Posted by: Beverly on: December 2, 2009
There are 3 components to a website, (Most companies will sell you on a lot of other things), and knowing the 3 components means you are on your way to having a higher performing website, not just one that sits on the internet, taking up space.
Background:
This formula comes from over a year and a half of MAU Web Studio working with small business owners who need results, not just a pretty site.
STEPS ONE & TWO:
Steps one and two are integrated. They happen together.
The creation of a website and search engine optimization happen together, in the beginning. And grow together. SEO is not tacked on as an afterthought.
STEP THREE:
Step three is the implementation of a system to measure results. And metrics are not established with steps one and two, but, at the time of deploy, it’s best to put it in place.
Specific Details about the Steps:
Now, there are a host of other doo-dads and nifty looking functions that can go into a website, but the core is these first three.
And the sooner the core is developed, the better.
Gettng Stuck? If you are getting tripped up by “it’s just not perfect” then launch a single page with a minimalist approach, and let users know that more is coming. This will be good for visitors to your site – but it will also be advantageous to you from a Google Crawler perspective.
How Long Will This Take? If you think waiting 4-6 months to develop your first site is OK, then you might want to read up on or think a little about how fast technology moves.
Technology moves faster than your average industry.
And a pipeline of 4-6 months just to get your first site up – or even a single page – is unreasonably long. This last tip is for those who are aggressive in their business goals and they can feel the hot breath of their competition on their necks. To push ahead of the competition, it’ll take subtle nuances to differentiate you, and one of those subtle nuances is going live with at least a single page (if you can’t bear to approve anything more) and doing it fast. Time is not on your side.
Should I Stress out about the Process?
There are no hard and fast rules, so no, there’s no need to stress, but it’s nice to have a formula to work within, isn’t it?
Now, if you feel your heart race faster, that is not the point of this post. We do the best we can everyday, and everything will fall into place.
There are just some general misconceptions about what it takes to get to where you want to go. The process is not at all clear. I don’t know about other companies, but MAU Web Studio has a process, and it has been developed for the benefit of Atlanta’s Best Web Design, (that would be us, MAU Web Studio).
And the process is this: it includes these first three steps: build website or page, include SEO in the building of the page(s) – not stick it on as an afterthought – and plant the metrics. These 3 things will give you an advantage in the future.
Posted by: Beverly on: December 2, 2009
What the heck is elegant testing?
Well, a performing website is one that, well, performs – one that just doesn’t sit there on the web, taking up space, doing pretty much nothing for you. And to get to the level of a performing website, it’ll take what’s called testing and metrics. Without testing and metrics, your website will never reach its potential, it’ll just remain a collection of thoughts and ideas, not integrated into a bigger plan.
Elegant Testing is a term MAU Web Studio uses to describe a simple process that you, a non-techie person, can use to get through the testing phase of transforming your website from just an ordinary website to, well, an extraordinary one, and one that performs for you, as well.
Elegant means simplicity. And effective.
Let’s get more specific and leave the abstractions behind us.
What is an example of elegant testing?
STEP ONE: In your professional business email signature, make one change, and then measure results. For example, add a weekly quote relevant to your industry – one that will be intriguing and helpful to the recipients of your emails – and include a hyperlink to the page on your website where more of these quotes live. Keep an archive of quotes on your website and link it to the hyperlink in your newly tweaked email signature.
STEP TWO:Now, because you have Google Analytics set up, you’re going to be able to look at your Google Analytics account and determine if there’s a spike in traffic to the link in your email signature, and then you know if your newly revised email signature is effective or not.
STEP THREE: If and when there’s a spike in traffic, it’s time to augment the page on your website, where you have the archive of quotes. How about include a sprinkle of other product / service offerings? Let the people know that you offer more than just a quote here and there. This is the handshake of the internet. It is not a hard sell. It is a soft, backdoor introduction. And it is a part of your funnel. First you’ve got to get people to your site by multiple different modalities, and then you’ve got to optimize, and this is an example of how this process works in action.
It’s an example of an elegant test, because it is quick, simple, and gives good research and information.
Too much? Let us do this for you. It will save you time because we have the experience to do it faster.
Summary:
You want research on your website, and how users interact with it. And your email signature is one way for users to interact with your website.
This is just one example. The point is that testing is necessary and isn’t relegated to a techie person. You can perform a test and find out more about your website, and then make business decisions about adjustments and changes to your website to improve its performance.
If you’d like more steps for the process of elegant testing – or if you have an example of an elegant test – then drop a comment and we’ll supply.
Posted by: Beverly on: December 1, 2009
If you’re hooked on Page Rank, then let’s think about this. The definition of what Page Rank is, is a math formula, created by Google. Google uses this math formula to determine the worth of your URL.
If Page Rank is high on your list of must have’s, you may be missing the boat.
The exact calculation for Page Rank is not made public. If it were, people would abuse it. So Google keeps it secret.
But we can infer what page rank includes. And MAU Web Studio recommends to pay attention to Page Rank, but, not to put all your eggs in this one basket.
Why not focus exclusively on Page Rank?
Because investing time, energy and money in developing web presence for your target URL in one niche – such as page rank – makes about as much sense as putting your entire retirement portfolio in one company’s stock.
You feeling lucky?
Invest your entire retirement portfolio in IBM stock, and then wait 10, 20, 30, 40 years, and see what happens…
Not a good idea.
Same thing with the internet investments of time, energy and money. But instead of 10, 20, 30 or 40 years we’re talking months and a couple of years, because in the world of the internet, major transformations happen every couple of years, not every couple of decades, and mini revolutions happen every 6 months. (Just how fast did Twitter go through the roof? How long is it going to stay there? Is video important, feasible at all to incorporate in web presence strategies? Have you seen ESPN360 or CNN.com homepage new redesign? Video anyone?)
Bottom line:
Page Rank is one step in a multi-step process that requires discipline and strategy. And, of course, just like doing your taxes or acting as your own personal attorney for legal questions, you can have experts on your side that support reasonable, intelligent action – you don’t have to go it alone! But that’s up to you.
If you have more specific questions about strategy, contact Beverly at MAU Web Studio
Or, drop a note in this blog’s comment box. We’d love to hear your questions and thoughts.
OR!
Google the phrase “why is page rank so important” or “what is page rank” or “page rank explained” and perform your own research. The ultimate insider’s tip is that even computer and internet experts Google stuff, just like you, because Google is, after all, a nifty resource, when leveraged properly, pretty powerful and efficient, too.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 30, 2009
Designing and developing websites means I have a ton of applications and processes and windows and tabs open at the same time. In the wee hours of the night, as my fingers peck away at the keyboard, sometimes, I hear my computer running – and running and running and running… what the heck is my computer doing?
Listen to your computer so you know what “normal” is. If your computer seems to be making a lot of noise, like you can hear that little fan in your computer running and running and running, or you check out your CPU and it’s running at 50, 70, 90% – it’s time to take a break, and do a little investigating.
For me, I like to open my task manager and check out CPU and what processes are running. Mostly, system idle process dominates CPU, but sometimes, there is something else going on, and that something else is what I’m interested in.
Instead of me writing a manual in my blog on how to troubleshoot, what’s more helpful that you can do sleuthing yourself. All you have to do is go to Google and type in some select keywords or keyphrase that you think is the problem, and hit enter, and then from the list of results, find a good forum. Read the forum. If you’re having a problem, chances are, many others have, too.
You are not alone!
There are answers out there, it just takes you Googling the right question and finding the proper forum.
If this blog wasn’t clear, drop me a comment and ask away. I’ve been sleuthing long enough to know a few tricks of the trade to keeping the computer healthy.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 30, 2009
I receive questions from time to time. Below is a question a friend of mine had, and I give my answer. If you have questions about websites or search engine optimization, drop me a comment, I’d love to hear from you.
Here’s the question:
I read this. Don’t know exactly what it means. “Don’t disregard links just because they don’t pass page rank. A
nofollow link may just get your page crawled”
Here’s my answer
Background:
There is this thing called “page rank” and it is issued by Google. (If you want to learn more about the ramifications of Google’s Page Rank Definition and use, just Google the phrase “what is page rank”)
And there is what’s called “syntax” in an html page. Syntax simply means the language of html. (For example, the Spanish language uses the same letters and English, but its syntax is different than English, because their vowels are different and they arrange their letters differently. HTML uses the same letters but arranges the letters differently and has a different system of communication than English or Spanish, in this example).
Within the syntax of html, there are different kinds of meta tags. You’ve probably heard of the “keyword” meta tag and “description” meta tag. Well, there is a “robots” meta tag and you can tell the “robots” that find your html page whether to crawl and index that page.
If you want the crawler to index your page, (almost everyone wants the Google crawler or robot to crawl his/her html, so they get indexed and ranked in the organic section of Google) (There are exceptions).
So, if you want the robot or crawler to index your page, then you’re going to see this in the header section of the html:
An example of a “No follow link” would be if you posted a comment on a blog and in your blog comment you included in your signature your URL. Within the blog software, there is a stipulation that whenever a user submits a comment with a link, that link will be a no follow – meaning that when the Google crawler indexes the comment, it is going to disregard the URL and not jump to that URL.
You see, how indexing works is that when the crawler finds a hyperlink, it will go to that hyperlink – unless we tell it not to. The more times a URL tells the crawler to go to a site, like mine, (mauwebstudio.com) then the crawler interprets that as a vote of confidence and a vote of relevance, and the likelihood of my website having more leverage than my competition is enhanced.
Spammers manipulate the system and Google always tries to configure its crawler to discount spammy attempts.
One way to thwart spammy activity is for a blog, in this example, to have in its software the no follow link rule.
Here’s the syntax that will cause the crawler to jump from URL A to URL B:
‹a href=”http://www.anothersite.com”›
Another Site
‹/a›
Here’s what the syntax looks like that will cause the crawler to not jump from URL A to URL B:
‹a href=”http://www.anothersite.com” rel=”nofollow”›
Another Site
‹/a›.
Summary:
Without knowing what you’re reading, I recommend that you use reasonable action when you set out on a search engine optimization campaign. Don’t abuse and diversify your actions to hedge against niche volatility of specific actions. And without measuring results, there is only chaos. Testing and metrics is essential to everything. One last thing: even if there is a no follow link, I would still list my URL, because users will copy and paste, and that’s important, too.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 25, 2009
In addition to backing up your data regularly and cleaning up your c and d drives (how you do this depends on your operating system) – active background processes can cause your computer to slow down.
Here’s my method (the beginning steps):
What I mean by a background process can mean a couple of different things. You could be running a movie on your computer, and movies are known to be memory hogs, so, computer performance (slow load, choppy images, for example) may be compromised by the very act of multimedia, if you don’t have the proper computer system in the first place (what processor you have, memory, etc).
But maybe your computer is running a malicious background process, you have a bug, a virus, or something else that is clogging computer performance. Scan your computer and get rid this stuff.
The security system itself may be using up a lot of CPU. Norton Security, in my opinion, has been a pain in my butt, but I know it is very popular. I’ve heard/used spysweeper – it’s a possible option to do a system scan and identify background processes that may be compromising computer performance.
No matter what, I listen to my computer. If it’s working hard, then I check into the task manager and start doing some sleuthing. I check out CPU and look at what exactly are the processes going on at the time that my computer is making all that fan noise.
Regular system scans and cleaning up disks is a good beginning to keeping the computer performance healthy. And back up your data! In my line of work, I get to hear all the horror stories of computers slowing to a grinding halt, and then crashing, taking with it all your precious files. More importantly, the time it takes to recover data files can add up to days and weeks, not to mention the anxiety and frustration with dealing with a dead computer.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 24, 2009
What’s your barrier to getting your business website up and running or redesigned?
There are a few themes that pop up again and again, and one in particular seems to be really blocking some business owners, to their great detriment.
It’s not going live with their business website because it’s not perfect.
If that’s the reason, or if that approaches the reason, there is no perfect. There is no 100% slam dunk. It has more to do with if the proposed website or redesign is in alignment with company goals. If it moves incrementally forward to something better, more functional, more effective than it was before.
So if it’s perfection that holds you back, just know that there are plenty of really, really simple websites that perform really well, bringing in a lot of traffic, and whose products and services are flying – not because it was a 10,000 dollar website, but because of the other factors I mentioned above.
It’s about continuous improvement. But if you’ve read this far, I have a feeling you’re already about continuous improvement!
If you’d like to drop a comment, we’d love to hear your website development story. Drop a note.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 21, 2009
Who is the best fit for you? Not every web design firm is the best. From the experience of MAU Web Studio, we recommend you interview at least 3 different people/firms that you are considering forking over your hard earned cash for a website or redesign.
Although you may be very, very busy, it is worth your time to even have a second phone conversation with the web designer, and bring questions.
Why?
We recommend this because sometimes, some companies are difficult to get a hold of, and if you can’t talk with them before you hand over the money – you will probably not be able to find them after.
Even we at MAU Web Studio have had a difficult time – from time to time – with certain web hosting companies – not being responsive. So if we have a difficult time, imagine you trying to work with a non-responsive technical team. It can be frustrating at the least.
Requirements: the holy grail of web design. Requirements are to web designers what plans are to an architect or specifications are to a machine operator. It is a must to have in writing the requirements – or else everybody will have a different idea of what exactly is going to happen. Requirements are the specifications by which you are going to measure if the job is complete or not.
So, we recommend you bring on board a patient team who takes the time to write down the requirements for you, and who will work side by side with you, ensuring that progress is moving at a pace you are comfortable with.
That’s it! The best web design in Atlanta or any other place on the planet has to do with the best fit. Your best fit. And although it may take a little time to identify exactly who can best represent you, it is worth it in the long run
Posted by: Beverly on: November 20, 2009
I’ve listened to some clients and some associates in my network, and what I’m hearing is that for a business owner to find a proper web designer, it is a difficult thing.
I have heard horror stories of small business start ups spending a teacher’s salary on just one site, only to not receive the website of their dreams, and I don’t think this needs to happen.
First off, don’t spend thousands on your first business website. Secondly, interview at least 3 web developers. And if the person or group calls themselves something else like SEO guru, or web designer, or some other kind of specialist, ask what they mean, and if they don’t answer all your questions, move on.
Finally, in addition to finding a technical expert, from what I’ve hear, it’s the non-technical communication that really makes a difference. So when searching for a person or group to do your business website, talk with them a couple of times, to verify they will pick up their phone (yes, I have heard stories of the hit and run programmer who won’t answer his phone, but has your money) and who can communicate in a style that fits you.
If you have an idea, find an IT person who brings up testing and keyphrase research. Handing over a couple thousand without testing the waters just isn’t something we do here. And I don’t think you ought to be the test bunny for another company. Test, test, test, and see if the market is open to your widget.
So, there you go. You don’t have to spend thousands to get your first business website up and running, but it will take a little time to find the right person or agency to represent you, but the time invested up front will save you dollars – a lot of them – later.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 19, 2009
It’s that time of year again – when leaves turn golden orange and fire red – and your computer may be making sounds it didn’t used to make. No, it’s not the temperature change, it’s computer maintenance and disk cleaning. And if you ignore the grunts and gurgles your computer makes – or ignore the fact that your computer is running slower and slower – then you may be headed for trouble.
First off, back up your data. People back up their data in several different ways, depending on the types of files you are backing up, and the size of the files. If they are simple text or word documents you are backing up, then you can email a limited number of files to yourself in the form of an attachment – and then you have to remember you did this. The problem with this system is that it’s not the most cohesive plan, but it’ll do. The point is to have a source for your files in case your computer dies – and you can recall files via your email from another working computer.
Backing up your data can get sophisticated, with you buying expensive systems to back the data up and having data hosted on another company’s web server.
I like the jump drive. The portable USB fits in my pocket and holds over a gig of data. I simply pop it in, save the files on the jump drive, and presto, I can sleep better at night. They are not that expensive, and a visit to Fry’s Computer Store will show you that there are plenty of Geeks prepared to get you set up.
So, you’ve noticed your computer working harder than it has in the past – may be it sounds like the fan is kicked into overdrive when you’re doing simple operations like starting your computer up. Load time has increased and your computer is grinding to a halt?
When was the last time you performed a disk cleanup? Depending on the operating system (Vista or XP anyone?) if you Google “how do I perform disk cleanup for [enter your operating system here]” you’ll find step by step instructions on how to clean up the files that you don’t need, and a bunch of other junk that is just taking up space.
That’s it. I clean my disk up frequently because it is easy and I want my computer’s performance maximized. Kind of like taking care of my teeth: I take care of them and they take care of me.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I am going to go eat some sugary Kit Kats. I love those, don’t you?
Posted by: Beverly on: November 18, 2009
Just heard on National Public Radio that Bing, Google, and Yahoo are giving away free wireless to people in certain geographic areas to promote their own search engines, and all the other stuff they put out into the world and compete for market domination.
I love it.
Let them give us gifts! Lord knows we have suffered enough, having been the guinea pigs for Vista Operating System. Having been the test animals for the first generation of iPhone (OK, that’s Apple, but the point is that first gen iPhone users paid a hefty price for their new toy). The list goes on and on.
What is called the open source community to us is, an opportunity to really control and improve products at lightening speed. For the big guns like Google and Yahoo and MSN, open source means free testers.
So, I say, let them give us free gifts, and may the biggest gift giver win.
In New York, in airports, in hotels, the big search engine providers are giving away free wireless, to woo and capture the hearts of us all.
Weeee! Now this is interesting. Free is always interesting.
Do you agree?
Posted by: Beverly on: November 6, 2009
There are a lot of different web hosts that exist. The key to choosing a good web host for your business is making sure the company is able to guarantee 98-99% uptime. Once you deploy your website, you want that site live 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Some smaller web hosting companies can’t deliver on that.
In addition to checking out a company’s guaranteed uptime, do they have a local phone, (1-800 #) and email contact? A lot of good web hosts will offshore some aspect of their business, so be prepared to talk with a tech person overseas, if you live in North America. There is nothing wrong with tech support from someone overseas, as long as they are well versed in problem solving and can speak English so you can understand them. But without a phone number contact, there is going to be problems. Little things that you didn’t plan on – is going to require some communication with the web host, and, if they aren’t available to you, it is going to get in the way of your business success.
GoDaddy and “1 and 1″ web host are 2 examples of pretty solid web hosts. I have experience with both these web hosts, and I don’t have a problem with either. Additionally, Host Gator seems to be picking up steam. I know a few people who love Host Gator.
There are many other choices, and each with a system for responding to your problems. If you need immediate assistance, make sure your web host delivers on 24/7 phone support, or else your site and your business is probably going to experience a some kind of set back. At the very least, it can be frustrating when a web host is not prepared to support you. After all, you are paying them!
Posted by: Beverly on: November 5, 2009
Animoto.com, studionow.com, and vimeo.com are 3 examples of where the web is heading: the all important video embed.
I have given Animoto a test run and love it. I have clients who have given Animoto a test run, and they too, love it.
Studionow looks like a company out of Tennessee, but, their interface is a little confusing to me, can’t take it for a test run, and can’t find their pricing.
And Vimeo. If for no other reason, go to vimeo.com and look at their background – as the images move up and down with your scroller. It’s great fun. And vimeo is a video distribution site, not a video creation site. That’s the difference between vimeo and Animoto.
If there are some studionow.com folks reading this blog, I would love to hear from you. Maybe you could address some of the questions I posted above? Or if anyone has used studionow.com – I’d love to hear your feedback.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 5, 2009
Animoto.com, studionow.com, and vimeo.com are 3 examples of where the web is heading: the all important video embed.
I have given Animoto a test run and love it. I have clients who have given Animoto a test run, and they too, love it.
Studionow looks like a company out of Tennessee, but, their interface is a little confusing to me, can’t take it for a test run, and can’t find their pricing.
And Vimeo. If for no other reason, go to vimeo.com and look at their background – as the images move up and down with your scroller. It’s great fun. And vimeo is a video distribution site, not a video creation site. That’s the difference between vimeo and Animoto.
If there are some studionow.com folks reading this blog, I would love to hear from you. Maybe you could address some of the questions I posted above? Or if anyone has used studionow.com – I’d love to hear your feedback.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 4, 2009
If you’re frustrated with the php manual, check out this link. Digg it if you like it, (I did, it really helped me out with regular expressions and pattern matching).
http://digg.com/d373OH
Posted by: Beverly on: November 3, 2009
If you want to sell products online but don’t know where to begin, Paypal seems to have a pretty simple system. Establishing an account and using it a few times shows just how simple it can be.
Adding an ecommerce component to your website is not just for selling products, but allows those who care to shop online another way to interact with your website. Anything that clicks with users and engages them is worth pursuing.
So, establishing a website with a simple e commerce component has a double benefit: you sell products and engage users. Good for ROI, good for traffic, good for business.
What do you think?
Posted by: Beverly on: November 3, 2009
Google has collected a dreamy amount of information for each person that jumps on the bandwagon that is Google products and services. Forget “big brother” – if the U.S engages in another war, the FBI and CIA will turn to Google for their records – they are that good at collecting info.
And the way that Google continues to achieve this massive database is by winning the hearts and minds of each one of us, by giving us free stuff. Don’t get me wrong, I love the free stuff! Google Analytics takes me precious little time to establish – and the information I get on users who come to my site is vital to my understanding of my own business growth.
It’s so interesting that when you capture people’s hearts, they are loyal to products and will overlook the fact that they are collecting all this information on us. Imagine if the former Bush Administration tried to harness some of that data? Oh, right, it already did.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 2, 2009
Alan Greenspan infamously said that individuals will act in the best interest to keep a company growing – and that the market will self correct. And so many free market people – myself included – believed this to be true, even though we didn’t have any proof. Proof in economics, in this case, comes from time. Economics is, after all, a pretty new science, fraught with snake oil salesmen who put a lot of complicated math equations up on a board and want us to nod in agreement. And I’m a HUGE fan of Greenspan! Would never call him a snake oil salesman, but what the U.S. economy has gone through from about 2007 and 2008 to the present (CIT ran a multi billion dollar tab for U.S. citizens to own and pay – and is now declaring bankrupcy, NPR news, Mon Nov 2, 2009) is sobering.
The field of economics is similar to the field of website design and search engine optimization, with the exception that web designers are in the dark ages, in terms of certification and standardization of delivery of products and services. Economics has been with us a while longer.
So it is understandable for small business owners to be lost in a sea of ambiguity when selecting whom to represent them in driving online marketing campaigns forward or developing their websites. Even the question of what makes a brand a brand has shifted with the recent revolution of ad dollars going from newspapers to online sources.
So, to solve for the potential of associating with a snake oil salesman for the website design of your business website or for an aggressive online marketing campaign, here are a couple of tips:
Again, big fan of the now “retired” Alan Greenspan, but, can’t deny the similarities between the field of economics and web development and web services. As both fields emerge, we are going to see more proof of stated “laws” and more standardization of practices. But for now, it’s best to conduct some good old fashioned investigative research and question/answer sessions just to find the right answer for you.
Posted by: Beverly on: November 1, 2009
How do people search?
Sometimes people mis-spell words. And we can and should capitalize on this fact.
Example: instead of Paris Hilton – maybe someone would type in Perez Hilton. Maybe that’s what PerezHilton.com was hoping for when he launched his blog. It is wildly successful, and part of that success comes from riding the success wave of Paris Hilton. The search phrase “Paris Hilton” is pretty big. And so, banking on humans poor ability to spell, and the added bonus of Perez Hilton and Paris Hilton sounding phonetically similar, this was a good move, don’t you think?
Another example: If you’re a mommy, then you’ve probably heard of the book series, “What to Expect When You’re Expecting.” It’s a very popular book series for expecting mommies. It is similar in nature to the “Dummies” series in that it is a highly recognizable brand.
A gentleman recently published a book that spins off of the already known brand of the “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” book series, and it is called “What to Expect When You’re Expected.”
Why do we care?
Because when users search a phrase, we know they will most likely put in more than one word in the search bar and most likely put in less than 4 words in the search bar (God bless research and trend analysis). So, a user will probably get out “What to Expect” or “What to Expect When” and leave the rest blank – and this guy’s book will, with time, have an increased likelihood of showing up just below this established product in the organic ranking, on page one.
Does that make sense?
Let me know and send me a note!
Posted by: Beverly on: October 31, 2009
Never personally used Bing, although I see Bing’s nifty advertising in Hulu.com (dump the TV and go forward with hulu.com and Netflix combo). And upon checking my Google Analytics account this morning whilst sipping away on my smoothie from Nectar – I see a trend towards more of my visitors finding me from Bing.
What the heck is Bing?
A quick Google search gives me this from Wikipedia:
“Bing (currently Live Search, formerly Windows Live Search and MSN Search, codenamed Kumo) is the name of Microsoft’s new web search engine…”
So, diversification again presents itself as a means of hedging yourself against small market fluctuations or volatility attributed to user preference and behaviour.
Simply put: make sure your website shows up in multiple search engines.
Have questions about this post? Don’t hesitate to get in contact with the owner of MAU Web Studio, LLC for a more in depth look at how economics and online web presence for your business are linked.
Happy Halloween!
Posted by: Beverly on: October 30, 2009
The “Cash for Clunkers” was another Obama success. The economy received a measurable boost and lifted the spirit of the American people. But now, the program is ending, and the word is out: the U.S. economy is suffering from a bit of a tumble. Not a big tumble, a little tumble.
Media will have us believe that we ought to spend our way out of this economic mess, but, I don’t think that is wise. The numbers show that people are hesitant to splurge. High unemployment usually lags behind any rise in the DOW Jones, and we as Americans recognize that we’re not out of deep water just yet.
Time to hunker down and continue to seriously look at what is working and what is not working in our businesses. Spending business dollars in areas that do not return or that do not position us for future growth is just bad business.
The world will get out of this economic mess, and our economy will never look the same again. This recession was a game changer.
Have any thoughts? Drop a comment.
Posted by: Beverly on: October 29, 2009
“Good design is as little design as possible,” Apple designer.
When Apple waged war with the PC, it was a quiet one, until Apple blew PC computers out of the water. By then it was too late. The business decisions Apple made for itself years ago were manifesting itself in real profits and PCs left in the dust. When your competition makes it THAT far ahead of you, there is precious little you can do, just to catch up – let alone to be the leader in the next big thing.
“Today, you find very few companies that take design seriously.”
And he’s right.
The path and decisions Apple took years ago in design and brand image are as interesting as the ramifications of those decisions.
“We designers, we don’t work in a vacuum … we need business people, too.”
Beautiful.
Posted by: Beverly on: October 29, 2009
I often meet parents around the country and they ask me, “I have a son/daughter looking for a job. How is the market in Atlanta?”
For what it’s worth, from my 4 years living in Atlanta, there are a lot of good things happening in the Atlanta job market. And how I would approach a job search is not by targeting a city as much as targeting individual companies. At the end of the day, it is the company you’ll be working with, not the city, and while the city supports your living experience off work hours, focus on the company itself.
Back to Atlanta. Most of what makes Atlanta great stems from the higher than average core of intellectual talent that exists here. From this core, terrific businesses and start ups exist and grow.
For example, mobile technology. Atlanta is uniquely capable to handle the emerging demand for mobile technology, and, whether or not you’re looking for an IT job, look for companies who are strong enough financially to employ these expensive, in house or contracted IT jobs.
Did this blog post help? Let me know leave a comment.
Posted by: Beverly on: October 18, 2009
Competitive Analysis is an important step when creating and updating a website, because we want to know how the competition is faring, and be one step ahead of what they are doing. One thing MAU Web Studio (based out of Atlanta Ga, and focuses on web design, website development, with features not found in other web design companies) does well is competitive analysis.
And just because the competition is doing something, doesn’t mean you ought to pick it up and integrate it within your own site. They may be extremely inefficient, and you don’t want to replicate inefficient or ineffective processes. From this, a 100% academic approach is not the best approach. What MAU Web Studio has found is that a blend of common sense and competitive analysis is the best approach.
No matter what you see your competitors doing, the question ought to be, “how can I do this better, faster, with greater value, more robust, less expensive, etc.”
If you liked this blog post, check out our site, and don’t forget to leave a comment, we love our commenting bloggers!
