Can you do marketing without using a marketing company?

Posted on by Anthony
This is a question many companies ask when it comes to looking at their marketing strategy. Marketing covers a wide range of techniques and avenues some of which can be done yourselves and others of which should be done professionally to get the best out of your budget. Google Adwords is an example of online marketing and many companies chose to undertake this themselves rather than outsource it. It is relatively easy to create an Adwords campaign, but creating one that works and gets the most out of your budget is something different all together. When setting up a campaign you need to be sure to check times your adverts run, keywords you target and match types along with negative keywords, locations and the content within your ad etc. If these are set up incorrectly then you can end up paying for clicks that are never going to convert in to enquiries or sales, essentially wasting budget.

Updating your website

Posted on by Anthony
A website is often an online profile of your business. It may be purely there to show information and images of the products and services you offer, or you may have an ecommerce website that actually allows you to purchase through it. All websites should be updated on a regular basis for customer experience and for security reasons. A customer wants to be able to read the most up to date information, so for example, if you have a product that has recently gone on sale then you should reflect this on your website as soon as possible. Also if there has been additional options added to the product or service, add these to allow your customers to add them to their basket. Security is another reason why a website should be updated. It is not only the content that should be added to but also the code may need to be tweaked or the content management system updated to allow if to function as... Read More »

Designing a responsive website

Posted on by Anthony
You may often here the term “responsive” when discussing website programming, but do you understand what it means? The term responsive website is used to describe a site that adapts to the device it is being viewed on to give the audience the optimal viewing and interaction experience. Many sites now have a mobile version of them, but still may not be responsive in terms of viewing the site on laptops / desktops with different screen sizes. Also some tables do not automatically show the mobile version of a website, so therefore it is a good idea to make sure that your desktop version is programmed in a responsive way. In order to do this, the code for the site must be written in a certain way, for example, you will need to use percentages for sizes rather than fixed pixel widths / heights. If you are unsure as to if your site is responsive then why not log in to Google Webmaster Tools and... Read More »

Becoming a web developer

Posted on by Anthony
If you have a flare for technology and like a challenge, then web development could be for you. There are many different ways in which you can get in to web development. It may be that you go through the education route, going to college or university to gain a qualification in programming, or you can chose to do a course online or take a job that offers training. Many web developers are self-taught and this can be a great way to learn the industry as long as you have a way of developing sites at home. Web developers program in different languages, some languages have similarities but each has its own advantages and disadvantages. Sometimes you are limited as to what language you can use depending upon the server you are going to be hosting the site on. One of the most important parts of being a web developer is being able to keep up with new advances in the industry and applying them... Read More »

Creating an app for your business

Posted on by Anthony
Many companies are now expanding their online presence but not only having a website and active social media accounts, but by developing an app for the Apple and Android store that their clients / suppliers can download. There is a variety of ways to use an app for your business. Some companies allow their users to log in, view or change details and even place orders where as other apps are a simplified version of the website. Depending on what functionality you need in your app will determine the cost. Some apps only cost a few hundred pounds to develop where as others can cost high in to the hundred thousand’s. Security is of utmost importance when developing an app so often this can be a large part of the cost. Ideally get a few quotes from developers for creating an app for you, check that they all have the functionality you need prior to agreeing to any quote.