Medora Solutions Everything Business Blog

What Being More Social Can do For Your Nonprofit

2012-01-31T14:53:00.000-08:00

Online marketing and social media strategies are typically thought of as falling squarely in the business realm, but by promoting your site through social networking portals – or better yet, hosting your own – you can accomplish some of your most important goals cost-effectively.

We have seen this firsthand with a number of our own clients (most recently the British Columbia Association of Teachers of English as an Additional Language). New features like online registration and conference scheduling have not only boosted new membership signups, but also increased the value they can provide to members.

Here are just a few of the ways being more social can help your nonprofit:

Grow your list of followers and subscribers. The easier it is for people to share information about your organization, and direct their friends and colleagues to registration pages, the more likely you are to attract newcomers. Whether it's through your own social site or existing ones like Facebook and LinkedIn, make sure your nonprofit has a strong presence that leads to places where new members can sign up.

Promote your events. Not only can you spread the word about fundraisers, meetings, and other events through social sites, but you can also use online registration and scheduling to dramatically increase attendance. You can even add online directions and scheduling apps to make things more convenient. Handling the administrative side of events online also has the benefit of dramatically lowering the cost of each event.

Raise more money. Nonprofits need revenue just like businesses do, and giving interested donors the opportunity to donate money over the web – or buy products through your social profiles – is a great way to give a boost to your bottom line.

Attract media attention. In the same way, know that your nonprofit website is probably going to be one of the first stops for any member of the media who wants to find out more about your group, its goals, and your upcoming events. Having a strong social presence makes this information easier for them to find, and more likely that it winds up in the right circles.

Is your nonprofit taking advantage of these opportunities? If you think your organization could be getting more out of online marketing and social media, contact the expert team at Medora Solutions today.

An Online Marketing Lesson From Politics

2012-01-25T13:47:00.000-08:00

If you pay attention to politics for long enough – or just happen to be sitting near the television every once in a while – then you might start to notice an interesting but predictable chain of events. Once a certain candidate gets ahead in the polls, it's only a matter of time before other candidates, both within and outside of their political party, will start to give them a lot of negative attention.

It's always the leader who attracts the biggest and sharpest attacks as others try to make up ground the easy way.

The same thing happens all the time in Internet marketing. Being a leader (whether that means having a popular website, being the best in your industry, or simply having a lot of local customers) means that you're going to have to look out for others who would like to take your place… and your customers. You're not running for office, but you are asking people to vote for you every day with their hard-earned dollars.

To help you keep those monetary votes coming in, here are three online marketing lessons from politics to remember:

Pay attention to your online reputation consistently. As a lot of political figures unwittingly discover, there really isn't any such thing as a time away from the public. Whether your business is doing right or wrong, people are going to notice, so make sure that you treat every customer in a way that's only going to boost your online reputation.

Don't stop promoting your business once you make it to the top. We all want to be front runners, but don't always realize that it takes just as much work to stay at the top as it does to get there. Especially with things like search engine optimization and social media marketing, gaining a good position or following is a first step, not a final destination.

Pay attention to customer feedback. Your customers are invaluable to your business. That's not just because of the revenue they send you, but also because they give you the best feedback about your own company, as well as your competitors. Pay attention to everything they say, because they can easily vote you in or out of profitability.

Politics may make business seem like a relatively clean affair, but that doesn't mean you can't afford to ignore your online reputation. If you think yours could use some help, contact the expert team at Medora Solutions today.

Are You Following Some Bad Ecommerce Examples?

2012-01-19T16:10:00.000-08:00

Much of the time, smaller businesses (and especially online retailers) have to take their cues from industry giants. That's because the bigger stores have the budgets to try new ideas and technologies that the rest of us may not. And so, they can often show us the best ways to be successful, if only we can follow their example.

That's not always the case, however – sometimes those big budgets and big ideas just mean a bigger waste of money.

I was reminded of that recently when I read about the way that Best Buy, one of the biggest electronics and entertainment retailers in North America, has been handling its ecommerce operations. The company's frequent ecommerce mistakes were recently noted in an article by Forbes (which can be seen here if you're interested: Why Best Buy is Going out of Business...Gradually).

The author points out that Best Buy's ordering system is frustrating and inconsistent, most notably that it doesn't seem to allow for real-time inventory updates. That shortcoming seems to have been the factor behind their recent inability to fulfill holiday shopping orders that were placed before Thanksgiving. Some of you may also remember that the retailing giant also found itself in trouble not too long ago – and on the wrong end of a lawsuit – by inflating the prices of different products on in-store computers that appeared to be connected to the company's real website, but in actuality were only on an internal system.

The article goes on to point out other problems, as well, but the point isn't to pick on Best Buy, but to notice that all of these issues seem to stem from a common cause: that the company cares more about short-term profits than it does customer satisfaction… which always turns out to be the bigger issue over time.

If you own an online store, or are thinking of adding one to your business, then I would strongly encourage you not to follow Best Buy's example. For one thing, be sure that your online and off-line systems – especially when it comes to inventory and shipping – are in sync with one another. No one likes to place an order, only to find out that it won't be available or delivered when your ecommerce site said it would.

In a bigger sense, try to envision your online store in the way the customer would. Invest in a strong layout, high-end functionality, and extra perks like mobile web compatibility. While it's true that any of these might eat into your short term profits, you can trust that you'll come out ahead by making wiser choices than some of the largest online retailers do.

Are People Feeling Less Social in 2012?

2012-01-12T17:37:00.000-08:00

A recent Harris poll showed an interesting trend when it comes to social media and making New Year's resolutions: Contrary to popular opinion, the number one wish of respondents wasn't necessarily to spend less time on sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, but to share less of their personal lives with fewer people.

In other words, the users of social networking sites are starting to feel little more guarded about who they talk to and receive messages from.

That translates into something that most of us already feel: that our social profiles are starting to get overloaded, and that customers are being more careful about who they let in. That's not necessarily bad news for online marketers, though… or at least for the ones who can do what it takes to stand out in the crowd and attract attention from buyers.

Here are a few tips to help you keep your friends, fans, and followers in 2012:

Don't use generic profiles. Having custom designs for your social media profiles – especially on Facebook and Twitter – gives the immediate impression that you aren't just another company trying to sell something online. Have a good designer come up with something that's fun, interesting, and reflects what your company is all about.

Post less often. This is a tricky one, because repetition is obviously the name of the game for a lot of marketing tactics. At the same time, however, customers don't want to hear from you so often that they feel overwhelmed. Post new content and updates only when you have something interesting or relevant to say. It's better to leave customers waiting for more than it is to have them wishing you'd stay quiet for longer.

Look for the right tone. Anywhere online, and especially with social media, customers flock to those sales people and companies who are funny, professional, and engaging. You want to come across as being one of the best in your industry, but also as having some personality. That, more than anything else, can help you keep your contact list growing, not shrinking.

What’s Missing From Your Order Review Page?

2012-01-04T10:09:00.000-08:00

For the owner of an e-commerce site or online store, the "review your order" page can be a source of both joy and apprehension.

On the one hand, customers who have made it this far are likely to complete their order and put money in your pocket; and on the other, a surprisingly high percentage of shoppers abandon their carts, never confirming them or receiving their products.

What are you doing to improve on the percentage of buyers who finish their orders?

In some cases, there isn't much you could have done to help your cause. Some people simply like to window shop, or want to compare prices, features, and totals from one online store to the next. Other times, however, shoppers leave because of something they see in the review page – or more frequently, something they don't see.

Check to be sure that none of these is missing from your e-commerce site's order review page:

Checkout totals. It goes without saying that customers should be able to see how much their order will cost before finalizing it, but we have seen shopping carts and checkout systems without final totals. Missing these will cost you sales.

Amounts for taxes and shipping. Likewise, it's important that any fees for shipping and taxes not only be added in, but displayed separately so the customer can make an informed choice. Even if the order total isn't increased, having these broken into separate categories will typically lead to a higher percentage of finished orders.

A shipping date and estimated delivery. When will your customer receive his or her product? If they need to place their order by a certain time to qualify for same-day shipping, then say so. The same goes for listing whether items are in stock, or how soon you can fulfill the purchase.

Your satisfaction guarantee. Do you offer a money-back guarantee? If you do, be sure to say so at the most critical moment. Having a satisfaction guarantee gives the customer one more reason to finish the order and feel safe about the transaction.

Starting a new e-commerce business may be challenging. If you think yours could use some help, contact the expert team at Medora Solutions, a Vancouver ecommerce developer today.

The Key to Better SEO and Higher Conversions

2011-12-07T10:51:00.001-08:00

Sure, you need traffic to your website if you're going to grow your business online, but often the process of entering more keywords and phrases does terrible things for the flow and bottom-line effectiveness of your business website.

Anything you can do that helps you gather more visitors and increase your site’s conversion ratio at the same time can only be good for business. With that in mind, here are some things you should think about every time you redesign your site or consider adding content: Use stronger, keyword-rich headlines.

The major search engines like Google, Yahoo, and Bing all give more weight to headlines than they do other copy on your pages. Like your readers, they assume that anything you have taken the time to mark off a separate section for must be at least somewhat important.

And so, if you can devise headlines that incorporate the major keywords or phrases you need to target while still including a selling point or call to action, then you will have gotten two birds with one stone: You have made your page more visible to search engine spiders, while giving visitors a reason to continue reading.

So what's the downside? Creating headlines, and subheads, that work for both search engines and your marketing goals can take work. In fact, it's not unusual for professional copywriters to experiment with dozens of them before finding the right combinations, so don't be afraid to work at it for as long as it takes to come up with a winner.

Having strong headlines is one of the easiest, and most underutilized, ways to help search engine positioning and website conversions at the same time.

Make sure you're getting the most out of the headlines on your business website.

If you don't have a website and need one, contact Medora Solutions Inc.

How to Tell if the Ground is Shifting Beneath Your Website

2011-11-30T11:25:00.001-08:00

Recently, people in the cities of New York and Washington, D.C., got a bit of a surprise when mild earthquakes shook the east coast of the U.S. These things happen, of course, and thankfully the damage seems to have been very minimal.

What’s interesting, though, was seeing the different reactions that came with it: Some people freaked out, while others barely noticed.

Of course, the same thing can easily happen with your website. One day things are going great, when all of the sudden your conversions decrease slightly but noticeably, you lose your first page search engine ranking, or your online orders are down.

What do you do? How can you tell if it’s the first sign of a big change, or just a little bump in the road?

While there will never be a foolproof way to know, here are the best ways to tell whether you're looking at a mild tremor, or something to be more concerned about:

Set up good analytics before there is a problem. Information is always your best tool when it comes to spotting trends, but you can't wait until you need to know to start collecting it. If you aren't getting lots of metrics from your business website, it's time to switch to a better provider hosting plan.

See what’s happening to competitors. There's no guarantee that any change – be it to a search engine, industry, or online marketing in general – will affect everyone evenly. Even so, however, it's a good idea to see what's happening with your closest competitors, since that may give you more insight into the situation.

Get an expert opinion. Most of our clients are too busy running their businesses to become online marketing experts, and even if they were, an outside perspective from someone who knows the landscape is always valuable. When you aren't sure what to do, or even what's going on, then it might be time to consult an expert business web design and online marketing team.

The Tiger Woods Approach to SEO and PPC Advertising

2011-09-20T09:49:00.000-07:00

What could business owners and online marketers possibly learn from Tiger Woods? More than you might think.

In his younger days, the golfer could afford to play, and compete, in virtually every tournament. With age, injuries, and a new generation of competitors, however, he has learned that it’s not worth it – or even possible – to win every event, every time. And so, he does what businesses like yours have to do (especially in this economy): Pick the competitions he’s most likely to win.

This lesson is particularly pertinent for business websites that rely on search engine optimization and pay-per-click advertising to generate traffic. By devoting time and energy to the keywords and markets that hold the most potential for success, you can stay ahead of the game without exhausting yourself… or your marketing budget. That's not scaling back your ambition; it's being smart with your time and resources.

With that in mind, here are three quick tips for following Tiger's example in making the most of your SEO/PPC budget:

Concentrate on fewer keywords and branch out. A lot of business owners, and especially those who are launching e-commerce sites, like to try to hit dozens – or even hundreds – of keywords and phrases at once. A better strategy is to concentrate your energy on a few, and then expand your efforts once they are working.

Look for profits, not traffic. Traffic is good, but completed sales are better. By focusing your initial energies on whichever keywords and phrases are most profitable, you make it easier to grow your online business later.

Get a good caddy. A good web design/SEO partner can help point the way and identify the right markets for you, which is more than half of the challenge when it comes to search engine optimization and pay-per-click advertising. Choose someone who has the experience and patience to guide you in the right direction, and you'll be well on the way.

To Boost E-commerce Sales, Offer a Parting Gift

2011-09-16T11:13:00.000-07:00

In e-commerce, it's well known that the most valuable customer is the one who is returning to your site, not visiting it for the first time. Add to that the fact that most owners of online stores spend incredible amounts of time and money trying to attract buyers, and you can see why it's important that you maximize the value of every single visitor you can draw in.

There's no mystery in any of that of course, but not every person who comes to your e-commerce site is going to be ready to buy the first time around. In fact, some of them may need 5, 10, or even a dozen contacts with you before they are ready to enter in a credit card number for your products.

One way is to offer some sort of free gift for keeping in touch. There are a lot of different forms that these kinds of promotions can take, but one of the most popular is an online coupon or discount in return for signing up for the company’s online newsletter. Another popular tactic is to give away an e-book or other informational tool if they agree to subscribe. Or, in rare cases it could be an actual physical product that you ship to their home or business.

The free gift you use to attract and keep traffic isn't necessarily important, and should probably depend on what kind of customers and store you have, anyway. What matters is that it's strong enough to get people to sign up to receive it. In other words, it has to be compelling enough that they wouldn't want to miss out on the opportunity to get it.

Not every person who subscribes to your e-mail list is ever going to buy from you, of course, but the odds are much higher for a subscriber than they are a one-time visitor. So, if you really care about your online sales, give away something that entices visitors of your site to keep in touch with your online store.

The One Thing You Should Do After You Get A Business Web Design Proposal... And Before You Sign A Contract

2011-09-16T09:29:00.000-07:00

How do you go about choosing, and hiring, a business web design team? There's no one set answer or process, of course, but we would urge you to avoid the mistake a lot of business owners make by moving directly from a proposal to a contract. Sure, you may be anxious to get started, but just because you have seen some good samples, and found a price you can agree on, doesn't mean you're going to be happy with the work you ultimately receive.

In fact, the best thing you can do before signing a contract to design or redesign your company's website is to check out a few references first.

Here's why: There are probably dozens of other business owners who have been exactly where you are at the moment. They have already worked with the company in question, and know what you are going to be going through if you hire the web design firm. They can tell you how responsive the team was, whether layouts and other components were usually delivered on time, and even whether the web design ended up being a good value for the money.

In most cases, if you've gone through the trouble of meeting the business web design team, seeing their work, and finding out about them, there aren’t going to be a lot of surprises in the works. Still, given that even a modest business website can represent a sizable investment, doesn't it make sense to double check their track record and get some peace of mind? A reputable, experienced web designer or team isn't going to have any issue with this – in fact, they'll be delighted to show off what their happy clients have to say.

Checking a few references on the business web designer is a small step, but one you shouldn't skip.

What To Do When Your Business Web Design Is Taking Longer Than Expected

2011-09-02T16:36:00.000-07:00

In the minds of our clients, a business web design takes roughly five or ten minutes after the deposit check has been signed and delivered. That's understandable, but the process of putting the main pages and theme together – not to mention any coding or custom programming work – can sometimes take a little while.

Of course, finding the best definition of "a little while" can sometimes get us in trouble.

Ideally, your business web design team will have spelled out exactly how long you should expect to wait before seeing your site go live, and then stick to that schedule. But what happens when they don't? Here are three things to do when your business web design is taking longer than you expect:

Cut your creative team some slack. Granted, we’re a little bit biased, but we can tell you from experience that building a website from the ground up isn't always as easy as it appears from the outside. If they're just a few days late, but you sense they’re working hard, try to give them the space to catch up.

Find out where the problems are. It could be that there are parts of your new business website that are ready for your review, and that it's a very small piece of the puzzle that is holding things up. Or, it could also be that the design team is waiting for a photograph, product description, or other detail from a member of your staff. Try to find out what's causing the delay before you get too upset about it.

Pull out your contract. Obviously, you don't want this to be your first step, but if you're facing serious delays and few explanations, then it's time to figure out what your options are. Typically, your web design contract spells out any discounts or remedies that are due to you in the event that your site is long overdue.

Most often, having your site launch a few days late is the result of some minor problem that's easy to resolve. Still, by having these tips, you'll know what to do if you find yourself waiting as the days and hours roll by.

What Can You Learn From Steve Jobs and Apple

2011-08-25T12:15:00.000-07:00

If you haven’t heard, one of the world’s richest men – and a pioneer of the computer age – is leaving his post as the CEO of Apple. The move hasn’t been entirely unexpected, as he has battled cancer for years.

Believe it or not, the transition that Apple will soon face has lessons for your business. That’s because, even if you aren’t at the helm of a billion-dollar enterprise, and even if you don’t see yourself leaving your company in the near future, it's never a bad time to think about the future.

Here are three things you should consider:

It might be time to spread the work around a little bit. If you are solely responsible for the future of your business, then your business is always going to be at risk. Just as you wouldn't want your online store, for example, to be dependent on a single server, neither should your company be at risk of going under if you had to miss a week or two of work.

Emergency planning is not a luxury. In the same way, you can virtually guarantee that, sooner or later, something unexpected will happen in your company. It could be as simple as your website going down or a minor equipment failure, or as complicated as a theft or natural disaster. Make sure that all of the parts of your business – and especially your business website – are protected.

Get a good team to back you up. Having a strong web design and online marketing partner can help you take some of the risk out of your business, both in the day-to-day sense and in a longer strategic view. If you don't have a web design company that’s doing more than creating nice designs for you, then now is the perfect time to ask, why not?

3 Online Marketing Lessons From the Rebellion in Libya

2011-08-25T12:04:00.000-07:00

For the last few months, the revolution in Libya has been front-page news. It's not the first time that a dictator has been suddenly thrown from power by his people, but it's hard to remember it ever happening under such scrutiny and intense coverage from the worldwide media.

But as interesting as the situation is from a geopolitical perspective, and regardless of what the long-term implications might be for the Middle East – or the Libyans themselves – the most important lessons to be drawn might be those that have to do with things like search engine optimization and business website design.

If that sounds like a stretch, consider these three lessons in online marketing that any business owner could take from the rebellion in Libya – and what they mean for your company.

You’re never as far ahead (or behind) as you think you are in online marketing. In the same way that even the most entrenched governments, companies, etc., can be taken out by a competitor, so can your business… or anyone else's. When thinking about the world, and especially the World Wide Web, it's important to remember that nothing is permanent.
Just because someone has a strong position today, or doesn't seem like a real threat to your business, doesn't mean that things will still seem that way tomorrow. Even companies like Google and Apple were once unheard of, so be on the lookout for change.

If you treat your customers badly, they will find someone else to help them. Yes, it's maybe a bit drastic to compare your business to a dictator's government, but the parallels are there: If your customers feel fed up enough, they'll find someone else to serve them. This is especially true in Internet marketing, where your competitors are probably just a couple of mouse clicks away.

The right partnerships are invaluable. The Libyan rebels were said to be down to their last days before European countries starting offering assistance from the air. And then, with a little bit of laser-guided assistance, they were back to a winning position in no time.

It could be that your online marketing plan just needs a little bit of focus, direction, and expertise to help you overtake your competitors. Could it be that your business just needs a boost from the right web design and online marketing partner?

Does AOL's Decline Hold Lessons for Social Media Marketers?

2011-08-23T10:12:00.000-07:00

America Online was once so big that many users actually thought it was the Internet. With its chat rooms, forums, and other interactive tools, AOL's probably the earliest well-known precursor to the social media boom that's sweeping the online world so rapidly.

Now, though, the company is on the ropes, facing a steady decrease in attention, revenue, and relevance. Does the decline of one of the Internet's earliest giants hold any lessons for small business owners?

It certainly does, and the main thrust of the message is: what's here today can be gone tomorrow. Here are three things business owners and marketing managers should take from that insight:

Don't be dependent on any one site, marketing technique, or revenue stream. The Internet marketing world is full of examples of companies that disappeared, virtually overnight, because they put all their eggs in one basket.

Never assume the competition can't (or won't) catch up to you. Even though AOL once had a huge lead in market share, it now finds itself at the back of the pack. Believe it or not, the same thing can happen to your company, if you're not constantly evolving and adapting.

Keep trying new things. These days, it's Google, YouTube, and Facebook that are leading the way, although new competitors are popping up all the time. As with most things in business – and especially on the Internet – you'll have an easier time getting ahead if you jump into the site early, so keep your eyes open for new marketing avenues.

In a lot of ways, there isn't much that's unusual or exceptional about the decline of America Online – that's just the way businesses come and go. By taking a few lessons from what happened to them, however, your company might be able to avoid losing ground to your online competition.

A Trillion Reasons You Should Look Into Facebook Advertising

2011-08-09T13:20:00.001-07:00

It was recently announced that Facebook, already the world's most popular social media site by a very wide margin, would likely gather more than one trillion advertising impressions for the year – representing roughly a third of the US Internet advertising market.

If that doesn't seem like a good enough reason for your small business to try out Facebook advertising, then we aren't sure what is.

Despite the fact that there are more than 500 million registered Facebook users worldwide, with more than a third of them checking into the site daily, there are still millions of businesses out there that aren't just failing to take advantage, but aren't even participating at all. If you're one of them, we encourage you to get started on creating a fan page for your business and putting together a social media marketing plan today.

And even if the numbers don't compel you, there is one other reason you should definitely consider advertising on Facebook: it's an Internet marketing medium like no other. Granted, it still doesn't get as many hits as Google, or even YouTube, but it does have something that neither of those sites do: a pool of users who gladly share information about themselves and their own interests.

When you advertise on search engines and other sites, you're relying on what people say they're trying to look for at the moment. That's good, but there are times when you would rather know exactly what kind of people they are to start with – especially if you have a product or service that can help them, but they might not know to look for in the first place.

It could be that Facebook is your most important advertising tool yet, but you just haven't tried it. If you've been waiting for good reason to get started, consider those 1 trillion impressions the nudging needed.

Does Having Fans on Facebook Matter to Your Small Business?

2011-08-09T12:58:00.000-07:00

As a new form of Internet promotion, social network marketing is something of an unusual animal. It's undoubtedly popular and important, but at the same time, it can be difficult to actually tell how well you're doing or not. The most popular metric put into play by small business owners, web designers, and online marketing experts alike is the number of fans your business has on its Facebook page.

But does having fans on Facebook really matter to your small business?

The short answer is that it probably does, but not quite as much as most people would lead you to believe. That's because, although having ever-increasing numbers of people publicly admit to "liking" your work or products, it really comes down to those precious few – the ones that could become your best customers – that's really important.

And so, the bigger net you're able to cast (by having more fans), the greater chance there is that these people will be a part of it, or at least be forwarded some of your content from someone they know. That means the best thing you can do for yourself and your company is to keep generating fresh, interesting content that attracts more fans and followers.

Having customers come to your Facebook fan page is important, and it's probably one of the easiest ways to measure the progress you're making in social media marketing, but that's not the same as saying it's the only way. Keep a close eye on some other metrics – and especially what sort of bottom-line improvement you're getting from your Facebook efforts – and use them all when you're making decisions on where to devote your time and money.

It might be great to have a crowd following you, online or off, but reaching the men and women who have the desire and ability to buy from you over and over is what truly matters.

What Matters Most in Online Marketing: Web Design, Copywriting, or Getting Traffic?

2011-07-13T15:46:00.000-07:00

Savvy web marketers, or regular readers of our blog, will recognize right away that this is a trick question. Why? Because even though different businesses might rely more or less on different online marketing tools, the reality is that your website really succeeds only when all of these are working together.

Here are a couple of quick reasons:

Web design catches the eye. With the literally billions upon billions of commercial websites that are out there, yours needs to stand out and look professional if you want customers to take you seriously. A quality website is like a suit and tie for your company – something you need just to be considered credible enough to buy from.

Good copywriting turns visitors into buyers. No matter how great your site looks, visitors still have to be persuaded to make a purchase if you're going to come out ahead. That's where copywriting comes in, by taking the very best out of what your company and what you offer and turning it into a compelling message that speaks to potential buyers.

No one will buy from you if they don't find you first. Of course, even the best written and best-designed website isn't going to make you any money if no one can find it via search engines, online advertising, social media, and other means. Without these crucial tools, your online store will never make a single sale because they won't even know it was there to begin with.

There really isn't such a thing as a part of Internet marketing that you can afford to ignore, since most companies that do don't end up turning a profit. And even if you are able to stay in business without them, you'll only be earning a fraction of what you could be. Do you have any weaknesses in your online marketing plan?

Could Hiring a Joke Writer be Your Best Online Marketing Move?

2011-05-30T21:36:00.000-07:00

When it comes to online marketing, most business owners will turn to a consultant or MBA before they will someone who spends their evenings in comedy clubs, but many of them might do well to change their focus. Hiring a joke writer to spice up your website, blog, and social media campaigns could be the best bottom line decision you ever make.

It's not hard to understand why. Few things get read by your customers and contacts – not to mention spread around by thousands of others – like a good joke or humorous article. And since grabbing people's focus is a great first step towards building a business relationship, a little humor here and there can do wonders for your marketing campaigns.

Here are three quick reasons to consider adding a joke writer to your web marketing mix:

Using humor is a great way to get attention. As we've mentioned, people might click away from a boring company update, or sales offer, but they'll almost always make time for something that gives them a chuckle.

Hiring a good joke writer is usually not that expensive. A lot of people have the impression that funny writing costs a lot, and it can. But there are all kinds of up-and-coming comics, established writers, and other funny people out there who can be hired for a lot less than you would probably think.

You'll profit from a growing contact list. Of course, your goal shouldn't be to make money off the jokes directly, but rather to increase the size (and interest level) of your contact list. Over time, with more men and women reading your newsletters, social updates, and other content – not to mention paying closer attention to it – you'll have a much easier time making sales.

Using comedy isn't the first thing you'll find in a lot of Internet business books, but that doesn't mean it's not worth giving a try. If you can make people laugh today, there's a good chance you can convince them to buy tomorrow, too.

Take it From Sony: Web Security is an Online Marketing Issue

2011-05-25T15:07:00.000-07:00

Whether you're someone who follows the gaming industry or not, you've probably already heard that electronics giant Sony has been in the news recently for a well-publicized security issue that may or may not have leaked tens of millions of users' personal information. Some of the data that may have been compromised included account names, e-mail addresses, and even credit card numbers.

But assuming you don't spend your evenings and weekends playing games, what does any of this have to do with you and your small business?

It might have a lot more to do with it than you would think. That's because a great deal of small business types tend to think of web security as a little bit of an afterthought – something that definitely needs to be taken care of, after the web design and online marketing plan have been completed, but probably not an issue you need to pay too much attention to.

But what Sony is teaching us is that web security is an online marketing issue. That's because anything that makes a big public impression – and trust us that losing your data, or your customers', definitely will – affects the way people see you, and how you're able to find new business. In other words, few new customers are going to line up for your products and services if they have the impression that doing so might open their company up to harm from hackers and other unsavory types.

Granted, your web security failure might not get the kind of press that Sony's has, but in this day and age of instant social communication, you can bet that it won't take much in the way of negative feedback to get the ball rolling.

To compete and find new customers online, your business has to have a strong impression amongst existing customers and future clients. Web security is a bigger part of that equation than you might think.

Can You Copy Coca Cola's Model for Viral Videos?

2011-05-16T15:02:00.000-07:00

Coca Cola made a splash recently when they released a series of videos showing how people could "make friends" with their two-for-one bottle of soda special. Basically, the gag consisted of a set of really, really tall machines being placed in high-traffic areas in eight cities around the world. It was up to people passing by to figure out a way to work together to reach the coin slot, which was about 8 feet off the ground, in order to get their free Coca-Cola.

If you haven't seen it, you can check it out here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bj3QLLTFDX8

We aren't just bringing this up because it was a fun idea and a well done marketing video. We’re mentioning it because what Coke did could also be considered a template for the way lots of small businesses should be trying to gain attention on social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Even though Coca-Cola is obviously a multi-billion dollar enterprise, it didn't have to spend millions to gain attention in a very crowded Internet marketplace. Instead, they recognized that a little bit of fun and creativity will win big over hype and heavy spending every time.

What sort of viral content, and especially videos, could your small business be producing? What interesting ideas do you have, or what situations can you put customers in to elicit an interesting response.

If you notice in the video, the fun element doesn't really have much to do with the soda itself – it's all about people's reactions, facial expressions, and the innovative ways they come up with to partner and reach their goal. In other words, it's not about the Coke; it's about the fun of getting together with your friends to get one.

You don't have to spend a lot of money to produce an online viral video – you just need one fun idea and a cast of interesting customers to help get attention.

A Quick Tip for Turning More Web Visitors Into Buyers

2011-04-13T15:27:00.000-07:00

If you find that a lot of people are coming to your website and leaving without buying, it can be hard to know exactly why that's happening. And in truth, there aren't any concrete recommendations we could make without seeing your site firsthand.

But, what we can do is offer you a quick tip for turning more visitors to your website and online buyers. It's a simple thing, really, but one that would help untold numbers of Internet retailers: take the mystery out of the buying process.

When a new customer buys something from your website for the first time, they are essentially trusting that things are going to work out the way they're supposed to. They probably don't know you personally, and might not even be in the same region or country. That's asking a lot of faith for someone to put their credit card number on, especially when we hear stories every day of online theft leading to wild shopping sprees and months of hassle for the victims.

You can't totally alleviate that fear, but you can take big steps to fight it. Here are a few that can help:

Explain the ordering process. Before they finalize their purchase, let them know exactly what will happen next, in terms of fulfillment, shipping, charges to their card, and so on.

Sprinkle your pages with quotes from happy customers. It's even better if you can include pictures, phone numbers, e-mail addresses. People know that unscrupulous online marketers can make up testimonials, so do what you can to show shoppers yours are authentic.

Highlight your return in satisfaction policies. Again, you want to let people know that if something goes wrong, you're going to take care of it. The irony is that very few customers will ever take the time to complain when they're unhappy, but 100% satisfaction guarantees have been proven to help increase sales.

Host a section for online reviews. Even if not all of them are glowing, having new customers be able to see that other people have gotten their products on time and as expected is a great way to help them feel more confidence.

What Charlie Sheen Can Teach Us All About Social Media Marketing

2011-04-07T11:43:00.000-07:00

If you haven't been following the train wreck that's become of Charlie Sheen's career in recent days, then you're missing out on one of the most entertaining stories of 2011. From one rambling interview to the next, he's setting a new standard for celebrity nonsense on a day-to-day basis.

But regardless of what you think of his work, or his opinions, there is one thing you have to admire about his ongoing rants: that despite his meandering ideas and accusations, he keeps returning to a single core message.

If you don't know what I'm talking about, follow this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pipTwjwrQYQ
(don't worry, it's fine to view in the office).

When you stop chuckling to yourself, ask yourself this question: how many times did Charlie Sheen make it clear that he was "winning?"

Whether he's actually winning anything or not – or even what he thinks he's winning in the first place – isn't really the issue. The point is that he has a topic on his mind, and he make sure that each interview ends up highlighting it.

As a rule of thumb, promoting your small business and any way that resembles what's going on in these videos is probably an extraordinarily bad idea. But, if there's any lesson you can draw from any of this, it's that any business owner or marketer can benefit from distilling his or her company's social media updates into one or two themes, and then sticking to them religiously. Over time, that's going to form a certain impression in people's minds.

So, if you want to establish yourself as the brand with the best prices, or the one that provides unmatched customer service, make a point of slipping it into every post, update, and video you can. It might be a simple strategy, but it's definitely one of the keys to winning the online marketing battle.

Are You Ready for the Next Wave of Social Media Sites?

2011-04-01T13:31:00.000-07:00

If you're one of those marketers who has just gotten used to social media as a viable way to get the word out about your products and services, then hold on to your hat... because things are still changing.

Facebook and Twitter aren't going anywhere soon, of course, but there are other up-and-comers like 4Square that are going to require more of our online marketing attention in the near future. And that's to say nothing of the dozens of others that are gaining steam.

Here are two social media trends you need to be aware of... and what they mean for your company:

Geography matters. One of 4Square's unique selling points is that it's centered around places that exist in the real world. While this might seem like a complete reversal of the Internet's history -- where physical location has mattered less and less over the past few years -- it makes sense because of the millions of new users flocking to iPhones and Droids recently. These are avid social media users on the go, and they're taking their profiles and preferences with them throughout their own neighborhoods.

To stay ahead of this trend, your business should be aggressively pursuing not only a social media presence, but one that emphasizes your retail locations (if you have any), and the areas where your customers live.

Industries are developing their own social media sites. LinkedIn really took the biggest step towards "commercializing" social networking sites, by opening the door for professionals to network online separately from friends and family. Now, a number of new sites are taking that concept further, offering profiles, discussion groups, and other standard social networking features within industry-specific websites. There are a lot of these popping up, but it's not yet clear who the leaders will be -- only that there will be many of these sites that will gain marketing relevance as time goes on.

If you can recognize the power of this trend, you can start positioning your company for future success now. Make sure you’re joining any sites that focus on your industry, not to mention the ones most of your customers are involved in. It won't be long before they might become a cornerstone of your online business plan.

When You Can't Find the Web Application You Need, Does it Make Sense to Develop Your Own?

2011-03-30T16:53:00.000-07:00

Ever go to a shoe store and find the perfect look, only to discover they don't carry what you want in your size? Or, have you had the experience of feeling the craving coming on, just to find out that the restaurant you drove an hour to get to is all out of your favorite dish?

Most of us are familiar with the sensation of wanting something we can't get without a lot of time and trouble, but that can be especially bothersome when what you need is a feature application for your business website. Rest assured, though, that if your company -- or online marketing presence -- gets to be big enough, it's bound to happen.

That's because, the more sophisticated you get, the more sophisticated tools you're going to need. There are lots of data management, security, and reporting features you could want on your next website, even though they don't exist yet.

Here are a few things to consider when it comes to having a custom application written for you:

See how others have handled the problem. Even in the most tightly-knit industries, there is likely to be another company that has tackled the same kind of problem in the past. Start your brainstorming process by seeing what others have done, and whether any of those solutions make sense to you.

Talk to your web design team. Often, getting the coding and functionality you need is easier and less expensive than you'd think. The key, however, is to be as specific as possible in describing what you want your web application to do, who will be using it, and why it's so important. From there, your team can probably give you a great time and expense estimate, so you can make an informed decision.

Consider the costs... and the costs. Don't worry, this isn't a riddle. What we're getting at is that there is the cost of having the application developed is, but also the cost of not having it on your new website. If it's a custom feature that you or your customers just can't live without, weigh that into your final decision.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions Inc. - Vancouver web development company.

What is Your Website Not Telling You?

2011-03-25T09:43:00.000-07:00

When you had your business website designed, you probably went through painstaking care to be sure that it gave all kinds of valuable information to colleagues, customers, and other potential visitors.

But what kind of information is it giving you back? Is it giving you valuable data you can use to improve your business -- online and off -- an increase in your profitability every quarter?

If not, then ask yourself whether it's because you try to save some time or money in the wrong area. Sometimes, business owners want to skip on web analytics, feeling that it adds to the cost of their new website, or that it's something they "just don't have the time to learn or make sense of."

That's understandable, but the numbers aren't as difficult to figure out as you would think -- especially if you have a good web marketing partner helping you -- and they can offer some really great insight into what's happening with your company online. Most analytics packages are incredibly easy to integrate and use effectively. Here are just a few of the things your website should be telling you, at a minimum:

How many visitors your company's website is seeing each day in week. This is basic, you can't find trends in Web traffic if you don't even know how many unique views your site is getting.

How long visitors are staying. This is an important detail, but one that's often overlooked. Traffic is useless unless visitors are engaged, reading about your products, and ultimately contacting you. For that reason, you have to know whether people are simply finding you, or whether they are staying to find out about your products and services.

How interested customers are finding you. Knowing whether new businesses coming to you via search engines, other sites, social media profiles, or even your off-line sales force is an important first step towards tightening up your online marketing plan.

Which pages are most popular. One of the most interesting things about Internet marketing is that, despite our best plans and ideas, visitors often respond best to parts of the site we didn't expect. But by keeping track of where they devote their attention, we can give them more what they want going forward.

Which pages visitors exit the site from. Likewise, you'll want to know what's causing people to leave. Is it language about pricing, delivery dates, product descriptions, or something else altogether? You can't correct these problems until you know where they are.

... and a lot more. As analytics go, these stats are just the tip of the iceberg. To really put together a cohesive online marketing plan, and use it to improve your bottom line, you want to have all the tools at your disposal -- and that means not skipping over these important parts of the web design process.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions Inc. - Vancouver web designer.

If you Want Customers to Sign up for Your Newsletter, Give Them a Good Reason

2011-03-17T14:17:00.000-07:00

As online marketing advice goes, "start and maintain an e-mail newsletter" is almost as old as the web itself. There's good reason for that: thousands of businesses have found that offering a couple of quick tips and monthly specials is a great way to keep customers coming back time and time again.

There's only one problem -- you have to get people to sign up for your newsletter in the first place.
Too many businesses simply place an opt-in box on their homepage and hope visitors will decide it seems like a good idea. But how often do any of us really think we need to receive more e-mail? That's why it's so important that you give people a good reason to sign up for your updates.

Here are just a few of the ways you can attract subscribers to your e-mail newsletter:

Offer a white paper or special report. Probably the most well-known way to gather e-mail addresses is by offering some sort of free report or guide to subscribers when they sign up. This is a great idea because it doesn't just grow your mailing list, but positions you and your company as experts, rather than just another vendor.

Preview future articles. Few people need more e-mail, but we all crave good advice and guidance. For that reason, mentioning some of the topics or ideas you'll be sharing in future newsletters is a great way to persuade people sign up for them.

Give away coupons. Bribery is illegal in a lot of parts of life, but giving away coupons, gift cards, and other small gifts to people who opt in to your newsletter can be a powerful tactic, so long as it doesn't end up being too expensive.

Promise discounts. One of the biggest reasons customers subscribe to any newsletter is for the chance to hear about big discounts and other savings. Let customers know they can get a better price by being on your list, and you might be surprised at how many of them run to sign up.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions Inc. - Vancouver web design company.

Is Your Blog Too Self-Promotional?

2011-03-14T18:08:00.001-07:00

Ever find yourself watching television late at night and stumble onto a program that begins with a message that goes something like this: "the following program is a paid advertisement..."

How long does it take before you click away to a different channel?
For most of us, the answer is not very long. We have been inundated with marketing our whole lives, and we don't have a lot of patience for products and services that are shoved down our throats. Advertisers can gain our attention, but they typically have to be a little more subtle or entertaining.

This is an important point, because too many small-business owners and new Internet marketers shoot themselves in the foot by coming up with blog posts -- not to mention social media content -- that reads like the script for an infomercial. Everything they have to say is obviously designed to bring the conversation back to how great their business is, or why you should buy right away. The only problem is, no one wants to read any of that.

Your company's blog shouldn't read like a thinly-veiled attempt for your business. If you want to invite attention, and further action, be sure to include posts and articles that people will actually want to read.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions Inc. - Vancouver web developer.

7 Signs You Should Be Thinking About a New Website

2011-03-03T09:54:00.000-08:00

Business websites are more like suits than cars, in that they don't just break down and stop working when it's time to replace them -- if you're not paying attention, they can slowly eat away at your professional image for months or years.

Because it can be so difficult for clients to know whether they actually need to upgrade or replace their websites, here are seven signs you should be thinking about something new:

Your current website has out of date graphics, logos, or other multimedia. If the things you have posted on your site are out of date, then it's a good chance the layout and code themselves are, too.

Your company name, or its focus, have changed. It should go without saying, but your website needs to reflect the company you are actually running, not the one you were five years ago.

Your products, shipping, or other details are no longer accurate. Likewise, it's hard to show potential customers why they should buy from you without current descriptions of what you sell, or how you deliver it.

Your biggest competitor just upgraded. Sometimes, it makes sense to ignore the other guy down the street. But if they have a website that's blowing yours out of the water, it's probably a good idea to consider keeping pace.

You don't have a single social media link in your business website. About 200 million users ago, social media stopped being the future of Internet marketing and started being a big part of the present. If you aren't participating, you're just falling farther behind.

You don't show up on any search engine listings. In the same way, nearly every business in any industry can benefit from a steady flow of search engine traffic. If your site isn't getting any, then you're missing out on potential profits.

You aren't sure whether your site is secure or not. Don't invite trouble by failing to keep your web security standards up to date. This is one area where you definitely shouldn't ignore the issue, because it can come back to bite you in a heartbeat.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions Inc. - Vancouver web designer.

Where the Real Money in Mobile Apps Is

2011-02-22T16:22:00.000-08:00

Since the launch of Apple’s iPhone App Store, the business press has come up with dozens of stories of small companies and development firms that have managed to turn tiny programs into gigantic profits. Their success has spurred others to create their own apps, in hopes that they can cash in from a similar idea.

It's not impossible that some of them will, of course, but the odds are something akin to writing a best-selling novel. In other words, for every company or developer that tries it and makes money, hundreds or thousands of others won't even make back what they spent developing the app.

But just because there aren't that many profitable apps in Apple's iPhone store doesn't mean that your company can't profit from them. The key is to think not in terms of big-time sales, but deepening customer relationships. If you can develop, or even envision, an app that makes life easier for your customers, then having them download it is a great way to keep your company in the front of their minds. It gives you a marketing advantage that other companies will struggle to match.

It might be harder than most marketers think to profit directly from apps, but they can still be a good part of your online business. The key is just to think longer term and aim for relationships, not quick downloads.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions - Vancouver web designer.

An Often Overlooked Way to Profit From Online Videos

2011-02-18T11:59:00.001-08:00

Contrary to popular belief, not every online video you produce has to be designed to sell more products or services. Don't get us wrong; using short clips on YouTube, as well as your own site, is a great way to introduce buyers to what you offer – it just isn't the only way to help your bottom line.

That's because there are two sides to every balance sheet, and one of the biggest expenses most companies face has to do with customer service and returns. In other words, finding ways to incur fewer costs in those areas is just as good as getting a big order.

With that in mind, produce videos that show customers how to use or maintain your company's products. Because they generally don't have to be as flashy, these types of clips are usually easy to shoot and produce. Once you add a handful of them to your site, answering the most frequently asked questions or addressing common customer concerns, they'll start to take some of the burden off of you and your staff, allowing you to focus on more profitable activities.

Online videos that help you market and sell are great, but don't forget about ones that can help you decrease expenses. They are usually a lot faster and easier to make, and they can have just as big an impact on your company's earnings.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions - Vancouver web design company.

The Most Important Question in Any Online Marketing Plan

2011-02-17T12:03:00.000-08:00

I suspect that, if you were to ask most business owners what the most important question in their online marketing plan was, you would get answers that would revolve around their budget, the most-searched keywords in their industry, or maybe even what the competition has been up to. None of those is a particularly bad answer, but they all miss the point…

The most important question facing your company is this: “what do customers really want from your business?”

Understanding that issue is the first key to outshining the competition and boosting your online profits. Once you “get” whatever it is buyers really want from you – whether it’s premium products, the fastest shipping, five-star customer service, or just rock-bottom prices – you can start to not only give it to them, but make it the clear focus of your search engine, social media, video, and other marketing strategies. Conversely, if you don’t understand what you’re really offering, it’s hard to use any of those tools effectively.

Remember, your success on the Internet (or elsewhere) is built upon what you can deliver to your customers. Before you worry about how they’re going to find you, what the pricing should be like, or who else is trying to edge you out, be sure that you’re making an offer that fits.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is President at Medora Solutions - Vancouver ecommerce developer.

MEDORA is Getting Noticed… and We Want to Thank All of Our Clients For it!

2011-02-10T15:23:00.000-08:00

Recently, Business in Vancouver released their list of “British Columbia’s 100 Fastest-Growing Companies,” which included Medora Solutions Inc. For now you can see the complete list here.
Of course, as exciting as it is to be recognized as one of Vancouver’s leading web design and online marketing firms, we are well aware that we didn’t earn this honor all by ourselves. We couldn’t have done this without any of you!

That’s why, for the next few weeks, we’d like to offer a special “Thank You” to all of our 2009-2010 clients that goes farther than this note.

What did we have in mind? Let us know what small problem, upgrade, issue or design you’ve been hoping or waiting for, and we’ll take care of it completely free of charge.

You read that correctly: if it’s something that doesn’t fall into the category of “major project,” like a new website or hard core coding, it’s going to be our gift to you… a thank you for your business.

We can’t give away free work forever, so don’t wait too long to let us know what you’d like. And if you aren’t sure whether your project qualifies, simply give us a quick call and we’ll let you know how far we can go. You’ve all helped us reach a new level of success, and we want to show our appreciation in the best way we know how.

Not a MEDORA client yet? It’s not too late to become one. Call us today and find out why our commitment to quality work and five-star service landed us on Business in Vancouver’s Fastest-Growing List. Maybe, with your help, we’ll earn a spot for this year, too – and we can promise you’ll be rewarded when we do.

Once again, a huge “thanks!” to all of you from the MEDORA team. We look forward to growing – and serving you – again in 2011.

Alex and the MEDORA Team

PS: Want a real-life example of how we go farther for our clients than anyone else? Click here to read how MEDORA helped the British Columbia SPCA get their new site live in just three days! Or better yet, donate a couple of dollars to their cause – it’s a great way to see our work and build up some good karma at the same time!

How MEDORA Helped the British Columbia SPCA to Launch Their New Lottery Website in Just 3 Business Days!

2011-02-10T14:30:00.000-08:00

As one of Vancouver’s fastest-growing web design and online marketing companies, we’re used to hearing some pretty unusual and incredibly ambitious ideas. But a couple of weeks back, we got a call that surprised even us: The British Columbia SPCA wanted to launch their new lottery website – a place where animal lovers could purchase tickets securely online, while giving administrators critical daily reports – on February 1.

The strange part: They called on the afternoon of Wednesday, January 26… just three and a half business days before the deadline!

Never ones to turn down a challenge or a good cause, we put our team into action. Here is how we made it happen:

Wednesday. After talking with the good people at the BC SPCA, Alex drafted the site requirements into a user stories format, which were approved by the client. At the same time, Jean started working on some initial designs and sent those over to the client, as well.

Thursday. While small changes and refinements to our initial design went back and forth with the client, Victor (our database specialist) created a data scheme that would manage both incoming and outgoing information. Meanwhile, our user interface guru Pavel put together some working forms so visitors to the site would be able to enter the information.

Late that afternoon, the client approved our design... it was time to pull an all nighter!

Friday. With the main design and features coming together, Victor got to work developing a coded daily transaction batch export routines – in other words, making it easy for the BC SPCA to download the encrypted data they would need at regular intervals. Pavel took those and made sure the site functioned correctly in Internet Explorer, Safari, and Firefox. Now we were really cooking...

Monday. Some testing of the site revealed a few minor bugs that had to be ironed out, and we spent most of the day making sure there weren't any hidden problems.

Tuesday. On February 1, the website went live and orders started coming in by the hundreds from animal lovers all around the province. Not only is the site fully functional, but we haven't gotten a single issue or complaint yet!

We would like to take this opportunity to thank and congratulate the British Columbia SPCA, as well as all the hard-working men and women at MEDORA. While not every project we work on is so hectic or high profile, we’re proud of every site we produce, and are honored to have gotten the opportunity to deal with such a great group.

If you would like to see our work for yourself, or maybe do a good deed by donating a few dollars, visit the BC SPCA today at https://secure.medora.ca/bcspca/

How to Keep Your Business Blog on Track

2011-02-07T14:19:00.000-08:00

It doesn't take long for most business owners to realize that blogging is a lot more like a marathon than a sprint. They want to keep their blogs because they offer a great chance to communicate with customers and prospects in an ongoing way while still improving their search engine profile, but somewhere around the 15th post, the whole thing starts to feel a little bit like homework.

And once that happens, it isn't usually very long before the quality starts to fall down a couple of notches.

With that in mind, here's a good tip for keeping your business blog on track: write at least once or twice a week, and when you do, keep things focused on what your customers care about. That is, find the issues in your business or industry that matter to them, and then offer some kind of opinion or insight.

This might not be groundbreaking advice, but it's more important than ever, and it's something that companies screw up a lot more often than you would think they would. When you're trying to think of something new to talk about on a regular basis, the temptation to drift can be pretty strong.

Blogging without any marketing impact is a hobby at best, and busywork at worst. Remember to keep your customer’s interest front and center, and you won't have any problem keeping your content on track... and helping you to gain new business at the same time.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is a web developer at Medora Solutions Inc -Vancouver web designer .

The Number One Rule of Marketing on Twitter…

2011-02-04T12:48:00.000-08:00

As a fairly new phenomenon, and one that thrives on stream-of-consciousness thinking and reading, there aren’t a lot of “rules” to using Twitter as a marketing tool. There is one, however, that you should pay a lot of attention to: make each Tweet count.

You’d think that such advice wouldn’t be necessary. After all, you only get 140 characters to say what you have to say, and it’s no big deal for readers to click elsewhere if they aren’t interested in your message. But that’s exactly the point.

Just because your message is short doesn’t mean everyone is going to bother to read it. In fact, if you think about the way most of us feel about our e-mail inboxes, you’ll realize that most of us will make any excuse not to read something that isn’t informative or entertaining. Bore your readers for too long, or send out too much marketing fluff, and they’ll decide you’re just not worth paying attention to.

Twitter might be a wide open forum, but that doesn’t mean you can ignore the traditional rules of marketing. For people to buy from you, they have to be interested first – make sure your Tweets are catching their attention.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is a web developer at Medora Solutions Inc - Vancouver web designer .

Don’t Forget About Product Photos and Descriptions for Your New Website

2011-02-01T15:06:00.000-08:00

It’s easy, looking through the layouts, plug-ins, and e-commerce tools available to online marketers today, to forget that the basics still matter. In fact, they can often have a massive effect on the percentage of visitors who decide to buy from you, and ultimately, the bottom line.

For that reason, take our advice and don’t forget about product photos and descriptions when it comes to your new business website.

Lots of business owners overlook these details in the design process, only coming around to them at the last moment. But that leaves them rushing to create the pictures and content they need for the launch of their new site, which usually isn’t the best way to handle such an important piece of the puzzle.

As you consider fresh looks, logos, and web functionalities, add photos and descriptions to your to-do list. Decide early on whether you are going to handle them in-house or hire a professional writer and/or photographer, and what specific points and benefits should be emphasized. It doesn’t matter what choices you make, so long as you give yourself the best chance of getting them finished on time and in a way that will be appealing to buyers.

The last thing you want is a great website that sells nothing, so don’t neglect the basics and create material that puts your products in the best possible light – literally and figuratively.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is a web developer at Medora Solutions Inc - e-commerce site designer .

Why Website Usability is More Than a Buzzword

2011-01-27T18:05:00.000-08:00

You have probably heard a web designer or online marketing expert talk about "usability" at some point over the last couple of years. The idea – which revolves around creating sites that are easier to navigate and interact with – has picked up a lot of steam recently, especially amongst those of us in the industry.

But what a lot of web design clients don't understand is that usability isn't just another buzzword or "hot" concept… it's an idea that is here to stay.

Our customers have less time than ever. It’s important, when they get to our sites, that they’re able to find what they’re looking for quickly. If they aren't, it's easier for them to simply go back to Google and try the next link on the list. There are simply too many competitors out there in nearly every industry for them to waste their time digging through page after page to find the product or solution they need.

Remember that as you contemplate revisions, or even redesigns, to your business website. There are a lot of tools and features that look great on the screen, but you never want to have so many of them that they get in the way of what your visitors really want to do. In today's busy online business environment, customers are looking to get where they're going faster. That makes usability just another word for profits.

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is a web developer at Medora Solutions Inc - a web development company .

Small Businesses Are Loosing Battle In Search Engines

2010-04-01T09:18:00.000-07:00

If you are are a small business operator, and have a website, and been in business for at least 10 years, chances are that your web site is not doing as well in search engines as it used to years ago.

Yesterday, a small, custom-built furniture designer called me and complained that he can't find his website in Google anymore. "What are the keywords you searched for?", I asked. "Contemporary furniture", he replied. "For many years I was there (on search engines) and now I am gone! Why is that?", he continued.

The answer is simple - competition. It used to be not that many site operators back in the days. Now, the internet is loaded with web site. There are ways around such as Search Engine Optimization (known also as SEO). There are professional SEO specialists that can help, but they are expensive.

Sure, it is possible for a small site operator to master SEO and try and get back on track, but it is a catch up game with larger companies, probably not in to small business savour. Bigger companies have bigger budget, and more staff.

So, what small business owners can do? I say, speed and mobility is their biggest weapon. Master SEO, research highly targeted keywords, use social networking as your primary marketing tool and the key advise - focus on your products and services.

Find a niche. Just like large supermarkets did not drive out smaller corner shops out of businesses entirely, small business websites can find their niche web space too. Focus on keywords precision. For example use "Vancouver Contemporary Furniture" instead of just "Contemporary Furniture". Make web pages for each keyword that you need. And of course, load these pages with useful information.

iPad - Is There Anything In It For Web Designers?

2010-04-01T07:20:00.000-07:00

iPad is promising to help dying out offline media publishers such as newspapers and magazines to get back in business. How? Simple - by creating iPad apps and selling digital content ex. New York Time iPad app (in plans at the moment of writing of this post).

But what's in the iPad for us, web designers?

Most likely not much. We've already been there with the iPhone. Other than making our web sites fitting better the Apple's devices, I don't see that many revenue opportunities. It looks like software developers will rip all the benefits again.

Is it the time for us to become developers? Mmm, I am not so sure. I think, we should rather team up with the developers to create better user interfaces for their apps. Time to offer user interface design services?

Are you a web designer? Have you found a way to capitalize on Apple's devices?

What's your take on it?

About the author: Alex Kauryzhka is a web developer at Medora Solutions Inc - a web design company in Vancouver.