“Aside of the marketing issue – Facebook in effect defeated it’s own purpose by not allowing businesses to connect with customers on a more intimate level. By forcing “fans” to see only the wall or info tab upon entry, they learn nothing about who they are dealing with, other then the info Facebook allows them to see. I understand any company’s desire to increase revenue, but not at the expense of the users – small business is the back bone of Facebook. Facebook is slowing taking the “social” out of its “social network.”

I could not disagree more. Newsflash to Facebook Marketers: We Facebook users are not idiots. We use our own accounts day-in and day-out with the Wall as the primary feature. It’s what WE actually like about Facebook.

We know how to go to the Info page to get someone’s email or phone number, and we know where to go to look at their photos and videos if we want to. The concept of  Tabs are not foreign to us, though we might not know that YOU call them Tabs.

We know how to like a page or business, as evidenced by our love for Barack Obama, Boo and Can This Onion Ring Get More Fans Than Justin Beiber. We know that when we visit a page, we will be presented with the options to interact with that person, company or brand through their various applications and tabs.

Oh, and by the way, the average person doesn’t know the difference between their personal page and a PAGE or a GROUP page (trust me, I’ve had to explain it about a billion times to friends, small biz owners and non-profit managers). It’s precisely BECAUSE they don’t know that difference that they don’t expect to interact differently on Pages than they do on their OWN pages – they expect to use the Wall first and foremost.

This is THE reason the Facebook landing page restriction shouldn’t matter to your business. An average Facebooker wants to come to a wall and see real interaction between the person behind your brand and the people who like it. Get that one thing right, and noone will care what tabs they land on (or don’t). You’ll continue to accumulate fans and likes by the dozens and hundreds, mystifying the dozens of Facebook marketers who today swear it can’t be done.

Read this original post Website Design using WordPress, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Mobile Marketing | Angie Meeker Designs | Columbus, Ohio - Website Design using WordPress In Columbus, Ohio

If you’re using WordPress (please, tell me you’re using WordPress already), use the plugin called Organize Series. There is a free version, and a paid version, and that link is not an affiliate link. For the sake of your readers, go check it out!

Read this original post Website Design using WordPress, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Mobile Marketing | Angie Meeker Designs | Columbus, Ohio - Website Design using WordPress In Columbus, Ohio

Earlier this week, Ohio State students staged a wanna be flash mob where dozens of students danced together in the new student union to the ever so popular Glee version of Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing. If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s the video hot off of You Tube, where’s it has seen over a half million views in just a few days.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDNOB6TnHSI

Undoubtedly, this video has been shared on Facebook and Twitter the same number of times. I’m not even an OSU fan, and when President Gordon Gee comes across with Brutus Buckeye, I almost shed a little tear.

So this post you’re reading right now…it could be about anything, right? It just happens to be about OSU because that’s what was hot in my neck of the woods this week. Whatever your non-profit or small business writes about, you obviously want your readers to share with other people, whether those people are at your site or not. Now visitors can simply click a Facebook LIKE button on your site and just like they LIKE a link or video on Facebook, they can LIKE your article. Once they LIKE it, a short line will appear on their wall that says, “Angie Meeker likes Adding a Facebook Like Button To Your WordPress Website,” except that it will have their name, and their article, obviously. Let’s get people showing their friends on Facebook how much their like your website.

Here’s how to install the NEW Facebook LIKE button on your WordPress site.

BTW – It didn’t show up in my feed because when I tested it earlier, and it DID show up, I hid it…so that it wouldn’t be there when I went to show you it magically appear for the video. Try it yourself and see it work!

Read this original post Website Design using WordPress, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Mobile Marketing | Angie Meeker Designs | Columbus, Ohio - Website Design using WordPress In Columbus, Ohio

Non-profits are very easily drawn into the next big idea, whether it’s coupon books, swipe cards at the grocery store, or in this case – multi-level affiliate marketing online. Here are three things to remember when considering any affiliate fundraising program online.

1.  This type of affiliate marketing relies on a large number of end users who will first download the application and then use it on a regular basis. First and foremost, this client doesn’t yet have a large, consistent number of guests to her site. Not everyone who visits her site will enroll in the program, obviously, so if her non-profit is going to depend on it as a regular source of income, then they need to increase the number of views their site gets on a regular basis. This will give the affiliate program a fighting chance!

2.  For this particular client, a quick conversation about MyShoppingGenie revealed that it wasn’t the best match for the particular type of person who DOES visit her site. Her end user is likely not one who is at home comparing prices of products to purchase online, so an affiliate product that helps do that better probably wasn’t going to be a homerun for her site. Make sure that your affiliate program makes sense for your unique users. For example, if Kroger offers a shopper’s reward program for non-profits, but there’s no Kroger in your IMMEDIATE area, then DON’T enroll in the program. This might sound obvious, but you need to have laser-sharp focus with the programs you offer your guests and supporters. Offering too many programs that don’t address exactly who your people are helps neither you nor them.

3. Don’t forget to keep hanging up your jacket, and putting it on. Whether your non-profit is about rescuing animals, recycling, stopping crime or giving away furniture, remember to keep first things first on your website. You must post fresh, relevant content to your site on a regular basis. Ask yourself, “If I was someone even REMOTELY interested in this non-profit, WHY would I come back to this site?” Every non-profit has a huge story to tell, and your website is one of your best assets for telling and sharing that story. When you get sidetracked and plaster your website with several different affiliate programs, guests will get distracted from that one thing you do best, whatever it is. Focus on creating your OWN affiliates first, and after you have an army of affiliates who market your non-profit simply because it’s part of who they are… then take some time to investigate the opportunities to earn some extra income through online advertising like affiliate marketing.

Read this original post Website Design using WordPress, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Mobile Marketing | Angie Meeker Designs | Columbus, Ohio - Website Design using WordPress In Columbus, Ohio

How can social media be used to find a lost dog? Play this video from AT&T to see! Then ask yourself how can your company use social media to give your stakeholders the opportunity to share your value?

Read this original post Website Design using WordPress, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Mobile Marketing | Angie Meeker Designs | Columbus, Ohio - Website Design using WordPress In Columbus, Ohio

1. Like a house, your website needs land to sit on. This “land” is called hosting. A host gives you the space on the internet to store the files that will be your website. Your space and files are stored on that company’s server (a heavy duty computer). Most often, a host will also sell you a domain, too. We recommend GoDaddy hosting.
2. Your domain (www.yourwebsite.com) is like your street address. It tells people where to find your house.
3. Your website IS your house. It’s where you invite your friends to come visit. A good website is just like a house. It will encourage your guests to stay a while and talk with you.
4. And of course, your mailbox. Email is like your mailbox. Your email should match your domain, just like your mailing address matches your street address. You@yourwebsite.com is better than using You@someothersite.com.

If you do not already have hosting, we can set up your hosting account with our recommended provider, GoDaddy.com. A basic hosting package is $75 a year, and includes your domain, hosting, matching email accounts, and more. If you plan to accept payments directly on your site (rather than through a simple PayPal link), you will also need a SSL Certificate (approx. $35 a year). This ensures that all payment information transmitted is kept secure.

Read this original post Website Design using WordPress, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Mobile Marketing | Angie Meeker Designs | Columbus, Ohio - Website Design using WordPress In Columbus, Ohio

1. STOP THE MUSIC! Many of your guests are surfing the web at work, or are doing something else while looking at your site. An uninvited concert is a quick way to send them clicking for the back button or worse yet—the “Close” button. Music and audio should be an option for your guest, not forced on them. This might be the most important change you can make today! Go do it now!

2. USE A COMMON NAVIGATION. Menus that are in a different place throughout your site, in a different order, or don’t include the same links on every page are confusing. Create ONE navigation for your entire site and put it in the same spot on every page.

3. FIRST THINGS FIRST. Your most important information should be placed “above the fold.” That is, above the area of your site which can be read without scrolling (usually the top half of your site). Just like in a newspaper, the information after the fold is less likely to be read.

4. GET IN TOUCH. Be sure to include an “About Us” page which describes your organization and its staff. And don’t forget a “Contact Us” page, which lists your phone number, fax, email and physical address. You can also include on this page any other sites you’re a part of (like Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter). Make sure that if people want to get in touch with you, they can do however they want.

5. HALT THE SCROLLLING TEXT! Scrolling text on a computer screen is extremely difficult to read, especially when created in bright, contrasting colors. Not to mention the stars, banners, blinking lights, animated clip art, and so on. Turn them all off.

6. CHOOSE YOUR FONTS WISELY. The fonts which are easiest to read on a computer are Verdana, Tahoma, Arial and Courier. That’s because these are “sans serif” fonts. That simply means they’re pretty straight forward, simple, and don’t have any fancy frills at the end of each letter. Even Times New Roman (a “serif” font) is more difficult to read on a screen than these. And while you’re changing your font, point size 10-11 is standard on the web. If your target is senior citizens, go ahead and use 14. Otherwise, stay away from anything smaller or larger than 10 for your content. (For a sample of website font sizes, http://www.alwanza.com/bells/ points.html)

7. COLOR INSIDE THE LINES. Be careful when using extremely contrasting colors like a yellow background and red text. They are hard on the eyes. Contrasts which work well are white and black, grey and black…

8. LEAN TOWARDS THE LEFT. Center justified paragraphs are hard to read on a computer screen. LEFT justify your paragraphs and you’ll make your readers’ eyes happy!

9. BREAK OUT OF THE FRAME. Many older browsers do not support frames. They disrupt the flow of the website and can be difficult to anticipate where a page may appear when a link is clicked.

10. SHOW YOUR CREDIBILITY. A website which hasn’t been updated in ages (or months) shows your guests that you’re not paying attention to what they’re looking for. Or that you’re simply not paying attention!

If you’re having trouble maintaining your site, ask for help.
HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR WEBSITE OR NEED A NEW WEBSITE? EMAIL US!

Read this original post Website Design using WordPress, Internet Marketing, Social Media, Mobile Marketing | Angie Meeker Designs | Columbus, Ohio - Website Design using WordPress In Columbus, Ohio