How we fixed our referral spam problem
It started with me saying “Hey look at all the traffic we’re getting!” Great, right? Who doesn’t want more traffic to their site? Except it was on a domain that I had taken offline a couple of months ago so there was no way someone could actually visit the site. Mystified, I took a closer… Read more »
Going Mobile – How Responsive Design Solves the Device Dilemma
A quick look at any of our clients’ analytics will reveal an undeniable trend, year over year more people are visiting their sites on mobile devices. In the last few years, there’s been a tremendous amount of discussion about how to ensure your site works well across all kinds of devices and screens.
If you’ve been wondering if you need to invest in the development of an app to make sure your site seen on mobile devices – there’s good news on the web front. It’s a one-stop solution for browsers big and small and it’s called Responsive Design.
Facebook’s flaws exposed in this great video
Can advertising with Facebook can actually decrease engagement? A while back I watched a great video – an exposé on the reality of advertising with Facebook. More recently an article on Business Insider by Jim Edwards relays a bitter dispute between Facebook and a successful fashion company right here in Toronto pointing to the same issues explained… Read more »
How to Get Your Blog Post Read: Tips for Great Photos
I’d like to share with you one of the ‘secrets’ of good blog posts. Ready? Here it is: great images. But what if you aren’t a photographer? Well, as Martha Stewart found out tweeting her badly, phone-snapped pictures of restaurant meals, the quality of your images really matter. Here are three ways to get great, interesting… Read more »
Can your marketing make me cry? WestJet Video is a Slam Dunk
Okay, I’m not going to lie: WestJet’s Christmas themed video made me a bit teary. This is my pick for brand-building video-of-the-year. And here’s why: It is a story brilliantly told and executed It taps into the sentiment of the season It never tries to sell anything but at the same time subtly reminds us… Read more »
How to write for your blog – getting started
If you’ve ever wondered “how do I write a blog post?” you’re not alone. I probably get asked this question more than any other in my business. Our clients know that a blog is a great vehicle to tell their stories, answer questions and help their customers and followers, it’s just the doing it, that’s the hard part.
We’ve had many phone meetings to help our clients get the blog ball rolling. Finally we’ve coalesced all these calls into a top tips, how-to that we hope will help ignite the writer in you.
If you’re new to blogging, your blog is lying dormant, or you’re questioning your ability to do this blog thing, this article is for you.
Web Design & Development: Why Simple is Hard Work
Have you ever watched a figure skater all of sudden pull a triple axle out of thin air? One minute he’s gliding across the ice and next thing you know he’s twirled, almost clearing the boards and swoosh, down to the ice again. It all looks so effortless that in the back of your mind you think with a little practice, you too could pull off at least a double.
Of course the reality behind that super-human moment are thousands of hours of ice time and as many bruises along the way. But whatever the sport, it’s that moment where something is rendered almost simple that is the culmination of all your efforts.
And simple is precisely the user experience we seek to offer when visitors arrive at your website. As Steve Krug famously wrote about in his book, Don’t Make Me Think, a great website should allow users to accomplish their goal as easily as possible. The zen feeling of a well designed site belies the hard work that led to this moment.
5 Clear Cut Reasons to Budget for Video This Year
If you’re wondering if video is important for your site, if it would enhance your content and help build an audience, the answer is YES.
“But hold on,” you say. “You don’t even know me or my business.”
And you’re right but my answer remains a firm, enthusiastic YES! I can’t conceive of a business or other organization that would not benefit from video.
So let’s make the case right here and now!
An Introduction to SEO and What You Need to Know
Anyone charged with the responsibility of a website today is likely familiar with SEO or search engine optimization. Or more likely, you’ve heard of it and you know it’s important that someone on your team understands it.
For newbies to SEO here’s what all the fuss is about
Behind the list of results Google suggests in response to your keyword or phrase, is a complicated algorithm (actually algorithms, plural) that assess each possible website across a dizzying array of parameters for the query at hand. The main algorithm and bolt-on algorithms are being tweaked and modified regularly to keep black-hat SEO’s from gaming the results and to take into account changes in how content is judged to be relevant.
3 Great Reasons to Feed Your Blog
The last few years for us has seen a spate of redesigned and developed sites for several long-time clients. Many of their old sites didn’t incorporate a blog. In the early site planning meeting this usually meant a conversation about the new blog. If clients haven’t been blogging, there is often an uneasiness about this idea of a blog – even today. “What is this blog thing anyway?”, “I don’t know if we can do it” and “we don’t really have anything to write about.”