One of the many things I love about my career is the amazing people I get to work with each day. Recently, I have connected with Austin Hines, of DoubleA Pictures, who is a writer and video producer for corporations, television, short films and documentaries. Austin produced the incredible video you see below for one of my clients, Acta Non Verba Zimbabwe. Austin is based in Fort Worth, so chances are we won’t be bumping into one another at the water cooler, but I hopefully will come across another client soon who has a need for video and I can outsource to him!
PS - watch for Austin’s feature film Parallel which will begin filming in Canada next month!
How to Have A Static Piece Of Content As An Introduction To Your WordPress Blog
I have been working on a site (that has yet to be launched) and the client wanted to have a blurb about the blog that remained constant. As you know, each time you create a new blog post, that one becomes the first one that a reader sees, while older posts move further down the page. The static piece of content stays put, informing readers of your message (and allows you a line or two of text to maximize your keywords).
How To Put An Image in Your WordPress Sidebar (that is also a link)
This video was created for Eamon (on the left) and I thought I would share it with the rest of you.
Eamon (author of My Grape Escape) wants to add an image to his WordPress side bar widgets that will link to another [...]
I really enjoy all of my clients, but I am super excited that I have been hired by a real live fictional character!! No lie, Gilda Joyce Psychic Investigator must have had a premonition that I was hoping for a spunky, fashion forward young girl to add to my roster!
The Gilda Joyce mystery series chronicles [...]
One of my favorite design tools is the old standard, Color Cop. I know there are other fun super cool choices out there, but this is so simple and easy to use, I always seem to circle back to it!
This is a free tool that you download onto your computer. Once open, you simply touch [...]
Last week, out of the blue, I got a call from Laura, the publisher of Mom Technology, asking me a question about my website. As we chatted we realized that we are both taking an online class taught by my friend Don Campbell of Expand2Web.
Laura’s site has lots of useful information, product reviews, links to [...]
Reviews are an amazing way to boost your rankings, relevance and results.
I suggest you ask your clients to leave a review of your business. By using the steps in this example I will show you how to leave a review for FlourGirlsBakingCo.com on Google:
The person writing the review will need a gmail address, if you [...]
Recently, one of my dear friends in Texas asked me to build a site for a charity she is on the board for, Acta Non Verba – Actions Not Words Zimbabwe.
The couple who founded the charity, Kathy and Mark Paukune, had been so moved by the people and the conditions in Zimbabwe after a brief [...]
Yesterday my friend Chris Donley, developer of the incredible Message Sherpa, and I went to Boston to hear Seth Godin speak. I took notes on my iPad (I will stop working that into every conversation very soon, I promise).
Here is a brief list of my notes:
Ideas that spread win
People like to do what other people [...]
Here is a very simple way to align images that are linked to other pages when using Word Press.
Goal: Images side by side on the page, which would all link to seperate pages on another url.
I edited the images to a size that I wanted before I uploaded them into WordPress.
I inserted the [...]
I had to have the iPad, I really don’t know exactly how I am going to use it, but I couldn’t even imagine not having one. Typically I am not an early adapter, but this product grabbed my attention in a powerful way.
As I was waiting for the coveted item to arrive I happened to [...]
Last week I got an email out of the blue from someone I had never heard of, asking me if I would be interested in designing some websites in Thesis. This got me thinking, why did the sites have to be in Thesis? The Expand2Web Small Business WordPress theme was the very first theme I [...]
I am a big fan of books, reading and authors. I think the process of writing is a huge challenge, getting your thoughts down, edited, produced, and to ultimately have people around the world moved by your words, is a huge accomplishment that leaves me in awe.
I have a few friends who are authors, Jennifer [...]
I have been very lucky to have been working with some awesome new clients. I updated my portfolio of web designs and wanted to share them with you. If you are ready to build a new web site or revamp your existing one, please give me a call and I would love to [...]
My new MAC tutor Sam, taught me how to create and capture a tutorial video. This will show you how to create a Facebook fan page for your business or organization.
Integrating Facebook is an excellent way to update your customers about exciting news and events that are happening in your business. If you need [...]
I don’t talk about this too much, but I am a ghost writer for a few different blogs. The reality is, blogging is not easy for everyone and it is always smart to outsource the things that get in the way of you doing what you are really good at. I believe strongly that the [...]
It isn’t enough to just write a great story and hit publish on your blog and then sit back and wait for the mobs to arrive and recognize your genius.
Imagine you had planned a fantastic party, you found a really hot spot for the event, booked a trendy caterer, hired an excellent band and developed [...]
Three times this week I have been asked “how do I get people to follow my blog”? Answer, lots of ways, but for the sake of time let’s start here – make sure you have the infrastructure set up for people to get your feed easily. If you haven’t yet, go to FeedBurner and follow [...]
This is a story of reconnection via Facebook with high school friends that resulted in us all doing business together.
Last year I sent out Facebook Friends requests to a mass mailing of people that I graduated from high school with. Don Campbell accepted my request, and I began to see posts “lunch at the GooglePlex”, [...]
I heard the term Brand Ambassador for the first time this week and just love it. It sounds very official, yet it is so basic and simple – someone representing your brand in a positive way and spreading the message to the rest of the world (or your town, depends on how global you are [...]
You have heard me say it before, get a Facebook Fan Page, and since you are compliant, you did, now what?
Last week I came across a few articles on Facebook fan engagement, my favorite article was on Mashable.com, here are the highlights:
1. Ask your fans their opinion – Chocolate or Vanilla, Summer or Winter Olympics, [...]
I had two calls last week from people asking about Search Engine Optimization. SEO is an art/industry all its own – but there are three elements that I build into each clients site, which is the best place to begin your SEO efforts.
First, Page Titles: The name at the top of your web page that [...]
I have just finished a new website for 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Team goalie Jim Craig. Some of you may not know that after the Olympics Jimmy transitioned his gold medal success into an award winning career in sales. Today he travels the country as a motivational speaker sharing his Gold Medal Strategies [...]
I just finished this article that my friend Nancy (who writes a great blog – KOGIWU) passed along, Are You Fun to Follow on Twitter?
Now everyone’s idea of fun is different of course, but by writing creative, engaging snippets that give your followers a laugh, pause for thought or some value added knowledge is the [...]
I just read this article on a blog that I follow, Mashable, The Social Media Guide and found it so compelling I wanted to share it with everyone.
Pope Benedict XVI has a message for priests of the Catholic Church: they must proclaim the gospel by not only having a website, but by blogging [...]
One of the most challenging elements of writing copy is to effectively get your point across with a minimal amount of words. Wordcounter ranks the most frequently used words in any given body of text.
This completely analytical tool points out what words you overuse or helps you to find keywords from a document. It is [...]
My most recent web design project was for Custom Window Products in Mattapoisett, MA. I was called in to brainstorm on-line marketing options, when we decided that the whole site was ready to be re-upholstered.
I wanted to showcase as much work as I could for the clients, a Hunter Douglas Dealers & Master Installers, who [...]
As I have mentioned before, I love a year in review, which is a natural evolution to prepping for the year to come. One of the people I follow on Twitter posted this article by Chris Brogan, Wiring Yourself for Success.
The gist of the article is to write your three words for the upcoming [...]
This is a complete re-post from Google’s Blog – I thought it was interesting. I have always been a fan of the “Year in Review” and this sums up what was on the Most Watched List.
What you watched and searched for on YouTube in 2009
Posted: 16 Dec 2009 08:12 AM PST
(Cross-posted from the YouTube Blog)
This [...]
People keep asking me about Twitter. What is the big deal and why bother? Well, it is a big deal, as it is another (free) venue for your message. The people out there who are Twittering are interested, engaged and early adapters, all excellent characteristics in a potential client. I just read this post from [...]
There is a simple way to see if Google is finding your site in the search engines. In the Google search bar type site:yoursitename.com.
This is an important test for a few reasons:
Is your site getting crawled? If not then you will never move up in the organic ranks ie – none of your potential customers [...]
I just finished designing a website for Under the Tree Foundation, which is an organization that provides teen members of the Dorchester Boys and Girls Club with gifts at the holidays.
UTTF was founded by Duxbury teen, Jonathan Woods, so I wanted to make sure that the site was youthful, masculine and acknowledged Christmas, yet not be too [...]
I just finished an article in the Investors Business Daily (IBD), entitled A Knack For Stirring Startups On The Web, which stuck a few cords with me that I would like to share.
The article focuses on two women who started an online bakery, which I love because I have created a website for Flour Girls [...]
This past Monday Google replaced the familiar local map that appears at the top of organic search results with 7 listings instead of 10. The prestigious 10 pack that so many had worked diligently to break into is now even more exclusive, quickly coined the Lucky 7.
My friend Don Campbell of Expand2Web wrote an excellent [...]
Search Engine Optimization is the process of improving the ranking of a website within the search engines via a natural (unpaid) process.
It is attractive for websites to have a higher organic (unpaid) ranking with a search engine (ie Google, Yahoo! and Bing), as the higher your website appears in the search results, the [...]
Recently my friend Don Campbell of Expand2Web mentioned in his blog that he was reading the book Made to Stick. The book takes on the question, why do some ideas thrive while others die and how do we improve the chances of worthy ideas? “Made to Stick is a book that will transform the way [...]
Twice this week I have been in two conversations where people were unclear of the differences between SEO and SEM. Search Engine Marketing (SEM) refers to the paid ads that you see on websites, commercials, banner ads, or the ads at the very top of the page, or along the right hand side of a [...]
One of the blogs I regularly read is Marketing Charts, recently I came across this post, 10 Branding Trends for 2010: Value is the New Black. Of course I was motivated to read, simply because of the title; however the point of view and information is very compelling.
A simple, straightforward marketing opportunity is to utilize the signature box on your email correspondence to direct people to your website. This practice serves two purposes, it allows your clients to click straight from an email onto your website and it provides exposure of your business to your anyone that you email. I even added [...]
Having a website gives credibility to your business, if consumers can’t find your business then the process of building a site and the expenses incurred are simply a waste. This 15 second video shows you what a local search is.
Give me a ring, or send me an email, and I will help you get your [...]
Things to think about when building or redoing your website:
Is your site for existing customers or would you like to use the site to build your customer base?
Is it search engine friendly?
If your business had a voice or a personality what would it sound like/look like?
Will you have the ability to make changes once it [...]
I read this post on Google’s blog and I think that it is a very simple explanation of a browser and what that means to you as a user of the internet.
What is a browser?
I’ve been trying to explain to my mom for months what a web browser is, with little luck. After a few [...]
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