So what’s the connection between a website and a party? Consider your website as your brand ambassador — your host/hostess — smartly dressed but not over flashy. The overall theme is decidedly trendy but not so funky that it will become dated tomorrow. Can people find you (the host) and your location? (Note how many times this week you can’t find a phone # on a website). Then there's content, your community and the conversation. Plan ahead. Match your theme to your attendees.

Join your peers and industry leaders Wednesday, April 29th from 6:00 – 8:30 PM at 28 Degrees in Boston to see what site deserves an Extreme Website Makeover!

I promise not to shout MOVE THAT MOUSE! But, I will do a before and after presentation to show how the winning website has:

• Branding — serves as a brand ambassador — a party host per say!
• SEO features — keywords and design to attract and wow a crowd
• Call to action — lead capture tools; ways to draw an audience
• A RSVP or more info spot
• Means to get the buzz into the community

These aren't just nice things to have in a good web site design, they are required. So why do so many web sites fail? Why are so many parties boring? Because web technology, search, and social networking have rapidly changed the overall marketing and community landscape.

Keeping up with the latest technology requires constant effort. For example, when you scroll down a page, you move away from the navigation bar. To solve this usability issue on our blog, we found a nav bar that follows you down the page. Although there are multiple solutions for this, we chose one that has a smooth sliding movement — like a Travolta move (on most current browsers) and stays in a fixed position on older browsers.

"Search" is the hip party term for all things relating to Search Engine Optimization. Making your site searchable goes much deeper than just getting found. With concerted effort and smart design, you can get your company cataloged, linked to, and talked about. Searchability really is key. This can be done by carefully planning the hierarchy of content, and by using keyword-rich typography as a design element. Good design firms optimize the back-end code for search and include unique keywords on page titles. Extraneous code is separated from the main pages to allow for easier indexing of content by search engines. (See some upcoming trends on the Search Engine Journal blog.)

Social Networking blends both technology and search into an additional network of interactivity and community. (Read Bob Cargill's post: Five Important Questions to Ask Yourself Before You Use Social Media) To start with, social networking helps your company on a brand loyalty level. Customers who "belong" will not only promote your brand, but will protect it as well through blogging, comments on other blogs, and recommendations. Social networking is also viral. So the more people who are in your network, the faster (exponentially) you are able to broadcast your message. And social networking offers opt-in subscription models to ensure that people who want to hear from you never miss your message.

Usability is often overlooked in favor of fitting all the "right" content on the page. Of course you have a lot to say, but you need to show restraint in your message. Say only what you need to in order to get the desired response. Other usability factors include section titles, navigation options, and e-commerce paths. Make it easy and quick for your users. Give them a positive experience so they talk about you and come back for more. Note to self: When is our next party?

Call-to-Action — What are you trying to get your site visitor to do? Buy a product? Download a demo? Sign up for a mailing list? Call you on the phone? Whatever it is, it should be everywhere and prominent. Stay focused on the call-to-action. The purpose of your web site may not actually be to educate the user about your product, but to get them to buy it. Educate only as much as you need to achieve that goal.

You'll see what I’m talking about on April 29th. One lucky organization will be selected for a homepage redesign, social media PR makeover and email marketing offer. In front of a partying crowd of marketers, social media makers and my peers, I'll show you a quick before and after presentation. Complete with gratis martinis and tasty apps. Networking and tweeting is optional! Sign up here!

Labels: call-to-action, Google Search, innovative usability, lead capture, search engine marketing, search engine optimization, SEO, social networking, Web design, website redesign

How do you get more traffic to your web site? Google has become very good at steering visitors to relevant content. So the real question is: how do you make your content relevant to Google? Its all about the keywords.

We just started using a web-based software product called WordStream and we think it’s pretty slick. Overall, we love the Keyword Research and Long Tail Keyword Management.

Basically, WordStream lets you create and manage a “keyword database” for paid and natural Search Engine Marketing. Discovering and organizing keywords is a crucial part of PPC and SEO, and the tool has a pretty innovative approach to both. Here’s a quick run-down of how it works:

Step 1: Create a Keyword List
First, you get keywords into the system. You can use either a traditional keyword research tool (like Google’s or WordTracker), import analytic data, or, our personal favorite, use WordStream’s log file parser to extract search history from your site’s log files.

Step 2: Organize Your List
Next the tool allows you to strategically organize the keywords very simply and easily. This is probably the most powerful feature. The software scans your keyword list and suggests keywords you should group together, based on the number of similar keywords, the amount of traffic they drive to your site, and conversion data.

Step 3: Let WordStream Suggest New Keywords
There’s also a search-focused Web analytics package. You install a snippet of Java Script on your site, and the keyword tool will record each new search query people use to reach your website, providing a constant stream (get it?) of new keywords. You can either manually review the new keywords, or let WordStream group them for you and add them to your keyword lists and paid search campaigns.

Step 4: Create and Maintain AdWords Ad Groups
WordStream has API integration, so that you can have any of those keyword groups you created dynamically managed by the software. They also offer some tools for the maintenance of all these researched and segmented keywords. You’ll be able to create filters, associate negative keywords, and prioritize workflow.

WordStream will measure the performance of not only keywords, but keyword groups and segmentations to let you know what works, where you should be spending time, and what you should do next to generate maximum returns.

We're still learning it, but so far, we really like it. Check out the free trial and judge for yourself!

Labels: keyword research, keyword tool, long tail keyword management, negative keywords, ppc, web analytics, wordstream

I haven't been this inspired since visiting the museums of Paris last summer. Come to think of it, I might not have actually been back to a museum since last summer, but that's beside the point.

Shepard Fairey was not the reason I went to the ICA this weekend. I went because my good friend Mark, who is a crazy artist like myself, was in town and he hadn't seen the new ICA in Boston yet. I actually wasn't looking forward to a bunch of red and blue portraits, and I had already grown tired of the imitators.



From the moment we entered the gallery, I was blown away by the pure craftsmanship of his work. His crisp authoritative style and satirical content made me want to laugh in awe. On closer examination, his work is beautifully balanced, and intricately detailed.

What made me even prouder, was that this was graphic design, in an art gallery. Sure, his work is full of political and social statements, but he communicates them beautifully. There's not a lot of room for interpretation, his message is clear. As a good design should be.

If you have a chance to make it to the Shepard Fairey's show at the ICA in Boston, I fully encourage you to do so. It's an experience you won't regret. What are your thoughts on Shepard Fairey and/or his work?

Labels: Graphic Design, ICA Boston, Shepard Fairey

There are over 182 Million web sites out there according to Netcraft. So what makes your site findable, usable, and effective? A good web site design should have three basic things on every page: search engine optimization, a good user interface, and a strong call to action. If your web site doesn't focus on these things, your target audience will just move on, or not find you at all.

Search Engine Optimization
This is a huge topic, but I'll talk about some web design basics.

1. You need a list of key phrases. If you are a web design company, "web", "design", and "company" are horrible keywords. But "web design company" is a good one. Think about key phrases as opposed to words. Include your city in there as well. The more keywords you can come up with, the better.


2. Target the keywords to your pages. You can't effectively target more than 5 keywords per page. Three is a better number. Start with the page title bar. Use your keywords there, and then in the copy of the page. Links using keywords are great, too. Instead of saying "See our web design work here" use "See our web design work here". Lastly, take a look at your copy, and see where you can inject your keywords more often. You need to balance effective communication with adding additional keywords, but it's usually not that hard, just time consuming.


3. Code the site correctly. A good web designer will use HTML searchable text, not text in a graphic. True, you can't get too crazy with fonts this way, but findability is more important than how it looks. And there's a lot you can do with HTML fonts anyway. Images should always have ALT tags, with keyword-rich descriptions. Headlines using tags hold more weight then body text. And if you can get keywords into the actual file names, that's even better.

A good User Interface
This obviously starts with an easily understood nav bar.

• Navigation is expected either on the top or the left side of the page. If you deviate from that, it will be harder to find. Don't forget that most web surfers are still a bit technically challenged.


• Keep the navigation options to the minimum. The more options you give someone, the harder it is to choose


• Buttons should look like buttons. And if it isn't a button, then don't make it look like one. (Sounds simple I know, but we've all clicked away on that thumbnail image waiting for it to do something... waiting... grr — not a button.)


• Wording on the buttons needs to be obvious. Don't put product names on buttons. They make sense to you, but not to your visitors. Also, don't get cute with titles like "The Team" and "Home Runs." What does "Home Runs" mean anyway?


• Don't forget that the user interface includes proper labeling of areas of the page, including the name of the section that you're actually in. A depressed button usually isn't enough to tell you where you are.

A Strong Call to Action
What's the point of your web site? Is it for lead generation? Or are you selling a product? There should always be a call to action on every page if you can. The top right column is ideal for this for a couple of reasons. It's usually space that's available, and it's where people expect to see an important announcement. Make your call to action prominent, and you'll see an increase in action.

What's interesting, is that all of these things can usually be done to a web site without requiring a complete redesign. If you'd like an analysis of your site's effectiveness, post a comment below and we'll check it out!

Labels: call to action, search engine optimization, user interface design, Web design