An attempt ... to quench some heartburn over the Heartbleed security hole. Digest this opinion before you rush in a panic to comply with mainstream news suggestions. First, can we all just take a breath? News agencies like MSNBC and FOX thrive on viewers. Viewers respond to two basic kinds of content: Threats, Disaster and Rumor…
Hosting — basic versions of a single truth
Had a recent conversation revolving around "Hosting' ... which designs are appropriate? Since requirements should drive such decisions it's important to list them. But which ones are critical and actually need to influence the "Spend?" Unfortunately opinions are sometimes issued as if they were facts. An important thing to distinguish is what's convenient / profitable…
Why Post By Email?
I'd break it down this way -- an Idea worth posting, is worth posting NOW. I use the phone to bag those little conceptual trophies. Needs a well thought out Title, that's the only critical part. -- Because I automatically echo posts to my other SM channels. So the Title needs to be okay there…
Basic advice: Concrete Posts
I've been trying to imagine how to help clients remanufacture their view of Web Content. Put simply it's "Engagement", baby.Posts that don't document something important, or produce some form of "other" engagement -- meaning interaction -- are not valuable to the community.Why? Because content that does not generally answer a question is advertising. If it…
What Mobile-ready site design must address
What's important in designing for Mobile-readiness? The two main constraints: Viewable / physical size of the interface (and there are many) Bandwidth. Which relates to webpage load times. Site design must fit on the screen and not be crowded. Simple to say, more difficult to accomplish. Reduced content offered (images and text). This drives page…
Payments Processing — Sole Proprietors and SMB’s look to hosted services
Asked my recommendation about implementing a payments processing backend within their Web Presence my response is look at this first. http://quickbooks.intuit.com/payments/ This tool accepts payments / invites credit cards ... and they have a device you can attach to your iphone or ipad to scan cards. What I like -- is that the few extra…
Contacts Sync across devices
The methodology should be to pave the way to living in the Cloud -- even if you still operate Outlook on the desktop. Gmail is a Cloud application. This configuration takes a bit to set up and takes maintenance! If for instance you change passwords at ICloud? The point being that if each node is…
Web Presence relevance in 2014 – Mobile Usability
Every so often we cross one of those thresholds when a new paradigm forces change. Developing websites now requires that the work is driven by its mobile appliance usability . Does the site initially display helpful information that mobile users will most often be seeking? (like phone number?) Look at the site from your mobile phone. Navigate to the pages,…
Web Presence Salvage Process … never an optimized route to correction
As a consultant I'm persistent in my advice -- that follows an optimized route (based on my experience and education) through the various facets of imagining and then engineering a well-made Web Presence. Once made, we teach clients how to operate those systems. There is a logical and technical order sometimes. At other junctures there…
Must know “Do’s” for Social Media Marketing in 2014
Great Article in Social Media Today: Five Trends That Are Going to Affect Marketing in 2014 Christopher Carfi lists the following "Trends" The need to tie marketing to results The rise of social+video Relentless analytics Content curation vs. content creation The increasing ramp of inbound marketing efforts Having posted similar guidance online and stressed it…
Designed Online Success 