Developing a software application is not easy at all; apart from the effective creation of the application you'll have to think of other things as well, like: making the software easy to work with, giving it a unique and appealing look, making it better than other software, etc. Apart from the qualities of the application, these little things are the ones that promote your software application among the end users. If the application is easy to use, has a friendly user interface, the look of the program is unique yet not too flashy a lot more people will want to have it and use it. On the other hand, we should be careful about the overall look of the entire application because if it looks too different or it is too striking, many of the new users will be reserved in trying it. The reticence might be coming from the fact that, due to the unconventional look, they will think that it is hard to work with this application. Also, the icons of the application must be eye-catching but not too flashy or different from the usual.
In order to have success with your software application it must be different from the others so to have some extra points in front of your competitors. Sometimes, it is not enough to have an application that is working very well because the competition might have the same type of application that has the same characteristics. You have to make your application stand out from the crowd and this can be done very easily. For example, you can make it different by customizing your icons. Using custom icons has many advantages compared with the free icons that can be easily found on the Internet. One of the advantages is the fact that your icons will be different from any other icons found in similar applications. Using free downloaded icons might be tricky because it is possible that somebody else used the same icons and this will not be good for the success of your application. End users might see it as a cheap solution and might refuse to give a fair chance to the software.
Another advantage for using custom icons is that the development process will be completely passed on to the designer of the icons, unless you decide to design them yourself. All you need to do is make the designer understand exactly what you need your icons to look like and how different they must be. Based on those indications the icon designer will produce some sketches that must be approved by you in order to proceed further with the final version of the icons. So, a lot of the work is on designer's account which must have a lot of creativity in order to produce something unique. Involving a designer in the process of creating the icons for your application will save you a lot of precious time and also will reassure you that no other application will have icons like yours, so it will not be possible for end users to confound your software with others.
While you're thinking of making custom icons for your application, take in consideration another idea: to make a custom set of icons. A set of icons contains all the possible icons that you will need for or in connection with an application. It does not matter that you will not need all of them from the beginning, because in time it is possible that you will need some extra icons and it is better to have them handy.
To make your application different from the others you can also use favicons, which is short for "favorite icons" also known as page icons. Basically, these types of icons are the ones that integrate into the other application like for example web-browsers. Often favicons represent the organization's or website's logo. They are used to build a more customized appearance for the respective application. The use of favicons has some advantages: your application will be easily recognized by the users in case they don't remember the application's name, it will promote the logo of the application, it will make your application look more professional, etc. Favicons are usually displayed into the web browsers, next to your website's page and you'll not see many applications or websites that have this facility.
Another thing you can do for making your application stand out of the competition is to have custom file type icons assigned to file types by default. Having these distinct file types is not difficult to achieve but they will make a big difference. The end user will have no problem in easily locating the files of your application among the other files. Besides that, having custom file type icons will be another way of promoting the logo of your application; the larger the number of icons and file type icons is, the larger will be the number of people to see and easily recognize your application.
Considering all the above we have to say that having a customized application is better that having one with a common look. Common looks can be easily confounded and the user will not see the difference between one application or the other unless they will definitely be different. For example, if he has two applications for the same purpose and the applications' icons or file type icons are almost alike, he will choose the first one that he sees. But if one of the applications has a custom, easily recognizable icon he will know as soon as he sees it that this is the application that he's looking for. These are only few tricks that software designers should take in consideration when making an application that has a commercial purpose.
If you are looking for professional icons please go to http://www.iconshock.com - icon design
Have you ever walked pass a shop that, for some... Read More
I always have people asking me if I know of... Read More
Almost everything is available on the web? products, services, e-books,... Read More
Customers will form an opinion of your business as soon... Read More
Color is everywhere and conveys a message even if we... Read More
Creating your web site can be a tricky process. Choosing... Read More
The Basics You have a flourishing business ? everything is... Read More
A "template" is simply a design format which you can... Read More
This article gives free tips on how to find a... Read More
If you are going to have a web presence for... Read More
If you are trying to sell a product or service... Read More
I hate to imagine that in your web development project... Read More
Choosing a web designer can seem like a daunting task.... Read More
Design sells. It's something that all of us know, but... Read More
A search for "web design" on Google returns more than... Read More
Should Generating Revenue From A Website Be The Prime Motivator?... Read More
So your web site's online and you've got high rankings... Read More
How often, men, have you come home to find the... Read More
There are six important characteristics that can play a major... Read More
Projecting a professional image is paramount to your website's success.... Read More
Don't make a splash!Are you thinking about using a splash... Read More
Conventional Wisdom states you should use Sub-Directories to organize your... Read More
My mother used to take me along when she visited... Read More
Increasing the length of time a visitor is on your... Read More
Some wise human once said "Learn from the mistakes of... Read More
When you start building your online business and search for... Read More
All websites have a homepage. It is the most important... Read More
If you are familiar with my work, then you have... Read More
I taught myself HTML back in the mid-nineties and was... Read More
When I surf the Net, I often see web sites... Read More
What is a Website Template?Many smart and savvy businesses are... Read More
An ongoing challenge for webmasters today is to provide fresh... Read More
If you own a web site or if you are... Read More
Conventional Wisdom states you should use Sub-Directories to organize your... Read More
1. Don't load your web site with a lot of... Read More
1. Use .gifs rather than .jpgs. GIFs are smaller in... Read More
Countdown to Armageddon - at least you'd think so judging... Read More
Whenever singer John Mayer sings his romantic song, "Your Body... Read More
Typos, misspellings, hideous grammar, exclamation overkill and run-on sentences all... Read More
Does website design make a difference in how long people... Read More
You may not bother with html validation or writing simple... Read More
If there's one thing that most web site developers can... Read More
Congratulations! You've got a brand new site and it's doing... Read More
Persons engaged in website design, here's a scoop for you!... Read More
This article gives free tips on how to find a... Read More
The Psychology of ColorAre you using the best colors for... Read More
If there's one thing that I've learnt so far, it's... Read More
The top ten fonts for website design might change in... Read More
A "template" is simply a design format which you can... Read More
Now that you have decided that it is time to... Read More
Most web designers and web design companies will try to... Read More
You have an idea for a website and you are... Read More
For online businesses with their main goal of selling products,... Read More
In the early years of the internet the actual design... Read More
The following list of websites is the best compilation of... Read More
Have you ever been to site with so much ad... Read More
A question we frequently get asked is, "how do we... Read More
A Double Ad Tracker is an Ad-Tracker that points to... Read More
In today's world, a web site is virtually mandatory for... Read More
Favorite icon appears to the left of your link in... Read More
In the of-line marketing world it is all about trying... Read More
Then it was a choice among crayons, paints and palettes... Read More
What colors do you have at your website?Can they make... Read More
So, what's in a website design anyway? And, how do... Read More
In this article, I will attempt to cover the basics... Read More
Developing a software application is not easy at all; apart... Read More
Web Design |