SEOMatic is the SEO solution most Craft developers default to, including Pixel & Tonic themselves.

    You’ll need to define the basics in its settings, and you may find yourself creating extra fields specifically for it to pull data from, but the handy progress bars on its dashboard page will give you an overview of what’s set and what needs to be done.

    SEOMatic is another premium plugin, but implementing it is far simpler and cost-effective than digging through all those meta tags and XML files yourself.

    $99 for the first year; $49/year for updates after that

    Must-Install Craft CMS Plugins

    The Craft ecosystem is rapidly growing, and the diversity of the plugins available increases as Craft is utilized for more and more sites.

    But despite the lure of shiny new plugins, there are some tools that I return to again and again either because they elegantly fill a gap in the core Craft feature set or because I’ve tried them, and I trust them to be robust.

    These are the plugins that I have found most useful in the last couple of years, and installing them is the first thing I do when I set up a new Craft installation.

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    8 Domain Name Myths Every Web Designer Should Know

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    A domain name is an essential element of every project, product, and company. It’s central to a brand and has a disproportionately large impact on user experience. Not only that, but it also impacts SEO and ultimately revenue.

    Domain names are also one of the most commonly retailed elements in web technology, with most designers hoarding a small empire’s worth of domain names “just in case” the right side-project comes along.

    Because so much of the information and advice on domain names is provided by companies selling domain names and is therefore not impartial, we wanted to bust some of the myths you’ll encounter.

    Myth 1: Anyone Can Own a Domain Name

    In fact, almost no one can own a domain name. As demonstrated by the (probably) annual renewal notices you receive, you are merely renting a domain name.

    You pay a registrar, who registers the domain with ICANN (The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) — or an entity to whom ICANN has delegated the responsibility for a particular TLD.

    Even when renting a domain, you do not have the right to use it; thousands of UK-based businesses have had .eu domains stripped from them as a result of being removed from the EU.

    Myth 2: There’s a Perfect Domain For Every Project

    Domains do not have inherent value; they acquire value over time.

    25 years ago, if you were building a search engine, the ‘perfect’ domain might have been search.com, find.com, or perhaps look.com — the particularly cynical might have opted for webads.com. You almost certainly wouldn’t have registered google.com because it says nothing about search.

    Any domain name can acquire value through longevity, SEO, and branding

    google.com acquired its value through a simple, relentless branding strategy and a generous dollop of luck.

    Any domain name can acquire value through longevity, SEO, and branding.

    Myth 3: Your Domain Name Should Contain Keywords

    If you’re at the point of registering a domain name, either your business is new, or your digital strategy is. In either case, you have hopefully carried out keyword research, but without a live site, your keyword research hasn’t been validated. In other words, you don’t know what your keywords are.

    Even if you’re confident that you know exactly what your keywords should be at this time, your keywords may change. The pandemic has required most businesses to pivot to some degree. eatoutny.com isn’t much use if legal restrictions have forced you to switch to a delivery business — unless you’ve also registered eatinny.com.

    Furthermore, in the area of ecommerce, customers tend to view keyword-heavy domain names as budget options because they are like generic-brand goods. It may be that your business will only ever be a budget option, but it’s not a wise business decision to restrict your options.

    There is an SEO benefit to keywords in a domain, but it is minimal and will almost certainly vanish in the next few years — even for EMD (Exact Match Domains) — because it is too close to gaming the system.

    Myth 4: You Don’t Need a .com

    As frustrating as it may be to seek out a .com you’re happy with, nothing says “late to the party” like a .biz domain.

    A .co extension is slightly better in some regions because the .co.** format is commonly used; .co.jp for example. However, .co tends to be typed as .com by users accustomed to the more common format.

    nothing says “late to the party” like a .biz domain

    It’s possible to opt for pun-based names using regionally specific TLDs like buy.it, or join.in. This kind of strategy will play havoc with your local search strategy because computers don’t understand puns; you’ll potentially do quite well in Italy or India, though.

    If you’re registering a domain for a non-profit, then .org is perfectly acceptable. However, carefully consider whether a domain is worth the lost traffic if you can’t also register the .com (because people will type .com).

    The one exception is industry-specific TLDs that communicate something about the domain’s contents to a target demographic. For example, .design is a great extension for designers, and .io is fine for an app if it targets developers (i.e., people who understand the joke). You should also register the .com if you can, and if you can’t, carefully consider whom you’re likely to be competing with for SERPs.

    This is not to say that anything other than a .com is worthless, just worth less than the .com.

    Myth 5: A Trademark Entitles You to Register a Domain

    Trademark registration and domain registration are two entirely different processes, and one does not entitle you to the other. This has been legally challenged a few times and fails far more often than it succeeds.

    Trademarks are rarely blanket registrations, which means the trademark owner needs to declare the industry in which it will operate; there was no enmity between Apple Inc. and Apple Corp Ltd. until the former moved into music publishing and no one could download the White Album onto their iPod.

    There is, however, a limited value in registering a domain that has been trademarked elsewhere. Not least because you will be competing against their SEO, and if they’re big enough to trademark a name, they’ve probably grabbed the .com.

    Myth 6: Premium Domains Are a Good Investment

    Premium domains are domains that have been speculatively registered in the hope of attracting a huge resale fee. The process is commonly referred to as ‘domain squatting.’

    Domain squatters bulk-register domains in the hope that one of them will be valuable to someone. As a result, they are forced to charge exorbitant fees to cover their losses; a premium domain will cost anything from 1000–100,000% of the actual registration cost.

    Setting aside the cost — which would be better spent on marketing — premium domains often come with legacy issues, such as a troubled search engine history, that you do not want to inherit.

    Myth 7: A Matching Handle Must be Available on Social Media

    The business value of a social media account varies from company to company and from platform to platform. Even if it is valuable to you, numerous marketing strategies will accommodate a domain name: prepending with ‘use,’ or ‘get,’ or appending with ‘hq,’ for example.

    More importantly, it’s unwise to allow a third-party to define your long-term brand identity; sure, Facebook is huge now, but then so was the T-Rex.

    Myth 8: You Need a Domain Name

    A domain name is an alias, nothing more. You don’t actually need a domain name — what you need is an IP address, which a domain name makes human-friendly.

    Think of domain names as an accessibility issue; humans are less able to read IP addresses than computers, and domains bridge the gap. (See how helpful accessibility is?)

    While a domain name is beneficial, question whether a sub-domain or even an IP address would do. Registering a domain is an exciting stage of a project that many people never get past, leaving themselves with a huge collection of domains that they pay an annual fee for, and never actually develop.

    What Makes a Good Domain Name

    Now we’ve dispelled some of the myths surrounding domain names, let’s look at the key characteristics shared by good domain names:

    A Good Domain Name is Brandable

    A brandable domain is non-generic. It’s the difference between a sticky-plaster and a band-aid. Unique is good, rare is acceptable, generic is a waste of money.

    A Good Domain Name is Flexible

    Keep it flexible. Don’t tie yourself to one market or one demographic. Your domain name needs to work now and fifty years in the future.

    A Good Domain Name is Musical

    Six to 12 characters and two to three syllables is the sweet spot. Names in that range have a musical rhythm our brains find it easier to retain and recall.

    A Good Domain Name is Phonetic

    There are 44 word sounds in the English language. Other languages have similar totals. If you use a domain name that is pronounced phonetically, it will be easy to communicate.

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