Why Email Marketing Adds Value to Your Website Development

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

There are some website development tools that offer a good way to keep your people in the loop of news, events, and specials with your business.  A great plan is to keep posting on facebook and twitter, and as well, start a email marketing campaign, with your web site, and allow your people to receive a monthly newsletter with your efforts.  News is important, and when you have buyers ready to act, being in the right place at the right time, can increase your business by leaps and bounds.

Website Development is More than Graphics and Placement

When a business owner begins a website build, they are often looking at other sites, and thinking about the flow and dynamics of their website development.  They often are missing some key participants in their development, and it involves a series of newsletters, on how to add value to their buyers, sellers and customers.  If you are a plumber, and need to build a website, you have suppliers that may use your site to reach out to you, and you may have employees that are looking to meet you regarding employment, and you could have new customers unsure if you are the right plumber for them.   If you have recommendations, you can use these recommendations in an email marketing campaign.  Your happy and satisfied customers may have written a nice letter to you, and with their permission, you can use it in an email outreach marketing plan.

How to Build a List with your Website Development

The first step for you to build your email marketing list, is to sign up for a email marketing opt-in service, like aweber, constant contact or vertical response.  On this site, you will see an example of the aweber tool that I use, and how this works for your site depends on your emails that you build for this tool.  A good course of action is to think about your audience, and build your emails for them.

In our plumber’s example,  a list of recommendations that are emailed to the list are a great way to start a list!  Here is how:

1.  Write an email to your list that welcomes them to the list.  This should include a gift or coupon, a giveaway that helps your list repair a kitchen sink drip, or an invitation to a free consultation.  Thank them for joining your list, and share with them, if they send others your way, you will send them a gift certificate to a local steak place.  All good marketing techniques that assist you with helping your people become great customers, and enjoy your company.

2.  The next step in your website development with email marketing, is to add a series of emails that bring value and confidence to your customers.  If you have a group of recommendations, share the story of when you visited those customers, and their reactions.  This will keep your homeowners and business owners aware of your business, even during times of perfect plumbing.

3.  Add in seasonal tips, and tricks to assist your email list.  Keep your emails light, and fun.  It does not have to be a heavy and super professional air to your writing, as everyone needs a good laugh.  If you have some time, have your family and friends help you write an email that you can share with your list.

Remember, the best thing about this website development tool, is that it is always there, providing value for your customers, new and old.  When someone joins, they get your first welcome email.  And, your 9th subscriber will get your latest coupon, when you decide to add it to the email marketing list.  These emails will build, and grow, and your list will become very valuable to you.  People do check their email, and if you invite your customers with a coupon, and a great gift, you are going to have them connected with you for a very long time.

Website Development is All About your Web Presence

If this process seems like a lot of work, you are welcome to join our list here, and get your $100 coupon for web site design, review and development.  I can build your list for you, for much less than you ever thought possible.  Remember, website development is about your online business and it connects to your main street business seamlessly.  Without an online presence, your website development tools are going to be very inactive, so your entire web footprint is important as a new store front sign.

 

Pinterest can be a great way to share the things you love and your interests!

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

Pinterest, an internet social group, is a great tool that allows you to pin or bookmark anything that you like as your tour through the internet.  Why this is a great way to share and broadcast is because it is a bookmarking network, and they have a great tool that allows you to link to friends who share similar interests and information.  When you link your items and content to your pinterest group, you are building a great way for your people to share with others.

Beautiful Graphics and Pictures Share Easily on Pinterest

Many people enjoy Pinterest for the graphics features that it offers.  Think of it this way, where you may have a bulletin board near your desk at your office, you may pin a postcard, a business card, or a photo that you enjoy to easily view and glimpse.  The tools of Pinterest are the same, and offer a digital way to add these images and graphics to your p board easily and quickly.  The link is established quickly, and it is easier than a facebook link, as there are no limitations.  Currently, facebook allows you to do only certain things, until you reach a certain amount of likes or shares on your wall or group.  How ridiculous is that?  The ease of Pinterest is that you can find a beautiful image, graphic or relevant data image, and easily bookmark it for future use, without going back to the original content.

Pinterest Keeps Copyright Laws In Check Easily

The copyright laws require that anyone who shares content on the internet, be certain to give legal and appropriate credit back to the original creator of the content.  This is true for any written words, images, graphics or any content that is online. For this reason, Pinterest does this easily for you, by creating a link back to the original spot of the content, creating a beautiful web of back links back to your original content.  Back links are a good way to empower your content to be a valid piece of information for search engines, and can create more eyes on your content.  The search engines like back links, because it shows them that people are interested in your original content.

As an example, if you were a plumber, and trying to grow your business, you may decide to have  a web site built for your business.  Continuing to build your business, you offer good service and customer experiences to your customers each day.  Online, you offer free options to your online customers by little tips and tricks.  One way to do this is to share your expertise, so people see value in your skills.  If you have a written article that offers a new and innovative way to discuss how to fix a leaky kitchen sink, and you are able to share that process with an original photo of the process to stop the leak, and now if it gets pinned on Pinterest, you can have a huge following of people who have leaky sinks.  How’s that for dedicated and direct marketing to those who really need your services?

Pinterest can bring you customers and friends

If you are a graphic artist or a photographer, pinterest is the way to go for you!  As well, any business can create a pinterest account, and share with their group things that really are fun and innovative.  It is a great way for non-profits to grow a back link stream to their website, and all you need is great original content.  If you have a book you have written, link to your book website.  Selling that next great device for the home kitchen?  Link the views to your website!  Always link back to your website, with Pinterest, and you will be growing your marketing base quickly and with the interest of your people.

Stop ACTA and TPP: Keep the Internet Free and Active

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

Web Design with WordPress

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

The best online supported web design platform in my opinion, is wordpress.  This great online tool, is a free build your own blog software, that operates as a Open Free Software Portal for your next website.  There are many ways you can use wordpress to share your message, but the most important of them all, it allows you the best support from talented and knowledgeable  programmers from around the world.  The wordpress community is large and very important to the web.  Without the constant new content, the internet would not be growing at the speed of long term improvement in terms of business, science, education and commerce.  The blogging community by and large is your greatest resource as a information researcher, and it is your job to decide what is valid and what is an opinion.

WordPress Adds Value by Staying Fresh

No other web design design tool has as many talented and knowledgeable HTML experts and coding specialists as wordpress. And by and large, the community is doing this action to improve the lives of many, and not just themselves.  The tool is free, and if you can support a hosting account, you can still use the wordpress platform to build your site.  The installation on most hosting accounts is easy and can be set up in a matter of minutes.  Then, you can add the features and customization that you require as a business owner.

Small Business Grows with WordPress

If you have a small business, and you wish to add a web presence for this small business, you can do it very easily with wordpress.  Add the platform, add a theme, and you can have instant design.  There are many free themes that are supported by the platform.  As well, there are themes that you can buy, that offer better one on one support with their founders via the forums they support.  Any problem you experience can be repaired in a matter of minutes with this platform.

Create Contact Forms, Forums With WordPress

With all of the valuable plug in tools available, you can add easily a forum to your website.  The installation is quick and easy, the only issue will be with maintaining this tool, as it becomes tricky to keep spammers and other code hackers from entering your site with unnecessary links.  Often times, this can be managed with some anti-spamming tools, and a careful review of permissions.  If you add some expert advice from our team, you will be able to move into a great forum structure for your small business.   And, if you want to reach out to customers easily by a form, it is great to add one with a plug in contact us form.  The ease of installation will make your head spin!

There is no easier way to grow your online presence, than with a tool like wordpress.  SEO, marketing techniques and other great coding tricks are easy with this CMS online tool.  You can easily change the appearance, the pages and content, add new ideas at the spur of an idea.  Afterall, isn’t that what business is all about?  Flexibility, reliability, and constant fresh new ideas are all possible with wordpress.

 

Web Design With Focus

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

Web design is not just a scattered graphic layout, or a few pages with some details.  It is a simple, and unified market analysis that needs careful review and expertise.  With the start of building your site, your web design needs to reflect your business’s mission, and its message to customers.  Usually there are five pages, and a few category pages underneath each page.  With the addition of photos and pictures, you can have a link to another site with a photo gallery.  These ideas are really very simple!

Web Design with Purpose

Here are some great ideas for your site, and ways to include the navigation to work for your customers.

Web Design your Home Page

horizon 202x300 Web Design With Focus

Web Design Ahead

Usually your home page is the main link, or leads a search right to your primary URL.  The example is http://www.web-design-frontiers.com/  where the reader is brought to key parts of the site, hours, map, and a full opportunity to the other pages on your site.  Your site does not need to have the navigation on all pages, but always needs a way to move back to the Home Page, to bring the reader the ability to access all the pages and categories.

 

 

 

 

Home Page Necessities include:

  • Mailing List Signup
  • Your main video introduction
  • A great photo or graphic to enlist interest
  • Mission Statement
  • Content that the Search Engines can Find

Web Design for Your Secondary Pages

Bring the site forward by including:

  • Contact Us
  • Disclosure
  • Disclaimer
  • Resources
  • Articles
  • Blog
  • Photo Gallery
  • Facebook link
  • Twitter Link

The main point to consider on your secondary pages, is you want to bring your customers to your site with a specific search engine result.  If you are selling a new roasted coffee bean, you will want to create a page or a category for each variety of your coffee.  If your coffee brand has 15 different varietals,  each variety needs its own page, with a great amount of content to describe the taste of each variety.  If you can write some content that brings a story about each of your coffee types,  you can find your customers and provide them a wonderful fun bit of history.

Bed and breakfast hotels often do this very well.  They will focus on photos and a story of each of their rooms.  Often, the house or building that the hotel is located is a historic location, and may have some great history that will provide more of an incentive for their new guests.  There are often repeat visitors, too, who like to share their stories on their room visit, so allowing comments for your site, can be a great way to receive reviews for your current guests.  As well, if your site offers a review option, comments are a great way to bring a way to allow your commentators to rate their experiences.

Web Design with Photos

Adding your graphics and photos to your site, will bring life your site web design.  It is a great way to bring search engine optimization to your site as well, as each photo can be labeled with great searchable terms that are related to your site.  Always be sure to tag your graphics and your photos to allow your site to be searchable with organic search results as it is good web design practice.

 

 

Graphic Design in a Site

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

road to success 300x194 Graphic Design in a Site If you are just envisioning the graphics and design of the site, you are missing the forest through the  trees.  The look, the way the site navigates and the feel of the site is very important to capture your audience, but it is not the entire meat of the site.  The background tools to capture your audience are very important as well.

Without a good series of tools to build within your site, you will not find many customers or “hits” on your site.  The reality of the mission will ask you to keep your focus on promotion and envisioning your customer’s needs and wants.  More people when they create a web site are concerned with the tabs, the navigation, the color and the way the site feels on a page.  The fact is, this is just a small part of what makes a site work.

 

Many Chapters are Needed to Find your Customers

There are many pieces you need to build a successful online branch of your business:

  • Auto-responder service
  • Syndication service for creative writing
  • Directory Submission
  • Key word Analysis on an Ongoing Basis
  • Social Media Syndication
  • Social Media Setup and Creation
  • Resources on your niche or business type
  • Privacy Policy
  • Copyright Analysis and Due Diligence
  • Database Caching and Site Backup
  • RSS Submission Service
  • Backlink creation and management
  • Original Content and Writing
  • Web 2.0 management
  • Press Release and Management
  • Local Coupon Creation
  • Google Maps Authentication
  • Print Ads and Local Ad Creation

The beauty of the list above, is that each and every one of these pieces  can be put into place, and run on automatic pilot, while you run your business.   The initial creation takes time and dedication, but once in place, these promotion techniques run to create value for your website.  The management that you provide, is what to start first!

 

Your Website for Your Small Business

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

brid migration snow geese 300x199 Your Website for Your Small BusinessStart with an idea…and grow your idea online with a website to match.  Your idea will grow into a business that will take flight.  It is a simple way to communicate with your customers!   I can build you a communication center for your customers, that will grow your business and your success.  Start with an idea, and watch it grow!

Our Mission-Why the Pronghorn?

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

pronghorn 300x199 Our Mission Why the Pronghorn?

The American Pronghorn is our adopted symbol for adapting and migrating your website for the Modern Day.  Just as the Pronghorn has moved through North America in ancient times, they do so today, despite many hurdles and inconveniences.  Business today is not that different than it was 100 years ago, much like the Pronghorn’s ancient migration pattern.

There are still challenges in understanding and communicating with your customers.

There are two parts to your business, your physical business, and your internet business.  When you begin any business, no matter how small, you need an internet presence.  If you are willing to take the steps forward to begin and manage your own business, you need to consider your virtual business as well.

Think about it this way, your competition is already on the web, and people are finding them through their web site.  Shouldn’t you follow this example?

And, do not think of it as a hard or cumbersome process; it can be easily created for you!  Even if you are not sure what you want to post online, we can help.  A basic web communication site can include your working hours, email contacts, and your vision.

The rest will follow!

From E-Commerce, to Communication, to Blogging and World Domination, the web can help you get there.

Website Creation Surprises

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

Building a website can seem like a daunting task.  Consider the message, your reader, and your business objectives, and you have created a new promotion arm for your business that runs 24/7!

We can create a site for you, that is simple, effective, and builds upon your dreams and goals.

Surprising value is achieved, with a small investment.  Let me build your site, with your permission, and help you maintain it, or let me show you how to update it yourself.

Web design is not rocket science, and I promise not to burden you with technical frustrations and explanations.  Your time is valuable, and I can set up a site for you in a matter of days, with real time changes when you need them!

Website Creation

Posted on by Cheryl Hanson

Many small business owners spend many hours creating the perfect product, service and a combination of both, to create the best of both worlds.  This is an exhausting process, and one that leaves little time to be creative, plan, and resource effectively for new and innovative solutions for the future.  The business climate is quick and not necessarily very kind to slow and unplanned businesses.  There are too many people who run effective businesses, and use online ventures to push into new and profitable markets.

The best website, does not work for you as the business owner, but works best for the customers that it speaks to.  Every bit of real estate on a website is not there for the emotion or the feelings of the owner of the business, but for the customer that the business supports.  It is as simple as giving your customer a name, and thinking of them as the real people that they are.

A great example is if you sell baby clothing, your customer is not the babies so much;  sure they are a big part of the equation, but you are really selling to the parents, grandparents, and especially the caregivers of the family-the mother.  Her world is busy, fast-paced, and emotionally charged.  She needs to visit your business within a window of time between naps, feedings, and other life challenging issues.    She is a working individual, challenging herself with modern day work experiences, family and social needs, and rarely provides time to herself.  It is a very stressful time, especially for new moms.

Thinking about your customer in this way, has now begun a discovery process, where you are empathizing with your customer.  You should now be able to give her a name, and let’s call her Diane.  Diane is 25-45 years of age, is educated, owns a home, a car, and has many hobbies and preferences in religion and politics.  She is an entrepreneur, a business owner, an executive or a professional who is dedicated to her chosen field, and is just as dedicated to her family.

She owns a pet, and lives close your physical location.  Diane does not have time to be too choosy, but she likes to make choices that create a feeling of value.  She is looking for a shopping experience where her immediate needs are met, and that her families needs can be met as well.  She wants to have fun in your store!  Diane has many friends, so if her experience is valued, she will refer your service and products to her very similar grouping of friends.

This powerful analogy, will bring you great ways to communicate with Diane.  If you flesh out your customer, you have started the mental progression of fleshing out your website.  It is how websites should be created. Leave the tables, graphics, and many navigational tools alone when starting this process.  Your website is all about your customer, and who they are.  If you consider your customer first, you will find the rest will be simply easy.

Analysis you must consider:

  • Demographics
  • Social and Economic Realities
  • Needs versus Wants
  • Driven Customers with a Problem-vs. Customers who are on the Fence
  • Services that Meet the Problems with Solutions
  • How your products meet your customer’s needs
  • Your value to your Customer

Then, once you have carefully considered who Diane is, and what her needs are, you can create a successful Baby Clothing Company.  Your website can be simple, and it will meet the demands of Diane’s busy day, and her future needs as a Mom.

Remember, each page on your website is adding value and providing communication to your customer, on how your business will meet their needs.  If you can do this, you will be very successful.