If you have heard all these buzz words: “facebook”, “linkedin” “twitter” “blogging” and are not sure where to start, and have made the decision to incorporate Social Media as part of your business strategy, then this would be the perfect place start to your journey into the “blogsphere”.

By popular demand, we are holding a 1 day event that will be the start of your education into Social Media. We will discuss all these platforms and how best to use these tools within your business to maximise marketing your business online. By the end of the day, you will be familiar enough to start to implement these tools into your Social Media business strategy.

Spaces are limited to a maximum of 10, so this will be on a first come first served basis.

Morning Session

9.30 – 9.45am Introduction

9.45 – 11am Overview and Introduction to Social Media

11am Tea/Coffee

11.15 – 12.15 Strategy Groups, working together to discuss best practice.

12.15 – 1.00 Lunch

Afternoon Session

1.00 – 1.45 Workshop Blogging

1.45 – 2.30 Worskhop LinkedIn

2.30 – 3.15 Workshop Twitter

3.15 – 3.45 Tea/Coffee

3.45 – 4.30 Workshop Facebook

4.45 pm Close

Date:

Tuesday 30th March 2010

Location:

The Royal Chase Hotel, Shaftesbury, Dorset SP7 8DB

Cost:

£195 plus VAT, (£229.13 inclusive) including lunch – payable in advance at time of booking

Spaces are limited, so to reserve a space, book now

No of places required

1 Person £229.13 2 People £458.25 3 People £687.38

NRG Bath was the first professional networking group that I joined and it has to be said that I was a little apprehensive before going along. My initial fears soon subsided and I really enjoy the company of fellow members. At the end of the day it’s about building relationships and having the confidence to recommend others.

NRG Bath is currently quite a small group compared to some of the others; and could benefit from increased support. This is by no way intended as a criticism, being a smaller group allows for some really good communication and a chance to learn more about each other. If you are at all interested in coming along I am sure the rest of the Members would be very pleased to meet you. If you would like more information visit www.nrg-networks.com

This country just grinds to a halt at the very hint of anything that resembles snow. In this day and age with such a vast array of technology at our fingertips; how is it that our economy suffered an estimated £600m per day according to the Federation of Small Businesses. I am not one to get on the ‘blame culture’ band wagon, however I do wonder if as a nation we shouldn’t take a deep look inside ourselves before we make wild broad sweeping accusations.

There are 2 plugins that I would recommend:

Akismet

The Akismet plugin should already be installed, to activate it follow the link in the plugin description.

This plugin checks comments against the Akismet web service to see if they look like spam or not. Anything marked as spam gets placed in the Spam folder accessible from the Dashboard.

WP-Ban

This plugin is for the more advanced user.

I would recommend using WP-Ban in conjunction with Akismet, when an IP number has sent you several pieces of spam then banning that IP number (and sometimes IP range) will reduce the amount of spam coming in. Some caution should be used with this plugin as banning your own IP number will prevent you from accessing your own site. A useful resource for those using this plugin can be found at www.ipaddresslocation.org where you can find information out about IP addresses and ranges.

Fortunately I love coding. We needed a booking calendar recently for some customers and were unable to find one with the functionality that was required. So after a little head scratching here is what I came up with.

Example Booking Calendar

It is natural that there will be a backlash against this kind of activity, to have a massive multi-lane motorway built in your back yard apparently overnight is a daunting concept, even more scary is trying to find your way onto it!

Like every thing in life these days; there has to be a strategy, a plan within which should be several key points. How much time to invest, how much money to invest and without doubt an idea of what you want to achieve; what is your goal, who do you want to attract.

Before we get too carried away it is important to remember that the traffic should be two way and informative. This is fundamental to what has become known as Web 2.0 don’t worry, this is not a new bit of software but a term to describe this phase of the internets development. This new phase is about opinion and being more personal and approachable. It is not enough for a business to exist now, it also has to have a character, opinion and a voice. Unless you have an endless marketing budget which allows you access to television and cinema advertising the Social Media Super Highway is the way forward.

We see part of our role as the Social Media Driving Instructors, you know how to drive, you’ve had a website for years; but you haven’t yet ventured onto the motorway and that is where we can help.

My Category Order

As a fellow Wordpress web designer, I found myself searching for a plugin to help organise certain categories in the sidebar. I didn’t want to exclude or order the categories via the code, as I knew that at some point the customer might want to do this for themselves, so my search began. The plugin which I found is called ‘My Category Order’, I found it extremely easy to use and will definitely use it again on other websites. Please follow the link to download and start using it.

1. Have a Point to your Blog.

Many people can easily start to ramble on about themselves and lose the whole point of why anyone would want to read their blog. Just remember people will only want to read and engage if there is something interesting to say.

2. Keep it Interesting.

If the topic you are writing seems a bit boring, and you think maybe uninteresting, find an angle for it. Imagine how that product or article would possibly come across in a TV series, or in a conversation. Has something funny happened to it or them? Find an interesting story to tell to keep your readers engaged.

3. Find a Captivating Headline.

Think about when you read the newspaper. You will be drawn to a headline that captures your imagination. The whole point about capturing readers is hooking them in in the first place. Create a headline like a newspaper headline and you’ll be surprised at the results.

4. Create Good Content.

This is really important. Now that blogging is becoming very popular there is a lot of competition out there. Ensure that your content stands out from the crowd. If necessary, take a bit more time to research and get it right. Like I said, don’t rush it. It’s better to have one really good blog a month than half-hearted attempts every week. Keep your focus and keep to your plan.

5. Keep your Blog to one Topic.

It’s easy to make the mistake of starting with one topic and then digressing and ending up 3 or 4 topics later, completely off track. This will really frustrate the reader then they will soon move on. Keep it simple and to the point and don’t try to overcomplicate it. If it helps, sit down and write simple headlines – Start/Intro, Middle/topical content, and End/summary and overview.
These are just a few tips for starters. Once you get going, and get flowing you will find it easy. Persevere and you will see the results, and let me know how you get on. Maybe include blogging as part of your New Year resolution. Feel free to email me and let me know how you’ve got on.

People doing business

So websites became an area for you to showcase your brochures, your products and your services, and as such were treated like a brochure – sat on a shelf, occasionally picked up and looked at, then put down again.

Nowadays, the internet has driven websites to change dramatically. The truth is that websites should have a healthy change on a regular basis, and moreover, websites should change as your business grows and changes. People too often forget about their website, but when worked in the right way, it potentially can be your silent salesman, at a far less cost too!

Signs to look out for that it may be time to change your website:

1. Your business has grown, your business strategy has changed and your products have changed – is this reflected in your website? Business change all the time, and the last bit of marketing to be informed is the website! Oh, we’ll get round to it eventually. Top tip here – treat your website as you would a member of your staff. Look after them and they will look after you.
2. Does your website have a “Call-To-Action” request on the home page? When anyone lands on your website, what do they see? And what do you want them to do? If they are not doing this – then it’s not working.
3. Does your website have new content regularly. Maybe you wrote the content a few years ago. If so, why would anyone want to re-visit your website? What is it telling them, that this is a company that hasn’t moved on.
4. Check out the design. If your design is looking a little 90’s, or the images are dated, or even if it looks a little hand-made. Visitors like to see new images, and easy navigation is paramount. You have 30 seconds to capture a potential customer, if your design is boring then your visitor will move on.
5. Fundamentally – how many customers comment on your website. Does Google drive a lot of traffic to your site? How many enquiries does your site return? If no-one visits and no-one comments, then it’s time for change.

Just remember that a website re-design is all about engaging with your customers. As web technology moves on, businesses move on and it’s not as expensive as you think. We promote Wordpress to many of our clients as we believe it is the perfect platform for expressing the character of your business. It’s versatile and robust with the ability to use as many plug-ins as you like to make it do what you want.

Get on board with the next generation of Web 2.0 and have your say!

We have just recently done a couple of presentations for local businesses in Somerset on marketing and the use of social networking sites in your marketing strategy, and my theory is right. There is a myth that it is a complete waste of time, and people just don’t get it. Presenting about the use of Twitter and how it can add value to your business, the feedback was “well I don’t want to know what so and so has bought at the supermarket?” My reply is simply well you’re following the wrong people. Twitter is not about people’s habits, it’s about sharing information and knowledge and connecting with people. Striking up relationships with new people you might never have connected with without the use of the internet.

Think of it as a party at your house. Invite people in, instead of offering them a drink offer a nugget of information and see what comes back. You never know it might be an even brighter, even more valuable nugget that is returned. What a great way to connect. There are businesses connecting every minute on Twitter and it’s a fantastic opportunity for individuals and small businesses to connect first hand with the big boys, should they so choose. Never before have people and businesses been so easy to access, so lets embrace this opportunity, open our doors and have a party!