If you are interested in having your website designed (or redesigned), there are two basic options. Two commonly used website designs are Content Management Systems (CMS) and Static Web Designs.

Okay, but what does that mean?

Static Web Designs tend to be cheaper because they require less labor and only need a designer. You tell the person designing your website your vision and what you want on the website, and they input all of the information. This is one of the easiest options for creating a website because you tell the designer what you want and they do the rest.

A Content Management System allows you to update your information any time, any place, at your convenience. A website will be designed and customized, and then you are taught an easy-to-use system that allows you to update your information as often as you would like.

Is updating a website through CMS difficult?

It’s really not. When you want to post new information on your website (in the following example, information about a new piece of real estate that is available for rent) you simply start a new post, and fill in all of the information, pictures, links, etc that you would like included.

Here is an example of an update done by V&V Real Estate Associates:

As you can see, the user updating the website simply enters information into the easy-to-use system. If you have ever written a blog before, this template will look familiar to you. After entering in all of the desired information, simply click “publish.”

Here’s the result:

It really is as easy as it looks, and gives you the ability to add or update posts as often as you’d like.

Now that you know the difference between a Content Management System and a Static Web Design, all you have to do is decide which one is right for you or your company.

We’ll be there to present our quality web site design, internet advertising, and social media marketing services. We focus on helping organizations define and achieve sales goals using our formulated Internet Marketing strategies. Visit our booth! Find out how we can extend your reach with advertising channels and effectively convert the traffic we generate.

Our brother company Data-Tech will also be there to present their cloud computing/virtual office solution and their Versa Appliance product line.  Graphics Tech is currently working on the Data-Tech virtual office campaign. I found after a few comparisons and calculations that they can reduce your network infrastructure (business network) cost of ownership up to 75%. If you’ve ever invested in a business network you know the extraordinary start up and maintenance costs to owning your business network. Their cloud is the future of business computing, if you’re new to the cloud we definitely recommend you stop by their booth and check out their Versa Server and Network systems.

Thanks for stopping by the blog, come check out Graphics Tech and Data-Tech at this years coolTech event hosted by MOSI. I’ve included a map to Mosi, just in case you haven’t had the chance to visit the museum of Science.

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Data-Tech’s blog was created by Graphics Tech to provide them with an outlet to not only inform their customers about new services and products, but also to let them know of any upcoming upcoming technology events in Tampa Bay. They have been trained in the art of  Search Engine Optimization to make sure that every post is effectively optimized containing their targeted key words and phrases for each individual post.

Not only did we make the blog searchable via Google and other major search engines, but the design reflects the marketing materials and website that were also developed for Data-Tech. When making the blog we made sure that the user would be able to recognize certain branding aspects that we’ve applied in reference to Data-Tech’s brand; such as the Eye.

When consulting Data-Tech on their blog we made sure to find out who their target audience was and what they were interested in so that we could apply this information to our development effort in making the blog more engaging as well as informative and searchable.

Data-Tech also expressed a key component they wanted to have integrated as well; and that was the ease of automation with their social media accounts. We’ve made it so that when Data-Tech writes and publishes their blog post, that it is also sent out to their Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn accounts. We’ve used key tools that allow us to connect all their accounts to the blog so that this can be accomplished.

Its pretty cool to see the blog already showing up for top event searches in Tampa Bay. Be sure that you connect with Data-Tech on their social accounts as they’ll be announcing special offers to their friends and followers.

I recently participated in an event we hosted – the Internet Marketing Seminar on March 4^th, which was a highly successful and interactive experience for everyone involved. At this event, we partnered with an ultra-creative design company, HD Interactive. The group was a big hit when they showcased one of their latest and greatest additions to their products – virtual messages delivered via augmented reality. This company is making it big by working closely with its customers to come up with high impact designs and solutions. Trust me, taking one look at what they can do at HD Interactive will leave you impressed, just as our audience was at this recent event.

Get more Augmented Reality News from this great web site.

Who is HD Interactive?

I learned that in 2002, CEO Sean Carey founded HD Interactive in Tampa, Florida. He has built the company on the premise of providing quality customer experiences; hence, most of his clients are repeat customers. This client experience is assured by what Sean states as, “taking client suggestions and making the project perfect before we consider ourselves finished.” It’s easy to see how a company with an incredible product and superior customer service would excel so quickly. The highly talented team of developers and designers has created some interesting projects for some big names, such as Pepsi, Electronic Arts, Valpak, Universal, Disney, Seimens, Hilton, and Warner Brothers (examples and demos are available at www.hdinteractive.com. The company specializes in Adobe Flash software, Flex, and Air applications, and, in addition to augmented reality, offers website development, iPhone application development, interactive training, online game development, and related virtual applications.

Augmented what? Augmented reality is a new technology that combines the use of web camera tracking (using a simple web cam), Flash software technology, 3d artwork, and a symbol to create an interactive experience for the user. The graphics and video seems to “pop” off of the screen during the simulation, offering an interesting way to interact through greeting cards, games, promotions, and other creative concepts. Interestingly, the symbol used to activate the game or application can be placed on a greeting card, a piece of paper, a business card, a hat or shirt, or any piece of marketing material. You can read more about these virtual reality applications and see a live demo for yourself by visiting one of the HDI Blog posts for augmented reality. See more examples In addition, I found these examples of the company’s work to be particularly impressive:

• ChessJam.com
• DrSkully.com
• Puppiesndogs.com
• Jibidee.com

I really find the virtual reality concepts to be an interesting addition to a marketing strategy, where interactive applications can intrigue individuals to engage with your company. If someone searches for your company website and your site shows up, assuming you have the proper internet marketing tools being utilized, than this would be a great way to ultimately capture their attention and gain some trust. We know that trust is really what we want to build with potential customers. This technology would tie in great with social media outlets, where a real “buzz” could be created around the virtual experience. As we learned from the seminar, nearly everyone has a web cam for the camera tracking abilities and nearly everyone is using social media outlets today – so it is very feasible and far-reaching.  Check it out for yourself…. Learn more about what HD Interactive can do by visiting the company website (www.hdinteractive.com) or connecting with them on the HDI Blog (www.hdiblog.com). If you’re interested in promoting a new virtual concept or application, Graphics Tech can help spread the word via search engine optimization and social media strategies.

A landing page is the page a user “should” get to when they click an ad. This page should be set up in relation to the ad. The landing page should have relative content and should only have information pertaining to the ad.

Landing pages can be pages on your website, but it is suggested that these pages have very limited linking to other pages of your site so that you can effectively make the sale you’re looking for. If a landing page is set up properly it can effectively help lower the cost per click (CPC) on your pay per click (PPC) campaign as it will raise your quality score. Google recognizes and rewards you for taking the extra time to set up your marketing campaign effectively; having a credible landing page is one way to ensure that this happens.

EFFECTIVE SETUP TECHNIQUES

When having someone create an effective landing page for you; you want to make sure you’re providing them with the proper information to make the page successful. For example, if your ad is catered to a specific product that you have on sale and you want to push this product by doing a full-on campaign you want to make sure that the landing page only discusses this product. If there’s other product’s information on the page, or information relevant to another area of your business that’s not directly related to the product you’re promoting, this data or information can hurt the quality score of your ad. You also want to make sure that privacy policies or user agreements associated with the product are included on the page, or as links from the page in order to show customer assurance and security to Google.

In addition, on your landing page you want to make sure that you have your contact information and any promo codes or discounts prevalent to grab the visitor’s attention; without this information you could be leaving a person who wants to buy your product wondering “how?”

You will also want your landing page to have the same branding “look and feel” as your physical marketing material, or any other materials that you use in conjunction with this product. This helps visitors connect the proverbial dots between your company branding and marketing.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR

Below is a perfect example of an effective and professional landing page.

Notice the in your face call to action at the top of the page. The call to action takes up the upper 30% of the page; this confirms that the user will be sure to notice it. The bright colors of the headline are also a plus. The page also includes plenty of information on the price, features, and options a user has when purchasing the product. There’s also Q&A’s and Testimonials from other clients. Lastly, the form in the middle of the page makes the user interact with the website and request information from the provider.

When putting together or reviewing a landing page you want to look for these common practices:

• Headings that include your ad campaign’s search terms.
• Clear and precise product offering or call to action.
• Professional photographs of your offering/product with detailed captions.
• Model selections, features, product comparisons, advantages vs. disadvantages, pricing, discounts and guarantees for your offering.
• Professional page layout.
• Keep the page count at 1; long pages and forms often force the user to hit the back button. The average user wants something quick and easy.
• Limited links; you don’t want your users to be taken away from your advertisement.
• Include reviews and testimonials to build trust and confidence in your product.
• Engage your customers. (Put a form on the page to force them to interact with your site; or include demos where available).
• Include noticeable contact information (Phone numbers and e-mail addresses as well as physical addresses).

CONCLUSION

These are the basic guidelines that most landing pages use during the development process. Missing any or all of these elements can really hamper your campaign effectiveness and your ability to raise your quality score.

Landing pages are integral part to any internet marketing strategy; whether it be a part of your Pay Per Click strategy or just part of your link population strategy. Whatever your solution, an effective landing page can greatly increase your ROI (return on investment) for any marketing campaign.

I hope this information was useful to you, please post any comments or questions below.

AF

I added a video below, “Did you know 3.0”, make sure you watch it… It’s pretty darn amazing when you think about it. Comments are appreciated!

Internet Marketing is new, its revolutionary, and it’s changing the way businesses are marketing on the Internet. Technologies such as Web 2.0, Search marketing/optimization, social media and email marketing take a less abrasive approach. People that are exposed to these various forms of Inbound Marketing are more likely to listen. There is a difference between Internet Marketing and today’s fading traditional marketing. Traditional marketing focuses a lot on ineffective out bound one-way messages. Internet marketing uses online games, thought leadership through blogging, Search Engine optimization, and pay per click advertising as inbound distribution channels connecting the world with your web site.

That’s why it matters to have a great web site. For businesses a great web site can make every bit of difference. Like the way it can engage and socialize with a customer. Or how it is structurally designed to provide strategically placed content.

Businesses must be connected with social media and the Internet because it’s growing substantially and you’re missing out. Blogs, social networking, social bookmarking, and video portals are changing the way consumers consume media. I mean, IPTV is right around the corner and I feel from all the hype that every person I talk to is ready to get their own IPTV system. No commercials and the freedom to subscribe to your own channel via the Internet. Now that’s what I’m talking about. Yeah, I like my TiVO but I just don’t get the feeling I’ll need it much longer. New media advertising like social media has already come on strong and with the new age of IPTV, businesses should start taking advantage of this free medium if they haven’t already..

Here’s some stats for you. In 2008 there were 31 Billion searches on Google every month, in 2006 there were only 2.7 Billon searches a month.. These numbers are exponential and have grown considerably since then. Check this video out, it’s a real eye opener as to what technology has done in such little time.

Did you know 3.0

Here are the Basics

Twitter is a social media tool that allows a user to update their followers on what they are doing right now. Users are allowed to enter messages up to 140-characters keeping your updates short and simple. Twitter uses its own terminology that is vital to everyday usage, here’s a list of those terms and what they do provided by Smashing Magazine :

• DM or Direct Message: This is a private message sent to another Twitter user. It’s preceded by a “D” and can only be sent to a user who is following you.
• Hashtag: Hashtags are single-word phrases used to organize different topics, chats, and events on Twitter, and are preceded by a hash mark “#”.
• Lists: Lists are a fairly new Twitter feature, and are just what they sound like: lists of Twitter users created and categorized by other Twitter users. You can follow entire lists rather than having to follow each individual user.
• Reply or @reply: To reply to another Twitter user, or include them in a tweet, you put an @ symbol before their username. If the @symbol is the first character in the tweet, the reply will be shown to them and anyone following both of you. If the @ symbol is not the first character, then the tweet will be shown to all of your followers, plus the person whose username follows the @.
• RT or Retweet: Retweets are re-broadcasts of another user’s tweet. This is traditionally done by including an “RT” before the original poster’s @username. This has long been an unofficial feature of Twitter, though Twitter has recently added official support for it. Some users use other characters (such as a full stop “.”) for brevity’s sake.
• Trending Topics: These are the most popular terms appearing on Twitter at any given time and may include hashtags.

Now that you know the basics and the terminology associated with Twitter you’re ready to begin tweeting. A few things you need to know about your Twitter page:

-          Keep it Personal: When you keep your page personal it allows your customers to interact with you on a level they are not used to, it lets them know who you are and gives them the “warm fuzzies” when dealing with you in the future.

-          Don’t Spam: Twitter can be a great marketing tool for your business if used properly. Yes it is okay to use it to tweet about new products, etc. BUT DON’T OVERDO IT!

-          Don’t Blindly Follow Others in hope of gaining more followers, this would bog down your Twitter feed with useless Tweets and 9 times out of 10 they will not follow you back, so your attempts would’ve been in vain.

Finding Followers

There are many ways for you to find people to follow on Twitter, the easiest and most obvious of these is to find people you know. This could be classified as people from blogs you read regularly, friends and family, clients, or even websites or products that you use on a consistent basis. Well that’s the easy way, now to find people you don’t know. Twitter has the ability to search the site for topics people are interested in and are talking about, such as world events, consumer products, etc. Search for terms and topics that are relevant to you and your business; this will help you find people who may be interested in the type of business and/or services you offer. Another way to find followers is to enter yourself into Twitter Chats; getting involved in a chat about a topic you’re associated with will draw followers to you if you are informative and stay on topic. As stated previously, don’t follow a bunch of people who may or may not be interested in your company or have nothing to do with your interests. While there may be a possibility that they will be one of the courteous Twitter users and blindly follow you, this does not mean that they care about what you have to say and in turn the result is the lack of engagement of your followers with your tweet topics. Your best bet is to find people you find interesting, follow them, and see if they in turn find you interesting enough to give you a follow.

Communicating with others on Twitter

Twitter is an amazing tool for communicating with friends & family as well as colleagues and clients alike. Twitter is also a great way to find new leads and make new connections with others in your industry or with people who are interested in your services. Make sure to follow conversations that are relative to your company. Respond to topics that relate to your business, follow those who talk about your business and thank them for their criticism and support (whichever you may have received). Just remember; ALWAYS KEEP IT PERSONAL, you don’t want to sound like a promotional machine.

Using Twitter for Promotions

Like I stated before, Twitter is an amazing promotional tool as long as it’s used properly and tastefully. Sending direct sales promotions to individual users can black list you instantly among the Twitter community as a spammer and can eventually result in the cancellation of your account by Twitter. You want to avoid doing this at all costs in order to keep followers and keep your Twitter successful. Spamming your users with self-promotional material is not one of the ways to avoid this.

The best and most-effective way to promote yourself on Twitter is to tweet content that is relevant to your business that your followers and clients may also be interested in. The occasional company status update is not frowned upon as long as it does not come off as overly self-promotional. A good example is: “Hey everyone, Check out this project we just finished [link] let us know what you think!”, short and simple, and to the point. Another great method, if you’re a blogger, is to tweet recent blog topics for people to read, this is self-promotion, but is rarely looked down upon as twitter is considered a blog tool.
You can also promote yourself on Twitter by reading what people are asking questions about in your topic field. Answer the questions professionally with examples to gain respect and to be considered a knowledgeable source of information when it comes to these topics by doing so.

Finally, customizing your background of your Twitter page can be the easiest and most-beneficial ways to self-promote. This is “the” area you can promote yourself without being frowned upon.

Connecting with Twitter

The next time you post your blog, don’t forget to include a re-tweet button. Sites like TweetMeme offer code that can be embedded into your blog allowing users to re-tweet your blog to their followers. Also, don’t forget, when promoting something it isn’t impolite to ask your followers for a re-tweet. Some may jump on it, some may not. Your followers aren’t going to re-tweet everything you post, and you definitely don’t want to be doing it either. Only re-tweet what is important to you and what your followers may find important as well.

Conclusion

In conclusion, you now know the basics of Twitter and how to use it as well as how to be effective in promoting your business through Twitter. There are also many tools out there that can help make this all easier for you and that allow you to stay organized. I hope this information has been informative for you, please look below for a few helpful links to resources and tools that can help you with Twitter.

AF

GT Twitter

Resources

http://www.tweetqa.com/ – helps you find users to share your expertise with
http://tweetmeme.com/about/retweet_button – code for retweet button in your blog
http://www.tweetconvo.com/ – allows you to see full conversations you have with other Twitter users
http://twitterfeed.com/ – lets you automatically update Twitter and other social media sites whenever new content is posted on your blog.
http://twittercal.com/ – integrates your Google Calendar with Twitter
http://www.tweetcube.com/ – allows you to share files through Twitter
http://www.twitpic.com/ – hosts photos and allows you to post them to Twitter
http://www.tweetdeck.com/beta/ – Free Desktop app or iPhone app that allows you to organize and keep track of your Twitter
http://bit.ly/ – free and simple URL shortener that allows you to post long links into your Twitter updates

What is Search Engine Optimization?

SEO or Search Engine Optimization is the process of increasing traffic to a web site from search engines such as Google, Yahoo, and Bing for FREE! Optimizing a web site will increase its ability to show up at the top of the search engine rankings page.

Why is it important?

Search Engine Optimization is important because there is an increasing amount of searches conducted daily.  According to searchenginewatch.com there were an estimated 91 million searches conducted in march of 2006. That number in June of 2009 increased to an estimated 304 million searches conducted daily. These are staggering numbers that are going to continually increase. Think of a service you offer, type the name of the service into Google with the city you work in and see what comes up. There’s a good chance your competition is reaping the rewards of a number 1, 2, and 3 spot.

How does it work?

Search engines have to determine whether a web page is relevant to the keywords searched by a user. So when a search is conducted the Search Engine goes to its database (index) and looks for the best result based on the keyword searched by the user. It’s the job of the search engine to provide quality search results on the first try (this is why Google dominates the search market). Google has an algorithm that is a mathematical formula used in ranking a web page for keyword relevancy. Though keyword relevancy is important for a search engine what web page will show up number 1. It’s not the only thing it takes into consideration when ranking. Inbound links to a web site or web page are important elements in which a search engine looks at when ranking a website. Search engines need to understand the credibility of a website which they do from links. Search engines count every link that points to your website as a vote. This will determine if you place number 1, 2, or 3.

I hope this gives you some insight as to what SEO is and how it works. Your feedback is greatly appreciated. If you have any questions feel free to ask by posting a comment.

What is Social Media?

Social Media uses the Internet and web sites to connect millions of people across the world and allow them to communicate, participate, and socialize on the Internet. Social media has been made possible by new web 2.0 technologies that enable the creation and exchange of user-generated content.

Different Types of Social Media

Blogging
Blogs are web sites maintained by an individual or organization that are frequently updated. Internet users or blog followers are able to comment on the blog and share their thoughts.

Social Networks
Social Networks are websites designed to focus on social interaction between users.

Social Bookmarking
Social Bookmarking is a way for Internet users to share, organize, search, rate, and manage their bookmarks.

Video Sharing
Video sharing allows indviduals to upload video clips to an Internet website such as YouTube.

Social Photo sharing
Similar to video sharing, photo sharing allows users to share photos over the Internet.

Wiki’s
A wiki is a web site that allows easy creation and editing of any number of interlinked web pages, they’re great for collaboration.

Presentation Sharing
Presentation sharing gives people the ability to, of course, share presentations over the Internet.

How to market with Social Media

Social Media marketing over the Internet for business must be approached differently than a traditional marketing campaign. In a world that is becoming more immune to advertising and one-way messages, its essential that you understand how to use these new tools that will promote your brand effectively. We have to forget about directly marketing to our customers when using social networks like Facebook. In today’s market the power is in the consumer’s hand. It’s your job or the job of your marketing company to think of a creative way to build a community and provide them with valuable information or content that customers are interested in. By engaging customers on social networks you have the ability to farm their thoughts on or about your products or services because social media is also a huge market research tool. Companies can take the feedback they receive whether it’s positive or negative and improve their quality of service.

Its important to understand what social media is and how it is revolutionizing the way we market to our customers now and in the future. Building on the Internet and watching it evolve over the last 10 years has been really amazing.  If I could recommend one thing about social media to businesses, it would be to start building your communities and making your digital footprint. This is one game you done want to start late.