Who Should Build Your Website?

I took Friday off and went to God's country in northern Wisconsin to unplug and unwind. This is a picture taken from the deck of the place we went to. I just love it up there!

Anyway, I took some friends with me and, inevitably, the topic of websites came up. One of my friends said, "I am thinking about getting started on a website." We talked about cost, hosting, cost, content, cost, and a mess of other things including why it costs so much to get a "good" website. Obviously he kept getting hung up on the costs. Knowing him like I do, he will find "some guy that knows someone, that works out of his basement, that can do a site for cheap"

I can't tell you how often I have heard someone say, "I know this college kid that is going to build me a website for $500.00, OR I think I'm going to build my own site on Yahoo. At that point, I am torn between saying "Go for it" and educating them about the street called, "Colossal Mistake Ave."

Not building a site with a free or templated service is pretty much common sense to those of us in the business. Dawud Miracle has a pretty good post about owning your own website.

OK fine, so a 20 year old kid in college may know how to code or build a web site using a one of the many WYSIWYG editors available today, but what does he know about business in general or about marketing your company?

Can he or she write the site content? Creating compelling copy that sells your products is essential to online success.

The only reason I bring this up is that we are in the process of building a website for a company that has done the $600 build TWICE now. The worst thing about their last 2 versions was, even if you knew the name of the company, you couldn't find it through a search. Both times the site was built by the lowest bidding college kid that knew a little flash, some html and thought that Front Page was the greatest thing since the invention of "beer pong".

Just remember, good design, good content and forward market thinking is what contributes to the success of your site. Pony up the dough and get your site done right, the first time. The sweetness of the low price is long forgotten when the bitterness of no results is realized.

 

Web Designer Needed in Waterloo & Cedar Falls Iowa

IMT Inc. is hiring an additional web designer.

Qualified candidates must have a background working in a dynamic, interactive, and fast paced team environment.

Responsibilities: Design and develop custom web applications for a diverse client base.Analyze and troubleshoot technical problems Convert business objectives into a creative, functional and professional web presence.

Requirements: Min. of 2 Years development/design experience in a professional capacity. Must be detail oriented. Applicants must demonstrate a comprehensive working knowledge with some or all of the following: PHP or ASP, JavaScript, MySQL or SQL, HTML, CSS, XHTML, and Dreamweaver. Candidates must comprehend the basic fundamentals like cross platform browser compatibility, web graphic optimization, website to search engine relationships and the like.

Other Desired Skills: Working knowledge of Photoshop, Quark, Illustrator, and InDesign. Flash and 3D Studio experience is a huge plus. The ability to work in Windows and Linux server environments. Telecommuting negotiable.

Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience. Please send resume and samples of work to IMT Inc. 110 Fletcher Ave. Waterloo, IA 50701. Attn: Andy Mullinex.

 

Domain Name Auction Report.

In case you were wondering, there actually is a domain name auction that is held in New York and other places around the country. Here are some of the names and what they sold for at the Recent auction in New York.

VintageAirplanes.com $5,700
Toy.net $26,000
StockTrades.com $25,000
BondFund.com $12,000
IrishWhiskey.com $8,000
PrivateTutors.com $16,000
PrivatePilots.com $20,000
Historian.com $25,000
TechnologyFund $10,000
PinkRoses.com $10,000
VintageMotorcycles.com $14,000
Booksellers.com $25,000
Houses.net $75,000
tightrope.com $18,000
EgyptianPyramids.com $75,000
clap.com $21,000

 

Advanced Environmental Launches New Site

Advanced Environmental Testing and Abatement Inc. has launched their new website. Specializing in asbestos abatement and mold remediation, Advanced Environmental is licensed in Iowa and Illinois. For more information on commercial and residential asbestos and mold removal solutions, visit their website at http://www.cleanandrestore.com

 

BlueStem Winery

BlueStem Winery in Parkersburg, Iowa has just launched their new website and e-commerce store. Specializing in wine and beer making supplies, BlueStem Winery also carries a variety of Iowa made wines and wine accessories.

Wanting to improve online sales, marketability and navigation, BlueStem hired IMT to improve their, already successful, online business. In addition to the new online image, BlueStem Winery now has the capability to update their own site through the use of a content management software.

UPDATE: BlueStem Winery has launched their new blog. It has great information, tip and techniques on wine and beer making. Check it out at http://bluestemwine.blogspot.com/

 

Royal Limousine's New Site Launched

Royal Limousine of Cedar Falls, Iowa has just launched their new site. Royal Limousine has just purchased a new Chrysler 300 luxury stretch limousine. This fully loaded, luxury coach provides the finest chauffeured transport in the area. Royal Limousine accepts booking for:

• Weddings


• Birthdays


• Anniversaries


• Holiday Parties


• Special Occasions


• Casino Trips


• Group Events


• And Much More

For more information or to book a limousine, visit them online at http://www.ridewithroyal.com/

 

Internet Marketing?

Did you know that according to eMarketer Research, online ad spending in the US reached about 16 billion in 2006?

I was reading an article in SalesVantage by Debra Murphy talking about how companies should re-align their marketing budgets to allocate larger percentages to online marketing. Most proactive companies are following this advise.

This notion prompts me to ask what you are doing to build your Internet marketing strategy? "Your online presence can give the impression that your company is far bigger than it really is." This is the beauty of the web. A one person operation working out of their home can create the impression of a large "brick and mortar" company, increasing the perception of competency and reliability.

Debra says, "The Internet has leveled the playing field for businesses of all sizes.... Planned and executed correctly, you can achieve a large portion of marketing online for a reasonable budget. A professionally developed web site and expert content can build credibility for your company faster than traditional methods. Using your web site as an educational vehicle for your prospects makes it easy and convenient for them to learn about what you do, how you do it, and the knowledge you possess. "

Impact Marketing Technologies has helped many businesses get started. When constructing a business plan, the one thing that is often forgotten is the cost of marketing and advertising. When writing your business plan, don't forget to consider the costs associated with letting the world know about your goods and/or services. Where is your geographic market? How are you going to reach them? You're going to reach them with a website. OK; how much does a website cost to develop, host, and promote? Developing your website correctly with functional content, ease of use, viewer functionality, and marketability are all considerations that need to be taken into account.

A lot goes into marketing a website. From pay-per-click advertising to direct consumer marketing.

Always remember that there is a difference between someone who can simply build a website and a marketing company that will properly construct AND help you market your site.

 

Wow...in today's world?

I had to post one more time today. I just read this news article on an RSS from WebProNews. I won't sum it up. I will just copy it here for you reading enjoyment. Credit given to Mike Sachoff for the story.

" A judge in London on Wednesday said he did not understand what a Web site was during the trial of three men accused of promoting terrorism over the Internet.
Judge Peter Openshaw was questioning a witness about a Web forum used by the accused when he said," The trouble is I don't understand the language. I don't really understand what a Web site is."
The prosecutor Mark Ellison took time to explain to the judge the terms Web site and forum. After doing so the judge remarked, ""I haven't quite grasped the concepts."
At the end of Wednesday's proceedings the judge asked the prosecutor to tell a computer expert who is scheduled to testify today to keep it simple saying, "Will you ask him to keep it simple, we've got to start from basics."
While it is good that the judge admitted his ignorance, it is still rather unbelievable that he was not aware of such basic concepts as a Web site or a forum..."

Wow, all I can say is wow.

 

Make Your Website Stats Work for You.

How often do you check your website statistics? Do you actually have site stats or know how to get to them. Are you using them to track the effectiveness of other forms of marketing.

We just launched a website for a company that, prior to us re-organizing their web presence, didn't "opt-in" and pay the extra to have their site stats turned on. Almost 80% of their marketing efforts were geared toward driving traffic to their website. When asked what kind of ROI they are receiving from their direct mail and other forms of advertising, they had no idea.

Determining effectiveness from a marketing campaign is nothing new. The "old school" method was to publish a vanity line or distinct phone number in certian advertising outlets and monitor the response on that one line. With your website statistics, it is much easier and produces much more information to better help you determine ROI. Demanding results from your site is not just a bonus, it is critical in today's web world.

Impact Marketing can help you with your web design and web marketing to maximize the ROI and get results from your web presence.

 

Web Developer Needed

We are hiring an additional web designer/developer:

Qualified candidates must have a background working in a dynamic, interactive, and fast paced team environment.

Responsibilities:
Design and develop custom web applications for a diverse client base.
Analyze and troubleshoot technical problems Convert business objectives into a creative, functional and professional web presence.

Requirements:
Min. of 2 Years development/design experience in a professional capacity.
Must be detail oriented
Applicants must demonstrate a comprehensive working knowledge with some or all of the following: PHP or ASP, JavaScript, MySQL or SQL, HTML, CSS, XHTML, and Dreamweaver.
Must comprehend the basic fundamentals like cross platform browser compatibility, web graphic optimization, website to search engine relationships and the like.

Other Desired Skills:
Working knowledge of Photoshop, Quark, Illustrator, and InDesign.
Flash and 3D Studio experience is a huge plus.
The ability to work in Windows and Linux server environments
Telecommuting negotiable.

Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience.

Send Resume or contact Impact Marketing Technologies.

 

Top 10 Sources for Web Traffic

I was just reading an article in SEO News, that there are a few sites out there that will generate massive amounts of traffic if your site is listed. Well no kidding. Anyone who has been "slashdotted" knows what kind of impact a link on a massive traffic site like Slashdot.com can have on your traffic.

However they were saying that as Web 2.0 increases in popularity, tagging everything in your site will become increasingly important. This includes alt tags, image file names and links. We all know how important keyword density is in content and this article just reaffirmed that for me. A properly written site can make the difference between indexing well in 3 months or the engines never finding you.

Some of the other items that they mention are...

• Web press releases
• Blogging/Forum Questions
• MSN Live
• Published in ezines

But what do you do when you get them to your site? That is the big question. You need to have a reason for the people to come back and you need to have some utility for them while they are there. If you site is nothing more than brochure online, then it may get tossed away just as easily.

The article also talked about Squidoo.com. Admittedly I had never heard of it so I went to check it out. Not much to peak my interest but it does get a ton of traffic and some are saying that it is the next YouTube.