How to Select a Web Design Company

Today's businesses have come a long way form the mom and pop stores of a few decades ago. In fact, in today's society, many of the stores that were once able to only reach the people who lived within a reasonable driving distance are now selling their products to consumers world-wide and don't even have a physical store set up in the local business district.

Of course, most savvy business owners know this is possible, thanks to the beauty of the Web. However, while there are many successful web businesses out there, it is not a skill that one just picks up and implements into their New Jersey business plan without a bit of work. Fortunately, there are an abundance of companies in Boston, New York City and all across America who excel at designing web pages and have teams of people who work with the business owner's website to see the site gets plenty of guests-- often far beyond the clients expectations! So if you are considering having a web page built to promote your business, then you will want to choose a web design company that you can count on. In fact, you want them to build a site for you that will keep your site guest's attention. This is because studies show that when it comes to retaining a potential customer's attention and interest in your website, you only have 8 to 10 seconds to make your web pitch.

As you begin looking for a company, keep these factors in mind:

• In talking to a web design company, be sure you ask to see their portfolio. Not only will this let you know more about their work, but you want to use a company that has plenty of experience.
• As you look through their portfolio, note what types of businesses they have created websites for. Also do all the sites look the same? Remember, you are paying them to design a custom page, not just a cookie cutter template.
• When you contact the company, pay attention to how long it takes them to respond and by what method-phone, e-mail, fax, chat, etc. If you prefer to do business in person and the design company does not, you would probably do best to find another provider.
• Be sure to ask about the prices-even if the first interview is free- and to understand what the cost includes. Also, if you can't afford everything you want your website to include at the beginning, consider having the site built in stages so it can be updated over time. Do not, opt for a cheaper designer, like anything else, you get what you pay for.
• When talking to a website development company, be sure to find out if they will help you market your company. This can be done in a variety of ways, but the two most important is the use of Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Marketing.

To learn more about web design, seo and sem, visit 21 Thirteen Design. Article independently authored by Janet Slagell. The content herein may or may not reflect the views and opinions of 21 Thirteen Design. Click for search engine optimization and search engine marketing or visit WebDrafter.com's Blog.

How to Have a Website You Can Be Proud Of

For many years the public has been inundated with advertising in a wide variety of forms. From radio ads to television commercials, placards and billboards, and poster boards to newspaper spots, we are all familiar with advertising. And no matter what type of advertising is used, each method shares some common goals:

• To let others know where a business is
• To let people know what the business offers or can do
• To increase sales

Today's technology has added a new level of advertising potential. Now businesses, whether from New York City's Wall Street, Boston's downtown business district or start up businesses in New Jersey, can choose to have their presence known on the Web. After all, this is the age of technology. Where business owners where once limited to reaching customers via print or the airwaves, today you can utilize tools like social media and a website to increase your customer base exponentially. So, if you are considering a website for your business, or perhaps want the upgrade your existing one, here are 6 things you want your website to have:

1. Ease of use. Don't be so caught up in having a flashy design that you make purchasing your product difficult. Be sure to include features like and "About us" page, a "search" bar, and a simple to use "check out" or "contact us" page.
2. Don't blind your site guest. Having a webpage that uses every color in the spectrum is not only too busy, but it can also send the signal that you don't really know who or what your business is about. Keep the color scheme to 2-4 colors or consider a monochromatic theme. Along with this, be sure to pick a font and font size that is easy to read-"Curlz" or "French Script" might be great for party invitations but can be difficult to read for a website. A few basic font choices are Calibri, Ariel, Helvetica, New Times Roman and Georgia.
3. Don't use the phrase "click here" without giving an explanation of where the link will take them. With all of the Internet viruses people have become very wary of just clicking random links.
4. Don't have so many extra features that your site is slow to load up. Keep programming styles simple by using basic XHTML code, CSS style sheets, server side caching or external javascripts. Remember, the longer it takes for your site to load up, the more likely it is that potential customers will go somewhere else.
5. Have something unique to your website. Whether it is a special tool, an informative post page, contest, etc...having something unlike everyone else is a great way to keep others coming back.
6. Be sure that your site is rich in SEO and SEM writing and features. After all, without the effective use of key words, it is virtually impossible to get ranked in the top spots of a search engine pages.

For website design and development solutions visit 21 Thirteen Design. Article independently authored by Janet Slagell. The content herein may or may not reflect the views and opinions of 21 Thirteen Design. Click for search engine optimization and search engine marketing or visit WebDrafter.com's Blog.

A Website With the Proper Marketing & Search Engine Optimization Can Greatly Increase Revenue

Business competition can be fierce with such congested areas as New York City and Boston. New York City is the largest city in the U.S. Much of this population spills over into New Jersey. The population of New York City alone greatly surpasses 7 million people. The state of New Jersey in its entirety comes close in populace to New York City. Surprisingly, it is estimated that Boston does not even break the one million mark.
Despite Boston being dwarfed in size by NYC, both cities are major commercial and retail business hubs. As every business' financial situation has been constricted in the rent years, it is now more important than ever to maximize the effectiveness of the advertising and marketing dollars. Relying on the phonebook and news print advertising has become exceptionally expensive with the financial returns dwindling.
Websites, website marketing and website search engine optimization (SEO) is now the wisest advertising method in the present and will continue into the future. As of 2004 approximately 75 percent of the U.S. population had internet access according to Nielsen, which equates to at least 204 million people. Internet access and usage statistics have only increased since then. The rate of internet access jumps up when one examines urban centers.
With the proliferation of internet capable phones and virtually every person having available access to the internet, it only makes sense to focus a company's advertising dollars on website marketing. It is important for the business manager or owner to note the key difference between website marketing and website search engine optimization.
An analogy explaining marketing, although over simplified, is that marketing is essentially producing ads or information for the public to see. While this may seem effective the business manager needs to realize that while manufacturing advertisements, it does not serve any purpose if the ads are on billboards facing away from view. What this means is simply having a website does not mean that revenue will maintain its level or even increase.
A website properly developed and optimized for search engines means that search engines will be able to find a website more effectively and yield more pertinent results when words related to the business services or products are entered into an internet search field. Search engine optimization essentially steers the internet user to the business website.
Like all advertising, however, search engine optimization is not a one time deal. SEO is an ongoing process due to the rules, guidelines and restrictions which the search engine companies set forth. As a website developer regularly amends the website's behind-the-scenes information, traffic to the business website should increase as the target audience is more effectively reached. By reaching more and more people, assuming the website is a quality site, marketing should yield greater revenue.

For a free website marketing and search engine optimization quote visit 21 Thirteen Design. Article independently authored by Daniel Elliott. The content herein may or may not reflect the views and opinions of 21 Thirteen Design. Click for search engine optimization and search engine marketing or visit WebDrafter.com's Blog.