Employing smart web design when it comes to your landing pages can be difficult sometimes. After all, landing pages are there for many reasons. What’s most important about your landing page is that you establish who you are as a company and that you give them a call to action to enter your site. Lets talk about some ways I’ve found that your landing pages can be designed to get the most done.
The first objective of your landing page I mentioned was about establishing who you are as a company. Write a good headline at the top of the page and make sure it is well known whose web page they have landed on. This ensures that the potential customer experiences your name and your brand as soon as they land on that page. This is important as you want them to remember your company name from the first moment they experience your website. Also, depending on the specific use of the landing page, give the reader some peace of mind that when they move on, they’re going to be finding what they’re looking for.
Just as important is the call to action that you present to your visitors. This can be in the form of strategically placed navigation buttons, advertisements for current products or services, or just good copy that calls them to action. In the sales world, many times you only have one chance at pitching to a customer. The same goes for your landing page. You want this page to be designed in a way that your visitors are drawn in, interested, and compelled to move on with the sale or interest in a sale. All of this can be accomplished with words such as “Click Here to Try it Now”, or “Join Thousands of Happy Users” in conjunction with some appropriately large and noticeable buttons for them to click.
In conclusion, we should establish that landing pages are like no other page in your website design. This is not a home page by any means as it has a completely different objective. Remember that your landing page has absolutely no navigational structure and is only a means to point potential customers to your real digital storefront. So try using some smart web design when creating a landing page for your website and hopefully the customers will start pouring in. CODANK of Charlotte, NC can help you develop the pages that bring the right customers to your website. Call today for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Friday, May 29, 2009
Design Flaws to Avoid
A good web designer knows there are certain things that you just shouldn’t ever do to a website. Some of them have to do with loading times and others are just faux pas and will turn visitors away from your website. The problem is that many websites out there are outdated and thus display many of these qualities. Also, many websites have been designed by the owner of the company using a free design tool or by an inexperienced amateur who, while they may know some things, isn’t a seasoned web designer with a team of designers behind him or her. Does your website have these basic flaws?
Slow loading graphics or videos. The Internet is where people go to see what they want and when they want. If you are holding them back by posting a high-resolution video of your latest product on your homepage or having intricate logos and banners on every page, visitors will respond by not staying very long. This a web design flaw seen in websites from the previous “web generation.”
Browser Compatibility. Firefox reads different than Internet Explorer reads different than Safari reads different than Google Chrome reads different than Opera reads different than… well you get the point. There are tons of browsers out there and you don’t want to chance leaving some of your viewers out! Do plenty of testing with the biggest browsers and you should be covered if all looks the same with each browser.
Grammar or Spelling Mistakes. It seems simple this is actually something that turns me away from a website almost immediately.
Too Many Colors or Fonts. It’s definitely ok to integrate visual appeal into your web design and pretty fonts and colors are a great way to do it. I’m writing about the website that uses eight fonts on one page, all of them a different color. In my opinion, once you get more than three fonts or colors, you are out of the design theme and that’s when the clashing begins.
There are definitely many other common mistakes that web designers make… maybe we’ll see more in the future here. My suggestion is to look for these in your current website design or consider all of these as you plan for a new website. CODANK of Charlotte, NC can help you makeover your obsolete or otherwise outdated website. Call for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Slow loading graphics or videos. The Internet is where people go to see what they want and when they want. If you are holding them back by posting a high-resolution video of your latest product on your homepage or having intricate logos and banners on every page, visitors will respond by not staying very long. This a web design flaw seen in websites from the previous “web generation.”
Browser Compatibility. Firefox reads different than Internet Explorer reads different than Safari reads different than Google Chrome reads different than Opera reads different than… well you get the point. There are tons of browsers out there and you don’t want to chance leaving some of your viewers out! Do plenty of testing with the biggest browsers and you should be covered if all looks the same with each browser.
Grammar or Spelling Mistakes. It seems simple this is actually something that turns me away from a website almost immediately.
Too Many Colors or Fonts. It’s definitely ok to integrate visual appeal into your web design and pretty fonts and colors are a great way to do it. I’m writing about the website that uses eight fonts on one page, all of them a different color. In my opinion, once you get more than three fonts or colors, you are out of the design theme and that’s when the clashing begins.
There are definitely many other common mistakes that web designers make… maybe we’ll see more in the future here. My suggestion is to look for these in your current website design or consider all of these as you plan for a new website. CODANK of Charlotte, NC can help you makeover your obsolete or otherwise outdated website. Call for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Twitter: An Online Marketing Tool
There are multiple ways that businesses are finding social networking useful to help market their company. MySpace, Facebook, and others are being exploited with company profiles and friendships with potential customers. I would like to write a bit about a service called Twitter.
Twitter is essentially a mini blog. You have 140 characters to answer the simple question: “What are You Doing?” People subscribe to this mini-blog in a similar way that they subscribe to your normal blog but the fact that its only 140 characters makes it easy for the blog to be e-mailed, texted, and organized a little neater. Most ordinary people use this as a way to broadcast their current status to say, “I’m washing my dog”, or “I’m at the mall” but businesses have taken this far from the use of an average person. Lets look at some ways that businesses can use Twitter as a marketing tool:
Announcing Sales. Companies with a wide customer base can update their subscribers and let them know when they can grab a great deal on their website or in their store. This is basically like e-mailing them but way easier and less cumbersome.
Company News. Giving customers a little insight as to what the company or, even more personally, the CEO is up to can make your business a bit more approachable and interesting.
Events and Conferences. Fill people in on the big deals with your company. You don’t have to give up all sorts of important information to let users know that your company is busy at work.
Promote Your Website, Blog, and Articles. Announcing a new blog entry, a new article written, and additions to your website will be a great use for your Twitter. Users will be able to stay up to date with the rest of your marketing just with a quick Twitter notification.
The possibilities are endless with Twitter. It is quite possible that having a solid Twitter following can lead people to flock to your website to experience your other marketing. Do I personally believe in Twitter like I do Facebook or MySpace? Not at all but that’s only because Twittering about yourself will exhaust people but when you have exciting news about your company or you are telling them that they can get a great deal, Twitter is much more useful.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Twitter is essentially a mini blog. You have 140 characters to answer the simple question: “What are You Doing?” People subscribe to this mini-blog in a similar way that they subscribe to your normal blog but the fact that its only 140 characters makes it easy for the blog to be e-mailed, texted, and organized a little neater. Most ordinary people use this as a way to broadcast their current status to say, “I’m washing my dog”, or “I’m at the mall” but businesses have taken this far from the use of an average person. Lets look at some ways that businesses can use Twitter as a marketing tool:
Announcing Sales. Companies with a wide customer base can update their subscribers and let them know when they can grab a great deal on their website or in their store. This is basically like e-mailing them but way easier and less cumbersome.
Company News. Giving customers a little insight as to what the company or, even more personally, the CEO is up to can make your business a bit more approachable and interesting.
Events and Conferences. Fill people in on the big deals with your company. You don’t have to give up all sorts of important information to let users know that your company is busy at work.
Promote Your Website, Blog, and Articles. Announcing a new blog entry, a new article written, and additions to your website will be a great use for your Twitter. Users will be able to stay up to date with the rest of your marketing just with a quick Twitter notification.
The possibilities are endless with Twitter. It is quite possible that having a solid Twitter following can lead people to flock to your website to experience your other marketing. Do I personally believe in Twitter like I do Facebook or MySpace? Not at all but that’s only because Twittering about yourself will exhaust people but when you have exciting news about your company or you are telling them that they can get a great deal, Twitter is much more useful.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
12 Blogs To Write
There have been many mentions of blogs in my previous entries. The reason I blog about blogging so much is because it is very important to small business websites and the like. It allows you to offer free information to visitors and in turn, they are attracted to your website. So to help you get started or just to help freshen up your blog, I've come up with 12 blog ideas to add to your repertoire.
1. Give some insight as to who your employees are and what kind of people they are.
2. Hold some sort of contest or competition that gets users involved and gets your product out just a little bit more.
3. Write a top 10 or top 100 list having to do with your business.
4. Write some testimonials and post some pictures of customers using your products.
5. Post 10 things customers most likely don't know about your business.
6. Refer others to blogs that you may read or that may be pertinent to your company's industry.
7. Ask an open ended question about your industry and allow readers to respond and join in the discussion.
8. Explain a facet of your industry that the layman may not understand without your help.
9. Describe the reasons why the average person would be interested in your product.
10. Take questions from readers and potential customers and answer them.
11. Write your opinion regarding some recent news in your industry.
12. Explain the average customer experience step by step.
These are but a few good ideas of blogs to get you started. If you apply yourself, and find some inspiration, you'll be on your way to a successful traffic driving blog in no time!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
1. Give some insight as to who your employees are and what kind of people they are.
2. Hold some sort of contest or competition that gets users involved and gets your product out just a little bit more.
3. Write a top 10 or top 100 list having to do with your business.
4. Write some testimonials and post some pictures of customers using your products.
5. Post 10 things customers most likely don't know about your business.
6. Refer others to blogs that you may read or that may be pertinent to your company's industry.
7. Ask an open ended question about your industry and allow readers to respond and join in the discussion.
8. Explain a facet of your industry that the layman may not understand without your help.
9. Describe the reasons why the average person would be interested in your product.
10. Take questions from readers and potential customers and answer them.
11. Write your opinion regarding some recent news in your industry.
12. Explain the average customer experience step by step.
These are but a few good ideas of blogs to get you started. If you apply yourself, and find some inspiration, you'll be on your way to a successful traffic driving blog in no time!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Is Your Site Mobile Friendly?
Blackberrys, iPhones, and Palm Pilots are rapidly becoming the standard type of device for the average businessperson to own. The convenience of checking your e-mail, having a full browser, and being tethered to the World Wide Web at all times can change the way someone’s job is done. For this reason, it is important for company owners to adapt and make their websites mobile friendly. In doing this, you will please more and more customers and make it easy for them to choose you.
You will need to do a little more than register for a sub domain. For a website named “www.CharlotteWebDesign.com”, simply registering for “www.mobile.CharlotteWebDesign.com” isn’t going to quite do the trick. These viewers have tiny screens and often their browsers display the text and graphics in a constrained manner. For this reason you are going to have to get a little more involved than copying your current site over.
Simplifying your website’s design is a good first tip. For an ecommerce website, most mobile users know what they’re looking for if they are viewing it from their mobile phone or device. Also, for other websites, most people aren’t just browsing the Internet from a tiny screen. The majority of people have a good idea of what they want to find and your web design should help them in that. This means that trying to employ navigation as usual is probably not the greatest idea. Make sure that everything important from your normal site is still available and don’t let the web design suffer but remember that most mobile users are going to prefer to click through links as quickly as possible and be able to search for exactly what they need. Another good idea is to make sure your company is known well on your mobile site. Displaying company logos and contact information frequently is a good way to start this off. In addition to all this, increasing your font size can really help your visitors out since they are on very small screens. This may take some of the frustration that comes with technology away! Also, don’t forget to display links to your standard page if some prefer it!
Having a mobile friendly website is definitely something serious companies should consider. More and more tiny devices are putting the Internet in your pocket and we should have the web design tailored to the people that we want to visit our websites. Getting your mobile friendly website up and running can be more complicated than you bargained for if you aren’t a web developer yourself so if Googling “how to …” doesn’t work out for you, contact CODANK. CODANK of Charlotte, North Carolina is ready to start planning your mobile friendly website today.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
You will need to do a little more than register for a sub domain. For a website named “www.CharlotteWebDesign.com”, simply registering for “www.mobile.CharlotteWebDesign.com” isn’t going to quite do the trick. These viewers have tiny screens and often their browsers display the text and graphics in a constrained manner. For this reason you are going to have to get a little more involved than copying your current site over.
Simplifying your website’s design is a good first tip. For an ecommerce website, most mobile users know what they’re looking for if they are viewing it from their mobile phone or device. Also, for other websites, most people aren’t just browsing the Internet from a tiny screen. The majority of people have a good idea of what they want to find and your web design should help them in that. This means that trying to employ navigation as usual is probably not the greatest idea. Make sure that everything important from your normal site is still available and don’t let the web design suffer but remember that most mobile users are going to prefer to click through links as quickly as possible and be able to search for exactly what they need. Another good idea is to make sure your company is known well on your mobile site. Displaying company logos and contact information frequently is a good way to start this off. In addition to all this, increasing your font size can really help your visitors out since they are on very small screens. This may take some of the frustration that comes with technology away! Also, don’t forget to display links to your standard page if some prefer it!
Having a mobile friendly website is definitely something serious companies should consider. More and more tiny devices are putting the Internet in your pocket and we should have the web design tailored to the people that we want to visit our websites. Getting your mobile friendly website up and running can be more complicated than you bargained for if you aren’t a web developer yourself so if Googling “how to …” doesn’t work out for you, contact CODANK. CODANK of Charlotte, North Carolina is ready to start planning your mobile friendly website today.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Now is the Time
The Internet is popping up all over the place. The latest news is that Airlines are providing broadband service to its customers. So far, three airliners provide Wi-fi access on some of their planes. That means people can browse websites during their entire flight. Blackberry users can even access the Internet through some services. This is just a good example of how the Internet is booming more and more and will definitely be here to stay.
This means having a web presence will only be more and more useful to you as the years progress. If you have a small business in these times, a solid web site with good web design is invaluable to your exposure and is an absolute necessity. The reason why now is the best time is because the world is turning to the Internet as a resource more and more every single day. Newspapers are becoming less and less popular as people look for their answers on Google or Yahoo. So if you are planning on being a legitimate business in the times to come, a solid focus on your web design is your next step. More and more companies are upgrading their web presence, optimizing for search engines, and paying top dollar for it. This only makes the web more and more competitive when it comes to attracting traffic and ultimately, making a sale.
Whether you are brand new to this or you have had a business for a while, you should be seriously considering going online. Think of it as a global storefront for everyone to see your product or service. A good website with great web design is definitely a worthwhile investment because times are only moving closer and closer to an Internet based society. CODANK of Charlotte, NC handles every part of the process from brainstorming, development, design, implementation, search engine optimization, and upkeep. Contact us for a free quote!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
This means having a web presence will only be more and more useful to you as the years progress. If you have a small business in these times, a solid web site with good web design is invaluable to your exposure and is an absolute necessity. The reason why now is the best time is because the world is turning to the Internet as a resource more and more every single day. Newspapers are becoming less and less popular as people look for their answers on Google or Yahoo. So if you are planning on being a legitimate business in the times to come, a solid focus on your web design is your next step. More and more companies are upgrading their web presence, optimizing for search engines, and paying top dollar for it. This only makes the web more and more competitive when it comes to attracting traffic and ultimately, making a sale.
Whether you are brand new to this or you have had a business for a while, you should be seriously considering going online. Think of it as a global storefront for everyone to see your product or service. A good website with great web design is definitely a worthwhile investment because times are only moving closer and closer to an Internet based society. CODANK of Charlotte, NC handles every part of the process from brainstorming, development, design, implementation, search engine optimization, and upkeep. Contact us for a free quote!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Your Home Page Needs To Suck!
I recently came across a very informational article called "Great Homepages Really Suck" written by Cameron Moll. This article really helps to explain what a good homepage should aim to do and how to employ those techniques. The fun title suggests that home pages need "pull" visitors and let them gather useful information rather than "push" them around and feed them information they may or may not be looking for. So I decided to share my thoughts on the subject and apply them to the more recent times considering that this article was written in 2003.
According to the article, statistics show that 75% of Internet readers are searchers and gatherers while the remaining 25% know what they want and are searching specifically for it. While this may not apply across the board, it is a fair measure of how the average person uses the Internet. If your homepage consists of a visually appealing logo, a welcome statement, and a few links, this article suggests that you may be missing out on a large amount of customers. Loading your homepage almost to the point of being considered "busy" is not necessarily a bad thing. Users will be able to gather an array of information and will be able to sort through what they think they might need. A good principle outlined in the article is to design your website with a bottom-up theme. Whether it is you who are doing the web design work or you have decided to use a professional agency like CODANK, having a good idea of where you want your customers to be is always good. From there, you can highlight the important parts of your website on your homepage and thus, attract visitors to these parts and allow them the option of going there directly from your home page.
Content is the other major idea of this article. Good copywriting is a must for your homepage due to the fact that it is almost always a visitor's first impression and you want to have their attention from the start. Boring them with all sorts of facts or features about your products may not be the best idea. Invest in a solid company like CODANK to boost your content while making it keyword rich. Also, including a good visual is always a great idea. An example of your work or two are very welcome on a good homepage.
Examine your homepage closely and decide if it uses the kind of web design that your average visitor will find interesting, efficient, and easy to use. If not, then a makeover should be on your to do list. Remember, you want your homepage to suck! CODANK can develop a solution for every web need you have. From optimization to revamping a home page, CODANK has the tools and experience to get the job done.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
According to the article, statistics show that 75% of Internet readers are searchers and gatherers while the remaining 25% know what they want and are searching specifically for it. While this may not apply across the board, it is a fair measure of how the average person uses the Internet. If your homepage consists of a visually appealing logo, a welcome statement, and a few links, this article suggests that you may be missing out on a large amount of customers. Loading your homepage almost to the point of being considered "busy" is not necessarily a bad thing. Users will be able to gather an array of information and will be able to sort through what they think they might need. A good principle outlined in the article is to design your website with a bottom-up theme. Whether it is you who are doing the web design work or you have decided to use a professional agency like CODANK, having a good idea of where you want your customers to be is always good. From there, you can highlight the important parts of your website on your homepage and thus, attract visitors to these parts and allow them the option of going there directly from your home page.
Content is the other major idea of this article. Good copywriting is a must for your homepage due to the fact that it is almost always a visitor's first impression and you want to have their attention from the start. Boring them with all sorts of facts or features about your products may not be the best idea. Invest in a solid company like CODANK to boost your content while making it keyword rich. Also, including a good visual is always a great idea. An example of your work or two are very welcome on a good homepage.
Examine your homepage closely and decide if it uses the kind of web design that your average visitor will find interesting, efficient, and easy to use. If not, then a makeover should be on your to do list. Remember, you want your homepage to suck! CODANK can develop a solution for every web need you have. From optimization to revamping a home page, CODANK has the tools and experience to get the job done.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Google's Rules
Google has quickly become the most commonly known search engine on the Internet and is also becoming very well known for its other Internet based services like Google Maps and Google Earth. It only makes sense then to want to be right at the top of Google's search engines for, what you assume, people will be searching for. This is what its all about... getting Google to index your page fairly high so lets look at how Google looks at your site.
A misconception about Google is that its bots look at your META tags. This is the old school way of telling search engines exactly what was on your page but this doesn't fly anymore. Also, if you have duplicate links to the same place, Google only indexes one as part of your webpage. Another thing that will do you no good is all graphics, audio, video, and animations. Google pays absolutely no attention to these so you do not need to consider what Google will think of your logo or latest video.
What Google does care about is content. Content is the first and foremost priority in any SEO project. Your small business website needs to have great content, loaded with the keywords that people are going to search and it needs to be solid content that readers aren't going to ignore because its clearly over optimized. Use a good keyword tool like Google's Adwords Keyword Tool to find some keywords that people might be searching and choose a few that represent your niche market and make them ever present on your website. Also, another huge influence of Google's ranking is your involvement with other sites. Linking to and from other sites will do your Google ranking wonders! A lot of websites out there offer a free link to their website in return for a link to your website on theirs. This is because Google rates the "popularity" of your website. This means that if users are linking to your site because of article you wrote or because your blog offers lots of good information, then you will have a much greater opportunity of being high on Google.
Remember, these "rules" are specific to Google. Some search engines do put a little emphasis on META tags as well as other things but wasting your time trying to find out how all the small search engines index and trying to optimize your site accordingly will be a waste of time and likely not worth it. So get your content working for you and spread your network out to other companies that you can link to.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
A misconception about Google is that its bots look at your META tags. This is the old school way of telling search engines exactly what was on your page but this doesn't fly anymore. Also, if you have duplicate links to the same place, Google only indexes one as part of your webpage. Another thing that will do you no good is all graphics, audio, video, and animations. Google pays absolutely no attention to these so you do not need to consider what Google will think of your logo or latest video.
What Google does care about is content. Content is the first and foremost priority in any SEO project. Your small business website needs to have great content, loaded with the keywords that people are going to search and it needs to be solid content that readers aren't going to ignore because its clearly over optimized. Use a good keyword tool like Google's Adwords Keyword Tool to find some keywords that people might be searching and choose a few that represent your niche market and make them ever present on your website. Also, another huge influence of Google's ranking is your involvement with other sites. Linking to and from other sites will do your Google ranking wonders! A lot of websites out there offer a free link to their website in return for a link to your website on theirs. This is because Google rates the "popularity" of your website. This means that if users are linking to your site because of article you wrote or because your blog offers lots of good information, then you will have a much greater opportunity of being high on Google.
Remember, these "rules" are specific to Google. Some search engines do put a little emphasis on META tags as well as other things but wasting your time trying to find out how all the small search engines index and trying to optimize your site accordingly will be a waste of time and likely not worth it. So get your content working for you and spread your network out to other companies that you can link to.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Staying Involved and Connected For Marketing Sake
Internet marketing is an ever-changing organism. Certain parts of it are always changing and may not work like they used to. Some techniques that were used when your website was first designed may be outdated and less effective. Everyone who cares about the Internet marketing of their business web site should stay connected to the Internet marketing community and stay up to date with the latest information.
Google, Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo, and Myspace are all relatively new to the Internet but these are absolutely game changers when it comes to marketing your small business or other website. Imagine if you had designed your website years ago when Google was a baby and you didn’t take into account Google’s indexing process. You may be at the top of “AskJeeves” or “Lycos” but that accounts for a very small percentage of people. Now the idea here is to know people, talk to people, read articles or blogs, and stay up to date with the news of web developers, SEO experts, and Internet marketing firms.
The Internet is so accommodating to one looking for free information these days so finding a way to understand the latest Internet marketing will be a breeze for you. Find a good blog to read by searching for “Web Developer Blog” or “Internet Marketing Firm Blog”. Most of the time, a good web development company dives into the latest strategies of Internet marketing every day to offer their customers a cutting edge approach and the latest tactics to see your website rise in the rankings. Other than scouring the Internet for good resources, try to stay connected with the people you’ve met that work in the industry. Stay in touch with your web developers or SEO people that you’ve used in the past. Most people that work in these fields love their job and don’t mind talking for a few minutes about it if you sound interested! Do some good networking and who knows, you might end up with a lot of good contacts for the next time your website needs a makeover.
Keeping up to date with the latest Internet marketing strategies is extremely important. If your website isn’t designed or modified with today’s standards in mind, you could be wasting a lot of traffic. It is a great idea to stay networked with the people that you have met that work in the field and read blogs, articles, and news put out by companies that deal with Internet marketing all day. CODANK of Charlotte, NC is up to date with the latest web design and Internet marketing strategies. Contact us for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Google, Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo, and Myspace are all relatively new to the Internet but these are absolutely game changers when it comes to marketing your small business or other website. Imagine if you had designed your website years ago when Google was a baby and you didn’t take into account Google’s indexing process. You may be at the top of “AskJeeves” or “Lycos” but that accounts for a very small percentage of people. Now the idea here is to know people, talk to people, read articles or blogs, and stay up to date with the news of web developers, SEO experts, and Internet marketing firms.
The Internet is so accommodating to one looking for free information these days so finding a way to understand the latest Internet marketing will be a breeze for you. Find a good blog to read by searching for “Web Developer Blog” or “Internet Marketing Firm Blog”. Most of the time, a good web development company dives into the latest strategies of Internet marketing every day to offer their customers a cutting edge approach and the latest tactics to see your website rise in the rankings. Other than scouring the Internet for good resources, try to stay connected with the people you’ve met that work in the industry. Stay in touch with your web developers or SEO people that you’ve used in the past. Most people that work in these fields love their job and don’t mind talking for a few minutes about it if you sound interested! Do some good networking and who knows, you might end up with a lot of good contacts for the next time your website needs a makeover.
Keeping up to date with the latest Internet marketing strategies is extremely important. If your website isn’t designed or modified with today’s standards in mind, you could be wasting a lot of traffic. It is a great idea to stay networked with the people that you have met that work in the field and read blogs, articles, and news put out by companies that deal with Internet marketing all day. CODANK of Charlotte, NC is up to date with the latest web design and Internet marketing strategies. Contact us for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
#1 On Google: The Holy Grail
There is a lot of hype about getting your business’ website to the top of Google. What this means is that your website shows up first when the most common search queries are entered into the search engine. Many times, Wikipedia is the number one or one of Google’s services is number one but is it even that important?
Most sources say yes, getting as high as you possibly can on major search engines like Google, can make or break your online presence. When a normal person enters a search for “web hosting” they are going to have a lot of options before yours if you are on the fourth page. It is very different from the real world of advertising in that, if you have a lot of money, you can get advertised in the best places; buildings, billboards, sidewalks, whatever you can pay for! But in the world of online marketing, even the small business website with enough strategy and good SEO can out advertise the big guys if not just compete with them.
So here are some tips for sending your website to the top. First, when you are choosing keywords to embed all over your site, be specific. I love Google’s AdWords Keyword Tool because it allows you to pick a search term or phrase and it quickly returns hundreds of related search terms in an organized list. When choosing from these, make sure to remember to be as specific as possible. Choosing “construction Charlotte NC” is not as appropriate as “Wood Decks Charlotte NC” for a company that specializes in deck building. Finding a niche and sticking with that is much more advantageous than making sure that you have covered every bit of ground you can think of. Also, try to write some content that employs these keywords as much as possible. Write an article or a top 100 article pertaining to your industry to draw people in and make good use of those keywords.
A good Google ranking can do wonders for your small business website or your e-commerce website. People tend to choose from Google’s results hierarchically and being as high as possible can only help you in the end. Choosing specific keywords or phrases and making sure they show up as frequently as possible on your page is definitely a good start. So good luck and good Googling!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Most sources say yes, getting as high as you possibly can on major search engines like Google, can make or break your online presence. When a normal person enters a search for “web hosting” they are going to have a lot of options before yours if you are on the fourth page. It is very different from the real world of advertising in that, if you have a lot of money, you can get advertised in the best places; buildings, billboards, sidewalks, whatever you can pay for! But in the world of online marketing, even the small business website with enough strategy and good SEO can out advertise the big guys if not just compete with them.
So here are some tips for sending your website to the top. First, when you are choosing keywords to embed all over your site, be specific. I love Google’s AdWords Keyword Tool because it allows you to pick a search term or phrase and it quickly returns hundreds of related search terms in an organized list. When choosing from these, make sure to remember to be as specific as possible. Choosing “construction Charlotte NC” is not as appropriate as “Wood Decks Charlotte NC” for a company that specializes in deck building. Finding a niche and sticking with that is much more advantageous than making sure that you have covered every bit of ground you can think of. Also, try to write some content that employs these keywords as much as possible. Write an article or a top 100 article pertaining to your industry to draw people in and make good use of those keywords.
A good Google ranking can do wonders for your small business website or your e-commerce website. People tend to choose from Google’s results hierarchically and being as high as possible can only help you in the end. Choosing specific keywords or phrases and making sure they show up as frequently as possible on your page is definitely a good start. So good luck and good Googling!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Your Internet Marketing Budget
Maybe you’re running a large business and just now deciding to go online full throttle. Maybe you’re starting a brand new business and are ready to launch a brand new product online as far as you can get it. Maybe you just want to start a small business with the least risk possible and are putting a website together in your spare time. At any rate, you are going to need to decide on an Internet marketing budget so lets have a look at how we can decide appropriate amounts to allocate to this ever-important facet of your online presence.
Clearly, you’re all going to spend different amounts on our marketing depending on the size of your business but what you can establish is that generally you need to spend more or less based on the objective of your websites. If you’re running an e-commerce website and you want to greatly increase traffic and you hope to double your sales, be prepared to have a very healthy budget. Don’t expect to get a #1 or #2 rank on Google for $100. If your business does well aside from the Internet but you are looking to eventually work your way into the .com world, then obviously you can feel free to set a small budget aside over a long period to get a website going and bring the traffic in.
As a general rule, if you want a lot out of the web, you’re going to have to put a lot in. This doesn’t necessarily mean all money, sometimes you can spend a lot of your time investing in your website to increase traffic but just be prepared to sacrifice more if you want more. In the same way that there is a difference between paying a freelance web designer to do a small business website and paying a top tier firm, there are differences between marketing your small business website yourself and paying a firm that has a team of SEO copywriters and developers who do this for a living.
The most important thing to keep in mind here when dealing with your Internet marketing budget is knowing yourself and your objectives. Don’t expect to get a lot out of a little budget. Do you want to see a huge spike in traffic? Go big. Are you just looking for a little exposure for your small business? Take it easy. Whatever the case may be, your investment will be worth the results… just make sure your business can foot the bill. CODANK’s team of developers and writers can take your small business website or large business website to the next level.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Clearly, you’re all going to spend different amounts on our marketing depending on the size of your business but what you can establish is that generally you need to spend more or less based on the objective of your websites. If you’re running an e-commerce website and you want to greatly increase traffic and you hope to double your sales, be prepared to have a very healthy budget. Don’t expect to get a #1 or #2 rank on Google for $100. If your business does well aside from the Internet but you are looking to eventually work your way into the .com world, then obviously you can feel free to set a small budget aside over a long period to get a website going and bring the traffic in.
As a general rule, if you want a lot out of the web, you’re going to have to put a lot in. This doesn’t necessarily mean all money, sometimes you can spend a lot of your time investing in your website to increase traffic but just be prepared to sacrifice more if you want more. In the same way that there is a difference between paying a freelance web designer to do a small business website and paying a top tier firm, there are differences between marketing your small business website yourself and paying a firm that has a team of SEO copywriters and developers who do this for a living.
The most important thing to keep in mind here when dealing with your Internet marketing budget is knowing yourself and your objectives. Don’t expect to get a lot out of a little budget. Do you want to see a huge spike in traffic? Go big. Are you just looking for a little exposure for your small business? Take it easy. Whatever the case may be, your investment will be worth the results… just make sure your business can foot the bill. CODANK’s team of developers and writers can take your small business website or large business website to the next level.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Backing Up Your Data
How many times have you been carrying on with your computing like you normally do and all of a sudden, your computer crashes and you lose everything forever. Your answer is very likely either never or maybe once. This is because computers have become fairly reliable and the likelihood of a hard drive failing is becoming more and more a thing of the past. Does this mean that we can now go on in life free of safety and never worry about losing our data again? Most definitely not.
Computers, while they are wonderful machines and perform tasks almost magical in nature, are mechanical. Mechanical things can be built very reliable but they will break at some point. This may seem off topic but if you are going to do any web design or store any important data pertinent to your website, you need to back up your data. If you have decided to design your own website, make sure to keep a copy of every page and every bit of code stored safely away from harm’s way. Obviously we all think about what we could’ve saved had we thought about it but now that you know, you won’t lose all the important things that your website counts on you having.
This goes for work you are doing on your desktop. System or application crashes are far more likely than a hard drive crash and if you happen to be working on the latest product or shopping cart idea for your e-commerce site, you could lose it forever. So don’t be afraid to save, save, and save again!
Well, consider yourself warned. It is always good to pass on some advice that I’ve learned the hard way (don’t ask). Get an external hard drive or even store it remotely through a good company like Carbonite or Mozy. I would prefer to store it myself but most companies do a great job of doing it for you.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Computers, while they are wonderful machines and perform tasks almost magical in nature, are mechanical. Mechanical things can be built very reliable but they will break at some point. This may seem off topic but if you are going to do any web design or store any important data pertinent to your website, you need to back up your data. If you have decided to design your own website, make sure to keep a copy of every page and every bit of code stored safely away from harm’s way. Obviously we all think about what we could’ve saved had we thought about it but now that you know, you won’t lose all the important things that your website counts on you having.
This goes for work you are doing on your desktop. System or application crashes are far more likely than a hard drive crash and if you happen to be working on the latest product or shopping cart idea for your e-commerce site, you could lose it forever. So don’t be afraid to save, save, and save again!
Well, consider yourself warned. It is always good to pass on some advice that I’ve learned the hard way (don’t ask). Get an external hard drive or even store it remotely through a good company like Carbonite or Mozy. I would prefer to store it myself but most companies do a great job of doing it for you.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Effective Blog Writing
Many businesses out there have decided to start a blog on their website. This means that they have joined the blogosphere consisting of an estimated 112.8 million other bloggers. This is a statistic found in June 2008 by Technorati. That is a lot of blogs! How can you purpose your blog and write with the ideal voice to attract business to your company?
Blogs are new and exciting. This means that the way they are written should follow suit. No longer are people attracted to mounds of information contained in a brochure or catalog. Sure they are still functional but the information age has brought a whole new wave of businesses communicating their businesses’ ideas or inner workings in a fun and personal way.
Keeping it fun and personal is difficult sometimes when you are used to informing the heck out of your customers. Blogs are supposed to be relaxed reading so writing interesting and laid back content is a must. Try writing an anecdote about recent happenings in your industry. It is refreshing when a visitor comes to your website, sees good web design, and then experiences a personal voice associated with your website. You will need to remember though, that your blog is not an online journal or diary. What this means is that even though your blogs need to be laid back, an e-commerce website will not need to blog about a lawn mowing experience and a web design company will not need to blog about a day at the beach. Write about content that is relevant to your industry that way you will draw visitors to your website.
So remember that when you get out into the blog world, you are almost expected to make it fun, laid back, and enjoyable for your readers. The information you want to get across can still be important but if a blog is drab and boring, there are 112.8 million blogs to choose from so why wouldn’t a potential customer just move on? Blogs can increase direct traffic to your website, improve your web design, and make your site more linkable. CODANK can help you start up your company blog today! Call for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Blogs are new and exciting. This means that the way they are written should follow suit. No longer are people attracted to mounds of information contained in a brochure or catalog. Sure they are still functional but the information age has brought a whole new wave of businesses communicating their businesses’ ideas or inner workings in a fun and personal way.
Keeping it fun and personal is difficult sometimes when you are used to informing the heck out of your customers. Blogs are supposed to be relaxed reading so writing interesting and laid back content is a must. Try writing an anecdote about recent happenings in your industry. It is refreshing when a visitor comes to your website, sees good web design, and then experiences a personal voice associated with your website. You will need to remember though, that your blog is not an online journal or diary. What this means is that even though your blogs need to be laid back, an e-commerce website will not need to blog about a lawn mowing experience and a web design company will not need to blog about a day at the beach. Write about content that is relevant to your industry that way you will draw visitors to your website.
So remember that when you get out into the blog world, you are almost expected to make it fun, laid back, and enjoyable for your readers. The information you want to get across can still be important but if a blog is drab and boring, there are 112.8 million blogs to choose from so why wouldn’t a potential customer just move on? Blogs can increase direct traffic to your website, improve your web design, and make your site more linkable. CODANK can help you start up your company blog today! Call for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Friday, May 22, 2009
Link Exchange
Search Engine Optimizations is a complicated industry. One facet of this task is getting your URL out on the Internet and directing people to your website. Not only is this good in that people are more likely to travel to your site but search engines index this and it all adds up to get you higher on the search results page. Because everyone knows this, there is a crazy world out there consisting of forums, companies, directories, and the like all devoted to exchanging links. Let’s explore some of the situations and whether or not this should be important to you.
A common way of exchanging links when you have a small business website is the old fashioned manual communication. For example, Charlotte Web Design company A approaches Charlotte Graphic Design company B and requests that links are exchanged. If both parties are up for it, a link to the other’s website will be placed somewhere where visitors are encouraged to click. Then, the next time a major search engine indexes the websites, it will take note of how many added inbound links there are for each website and it will increase the odds of a high ranking search result. Should the common person do this? The answer is maybe. You should definitely take your time in researching the company that requests your link. Make sure that their content is not primarily spam or completely unprofessional. It makes sense to not send your visitors to a bad website, not to mention the possibility of a fraudulent link exchange (this being where a website waits for your add and does not return the favor). Just remember that most people believe that you are guilty by association.
The other most common way of exchanging links is by using directories or companies that submit to directories for you. Whether this is free or not, it should theoretically increase traffic. The only thing is that you can’t really control where your links are being placed. Also, many of these sites require several back links or links to other websites that you may or may not be able to choose. Many paid websites offer one-way links. The best advice here is, if you are maxed out in your SEO and looking for something new, try this and if it doesn’t work out after six months or so, forget about it. This is known to increase traffic for some and have no effect for others.
Most importantly, do your research. Research the companies that request a link exchange to your website. Research the effects of anything that you might try. Research the companies that you may use to increase the volume of inbound links to your website. CODANK knows SEO and offers custom solutions to help increase traffic to your website. Call for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
A common way of exchanging links when you have a small business website is the old fashioned manual communication. For example, Charlotte Web Design company A approaches Charlotte Graphic Design company B and requests that links are exchanged. If both parties are up for it, a link to the other’s website will be placed somewhere where visitors are encouraged to click. Then, the next time a major search engine indexes the websites, it will take note of how many added inbound links there are for each website and it will increase the odds of a high ranking search result. Should the common person do this? The answer is maybe. You should definitely take your time in researching the company that requests your link. Make sure that their content is not primarily spam or completely unprofessional. It makes sense to not send your visitors to a bad website, not to mention the possibility of a fraudulent link exchange (this being where a website waits for your add and does not return the favor). Just remember that most people believe that you are guilty by association.
The other most common way of exchanging links is by using directories or companies that submit to directories for you. Whether this is free or not, it should theoretically increase traffic. The only thing is that you can’t really control where your links are being placed. Also, many of these sites require several back links or links to other websites that you may or may not be able to choose. Many paid websites offer one-way links. The best advice here is, if you are maxed out in your SEO and looking for something new, try this and if it doesn’t work out after six months or so, forget about it. This is known to increase traffic for some and have no effect for others.
Most importantly, do your research. Research the companies that request a link exchange to your website. Research the effects of anything that you might try. Research the companies that you may use to increase the volume of inbound links to your website. CODANK knows SEO and offers custom solutions to help increase traffic to your website. Call for a free quote.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Search Engine On Your Website: Why or Why Not?
Many websites are designed so that the user, not necessarily knowing exactly what they’re after, can browse through links, follow banners that look appealing to them, and generally let the website create the flow. On the other hand, there are sites in which the visitor knows exactly what they’re looking for and any landing pages, links, or ads they have to sift through are only slowing them down and frustrating them. This information is for the latter, the website that has multiple pages and wants to be able to allow the visitors to access what they want directly.
We’ve all seen web design that includes search engines. Not like Google.com or Yahoo.com, this is more like eBay or Amazon to name some famous ones. Can you imagine trying to find an item if you had to click only eBay’s links to find it? This is an extreme example of an inconvenient and frustrating web design but there are many smaller websites that are in need of a search engine. Including a search engine in your web design allows people to go directly to their desired information and this is good for both the user and the company.
There are many ways to allow users to search your site from your own site. Many times, good software is necessary to perform all the tasks involved in creating a personal search engine. Sometimes, you’ll end up spending some money on something that works for you. Usually something between $50 and $250 will do the trick. If this option doesn’t work for you, there are some free sites such as www.freefind.com that allows you to add a search box to your website. Basically, you allow them to index your site and then they create HTML that directs the search back their remotely stored index and allows users to find what they searched for. This is only free for a small amount of information so if you have a lot of content, you will have to pay. Most of these options do require basic knowledge of your website and website design.
Adding a search engine box can be very valuable to your website. Usually it depends on whether your typical visitor is going to even know exactly what to search for. Use common sense and think about whether or not your average visitor will even find value in a search engine box. CODANK can consult, develop, and implement search solutions for your website. Call for a free quote today!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
We’ve all seen web design that includes search engines. Not like Google.com or Yahoo.com, this is more like eBay or Amazon to name some famous ones. Can you imagine trying to find an item if you had to click only eBay’s links to find it? This is an extreme example of an inconvenient and frustrating web design but there are many smaller websites that are in need of a search engine. Including a search engine in your web design allows people to go directly to their desired information and this is good for both the user and the company.
There are many ways to allow users to search your site from your own site. Many times, good software is necessary to perform all the tasks involved in creating a personal search engine. Sometimes, you’ll end up spending some money on something that works for you. Usually something between $50 and $250 will do the trick. If this option doesn’t work for you, there are some free sites such as www.freefind.com that allows you to add a search box to your website. Basically, you allow them to index your site and then they create HTML that directs the search back their remotely stored index and allows users to find what they searched for. This is only free for a small amount of information so if you have a lot of content, you will have to pay. Most of these options do require basic knowledge of your website and website design.
Adding a search engine box can be very valuable to your website. Usually it depends on whether your typical visitor is going to even know exactly what to search for. Use common sense and think about whether or not your average visitor will even find value in a search engine box. CODANK can consult, develop, and implement search solutions for your website. Call for a free quote today!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Why You Should Have a Shopping Cart
If you own a small business dealing with e-commerce, you have certainly entertained the thought of having a shopping cart. It seems like every other website has one so why not you? Well there are many reasons to have one and a few reasons not to. Let’s have a look.
First of all, many companies choose to use a CMS, or content management system, either instead of a shopping cart or in conjunction with one. The key is to choose which one is right for you. Using a CMS is very convenient for many because it separates the content of your website from the layout. What this in turn allows you to do is edit content without running the risk of hurting your layout. Many e-commerce websites with thousands of products use a CMS in conjunction with a top dollar shopping cart/e-commerce software. This may not be cost effective for the small business.
If you are a small business owner and your site is mainly for showcasing your products or services and you are considering giving visitors the means to purchase them, a simple shopping cart solution combined with a good CMS is probably right for you. Also, if you are a larger e-commerce website with a few hundred products with little else to add, a good e-commerce/shopping cart solution is right for you. Having to sift through your content isn’t the end of the world if you need to update major things across the board.
The most important thing to remember here is that you can yield results from either of these systems. If you have good content and good SEO, you will draw people to your website. If you then have a good product or service, you will make a sale. Of course it is more likely to make a sale if you enable your visitors to purchase right then and there with a shopping cart. And the great thing is, everyone know how to use a shopping cart these days… they’re tried and true!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
First of all, many companies choose to use a CMS, or content management system, either instead of a shopping cart or in conjunction with one. The key is to choose which one is right for you. Using a CMS is very convenient for many because it separates the content of your website from the layout. What this in turn allows you to do is edit content without running the risk of hurting your layout. Many e-commerce websites with thousands of products use a CMS in conjunction with a top dollar shopping cart/e-commerce software. This may not be cost effective for the small business.
If you are a small business owner and your site is mainly for showcasing your products or services and you are considering giving visitors the means to purchase them, a simple shopping cart solution combined with a good CMS is probably right for you. Also, if you are a larger e-commerce website with a few hundred products with little else to add, a good e-commerce/shopping cart solution is right for you. Having to sift through your content isn’t the end of the world if you need to update major things across the board.
The most important thing to remember here is that you can yield results from either of these systems. If you have good content and good SEO, you will draw people to your website. If you then have a good product or service, you will make a sale. Of course it is more likely to make a sale if you enable your visitors to purchase right then and there with a shopping cart. And the great thing is, everyone know how to use a shopping cart these days… they’re tried and true!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Web 2.0 and How to Make Use of it
Web 2.0 refers to the supposed second generation of web technology. This means everything from blogs and Facebook to interactive flash based web design. With this new wave of web development and web design comes a whole new mess of tools and technology to exploit for your business. Lets survey some of the tools considered to be a part of web 2.0 and how they are used.
Social Networking – Your most common options here are Facebook, MySpace, Friendster, Twitter and possibly even LinkedIn for an ecommerce approach. These sites allow different people to exchange communication through the website and create “friendships” by making and accepting friend requests. How can this be valuable to your business? The logic here is to link businesses to consumers and consumers to businesses. If consumer B sees that consumer A is “friends” with or is interested in Business A, then consumer B is more likely to accept your company. It’s not always this simple as most users are turned off by an obvious ploy to get a consumer’s dollar. While this is sometimes difficult to achieve, this is where the most important 18-25 year olds are found so it is most likely worth the investment.
RSS Feeds – RSS, or Really Simple Syndication, feeds are basically the easiest way to upload frequently updated content such as blogs, news, articles, or audio/video. This gives your users a way to stay connected with your website and makes them feel connected to your business. If you are constantly posting fresh content that is valuable to your potential customers, they will want to stay up to date with what you have going on and if you give them the option to subscribe to your content as an RSS feed, it will only be easier for them.
Various widgets – There are many different Web 2.0 widgets and applications. One that almost every person has heard of and likely used is Google Maps. Countless companies are implementing Google’s brilliance on their websites and helping their potential customers find their place of business. “Bookmark This” is another good example of a popular widget. This is an application that allows you to create a button for users to share the content on your webpage, subscribe to the content, or simply bookmark it. For the record, these are just two of the countless tools out there for free. Search Google for web 2.0 applications or web 2.0 widgets. You won’t be disappointed.
Even though Web 2.0 can be complicated and overwhelming, it is just another part of our ever-changing technology that you are going to have to keep up with if you plan on keeping a good reputation. Social Networking, blogs, RSS feeds, and other tools are just some of the examples and there are always going to be more and more new developments to be a part of your business.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Social Networking – Your most common options here are Facebook, MySpace, Friendster, Twitter and possibly even LinkedIn for an ecommerce approach. These sites allow different people to exchange communication through the website and create “friendships” by making and accepting friend requests. How can this be valuable to your business? The logic here is to link businesses to consumers and consumers to businesses. If consumer B sees that consumer A is “friends” with or is interested in Business A, then consumer B is more likely to accept your company. It’s not always this simple as most users are turned off by an obvious ploy to get a consumer’s dollar. While this is sometimes difficult to achieve, this is where the most important 18-25 year olds are found so it is most likely worth the investment.
RSS Feeds – RSS, or Really Simple Syndication, feeds are basically the easiest way to upload frequently updated content such as blogs, news, articles, or audio/video. This gives your users a way to stay connected with your website and makes them feel connected to your business. If you are constantly posting fresh content that is valuable to your potential customers, they will want to stay up to date with what you have going on and if you give them the option to subscribe to your content as an RSS feed, it will only be easier for them.
Various widgets – There are many different Web 2.0 widgets and applications. One that almost every person has heard of and likely used is Google Maps. Countless companies are implementing Google’s brilliance on their websites and helping their potential customers find their place of business. “Bookmark This” is another good example of a popular widget. This is an application that allows you to create a button for users to share the content on your webpage, subscribe to the content, or simply bookmark it. For the record, these are just two of the countless tools out there for free. Search Google for web 2.0 applications or web 2.0 widgets. You won’t be disappointed.
Even though Web 2.0 can be complicated and overwhelming, it is just another part of our ever-changing technology that you are going to have to keep up with if you plan on keeping a good reputation. Social Networking, blogs, RSS feeds, and other tools are just some of the examples and there are always going to be more and more new developments to be a part of your business.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Small Business Websites
No matter what industry you are in, your web presence should be important to you. Whether you are running a construction business, law firm, day care, or a talent agency, having a good website will keep you ahead of the pack and help you to look more respectable than your competition. As always, more and more companies, smaller and smaller, are showing up on the Internet. Here are some good reasons to make sure you are advertising yourself on the Internet and some tips on how to do just that.
Just like every other cost associated with your business, you want to make sure that you are saving as much money as possible and getting the best value for your money. This is becoming especially easy with commonly available resources and free web development tools. Reading web design blogs just like this one is a great start for a better business. Unlike the web design of yesterday, business owners are able to build and edit their own content to some degree and a multitude of free tools are surfacing. My personal favorite resource is Google. I’ve featured Google’s Adwords and Keyword Tools before, as I am very impressed with what they are doing. Searching the net for what you need will almost always surprise you pleasantly when you can find so many free resources at your disposal.
For those of you with fewer resources, there are still plenty of great options. Though your business may not be ready to invest in a high dollar website, you can still have a functional presence on the web. There are many companies that provide you web hosting and provide a free site-building tool. These are typically very limited but easy to use. This type of thing would definitely be for the small business that needs a web presence now and wants to wait to invest in a solid website and good content. Keep in mind that having a good website design is of utmost importance and is almost always worth the investment.
Running a small business is understandably stressful. Trying to add technology and its learning curve to the mix just makes things more complicated. Fortunately, it’s becoming easier and easier to get yourself on the web. With all sorts of free tools and inexpensive, temporary solutions to more expensive, permanent issues, you should be ready to have a web presence right now. CODANK is your full-service web development company. Do everything here or just host your website for now, one thing is for sure, CODANK is here to help you.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Just like every other cost associated with your business, you want to make sure that you are saving as much money as possible and getting the best value for your money. This is becoming especially easy with commonly available resources and free web development tools. Reading web design blogs just like this one is a great start for a better business. Unlike the web design of yesterday, business owners are able to build and edit their own content to some degree and a multitude of free tools are surfacing. My personal favorite resource is Google. I’ve featured Google’s Adwords and Keyword Tools before, as I am very impressed with what they are doing. Searching the net for what you need will almost always surprise you pleasantly when you can find so many free resources at your disposal.
For those of you with fewer resources, there are still plenty of great options. Though your business may not be ready to invest in a high dollar website, you can still have a functional presence on the web. There are many companies that provide you web hosting and provide a free site-building tool. These are typically very limited but easy to use. This type of thing would definitely be for the small business that needs a web presence now and wants to wait to invest in a solid website and good content. Keep in mind that having a good website design is of utmost importance and is almost always worth the investment.
Running a small business is understandably stressful. Trying to add technology and its learning curve to the mix just makes things more complicated. Fortunately, it’s becoming easier and easier to get yourself on the web. With all sorts of free tools and inexpensive, temporary solutions to more expensive, permanent issues, you should be ready to have a web presence right now. CODANK is your full-service web development company. Do everything here or just host your website for now, one thing is for sure, CODANK is here to help you.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Your Homepage: Valuable Real Estate
Day after day, people are traveling through your homepage, navigating to the different parts of your website, and ultimately making a judgment about your company. Your homepage is the most important part of this first impression and it has the power to make or break the decision for many potential visitors. Let’s explore the different facets of a good homepage.
Tell them who you are. As the homepage is the most important page on your site, it is of most importance that the homepage states clearly who your company is and your purpose. A good tagline or headline usually works fine to give visitors a good idea of who you are and what you do.
Highlight the important parts of your website. Make sure that your homepage has a link to all of the vital parts of your website. Of course you need to have a link to all your major pages, but also be sure to have a quick, efficient way to access your contact information and other useful corporate information.
Update your homepage. If you are doing the right thing and updating your content on a daily or weekly basis, making it happen on your webpage is a great idea. Blogging, writing articles, or updating company news is always best suited for your homepage as it brings visitors to the main hub of your website.
Visual appeal is key. Visual appeal is most important on your website. You want your visitors and potential customers to be greeted with a pleasant color scheme, well-organized frames and windows, and appropriate fonts.
Remember, people should be flocking to your homepage every day and you want to make their visit count. Make sure your homepage is clear about who you are, make the important parts stand out, always update the content on your homepage, and make sure to have visual appeal. If your homepage needs a re-do or you just need good advice, call CODANK today for your free quote!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Tell them who you are. As the homepage is the most important page on your site, it is of most importance that the homepage states clearly who your company is and your purpose. A good tagline or headline usually works fine to give visitors a good idea of who you are and what you do.
Highlight the important parts of your website. Make sure that your homepage has a link to all of the vital parts of your website. Of course you need to have a link to all your major pages, but also be sure to have a quick, efficient way to access your contact information and other useful corporate information.
Update your homepage. If you are doing the right thing and updating your content on a daily or weekly basis, making it happen on your webpage is a great idea. Blogging, writing articles, or updating company news is always best suited for your homepage as it brings visitors to the main hub of your website.
Visual appeal is key. Visual appeal is most important on your website. You want your visitors and potential customers to be greeted with a pleasant color scheme, well-organized frames and windows, and appropriate fonts.
Remember, people should be flocking to your homepage every day and you want to make their visit count. Make sure your homepage is clear about who you are, make the important parts stand out, always update the content on your homepage, and make sure to have visual appeal. If your homepage needs a re-do or you just need good advice, call CODANK today for your free quote!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Your Homepage: Valuable Real Estate
Day after day, people are traveling through your homepage, navigating to the different parts of your website, and ultimately making a judgment about your company. Your homepage is the most important part of this first impression and it has the power to make or break the decision for many potential visitors. Let’s explore the different facets of a good homepage.
Tell them who you are. As the homepage is the most important page on your site, it is of most importance that the homepage states clearly who your company is and your purpose. A good tagline or headline usually works fine to give visitors a good idea of who you are and what you do.
Highlight the important parts of your website. Make sure that your homepage has a link to all of the vital parts of your website. Of course you need to have a link to all your major pages, but also be sure to have a quick, efficient way to access your contact information and other useful corporate information.
Update your homepage. If you are doing the right thing and updating your content on a daily or weekly basis, making it happen on your webpage is a great idea. Blogging, writing articles, or updating company news is always best suited for your homepage as it brings visitors to the main hub of your website.
Visual appeal is key. Visual appeal is most important on your website. You want your visitors and potential customers to be greeted with a pleasant color scheme, well-organized frames and windows, and appropriate fonts.
Remember, people should be flocking to your homepage every day and you want to make their visit count. Make sure your homepage is clear about who you are, make the important parts stand out, always update the content on your homepage, and make sure to have visual appeal. If your homepage needs a re-do or you just need good advice, call CODANK today for your free quote!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Tell them who you are. As the homepage is the most important page on your site, it is of most importance that the homepage states clearly who your company is and your purpose. A good tagline or headline usually works fine to give visitors a good idea of who you are and what you do.
Highlight the important parts of your website. Make sure that your homepage has a link to all of the vital parts of your website. Of course you need to have a link to all your major pages, but also be sure to have a quick, efficient way to access your contact information and other useful corporate information.
Update your homepage. If you are doing the right thing and updating your content on a daily or weekly basis, making it happen on your webpage is a great idea. Blogging, writing articles, or updating company news is always best suited for your homepage as it brings visitors to the main hub of your website.
Visual appeal is key. Visual appeal is most important on your website. You want your visitors and potential customers to be greeted with a pleasant color scheme, well-organized frames and windows, and appropriate fonts.
Remember, people should be flocking to your homepage every day and you want to make their visit count. Make sure your homepage is clear about who you are, make the important parts stand out, always update the content on your homepage, and make sure to have visual appeal. If your homepage needs a re-do or you just need good advice, call CODANK today for your free quote!
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Google’s NewsShow Wizard
Google always comes up with the best toys for your website. The latest is what is called NewsShow Wizard (http://code.google.com/apis/ajaxsearch/documentation/newsshow/wizard.html) This little tool helps you build the code to embed a Google NewsShow on your website. This is a slideshow of news that Google compiles for you based on different parameters that you choose yourself before Google writes the code for you. Let’s look at how it works.
At first site of the page, you will see several fields that you can fill. Among these are style (size and shape), search expressions, search topics, News edition, User interface language, and result set size. After you’ve made all the decisions, the code is right there for you to copy and paste.
The value of this tool is what? Not only is it neat to offer your visitors a little bit of news and culture while they view your products or services, but if you are entering the right search expressions and topics, it could draw new visitors that otherwise would not have seen your website. For example, a website like CODANK’s would use the terms “Charlotte Web Design” or “Charlotte Technology News”. This would lead to news stories about our industry eventually ending up on the page. Also, if you have a new website and not much content, Google’s NewsShow is a neat, clean way to spruce it up a little and add some more filler to your website.
Google’s NewsShow is not for everybody. It is always nice to see what Google is coming up with though and who knows… maybe having a scrolling news marquee is exactly what you were looking for to add some goods to your current web design. It’s also important to mention that for javascript and programming experts, the sky is your limit for this tool. Google provides extensive information and tips on how to make this work for your custom needs. CODANK is the leader of Charlotte Web Design and is ready to help meet your needs today. Give us a call!
At first site of the page, you will see several fields that you can fill. Among these are style (size and shape), search expressions, search topics, News edition, User interface language, and result set size. After you’ve made all the decisions, the code is right there for you to copy and paste.
The value of this tool is what? Not only is it neat to offer your visitors a little bit of news and culture while they view your products or services, but if you are entering the right search expressions and topics, it could draw new visitors that otherwise would not have seen your website. For example, a website like CODANK’s would use the terms “Charlotte Web Design” or “Charlotte Technology News”. This would lead to news stories about our industry eventually ending up on the page. Also, if you have a new website and not much content, Google’s NewsShow is a neat, clean way to spruce it up a little and add some more filler to your website.
Google’s NewsShow is not for everybody. It is always nice to see what Google is coming up with though and who knows… maybe having a scrolling news marquee is exactly what you were looking for to add some goods to your current web design. It’s also important to mention that for javascript and programming experts, the sky is your limit for this tool. Google provides extensive information and tips on how to make this work for your custom needs. CODANK is the leader of Charlotte Web Design and is ready to help meet your needs today. Give us a call!
E-mail Marketing
It is becoming the standard in the web design industry to make everything visually appealing. This holds true for almost everything in the technological world. If you are going to sell something, it better be arranged nicely on a neat website… its just the standard these days. So why wouldn’t this apply to e-mail marketing? It does.
Lets talk about colors and fonts. Just like your good website is designed, we should all employ the same methods when we start and e-mail marketing campaign. Your company colors are usually a good starting point. It’s not terrible to use some more to draw the readers’ eyes but we don’t want to overdo it. The same goes for fonts. Using the fonts that you already use for your website is a good way to make it look decent without racking your brain for new ideas.
Another good idea is to keep the general feel of the e-mail pretty simple. Find some good ideas for your subject line, write some informative, unobtrusive copy, and let those e-mails be opened. As I’ve mentioned in an earlier blog, a good idea for a subject line is to make it personal when you can, but send your potential customers an e-mail the same way you’d send a friend or a co-worker an e-mail. Excessive CAPS or asterisks are last generation’s tools and are almost always overlooked. When it comes to the body of your e-mail, make sure that it is very clear and intriguing. Most people are very busy these days and they barely want to read the e-mail they got from their mom. Use the least words possible and arrange them strategically so that the reader can see where the important information is and what they need to know. Remember that most people use an e-mail program that has a preview feature. This means that if your copy looks obnoxious, then people will most definitely delete. Most people feel better about copy when there is plenty of white space to rest your eyes on, excessive fonts and colors aren’t used, and headings and sub-headings display content in a hierarchal fashion.
Getting readers to open your e-mails, read them, and then follow-up is a difficult task sometime. Making your e-mails visually appealing can be one of the most important steps you take in promoting your e-mail marketing. Following the general rules of a good website’s design is always a good place to start. The good thing is though, that you don’t have to know everything about graphic design to get this job done, CODANK is experienced in designing successful e-mail marketing campaigns and implementing them in the most efficient manner.
Lets talk about colors and fonts. Just like your good website is designed, we should all employ the same methods when we start and e-mail marketing campaign. Your company colors are usually a good starting point. It’s not terrible to use some more to draw the readers’ eyes but we don’t want to overdo it. The same goes for fonts. Using the fonts that you already use for your website is a good way to make it look decent without racking your brain for new ideas.
Another good idea is to keep the general feel of the e-mail pretty simple. Find some good ideas for your subject line, write some informative, unobtrusive copy, and let those e-mails be opened. As I’ve mentioned in an earlier blog, a good idea for a subject line is to make it personal when you can, but send your potential customers an e-mail the same way you’d send a friend or a co-worker an e-mail. Excessive CAPS or asterisks are last generation’s tools and are almost always overlooked. When it comes to the body of your e-mail, make sure that it is very clear and intriguing. Most people are very busy these days and they barely want to read the e-mail they got from their mom. Use the least words possible and arrange them strategically so that the reader can see where the important information is and what they need to know. Remember that most people use an e-mail program that has a preview feature. This means that if your copy looks obnoxious, then people will most definitely delete. Most people feel better about copy when there is plenty of white space to rest your eyes on, excessive fonts and colors aren’t used, and headings and sub-headings display content in a hierarchal fashion.
Getting readers to open your e-mails, read them, and then follow-up is a difficult task sometime. Making your e-mails visually appealing can be one of the most important steps you take in promoting your e-mail marketing. Following the general rules of a good website’s design is always a good place to start. The good thing is though, that you don’t have to know everything about graphic design to get this job done, CODANK is experienced in designing successful e-mail marketing campaigns and implementing them in the most efficient manner.
Colors: How to Decide What’s Right for You
Your website’s visual appearance is very important to you. If you already have a website, I’m sure you toiled over the theme and navigation and font and colors of the whole design. Choosing colors is sometimes not the easiest task so here’s a few helpful tips for those of you choosing the colors of your website.
The first thing you should do is exploit your resources. There are thousands and thousands of web pages designed solely to help you decide which colors are right for you. There are color scheme generators that allow you to enter in your favorite color and it will spit out three or more other colors to go along with that one. Also, there are countless example websites using the very colors that you are trying out. Just have a few google searches and see what you come up with.
Studies have shown over and over that color affects the human emotions. This is very important when it comes to designing your website. First of all, it is common sense (but often ignored) that your content should contrast a great deal with your background. This doesn’t always mean white text on a black background but it certainly means that you shouldn’t use two colors from the same family. Also, it is important to keep in mind that some people are color blind. It may seem like a small minority but it is very easy pick colors that work with everyone from the start. But back to emotion, colors can easily influence visitors to your website to feel different moods. There are fields of psychology dedicated to just this so don’t feel bad if you don’t have it all figured out. Here’s a snippet from an article called “Color Psychology in Online Marketing” by Al Martinovic
• RED is associated with love, passion, danger, warning, excitement, food, impulse, action, adventure.
• BLUE is associated with trustworthiness, success, seriousness, calmness, power, professionalism.
• GREEN is associated with money, nature, animals, health, healing, life, harmony.
• ORANGE is associated with comfort, creativity, celebration, fun, youth, affordability.
• PURPLE is associated with royalty, justice, ambiguity, uncertainty, luxury, fantasy, dreams.
• WHITE is associated with innocence, purity, cleanliness, simplicity.
• YELLOW is associated with curiosity, playfulness, cheerfulness, amusement.
• PINK is associated with softness, sweetness, innocence, youthfulness, tenderness.
• BROWN is associated with earth, nature, tribal, primitive, simplicity.
• GREY is associated with neutrality, indifference, reserved.
• BLACK is associated with seriousness, darkness, mystery, secrecy.
As with any part of your web design, you could take your colors as far as you want. The most important thing to know As with any part of your web design, you could take your colors as far as you want. The most important thing to know is that they have to be functional and they should reflect what your business is trying to achieve. So take your time, ask your co-workers or collaborate with others and pick the right colors that work for you. CODANK has experience is designing custom websites that fit your business design. Call today for a free quote!
The first thing you should do is exploit your resources. There are thousands and thousands of web pages designed solely to help you decide which colors are right for you. There are color scheme generators that allow you to enter in your favorite color and it will spit out three or more other colors to go along with that one. Also, there are countless example websites using the very colors that you are trying out. Just have a few google searches and see what you come up with.
Studies have shown over and over that color affects the human emotions. This is very important when it comes to designing your website. First of all, it is common sense (but often ignored) that your content should contrast a great deal with your background. This doesn’t always mean white text on a black background but it certainly means that you shouldn’t use two colors from the same family. Also, it is important to keep in mind that some people are color blind. It may seem like a small minority but it is very easy pick colors that work with everyone from the start. But back to emotion, colors can easily influence visitors to your website to feel different moods. There are fields of psychology dedicated to just this so don’t feel bad if you don’t have it all figured out. Here’s a snippet from an article called “Color Psychology in Online Marketing” by Al Martinovic
• RED is associated with love, passion, danger, warning, excitement, food, impulse, action, adventure.
• BLUE is associated with trustworthiness, success, seriousness, calmness, power, professionalism.
• GREEN is associated with money, nature, animals, health, healing, life, harmony.
• ORANGE is associated with comfort, creativity, celebration, fun, youth, affordability.
• PURPLE is associated with royalty, justice, ambiguity, uncertainty, luxury, fantasy, dreams.
• WHITE is associated with innocence, purity, cleanliness, simplicity.
• YELLOW is associated with curiosity, playfulness, cheerfulness, amusement.
• PINK is associated with softness, sweetness, innocence, youthfulness, tenderness.
• BROWN is associated with earth, nature, tribal, primitive, simplicity.
• GREY is associated with neutrality, indifference, reserved.
• BLACK is associated with seriousness, darkness, mystery, secrecy.
As with any part of your web design, you could take your colors as far as you want. The most important thing to know As with any part of your web design, you could take your colors as far as you want. The most important thing to know is that they have to be functional and they should reflect what your business is trying to achieve. So take your time, ask your co-workers or collaborate with others and pick the right colors that work for you. CODANK has experience is designing custom websites that fit your business design. Call today for a free quote!
How Often Should You Update Your Site?
In the past, websites were fairly static unless your business was big enough to have web designers or a web developer working full time. It was standard for a business to pay to have a website designed for them and once it was finished, the website was done. I’m sure you have gathered that this is no longer the way things are ran. Large companies have always had new content but it is now the status quo for all businesses, small and large to have fresh content, blogs, and news. Did everyone learn web design or are all these companies finding their web presence to be more important than before? The answer may be yes to either of those some of the time but the most likely solution for companies is CMS.
CMS or content management systems are beautiful little tools to make your life easier when it comes to updating your site. A content management system can be designed to allow you to update a multitude of things such as links, blogs, text, forums, calendars, and articles. This is a breath of fresh air for the non-web savvy business owner. This allows every John Smith with a tractor company in Charlotte, North Carolina to change their prices, post a few educational articles, and update news about their company.
Updating your site with a CMS is integral for SEO. If you know the first thing about SEO or search engine optimization, you know that you need to have keywords pertinent to your business strategically placed on your website. Also, the more keywords there are, the merrier! Having a good content management system allows you to post new information all the time without the hassle of hiring a web designer or learning everything yourself. Start a blog, write some news about your business, edit employee profiles, or edit a forum.
If you feel like you need to update your website and add new content, you are probably right! Without a content management system, you are going to have to dive in yourself or hire a web designer. With a content management system, you can do it all yourself! And it is as simple as filling out a form and saving the edited portions of your website. CODANK will work with you to create a custom solution for your editing needs.
CMS or content management systems are beautiful little tools to make your life easier when it comes to updating your site. A content management system can be designed to allow you to update a multitude of things such as links, blogs, text, forums, calendars, and articles. This is a breath of fresh air for the non-web savvy business owner. This allows every John Smith with a tractor company in Charlotte, North Carolina to change their prices, post a few educational articles, and update news about their company.
Updating your site with a CMS is integral for SEO. If you know the first thing about SEO or search engine optimization, you know that you need to have keywords pertinent to your business strategically placed on your website. Also, the more keywords there are, the merrier! Having a good content management system allows you to post new information all the time without the hassle of hiring a web designer or learning everything yourself. Start a blog, write some news about your business, edit employee profiles, or edit a forum.
If you feel like you need to update your website and add new content, you are probably right! Without a content management system, you are going to have to dive in yourself or hire a web designer. With a content management system, you can do it all yourself! And it is as simple as filling out a form and saving the edited portions of your website. CODANK will work with you to create a custom solution for your editing needs.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Your Website and How it Reflects You
Last week we touched on some things that you should look for in your web design to make sure that it reflects an appropriate image of your business. Today, I’m going to explore some other ways that your website can reflect who you are and who your business is.
On the Internet, you can be anyone you want to be. A single person, with the right web design, can appear to be a large company. This is especially important with small businesses and their web design. This should remind you of just how integral a good web design is for your company. Starting a business can be difficult and money can be hard to come by, but a solid website that makes your company appear professional is extremely important.
This also plays out the same way for larger businesses. There are many times that you don’t want to look like a huge business. Your web design can turn your visitors away if you appear too big or the visitor feels too small. Make sure that the potential customer has a means of contacting you to which you actually respond in a timely manner. This is probably already considered for the mega size websites out there, but for the small business on its way up, these are important things to lay the foundation for.
So whether you are a big business with 100 employees or you are three guys getting the job done by yourselves, your website will express the business that you design. Depending on your web design, visitors may feel more or less comfortable trusting you with their business. Making sure you appear very professional yet very approachable is a good way to get started. CODANK has helped countless businesses, big and small, achieve the image they needed.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
On the Internet, you can be anyone you want to be. A single person, with the right web design, can appear to be a large company. This is especially important with small businesses and their web design. This should remind you of just how integral a good web design is for your company. Starting a business can be difficult and money can be hard to come by, but a solid website that makes your company appear professional is extremely important.
This also plays out the same way for larger businesses. There are many times that you don’t want to look like a huge business. Your web design can turn your visitors away if you appear too big or the visitor feels too small. Make sure that the potential customer has a means of contacting you to which you actually respond in a timely manner. This is probably already considered for the mega size websites out there, but for the small business on its way up, these are important things to lay the foundation for.
So whether you are a big business with 100 employees or you are three guys getting the job done by yourselves, your website will express the business that you design. Depending on your web design, visitors may feel more or less comfortable trusting you with their business. Making sure you appear very professional yet very approachable is a good way to get started. CODANK has helped countless businesses, big and small, achieve the image they needed.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Your Website and How it Reflects You
Make sure you are easy to deal with. When you are working with a client or a customer one on one, you are constantly aware of the ease of the transaction. Since you are unable to monitor every interaction on a website, it is of utmost importance to make your web design very seeker friendly and easy to navigate. A good tip is to always have a home button located somewhere on every page. Also, make it very easy for a visitor to find and use your contact information.
Provide a lot of important information. A good website has all of the important information in a convenient and reachable location. Also, make sure your copy is not going to bore the visitor or give them a distant, unapproachable impression of your company.
Don’t seem out of touch or outdated. The web is always changing and so should you be. It is a dog eat dog world out there. There are plenty of people who are willing to go above and beyond and update their web design so it is almost an unending race to the best content. Update your site with a few articles or even revamp your site if it’s been very long. Everyone knows the web and searches more places than just your site so be very aware that if your design, graphics, or copy is outdated, visitors will know and react accordingly.
You are very aware of your appearance in real flesh with your customers, or clients. Make sure that you follow suit with your web presence as it is becoming more and more important. Make sure the web you is easy-going, professional, informational, and with the current technology. Whether you are starting a small computer business or selling millions of products a year, CODANK can help you. Our consultants, designers, and copywriters will have your image reflect the you that you have always been looking for.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Provide a lot of important information. A good website has all of the important information in a convenient and reachable location. Also, make sure your copy is not going to bore the visitor or give them a distant, unapproachable impression of your company.
Don’t seem out of touch or outdated. The web is always changing and so should you be. It is a dog eat dog world out there. There are plenty of people who are willing to go above and beyond and update their web design so it is almost an unending race to the best content. Update your site with a few articles or even revamp your site if it’s been very long. Everyone knows the web and searches more places than just your site so be very aware that if your design, graphics, or copy is outdated, visitors will know and react accordingly.
You are very aware of your appearance in real flesh with your customers, or clients. Make sure that you follow suit with your web presence as it is becoming more and more important. Make sure the web you is easy-going, professional, informational, and with the current technology. Whether you are starting a small computer business or selling millions of products a year, CODANK can help you. Our consultants, designers, and copywriters will have your image reflect the you that you have always been looking for.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
What About You: How an About Page is Supposed to Look
About pages are just supposed to be whatever information you can come up with about you or your business right? It seems pretty simple, just put the business’ history and some contact information and send it out. Well I’d like to point out that though it is a simple page, there are some important details that you do not want to miss.
Remember that if a visitor has ended up at your about page, they are interested, or at least intrigued by your business. For this reason, your about page needs to sell just like your home page does. Don’t just list all the facts out there and hope that they were really looking for a company that was started in 1995. You might try to differentiate your company from others on this page. List things that make your business unique and possibly more able to help the customer. Also, give several reasons why a visitor should use your company’s product or service.
Writing biographical information isn’t always boring. Just remember to keep it casual like a professional conversation with a customer because essentially, that is what is happening. Here’s a good order for your biographical information:
• Start with a few of your qualifications. Maybe you have landscaped in Charlotte, North Carolina for twenty years so this particular visitor should trust you with their lawn. Whatever the case may be, make sure they know that they can trust you with their money.
• List a few accomplishments. This doesn’t always apply to everyone but try to list a few large things that you or your business has done. You can mention other projects that your business is responsible for here as well.
• And the boring stuff. I only say boring stuff because most people don’t actually care about employees’ names or where exactly you are located but it is still pertinent information and does not seem out of place when placed properly.
A properly located and written about page A properly located and written about page is a valuable asset to your business’ website and ultimately your company. Remember that if someone has sought out your about page, you could be on the right track to making a sale or getting a new client. At CODANK, we not only develop the perfect website for you and your business, we can help you write it too. We can help you to make your about page count
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Remember that if a visitor has ended up at your about page, they are interested, or at least intrigued by your business. For this reason, your about page needs to sell just like your home page does. Don’t just list all the facts out there and hope that they were really looking for a company that was started in 1995. You might try to differentiate your company from others on this page. List things that make your business unique and possibly more able to help the customer. Also, give several reasons why a visitor should use your company’s product or service.
Writing biographical information isn’t always boring. Just remember to keep it casual like a professional conversation with a customer because essentially, that is what is happening. Here’s a good order for your biographical information:
• Start with a few of your qualifications. Maybe you have landscaped in Charlotte, North Carolina for twenty years so this particular visitor should trust you with their lawn. Whatever the case may be, make sure they know that they can trust you with their money.
• List a few accomplishments. This doesn’t always apply to everyone but try to list a few large things that you or your business has done. You can mention other projects that your business is responsible for here as well.
• And the boring stuff. I only say boring stuff because most people don’t actually care about employees’ names or where exactly you are located but it is still pertinent information and does not seem out of place when placed properly.
A properly located and written about page A properly located and written about page is a valuable asset to your business’ website and ultimately your company. Remember that if someone has sought out your about page, you could be on the right track to making a sale or getting a new client. At CODANK, we not only develop the perfect website for you and your business, we can help you write it too. We can help you to make your about page count
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
Why you should Blog
So your small business’ website seems stale. Maybe you have done everything you can to optimize for search engines and it just doesn’t seem enough or maybe you just want to spice it up a little. Blogging is one of the most important tools in web design today. Writing articles or a consistent blog is definitely for you.
Writing a blog will draw new visitors to your website as well as keep previous visitors coming back. Your information and expertise are valuable to the people who are interested in your industry. Writing articles every now and then about your product or service will not only load the search engines with more content that people will be searching but it will establish the credibility of your company.
Putting out free information will help you gain the trust of your visitors. If the first impression someone has of your business is a helpful blog full of professional wisdom, just imagine the likelihood that they will return to your website the next time they need information. Also, as mentioned earlier, posting well-written, informational articles will help establish your company as a credible source of information and a good place to find what you need. Also, giving your visitors an opportunity to comment on your blogs can give you an insight into what the readers or potential customers are looking for.
So go out there and start blogging. It does not have to be a daily entry or an eloquent piece of literature. Just write what you know and know what you write. A few helpful tips for the blogger:
• Have a consistent tone – visitors are turned off by a seemingly amateur tone of voice. Keep it natural but still professional.
• Keep it updated – There is no rule of thumb but basically, the more you write, the more likely visitors are to reach your site.
• Stay up to the newest strategies – Search engines’ algorithms are always changing. Make sure you are taking advantage of every bit of their mystery.
CODANK has experience in getting blogs up and running. Let us write it for you or let us make it easy for you to get started yourself. Contact us for a free quote today!
Writing a blog will draw new visitors to your website as well as keep previous visitors coming back. Your information and expertise are valuable to the people who are interested in your industry. Writing articles every now and then about your product or service will not only load the search engines with more content that people will be searching but it will establish the credibility of your company.
Putting out free information will help you gain the trust of your visitors. If the first impression someone has of your business is a helpful blog full of professional wisdom, just imagine the likelihood that they will return to your website the next time they need information. Also, as mentioned earlier, posting well-written, informational articles will help establish your company as a credible source of information and a good place to find what you need. Also, giving your visitors an opportunity to comment on your blogs can give you an insight into what the readers or potential customers are looking for.
So go out there and start blogging. It does not have to be a daily entry or an eloquent piece of literature. Just write what you know and know what you write. A few helpful tips for the blogger:
• Have a consistent tone – visitors are turned off by a seemingly amateur tone of voice. Keep it natural but still professional.
• Keep it updated – There is no rule of thumb but basically, the more you write, the more likely visitors are to reach your site.
• Stay up to the newest strategies – Search engines’ algorithms are always changing. Make sure you are taking advantage of every bit of their mystery.
CODANK has experience in getting blogs up and running. Let us write it for you or let us make it easy for you to get started yourself. Contact us for a free quote today!
SEO Make or Break?
One of the most valuable tools a company can have for advertising is a good SEO, or search engine optimization. When someone seeking information enters a search engine term on his or her favorite search engine, being as close to the top as possible is extremely important. For this reason, SEO is a huge market today and should never be underestimated. Here are a few things to consider when it comes time to optimize your website for search engines.
1. Find which keywords you want to exploit. Use a good keyword tool such as the Google Adwords Keyword tool featured in a previous blog. Finding these keywords is absolutely essential. You’ll want to stick with two kinds of words, ones that highlight your niche, and ones that get searched most often. “Charlotte North Carolina Web Design” is an important search term for a company of the like but it does not highlight any niche. Including the keyword “Web Application Development” may provide a more detailed and specific target if that is your niche.
2. Use a good domain. As I’ve written in a previous blog, finding a good URL is essential to your business as it is what the potential customer first thinks about when they consider visiting your website. Having a URL that matches your product or service definitely improves your SEO.
3. Use links. Link to other related sites in your industry. This does not mean provide a way for viewers to skip over to the competition. For example, if you sell snowboards, link users to an informational site on how to choose the right snowboard or a social networking site designed for snowboards. Get creative!
4. Write Articles. Putting out free information is what the Internet is all about. If you have valuable skills or information, people from all over the globe are going to be flocking to your page. Since you will be writing the article about something very similar to your product or service, search engines will have more and more keywords to go by. This doesn’t necessarily mean people will immediately buy your product, but it is a very valuable way to get a network started and gets the search engines working for you.
In this fast-paced, web centered economy, search engines are one of the most important tools for advertising. It can be overwhelming but done properly, a good SEO will take your company places you never imagined. At CODANK, we’ve helped countless with SEO strategies and we can help you too. Give us a call to talk to one of our SEO specialists today.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
1. Find which keywords you want to exploit. Use a good keyword tool such as the Google Adwords Keyword tool featured in a previous blog. Finding these keywords is absolutely essential. You’ll want to stick with two kinds of words, ones that highlight your niche, and ones that get searched most often. “Charlotte North Carolina Web Design” is an important search term for a company of the like but it does not highlight any niche. Including the keyword “Web Application Development” may provide a more detailed and specific target if that is your niche.
2. Use a good domain. As I’ve written in a previous blog, finding a good URL is essential to your business as it is what the potential customer first thinks about when they consider visiting your website. Having a URL that matches your product or service definitely improves your SEO.
3. Use links. Link to other related sites in your industry. This does not mean provide a way for viewers to skip over to the competition. For example, if you sell snowboards, link users to an informational site on how to choose the right snowboard or a social networking site designed for snowboards. Get creative!
4. Write Articles. Putting out free information is what the Internet is all about. If you have valuable skills or information, people from all over the globe are going to be flocking to your page. Since you will be writing the article about something very similar to your product or service, search engines will have more and more keywords to go by. This doesn’t necessarily mean people will immediately buy your product, but it is a very valuable way to get a network started and gets the search engines working for you.
In this fast-paced, web centered economy, search engines are one of the most important tools for advertising. It can be overwhelming but done properly, a good SEO will take your company places you never imagined. At CODANK, we’ve helped countless with SEO strategies and we can help you too. Give us a call to talk to one of our SEO specialists today.
About CODANK Web Design of Charlotte
CODANK is top rated Web Design firm, and Internet Marketing Experts located in Charlotte, NC. We are dedicated to provide the highest quality, cost effective custom software development services, delivering a broad range of business consulting and outsourcing services. Here at CODANK, we understand that web design can present complex issues for our clients. That's why we work closely with you to develop a custom solution that will fit your every need. We take great pride in our ability to analyze each individual situation and apply the most appropriate, proven technologies in order to achieve the goals and objectives of the initiative.
We offer full application design and development services, world-class e-Commerce web development, and custom content management solutions to name a few. All of these products and services are backed by the most important asset CODANK has . . . employees. Each individual works diligently in an open teamwork atmosphere, to bring our clients superior products that deliver great results while providing friendly and responsive customer service. CODANK is your one-stop shop for a custom solution tailored to your specific issue.
Contact us for a free quote today! For more information, visit us at http://www.codank.com
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