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Build a video from your photos in less than 10 minutes

TCwebsite — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:09:44 +0000

This is a very cool tool to show off a listing, your hotel, restaurant, products, retail space, anything that you would normally use rotating images or build a slideshow for. The video I made below honestly took 10 minutes to put together! Check out http://animoto.com to try it for free

What do you think? Any other uses you can think of for this video technology?

How NOT to use Facebook to promote your business: Facebook Friend vs. Facebook Page

TCwebsite — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 12:22:20 +0000

What is a Facebook Friend? What is a Facebook Fan? Watch this video to find the very important difference between the two and how to effectively use Facebook to promote your business.

Core Social Media Strategies for your business [video]

Peter Ericson — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 19:32:03 +0000

If you’re ready to start participating in social media — and want to know how to make the most of it — then enjoy our recent webinar: Core Social Media Strategies. We cover Google, blogging, Twitter and Facebook.

Webinar comment from -Patrick Kermond, Burnham Boat Slings:

I just wanted to thank you for the webinar last Friday. I thought it was very helpful and pretty eye opening. I think it is an excellent service that The Complete Website offers by holding these type of webinars. I wanted to let you know if you were to hold more in the future you could count me in.

Linking up with LinkedIn

eleanorkohlsaat — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 14:07:16 +0000

Now that you’ve dipped your toes into the social media pool, it’s time to really dive in and get acquainted with LinkedIn, the world’s top professional networking site.

“Social media” may not be the most accurate way to describe LinkedIn. In contrast to Facebook and MySpace, LinkedIn is used primarily for business, not pleasure. You might not automatically think of LinkedIn when you’re trying to attract new customers, but in reality, it’s a great way to increase your visibility and build a reputation in your industry. If your company is a newcomer to the scene, you’ll find the site especially helpful.

Creating a LinkedIn profile is a bit like writing a resume. Just like a resume, your profile can (and should) continually be updated as you refine your professional image. But remember to follow the first rule of cybermarketing: take advantage of the word-of-mouth possibilities, but avoid aggressively pushing your products or services!

Once you’ve established your profile on LinkedIn, the site allows you to:

share information with others in your field on the site’s “Answers” forum. Your answers to questions are rated by other users. High ratings establish you as an “expert” – which can open many doors!
join professional groups, keep informed about conferences and trade shows, and stay up to date on the latest developments in your industry.
exchange referrals and recommendations.
organize your professional references for the benefit of potential customers or clients.
research the individuals and companies with whom you do business.
research your competitors and learn from their marketing techniques.
increase traffic to your website and blog.
boost your company’s visibility on search engines.

To get an idea of how people create their professional identities, do a search for other providers in your industry. When building your own profile, don’t forget to include details about your employment history, and mention any professional awards and accolades you or your company have received. You never know when opportunity will come knocking!

For more tips on using LinkedIn to develop your business, see this article from the site’s blog. And check out our video on LinkedIn!

Social Media – Learn How to Make it Work for You!

TCwebsite — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 20:06:18 +0000

It’s official: you can’t afford to ignore social media any longer! A recent study shows companies that make smart use of social media achieve far greater financial performance than those that don’t. Advertising alone doesn’t cut it in today’s competitive environment. As Ford Motor Co. chief marketing executive James Farley famously observed: “You can’t just say it. You have to get the people to say it to each other.”

If you’re ready to start participating in social media — and want to know how to make the most of it — then join us for our webinar, Core Social Media Strategies, on December 4, 2009, from 1 to 2:30 p.m.

Our discussion will include:

The dos and don’ts of using blogging and Twitter to help build your business.
An introduction to search engine optimization, or SEO: the art of inserting key words and phrases into your online communication to help attract traffic to your website.
A free key phrase list designed just for you, based on a phrase you provide us that describes your business.
A question-and-answer session to address your company’s unique concerns.

Enrollment is limited to 20 participants on a first-come, first-served basis and we still have some spots left. Reserve your space now — and find out how to take advantage of social media’s power, while avoiding its pitfalls!

For reservations, please email Jordan@tcwebsite.com.

Social Media Revolution for Business [video]

Peter Ericson — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 16:25:10 +0000

This video is required viewing around our parts. It explains why all businesses cannot afford to ignore Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs and other social media websites. Yes, they are talking about your business!

You Can’t Afford to Ignore Facebook

eleanorkohlsaat — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:17:10 +0000

Facebook may have started out as a social networking platform for college students, but it’s now a standard method to keep in touch, network, and share information – for all ages and all walks of life.

While Facebook is clearly a personal tool it can also help your business. The key is to share information, not push your product. Facebook is an exclusive social network and gives people the ability to choose their friends. Offering useful information, answering questions, and participating in general will open more channels for you. Spamming or selling will close them. If you have a business that benefits from ongoing conversations with clients Facebook is a clear asset.

Just as individuals on the site accumulate friends, businesses collect fans. When someone becomes a fan of your company, the news shows up on their friends’ pages. And so on. This creates a ripple effect similar to word-of-mouth advertising, but many times more powerful. And did we mention it was free?

Here are some ideas for getting the most out of this amazing tool.

Even if you already have a personal Facebook profile its good to make a separate one for your business. If you’re unfamiliar with Facebook, the site offers easy instructions for creating a company profile.
What information should go on your page? An overview of your business. Useful tips demonstrating your expertise. Testimonials from your customers. Links to your website and your blog, You can also open up a discussion by letting fans write on your Wall.
Like any web page, your Facebook page must show activity, or it will languish. Update your page frequently so your fans have reason to keep coming back.
For more ideas on setting up your page and which elements to include, visit other business pages (check out ours, for instance. And please feel free to fan us!) Here are some other examples of successful Facebook pages with lots of active fans.

Business blogging basics

eleanorkohlsaat — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 14:14:01 +0000

Does your business have a website? Of course it does. These days, it’s a necessity if you want to compete and thrive.

Does your website have a blog? Chances are, it doesn’t, especially if yours is a small business. You’ve been meaning to start a blog, but haven’t had time. Or maybe you’ve got one, but you don’t post on it very often.

Big mistake! A website without a healthy, active blog is like a retail store without a sign out front. People drive right by. Or if they do notice your business, they can’t tell if anyone’s home.

Blogs play a significant role in drawing traffic to your website and raising your search engine rankings. That’s because unlike the rest of your site, your blog is updated frequently. Fresh content encourages visitors to come back multiple times, instead of just clicking once and not returning. If your customers really enjoy your posts, they’ll share the link with their friends — and now those people are regularly visiting your site, too. Search engines love this kind of thing.

Still unconvinced? Check out this short video that shows how a blog post on a country inn’s website attracted precisely the kind of visitors the innkeepers were looking for.

Blogs also offer your customers a chance to comment, offer feedback on your products and services, and participate in a conversation. Remember those old general stores where people used to gather and trade ideas and opinions? A blog can create a similar community of loyal fans who come to you when they need expert help and advice.

If you’re new to blogging, here are a few keys to success:

Commit to posting something at least once a week, if not more often. If you don’t keep things lively, people will forget to drop by.
This may sound counterintuitive, but your blog is not a platform to advertise your products and services. Visitors can go elsewhere on your site for that. Instead, make your blog informative and fun to read. Give away a bit of your knowledge without expecting anything immediately in return.
Keep a running list of ideas for posts. It helps to carry a little notebook and jot down topics whenever they pop into your head. Avoid deadline pressure by writing your posts a few days in advance. Even better, stay one or two posts ahead of the game in case you get busy and don’t have time to write.
Don’t be afraid to give your blog some personality! Use your own experiences or those of your customers (with their permission, of course) to help illustrate your point. At the same time, stay on topic. People visit your site to read about your company’s activities, not to hear about your grandchildren.
Allow people to subscribe to your blog through email alerts or an RSS feed. That way, they’ll be notified of new posts and won’t need to remember to check your site.
If you don’t enjoy writing or are just too busy to keep up a blog, consider hiring someone to write for you on a regular basis. A good ghostwriter will brainstorm with you, gather your ideas, and bring them to life. Make sure to ask for a few samples of their work to see if you like their writing style.

For more ideas on running a business blog, check out this article. And don’t hesitate to contact us for help in setting up and maintaining your blog!

What is Twitter – and why should you care?

eleanorkohlsaat — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:36:57 +0000

By now everyone’s heard of Twitter, the phenomenally popular social networking tool. But many people are still hesitant to jump in. Maybe you’re one of them. “What’s the point?” you might be wondering. “I don’t see how a bunch of people talking about what they had for lunch could possibly be useful to me or my business.”

If you’re unfamiliar with it, Twitter is a site where people post brief messages (maximum 140 characters) about whatever is on their minds. Others can find and read these messages, called “tweets,” either by doing a search on the subject matter, or by choosing to follow that person. When you follow someone, all their posts pop up on your screen when you’re logged in to Twitter.

What do users tweet about? All kinds of things. Comments on the political scene. Opinions about movies, music, and TV shows. And yes, what they had for lunch.

It may sound like silly entertainment, and indeed sometimes it is. But Twitter has also emerged as a powerful tool for business owners. It’s helping companies create “buzz” about their products, find loyal customers and keep them, and collect valuable data about their markets. Search engines also read and index Twitter posts, so tweeting about your company can improve your standings on Google and increase traffic for your website.

Best of all, Twitter is free. And in a competitive market, you can’t afford not to take advantage of it.

If the prospect of using Twitter seems overwhelming, fear not: it doesn’t have to be time-consuming, and it’s easy to get started. First, read Twitter’s quick overview for business users. Next, sign up to follow a few people and companies you like, so you can get a feeling for how the whole thing works. And then start tweeting.

Here are some ways you can use Twitter to boost your business.

Offer coupons and exclusive sales to your followers.
Position yourself as the go-to expert in your field by regularly posting helpful hints and tips.
“Listen in” on people talking about your company. If you hear negative word-of-mouth, you can jump in and address it with good customer relations.
Conduct informal polls and surveys to get customer feedback and find out which products they’re looking for.
Let your customers know when hot new items come through your door.
Notify customers about last-minute changes in your policies, schedules, or product availability.

Check out this article for even more ideas on how to use Twitter to connect with your customers.

If you’re just starting out, don’t feel obligated to spend all your time monitoring Twitter; checking and posting once a day is fine. One other thing: this is social media, so don’t just bang the drum for your company. Post links to other topics that interest you and your customers, such as news items and events in your community. The more useful information you share, the more followers you will attract! And remember, if you don’t have a Twitter strategy, you’re missing an opportunity that your competitor will take.

Feel free to contact us for support and inspiration for your online networking adventures! And feel free to follow us on Twitter!

Teambuilding and company transparency 2.0

Peter Ericson — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:17:09 +0000

How would you like to instantly and informally communicate with your entire team in seconds? Think Twitter for a group and you have Yammer.com

Yammer allows a team (located anywhere in the world) to share anything they have stumbled upon online, new business thought, question, or something humorous right now.

We use it daily and it brings our virtual office team 1 step closer. I have seen it solve problems on the fly without having to call, email or IM several people at a time.

It’s also the great water cooler, letting everyone post personal thoughts, vent, and share something hilarious.

I have found it is a very human way to communicate efficiently and would recommend it to any group wanting to connect more frequently.

BTW it’s free to start and it lives in your Firefox status-bar for easy access.

Do audio and video emails really work?

TCwebsite — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 01:29:26 +0000

A client of ours recently received an email with an audio message from a work colleague. She asked me if this technology would make sense for her.

Here’s what I think:

For an important contact it might make sense, but generally I don’t think it’s practical in our hyper-efficient-communicating work life. Although I am a huge fan of listening to podcasts while driving and creating video to make a point, I don’t like this medium inserted in my efficient-daily-email-communiques for the following reasons:

The audio/video takes too long to record and upload (based on my experience)
It takes longer for the receiver to view/listen to the message since they cannot scan text. Look at Google Voice, they actually translate voicemail to text and even send it to your phone as SMS for quick reading.
This format does not work well on a mobile device. I would also rather use a text to voice application to listen to my emails in the car.
And… it doesn’t scale well. If it’s great and everyone used it all the time, would we get sick of spending time listening to or watching our emails? I think so.

I would rather produce video content for my website, broadcast it on YouTube/Facebook, and then use the humble link to the videos in my email.

This is what I do today and it works great on all platforms. Ask me again in 10 years!

Business blog = Google magnet [video]

Peter Ericson — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 18:38:03 +0000

In the video below you will see how one short blog post becomes a Google magnet and instantly attracts the right visitors to your website. If you are not blogging in your business you are missing out on a lead generating opportunity. Watch now [1 minute].

Add your business to Twitter Directories

TCwebsite — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 14:00:00 +0000

If you are venturing into the insta-information world of Twitter make sure you add yourself to the Twitter directories that are gaining popularity. Most of them are categorized so that you can be found by Tweeple interested in businesses like yours.

Twitter is a superb way to build a following, drive traffic to your website, and communicate instantly with your audience.

Did you know Twitter is used by the Red Cross for 1st response communication in a crisis (think Twitter on phones)? If you run a business that has ‘openings’ (massage, hotel, hair stylist) you can use Twitter to fill last minute slots… and Twitter has been successfully used as a ‘togo’ system for restaurants.

Want to find out more? Contact us to discuss Twitter.

Go get your permanent Facebook address before it gets taken!

Peter Ericson — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 14:22:18 +0000

Starting today you can have your own nice url for both your Facebook Profile and your Facebook fan Pages. Your new profile address will look like this:

www.facebook.com/username

instead of what is currently www.facebook.com/people/Your-Name/585946540

Note usernames are up for grabs on a first come first served basis so go to www.facebook.com/username to lock your username in now before someone else does!

Website Success Secrets – The 7 Keys [video]

Peter Ericson — Mon, 11 May 2009 17:03:51 +0000

I recently presented to the Hanover Chamber of Commerce: 7 keys to website success. Lucky for you we caught it all on tape and have released it here for your viewing pleasure.

Topics covered are:

Getting visitors to act on your website
Search Engine Optimization
Blogging for Business
Twitter
Video/YouTube marketing
LinkedIn
Facebook

You can find all the videos here, and let us know what you think!

How to get new clients through Google without a website

Peter Ericson — Wed, 15 Apr 2009 17:00:48 +0000

I just came back from a client ‘meeting’ who runs a massage therapy practice. We are currently building her website and in the meantime had recommended that she add her business listing to Google Maps Local Search listing. What she told me today astounded me.

“My new client came to me because of all the good reviews I had on the Google Maps. After reading them all she had a sense that I could go beyond massage and help her with her specific problems.”

Wow.

If you are not listed on Google’s Local Search listings go do it… now. And have your best clients leave some reviews. If you missed our video on how to do it, you can find it here.

Two great ways to control your email [video]

TCwebsite — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 01:01:56 +0000

1. Gmail for business

Whether you’re in the midst of a website redesign and server shift or just trying to figure out what to do with your daily mountain of spam, email reliability and functionality are top priorities for your business. In order to maximize the utility, efficiency, and dependability of your company’s email system, TCW has a radical suggestion that will save you headaches and, probably, money: relegate Outlook to the corner where you keep your smoke signals and your morse key. Start using Gmail.

The benefits of Gmail are hard to overstate. Fast, reliable, and accessible wherever you might be, Google’s web-based email client provides impressive file space (5GB+), integrated applications for company collaboration (calendar, Google documents, Google sites, etc.), and outstanding spam filtration. But–and you may not know this–Gmail offers all of these features while allowing you to set your incoming and outgoing email address to match any address that you own. So you get the benefits of a constantly updated, cutting-edge webmail service with the professional look of yourname@yoururl.com. We at The Complete Website use Gmail for all of our company email. And, best of all, Gmail is free.

2. A server-based spam/virus solution
For those who choose not to go with Gmail, TCW offers Barracuda Spam Firewall for your server-based email system. Preventing spam and viruses from ever reaching your email client, Barracuda instead sends a regular summary of activity, allowing you to approve or block emails with a simple click.

Call TCW’s Tech Team at —- ext. 1 to get set up with the most respected spam firewall in the industry.

$35 setup fee; plus:
- $15/mo for 1 user;
- $27/mo for 2 – 5 users; or
- $43/mo for 6 – 10 users.

Barracuda Spam Firewall
Winner – 2008 SC Magazine Excellence Award – http://www.barracudanetworks.com/ns/news_and_events/awards.php?id=49
Winner – 2008 Silver Medal from Information Security Magazine’s annual Readers’ Choice Awards – http://www.barracudanetworks.com/ns/news_and_events/awards.php?id=51
Winner – Most Popular Product at NetAdmin World Awards – http://www.barracudanetworks.com/ns/news_and_events/awards.php?id=47

Social Media Presentation to WBON [video]

Peter Ericson — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 21:42:12 +0000

This past Thursday I was invited to present social media strategies to the Women Business Owners Network of the Upper Valley here in snowy NH. We covered Facebook, LinkedIn, blogging, YouTube and other social media concerns to come up with a game plan to start using social media to build one’s business. Watch the 1 hour (oversized for your viewing peasure) video below for complete coverage of the presentation… and please excuse the bald guy in the middle

Get a free video review of your website

TCwebsite — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 03:01:51 +0000

If you have been struggling with what direction to take your website, agonize no more. Head on over to Website-Reviews.net and submit your website for a free no strings attached video website review. Your business will be glad you did

WordPress.org showcases our online magazine

TCwebsite — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 02:54:15 +0000

It was a pleasure to receive an email today letting us know that DartmouthEngineer.com was added to the Showcase section of WordPress.org.

The custom plugin we developed for the Thayer School of Engineering allows magazine staff to add, edit and launch new issues in an online magazine style format.