Website Design and SEO Blog by Malcom Chakery

Are you looking for a way to improve your bottom line? Do you feel as though you are sending frequent e-mails or printing and sending numerous fliers through the USPS? Maybe, you have even tried the “old fashioned” phone calls to promote your company? If  you are doing any (or perhaps all) of these methods to boost your business but want to do more, then this is a good time to take advantage of social media sites like Twitter, YouTube, Facebook, or LinkedIn.

Despite recent reports that social media is only responsible for 12% of sales, this is not a reason to overlook its benefits. After all, Facebook alone has more than 500 million users! Essentially, the lower percentage is simply because social media is still an undeveloped realm in the world of building one’s market. However, if you are willing to start making your mark in social media, then there are 2 keys to success that will help you build your company’s social media marketing campaign:

What are your expectations? Market researchers did a recent survey and found that 65% of consumers who “Like” or “Follow” a company do so in order to get discounts. Conversely, another study found that most businesses use social media in order to get to know their customers better.

Have you been found? Rather than spending time and money courting consumers to come to your company’s social media site, let the consumer come to you. Studies have found that when a consumer comes to you, then they are more likely to be a dedicated customer.

Using social media to promote your business is not likely to disappear any time soon. Yes, there are other ways to advertise, but the number of options and locations are only getting better. The savvy business owner is one who gets involved now, by taking advantage of the many ways social media can be utilized to promote their business.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com or you can reach him by calling 1-855-CHAKERY.

Recently, Google Analytics has made some exciting new changes sure to delight anyone who uses their services on a regular basis. These changes include a plethora of features designed to make Google Analytics even more user friendly to the business website. And while all the quirks of the upgrades may not be 100% eradicated (and new web product is ever 100% bug free when it is initially released?), that should not hold one back from taking advantage of the great features now available.

So what are these new features available on Google Analytics? Check this out!

· Users can have up to 20 different dashboards and each dashboard can have up to  12 widgets

· Users can set interaction goals like tracking, optimizing file downloads or how many videos are viewed.

· Graphing and comparing metrics over a set time frame

· Toggling between profiles and sites while focusing on a specific report

In addition to these great new features, Google is also working on these options:

· Exporting reports to PDFs

· Emailing reports

· Migrating reports from the old analytics system  to the new one

· Linking new AdWords and AdSense accounts to the upgraded analytics system

· Scheduling e-mails

· In-Page Analytics (a report that lets you see how guests use your website, see what they are clicking on and learn how your site is meeting their needs)

These changes come in addition to new sources for increased exposure through social sites such as Quora, GoWalla and Plixi. These personal networking sites allow you to drive traffic to your site as well as increasing opportunities for exposure and conversion rates. If these sites are unfamiliar to you, don’t fear. According to Website Magazine, they definitely have value as places that drive traffic to your site. Other places you may want to consider for getting website exposure are:

· Pulse.yahoo.com

· Classmates.com

· CafeMom.com

· Fanpop.com

· FormSpring.me

· Circleofmoms.com

· Fotolog.com

· Woome.com

So, what about you? Are you ready to make the Google switch? Why not take a few minutes to check out the new and improved Google Analytics and see what it can do you for you!

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com orwww.chakeryseo.com. Or feel free to call 1-855-CHAKERY.

As the economy continues to struggle, retailers are forced to do all they can to promote their brand and build up their customer base. And whether it is through coupons, special events, sales or promotions it is vital that they make efforts to get their name and their products/service in the public eye.

Of course, when it comes to online shopping, the competition is even steeper as comparison-shopping is as easy as a click of the mouse. In fact, statistics show that there are more than 100 million people using comparison-shopping sites like Google Products each month. Consequently, having your site seen on a comparison-shopping site is a huge boon to your business. If you are eager to get your brand out there, here are five tips to keep in mind:

Don’t be shy!-If  budget is an issue, check out free comparison shopping sites such as LeGuide.com, caboodle.com or Shopwiki.com to get started. Take some time to research which sites will work best for your needs.

Take your time when preparing your data.-Use the best images of your product, have content that is free of typos, use accurate titles, the best client reviews and anything else you can put together that will make your products shine.

Get their attention.-Use coupons, special promotions or whatever you can use to promote your product and show consumers that you want them to use your product, but are aware of their desire to save money.

Don’t run out of your product!-Pay attention to how much of the product you have available. You will not build your business if you run out of the promoted product(s).

Continue to do your homework.-Once your products have been listed on comparison-shopping sites for a while, take some time to do some analysis and determine what products are doing the best and make whatever adjustments are needed. Sites such as become.com offer customer service help and the metrics tools to help.

At Chakery Design, we want to see you succeed. Branding is an important part of that success. Call today @ 1-855-CHAKERY if you would like to learn more about promoting your business.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com orwww.chakeryseo.com.

What’s in a Name? 10 Tips for Selecting a Domain Name

If you are considering a new website-whether it is a brand new one or an affiliate of an existing business-one of the most important considerations is the domain name of the business. After all, the domain name is how people will find your business online so you want that name to be easy to remember while letting people know whom or what it is your company does.

Your domain name (also known as your web address or URL) should meet several basic criteria, in order to be easily remembered. These important elements of a domain name include:

The domain name should be easy to type and remember.

Domain names should not be more than 67 characters; this includes numbers and characters.

Avoid hyphens as they are inconvenient to type and are often left out of the web address-especially when it is spoken rather than written.

While keeping the domain name short is recommended, do not make it so short that it is cryptic or difficult to remember.

Avoid using “my” or “the” as part of the name. If you do use my/the be sure that you always include them when you say the name. (e.g. Mynewsite.com  not newsite.com)

Avoid plurals or misspellings as they can be forgotten or overlooked.

Select a name that represents you well; include a keyword to improve search engine rankings.

Ideally, you want the TLD (Top Level Domain) extension-.com ; however, .org, .edu, or .net are all good extensions as well. Less advisable extensions are .biz, .co, .us or other lesser known extensions.

Run any ideas for your domain name on BustAName.com  to determine if the name will work as well as you envision. You may also want to check Google Keywords to determine if there are any keywords that you might want to include.

Ensure that you are not violating any trademark issues. This can be checked at USPTO.com or Domain Law on sedo.com.

Once you have a domain name that you are pleased with and that meets as many of the criteria above as possible, you are ready to get started on building your website. Talk to Chakery Design about creating a website that is all you want it to be.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com orwww.chakeryseo.com.

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By now, you have likely realized that one of the best ways to give exposure to your company, without investing huge amounts of money in advertising, is social media. So, if you have taken the plunge and had a custom Facebook or Twitter design created, you now want to utilize it to the fullest potential. Recently, Mashable.com offered some tips for marketing your business through social media sites. Here is a recap of some  their ideas:

1. Show your human side. Be sure that comments and tweets sound like they come from a real person, not just some computer generated info. Have someone (perhaps a team of people) whose job is to keep post fresh an interesting. In addition, don’t stress out if there is a typo or misspelled name on the page. Simply post a note saying “Oops” and correct the error. This lets others know you are human. J

2. Have goal or focus group that you want to reach with your social media site. Thinking about this before you begin interacting online will save time in the long run and help build your brand as well.

3. Interact-Listen and respond to what your fans and followers are saying. Be sure to respond to questions and comments. This is a great way to let people know they are important to you. Also, it will allow you to deal with any negative situations before they result in a lack of business.

Have good content.  Don’t just focus on interacting with your fan base, provide them with something interesting to look at, read, listen to, etc. Consider using polls to find out what your followers are thinking about or are looking for.

Be sure you understand the differences in platforms. Twitter is best for basic customer inquiries, saying thanks, brand updates and basic conversational dialogue. Facebook is more like a community and is great for announcements. For many businesses, Twitter allows for more conversation than Facebook, which is why you see so many businesses, television programs and celebrities using it.

So, be social and build your business online. Whether you do all the communication yourself or have a team do the social media for you, you will be amazed at how something so relatively simple can make such a big difference in promoting your company.

About the author

Your website is one of the best tools you have for building your business. Think about it. Even if you are out of the office, people can visit your website and learn who you are and what you do whether you are there or not. Consequently, you want your website to be a positive user experience so your company will be successful. To ensure that your website is all you need it to be, here are five mistakes you want to avoid:

1.       Difficult to navigate- When people visit your site, they are looking for specific information. If they cannot find it, they will leave. Keep in mind that most web users have a limited attention span, so if your website is too difficult to find things on, they will go somewhere that makes knowledge gathering easy. This ease of use can be done through navigation icons, logical groups of related links and page-by-page information telling them where they are and how to get to another topic or page.

2.       Not having a call to action- Once you have traffic on your website, you want them to take the next step and purchase, sign up or contact you. However, be careful not to have multiple calls to action on each page as that will cause confusion. When you insert your call to action, keep these four elements in mind: size, shape, color and position.

3.       Color and contrast- Be sure that the colors used do not make it difficult for your guest to read-especially for those who may be color-blind or have poor vision.

4.       Content- Most people do not read unless they have to, and prefer to scan the material to get to the information relevant for them. Other elements of content are: Plenty of white space so the reader can focus on the content of your site, having information broken up into logical sections with clear headings and font sizes, and margins that allow the guests to peruse with ease. You should also be sure that your content is spelled and punctuated correctly, as this adds to the professionalism of your site.

5.       Clutter- Don’t overload your site guests with too much information in a minimal amount of space. Before placing an item on a page, ask yourself if it meets these parameters: Does it really need to be there? Does it promote and sell your product? Does the new item help guests get the information they need? Is it clear whether or not the item is a promotion or just content?  If you answer, “no” to any of these questions, then it may be a good idea to leave the item off the page or perhaps add a new page to the site.

These are just a few common mistakes made on business web pages. Don’t let your website suffer because of these mistakes.

About the author

Social media is one of the best ways available to promote your business. After all, with more than 500 million Facebook users worldwide the potential for increasing your business by 100% (or more) is totally achievable. However, if you do not do what it takes to attract customers, then it does not matter what the potential is. At Chakery Design, we want you to succeed help in every aspect of your business. One way we can do that for you is by creating a customized Facebook design for your company’s Facebook page.

A custom Facebook page design will help establish your brand. In addition, you can use your page to let your customers know the latest news about sales, products and special events as well as give people a sense of who you are. After all, it is a way to have your face on the web and you want it to be the best it can be.

Your Facebook design is most successful when it works in conjunction with your company webpage so you want it to have similar elements. Tabs for contest entries, about us, contact, home or landing page, video or picture gallery or a page with brief blog posts offer guests a chance to get to know you.

Not only do you want to attract new customers to your company, but also your Facebook design should allow customers to interact with each other as well as with you. Your company Facebook page is also a great place to collect client testimonials along with any input regarding services or products.

A custom Facebook design can also allow you to run targeted advertising campaigns, thanks to being able to keep up with what your customers are saying and asking for. In addition, you can deal with problems easily. For example, if a customer comments on Facebook that a particular item is unsatisfactory, you can address the problem quickly and thus build a stronger brand by showing you care.

Your Facebook design does not mean that you need to learn an assortment of applications or codes. You can leave all that to the Facebook designer. All you need to do is use your custom Facebook page to build your customer base so you can succeed beyond your wildest dreams.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com orwww.chakeryseo.com.

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When it comes to designing and developing a website, one of the most important features is that it is manageable. As a result, developers are frequently releasing new content management systems (CMS) so that web developers can easily update webpages, add new products, conduct surveys or any other element that will make their websites more profitable. These CMS may be a free open source program that allows anyone to make updates for it or the CMS may be a closed source, which is known for having tighter restraints so that the program cannot be changed by anyone.

But which of these is better? The answer has been much debated, but it ultimately comes down to what you need or want to be able to do with your site. If you have not made up your mind, here are some of the pros and cons of open and closed source CMS.

Open source CMS allows numerous people to work on the software, so anyone who understands coding can tweak the program to suit their needs. They will typically include instructions so you can change the open source system based on whatever criteria you have. Of course, the same ease of use can also result in your site being easily hacked, so you need to be sure to include as many security measures as possible. (However, these hacks are repaired quickly, as anyone who can write a patch can correct it.)

Closed source has better security and you are able to get help from the developer should you have any problems. Closed CMS programs grant the user the right to use the program based on parameters stated in the contract and usually forbids modification or distribution. Keep in in mind that if you have an e-commerce site, a closed source may not be your best option, but closed source will work well for other types of websites.

At Chakery Design, we use a CMS program called Gooey CMS that allows us to design a custom website based on your needs. We would love to work with you to create a website that promotes your company on the Web.

About the author

Just as your homepage is important to keeping your customer’s interest, equally imperative is having an effective landing page. If your company focuses on marketing, then one of the best ways to build clientele is with a landing page. These pages, sometimes called microsites, are designed to boost the number of site visits and sales through the use of marketing campaigns.

If you are considering a landing page, one of the most important things you can do is to be sure that the landing page is designed with search engine optimization in mind-to do less, will defeat the purpose. Of course, you do not want to fill your landing page with so many keywords that your page is not ranked. However, you do want your landing page to do the following:

Collect leads that will result in sales.

Get to know the visitors so you can follow up and seal the deal.

Help the potential customers understand who you are, what you offer and how you are different form your competitors.

Provide a way (e-mail, phone number, etc.) for guests to contact you should the customer not wish to leave their personal information.

Be sure that it is mobile device-friendly by keeping the navigation simple, URLs under 40 characters, having clearly labeled links and quick-loading interfaces (under 100 kilobytes).

Once you have determined how to best incorporate these objectives, you will want to design your landing page. When deciding the landing page’s look, be sure that it has subheadings that allow the guest to easily see who you are. You may choose to tell a story, include client testimonials, have a picture gallery or any other form of show and tell. In addition, your landing page should aesthetically pleasing with plenty of whitespace and an obvious call to action button.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

Perhaps the most important page of your website is your home page. And, while most of us have heard that you should never judge a book by its cover, when it comes to your website, its “cover” is often what decides whether a guest will stay or leave. Moreover, while you may think your website’s homepage is warm and inviting, your guests may not agree.

If you want to test the usability of your website, ask a friend who has not previously visited your site to do so and then give you their honest feedback. If they love it and find it easy to navigate, then you have done your research and executed a hip homepage. However, if they have more cons than pros, then you have some work to do. If you find yourself in this less than perfect place, here are some changes and considerations to make.

1.       Help guest be aware of what you are offering. If a site guest cannot easily find what it is they are looking for, they will leave. Conversely, if your homepage has too much activity, then you will lose them as well. Remember if you emphasize everything then nothing is important.

2.       Determine what your homepage’s goal is. Do you want to showcase products, introduce yourself to the customer or show off the latest press release? Whatever it is, make that your focal point. Ideally, your goal is to sell your service/product through presenting its qualities in a way that is inviting and clear.

3.       Optimize your homepage by using elements that support your conversion rate. For some sites this may be done with multimedia graphics while another may be better served with text or video. Keep in mind Dr. Tony Alessandro’s rule, “Do unto others as they want done to them.”

Simply put, you want guests to your homepage to have a cover that is inviting and interesting. After all, if they do not stay a while, you won’t have the opportunity to get to know them as clients or customers. Be sure that your homepage draws guests in.

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com or www.chakeryseo.com.

In their ever-changing effort to make the world’s most popular search engine more useful, the good people at Google are unveiling the new feature today that might seem familiar to a lot of users: a “+1” button that appears next to search results and sponsored ads.

What is the +1 change all about? Similar to Facebook’s “like this,” it’s a chance for searchers to note a result that they find particularly helpful, and to share that opinion with others in their (for now) Gmail network. In other words, when you click on +1, your contacts can see it if they run across the same search result. What’s more, Google plans to start compiling +1’s, possibly for integration into their search algorithm. Eventually, more +1’s will likely mean a more relevant site and better search positioning.

For Google, this is a great move. Not only does it add the possibility that searches will become more efficient, since people can now essentially “vote” on which sites and pages are most helpful, but it also makes the world’s largest search engine more social. Facebook and Twitter already offer similar options, and this is a smart way for Google to join the game. Additionally, it could make ads more valuable, as users can +1 those as well, giving certain marketers better exposure.

Only time will tell how +1 is going to shake out, but it certainly adds a new and interesting dimension to search engine optimization. By bringing users directly into the mix and asking for their opinions in a way that goes beyond simply finding out where they collect and spend their time, Google is essentially furthering their trend of rewarding sites with interesting, relevant content that’s written for people… not search engine spiders.

SEO is changing all the time, and mostly for the better. By giving users another tool to find what they’re actually looking for, what Google is really doing is giving you +1 ways to stand out in the crowd.

Tired of search engine optimization talk and want to start seeing results on Google, Yahoo, and Bing? Contact Chakery Web Design & SEO for a free consultation today!

About the author

Founder and President of Chakery Design, Malcom Chakery has extensive knowledge and experience in the workings of a web based business operations. Possessing great amounts of expertise in regard to marketing, seo, web design and development, Malcom is extremely comfortable handling all details regarding the day-to-day operations as well as the sales and support of his many high profile clients. With a clear plan in place regarding operational procedures, all aspects of web design, seo, and promotional activities are managed and overseen by Malcom before they are completed. As a stickler for detail, Malcom believes in providing greater than expected support, superior customer service, and innovative programs, making sure to go above and beyond customer expectations. To learn more about Malcom and his companies please visit www.chakery.com orwww.chakeryseo.com.