Website Design and SEO Blog by Malcom Chakery

No matter what side of the business industry you are a part of, whether it is product development, marketing, web design, etc…you know how important it is to keep up with the latest trends of your trade. You may do this through frequent watching of the news, following business analysis leaders on Twitter, reading assorted magazines and, most likely, reading your company’s data reports. All of these practices help you stay up on the latest and greatest in your industry’s trends.

Now, to make keeping up with industry trends even easier, you can use a great new tool from Google. This tool, called Google Correlate was released just last week  and allows you to upload your own data series and see a list of search terms whose popularity corresponds with what is really happening in the world in relation to the information that you provided.

For instance, when Google use this tool to compare the term “CDC Influenza rate” they found that the number of times people search the web for information on influenza was a near match for the number of people who have/had this ailment. The test period was from 2006 to 2010 and when the graphs were laid one on top of the other, the results virtually imposed on each other.

Google Correlate also allows you to enter in a search term or long tail phrase and find out what other terms were searched for during the same period or perhaps you would like to search by state (i.e. snowfall in Washington, Wyoming and Maryland). Keep in mind, that this Google tool follows the privacy control requirements. In fact, they rely on the anonymity of its users and the searches they make in order to make this data (and any other information) available.

So, if you are looking for a new way to check what is going on in your industry, take advantage of this great Google tool. Remember, knowledge is power; what you do with that knowledge is up to you.

About the author

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.

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.

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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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.

 Recently a friend shared an experience with me regarding internet use. She had wanted to download tickets for a local event. Unfortunately, the site was not compatible for mobile users, so  she was unable to follow the link that was sent to her for printing the tickets. Happily, she was able to contact the person heading up the event and get her tickets that way, instead.

However, her frustration made me wonder how many sites there are that have not updated to suit the needs of today’s mobile consumer. After all, if you are trying to sell a product or service you don’t want to lose customers simply because your site cannot be navigated on a mobile device.

If you have yet to update your website for the mobile user, consider this. Cisco has predicted that worldwide mobile traffic will increase by 25 times between now and 2015, largely in part to the extensive amount of video consumption on today’s mobile devices. (Website Magazine, April 2011) So, if you have a company that is primarily a web-based business and have yet to make your website mobile-friendly, then you will ultimately loose a large percentage of new customers—and perhaps some of the existing ones.

 In a day where money and budgeting is tighter than it has been decades, this is not the time to decide that upgrades are unnecessary. After all, you want your website to be user –friendly so your sales increase and your site guests can’t wait to come back and visit again. Make sure your website is on the move so your customers will not move on to someone else!

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.

We all know that social networking is one of the hottest Internet trends out there – Facebook alone boasts more than 500 million users, with sites like Twitter and LinkedIn gaining ground fast. In fact, it reminds a lot of us in the web design and online marketing industry of the early days of search engine optimization, when business owners and marketers figured out that, by tweaking some of the elements of their sites, they could attract thousands of targeted web visitors every week.

And so, the question comes up in client meetings:  is social media marketing the new SEO?

The true answer is that it both is and isn’t. It is, in the sense that it’s an exciting new idea that both consumers and businesses are flocking to. Whether your business sells to individuals or Fortune 500 mega-companies, using social media should be a part of your plan for finding them.

It isn’t because search engine optimization and marketing aren’t going anywhere soon. Bear in mind that, popular as social networking sites are, Google alone brings in billions of visitors each day. That’s not changing anytime soon, which is why you need to constantly refine your SEO strategy.

Social media is gaining popularity every day, but don’t expect it to replace what you’re already doing just yet.

About the author

Malcom | Chakery Design | Website Design | SEO | Website Development