Learn about 3 tools that can make your website more visually interesting, simply and inexpensively. Our screencast "How to Make Websites More Visual" discusses ThickBox, SlideShow Pro, and Flash video with numerous examples and pricing info.

It has been 4 months since the launch of Bartlett's website eValuator tool.
 
For those who have not seen it, it is a tool used to assess the health of a website based on different indicators, such as search engine rankings, technical issues, marketing components and analytics.
 
The results have proven the inevitable: most websites are not well optimized.
 
Since the launch, 72% of all websites entered into the eValuator received a score below 80 (out of 100) and 83% in the month of February. Some of the common problems for small websites are the lack of an xml sitemap, favicon, and rss feed.

• An xml sitemap is a map of your site that helps search engines better index the pages of your site.
• A favicon is a small icon in the corner of the URL bar and can increase branding recognition by have one. 
• An RSS feed is helpful for sharing news about your company, new additions to your website, and more. The more you share information, the more visible you will be online.

 
Check back for new posts on more eValuator statistics.
To try the eValuator out for yourself and see how your website measures up, click here.

Last night we hosted the Concord Chamber of Commerce’s monthly business after hours event. It was a great chance to show off our new studio and to network with other local business people.

After some great conversations, which inevitably ended up in the finer points of search marketing and web trends, we all gave our elevator speeches to the crowd. One of our clients, Shelley Amster from Apelles Partners attended as well as Peter Bagley from The Marketing Dept. I learned about Paul Jensen’s Jaegerbakkens (a dog breed of small munsterlanders) and that he has no problem with website traffic since he is the only breeder in North America (a marketing coup of which we’re all jealous!).

Lots of others attended, too numerous to mention, but we’d like to thank everyone who made the event a success.

Check out some more photos from the event

An image makes a big difference for someone trying to absorb your message. It’s instant communication – no words required. Now that we all have huge screens, why not web sites with huge photos?

I recently came across a photoblog by the Denver Post which does an incredible job of using big images to tell a story. The size of the photo [ 900 x 600px] makes such a difference – the images just wouldn’t hold up at some formerly adequate size like 300 x 200. 

How does this apply to selling a product? Check out Apple’s Macbook pro page – there’s no doubt about the quality of the product with this kind of detail [980 x 524 px].

When a logo has been around for years upon years, it's hard to envision changing it. There is brand awareness that goes along with it, people see it and immediately recognize it. That is why when redesigning a logo usually only subtle changes take place. This allows the logo to get a fresh new, updated look but still remains easy recognizable. Remember, first impressions last so it's important that your logo is memorable. See below for examples from some well known corporations.
 

MSNBC

The easily recognizable peacock is left untouched while the clunky uppercase text is changed to a more readable lowercase sans serif.
 

THE SCIENCE CHANNEL

The Science Channel’s logo redesign makes sense in the fact that it’s playing off the scientific element table in its new, simpler, modern logo. As for the bright orange, it speaks bold, fresh and new; I love it.
 

DOLBY

The Dolby logo consists very subtle, but important changes. Keep in mind that this logo needs be effective when produced at extremely small sizes. Removing the box around Dolby, merging the double D’s and a slightly thinner font with more character.
 

DELTA

The new red on red pyramid gives a sense of depth without it being too much. The colors, kerning and new sans serif font give the new logo an overall much more sophisticated look. 
 

PEPSI VS. COCA-COLA

Pepsi is known for changing their logo and tag line every decade (the most recent coming later this year or early 2009) while Coca-Cola’s hardly every changes. Typically, one would say that changing a logo as much as Pepsi is a bad idea, but maybe not in this case. With Pepsi, each logo is like a cultural milestone. It shares a story and captures the style of that time period... Some food for thought.

 
When the term ‘Web 2.0’ surfaced in 2004, it’s pretty safe to say that few could have predicted just how extreme the impact was going to be on internet usage in only 4 years time.
 
It has taken the corporate world to new heights, one Web 2.0 application at a time.
 

Below are 4 useful applications and answers to the question
“How can this benefit me?"

1. YouTube
 
This video sharing site allows anyone to upload and share videos online and is a great way to increase website traffic and brand awareness, display product demos, and even share customer testimonials. You can even see who is watching your videos with the YouTube Insight feature. This is an excellent marketing tool that showcases how many views you are receiving per day, your popularity, and views by country and state using color coded maps.
 
2. Facebook
 
This is a popular social networking site that has come a long way from being a ‘college students only’ site to now allowing anyone with an email address to join. It is a way to interact with your colleagues and to network with other business professionals. Link sharing, joining interest groups, and sharing photos can dramatically increase your web presence. Also, taking advantage of Facebook Ads, Insights, Polls, Pages, and Platform can be very effective.
 
3. LinkedIn
 
Similar to Facebook, LinkedIn is a social networking site but has a slightly different approach in that it manages mainly your professional relationships. It presents you with the resources to find new business opportunities, gather knowledge from others, and connect with people you know. Once you sign up, you can get individuals to join your network simply by importing contacts from your email, searching for colleagues, or even old classmates. Don’t forget to join professional groups- it’s an excellent way to obtain feedback on your company or start an insightful discussion on the latest topics in your field.
 
View my LinkedIn profile as an example
 
4. Blogger, Drupal, Typepad, and Wordpress
 
Using a free blogging platform such as Blogger, Drupal, Typepad or Wordpress is an easy way to get started with a blog. Having one can increase traffic to your site, allow you to share your areas of expertise, display photos, and interact with other bloggers. You can use targeted keywords in your text that link to your site or to other sites you find useful. Even on a relatively low budget, a blog can be designed, developed, and search engine optimized to bring you the most web traffic.

See 2 recent blogs created for clients by Bartlett Communications:
Boston Design Blog
D Scale Blog

Creating desire, the time famine and how Google aced branding
 
Visual communications and graphic design serve three purposes:

1. To effectively communicate information
2. To increase usability
3. To create desire for a product or service.

While communicating information and increasing usability are critical to successful design, creating desire has become a key component of a company’s ability to differentiate themselves from competitors.
 
To learn more on how to get the most value out of your design, visit: The Value of Design

According to MarketingSherpa, the average e-Commerce shopping cart abandonment rate is around 60%. This is mostly because the pages are trying to serve too many interests or the layout is ineffective.

This is the third in a three part series examining the reasons why web initiatives frequently do not meet their intended goals and is based on experiences that our company has had over the years as web site builders.Read more

QUESTIONS TO HELP DEFINE THE GOALS OF A BRANDING + PRINT PROJECT
 
Answers to the following questions will provide a foundation for understanding the creative strategy, business goals and project requirements.
 
OBJECTIVES
CORPORATE PROFILE
SALES
AUDIENCE
CONTENT
APPROVAL PROCESSRead more