Web Design
Why Blogs are Good for Business
Tue/Jan/10 03:27 PM
Have you heard of 'Blogs'? Do you know what they are?
Do you think they sound a bit geeky? Or even a bit
pointless?
You are reading one now!
This blog is called thd news and articles. A blog doesn't have to be called 'thd blog' you can call it anything relevant to you and your company. Unfortunately I think blogs are misunderstood, they can be an invaluable addition to any company. They are a fantastic way of connecting with your audience, informing them of upcoming events, writing relevant articles that lets them know you know what you are talking about and much more.
Here's an example: Your company sell coffee, it's called 'The Bean Factory'.
You can also show off the articles on the blog by posting links to them on social sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and many more, this will help dive traffic to your site. If people like your articles they can share them with others and will hopefully return in the future to see what other helpful or informative articles you have posted.
You may still be wondering if it is worth it because you have to write articles and keep them relevant and updated. Yes you do but here's a great reason to have a blog on your website, search engines love blogs! It is a great way to get new content onto you website which is important to help keep your website riding high in the search results. You may have a website which ranks high on the listing but if you do not add content to the site it will slide down as new sites with fresh content rise above you. Most blogging software also has an archive function which is another plus for the search engines.
So by now you should be thinking 'this is a great idea', what are you waiting for? Make it your mission in 2010 to get blogging.
If you need a hand or just advice, get in touch.
Happy blogging,
thd
You are reading one now!
This blog is called thd news and articles. A blog doesn't have to be called 'thd blog' you can call it anything relevant to you and your company. Unfortunately I think blogs are misunderstood, they can be an invaluable addition to any company. They are a fantastic way of connecting with your audience, informing them of upcoming events, writing relevant articles that lets them know you know what you are talking about and much more.
Here's an example: Your company sell coffee, it's called 'The Bean Factory'.
- Write an article (also known as a 'post') about making the perfect cup of coffee.
- Write an article about a speciality blend that you will soon be stocking, to whet their appetite.
- If you are attending an exhibition let your customers know, you can also include links to the website of the exhibition so they can get more details and buy tickets.
- You are launching a new advertising campaign - let your blog reader know about it first, a special preview. Give them extra information and background on the though process behind the campaign. Maybe include a voucher exclusive to the blog readership.
- Write posts about anything you want your customers to know. The content is up to you.
You can also show off the articles on the blog by posting links to them on social sites like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and many more, this will help dive traffic to your site. If people like your articles they can share them with others and will hopefully return in the future to see what other helpful or informative articles you have posted.
You may still be wondering if it is worth it because you have to write articles and keep them relevant and updated. Yes you do but here's a great reason to have a blog on your website, search engines love blogs! It is a great way to get new content onto you website which is important to help keep your website riding high in the search results. You may have a website which ranks high on the listing but if you do not add content to the site it will slide down as new sites with fresh content rise above you. Most blogging software also has an archive function which is another plus for the search engines.
So by now you should be thinking 'this is a great idea', what are you waiting for? Make it your mission in 2010 to get blogging.
If you need a hand or just advice, get in touch.
Happy blogging,
thd
What is a Web Browser?
Thu/Jun/09 09:48 PM
What is a Web browser? A simple question but one
which will potentially leave the majority of the
world's population confused.
Google recently did some research on the streets of New York with some surprising results. Would the same thing happen on your high street? Watch the video below.
If you're not sure what a Web browser is, it is a software application or program on your computer that is used to view web pages and interact with the World Wide Web. When you want to write a letter on your computer you use a word processing application, when you want to view the internet on your computer you use a web browser application. You can have web browsers on mobile phones and other gadgets but I don't want to complicate matters.
As with most computer applications there is a choice, with the 3 most popular browsers being Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari. All of these browsers are free to download and use, some only work on one operation system e.g. Explorer, others are compatible with all operating systems e.g. Firefox. You can also have more than one browser on your computer - I have at least 4.
All browsers have good and bad points but you don't have to stick with one just because it came with your computer. We are all individuals who like to express ourselves in different ways, go and experiment with browsers to find out which you prefer. Many of them can be customised with plug-ins to make you web surfing experience even more rewarding. I'll be covering more features of individual browsers in future articles.
Go on be brave explore the possibilities.
Google recently did some research on the streets of New York with some surprising results. Would the same thing happen on your high street? Watch the video below.
If you're not sure what a Web browser is, it is a software application or program on your computer that is used to view web pages and interact with the World Wide Web. When you want to write a letter on your computer you use a word processing application, when you want to view the internet on your computer you use a web browser application. You can have web browsers on mobile phones and other gadgets but I don't want to complicate matters.
As with most computer applications there is a choice, with the 3 most popular browsers being Internet Explorer, Firefox and Safari. All of these browsers are free to download and use, some only work on one operation system e.g. Explorer, others are compatible with all operating systems e.g. Firefox. You can also have more than one browser on your computer - I have at least 4.
All browsers have good and bad points but you don't have to stick with one just because it came with your computer. We are all individuals who like to express ourselves in different ways, go and experiment with browsers to find out which you prefer. Many of them can be customised with plug-ins to make you web surfing experience even more rewarding. I'll be covering more features of individual browsers in future articles.
Go on be brave explore the possibilities.
Successful Search Engine Optimisation Event
Wed/May/09 08:39 PM
I received an Email from Randeep Nagra, Marketing
Officer at IT Futures today telling me about their
next event - Successful SEO which is going to be held
on the 20th May at Alton Towers. I have attended
other training events organised by IT Futures and
have always found them to be very useful. If you
would like to attend click the link Successful SEO, it is open
to small and medium businesses. Below is more
information about the event.
This essential one day Search Engine Optimisation seminar is designed to improve your rankings in the search engines, solve your SEO problems and answer your search marketing questions.
Search Engine Optimisation is a must for businesses who want to get found in Google.
Who Should Attend?
This is not a course for absolute beginners: we are assuming that you already have a website, or you may be planning a new website and that you understand the basics of how search engines rank pages.
This is going to be a fast paced day, and it includes as much SEO knowledge as you can stuff into your brain!
You will leave the day with a written plan of action detailing the specific steps you need to take to optimise your website.
What Will I Learn?
* How to diagnose your website problems
* Create an SEO plan of action for your website
* Use search engine optimisation tips and tricks to increase your rankings and traffic
* Understand why some sites rank so highly
* Measure your SEO success
The Trainer
Susan Hallam is a leading Internet Marketing trainer and consultant, with more than 20 years experience in the information industry.
Why not come along and learn useful tips to improve the performance of your business on the World Wide Web.
This essential one day Search Engine Optimisation seminar is designed to improve your rankings in the search engines, solve your SEO problems and answer your search marketing questions.
Search Engine Optimisation is a must for businesses who want to get found in Google.
Who Should Attend?
This is not a course for absolute beginners: we are assuming that you already have a website, or you may be planning a new website and that you understand the basics of how search engines rank pages.
This is going to be a fast paced day, and it includes as much SEO knowledge as you can stuff into your brain!
You will leave the day with a written plan of action detailing the specific steps you need to take to optimise your website.
What Will I Learn?
* How to diagnose your website problems
* Create an SEO plan of action for your website
* Use search engine optimisation tips and tricks to increase your rankings and traffic
* Understand why some sites rank so highly
* Measure your SEO success
The Trainer
Susan Hallam is a leading Internet Marketing trainer and consultant, with more than 20 years experience in the information industry.
Why not come along and learn useful tips to improve the performance of your business on the World Wide Web.
Join the Twitter Evolution
Mon/Mar/09 10:41 AM
Today thd joined the world of
Twitter.
What is Twitter? Twitter lets you post updates, or small messages of 140 characters or less. These can be used to let people know what you are doing, services you are going to offer, events being attended, ideas you are thinking about, questions you need answering - the list goes on, only limited by your imagination.
You can send messages or updates by either visiting the website or sending a text message from your phone. This type of messaging services is also known as ‘micro-blogging’ - as the internet services expand so does the terminology.
Your Twitter updates or ‘Tweets’ can be also be incorporated into your website to give the viewer instant updates as to what your doing right now, latest project, latest offers or whatever you think they should know. Over the next couple of weeks the thd ‘Tweets’ will be added to the site so you can see how it works, check back to see the results. You can see the latest updates by clicking the link below.
What is Twitter? Twitter lets you post updates, or small messages of 140 characters or less. These can be used to let people know what you are doing, services you are going to offer, events being attended, ideas you are thinking about, questions you need answering - the list goes on, only limited by your imagination.
You can send messages or updates by either visiting the website or sending a text message from your phone. This type of messaging services is also known as ‘micro-blogging’ - as the internet services expand so does the terminology.
Your Twitter updates or ‘Tweets’ can be also be incorporated into your website to give the viewer instant updates as to what your doing right now, latest project, latest offers or whatever you think they should know. Over the next couple of weeks the thd ‘Tweets’ will be added to the site so you can see how it works, check back to see the results. You can see the latest updates by clicking the link below.
Improved Website Launched
Wed/Feb/09 12:45 PM
Today sees the launch of the updated
thd website.
After attending the course Internet Marketing on a Shoestring (archive Jan 2009) I came away with many useful improvements that needed making on the thd website. They have now been implemented, hope they make your experience easier and more rewarding.
The improvements include:
Thanks must go to Susan Hallam for inspiring the changes.
Hope you enjoy, thd
After attending the course Internet Marketing on a Shoestring (archive Jan 2009) I came away with many useful improvements that needed making on the thd website. They have now been implemented, hope they make your experience easier and more rewarding.
The improvements include:
- New homepage design including, ‘calls to action’, recent news and articles, improved layout
- Search engine optimisation , updated title tags, meta tags and descriptions
- Reorganisation of the pages on the site
- Inclusion of ‘News & articles’ blog pages
- Updated portfolio pages
- New contact page which includes on-line form
- Inclusion of a sitemap
Thanks must go to Susan Hallam for inspiring the changes.
Hope you enjoy, thd
Google @ Work Course
Tue/Feb/09 03:08 PM
Following the successful course Internet
Marketing on a Shoestring (archive Jan
2009), found via the Business Link West Midlands
site, Nigel from thd has booked
a place on the next course, Google @ Work.
At this event he will be introduced to and learn about the following Google applications:
The trainer at the event will once again be the engaging Susan Hallam, Internet Marketing Consultant. Lets hope the venue has a more stable internet connection this time.
Looking forward to it, will report back after the event.
At this event he will be introduced to and learn about the following Google applications:
- Introducing your Google Account
- Understanding & improving Google's indexing and ranking of your website using Webmaster Central
- Analysing the visitors to your site & how they behave using Analytics
- Offering eCommerce on your website using Google Checkout
- Improving your website using Maps, Mashups, Site Search & Gadgets
- Superior searching using Suggest, Trends, Alerts & Advanced Search
- Promoting your business on the web using Blogger, Product, Mobile and Base
- Discover productivity tools including Docs, Spreadsheets, Calendar, Desktop & Pack
- Communication tools using Gmail, Talk & Groups
- Personalise your Google experience with iGoogle
- Understanding the Google universe: Sketchup, Orkut, YouTube & More
The trainer at the event will once again be the engaging Susan Hallam, Internet Marketing Consultant. Lets hope the venue has a more stable internet connection this time.
Looking forward to it, will report back after the event.
Internet Marketing on a Shoestring
Fri/Jan/09 12:44 PM
On the 27th Jan 2009 Nigel from thd
attended an extremely informative course called
Internet Marketing on a Shoestring.
The course was featured on the Business Link West Midlands
site and held at the Lygon Arms, Broadway,
Worcestershire.
The speaker / trainer / font of knowledge, was Susan Hallam, Internet Marketing Consultant. She was excellent, entertaining, engaging and informative. So much so that the day flew past and the resultant headache from information overload was well worth it. If you are thinking about attending one of her course or using her in a consultant capacity I would highly recommend it.
The workshop was designed to help you harness the marketing potential of the internet. It showed you how to generate consistently high levels of the right kind of traffic to your website through employing simple and low-cost promotional techniques.
The event covered
During the event I was lucky enough to have a critique of the thd homepage. The points raised were both thought provoking and useful. I have taken them onboard and hope to implement the changes soon.
The event was a great success, the only negative part was the loss of internet connection by the Lygon Arms, which could have been an issue but was managed really well by Susan.
Many thanks to the organisers, Susan Hallam and Business Link.
Here's to a better internet experience for everyone.
The speaker / trainer / font of knowledge, was Susan Hallam, Internet Marketing Consultant. She was excellent, entertaining, engaging and informative. So much so that the day flew past and the resultant headache from information overload was well worth it. If you are thinking about attending one of her course or using her in a consultant capacity I would highly recommend it.
The workshop was designed to help you harness the marketing potential of the internet. It showed you how to generate consistently high levels of the right kind of traffic to your website through employing simple and low-cost promotional techniques.
The event covered
- How to design your website to get the ‘most desired response’
- Tried and tested techniques for your website health checks
- A look at recent developments, including blogging, podcasts, online press releases, MySpace / social networks
- How to use email marketing and easy steps for publishing an email newsletter
During the event I was lucky enough to have a critique of the thd homepage. The points raised were both thought provoking and useful. I have taken them onboard and hope to implement the changes soon.
The event was a great success, the only negative part was the loss of internet connection by the Lygon Arms, which could have been an issue but was managed really well by Susan.
Many thanks to the organisers, Susan Hallam and Business Link.
Here's to a better internet experience for everyone.
