A new SEO & Site Design Project – US!

Website usability reports say a website design with the color #444444 (a grey) valued text, and light background is optimal. This is primarily for readability.

Our current black background and white text site may not encourage people to read through the information provided for education when making a web development team selection. Enter my favorite thing in the world, redesign our site.

That’s not sarcasm, I really do love a new site challenge and what better way than use our site as an example in usability, functionality, and inspiration.

Part One – Sunday, November 1, 2009

Along with a hot pot of coffee and iPod blaring, I have begun the website redesign process. It didn’t begin by opening Photoshop and checking out my normal website inspiration sites, but by learning what SEO keyword phrases I should target.

1. I researched and chose keyword phrases we’ll target (Coffee #1);
2. Next I perused the top sites that ranked for these phrases (Bowl of Capt’n Crunch) ;
3. Finally for today, I took a look at the functionality behind these sites and determined what I liked vs. what could be done better, which of course we’ll try to improve upon.

Stay tuned….I’ll document the steps we take for the benefit of our prospective clients, and those looking to redesign their own website.

Credibility in an Incredible World

Credibility – worthy of belief or confidence; trustworthy says Dictionary.com..

Lets face it, times have changed.  No longer is business done simply by a smile and handshake, or accepted based a persons “word” as it once was.  Credibility has all but vanished from business in a sea of lawyers and greed.

That software you just bought and tried to install on Vista; when it doesn’t work you call the manufacturer for assistance.. If your lucky enough to talk to a live person, the first thing they try to do is look for a way out.. “There is a problem with your computer, check for updates, if that doesn’t work reinstall or call Micro$oft.”  A similar story when you call Micro$oft, “Nope can’t talk to you until you sign up for our $39.95 tech support package and when you do we’ll point the finger back at the software..”  Or try walking into your local car dealership and asking what your favorite car costs, you may get an answer after a 15 minute test drive and sitting in the sale persons cubical for an hour.  Or better yet, ask what the trade-in value of your car is..

The point is, credibility is no longer a given in todays business world; even to the point that the average consumer doesn’t even consider it when making a purchase.  Though it has been my experience that if you are able to build a personal relationship with a client, one that allows the client to look beyond the instinct “what’s this guy trying to sell me that I don’t need” and show them that you are a credible business, one worthy of trust and honest, sincere advice; your chances of a successful business relationship with them increases exponentially.

So how do we bring credibility back into business?  At graphXevolution, its simple..

1. Honesty – Be honest not only with the client but with yourself.  There is nothing wrong with saying to a client “I don’t know” because immediately following should be “But I’ll find out”.  Even the best person in their respective craft doesn’t know everything about it, there is always something to learn.  Be honest with yourself to know your limits and be honest with your client.
2. Be Upfront – Don’t be the sales man at the car lot that “has to talk to his boss” when really he’s just going to grab a cup of coffee.  Clients hate to be given a bill for additional charges, be it reasonable or not, when they are not expecting it.  Nine times out of ten, a business knows well ahead of time that extra expenses are going to be incurred.. don’t wait, talk to the client about it so they can prepare and are expecting it come invoicing time.  If you follow item 1 and are being honest, generally it does not become an issue.
3. Be Fair – Be fair, again, not only to the client but to yourself.  Charge a fair price for the value you bring the client.  You as a business have a nitch that makes you successful or you wouldn’t be in business, identify that and be truthful to its value.  I have found that being the lowest price isn’t always the best, many clients look to an average price rather then the cheapest.  Building credibility with that customer will often bridge the gap between your price and the “cheapest” because credibility in it of itself has a value.  Every business wants to make as much money as it can but be fair to yourself and your client.
4. Say what you are going to do & Do what you say – Identify in detail what you are going to do for the client and be truthful to that.  To me, there is nothing worse then saying you’re going to have a deliverable to them by a specific date and not being able to meet that deadline. Its like waiting for a package only to come home to the yellow sticky on your window because there was no one home to sign for it.  Obviously some things are out of control, but being honest and upfront (items 1 & 2) will help to ease the client.  If your being honest and upfront with yourself when planning deadlines, you can eliminate the vast majority of delays.

Building credibility into your business model can separate you from being another average company or the one that people talk about.  The best form of advertising is word of mouth, credibility is what people talk about next to price.. “They did a great job on my website, gave me exactly what I needed without the stuff I don’t.”..  ”Well so and so did my site but they didn’t tell me that the artwork wasn’t mine, they sold me a blog but What’s a blog?“.  At graphXevolution, we are not the cheapest nor the most expensive but our credibility along with knowing our nitch and keeping within it have allowed us to be successful both in business and in customer satisfaction. We take great pride in not having a “list of references”, rather a portfolio of which anyone can be contacted.

Supreme Zipper Signs gXe For Website Development

Supreme Zipper of Lakeville, PA and New York City, NY has signed graphXevolution on as their official website developers.

Initial work will include an information website that will educate retail and wholesale customers alike on the uses, function and countless configurations of zippers. During the informational build up, further development in the areas of CRM, e-Commerce and marketing will be designed and implemented.

Stay tuned for the first peeks of the design. Site launch is set for mid-December 2009.

Facebook nearly as large as U.S. population

Facebook’s user base is nearly as large as the U.S. population and, for the first time, the site has turned a profit. Facebook now has 300 million users — almost as many as the population of the United States. Facebook now has 300 million users — almost as many as the population of the United States. That was the double-barreled announcement Tuesday from Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who thanked the site’s users for helping its online community cross the 300 million threshold. There are about 307 million people living in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. “We’re just getting started on our goal of connecting everyone,” Zuckerberg wrote on the company’s blog. “Because we want to make it as easy and fast as possible for the world to connect, one of the things we think a lot about is how to make Facebook perform even faster and more efficiently as we grow,” he wrote. “We face a lot of fun and important challenges that require rethinking the current systems for enabling information flow across the Web.”

Read the entire story here at CNN…

Our Newest Site, Wayne County Library System

Launched on August 21, 2009, the Wayne Libraries official county website was unveiled to the public.

The combination of easy to read, easy to navigate interface along with many dynamic features both visible to visitors and only for the eyes of administrators, the site proves to be a great accomplishment and one that will help the local community.

A custom calendar of events was developed for the site to give the community a resource of activities at their local library, and a content management system with user permissions and branch accessibility will keep the site fresh.

Chosen For Universal Publishing Web Development

Thank you to Universal Publishing for choosing gXe as their official web design and e-commerce development agency. In the coming months, a new website design for Universal Publishing, located in northeastern Pennsylvania who is in the business of producing educational materials, will be completed.

Utilizing a FABULOUS E-commerce solution and Web Development platform in one, Universal Publishing will have a state-of-the-art website that allows top level customer service, marketing and Web 2.0 semantics.

Stay tuned for updates on the progress of the web development.

RIP IE6…If you still use Internet Explorer 6, PLEASE Switch!

As responsible Web Developers who provide our clients with the best web design services, cutting edge applications and web development that is accessible by everyone, we always test our sites in IE6 (Internet Explorer 6).

Do we like it? Not one bit! Do we need too? Yes unfortunately we do. However, if you still use IE6 we can tell you that a good majority of sites on the internet, the really good ones, are never done any justice being displayed in IE6.

They don’t look nice, they are choppy and never look the way a designer intended…unless it’s a solid background and uses minimal imagery. There have been dozens of times when a client says, “um, eww” and we have no idea what they are talking about, until we ask “what browser are you looking in?”.

So, below is a link to a site, giving IE6 a respectful, but non-tearful goodbye.

If you are still using IE6, we ask you to switch to either IE7 or 8, or Firefox or Safari. You haven’t seen the web until you’ve broken free of IE6.

IE6 Bugs, Problems, Fixes, Solutions, Tips & Tricks, Hints? NO MORE! .:. RIPIE6.com

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Social Media Eye Tracking Study – Website Magazine – Website Magazine

If you ever wondered about those ads you see on the right side of Facebook, check this out. I am a HUGE proponent of not using AdWords unless you absolutely have to. I am a HUGE Fan of organic search results and know that most people don’t really trust the right side or sponsored links on search engines.

HOWEVER…the ads on Facebook even catch my eye and this article show I’m not the only one.

Social Media Eye Tracking Study – Website Magazine – Website Magazine

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Chosen by Minella Pools for Web Services & IT Work

Minella Pools, Inc. located in Old Forge, PA has chosen gXe to re-develop their site as well as provide SEO and IT services.

With Minella Pools added to our client base, graphXevolution can proudly say we provide web design services and development for over 60 of the area’s businesses.

Stay tuned for more exciting news regarding new and upcoming projects.

Even Small Business Needs Big Web Design

Take a look into our web design portfolio and you will notice that we work not only with big and medium size businesses, providing web development they need to get ahead, but we also work with small business. In today’s market/economy/whirlwind, every business deserves to be given a boost in their online marketing efforts.

Not only are we working on web development projects for companies such as AMSkier, Minerals Technologies and the like, but also working hard on the web design of smaller companies such as Valley Water Services, Action Plumbing and Rubber Duckie Boat Rentals.

You may think web design services are out of your budget, but if your web development team listens closely, they will be able to assess your needs, develop a proposal that fits your budget and recommend a web design plan that incorporates phases for cost effectiveness.

If you’ve been seriously thinking that you need online marketing, or a web redesign, drop us a line to discuss your needs. You won’t be disappointed!