By Kyle McCabe | September 29, 2009
She's right...
What is “good” web design? Many people don’t understand what makes websites good or bad, and some are even surprised to learn that effective web design takes time, and isn’t cheap. Let me explain…
When you look at a website, you’re looking at an end product. Like a car, there’s really no indication of what went into the creation of the product. We can break it down into its individual parts – wheels, pistons, frame, gears – but we don’t know *why* they, specifically, were used in its construction, or how to acquire and assemble the right types of parts for another car.
Who decides what’s good?
Most of us probably don’t understand how cars are designed, and have only a basic understanding of how they work. But we do know how to use them. We call them “sweet” or “clunker,” seeing distinctions in quality based on various attributes, such as age, safety, power, or utility.
Let’s dwell on that for a second. The designers and engineers who build these complex machines understand them a gazillion times better than you or I, and yet *we* are the arbiters of automotive quality? How does that work? …Read more »
By Jillian Anderson | September 15, 2009
Diamond’s increased advertising budget for Emerald Nuts proves to be a success.
A couple of months ago, Kyle wrote an excellent post highlighting 5 Reasons Not to Cut Your Marketing Budget in a Recession. His points being:
- Your reputation can suffer.
- When times are tough, people look for deals.
- If you’re not moving forward, you’re moving backward.
- Marketing in a recession can give you a competitive advantage.
- Cut advertising, cut market share.
I want to take another look at the fourth point here, as marketing in a recession really does give you an advantage. In truth, marketing ANY time gives you an advantage. But when the economy is down and a lot of businesses are cutting their marketing budgets, your dollars can go even further because there are fewer or weaker messages out there to compete with. …Read more »
By Kyle McCabe | September 11, 2009
Hey everyone, big thanks to those of you who attended our IM seminar over lunch on Wednesday. We had a blast, and hope you enjoyed it and found it helpful. Thanks to the Howard Johnson Inn & Suites in Rapid City for hosting the event.
We’ve embedded the slide deck below for your reference, and also included some key takeaways from what we talked about. As always, if you have any questions leave a comment or get in touch with us in whatever way you prefer. ;)
We’re also going to be posting some more related info in the coming weeks that should help clarify some things we discussed, so stay tuned for that. Go ahead and subscribe if you like, so you don’t have to remember to check back! We are always open to suggestions for new blog posts. If there is something you would like us to write about or if you have any questions, feel free to comment below.
…Read more »
By Tracey Armstrong | September 2, 2009
Play to win! Focus on the objective and build a strategy to get there.
Having a web strategy is a lot like declaring a major in college – once you decide on a career path and declare your major, you have a clear objective, something to work toward. This defines the classes you take, maybe your extra curricular activities, and even the people you associate with.
What’s your objective?
Defining your objective helps you focus on the building blocks required to successfully take you from your freshman year to graduation to a promising career (this also makes your parents happy, as you will graduate on time and end up costing them less money).
…Read more »
