2009 June | flyte blog: small business web marketing blog

Archive for June, 2009

Energy Services Group: Billing, Transactions & More for Energy Companies

Monday, June 29th, 2009

Last week flyte launched a new Web site for Energy Services Group, the retail energy industry's leading provider of transaction management (EDI), billing, and CIS, and wholesale energy services.

Which just goes to show you, we can build effective Web sites even when I have to ask the client to explain what they do every time we meet. Luckily, the folks over at ESG are extremely patient since they're used to working with everyone from the largest retail energy suppliers to entrepreneurs looking to break into the energy business.

ESG offers transaction management services, cash billing services, wholesale energy services and more. Besides having great, experience people working there, they also have unbeatable technology.

Flyte designed and built this site on WordPress, an easy-to-use content management system (CMS) that allows ESG to update their site, add new pages, upload images, embed video and more. Since WordPress was originally a blogging platform, adding an Energy Services Blog to ESG's Web marketing mix was simple. Flyte further helped increase ESG's online presence with search engine optimization including a keyword analysis and link building activities.

If you're interested in breaking into retail energy, or you're already in but want to build your business, be sure to check out Energy Services Group. If you'd like to build your own presence online, or increase your online visibility, be sure to check out flyte new media.

Posted in Web Site Launches | No Comments »

The Ultimate Google Analytics Video Guide

Sunday, June 28th, 2009

In the Holistic Web Marketing model, there are four components to a successful, effective Web marketing campaign:

Attraction: how to drive qualified traffic to your site
Retention: how to keep the lines of communication open after people have left your site
Conversion: how to get people to move down the sales funnel at your site
Measurement: tracking all of the above for continual improvement

It's that last piece–measurement–that's the focus of The Ultimate Google Analytics Video Guide that we just published at Squidoo.

This is a collection of the how-to videos we created for small businesses so you could put Google Analytics to use, along with some other important resources that will help you measure your growth and success online.

If you'd like more help understanding your Google Analytics, or installing a copy of the free software on your own Web site, just let us know.

Rich Brooks
Google Analytics for Small Business

Posted in Analytics | 8 Comments »

Southern Maine Community College Launches New Joomla Web Site

Thursday, June 25th, 2009

Flyte recently redesigned and rebuilt a Web site for SMCC: Southern Maine Community College.

Located on the edge of Casco Bay, SMCC is an excellent choice for high-quality, affordable education in Maine. It offers both career and technical programs as well as an associates degree in liberal studies.

In addition to information and resources for students (past, present and future) and faculty, visitors to the site can learn about the Business & Community partnerships and opportunities that the college offers.

Flyte built the site on Joomla, a powerful open-source content management system (CMS) so that the college could manage the site inhouse. Different departments can update and maintain their own sections of the site without having access to other departments. (You know, in case the math chair wants to prank the English chair for TP'ing his house.)

If you're looking for a stellar, affordable education in southern Maine, be sure to visit Southern Maine Community College. If you're looking for an attractive, professional Web site that you can maintain yourself, contact flyte new media.

Rich Brooks
Maine Joomla Web Design

Posted in Web Site Launches | No Comments »

English Immersion Courses on the Maine Coast of the USA

Tuesday, June 23rd, 2009

If you've been looking for intensive English courses–learning English as a second language–then you should check out a Web site flyte just launched.

The site is for the Acadia Center for English Immersion, located in Camden on the beautiful Maine coast.

Adult students receive individual attention, a personalized learning program, private and small group classes, total English immersion, family style meals, comfortable accommodations, and more…in short, "everything you need to improve your English quickly and enjoy a memorable learning vacation."

As I was reviewing the site before posting this I was stuck by this memorable testimonial:

"I began to think in English. I paid attention to others and listened carefully. I have never seen such beautiful scenery or the night sky with so many stars."

- Tomoko, teacher, Japan

You can become a fan of the Acadia Center on Facebook or follow them on Twitter; both accounts are fairly new, but will continue to add content over time.

Flyte built the site on WordPress, an easy-to-use content management system (CMS) that makes updates a snap, whether you're adding content, uploading images, embedding video or creating new pages.

If you're looking to speak English like a native (or better), be sure to check out the Acadia Center for English Immersion. If you're looking to grow your business online, be sure to speak to flyte new media today.

Rich Brooks
Web Design for Small Business

Posted in Web Site Launches | No Comments »

SEO: When Should You Begin Search Engine Optimization for a New Site?

Friday, June 19th, 2009

Dear Rich,

I've seen you say that one should start SEO (search engine optimization) before the launch of a new site. How is this possible?

–Confused in Calais

Dear Confused,

Although you can perform SEO at any point before or after the launch of
a Web site, I can think of three good reasons why it's better to start
with SEO:

It's less expensive. A good keyword analysis (an important part
of a healthy breakfast an SEO package) will drive your content and your copy; if you do it
after the site is built, you're in effect doing the work twice.
It's market research. A keyword analysis may uncover some
opportunities that you hadn't thought of yet; new topics to cover, even
new services to offer.
It will help focus your social media strategy. You can take your optimal keywords and start working them into your tweets, your Facebook fan page, your YouTube videos and your LinkedIn profile…all things you can be working on while your Web designer builds out your new site.

There is some parts of SEO that can't be
performed until after the site is launched, specifically a link
building campaign. Obviously, other
sites, blogs and directories won't want to link to a coming soon page; they'll be looking for something of value if they're going to be linking to you.

Rich Brooks
SEO for Small Businesses

Posted in Search Engine Marketing, Web Copywriting, Web Marketing | 6 Comments »

How to Send Branded Domain Emails from Gmail

Monday, June 15th, 2009

There's a number of reasons small business owners and entrepreneurs should consider Gmail as their primary email tool:

Great spam filters (the best I've used)
Your email is synced whether you're using the office computer, your home computer, a computer at the Internet café in Brussels, or from your iPhone
Insanely fast search
It's free
The threading of messages is fantastic (90% of the time)

However, the default setting of Gmail is to send your emails from you@gmail.com. That's not so good for a small business (or any business) that's trying to brand itself. You want all of your emails to come from you@yourcompany.com.

(For those of you who still have your AOL email address on your business card it's time to step up. Your email scribbled on a cocktail napkin has a more professional feel.)

And no, Gmail's not perfect and it does take some getting used to; perhaps the topic of another blog post & video.

In the short video below I'll walk you through how to add your domain-branded email to Gmail, and how to make it the default email on your account. Or, you can watch How to Send from Another Email Address Using Gmail at flyte's YouTube channel.

Rich Brooks
Web Design for Small Business

Posted in Entrepreneur & Small Business, flyte news, How-To Web Marketing Videos | 15 Comments »

Web Sites for Healthy Eating (& Living)

Monday, June 15th, 2009

Last week I donned my "As Seen on TV" shirt and recorded a segment for the local evening news program, 207. The subject was on Web sites that provide health information on the food we eat, the cosmetics we wear (some of us at least), and the sunblock we lather on.