The world of internet marketing and web site design has witnessed some significant changes over the years but a website’s primary purpose remains the same - to engage visitors and convert them into paying customers. To achieve this, businesses need to make use of every method at their disposal and video is fast emerging as the top choice.

Various studies show that most visitors would rather watch a video than hunt through website copy for information; consequently, more and more business are now turning to video as an effective means of showcasing their products and services through their websites.

We have recently partnered with Timecode Pro, a versatile video production company whose talented directors, producers and writers have been creating videos for corporate, live events and documentaries since 2008. in.house.media has also designed their new website which can be seen at www.timecodepro.co.uk.

If you are interested in adding video to your web site please contact us.

Easy website navigation is one of the key factors to keeping visitors interested in your site and which hopefully converts them into paying customers.

However, there comes a point when in the case of larger websites they need that little bit of extra help to go directly to what they’re looking for without having to transit two or three pages to get there.

Adding a search facility to your website will help them to do just that, especially if it is database-driven and contains a high number of products and categories.

Take Ebay for example; they don’t come much bigger or product-filled, and although navigation is generally straightforward, their search facility does save visitors an awful lot of time and effort.

It’s likely that without this search facility Ebay wouldn’t be as popular as it is because despite the instantly recognisable brand, what they offer and the bargains to be had, visitors would still shy away if they were forced to take the time to hunt down particular items.

Large information or product-filled websites would benefit enormously from a search facility not only to aid visitors but to reduce the number of abandoned visits that must surely occur when potential customers can’t find what they want quickly and easily.

Visitors need to be hooked before they lose interest or patience, so the faster you can get them to the product they want, the more likely they are to continue to the checkout and make a purchase. Making them work hard to get there will only serve to send them off to a competitor’s site in pretty quick time.

Until next time.

The news that the Web is now twenty years old got me thinking what would happen if the internet suddenly wasn’t there anymore. So instead of a web design-related post I’m going to indulge myself by pondering that very question.

Since the ‘arrival’ of the phenomenon that is known as the internet, we have become obsessed to some extent with the speed in which it lets us live our lives. We rarely expect to get letters from friends, family or businesses - email is there, ready, waiting and extremely fast.

We can visit just about any virtual shop in the world, buy more than we could physically carry and arrange to have it delivered, and all this can be done in just an hour of surfing without even getting out of a chair.

But, what would happen if for some reason the whole Internet suddenly ceased to work? The effects would be extremely far-reaching, for example; a substantial amount of daily business communication is conducted via email, the loss of which would severely disrupt and significantly slow down the companies who rely totally on it to send and receive information where speed is of the essence.

What about the private individuals whose emails possibly compare or even exceed in numbers that of corporate traffic? Business websites; without these virtual showrooms to look at, a customer would have to revert back to the old way of doing things and visit a real one - very hard on the feet!

We are all aware that the rapid advances made in Internet technology over recent years have been nothing short of astonishing. From mobile phones and their ability to send messages and photo images and access the Internet on the move to email and its instant delivery capability.

Both have transformed information exchange and communication beyond our wildest dreams, whilst simultaneously creating a mindset that has us expecting immediate answers to any questions we care to ask.

It’s up to each individual to decide for themselves whether or not the Internet is for the better. I am sure there are a vast number of people in the world that prefer life the way it used to be, and whilst I am sure that although we would undoubtedly cope without the Internet if we had to, the question is - would we want to?

Sure, the simplicity and speed of email would be sorely missed; the comparative ease of online shopping; the click of a mouse to pay the bills; the creature comforts that the Internet provides and what we have quickly grown to accept and expect, would eventually be forgotten or committed to a nostalgic memory, but I sincerely doubt it would be an easy transition and suspect we’d never be quite the same again. 

Until next time.

Taken from the Techlabs.com article ‘13 Google Chrome extensions no-one should live without’. In the second part of this article I am looking at some more in their list, starting with a URL shortener which is becoming almost essential for use on social media websites.

goo.gl URL Shortener- This extension is essential for anyone that uses links on social media profiles like Twitter, Facebook or business blogs. The goo.gl URL Shortener extension takes any internet URL, lengthy or not, and shortens it into a very simple link for use anywhere.

Considering the current global economic climate, this one is likely to prove extremely popular.

Monster Jobs - The Monster Chrome extension allows users to browse the internet and look for jobs simultaneously. Jobs are in high demand these days, and therefore such an extension is in need. The Monster Jobs extension also allows users to see job postings for individual sites they are visiting.

This is a good idea but somewhat limited.

WiseStamp - This extension works hand and hand with a Google mail or G-mail account, so naturally if you prefer another mail service this extension is useless to you. Basically the WiseStamp extension allows users to include social media and social network profile links in their e-mail signature.

Another handy extension but with limitations unless you have a G-mail address.

Mail Checker Plus for Google Mail - This extension is essential for anyone that uses a Gmail account and would rather keep an external application open instead of Gmail in an open browser window. Mail Checker Plus for Google Mail provides users with unread messages notifications and allows them to preview new mail, delete, or mark it as spam.

The last one.

Chrome Toolbox - The Chrome Toolbox extension by Google adds some more advanced browser options and commands to spruce up any browsing experience. For example users can save unsubmitted internet form data for use later, view web videos in standalone windows, and can pre-define the browser to open all links in an external window.

As I said in the first article, there seems to be something for everyone in Google Chrome, however, everyone will have their own opinions as to whether they work for them and of course their own favourites. It’s likely though that as Google is already the dominant player when it comes to browsing, the others will find it extremely hard to compete and be left trailing in their wake.

Until next time.

Everybody has their own opinion on what constitutes good web design; opinions which will be based mainly on how they think a website should be set out, how it should look and how it should perform but when it comes to the amount of copy on website there are generally two opposing camps; those who believe websites should contain as much information as possible, and others who insist that the copy conveys only the salient points.
 
Everyone is Different
It’s a well-known fact that most website visitors don’t read every word on a page; they hunt for and extract only the pieces of information they want.  That said, the internet is a vast place and populated by people with totally opposing tastes and ideas. So, it follows that there will also be those who prefer their web copy to be long and descriptive.  
 
Best Method?
So, how much information should there be on a site? Does it makes good sense for a site to have so much information on it that visitors can learn everything they need to know about a product or service before deciding whether or not to contact the company? 
 
Or is the ‘less is more’ approach the way to go? Display the minimum amount of product information so that visitors will have to make that all-important first contact to discover more, and where a salesperson will hopefully persuade them to buy which works sometimes but not always.
 
There will always be differences of opinion on the issue of copy quantity, because in reality there can never be a ‘one size fits all’ but as a website owner, when you ask yourself how much copy is enough? The answer is quite simply, however much works best for you!

Until next time.

Signing up to any online resource such as chat rooms, discussion forums or article and auction sites will almost always require you to supply a certain amount of personal information and inevitably having to choose a password.

With web security being of paramount importance, you’ll hopefully pick a password that should ensure all your details remain safe and secure, and if you’re inventive with your choice then you may be relatively safe. However, using the same password for all the other websites you login to could mean that your personal details don’t remain private for very long.

Keyloggers

Unscrupulous hackers are making huge sums of money is by stealing supposedly protected information from other users’ computers with the aid of a programme called a ‘keylogger’ which lets someone see what another user has been looking at on the Internet; in other words, it allows one person to spy on another’s computer.

A keylogger records every keystroke made by a user and sends the data back to the hacker. From the information received, the hacker can obtain personal information and passwords that could possibly allow them to access a person’s bank or savings account and clean them out; obviously a very lucrative and relatively risk-free operation

It must be mentioned however, that there is also a legitimate use for this type of programme in that it can be used as a means of protection and censorship by parents who want to monitor and control what websites their children are visiting whilst they are online.

Access Tricks

Many hackers will go to the trouble of using all the words in a dictionary as a means of obtaining a password and on some occasions this strategy actually works; typing in the names of celebrities and sports stars is another favoured method that can also be extremely effective.

An well chosen password should ideally contain both upper and lower case letters plus numbers and other characters; the downside of such a mix is that it will be very hard to remember, and practically impossible if you have lots of them. So, how do you go about keeping your information really safe?

Security

One of the easiest ways password security can be increased is to use a separate password for each site and not rely on a ‘one-password-fits-all’ situation – that just makes a hacker’s job easier. Invest in a good anti-spyware programme, one that will detect any information being sent back to a hacker via your own Internet connection.

Another option is to try out the various devices available that store all passwords in one place and plug into a USB port when you need to retrieve login details; inevitably, this device also needs a master password to access it but the upside is that you would no longer have to remember any of your other login names or passwords because the USB device automatically fills in the necessary boxes for you, but you must remember - never leave the USB device lying around.

The future

It may be that the password as we know it is on borrowed time. It’s possible that at some point in the future the use of passwords will cease altogether to be replaced by an electronic access option that generates an ever-changing code as part of the login process.

This technology is already being tried by various organisations, and though the effectiveness of the system for the moment remains unknown, it seems that a constantly changing password may be just what’s needed to keep your details safe and the hackers out.

Until next time.

In a very recent post, I wrote about Google Plus and mentioned just a few of its features such as Sparks, Hangouts and Circles. In the first of two posts I’m going to briefly outline some of the most popular extensions for Google Chrome as put forward by Techlabs.com in their article ‘13 Google Chrome extensions no-one should live without’.

The ones I’m going to list are in no particular order as I’ll be covering all of them in two posts anyway. The first extension is self-explanatory.

Adblock- Everyone hates ads, but with the Adblock extension for Chrome no one has to deal with them again. Seriously, this is not a commercial, especially considering the extension is free. Adblock automatically blocks pesky ads on website pages which are recorded in an internal database.

Android phone users are very likely to make this extension the most popular of all.

Google Chrome to Phone- This extension allows users to send relevant links and information to their Android phone. This is an essential extension for Android users, as it allows a completely integrated browsing experience on both desktop and mobile devices.

Social media fanatics will be highly unlikely to ignore the official Facebook extension.

Official Facebook Extension- The Official Facebook Extension for Google Chrome alerts or notifies a user whenever something interesting happens on Facebook. So instead of leaving a browser window logged into the site all the time, users can now rely on the extension to alert them when something cool happens! The extension will alert users when someone comments on their wall or posts, invites them to local events, posts to a group page, sends a friend request, or sends a new personal message.

This one is all about fun.

Picnik- Allows users to take screen captures and pictures directly from the browser window, as well as edit existing photos. No additional software is needed.

Anyone browsing web pages they shouldn’t should find this one very handy.

PanicButton- Do you work in a cubicle, and frequently find yourself looking on pages that you shouldn’t be, while at work? The PanicButton extension allows users to quickly and easily hide all open Chrome tabs with a single button and restore them later.

There seems to be something for everyone in Google Chrome and although it may not be to everybody’s liking, there’s no doubt that Google are working hard in every area. The next post will continue to look at other extensions in the Google Chrome stable.

Until next time.

As online shopping now accounts for well over half of all retail sales in the UK and the trend continues to grow at a rapid pace, businesses must employ ecommerce systems if they want to remain competitive. It’s somewhat surprising then that there are still some businesses that despite a web presence have no ecommerce facility on their sites.

Behaviour

The internet has totally transformed consumer behaviour and the way they think about buying so much so, that potential customers looking to purchase goods or services now expect and indeed demand that the whole shopping process can be accomplished quickly and easily via a website.

Ecommerce

Ecommerce programmes, sometimes referred to as ’shopping carts,’ guide customers step by step through the online buying process, from displaying merchandise options such as quantities, colours and sizes etc, to taking payments via credit card on a safe secure server. Such is the simplicity of use, even internet sceptics are beginning to see the benefits of shopping online.

Flexibility

Ecommerce systems do not sleep; they need no food and are available to customers 24hrs a day 365 days a year. It is like having a salesperson working full-time without having to pay them a wage and allows customers the complete freedom to shop at any time of the day or night for almost anything they need.

Must Have

If your business involves the selling of any type of merchandise via a website, having an ecommerce facility could hugely benefit both your company and your customers. To get your website working to its maximum potential, a chat with your web designer about what ecommerce programmes can do for you may be one of the best business decisions you ever make.

Until next time.