As some of you may know, many of the websites created here at beachdog.com are built using WordPress.

WordPress is a top-notch publishing platform with a focus on aesthetics, web standards, and usability.  It is used for blogs about your dog and Fortune 500 companies alike.  We like it for many of our clients because:

• It allows you to make easy updates to your site without waiting, or paying for, web developers like us
• It’s simple; if you can use Microsoft Word – you can edit your WordPress site
• Because it is Open Source, the program is free, not going anywhere, and has thousands of programmers contributing to make it better
• It makes it easy for us to make your site mobile-friendly
• It makes it easy for us (inexpensive for you) to add a variety of functions to your site

WordPress has a new version (3.0) being released near the end of June.  There are quite a few exciting features but what we’re most excited about are some of the technical improvements “under the hood”. These improvements allow us to create even more impressive and complex sites.  Previously, when the team met with a new client, they determined if WordPress was a good fit or if they needed a more custom back end solution.  Much of the time, more custom meant a lot more expensive because it required a fair amount of high-end coding time.  Now, with this latest version, we can handle much more complexity, offer lower costs and keep Wordpress’s ease of use. Thats quite the trifecta!

Already have Wordpress? If you would like to chat to someone about what Wordpress 3.0 can be used to take your site to the next level — give me a woof!  360-642-4431  or ethan@beachdog.com

A college buddy of mine blogged recently on the benefit of social media for small business.  I like his 10 questions for those getting started in using this effective media:

1. What will make you stand out among the others “yelling into the chasm?”
2. Who is your target audience?
3. Who are your direct competitors?
4. What could be some indirect inhibitors?
5. Do you have a marketing plan – written down with goals, strategies, tactics and a reasonable budget?
6. Is there a strategy or tactic within your marketing plan that social media could compliment / support (Public Relations, etc.)?
7. Do you have the manpower/ time for social media marketing?
8. (If not) Do you have the budget to outsource components of social media marketing?
9. Do you know how to carry on an engaging conversation?
10. Do you have patience?

He also referenced an article on the Small Business Success Index;  it’s a quick snapshot on how small business owners like YOU are using social media for business.  Worth the read.

~Karl

Google Alerts is a great way for business owners to keep on top of what’s being said about their brand.  So what are they, and how do you use them to your advantage?

What are Google alerts?

Google.com/alerts are automated email messages sent from Google.  You register at Google alerts and tell them to send you messages about a particular term or subject, and you’ll receive an alert email every time there is a mention of the word
in any site appearing in the Google search results. These are likely to be new web pages appearing on the web, like a news alert or a new story.  Whatever it is, whenever there is a mention of the keyword you requested, you get an email.

Even better, there are quite a few customizations possible such as sending you an alert as and when your term is indexed or sending you an alert on a daily basis.  You’re in control of how often you’re notified.

Why should I care and how do I use this to my advantage?

Let us count the ways… 

• Manage your online image & company brand
• Stay on top of reviews written about your business
• Learn what bloggers are saying about you
• Find media mentions of your company
• Be the first to learn of new information releases on a topic
• Track a news story relevant to your industry
• See how popular a particular search term
• Follow niche markets
• Track incoming links to your site (In the “Search terms” field enter – link:www.yoursite.com where ‘yoursite’ is literally your website address and in the “type” option, select “web”)
• Increase traffic and search engine rankings!  This one is a little time-consuming, but cash-FREE.  What you do is set the alert for a particular keyword phrase/term with “type” blog articles.  You’ll get alerts about sites who use that term in their blog.  Go there and make a useful comment about what they’ve written.  If the blogger likes your comment, they’ll approve it and you will likely get a link from their site to yours.  This is REALLY GOOD link strategy.  If it sounds interesting but you need more info, you know how to find us!  webmaster@beachdog.com

Is your site mobile-friendly?

Drop in next week and we’ll be happy to show you your site on a mobile phone – no charge and no commitment.

Source: http://news.softpedia.com/news/56-Public-Wi-Fi-Connections-Made-via-Mobile-Phones-136010.shtml

HARO, Help A Reporter Out, works off the simple premise that everyone is an expert at something.   Every day, HARO brings together over 100,000 news sources and nearly 30,000 journalists.

Reporters get access to the right source at the right time.

News sources get media opportunities they never would have heard of otherwise.

Sponsors get access to a ridiculously large and targeted audience who actually listens and is looking for what you’re promoting and selling.

And it is FREE to reporters and news sources.

I signed up a few months ago and receive daily emails with list of stories looking for sources.  A number of our clients have benefitted from my noticing a story looking for a news source that I knew was a good match for them.  Past calls include things like:

• Family Friendly Seattle Area Hotels (regional parenting publication)
• Urgent: creditors/bankers needed for social media and credit story (creditcards.com)
• Need to speak to electronics recycler (NYTimes)
• Moms Who Love or Hate Twilight (Blog)
• Do you have a seasonal job? (CNNMoney.com)
• Looking for Divorce Attorney to share tips (Book)

You get the idea.  The email also includes more details on these headlines, including who to contact if you are a match for their story.

So sign up!   All you have to lose is a few minutes of reading email until you decide this is either not a good fit for your business or a launch pad to FREE EXPOSURE with little effort and no dollars spent.  I like those odds.

–Keleigh