Description: 1st Omni Web Solutions, located in both Massachusetts and Czechoslovakia, is an organization that provides hosting, design, and related services. The company specializes in corporate-looking sites that focus more on content delivery than innovative design.

Great site because:

• The frequently-updated news section provides information about the newest sites that have been completed and contracts that have been acquired. Additionally, thumbnail images of recent projects help frequent visitors identify the site's new content.
• Unlike other design firms' sites, 1st Omni is not Flash-dependent, though it does include some elements. Potential customers can get the information they need, while people interested in Flash can choose to view the introduction; it is not automatically presented, which makes accessing the site easier for users with older technology.

2advanced Studios

Description: 2advanced Studios, a web design firm in California, provides design, development, multimedia, and identity branding, most of which are Flash based. The most current project is prominently featured, visitors can sign up for updates or purchase apparel, and the latest news is available.

Great site because:

• Most of the completed projects are heavily Flash oriented, and visitors have access to some of the most innovative sites online.
• 2advanced Studios' site is extremely unique; it is reminiscent of highly advanced technologies often depicted in futuristic and space exploration movies, and the sounds and movement of the entire site work together flawlessly. All of the elements create an environment that seems as though it were meant to be.

4 Guys Interactive, Inc.

Description: The Texas-based 4 Guys Interactive, Inc., has created products for dozens of recognizable clients, and it has published articles in magazines for novices interested in the industry. The company provides web, marketing, print, and networking services, and visitors can download unique desktop images for their computers.

Great site because:

• 4 Guys Interactive manages to make the white, black, and orange color scheme look contemporary and slick without reminding visitors of Halloween. A good reminder that "holiday colors" can work when used correctly.
• The site is clean, includes unusual sayings and graphics, is not dependant on Flash, but is attractive nonetheless, a combination that sets it apart from other web design companies' sites.

Addis

Description: Addis, which has several offices in California, offers clients branding, identity, package design, web design, and advertising services. The company has designed products for dozens of popular firms, and the newest featured cases are easy to locate.

Great site because:

• Addis has one of the fastest-loading sites of high-end design companies. In addition to letting potential customers easily access information, the feature lets casual browsers quickly access Addis' impressive portfolio.
• The design of the site illustrates how simplicity, blocky-ness, and a variety of colors can work together to create a bold, attractive layout.

Cabedge Interactive Design

Description: It is clear from the Cabedge's homepage that the site is quirky: there is a large image of a carrot and the words "interactive design - digital branding (and other stuff)." The Tennessee-based company is staffed by a single individual who has provided interactive, identity, and similar products to dozens of clients.

Great site because:

• Cabedge exemplifies how an offbeat color scheme (lime green and orange) in a simple layout can be enticing and even practical.
• All of the sites presented have extremely different feels to them; it is intriguing and inspiring to see how one person can completely stray from a style to fit the needs of different customers.

Carton Donofrio Partners, Inc.

Description: Carton Donofrio Partners, Inc., located in Maryland, is a very corporate-looking site that houses a variety of samples of work. Services are offered in design, branding, anthropology, and advertising, as well as interface testing and other background areas.

Great site because:

• While the site uses a great deal of Flash, it loads quickly and does not allow the technology to get in the way of the content. The textual content is provided mostly in HTML, and the Flash elements are visible mainly on the heading and navigation bars.
• Unlike some design companies' sites, Carton Donofrio Partners, Inc., outlines the benefits of working with the company, including its successes and skills. This is a great feature for prospective customers who want to get a feel for the company before contacting it.

EDGE Design & Advertising

Description: Oregon's EDGE Design & Advertising specializes in print, web, identity, and photography projects, and the site offers a good deal of information about the company's background. The homepage gives all project types equal treatment, which helps to solidify the company as one that does not work in one primary area.

Great site because:

• Some design firms' websites make it difficult to find samples of work. The EDGE includes a clever Flash scroll bar at the top of the index page to make it simple to access the portfolio.
• The site has a very modern feel with a lot of sharp corners, trendy images, and simple navigation characters (such as the ">"); it also is extremely clean and simple.

ICU: Internet Caribbean Unlimited

Description: Internet Caribbean Unlimited (ICU) located in Curacao offers access, domain, hosting, and web design services. News, job information, and company details are easily accessible from the homepage.

Great site because:

• The portfolio section houses a trendy block design with thumbnail images. While several sites use a similar layout, ICU's is simple to navigate.
• The homepage features a small, fast-loading Flash screen that puts an emphasis on the world of technology; the animation is cutting-edge but manages to make technology and connecting with people both simple and necessary.

Industry Connection, Inc.

Description: Industry Connection, Inc., located in Wisconsin, prominently displays the latest news, testimonials, and site updates. A simple Flash animation at the bottom of the homepage makes it easy to access the portfolio and identify the firm's main area of expertise.

Great site because:

• The layout is extremely simple, making it easy for visitors to navigate and locate the information in which they are most interested.
• Despite the site's simplicity, the portfolio section shows that Industry Connection, Inc., is able to create equally simple environments for other companies that have different backgrounds, interests, and atmospheres.

Infiniti Multimedia Productions

Description: Infiniti Multimedia Productions' site is simple and lets users easily navigate to company information, updates, and a portfolio. The color scheme and design are understated, which places a great deal of attention on the content.

Great site because:

• The site's design is crisp, modern, and conveys a feeling of simplicity in a technological environment.
• Infiniti Multimedia Productions has a wide variety of clients for which it has created sites; the array of designs makes it obvious that the firm is flexible enough to meet the needs of different customers.

Interactive Edge

Description: Interactive Edge, located in Australia, is a Flash-based site that guides users to view background information, a portfolio, news, and comments. Despite the invigorating layout and graphics, the site is simple to navigate.

Great site because:

• All of the pages are unified, but each section manages to have its own feeling; for example, one has an image of fire, while another shows a woman in an environment that looks like a rainforest. The consistency but simultaneous diversity is exhilarating.
• From the opening Flash sequence to the subsequent pages depicting fire and other exciting images, the website is visually stimulating throughout.

LightSky Design Studio

Description: LightSky Design Studio in Indiana offers application development, consulting, e-commerce, and design. The site is extremely colorful and full of information, but it also manages to be simple to navigate.

Great site because:

• The sites within the portfolio are extremely diversified and display a range of capabilities, from Flash to interactive non-Flash sites.
• The headers at the top of every page are extremely unique (images of roads, fish, and video equipment seamlessly combined), and set a tone for the site.

Myriad Media Interactive Communication

Description: Myriad Media Interactive Communication offers web design, hosting, programming, and updating services. The site uses a balance of images and text and offers five easy-to-navigate sections.

Great site because:

• While the firm specializes in web design, it focuses on the content of the site, which gives prospective clients the information they need, while letting people view samples of their designs; a different and effective approach to online marketing for a web design company.
• The layout is simple but manages to create a sense of technology, innovation, and community.

NeonSky

Description: NeonSky opens with a pulsing Flash introduction that gets visitors interested in the content, then sends them to a page that is little more than several blue squares. Rolling over each square reveals the different design projects and background information that potential customers might need.

Great site because:

• The first interactive page with the blue squares is completely unique in that visitors have to search to find content; while it might work against the company in some cases, it is a great way to encourage interaction.
• NeonSky seems to hide a secret; it appears to be an extremely simple design, but exploring allows visitors to realize the great extent to the designers' ability to make sites busy but easy to use.

New Tilt, Inc.

Description: New Tilt, Inc., in Massachusetts focuses on "strategic experience design" to create sites for a variety of recognizable clients. In addition to providing news and a portfolio, this site also lets clients log in, apparently to help create a community where the customers and business can work together online.

Great site because:

• The design incorporates a simple flowchart design in which most of the main contents is readily available from the homepage. It is an extremely different type of layout but proves to be intuitive.
• Flash is integrated into the site but in a unique way; instead of being used to provide large animations and introductions, it is used to "draw" the dividing outlines of each page. It is a simple touch that helps to add to New Tilt's environment.

POP! Multimedia

Description: POP! Multimedia in Seattle specializes in web design, application development, marketing, animation, and game development. Its extensive and impressive client list (including Fortune 500 companies) is diverse and showcases the many skills that the company possesses.

Great site because:

• The site is Flash based and is somewhat slow to load, but the design of the site is such that each of the five main categories is presented seemingly by scrolling quickly by the others; definitely worth the download time.
• Pop! Multimedia's website manages to deliver a lot of information in very little textual content; this puts the emphasis on the completed designs, not the company's background.

Second Story Interactive Studios

Description: Second Story Interactive Studios is "elevating the art of storytelling" by designing sites that wholly immerse visitors in a particular environment or time period. The website is a cross between archival books and idealized exploration journals, which helps to further draw visitors into the site.

Great site because:

• With projects on Lewis and Clark, Sept. 11, and famous recording artists, Second Story Interactive Studios is able to inspire designers and learners alike wishing to learn about the elements of any number of topics.
• The design of the site is completely innovative in that it seamlessly meshes past time periods and advanced technology.

Siobhan Envisions Website Development

Description: Siobhan Envisions in Illinois and Florida specializes in websites on a broad array of topics. The company also provides domain names, online printing, and online quotes to prospective customers.

Great site because:

• Siobhan Envisions, also known as Evolved Sites, sets a tone simply in its name; as the content expresses, the company works to go beyond the normal to create innovative sites high above their less evolved predecessors.
• In keeping with the evolution theme, an opening Flash sequence that is quirky but concurrently sophisticated illustrates how Siobhan Envisions has grown to keep up with technology trends.

Terra Incognita Interactive Media

Description: Terra Incognita Interactive Media, based in Louisiana, specializes in site design that is mainly involved in environmental and historical material. From the beginning Flash introduction to each subsequent page, the site's atmosphere is reminiscent of a National Geographic-esque adventure.

Great site because:

• In keeping with the environmental, outdoorsy theme, the website is richly colored in greens, beiges, and dark reds, which helps to further set the atmosphere.
• Terra Incognita Interactive Media's sites are all lavish, immersive, and able to set an appropriate tone for the topic.

VIZID

Description: VIZID is a web design company that specializes in creating branding, new media, and programming for its clients. The site is extremely comprehensive and allows visitors to several of its featured designs via a futuristic-looking portal. It also integrates an extranet login

Great site because:

• VIZID's design is extremely attention-getting, due to its bold warm color scheme and large graphics. The site may be too overbearing for some, but it successfully sets the tone for the company.
• The company has a wonderful Flash logo that reacts to the movement of the mouse. While it's a minor part of the site, it is a fun element that further characterizes the company.

The Void New Media

Description: The Void New Media, which is located in the UK, offers both high- and low-bandwidth options for audiences with differing technological capabilities. The site encourages interaction immediately by prompting visitors to access the remedy (a box of medication) to their problems (any web design issue).

Great site because:

• The introductory Flash animation is simple but makes a solid statement: technology over old paper media.
• The portfolio section is interesting to browse, since most of the projects are made to appeal to a European audience. The diverse elements and styles are easy to identify and can be used as inspiration for future designs.

Webstix, Inc.

Description: Webstix, Inc., located in Wisconsin, offers both an HTML and Flash version of the site, which is a nice feature for people from a variety of audiences. The company focuses on high-end web design for a wide variety of industries, and the site is simple to navigate.

Great site because:

• Webstix uses a great image of left brain and right brain functions, which exemplify everything that should go into a good site.
• The portfolio section is wonderfully arranged in that there are a few featured companies, and the rest of the clients are divided into six main categories which makes it easy to locate a specific project or topic.

World Domination Design Group

Description: The World Domination Design Group (WDDG) focuses on high-end web design (motion video, technology, and rich media) for clients in a variety of fields. The site is Flash-based and takes some time to load, but the information is worth the wait.

Great site because:

• The site is themed around an old foreign-looking document, such as a birth certificate, land contract, or government document. The design is extremely innovative, and every design element helps to set the environment.
• The featured project is prominently listed, and the portfolio, background information, and news sections are easy to locate.

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