Social media for business is not a new idea by any means, but many business owners still struggle to manage and maintain various social networking accounts. There are many factors to consider when dealing with social media, from deciding which networks to pursue to knowing how and when to update them, plus the challenge of constantly generating valid content. This post will discuss each of these issues and more, providing some helpful hints for businesses looking to create and maintain a successful presence in online communities.

Tweet? Link? Like?

Deciding which social media communities to join can seem like a daunting choice to make. Just remember that you want to join enough networks that you will get your voice heard, but not so many that you cannot keep up with regular updates for your followers. For some businesses this will mean picking just one social network; others will be able to balance multiple accounts with ease.

Determining which community to join should be decided based on your target audience. If possible, find out which medium your current clients prefer as this will likely be a good indication of where to reach future customers as well. Possibilities include setting up a poll on your website or newsletter, or simply talking to a few of your best clients to get an idea of which social networks they use.

Management Position Available

No matter which social media network(s) you decide on, success will be determined by how well your account(s) are managed. Decide early on who will be responsible for keeping up with your new community, and how frequently it will be monitored. This will involve not only posting new content, but keeping up with your followers and responding to their comments and questions. Many companies have very boring and static social media pages and cannot understand why; what they fail to realize is that by becoming a part of a social network they are in fact joining a community. To be a desirable part of any community you have to put effort into adding value to other members’ experience, which includes interacting with your followers as well as other related businesses.

You should determine how often new content will be posted (we’ll talk more about generating new content in the next section). Again there is a balance between posting too often and annoying your followers, and posting too infrequently and losing their interest. The frequency with which you should post will be determined by your industry and the amount of active involvement from your target audience. Keep an eye out for signs of over-stimulation from too many posts, and lack of interest caused by too few posts. Be sure to schedule time for responding to input to your own posts as well as keeping up with the relevant activity of your followers and fellow businesses.

Giving The People What They Want

Another factor in the success of your social media presence is the type of content that you share with your readers. Whether using 140 characters or writing full blog posts, it is important to keep your content relevant, unique and interesting. If you consult current clients about which social network they prefer (see above), consider asking a few questions about the type of content they would like to see as well. Once you start producing content you can use tracking to see which types of articles, links, posts, etc. are the most popular and tweak your methods from there.

One method for coming up with content is to consider your business and compile a list of several services or products that you offer. From there, break each item down into a few topics that you can then present to your audience. For example if your restaurant serves dessert, consider the following ideas: highlight a few popular menu items; discuss the benefits of using local ingredients; offer wine paring suggestions; or even share a few of your recipes. Additionally, share what interests you with your followers. If you read a great article that applies to your industry, pass it on! Not all of your content needs to be generated by you- just be sure to give credit where credit is due.

With these tips in mind, go forth and socialize! Remember that if you are interested and having a good time with social media, chances are your followers will too. Relax and get to know your customers, since that is the real advantage that social networking provides for businesses, after all.

While maybe not the most exciting part of any job, data backup is a vital aspect of many professions. Done right, backing up your data can be a painless and hands-off process that provides you with peace of mind. There are many options and services available, and the best method of backup varies based on the type and size of data you need to store.

The data backup service that I use for my work and photography files is Amazon Web Services. As stated on their website, “Amazon Simple Storage Service (Amazon S3) allows you to store and retrieve any amount of data at any time, from anywhere on the web.” This integrated flexibility allows me to focus on running my business, instead of spending time and energy keeping track of online storage size and usage. The fees for Amazon S3 are based on the space and bandwidth that you use each month; there are discounts for larger amounts of storage to keep the costs from getting out of hand.

There are other data storage solutions, such as Carbonite Online Backup, that operate on a flat-fee. This is helpful for budgeting the costs of your online storage, and the service is offered not by the amount of data but instead by the number of computers being backed up. They offer Home and Business solutions as well as a free trial.

Of course there are other options available as well, such as purchasing a web hosting account and using FTP to upload your data. A USB drive or DVDs may be large enough for your needs, or perhaps you need an external hard drive. I urge caution with physical storage devices kept in your home or office, though, as a fire or flood would wipe out both your primary and backup data.

Once you have the storage space, its time to actually copy your data to the backup location regularly. If you are going to backup your files manually you may want to set aside a certain time every week (I recommend a reoccurring alarm or calendar reminder for this method). A more hands-off approach are programs like Cobain Backup, which is a free program that will backup your data automatically. The program allows you to backup data to a specified location with ease, both manually or at scheduled intervals.

This article by Small Biz Trends offers more tips for limiting company downtime and recognizing which of your data is crucial to your everyday work. By having a plan for the immediate retrieval of your most important data, you will minimize the damage caused by a computer crash and save yourself a lot of stress. Whether you choose one form of backup or a few that fit your needs, it is most important that you have a plan in place for dealing with a computer or server crash.

Have questions about setting up your data backup? Let me know via email at ESpontarelli@GetCreativeWebDesign.com.

Fine Print: Opinions shared in this article are based on my own experience and not solicited from any companies mentioned above.

Today I’ll talk a bit about time management, specifically The Pomodoro Technique. For those not familiar, this simple technique uses timed 25 minute intervals of work followed by rest periods to enhance productivity and prevent burnout. Named for a timer in the shape of a tomato (pomodoro, in Italian), this method was first introduced by Francesco Cirillo in the 1980s (Wikipedia).

There are five basic steps to this technique, outlined below:

1. Choose a task to be accomplished
2. Set the timer (Pomodoro) to 25 minutes
3. Work on the task until the timer rings, then put a check on your sheet of paper
4. Take a short break (~5 minutes)
5. Every 4 Pomodoros take a longer break (15-20 minutes)

Breaking your workday into manageable sections can make tasks seem less daunting and can prevent you from being overwhelmed by a large amount of work to be done. Depending on your work load and your ability to concentrate on any given day, sometimes The Pomodoro Technique is useful while other days it is unnecessary. Some days, just the mental promise of a break makes focusing for a short amount of time seem like an easier feat to accomplish.

I encourage you to tweak this method to better fit your own schedule. For example, I often use this technique when I find myself struggling to focus on the task at hand. By setting a fixed amount of time to buckle down and work, I am also promising myself a break within the foreseeable future. Often, by the time the 25 minutes are up I find myself deep within a task and no longer in need of a break. In this case I will finish the task at hand, then take a few minutes to rest before beginning another project. Other times, if I have a greater workload, I will set a timer for longer than 25 minutes (45 minutes, in many cases) so that I can get a solid amount of work done without interruption.

What about you, do you use any time management tricks to make Mondays easier or to help Fridays go by faster? Next time you’re struggling to focus on the task at hand, try The Pomodoro Technique. For more tips and information, visit the website or download the book.

]]> http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/tips-tricks-the-pomodoro-technique/feed/ 0 http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/tips-tricks-google/ http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/tips-tricks-google/#comments Wed, 20 Jul 2011 20:22:46 +0000 Elise Spontarelli http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/?p=1696

The newest face in the social networking arena has created quite a stir, but many are waiting it out to see how Google+ performs before joining this new community. Trepidation is a reasonable reaction to this new platform, as Google’s last two attempts at social media (Wave and Buzz) fell short of the mark by a long shot. The reception so far, though, seems overwhelmingly optimistic and users are promoting the new community with 85% positive feedback. What will make the biggest difference, I believe, is how well thought-out and ready for execution this new social network really is.

The Release
One promising sign for the future of Google+ is how well the Beta testing seems to have gone. Would-be users were scrambling for the opportunity to give Plus a try, and according to this article invitations were even being sold on eBay. Now that the field testing is over and the community is open to the public, Google+ is growing rapidly. Two weeks after opening public invites, says Paul Allen in this Google+ Post, the site hit 18 million users. What is most impressive about this statistic is that Google has not yet begun marketing its new platform through any of its other channels (search engine, YouTube, Blogger). What the development team is doing, it seems, is perfecting the site and addressing current user feedback before making any attempts at growth. Seems like a solid strategy to me, and one that will likely lead to more satisfied users in the long run.

The Features
Google+ introduces only a few revolutionary features to social networking, but includes and expounds on existing features as well. Circles, like the Facebook version of Lists, is a way of organizing your contacts. With the default Circles of Friends, Family, Following, and Acquaintances, G+ allows for a much improved method of communicating to certain groups of people. You can create your own Circles very easily, and you can list people in more than once Circle. This means that each post you share can be targeted at one, all or any combination of your groups of contacts. Likewise, you can choose to view posts from any of your groups in your Home page Stream (the equivalent of your Facebook News Feed). Keeping track of both your work life and personal life should be a breeze with this system.

Next is Hangouts, an attribute without a Facebook counterpart. This real-time video feature allows you to create a ‘room’ of online contacts to chat and share with. Like Skype but with the ability to chat with multiple people at a time, Hangouts are meant to be an impromptu gathering of available friends, coworkers, or other contacts. This could be helpful from a business standpoint for informal meetings and discussions with clients. Socially, it seems like a fun way to keep in touch with a group of long-distance (or heck, even short-distance) friends.

Sparks is essentiallt your list of Interests. The G+ tutorial introduces it as a way to ‘nerd-out’ or ‘geek-out’ about your favorite topics. At first glance it doesn’t seem especially unique but it will depend on how users apply it, ultimately. The premise is you can browse your Sparks to find information and engage in conversation about things that interest you. In testing this concept seems to work well for featured Sparks (Recipes, for example), but when I typed in ‘running’ the results were not constrained to exercise posts but instead anything that had the word ‘running’ in the title (i.e. ‘Chromium OS running on a MacBook Air’). Not ideal, in my opinion, but maybe it will be tweaked for more optimal use in the future.

The Results?
The subtext of the above comic by xkcd reads: ‘On one hand, you’ll never be able to convince your parents to switch. On the other hand, you’ll never be able to convince your parents to switch!’ Google+ has taken our collective knowledge and expectations for a social network and built on them. Instead of reinventing the wheel, Google just improved upon it. This could be the key to its success if users are ready for a new and improved social media experience; or, it could be its downfall if it is not different enough for users to justify the hassle of switching from current social networks. Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are each different enough that there is room for all three of them in the playing field. And then there’s Skype, which may also be at risk because of the G+ Hangout feature. Google’s intent, it seems, is to compete directly with Facebook- a daunting undertaking indeed. Is there a place (a need?) for both of these platforms? If not, will enough people choose Google+ over Facebook to make it successful? There seems to be a precarious balance and only time will tell which way the scales will tip. It is also worth mentioning that while Google has requested that businesses not create profiles yet, there does seem to be a plan in place for business use of the network as well. *Note: For further comical evidence that your Mom won’t join Google+, read this post.

What do you think- will you be joining Google+? Have you signed up already and if so, how has your experience been so far? You can visit my Google+ profile here: www.gplus.to/elise890.

Whoops! I’ve been a little sidetracked working on some awesome new projects for clients (details about that one and more coming soon), and have neglected to follow up on the blog posts I promised you here. The wait is over, and today I’m going to share with you my favorite new CSS Photo Gallery. It is super simple, very lightweight (CSS + HTML only), easy to implement, and customizable, too.  With credentials like that, how could it not be great? Read on for the source and some helpful tips and examples.

Officially called the Hoverbox Image Gallery, this great tool for displaying photos is the work of Nathan Smith. He describes the gallery “like a mini Lightbox“, without the use of any JavaScript or Flash. The gallery has a pop-up feature that relies on the CSS property a:hover and uses relative and absolute positioning. With less than 100 lines of well-written CSS, this gallery runs smoothly and is cross-browser compatible. To see a live example of the original gallery, click here.

Once you’ve inserted the CSS and HTML code into your site, customizing the gallery is quick and easy. Colors, borders, padding and image size are the main properties that you could change without difficulty. To see my customized version of the gallery, visit Emily Shaffer’s portfolio. I love not having to bother with PHP or JavaScript and still having the ability to display thumbnail and full-size images with style.

To use this gallery on your website, be sure to check out the Hoverbox Image Gallery download page. For questions or help with customization, feel free to contact me.

In the ongoing battle of the browsers, Internet Explorer, especially IE6, continues to be the thorn in the side of web designers everywhere. The web design industry is constantly evolving and changing for the better; HTML5 and CSS3 are both the newest (and most capable) versions of the web coding languages. Older browsers, and even some modern browsers, do not support these newer versions of code, which limits the abilities of web design. There are various hacks and solutions for this problem, one of which is CSS3 Pie.

CSS3 Pie, as it states on their website, “makes Internet Explorer 6-8 capable of rendering several of the most useful CSS3 decoration features.” As mentioned in a post on the subject last year, CSS3 has some great new features. What a shame, then, that some of these features should be unavailable to such a large percentage of viewers. CSS3 Pie allows Internet Explorer users to benefit from the advanced design features of CSS3. Currently supported features are: rounded corners (border-radius), drop shadow (box-shadow) and color gradient (linear-gradient), multiple background images and linear-gradient as background image.

PIE stands for Progressive Internet Explorer, and is a behavior that when applied to an element allows IE to recognize and implement any of the above mentioned CSS properties. When you include the following line in your CSS code, IE is able to display the CSS3 properties applied to that element:

behavior: url(PIE.htc);

The only other step in the process is to download the .htc file and then upload it to the root folder of your website. To read more of the technical details about this handy tool, visit the documentation page. Follow the link to download and start using the latest version of CSS3 Pie!

Taking a sick day when you work from home or run your own business can be tricky. Unfortunately I speak from experience, as I spent last week battling a cold. Depending on the severity of your illness, there are various ways to successfully handle work while nursing yourself back to health. Read on for my own tried-and-true methods for coping with a cold.

1. Prioritize

The early stages of being sick can be the most difficult to work around. You are suddenly feeling rundown and unmotivated, plus dealing with any physical pain depending on your symptoms. Medication to help relieve these symptoms can lead to trouble concentrating or general mental fuzziness. Neither of these conditions- physical pain or mental fogginess- lead to a very productive work day. So, it is crucial at this stage to quickly review your work load for the day and prioritize based on what needs to be done immediately and what can wait. Handle any small and/or time-sensitive work and then hit the hay. By fighting your body’s need to rest you will only prolong your illness and probably make matters worse.

2. Consult with Clients

Depending on what work you can get done versus what work you would have gotten done had you not been sick, you may need to give your clients a head’s up on your condition. In the creative field there is often some wiggle room in the process, since each creative project is unique. This wiggle room allowed me to simply let a few projects sit unattended for a few days while I got my strength back. By emailing just a few well-worded project updates to clients I was able to stay in touch and give the client peace of mind while I got back on my feet. To clients expecting work I let them know I was under the weather, but I tried to spare most of my clients from my personal issues.

3. Listen to Your Body

As I progressed through my cold I found myself with more energy each day. In general I was the most lucid and energetic mid-morning, so that is when I got as much work done as possible. Avoiding the distractions that sometimes find their way into my work day, I focused on being as productive as possible while I could. Then in the afternoon when I was losing steam, I could rest and nap with a clear conscience (and catch up on any Facebook or blog reading from the couch).

4. Make Up Time

Once you’ve made it through the worst of your illness, be aware of the time lost and try to make it up when you can. Don’t push yourself too hard- you don’t want to wind up sick again- but be aware of your to-do list and power through it as well as you can. Again, if you need an extension be sure to let clients know ahead of time. Everyone has sick days and your clients will most likely be completely understanding if you are up front with them.

So there is my advice: grab your box of tissues and a glass of juice and relax. Focus on letting your body heal so you can get back to work ASAP and you’ll be better for it. Do you have other ways of dealing with sickness during the work week? I’d love to hear your advice (though hopefully I won’t be needing it anytime soon)!

While it may sound unnecessary, today I have for you a group of helpful tips and tricks for writing emails. Not just any emails, but professional emails that will get your voice heard and your ideas noticed, and maybe even an email in response. The fax machine and snail mail have gone the way of the dinosaurs when it comes to professional correspondence. The phone is still an invaluable and highly useful tool, but email is in many ways the ideal form of business communication. Read on for how-to email tips and why you should use them.

Why Email?
There are a plethora of benefits to using email as your primary form of business communication, some more obvious than others. Depending on your industry, email may or may not be the default method of interaction that you use daily. No matter what field you’re in, though, you can benefit from the advantages of using email.

One such benefit is the physical nature of an email. Taking the time to write your thoughts down- instead of speaking them- gives you a chance to edit yourself and ensure that you get your point across properly. It is much easier to avoid putting your foot in your mouth if you have the chance to read and review your thoughts before sending them off.

Email is a tangible record of your conversation. This means that important information exchanged via email can be stored on your computer or printed for proof of the transaction. Even if you don’t download and keep your emails, you can search your inbox and folders for content should you need it later. This can be especially helpful if there is a disagreement over terms and expectations; if you can produce an email conversation that clearly states the terms of your arrangement then you will have a much easier time standing up to clients and co-workers.

The speed and mobility of email also make it a convenient choice. While someone may not have the time to devote their full attention to a phone conversation, sending off a quick email is a fast and effective method of response. Likewise, the rise of smart phones and other mobile devices make it easier than ever to check your email on-the-go. Can’t talk in a quiet library? Send an email. Don’t want to discuss business over the phone on the subway? Email it is. The constant availability of email also means that it can be received by your recipient almost anywhere and at any time.

How to Email
While we all know the basics of how to send an email, there are a few things you can do to improve the effectiveness and professionalism of your email correspondence. From proofreading to using the right software, here are some tips you should know.

Email is only as effective as your typing and communication skills. Editing is a hugely necessary aspect of drafting an email. You wouldn’t want to mispronounce names or jumble your words when speaking, and it is important that you take the same care when emailing. Even if your keyboard skills aren’t up to par, all it takes is a quick read-through to find and fix any mistakes. Receiving an email full of typos and lacking grammatical accuracy sends the immediate message that the sender is either lazy or incompetent, or both.

You can make sending accurate and effective emails easy on yourself by using the best software and services. Microsoft Outlook is a popular email program for professionals, as it allows you to upload your emails to your computer and avoid having to sign into a website each time you want to use your email. Outlook also allows you to sync calendars and contacts for ease of use. Mozilla’s Thunderbird is another popular and effective desktop program, with many customizable features. In terms of online email services, Google’s Gmail is widely used and boasts many helpful and innovative attributes. Using a name@gmail.com email address may not come across as completely professional, so if you choose to use Google, Yahoo or another online service (such as your internet provider) you should choose to have your email forwarded there from a more professional account, such as name@yourcompany.com.

Armed with these tools you are all set to send professional and respectful emails, as well as organize and manage your incoming messages. Remember that how you communicate gives a strong impression of both yourself and your company. For questions or details about any of the services or practices mentioned here, feel free to leave a comment.

]]> http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/tips-tricks-email/feed/ 0 http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/tips-tricks-online-images/ http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/tips-tricks-online-images/#comments Wed, 20 Oct 2010 21:32:29 +0000 Elise Spontarelli http://getcreativewebdesign.com/blog/?p=975

With Google Image Search at your fingertips, it can be easy to forget how and why to be responsible when using images from the web for your own purposes. As a blogger as well as a photographer, I understand both sides of this situation and the need for clarification. This post will outline some basic rules and regulations for using others’ images online, as well as some legal alternatives to paying for photos.

Copyright and Publishing
The first step to responsible image use is knowing and understanding these two definitions: copyright and publishing.

Copyright is a set of exclusive rights granted to the author or creator of an original work, including the right to copy, distribute and adapt the work. Copyright does not protect ideas, only their expression or fixation.
- Wikipedia

An image, design or other creative work is copyrighted by the author as soon as it is created, and does not require registration in order to be protected. Copyright can be bought and sold, either permanently or for one-time use in the creative industries. When you buy a stock photo, you are buying the rights to use it. (The terms of use differ depending on the license and the stock company that you purchase from.) The popular photo site iStock Photo has two license options: Standard and Extended. Most uses of their stock call for only a Standard License; the Extended License is required for anything that will receive more than 500,000 impressions, in addition to any items for resale (prints, posters, calendars, mugs, mousepads, t-shirts, games, etc.) and electronic templates.

Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information. Publication is also important as a legal concept…for copyright purposes, where there is a difference in the protection of published and unpublished works.
-Wikipedia

Much like copyrighting, publishing a work is not necessarily a formal process. The definition essentially means showing your work to the public…be it via the internet, an email or a more traditional form (such as books and magazines). In terms of online images, it is best to think of all creative work that you come across as published; this means that the author has the rights to it and these rights have been acknowledged by their publishing it to the internet.

‘Free’ Photos

With a better comprehension of copyright and publishing rules, it is easier to understand the significance of using an online image without permission. Artists make a living selling their craft, and photography is no different. The best option when you need a photo but don’t have the budget to pay for one is to find royalty free images. Some sources for royalty free images are stock.XCHNG, a free stock photo site owned by Getty Images, and morgueFile, a source for free images for commercial use and inspiration. There is also a way to use Google Image Search responsibly, by setting the license filter to reflect how you will use the photo.

Responsible image use can save you a headache down the road as well. The next time you need an image for your website or blog, choose to either support the arts and purchase one or pick a royalty free image. It will be well worth the extra effort, and you can feel good about your decision.

The above image is the new GetCreative 404 page. The page includes a number of elements that should be included in an error page for the convenience of your viewers. Since not all web users are familiar with the ’404′ terminology, it should be obvious right away that the page reached is an error page. In our case, the big ‘Whoops!’ says it all. An appropriate visual image or drawing can help to make light of the situation, while still acknowledging the inconvenience caused to your website users. Finally, it is important to address why a person has landed at this page and how to proceed. You should avoid placing blame on the user, and instead offer a few explanations for the error. If your site has a search bar it would be wise to include it on this page to help the user find what they’re looking for. Otherwise, direct viewers to use a navigation bar or sitemap to get back on track. It is important that visitors feel welcomed and encouraged to continue using your site, so that they do not take their browsing elsewhere.

You can be as intricate or as simple as you want in your 404 page design, just be sure that it is an accurate reflection of your site. For some creative examples, view this round up of custom 404 designs. No matter how great your error page is, though, eliminating errors that users may encounter while browsing your site should always be the priority. If you know of external links that are outdated and broken, be sure to contact the appropriate webmaster to have those links updated. Of course the same goes for your own site; if you change the name of a page or update a photo then links should be adjusted accordingly.

Once you complete your 404 page design, it is time to upload it to your server. Name your 404 page ‘notfound.html’. Then, access your hosting server and find the .htaccess file. If none exists, create one. (Be careful to name the file ‘.htaccess’, not htaccess.txt or htaccess.html.) The .htaccess file can be opened in a text editor or in Dreamweaver; once you have access to the file add the following line of code: ‘ErrorDocument 404 /notfound.html’. Save and upload your .htaccess file as well as the notfound.html page and you’re done! If you have trouble accessing the .htaccess file on your hosting account, this page has helpful information for further instruction.

As always, leave a comment or send an email with any questions and we are happy to help. Or, GetCreative can create a custom 404 page for you that integrates seamlessly into your site- just contact us to get started.