web feed
facebook
twitter
youTube
Modern Community Connections
March 5th, 2010
A supportive local community contributes to the survival of small businesses during the economic ups and downs. As a result, businesses continuously seek ways to market to new customers as well as maintain their loyal client base. Businesses discovered long ago the necessity to connect with their community. Many businesses still reach out to the community in a physical way, but in today’s modern age, the modern marketing edge is found with technology.
Recently, I met with a small business owner interested in a website. While waiting, I listened to her and a client discuss the Internet. Neither were comfortable with the Internet, specifically mentioning their avoidance of websites such as Facebook. I listened intently aware of the networking opportunities their businesses were missing by not connecting with the community in a modern manner.
The marketplace is now filled with a generation very comfortable with technology. Many consumers spend a majority of their free-time time surfing the Internet. Businesses excel by connecting with their community in a modern fashion. The current generations as well as future generations frequent the Internet searching for the best deals. The days of teens cruising in cars has been matched by teens and adults alike cruising the Internet together.
How might businesses connect with their community in a modern fashion? Creating an online presence through a website is necessary. In addition to a website, using social media as a means to connect with the community is beneficial. There are so many social media websites one uncomfortable with the Internet may become overwhelmed quickly trying to determine which one to use.
Twitter located at http://twitter.com is a great way to start one’s flight to connect. Sign-up for a free account using your business name and reach out to the community immediately. Once comfortable proceed to open a free Facebook account located at http://facebook.com. Create a business fan page with your account. Mention your Facebook fan page on Twitter and vice versa. Spend time communicating your business and ideas to your community by being active on these accounts. Provide links to your business website and encourage followers to visit often. There is a way to market your business in addition to an open physical door on a town block; the virtual door on a superhighway.
Starter Web Presence Package
February 11th, 2010
Is a website right for your business? Contract Coomer is now offering a starter web presence package to help businesses answer this question. With the economy suffering wise marketing is essential for every business. The starter web presence package provides your business with a custom created web page and the option to expand your website at a later date.
The package includes the following for one year:
- One Custom Created Web Page
- Domain Name ( yoursite.com )
- Unlimited Email Accounts
- 100% Wind Powered Web Hosting
- Search Engine Submission
- and more
Starter Web Presence Package Price – $150
Your business web page will be created specifically for your business.
Example Web Page Screenshot - Flash – or - Image
In this technical age businesses are feeling the pressure to make a web presence. The Contract Coomer Starter Web Presence Package will eliminate any anxiety you may have. The package allows your business to have a web presence with the option to add more pages to the website at a later date for a low price. What is the price after the first year? Just renew your web hosting plan, domain name included, and the page stays live. Feel free to contact Contract Coomer with any questions you may have.
Easy WordPress SEO
February 3rd, 2010
Creating pretty permalinks is an easy way to improve your WordPress SEO. Permalinks are the hyperlink, URL, attached to the title of each blog post. By default these permalinks are quite messy. Follow the directions below to make the permalinks pretty.
- Add a new post
- Notice the Permalink under the title of your post
- Click on the ‘Change Permalinks’ button
- You will be directed to the Permalink Settings page
- Notice ‘Default’ is ticked
- Tick the ‘Custom Structure’ circle instead
- Type %postname% in the empty box
- Click the ‘Save Changes’ button at the bottom of this screen
- Note: The change affects all permalinks, so be sure to adjust any external links you have pointing to blog posts
- You can adjust these links even further by clicking the ‘Edit’ button to the side of your new pretty permalink
- Type in the desired new words relevant to your post in the box
- Note: Do not use spaces between words
- Click ‘Save’
Your new pretty permalinks will now reflect a more accurate picture of your blog posts. The more relevant your link to your post the better SEO for your WordPress blog.
Hide Email
February 1st, 2010
It is standard to provide contact information on any website. In fact, not providing contact information on a website can hurt one’s credibility and cause one to lose business. An email address is a standard part of contact information. Many may fear posting their email address for fear spiders, robots, harvesters, spammers, etc. may collect their email address for a variety of unethical reasons. Do not hurt your credibility by fearing them. These types of collectors read the code behind websites. There are a variety of ways to scramble an email address causing the robot to pass over the email address unable to harvest.
JavaScript is one easy way to hide your email address from spammers and email harvesters.
- Open your html document in your favorite text editor.
- Link an external JavaScript file to your html file:
- Place the following code before the closing head of your file such as:
<script type=”text/javascript” src=”spam.js”></script>
</head>
- Go to the area in the html file you wish to put your email.
Place a script similar to the following in that location with adjustments to the green and brown text:
<script type= “text/javascript”>
showEmail(”ngised“,”moc.remooctcartnoc“);
</script>
The brown area is the part of your email address before the @ spelled backwards.
The green area is the part of your email address after the @.
This example shows my email address design and contractcoomer.com.
- Next create a blank JavaScript file by open your favorite text editor creating the following code:
// JavaScript Preventing Email Harvesting
function showEmail(emailName,emailServer) {
userName = stringReverse(emailName);
emServer = stringReverse(emailServer);
var emLink = emailName+”@”+emailServer;
document.write(”<a href=’mailto:”+emailLink+”‘>”);
document.write(emailLink);
document.write(”</a>”);
}
function stringReverse(textString) {
if (!textString) return ”;
var revString=”;
for (i = textString.length-1; i>=0; i–)
revString+=textString.charAt(i);
return revString;
}
- Save the code as spam.js
This JavaScript code unscrambles the email text to the visual eye, while remaining scrambled to the metal eye.
Do you see what I am saying?
Hand-held vs Hands-free
January 29th, 2010
“There was no difference in accident statistics between drivers using hand-held cell phones compared to those using a hands-free cell phone device.” -by S. McEvoy et al. published in the BritishMedial Journal: Clip located at newsdial.com. Many states have issued laws and ordinances requiring cell phone users to use hands-free devices while driving. Many more communities are issuing laws against texting and emailing while driving.
Will more laws stop bad drivers from being bad drivers?
Social Overload
January 26th, 2010
While evaluating a site overhaul today, I noticed a link at the bottom of the site owner’s page directing visitors to the original site developer’s home page. I nosed around the development company’s website for some time. At the bottom of their page I noticed a large array of social media buttons.
The social media mindset is at the forefront of every developer’s mind. Everyone has it, uses it and wants more of it. Social media is a common avenue businesses are utilizing as an inexpensive networking phenomenon.
Is it possible for a business to overload with social media? I believe the answer is yes.
Back to the nosing around I was doing this afternoon…
This particular development company has 13 social media buttons on their website. Just today I retweeted a blog post originally written by Kristin Burnham titled 7 Tools to Better Manage Your Social Networks. It is obvious sights are being set on managing the social overload. It is becoming an overload. Can a business participating in 13 different social media sites still focus on the needs of its clients? Sure, if they have a staffed social media developer or are inactive on their networks. If neither is the case, perhaps they are spending to much time focusing on social media and not enough time on the actual service or work their business provides.
There are a few major social networking sites. A business or person participating in social media networks will typically be a part of one of the major networks. It is unlikely one is missing a potential client because they are not utilizing all of the social media hubs.
My advice: Pick a few social media sites and you will be just fine.
Lost Landing Page Conversion Rates
January 15th, 2010
Landing page conversion rates are of major concern to web designers and developers. Tim Ash wrote an article addressing this concern in the February issue of Website Magazine. This last October I was quite excited to receive an invite to attend and speak at their Networking Event. Website Magazine is a Midwest based company as well. Their articles are a necessary read for those of us continuing in our thirst for the latest web news. Below I am providing a few brief notes I compiled from the article, but I urge you to read the article in its entirety.
Things to avoid when designing a landing page:
- Dark and dramatic color themes, especially avoid in large sections
- Strangely placed texts and headlines, especially enveloped in enormous fonts and text effects
- Unnecessary effects and garnishes
- Intrusive video, animation and motion
- (Ash, 2010) - {View Online Article}
To sum up the article…Keep your landing pages clean, simple and to the point.
Reference:
Ash, T. (2010, February). Keep Your Graphic Designer on a Short leash to Increase Conversion Rates. Website Magazine, 18-19.
What A Week
January 13th, 2010
What a week…breathed with a sigh of relief. I am sure we all have been in that mindset. It never failed in the past that computer work would come in fluctuations. Viral removal, of course, works like that due to new virus definitions. In general most businesses work load fluctuates. I think back to my husband’s business, it fluctuated frequently as well. Work would be dead and then the phones would light up. So, what have I been up to…
I have been working on just the coding for a couple of websites for a business. This has been a phenomenal experience. She has been designing the websites in an image format. I have been creating her creations. It isn’t easy I must say, to take someone’s complete idea and then make it work. It is working though.
I have been working on the makings of a large website that isn’t due to launch until next month….exciting. I have scrapped it several times now, so I am glad the final product is more of a “spring is coming” launch.
I am also in the makings of launching a fantastic idea. That’s right an idea. I have been tossing it over for a few weeks and the perfect client may have just arrived! If approved, this should be a site go next month as well. (Note: anticipate a “What A Month” post in a month.)
I also did an OS overhaul this week. I hopefully have a repair coming shortly as well. I had thought I was completely finished with doing any sort of computer work. I was only going to do design, stated with a firm foot on the floor. I think I just needed a breather. My father asked me a few weeks ago if I was still doing any computer work. I had been doing a little, so I told him yes. He suggested I had told him I was trying to get away from that. I was, but I told him that I am no longer prejudice as to how I make money. 
When I told my uncle I was walking away and going only the design route, he told me it was just because design was something new. It is something new and I love it! He was right though, I do love the technical side. Two jobs to be done on my fun time?
What else happened this week…two deaths in the family. It seems as though illness and death have been plagues affecting so many families. I have learned the importance of love and trying to show it more often. This has been something I have been consistently trying to work on. So often, we are told to keep our personal life separate from business. I have decided that advice should be silenced. We are who we are resulting from all aspects of our lives. I think I will be expanding on this a bit more in the future.
Until my next post…let us all be glad we had a week to breathe in.
A Flashing Opinion
December 29th, 2009
Flash can be such an amazing asset to a site. For the most part, it is just that, an asset. I do believe that there are some exceptions to the Flash as an asset thought, however.
Yesterday, I conversed with a professional photographer. In the past I have felt frustration over not knowing a professional photographer to assist website customers with their photography needs. The photographer’s work if fantastic, but he needs a website to compliment his talent. He told me about a fantastic idea he has for a Flash intro. It is a fantastic idea! He is also thinking about having the entire site put into Flash. Normally, I would say no way, but not this time. I believe a photographer’s website will be just fine put into Flash. Putting this type of site into Flash my also help detour image thieving. Images can be quite a weight on the site load time as well. Placing the site into Flash can help reduce the site load time. Photography sites also just are not about content, they are showcases.
So, to all the photographers out there my ‘Flashing Opinion’ is flash it up!
Announcing: CMS Available
December 27th, 2009
Contract Coomer is now offering a CMS plan. A CMS is a Content Management System. These systems allow the website owner, or their designated editors, to make minor changes to their website content. Below you will find a few system screenshots and explanations. Click on the thumbnail image to view an enlarged clip.
Login:
The login screen allows the website owner to login to the CMS. Multiple logins can be created allowing various people to login and make necessary changes. Permissions can be set allowing only certain people to make changes to designated areas.
Dashboard:
The dashboard provides administrative options.
Toolbar:
Notice the toolbar at the top of the webpage. Clicking on the ‘Edit Page’ box takes you to the next image allowing you to edit your own website.
Edit Page:
You may edit anything between the red lines. These editable areas are determined by the website owner. Contract Coomer makes coding adjustments to the website to predetermine these designated areas.
Making an Edit:
Click the area you desire to edit. Choose edit from the menu to edit the determined area.
Notice the pop-up box. Here you will determine what type of edit you want to insert into the site.
Save:
When finished editing, click the ‘Exit Edit Mode’ in the toolbar. A pop-up will prompt you to publish or dismiss your edits.
Publish:
The published version of the website looks just like any other website. The toolbar is not present to typical viewers, but only to the logged in editor.
A website can be created from scratch or converted into the CMS if you already have a website.