Notes fromthe studio.

Arabic words are longer, sit differently on the line and need more height. A layout designed for English text breaks in small ways: buttons wrap, headings lose their rhythm and icons point the wrong way.

When we start in Arabic and adapt to English, the English version almost always fits. Our last six sites took a third less fixing at the end because of this one habit.

“More bookings” is a wish. “Forty more bookings a week by March” is a brief. The second one tells the designer what the page is for and tells the marketer when to stop spending.

We now ask for the number in the first meeting. If a client cannot give one, the first two weeks are spent finding it — and that is often the most valuable part of the project.

A page per district, with real addresses, opening hours and directions, does more for local search than any amount of general content. It also helps people on the page decide faster.

For Sakan Homes, district pages brought in more enquiries in three months than the blog had in two years.

We run at least one new creative test every week for every client. Most lose. The few that win pay for all the others, and they are ready before the old ad fades.

The habit matters more than any single result: the team stops arguing about taste and starts reading results.