For years now we’ve all been told that the future of the web is mobility. Honestly I’ve heard so many things are “the future of the web” that I’m a pretty tough sell at this point. That being said, the iphone and now the ipad have given “mobility” a swift kick in the pants and we seem to be off and running in that direction.  I’m now starting to believe that “mobile web” could indeed be a game-changer.  Here’s a case-in-point:

My wife and I were recently driving back from a camping trip on a major freeway.  Our habit when driving the family mini-van with 3 grade-school aged children is to stop and grab some food at a predictable (if boring) franchised restaurant that we can visibly see from the free way in time to pull off the appropriate ramp.  This system has worked well for years although I would be first to admit that I wouldn’t mind if I never see a fast food chain restaurant again.  Sooooo…. this time we were coming up on a town that my wife and I had stopped in 10 years ago (pre-kids) and I happened to remember a restaurant that we had enjoyed that was not immediately on the freeway.  I jumped onto my Droid smart phone (oh so much better than an iphone in my opinion) which opened to google search.  Google was able to use my Droid’s on-board GPS to see where we were and list all nearby restaurants.  I quickly spotted the restaurant that I was thinking of, click on it and my phone gave us GPS enabled turn by turn directions to get there.  As we rolled to a stop in front of the restaurant I realized that we NEVER would have gone there if it were not for “mobile web.”   Score one for the little non-chain establishments out there that are slightly off the beaten path! 

As the popularity of these high-speed Internet connected smart phones increases this will sort of thing will happen more and more often.  Please drop me a line if you’d like to talk about how we might be able to use it to help your business.

The Yellow Pages see the writing on the wall. They know the phone book won’t last in its’ current incarnation so they figure, if you can’t beat them…join them. Every year for the last few years when my rep calls me up to renew phone book ads, they also pitch a couple extra things.  Here’s why you shouldn’t buy online marketing services from them:

1. Inclusion in their online directory
   Generally speaking the phone book guys try to sell these services for a flat monthly rate and they want to lock you into an annual contract.  Flat fees are simply a way to try to hide that the advertising is not competitively priced.  They simply don’t tell you the per-click price.  Additionally if the big boys like Google don’t lock you into a long term contract, why in the world would you do it with a dinky little website like the phone book’s directory?  Usually they don’t guarantee you that a single person will click through the ad to your website.  Recently a client showed me a report that was provided to them as part a pitch to get the client to renew the service.  The report only showed “impressions” (number of times the ad was shown to someone) and didn’t even mention click throughs.  Google doesn’t charge anything at all for impressions.    They are totally free.  You only pay when a user clicks through and visits your website.  And if all that isn’t enough to cool you off on this idea….when was the last time you needed a product or service and thought…”Gee, I think I’ll look for it on the phone book’s online directory?”  Never.
2. Ads on Google/Yahoo/etc.
   Generally speaking the model that the phone book companies use for selling search engine ads is a flat fee for a specific minumum number of visits to your site.  When you do the math the cost per click is usually substantially higher than buying directly from Google.  You usually have little to no control over the search phrases that are used to attract your visitors or the geographic location that the ads are shown.  Of course when you buy directly from Google you have direct control over these variables and many more.  Even given all that, the thing that really turns me off to this pitch is the general lack of professionalism.  The pitch is usually given by a sales rep that knows little to nothing about how search engine advertising actually works.  If you hire them the work is often off-shored to a firm who’s primary concern is the speed at which they complete the task not the success of the campaign.

If you are serious about getting the most bang for your buck with an online marketing campaign, talk to a professional that specializes in this area.  Of course we’d love to help you out here at BP, but honestly just about anyone that claims to be a search engine marketing specialist is probably going to do a better job for you than the Yellow Pages in my experience.

I’m sure your mother taught you that “it’s not always about being first.” That being said, it seems that a lot of you have forgotten that rule when it comes to search engine ranking. When I start talking about search engines to web site owners, usually the first thing out of their mouth is that they want to show up first.  To that I have a couple responses (specifically with regard to paid campaigns):

1. You can pretty much always be first if you want….it’s just a matter of paying for it.  It is not terribly complicated to achieve.  If you outbid all your competitors on your desired search phrase and Google feels that your “page quality” is as good or better than your competitors, then you WILL show up first.  It will however often cost a significant amount for that privilege.
2. Although the general school of thought is that ranking higher means that you are getting more of an “instant gratification” type of visitor that is less likely to shop your competitors (ie more likely to buy from you), I have not always found this to be the case.  As a matter of fact, I have seen many instances when the 4th place placement (often top of the right column) does very well for itself.
3. Most importantly, business success is not defined by Google ranking. It’s defined by profit.  Much more important than an ego-driven desire for “firstness” is desire for profitability.  When you work with a professional consultant, they should be able to help you find what position yields the best return on investment.  One of the bonuses of that 4th position mentioned above is that it can be significantly less expensive that the first through third position.

Here’s a great 3 minute video that Google put out that explains how its search engine works. This is a great video for people who are new to search engine marketing. Please check it out and feel free to call/email our office with any questions you might have.

Kermit the frog says “it’s not easy being green,” however I beg to differ. Last week a new potential client called and asked if we would be interested in working on a website for a “green fair” that he was putting together. I thought it sounded like a good project and I set up a meeting.  I was telling my wife about it and she was surprised we received the call because she didn’t perceive that our company is particularly “green.”  That got me thinking.

I think there is a perception in the business community that green companies have to be “so green that it hurts” in order to genuinely be green.  Then of course they need to qualify for some sort of certification to prove their green-ness.  They can then proudly wear it not only as a badge of honor, but also as a notice to perceived unethical bloated resource wasters that their green company is superior.  On the flip side of this there is a perception of disdain for “green washers” who trump up their claims to green-ness for marketing purposes while not truly subscribing to green ideals.

I’d like to try to do my part to break down these perceptions by submitting that there is a “new green.”  Honestly, the more I think about it, the more I think it would be better described as the “old green.”  It’s a common sense green that means that stewardship is important in all areas including the environment.  To that end I believe there is a title wave of green businesses (a silent majority if you will) that quietly go about their daily work making significant environmental contributions that are never acknowledged.

Here is a list of “green” items that I found while conducting an audit here at bpwebdesign.com.  I think the important thing to note is that I never set out to have a “green” business.  I simply wanted to have a responsible business that took care of our client’s needs as well as our own.  I think it’s that type of attitude that can popularize the green movement.

• recycling receptacles through out the office
• print-free project management system (web based)
• print-free billing system (web and email based)
• print-free staff time clock (web based)
• staff can telecommute (saves gas and car/road wear & tear)
• Modular office furniture salvaged from a closed office
• Exclusive use of NiMH rechargeable batteries
• Water cooler instead of bottled water
• We use doors/windows and our ceiling fans more than our Air Conditioner

I’m sure I could dig up many more, however I think you get the point.  Honestly I have no idea if we would qualify for some sort of green certification and I suppose it doesn’t really matter.  My point here is, it’s easy and fiscally responsible to incorporate many green functions into your business,  many times without really trying.  So….three cheers for all you accidental greenies out there!  Keep it up!

Over the years I’ve noticed a tendency for folks to build websites out of order. By that I mean that sometimes they will build before they plan, or choose a particular technology without thought to their overall goals. Your website will never achieve your goals if you don’t know what your goals are and adding flash to a website doesn’t automatically make it “cool.”   With this in mind, here is a procedural list that I recommend when developing a website.  Certainly there are many details that could be changed depending on your particular circumstance, but the underlying premise of planning and ordered development should stand up in most situations.  Please note that all steps must always support the overall site goals. 

1. Determine site goals
2. Determine general communication that needs to take place to achieve the site goals
3. Develop online marketing strategy (search engines, social networking, etc.)
4. Develop specific content and logical grouping of this information
5. Determine specific technologies to be used to present content
6. Determine the graphical needs to achieve your desired goals with your specific audience
7. Develop the graphic design
8. Build out the site shell and develop interactive programming
9. Implement content in site
10. Proof site and take it public
11. Implement off-site online marketing plan
12. Implement regular site updates and maintenance
13. Analyse results, modify approach as necessary