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Blog
Articles from the Pivale team.
Advice from 19 years of building and looking after websites and platforms: Drupal, security and compliance, user experience and development.
- Pivot and Scale with AI: why a good development partner still mattersWe used AI long before the LLM boom. Now it lets us build in hours what once took days, but your business still needs a good development partner.
- Pivale launch a faster, more accessible websiteOur new website scores 100 for performance on Google's mobile test, passes the WCAG 2.1 AA accessibility checks on every page and makes booking a call with us easier.
- AI Artificial Intelligence movies reviewed and rated!Loved my hacker movies list? Here's the sequel: AI movies from 2001: A Space Odyssey to M3GAN, reviewed and rated by a developer and movie fanatic!
- Not ready for a PIM? How to manage product data in the meantimeA product information management system isn't always the right first step. These four approaches keep your product data under control until it is, with real examples.
- What shareholders expect from an investor relations websiteResults day is no time for your IR website to let you down. What the listing rules ask for, and what investors actually look for, from someone who builds them.
- The European Accessibility Act: what UK businesses selling into the EU need to knowBrexit didn't take UK businesses out of the European Accessibility Act. If you sell online to customers in the EU, this is what it means for your website.
- Does your business need a CMS at all?A content management system isn't always the answer. For many small businesses a fast, secure website with no login at all is the better choice.
- What first impression is your IVF website creating for patients?Discover what we learned from analysing 30 UK IVF clinic websites and why digital experience matters for prospective patients.
- Twig templates - a drupal cheat sheetA Drupal Twig cheat sheet: every Twig tag, filter, function, test and operator, plus Drupal's own extras, Twig Tweak, debugging and the gotchas.
- The SaaS trap: Why the cheapest option often isn'tThe SaaS tools you rely on are costing more than you think. We make the case for building software your business actually owns, on a platform built to last.
- Does your mechanic talk about their tools, or your problems?Digital success starts with understanding the problem, not selling tech. A discovery-led approach builds tailored, effective, long-lasting solutions.
- Why choose Drupal CommerceDrupal Commerce vs Shopify and WooCommerce: why Drupal’s flexibility, open source code and extensibility make it ideal for complex ecommerce.
- Using Agentic AI Without Vibe CodingPractical guide to using Agentic AI in Drupal development without vibe coding. Learn where AI helps, where it fails, and how to produce reliable code.
- Introducing Commerce ReferralCommerce Referral Provides a referral system for Drupal Commerce that allows customers to refer friends and receive rewards.
- Who really owns your digital platforms?Are you building your business on rented land? We all have 'digital landlords' but are we conscious to the risks they pose?
- Drupal Canvas: a giant visual leapExperience Drupal in a new way with Drupal Canvas, the visual builder that makes creating and collaborating simple and intuitive.
- Drupal SDC Single Directory Components vs Storybook: a component building showdownIn Drupal, Storybook has long been the champion for building components but there's a new contender in town - Drupal SDC single directory components!
- Is your marketing too safe? Time for some agile experimentation.Is your marketing playing it too safe? Discover how agile marketing helps you experiment boldly, learn fast, and connect better with your audience.
- Mocking in Drupal TestsMocking is an essential technique in unit and functional testing that allows developers to isolate the code being tested.
- Hackers 1995 & other hacker movies reviewed and rated!Looking for some great hacker movies like Hackers 1995? Being both a developer & movie fanatic I thought it would be fun to make a list!
- From chaos to calm: our path to seamless digital transformationManaging a strong online presence is essential for competing in a global business world. Juggling multiple websites can spiral into a logistical nightmare.
- Why website support retainers are essentialRetainers - they're a common occurrence in industries and yet, they're sometimes misunderstood. We break down why you need one.
- The hidden risks behind your legacy systemsWhether you’ve just stepped into a new role, joined a new company, or been caught up in a merger or acquisition, you might find yourself dealing with legal.
- Choose Pivale’s Drupal Multisite for your digital transformation in an uncertain worldOperating in today’s business world is increasingly challenging. With economic uncertainty, rapidly evolving technology, and relentless competitive pressures.
- Tackling EMEA‑specific challenges for successful digital transformationIf you're a business leader in the EMEA region, you're probably no stranger to the challenges of working across such a vast area.
- The digital bouncer: Prevent digital troublemakers coming inIt's your website behaving strangely? Being unstable, slow load times, or regularly going down? As a digital agency, we’re seeing a rise in the volume of bots.
- Lesser known Drupal modules I discovered at DrupalConAttending DrupalCon Barcelona 2024 was an unforgettable experience. One standout moment? A talk about the best lesser known Drupal modules.
- Pivale’s formula for digital transformation with Drupal MultisiteSo, your company is thinking, "How do we get to where we want to be?". You've been handed the task of getting a new, secure website up with a CMS.
- The Dream Stack: Pivale's perfect web packageFor any serious business of a certain size, prioritising security is a must. Having Pivale, Drupal, and Upsun means you're compliant, secure and future ready.
- Content management software. What CMS should I choose?Struggling with choosing which content management software or system you should choose? We put 18 of the best CMSs head to head to help you decide.
- BEM CSS naming conventions including ABEM & BBEMBEM CSS. ABEM CSS. BBEM CSS. What does it all mean? We explore front end developer naming conventions and component driven design.
- Native CSS nesting is here. Is it time to ditch SCSS?CSS nesting has finally arrived in native CSS and we're so excited. Could 2024 be the year that we finally ditch SCSS in our frontend workflows?
- Drupal 7 end of life: what to do now support has endedDrupal 7 reached end of life on 5 January 2025. Here’s what that means for your website’s security and GDPR, and how to plan your Drupal 7 migration.
- Integrating with 3rd party APIs: What to watch out forEver grappled with frustrating 3rd party API headaches in web development? Robust and well designed API integrations are essential, but often overlooked.
- Pivale’s Vision and Masterplan ApproachFrom experience, we’ve seen the complexities that large organisations face when purchasing and integrating software. It's not just having the right tools.
- Pivale launch a bold new website for ambitious brandsOur bold new website aims to further our mission to help business leaders get more from their websites and software.
- Calculate your 5× ROI & don't rely on luckIf you’re not aiming big, is it even worth the effort? Many of our recent clients already know about our 5× ROI goal. But now it’s time to be bold.
- How your agency is going to win bigger clientsDo you run a marketing, branding, or creative agency? This one's for you. There comes a certain point in every agency’s life where it's time for growth.
- Green lights and red flags for digital agency collaborative workingWhen it comes to marketing, branding, digital and creative services, the fact is most agencies can’t do it all. This probably isn’t news to you. Here’s why…
- Development programmes: stop standing still after you launch your website!It’s a moment of opportunity. A new ecosystem for your customers. The potential for change is palpable within leadership teams and it’s all about to start now.
- Why you need to STOP hunting for the unicornLet’s face it recruitment is hard. And it’s not getting any easier. Inundated with CVs, but nothing that fits the bill. Know the feeling? You’re not alone.
- Businesses with many websites need Multisite!Think of your digital presence as a set of offices. You’re the owner of the offices, and it’s your job to make sure they’re all in tip-top condition.
- Why Pivale test with CircleCI and you should tooWe use a solution that removes risk and allows for constant renovation and innovation of websites and applications. CircleCI CI = Continuous Integration.
- Engineering Excellence Explained: Customer AnalysisEngineering excellence is the processes and systems applied for every client project that the Pivale team undertake.
- Engineering ExcellenceWe hold ourselves to a high standard. Every client benefits from our core services that combine to create websites and applications that help you thrive online.
- How over-automation can harm your businessEvery passing year we’ve got a brand new, life-changing software solution that takes the world by storm and becomes a household name. For 2023, it's ChatGPT.
- What does 2023 hold for you and your business?An opportunity to shore up your current wins and take a holistic look at how your processes could be improved to better use your resources.
- Put Simply: Here’s what Pivale are capable ofWhen we talk to customers, they usually have a problem - they need a web solution that delivers true value, whilst offering the bells and whistles they desire.
- Google Analytics: Is it legal?Promise: not clickbait! It's hard to believe that this popular product could be considered illegal.
- What to consider with webformsWebforms capture interest and turn visitors into new customers. Have you considered the power that a webform can have on customer experience?
- 6 reasons not to use a microsite for your marketing campaignWe've compiled a list of the six reasons businesses shouldn't entertain the thought of a microsite - and they're pretty compelling.
- Platform.sh: affordable and ethical enterprise-grade hostingYour hosting headache - and how it's costing you business
- 3 reasons your choice of website host isn't just an IT issueChoosing the infrastructure for your website is of paramount importance. Your website host underpins the ability of your business to exist online.
- Documentation and processes can prevent your website from failing at a critical momentDo you have documentation in place? When changes to your website are needed is there is a clear process to be followed?
- Are you gambling with the security of your business?Ignoring security updates will seriously impact your business. It's time to take action.
- Why poor web security will damage your businessThe consequences of poor web security can be catastrophic so it's essential you have a strategy.
- 5 reasons why ongoing website maintenance is essentialOngoing security maintenance is essential to the longevity of your website or application.
- How to make your website accessible for everyoneAccessibility is perhaps the most important and most ignored aspect of web development. Let's change that.
- How to make sure your homepage is clear and conciseThe next entry in our homepage series focuses on keeping it simple and effective.
- Five things to avoid on your homepageYour homepage can be the most important page on your website. Make sure you avoid these mistakes.
- Do you have a home page content strategy?How to make an effective home page.
- Being compliant doesn't have to be a boreThe importance of balancing the exciting parts of web design with standards and good compliance.
- Top 5 cost factors for your new websiteIn this article we will consider five areas which will often drive the main development costs for a website build.
- Should I use WordPress or Drupal?Explore the pros and cons of both WordPress and Drupal content management systems.
- The benefits of open-source website CMS softwareWhat exactly are the differences between open-source and closed proprietary software and why should I care?
- Digital problem solving made easyIf you manage many websites, you probably know how much effort is required to maintain them. Get your web portfolio back under control and save costs.
- Could mismatched web solutions harm your business growth?If you're responsible for the IT or strategic marketing in a medium or large business, ask yourself 'How is your web portfolio looking?'
- 5 ways spreadsheet addiction is risking your businessIt's time to talk about the elephant in the room: your addiction to spreadsheets! Relying on spreadsheets is bad for business. Here's how to fix that problem.
- The smarter way to manage many websitesDo you crave the agility and speed of smaller market players? What effect would it have if you could work faster and smarter? Make this dream your new reality.
- Real Life Digital rebrand to PivaleReal Life Digital unveil their exciting re-brand, with a more targeted focus on digital transformation, multisite infrastructure and custom software.
- 5 ways to stay operational during a health crisisThese are unprecedented times with the arrival of COVID-19. What do you do if you've never had to work from home before?
- Data sovereignty, the cloud and custom softwareImplementing cloud-based services within your business could you be exposing you to hidden risks all for the sake of a "convenient" solution?
- What to think about when choosing your rebranding partnerA corporate rebrand can be risky or a big opportunity. Choosing a partner who understands the process is a key step in ensuring success for your web brand.
- Not just another web developer!Have your cake and eat it! Find out how our approach gets you the quality and experience of working with a large agency without the overhead.
- Why the lack of industry standards makes us angry!We all too often speak to potential clients who have been 'scarred' by their experience with other providers in our industry.
- 6 ways to manage the biggest cost factors of a website projectUnderstandably it's a very common question. However, here's why there's no simple answer, and how you can influence the bottom line.
- ROI Focused Websites Part 4: What you should know before hiring a web agencyThe fourth article in our Return on Investment (ROI) series is about asking the right questions, taking your time, and choosing the right team for your needs.
- ROI Focused Websites Part 3: The Trouble with Web Developers - 5 Pain Points and how to solve themThe third article in our Return on Investment (ROI) series is about those who have invested significant time and money on projects but ended up dissatisfied.
- ROI Focused Websites Part 2: 5 Top Tips To Pick a Winning Web TeamThe second article in our Return on Investment (ROI) series explores why it's crucial that you pick the right team.
- ROI Focused Websites Part 1: 8 questions you should ask before engaging a web design agencyThe first article in our Return on Investment (ROI) series asks 8 important questions that will determine your success.
- What is Pattern Lab and why should I care about it?Our front-end developer discusses why you and your business should be considering Pattern Lab for your next Drupal project.
- 10 lessons from using Drupal 8 + Pattern Lab + EmulsifyThe musings of our front end developer after the launch of our first Pattern Lab + Drupal 8 project via the Emulsify base theme.
- Real Life Digital: the story so farOur story so far; how we got started and evolved to where we are now.
- What is a discovery workshop and do I need one?Discovery workshops are paid-for deep-dives in to content strategy and architecture.
- 5 steps for security and disaster planningDo you need to protect your brand, prevent data leaks and avoid PR disasters?
- Content strategy in depthContent strategy is one of our key offerings, and we wanted to discuss in more detail our thoughts on the matter.
- BASE Bordon: a new space to create and innovateWe are excited to announce that we are the first business to move in to the brand new BASE Bordon innovation centre.
- We went to DrupalCon 2017 in ViennaThis year's European Drupal conference took place in Vienna, Austria ahead of the news that there will be no DrupalCon Europe 2018.
- Using Sass and CSS3 Flex as a grid systemWe used to be big fans of using singularity to create responsive grids on which to craft our web layouts but we've been converted to CSS3 flex and here's why!
- We went to DrupalCamp London 2017DrupalCamp London celebrated its fifth birthday this year, and for the first time Real Life Digital were official sponsors of the CxO day.
- SEO in Drupal: an introductionDrupal is absolutely the best CMS platform when it comes to SEO, but our clients don't seem to be aware of this so we finally decided to break it down.
- We went to DrupalCon 2016 in DublinOnce again this year we had the ultimate pleasure of being guests in another exciting European city as we attending the first ever Drupal conference in Dublin.
- 12 SEO top tips for better ranking with DrupalSEO. Search engine optimisation. Where to begin with the elusive task of search engine optimisation, around which an entire industry has formed?
- 16 Awesome CSS Libraries and ResourcesIn his usual wacky style Darren presents his 16 favourite resources for writing better CSS, streamlining your workflow or just having some good old fun!
- How we got a custom Drupal 8 theme up and running with Sass, Singularity, Breakpoint, LiveReload and GulpCan Drupal, Sass, Singularity, Breakpoint, LiveReload and Gulp all play nicely together? It took us a while to crack it so we thought we'd share our findings.
- We went to DrupalCamp London 2016Every year the Drupal community meet up at various conferences and more localised camps. This weekend we attended one of the largest camps in the country.
- Websites as an Investment Part 4: What if I wait?The clock is ticking and time is money. It turns out that delaying your new website could actually be costing you money. We try and break down why that is.
- Websites as an Investment Part 3: What will it cost?Some web agencies will charge you £1000 and others £10000 but why? What's the difference? We break down the true costs & value of building a website.
- Websites as an Investment Part 2: 5 rules for selecting a web teamWhen you start thinking about your new website, you'll need to select a team who will drive success. Here are some great tips on how to do that.
- Websites as an Investment Part 1: What exactly do I need?When it comes to building a new website you'll need to think 'plan' before you think about 'budget'. What do you need to do to get ready to take the leap?
- Responsive Design Part 4: the drawbacks of responsive and how to overcome themAre there any drawbacks of responsive design and if so what can we do to minimise the impact? We explore many of the concerns we've heard from clients.
- Responsive Design Part 3: The seven deadly sins of responsive designResponsive design can be good, but sometimes it can go bad and even ugly. We explore the 7 deadly sins of responsive design. It's not going to be pretty!.
- Responsive Design Part 2: Why do I need responsive website design?Responsive design isn't just a fad that will fade away. In fact it will make a tremendous difference to your online presence in ways you might not imagine.
- Responsive Design Part 1: What is responsive website design?The first in our series on responsive web design and why you should care about it.
- Cody Technology Park Free Coffee & Cake EventWe moved on to Cody Technology Park back in August 2015 but still hadn't met a lot of other tenants so we decided to give away coffee and cake to meet people!
- Why you need a Branding DocumentYour brand is the face of your business, and you need to be thinking and laying down rules about how your brand is communicated to your customers.
- Creating Drupal 8 themesDrupal 8 has many new exciting features, but perhaps the most exciting of all is the new approach to themes. Our developer Alex gives us the lowdown.
- We went to DrupalCon 2015 in BarcelonaOnce again we joined others in the Drupal community for the 2015 European Drupal convention which was held in the city of Barcelona in sunny Spain.
- Drupal 8 is coming and we're getting ready!Drupal 8 is now due an official release so we sent one of our developers Alex on a mission to get stuck in with it and share his first impressions and findings.
- Print to Web: A journey from graphic designer to website designerSix months ago our digital designer Darren was a stuck-in-a-rut print designer, utterly unaware of the opportunity that lurked just around the corner.
- Design sign-off is deadWe controversially suggest that design sign off is an archaic practice which has no place in modern web design and we think you'll agree after reading this.
- The flat design trendFlat design. What is it? Where did it come from? Will it go away? What do I need to know? All is revealed in this end-to-end opinion piece.
- We went to DrupalCon 2014 in AmsterdamThis year the Drupal community met in Amsterdam to make progress on Drupal 8, develop as coders and creatives, and of course just hang out and have fun!
- Real Life Design rebrandAfter 7 happy years as Real Life Design we decided to re-brand ourselves as Real Life Digital. Apart from the name and the look, nothing else has changed.
- Calling all Drupal fans near GuildfordAre you a budding Drupal aficionado in or around the Guildford area? As we all know Drupal is all about community so let's start building one locally.
- Drupal: our CMS and framework of choiceWhat is Drupal? Why should you use Drupal? Is it really free? Why would it be free? Our quick overview of the benefits of Drupal will get you up to speed.
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