With Search Engine Optimization being such a hot topic today it is good to actually understand some basic steps in getting your website submitted to key search engines. This by no means guarantees your website will immediately obtain any significant page ranking (position within the search engine) but it is definitely the first steps in the process.
While sitting at Melbourne International Airport waiting for my flight back to the States I assumed a Wi-Fi hotspot would be have an open unsecured network available. That way, I could get online and get some work done while waiting for my departure. And as happened throughout my visit to Australia – from a Wi-Fi access point of view I was once again disappointed. The Internet is not as open Down Under.
Coming from a background in managing PC based products I have seen how important education is to product users. As a windows developer in the 90’s I really learned how important is was for programmers to be connected to their users. We have hosted our first content management class!
Many programmers tend to be removed from users (and are not always comfortable in the user environment – or simply struggle to actually relate to their user base).
As a product programmer I remember my boss walking into my office and asking me if I would go to a client’s site to train a client on using the system (that I had been a primary developer of). I actually jumped on the chance – and from that first ever training session I have always had a strong focus on the client from a systems point of view. It was actually the best thing I ever did as it made me a much stronger programmer and gave me a very clear picture as to who I was really serving.
Actually the internet is simply a different operating environment and in general your ability to use the systems (websites and internet applications) is critical to success and efficiency online. In particular the Web Content Management Systems (CMS) are probably the most used websites in the world today. But just like the amount of education that went into PC (Windows based Products) – today I believe that Web Content Management Classes are a vital requirement for business that has a CMS websites.
Back in my PC days I actually went from the systems programmer to Professional Services Manager that included a full training department under my wing. This was not something built overnight – after visiting new client sites for training for approximately a year or so we saw the need to create classes.
Over the last 2 years as BeareWare has developing more and more websites part of that process has been visiting new clients site for a final review and training session before their website goes live. I believe this is critical to a clients success and it is currently one of the huge black holes with companies that design websites.
Of course as you know every website is unique in its design – but the amazing thing is that they are not necessarily unique in operation. A Content Management System is basically the same system and just like PC applications of the past they have lots of options and require training and education to use these systems efficiently.
With all our client reviews and training we provide a custom CMS Users Manual. For quite some time I believed that each client training was really unique in nature (as clearly their website was) so I did not actually consider the thought of CMS classes. But as we did more and more websites and training sessions I really started to see how similar the operation of a CMS site and add on components.
I announced our first CMS class in June of 2008. The class was set for early August. Part of the organizing of the class was giving clients options to attend – even clients that have previously had onsite training session.
We were very fortunate to have a great training facility as part of the class (Lebanon Wilson County Chamber of Commerce rocks!). Clients bought their laptops to the class and we had Wi-Fi available for each attendee to sign up. And from my opening welcome our clients were full of questions as we ran through our class agenda.
The nice thing about our training setup (WiFi and client laptops) was that each client could update their websites specifically as we went thru training modules (Our class is agenda is completely based on updating your site so every module gave everyone the opportunity to take control of content areas.)
As well our very hands content updates our class really reached a buzz when we looked at Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Ranking Page. When any owner (or Web Content Manager) gets to talk about a tool such as a search engine that can deliver new customers to their door step (perpetually) you can imagine the interest.
Having our clients understand SEO is really pleasing again. I have heard horror stories of companies spending $1000’s of dollars for SEO services that they simply don’t understand.
I believe empowering clients with information is one of the greatest services a website design & development company can provide. So at the completion of our first class we really felt we had completed a very successful day. Our client’s enthusiasm was so pleasing. It is really great to be able to work with folks that are willing to head into new technologies with open minds. There is no doubt that web classes including CMS classes will really enhance our clients success. More classes are in the planning for our upcoming winter and spring of 2009.
Cheers Mate,
Peter Beare – Webmaster
Peter Beare is CEO of BeareWare, a Website Design & Development Company located just outside of Nashville, Tennessee. Since building his first website for a local sports club in 1998 Peter has been a webmaster. Over the last 10 years Peter’s duties with BeareWare have included website planning, design and development, website marketing and sales, as well as database application programming & project management. But when all is said and done, Peter is still a webmaster and this is “Interview with a Webmaster“.
Empower Yourself – Learn The Web Jargon…
Teaching a Web Content Management class recently I included a “jargon” take home test that was handed to our attendees at the end of the class. I have always been very sensitive to computer jargon since my college days where I studied computer science.
I actually have always been uncomfortable with using it – in particular when you know the jargon to be confusing to the person that is not an actual computer geek.
ICANN has made a significant domain announcement. I am sure many of you do not know who ICANN is. But for anyone that is responsible for your organization’s domain planning and marketing ICANN is someone you should learn about.
Last week, I listened to my favorite jazz station and heard an advertisement for a web design company. Curious about the competition, I visited their website and did some “snooping.” It raised the question: Should We Leave it to the Professionals?
As our website world becomes more defined and refined in Web 2.0 there is a distinction that most organizations should start to consider. That is the difference between a Webmaster and a Web Content Manager.
Is your website a purpose driven website? Sounds like a corny question from a self-help book, doesn’t it? But in reality, many websites today are “happenstance-driven” rather than purpose-driven. Your website should have specific purpose(s) that can be measured. A website will inevitably serve your organization in many ways, but it is critical to clarify the purpose of your website so you can verify whether it meets that purpose.
Recently SEO (Search Engine Optimization) has become a key topic in my prospect and client meetings. The buzz on the street about SEO seems to have made it to Main Street with small business folks looking at their potential to attract new clients thru Search Engine Listings. Although most folks are not totally familiar with what SEO is or how it works the premise of “unlimited” new prospects finding you on search engines is almost creating a “gold fever” mentality. So, what do you know about SEO?
Today most businesses have domain names. Over the last ten years, businesses large and small have recognized the “need” to have a domain name (website name). So, does your company have a domain strategy?