tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18133687516913008622024-03-08T03:48:27.886-08:00New 2 eMarketingNew 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-37941280072739216932007-12-19T13:17:00.001-08:002007-12-19T13:36:21.467-08:00New Web Design Trend?There seems to be a weird trend among website designs for company websites to have the same look and feel of a blog. If you've visited some Wordpress or Blogger blogs you know there are several design templates, but once you've seen a couple pages of them, it's pretty easy to spot a feel or look you prefer. Most designs have a large header for the title (some have room for a nice big pic or About Me section) with sometimes cartoon-like fonts and the page is divided into 2 or 3 columns with one column containing the main body text and another with links or rss feeds. I like blog templates because they have clean lines, are very organized and easy to read/use. <div><br /></div><div>I like blog templates, but I'm not sure how I feel about company websites trying to copycat a blog's look. Simplicity is good, but I feel like companies should step it up a notch and differentiate themselves with a sleeker design model. To give you an idea of what I'm talking about check out <a href="http://www.tmxcommunications.com/">TMX Communications</a> or <a href="http://www.kickapps.com/">Kick Apps</a> </div>New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-12374028188666002932007-12-18T09:53:00.000-08:002007-12-18T10:01:35.262-08:00Cyber Monday<object height="355" width="425">If only I knew about <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;">Cyber Monday! </span></span>I didn't have a clue this day existed or that there was an official day named after Christmas shopping at work.<br /><br /> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/EddctZr0Vxg&rel=1"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/EddctZr0Vxg&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object>New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-10289659621190265842007-12-17T19:52:00.000-08:002007-12-17T20:10:24.132-08:00The 12 SEO Days of Christmas<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_gUmpPtdVMg&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_gUmpPtdVMg&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />On the 1st day of Christmas my client asked of me ....Better online visibility (1st time)<br />For his online visibility (2nd + time)<br /><br />On the 2nd day of Christmas my client asked of me - 2 new domains<br /><br />On the 3rd day of Christmas my client asked of me 3 301s<br /><br />On the 4th day of Christmas my client asked of me 4 textual menus<br /><br />On the 5th day of Christmas my client asked of me 5 one way links<br /><br />On the 6th day of Christmas my client asked of me 6 static pages<br /><br />On the 7th day of Christmas my client asked of me 7 spidered news feeds<br /><br />On the 8th day of Christmas my client asked of me 8 engaging titles<br /><br />On the 9th day of Christmas my client asked of me 9 new blog posts<br /><br />On the 10th day of Christmas my client asked of me 10 tags on Digg<br /><br />On the 11th day of Christmas my client asked of me 11 well written Meta Tags<br /><br />On the 12th day of Christmas my client asked of me 12 top 10 rankings<br /></span>New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-57834518580713001342007-12-13T12:13:00.000-08:002007-12-17T20:13:01.143-08:00Content Management SystemsCMS is a new concept for me. You would think that a person, say a "Content Editor", would edit and manage content on a website or in emails, but Noooooo - there are Content Management Systems to do that for you! I suppose CMS simplifies the job, puts one more person out of a job, and helps large corporations and companies manage all of their content.<br /><br />I might be totally wrong, but the equations to me looks something like this:<br /><br />Empty box in righthand corner + Search "unicorns" = finds every article / link / paragraph with the text "unicorn" and THAT = CMS<br /><br />Person A likes UFC + boxing + skydiving = emails with messages about band aids and life insurance AND opens an auto website with content regarding safety rules <br /><div style="text-align: center;">while<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;">Person B subscribes to RSS feeds about Vegan lifestyles = emails about happiness and longevity AND opens an auto website with content regarding electric car gas mileage, and THAT = CMS<br /><br />According to Percussion Inc's website, a leading web content management company: <span style="font-style: italic;">Organizations often realize that simply sharing content and managing changes is not enough. Today, it's critical to achieve a measurable return on content. Web Content Management (WCM) systems enables your organization to achieve a significant return on the content it produces. By delivering dynamic, frequently changing information to audiences across multiple sites, multiple channels, and multiple lines of business, WCM helps you to extend your marketing reach, encourage self-service and strengthen customer relationships.<br /><br /></span>It's a little weird to think I might be viewing a website and my friends on another computer view the same website, but with different content tailored specifically for them. Then again, I might not completely understand CMS and all of its capabilities. <span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span></div></div>New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-40594894661822557642007-12-12T11:40:00.000-08:002007-12-12T12:10:19.177-08:00UsabilityBased on researching website usability companies (for oh, about 3 hrs), there seems to be a <span style="font-weight: bold;">broad</span> spectrum of usability companies ranging from:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">really uber "I have a Ph.D in cognitive psychology, human behavioral sciences and human-computer interaction" scientific companies<br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-weight: bold;">OR</span><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">companies that offer unrelated usability services, but work really hard and have cool software!<br /></div><br />Website usability, defined by MarketingTerms.com, is "the ease with which visitors are able to use a Web site." Basically, it's the science and psychology of how to best design a website so every individual can successfully navigate and utilize the site for his or her needs. With this in mind, I definitely want a usability company with a strong background in the sciences and directors or principals with a Ph.D or Masters. That being said, I would also consider, a much more modestly priced usability company, with a long company list and proven track record.<br /><br />What I wouldn't want is an overpriced usability company that focuses primarily on research and training and charges $25,000 for a ONE DAY "visioneering" intensive workshop. IF I or any company would pay that much for a one day workshop - you better supply some serious ROI facts, before any $$ is dropped on a workshop with a made-up name.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">PC Magazine's List for Top Usability Firms</span><br />Human Factors International<br />Austin Usability/Perceptive Sciences<br />Creative Good<br />Cooper Interaction Design<br />Nielsen Norman Group<br />User Interface Engineering<br /><h2><br /></h2>New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-87055711821088139242007-12-08T21:15:00.000-08:002007-12-08T21:35:24.954-08:00I created a blog, so now what?I stumbled upon a great blog which gives BEGINNER BLOGGERS everything they need to know to grow, customize, enhance and do everything possible to create a superstar blog. The link to the site is on the left-hand side and I'm not going to reinvent the wheel or anything, but here's the gist of what I learned and the steps anyone should take after creating a blog.<br /><br />A) Start posting.<br /><br />B) Add your blog's URL to Blog Directories, Feed Directories and search engines so you can drive traffic to your site.<br /><br />C) Add tags to your postings. They basically sort postings into category listings which makes it easier for readers to find relevant posted information.<br /><br />D) Add links. Another way to drive traffic.New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-13348988667000498382007-12-08T20:37:00.000-08:002007-12-08T20:38:29.098-08:00Technorati TestThis is a test post for joining Technorati.<br /><br /><a href="http://technorati.com/claim/7qgmmsy3t" rel="me">Technorati Profile</a>New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1813368751691300862.post-8428091984453111912007-12-06T10:46:00.000-08:002007-12-08T20:47:44.006-08:00Start a Blog in 24hrs<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">The goal</span>: to create a simple, plain, no nonsense blog with posts and a clean design. Sounds simple right? Well, starting a blog (I found out) is surprisingly easy and simple. Figuring out which platforms or software to use, is not. There are several options out there for every kind of user and every type of blog you want. For my purposes, I needed something a) free and b) easy to set-up and use. I picked the top 3 blog platforms that either popped up in reviews listed on Google (hey, most if not all beginners are going to start their research on Google or some search engine) or were recommended by friends and went through the process of starting a blog. Below are my thoughts and criticism of each site. <div><br /><div> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">WordPress</span> - I had heard the most about this blogging tool from friends and coworkers and knew it was pretty popular. The first page brings up featured blogs, news items and tags. You have to search for their Features and About tab, but I was impressed with their sleek design and clear instructions. I didn't like how your username is also your blog's address (username.wordpress.com). There was an option to just get a username, but I wanted to get started right away and overlooked that process. After signing in you automatically get a blog, where you can add a title and start a post. I really liked their large theme selection with different formats for what your blog can look like. Overall really easy to set up and lost of options for "tagging", "keywords", "linking" - all things I'll be learning about in near future. </div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">Blogger - </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="">My favorite part about</span> this site is the tutorial! Instead of rushing into creating a blog (which I might've done earlier), you get a nice introduction to Blogger.com and their different features (such as posting photos or Blogger Mobile). When signing up you can choose an advanced feature, which allows you to host your blog other than blogspot.com, which I thought is a nice option for the more experienced blogger. After signing up (using your email address vs. wordpress' username) you name your blog, choose your template and then you can start posting. Blogger.com doesn't have as many templates/theme options as WordPress, but there's still a nice selection available. </div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-weight: bold;">LiveJournal</span> - The landing page was pretty busy with sponsors, spotlights and ads, but it had a nice features explanation in the center of the page. The main turn off for me, was their strong emphasis on "sense of community" and their description of LiveJournal as something you can "share with the world, just a few people or keep it private like a diary." Sounds more like 13 year old's notebook than a blog. I liked how when you sign up for a blog, it automatically lists pricing options and premiums. A free account lets you display up to 6 photos, access to 100 designs and 25 subscriptions to news posts, friends or comments. After signing in it asks for a display name, then asks if you want to connect to friends/communities and then automatically creates a page for you. I don't like how LiveJournal creates a page without asking for a preferred layout or design. Bottom line: I'm not looking for another my space page, just a simple blog.</div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div>I chose Blogger.com, because I really liked their tutorial, ease of set up and design. </div><div> </div><div>For the more advanced blogger or if you would like to compare more softwares and platforms feel free to browse these links. </div><div>Blog Software Breakdown </div><div>http://asymptomatic.net/blogbreakdown.htm</div><div> </div><div>Blog Tools Reviews by PC Magazine</div><div>http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,1403731,00.asp</div><div> </div><div>The Best Blog Tools for Your Website</div><div>http://www.siteground.com/choose_blog_tool.htm</div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div><div> </div></div>New 2 eMarketinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01107022024372119884noreply@blogger.com0