As technology grows ever more necessary for businesses to reach their audiences, technology companies try to offer solutions for non-technical people so that they can create their own websites. Intuit's website building software or 1 & 1 My Website are the 2 most common sites that you may recognize. For all of the advertising these companies spend to market and raise awareness for their website building solutions, the actual products fall short of graphical, structural, and functional design for most businesses. The best example is my last client, Austin Simply Fit. They began their website with one of these solutions and after they spent countless hours setting it up and then trying to design it within the software's construct they reached an unsatisfactory result.
A business website is the most effective piece of marketing material a business has to sell itself to its audience and keep them informed. Why go with and settle for a solution with an less than excellent result? Companies like Intuit have a very strong brand name from products like Quickbooks and compared to the painstaking process of seeking out, vetting, and hiring a web designer or web developer, the Intuit brand name persuades people to use their product. Most of the time, these out-of-the-box type solutions yield a less than adequate means for a business to properly communicate ideas, services, and information to an audience.
When a web designer and web developer like myself encounter solutions like 1 & 1 My Website or Intuit Website Solutions they are a real let-down from a design, structural, and functional aspect. Web technology and web programming has to be exact down to the very last punctation mark, yet at the same time it needs to be flexible enough because some pieces of code will conflict with other pieces of code and then you have to debug it to make it work together. The problems with the out-of-the-box solutions, is that they DO NOT allow for flexibility in the layout code (CSS - Cascading Style Sheets) or functional code (programming) and therefore the user who is trying to design the layout will always end up with a bad graphical representation and a user who needs to add a functional database will not be able to do so.
If you are a small business owner and you want a website that will go the distance, the best option you have is to find a web designer or web developer and let them guide you towards a viable solution for your business. If websites consist of 3 moving parts: 1 part business, 1 part art, and 1 part technology- and you want your website to look good, work well, and convey the right information to your audience- you need to reconsider all your options and find a great technology expert, like Gennovacap Technology Services, to help you implement the best solution for your business.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Friday, April 20, 2012
Weird Coupons: Stay Weird Locals
“What if we really went local?” That’s the question Austinite Eric Knittel asked himself when he had the idea to start Weird Coupons, a new, local coupon and deal provider that’s available ONLY to locally-grown Austin businesses.
Weird Coupons was conceived as a companion to Austin’s unofficial slogan, "Keep Austin Weird," a concept originated by Red Wassenich who claims to have made the comment while pledging his support for a local radio station. Now symbolic for supporting Austin’s vibrant local business community, “weird” is an idea that Austin business owners have embraced as a way to differentiate themselves from national franchises moving in to capitalize on Austin’s growing economy.
Weird Coupons is seeking to be the first and foremost coupon company that supports the health and growth of locally-born and raised businesses. As Eric sees it, “Why go to a Starbucks when you’ve got Austin Java, Juan Pelotas, Mozarts, Progress, Joe’s, and on and on.” He goes on to say, “And think about the restaurants, clothing stores, movie theaters, entertainment, bars, bands and more. The Austin joints smoke the competition.”
According to the Austin Independent Business Alliance (The ibuyaustin.com folks), “For every $100 spent locally $45 stays in Austin. Opposed to just $13 when shopping at a national chain.” As Eric puts it, “I saw the big group couponers coming into Austin and making deals with local businesses that sounded great for consumers but ultimately were harmful to the Austin economy.” He goes on to explain, “When a business offers 50% off it’s product or service through a group couponer, they are really giving away 75% of their product. Because after all is said and done, the business has to split the price the consumer pays for the coupon (which is really a gift certificate). How many businesses do you think can survive by giving away 75% of their product?”
To add insult to injury, the money spent with the big discount programs goes to Chicago, D.C., etc. Eric says, “I saw this and thought to myself, this is silly. There has to be a way, using today’s technology, that Austin small businesses can attract more customers without losing their shirts.”
At www.weirdcoupons.com, consumers can download the [free] app for both iPhone and Android (www.weirdcoupons.com/getapp.php) and businesses can open a free account to create and push their coupons or deals to the smart phones of Austinites with the app. “We’ve designed Weird Coupons to be super easy for business owners to use, as well as consumers,” states Eric. For the business owner, Eric says, “All the control is in your hands. You decide the discount or deal, you set the terms, you determine how long the deal lasts, and you push it to the app. For customers, all you have to do is download the app. There’s no account to open, no password to remember, no big brother watching what you buy. Simply download the app, check it when you’re ready to eat, shop or have some fun, and look for the best deals. That’s it.”
Weird Coupons is a local business focused on growing the local economy. It’s aimed at helping Austinites discover all the incredible businesses we have in our city. Eric puts it this way, “I sometimes take for granted how blessed I am to live in Austin, Texas. As our city grows, Weird Coupons is going to help me remember how lucky I am that I live in a city that appreciates and supports the entrepreneurial spirt – the American spirit.”
As Weird Coupons ramps up, they are giving their service away for free to all Austin-born businesses. So if your business is born and bred in Austin, you’re eligible to run all the advertisements, offers, discounts or deals you want to. Simply go to www.weirdcoupons.com and signup, and as Eric says, “Start sending Austinites a little love.”
If you are interested in partnering with Weird Coupons to offer your deals exclusively through Weird Coupons please contant Eric at eric@weirdcoupons.com for assistance in setting this up.
Weird Coupons was conceived as a companion to Austin’s unofficial slogan, "Keep Austin Weird," a concept originated by Red Wassenich who claims to have made the comment while pledging his support for a local radio station. Now symbolic for supporting Austin’s vibrant local business community, “weird” is an idea that Austin business owners have embraced as a way to differentiate themselves from national franchises moving in to capitalize on Austin’s growing economy.
Weird Coupons is seeking to be the first and foremost coupon company that supports the health and growth of locally-born and raised businesses. As Eric sees it, “Why go to a Starbucks when you’ve got Austin Java, Juan Pelotas, Mozarts, Progress, Joe’s, and on and on.” He goes on to say, “And think about the restaurants, clothing stores, movie theaters, entertainment, bars, bands and more. The Austin joints smoke the competition.”
According to the Austin Independent Business Alliance (The ibuyaustin.com folks), “For every $100 spent locally $45 stays in Austin. Opposed to just $13 when shopping at a national chain.” As Eric puts it, “I saw the big group couponers coming into Austin and making deals with local businesses that sounded great for consumers but ultimately were harmful to the Austin economy.” He goes on to explain, “When a business offers 50% off it’s product or service through a group couponer, they are really giving away 75% of their product. Because after all is said and done, the business has to split the price the consumer pays for the coupon (which is really a gift certificate). How many businesses do you think can survive by giving away 75% of their product?”
To add insult to injury, the money spent with the big discount programs goes to Chicago, D.C., etc. Eric says, “I saw this and thought to myself, this is silly. There has to be a way, using today’s technology, that Austin small businesses can attract more customers without losing their shirts.”
At www.weirdcoupons.com, consumers can download the [free] app for both iPhone and Android (www.weirdcoupons.com/getapp.php) and businesses can open a free account to create and push their coupons or deals to the smart phones of Austinites with the app. “We’ve designed Weird Coupons to be super easy for business owners to use, as well as consumers,” states Eric. For the business owner, Eric says, “All the control is in your hands. You decide the discount or deal, you set the terms, you determine how long the deal lasts, and you push it to the app. For customers, all you have to do is download the app. There’s no account to open, no password to remember, no big brother watching what you buy. Simply download the app, check it when you’re ready to eat, shop or have some fun, and look for the best deals. That’s it.”
Weird Coupons is a local business focused on growing the local economy. It’s aimed at helping Austinites discover all the incredible businesses we have in our city. Eric puts it this way, “I sometimes take for granted how blessed I am to live in Austin, Texas. As our city grows, Weird Coupons is going to help me remember how lucky I am that I live in a city that appreciates and supports the entrepreneurial spirt – the American spirit.”
As Weird Coupons ramps up, they are giving their service away for free to all Austin-born businesses. So if your business is born and bred in Austin, you’re eligible to run all the advertisements, offers, discounts or deals you want to. Simply go to www.weirdcoupons.com and signup, and as Eric says, “Start sending Austinites a little love.”
If you are interested in partnering with Weird Coupons to offer your deals exclusively through Weird Coupons please contant Eric at eric@weirdcoupons.com for assistance in setting this up.
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Website Development with Search Engine Optimization and WordPress Graphic Design with SEO Plug-in Setup
This past month we added a couple of new projects and clients to our portfolio. For our first client, Texas Shale Investments, we built a custom website and enhanced it with search engine optimization services. For our second client, Pattern Productions, we helped to redesign the layout of their WordPress blog and setup the SEO Ultimate Plug-in. Here is a glimpse of our clients, the process involved, and the technologies we used in each project.
Our first client, Texas Shale Investments, is an diversified group of companies working in the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas. They commissioned Gennovacap to design the layout for the website, create specific keywords for website written content, add stock photography, create a blog using Blogger, submit sitemaps to all the major search engines, and fine tune the websites for search engine optimization. Once we obtained the all of the website requirements from the client, it took us a less than week to develop the site and implement the search engine optimization services.
For Texas Shale Investments web design, we started off with a CSS3 template designed with a jQuery slider and jQuery Carousel for an animated user interface. Next, we customized the webpage content and images to fit the services and interests of Texas Shale Investments as a company. We had the client choose stock photography from iStock and then we integrated the written content for the website. Once we had the layout designed, the images chosen, and the content written- we began the web development process.
After all the code is written, we uploaded the webpages, files, and images to the server and we began the search engine optimization. For search engine optimization there are several steps involved to prepare the site. The first step is to generate a sitemap which we submit to all the search engines so that they can begin to scour the webpages and begin indexing the website for queries, content, images, backlinks, and keywords. After we setup the rest of the optimization through Google Webmasters service, the site is client ready. Visit Texas Shale Investments to see the services they provide and the work we did for them.
In the one month since we launched the Texas Shale Investments website, there has been considerable movement in page rank for specific keywords relating to their business. In the next few months we will work with Texas Shale Investments to further enhance their page rank through press releases, online marketing, and organic search engine optimization.
Our second client, Pattern Productions, is a video production company in Austin, TX. Pattern Productions requested a redesign for their WordPress blog and Gennovacap delivered. We were given a professional mockup and design to emulate on the web. We started by inspecting the current WordPress theme and then we began tweaking the CSS3 design and working with the PHP a little to bring about an exact replica. After a week, we had a proof for the client and we worked with them for about another week to iron out the nuances. After the blog was redesigned, we rearranged the permalink structure (urls based on tags and blog titles instead of a trailing breadcrumb) and setup the SEO Ultimate Plugin. Visit Pattern Productions to see our design work.
Our first client, Texas Shale Investments, is an diversified group of companies working in the Eagle Ford Shale in South Texas. They commissioned Gennovacap to design the layout for the website, create specific keywords for website written content, add stock photography, create a blog using Blogger, submit sitemaps to all the major search engines, and fine tune the websites for search engine optimization. Once we obtained the all of the website requirements from the client, it took us a less than week to develop the site and implement the search engine optimization services.
For Texas Shale Investments web design, we started off with a CSS3 template designed with a jQuery slider and jQuery Carousel for an animated user interface. Next, we customized the webpage content and images to fit the services and interests of Texas Shale Investments as a company. We had the client choose stock photography from iStock and then we integrated the written content for the website. Once we had the layout designed, the images chosen, and the content written- we began the web development process.
After all the code is written, we uploaded the webpages, files, and images to the server and we began the search engine optimization. For search engine optimization there are several steps involved to prepare the site. The first step is to generate a sitemap which we submit to all the search engines so that they can begin to scour the webpages and begin indexing the website for queries, content, images, backlinks, and keywords. After we setup the rest of the optimization through Google Webmasters service, the site is client ready. Visit Texas Shale Investments to see the services they provide and the work we did for them.
In the one month since we launched the Texas Shale Investments website, there has been considerable movement in page rank for specific keywords relating to their business. In the next few months we will work with Texas Shale Investments to further enhance their page rank through press releases, online marketing, and organic search engine optimization.
Our second client, Pattern Productions, is a video production company in Austin, TX. Pattern Productions requested a redesign for their WordPress blog and Gennovacap delivered. We were given a professional mockup and design to emulate on the web. We started by inspecting the current WordPress theme and then we began tweaking the CSS3 design and working with the PHP a little to bring about an exact replica. After a week, we had a proof for the client and we worked with them for about another week to iron out the nuances. After the blog was redesigned, we rearranged the permalink structure (urls based on tags and blog titles instead of a trailing breadcrumb) and setup the SEO Ultimate Plugin. Visit Pattern Productions to see our design work.
Monday, February 20, 2012
Business Websites and SEO Services
At Gennovacap Technology Services, custom websites and SEO services are two of our specialties. Since every business needs a website and the website needs to be search engine optimized, we have found an efficient way to build beautiful custom websites and combine the website with basic SEO services to facilitate the growth of a business' online presence. Our custom web design and web development solutions are great for any business who needs a website and has to work with a budget.
We begin our webpage design by designing a website that has a good look and feel for the business and its industry. Before we begin to design or create a single web page, we develop a roadmap for the website's content, graphics, and images using diagramming and outlining software. Based upon the content provided to us by the business owners, we can then begin to design and develop the website. Once the website is developed we can host and manage your website through through a variety of hosting services like GoDaddy, MediaTemple, or Rackspace.
After your website is online we can begin the SEO procedure. Our SEO services include registering the website and all relevant URL's to all the major search engines including Google, Yahoo, and Bing. We also create a sitemap and ensure your website is in good health for the search engines to crawl and index your site. Once the SEO is implemented we can go a step further and submit press releases to the local media and news publications. We also list your business with Google Places, Bing Business, or Yahoo Local. The combination of these techniques will yield some relevance for your business website.
After your business website is optimized and setup on the web, we can actively manage your website with updates to your business service listings, new content for your blog, or press releases to the news media. If you are serious about growing your business through the internet, then we can also increase your page rank through the use of internet marketing like organic SEO backlinking strategies as well as managing Google AdWords PPC Campaigns. Call or contact us today for a free estimate for a business website, basic SEO setup, or mobile application needs.
We begin our webpage design by designing a website that has a good look and feel for the business and its industry. Before we begin to design or create a single web page, we develop a roadmap for the website's content, graphics, and images using diagramming and outlining software. Based upon the content provided to us by the business owners, we can then begin to design and develop the website. Once the website is developed we can host and manage your website through through a variety of hosting services like GoDaddy, MediaTemple, or Rackspace.
After your website is online we can begin the SEO procedure. Our SEO services include registering the website and all relevant URL's to all the major search engines including Google, Yahoo, and Bing. We also create a sitemap and ensure your website is in good health for the search engines to crawl and index your site. Once the SEO is implemented we can go a step further and submit press releases to the local media and news publications. We also list your business with Google Places, Bing Business, or Yahoo Local. The combination of these techniques will yield some relevance for your business website.
After your business website is optimized and setup on the web, we can actively manage your website with updates to your business service listings, new content for your blog, or press releases to the news media. If you are serious about growing your business through the internet, then we can also increase your page rank through the use of internet marketing like organic SEO backlinking strategies as well as managing Google AdWords PPC Campaigns. Call or contact us today for a free estimate for a business website, basic SEO setup, or mobile application needs.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Social Search Results from Google Plus
Google+ Your World
When Google Plus first arrived on the scene, I felt a sudden hesitation to sign up for the "newer and improved" social network because like most people I felt like it would be another mobile app I would need to manage like Twitter or Facebook. Six months after my sign up, Goolge Plus is dishing out what tastes like another slice of the fruitful pie that Google loves to give out to its users. The slices are socialized search results for a Google Plus user and it exhibits every indication of being a game changer.In the past couple of weeks, Google began to immediately index content for Google Plus users. Why does this create relevance? If I were to initiate a search not only will I receive the usual search results, but I also receive personalized search results and I can choose to separately toggle between them. The image below depicts both scenarios. The upper image shows the general search query result and the bottom image displays the personalized and social search for a Google Plus user.
The search query for "web design" yielded common search results form the web, but my personalized search result yielded results from Google Plus and the web together. The personalized social search result populated content, images, and posts not only from my business website (which offers web design services) and Google Plus posts, but also from my extended network of Google Plus friends and their networks.
Is it a Game Changer?
To the everyday internet user Google Plus may be just another social network, but to the internet marketer, SEO expert, web developer, and average business owner Google Plus is so much more. With the indexing of content immediately to the Google Searchable Index, business owners don't need to spend a fortune on traditional or web marketing to become relevant on the real-time web. They need to spend more time on Google Plus building their networks and creating content on their Google Plus Pages that will bolster their relevance on the web for social search results to their extended networks. As long as Google does not change their stance on how these social search results are indexed and queried, then it will create tremendous value for anyone who is not a web developer but who wants to get noticed on the web and become relevant today.Internet marketers, SEO experts, and web developers may have a totally different experience with Google Plus than the average business owner. For anyone in the field of search engine optimization, Google Plus could either prove to be an extra boost. If Google tweaks the algorithm for social search in the same manner in which it created the rules for SEO, then businesses in the SEO Services Market will get a real boost from new network. The reason being that keywords, content, and links on a traditional website typically generate relevance and page rank for web pages AND most of the social results from Google Plus users will typically come from web pages, shared links, or blogs associated with the Google Plus user's POSTS, not from Google Plus profiles themselves.
So what does that mean? Well, web pages and websites which are being referenced or Plus +1ed will inherently gain more relevance than website or a web page which is just sitting there without social engagement or interaction. However, the content, keywords, and links in those websites or blogs may help to form the hierarchy behind the social search results as a whole. So as long as the traditional sites are coded with SEO keywords, content, and links correctly- the social search results will yield a far better result than the traditional search query for the information seeker. In the long run, Google Plus doesn't make SEO experts obsolete, it makes them more necessary.
As long as Google Plus Users are adding content which refers back to the traditional web, it will make websites which already have hard coded SEO keywords, content, and links even more relevant than before social search. Will this boost traditional organic search query results or will Google make social search the next stage in searchable content on the web? The answer to that question is best left to the Google Search Engine Engineers.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
Filemaker Database: Oil Field Services
Six months ago, Gennovacap Technology built a Filemaker Database for an oilfield service client. The client had been running a MS Access database when the motherboard on their PC burned out. We retrieved the lost information from their hard drive and set the clients up with new Apple computers. We built a new database from scratch with Filemaker and manually entered the old data into the new system. After we had the database set up, our client could access all of their client's data directly from their iPhones via a remote server hosting their new Filemaker database.
The database solution included simple addition of new customers without creating irrelevant information for existing customers. For example: Entering "Billy's BBQ" and then adding "Billy's" to the customer list would create a repetition for clients. We implemented a fail safe process which eliminated problems like this with other types of databases. We also integrated Google Maps into the database so that the firm could keep track of job logistics when sending their field technicians out to service equipment. The database also included inventory tracking to keep up with all items currently in use as well as the technician responsible for the equipment.
In addition to building the database solution, we worked closely with external Filemaker Consultants to integrate the database into Quickbooks using a specialized protocol. This additional consulting created a solution which eliminated double entry of data from the database to Quickbooks. With one touch publishing implemented, the business only had to review the information before it was published into their accounting software and invoices were billed out to clients.
The database solution included simple addition of new customers without creating irrelevant information for existing customers. For example: Entering "Billy's BBQ" and then adding "Billy's" to the customer list would create a repetition for clients. We implemented a fail safe process which eliminated problems like this with other types of databases. We also integrated Google Maps into the database so that the firm could keep track of job logistics when sending their field technicians out to service equipment. The database also included inventory tracking to keep up with all items currently in use as well as the technician responsible for the equipment.
In addition to building the database solution, we worked closely with external Filemaker Consultants to integrate the database into Quickbooks using a specialized protocol. This additional consulting created a solution which eliminated double entry of data from the database to Quickbooks. With one touch publishing implemented, the business only had to review the information before it was published into their accounting software and invoices were billed out to clients.
The new system we built for our clients made managing their business easier. The Filemaker solution enabled our clients to easily track employees, account for equipment, handle logistics, and eliminated the need for double entry for the accounts receivable portion for their business. Now with our solution, our client can do all of this from their iPhones. To find out how we can help your business contact us today.
E-commerce solutions
Creating an E-Commerce site is not as difficult as it used to be. Since the World Wide Web first came online and the dot com era came and went, technologists came together to create online shopping vehicles which empowered retail establishments. Vehicles like osCommerce, Magento, and ZenCart have made setting up an online store as simple as making chocolate chip cookies. We built a turnkey e-commerce solution for Mardi Gras Gemoworks using osCommerce. You can see view it here Mar-di Gras Gemworks
There are many ways to build an e-commerce solution, but in this particular case we had the client pick out a pre-fabricated template from Template Monster and we customized the logo as well as the back-end of the site. Although we used a template to create this site, we could have as easily created the graphics and layout using a custom design generated from our graphics design team.
We integrated PayPal as their preferred method of payment, but we can also implement Authorize.net as well as Google Checkout for clients.
After we completed the development work for this client, we set hosted the site for them on monthly plan. We offer competitive rates and can scale your site's bandwidth as you grow your store online. Along with hosting your site we can implement search engine optimization strategies to target your customer base and make your online store grow over time. Contact us today to find out how we can help you grow.
We integrated PayPal as their preferred method of payment, but we can also implement Authorize.net as well as Google Checkout for clients.
After we completed the development work for this client, we set hosted the site for them on monthly plan. We offer competitive rates and can scale your site's bandwidth as you grow your store online. Along with hosting your site we can implement search engine optimization strategies to target your customer base and make your online store grow over time. Contact us today to find out how we can help you grow.
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