Over the next few weeks I will be in and out of the office for a couple family vacations and some on location client projects. My good friend and collaborator Jamie Orillion did a blog post a few months back about running your business from your phone. I thought it could be helpful to do a [...]
There is tons of buzz in the web business right now about social media. I have clients calling me about new websites asking about social media every week. They all want to have a “social media presence” on the internet. Most of them have no idea why, they just want to be on Twitter and [...]
As we noted last week with the launch of WordPress there are a few simple little interface tweaks that make it lighter and faster. We are now offering with all new projects free 30 day access to our extensive video training series (see screenshot below). The video library is kept updated automatically when versions or [...]
Over the next few weeks I will be in and out of the office for a couple family vacations and some on location client projects. My good friend and collaborator Jamie Orillion did a blog post a few months back about running your business from your phone. I thought it could be helpful to do a post with some details about how I do work on the road.
You can also check out a video below about what I generally carrying my laptop bag when I am out of the office.
http://www.vimeo.com/13212478To be completely honest, between my iPhone and my iPad my laptop has almost become a waste to bring on the road. I can do just about everything I need to do from my iPad or iPhone. I can do billing, estimates, edit HTML files, markup and comment on PDFs, and of course the standard smartphone stuff like email, calendar, and contacts. It is amazing now with 3G internet access just about everywhere, I am never to far from internet access, so much of what I need to be “in the office” for is irrelevant now. Below are a list of a few iOS apps that have been lifesavers and are key to me working on the road.
There is tons of buzz in the web business right now about social media. I have clients calling me about new websites asking about social media every week. They all want to have a “social media presence” on the internet. Most of them have no idea why, they just want to be on Twitter and Facebook because they heard that is what they need to do. Some clients will benefit greatly from social media exposure and others won’t. Surprisingly one section of my clientele hasn’t made a peep about social media and they stand to gain the most from the new media revolution, Christians.
Many of my clients are Christian churches, and especially Catholic due to my time in seminary studies for the priesthood and heavy involvement in Catholic New Media. But even though the Catholic Church big-wigs are screaming from the mountain top that priests, religious, and churches in general need to have an online and social presence there are very few actually jumping into the water feet first. Pope Benedict recently created the Pontifical Council for New Evangelization in an effort to step forward in reaching the secular world.
Priests are thus challenged to proclaim the Gospel by employing the latest generation of audiovisual resources (images, vidoes, animated features, blogs, websites) which, alongside traditional means, can open up broad new vistas for dialogue, evangelization and catechesis. – Pope Benedict XVI (44th World Communications Day)
The way I see it, there are 3 areas were Christians can benefit greatly from social media.
One of social media’s greatest draws is its ability to build communities of people that are like minded. Never before in other ages has the internet provided a way to find and interact with someone who likes the same exact thing as you. It has the amazing ability to connect people that feel isolated or alone. Much like Christ inserted himself into the communities of the day by eating meals with those cast out or society or by teaching in the synagogues with the learned, he lived where they lived. Today, the Church needs to be in the trenches of modern day community. If people are spending their time on Facebook, Christians should be interacting with them there. I was shocked how many Churches refused to go anywhere near MySpace because it was a “dangerous” place or they didn’t want to be “associated” with a service like “that”, but Christ went “to where the sinners lived”. He reached out to them directly thru community first, then taught them how to get out of sin. He always loved and lived wit them before he taught or preached to them.
I think the most central call of Christ was that we are not only to hear his message and continue living our lives, but we are required to spread the message. Just as St. Paul stood from the mountain tops and spread the message of Christ and his teaching, social media is the new digital mountain. Pope Benedict XVI has spoken many times of this new “digital continent” that exists in the world, where people work and play. I think social media stands as the mountain top of this new continent. It is where a single voice can carry loudly to the masses very very quickly. Social media has the ability to leverage people’s curiosities for more information. The best social people or services to follow are always the ones with relevant and interesting content. What can be more engaging than someone using this tool to explain or at bare minimum expose people to a teaching about Christ that is confusing or completely misunderstood? Here we must make a point though that social media is a tool to engage, not a “ministry” in itself. We need to remember that all of these methods are to guide people to Christ, not to let them stay safely in their twitter clients or web browsers. It should always invite people to go deeper into the message, instead of taking it for just face value.
As we talk about inviting people to go deeper we touch upon one of the greatest area where Christianity can take advantage of social media. If we continue to use social media to bring people together, teach and inform them about Christ, then naturally we need to complete the process and call them to action or change. Social media has great potential for spreading a message fast. I only takes one person to post a message that quickly gets reposted, re-tweeted, or “liked”, for it to reach millions in a matter of hours. People feel part of the cause by simply passing the message along to their followers or friends. It makes it easy to “get out the vote” or draw attention to injustice. In recent years, social media has been used to rocket donations or fundraising for disasters. As people of faith we need to leverage these services to bring people from spectators to activists. Where we are trying to get people on their knees praying or on their feet protesting injustice, we need to tell them how to help. One of the biggest complaints about people in the Church is involvement, but people just need to be called passionately to get involved online and they will make the jump to getting involved in reality.
Now that I got you all riled up to use social media, how the heck do you take advantage of it? Well first off, make sure that once you get involved, you stay involved. Lack of participation can make social initiatives die fast! If you don’t feel that you can handle it yourself, find someone who can before you get involved. Whether a local tech savvy parishioner or a professional you can trust, someone with the know how can help rocket your efforts into a wider audience. If you don’t have the budget for a professional there is tons that can be achieved just by getting on these services personally and getting a feel for being a social media user. Priests and pastors should have Facebook accounts and blogs at bare minimum. Below you will find a few resources that can help you get started and as always you can make a comment or send us an email with more questions. Remember that these services are tools, use them, don’t make them the end, that’s supposed to Christ. If you use these service to draw people to Him, then they will be successful, but if they become simply a vanity page where you want people to “follow” you, then you have missed the boat. Christ’s voice is a sweet whisper, just use these services to let people hear it loud and clear from the digital mountain top.
As we noted last week with the launch of WordPress there are a few simple little interface tweaks that make it lighter and faster.
We are now offering with all new projects free 30 day access to our extensive video training series (see screenshot below). The video library is kept updated automatically when versions or features change. We also include special video tutorials for site specific features or plugins. As an added bonus we include a written manual for the non-visual learners out there. If you are interested please send us an email and we will be happy to add the feature on to your site for a free trial period. As always with every website project we still provide our personal and in-depth training before site launch.
Thanks,
Daniel Kedinger, Owner/Lead Geek
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Not many updates to WordPress have gotten me so excited as the most recent version. WordPress 3 has really amped up the CMS factor with many new features that previously were achieved with 3rd party plugins. Most of the functionality that I added onto my client’s websites are now built directly into the core of the system. I have been working on a few new sites that are close to launch that are built from the ground up with WordPress 3. There are over 1,217 bug fixes and feature improvements, I will spare you all the geekery and only highlight a few here.
This feature expands upon the standard “post types” of posts, pages, and attachments. It gives users the ability to create a new section to categorize data. When this feature is implemented into a website it can really be tweaked to what ever dataset that needs to be displayed. The main examples used by WordPress to explain the functionality are things like a real estate listings, a podcast directory, or a book/movie database. But really you could do anything with custom post types. For instance you could use it to display store locations with address information, descriptions and more.
This is a feature that I have included in many websites with the use plugins for quite a few years now, but it is finally a part of the core system. This allows users to create and modify their menu systems on the fly. If you want to have categories in the menu as well as pages you just drag and drop and you are good to go. It also allows the ability to make links that can point to other locations. This helps free up the need to create dummy pages with redirects.
Previously this feature was known as WordPress MU, but it as well as been integrated directly into the system. WordPress 3 now lets you very easily manage multiple WordPress sites with one install. Another feature that when used correctly can be very useful. For instance a shopping complex that has one main website with multiple sub sites for each individual business, allowing individual control to all the users for their own site, but still connected and hosted in one location.
There are countless features and many security fixes, way too many to note here. But they also did many little interface tweaks that help make things less cluttered and easier to just get in and write. If you host your site yourself make sure to update, you will be happy. As always we are ready to go with WordPress 3 and have already been playing in the sandbox with it for quite a few months. You can get more information on the new features here and for the geeks amongst us more details here.
I just recently launched a project that I have been working on for Bayou Teche Brewing. This is 1 of only 3 breweries in Louisina and they are definitely set apart from the competition. The Knott Brother’s set out to create a beer that pairs with local cuisine, not an easy task I might say due to the fried, greasy, delicious nature of our dishes. Their goal was to create a beer that was unique to this area and was great for pairing with countless foods and lifestyles. I tried to translate what is in the bottle to the web with their site.
For the project I sat down with them and developed a concept that was heavy image driven and a strong emphasis on brand recognition. The goal was to develop a design that harkened to the characteristics of their beer as a golden pale ale with “hoppy” overtones. I presented a concept board (click here to view) to begin the project and knew that we would need some fantastic imagery to carry the site. We worked with Jamie Orillion Photography & Design to capture some amazing imagery of their beer, the brewery, and the brothers themselves. Check out more of his work here. I collaborated with Jamie on design and the site really shows a strong connection to their beer.
Below you will see my initial concept board as well as well as the final design and some of the imagery from Jamie. You can check out the site at www.bayoutechebrewing.com and can find their beer in a store near you here with our store locator feature.
Click here for for full concept board.
The Front Page, www.bayoutechebrewing.com
Store Locator, www.bayoutechebrewing.com
Photography by Jamie Orillion Photography & Design
Johnnie Gachassin came to us to design a web presence and ended up doing a complete branding package. She was a joy to work with and I wish I had 10 more clients like her. You can visit her site here: http://www.lafayettetraumatherapy.com.
We recently completed our first international client project for the Pontifical North American College located in Vatican City. The seminary college is charged with training and preparing the next generation of Roman Catholic priest’s and religious and stands in the shadow of St. Peter’s Basilica in Rome. The site had been maintained for many years internally by individual seminarians while studying at the NAC. It had become very disjointed and the goal was to unify the various sections under one common design. We worked closely with the students to create a design that is traditional, strong, yet still fresh and modern.
Creativity is at the heart of innovation and for something to be creative, it must be novel and useful. Likewise, innovation must be both novel and useful. Amidst all of the technical advancements in today’s age of digitalocracy, seamless integration stands out as a key attribute of innovation. Google has been a stark force in innovation for the internet and with Google Apps, integration is as smooth as a beautiful baby’s butt!
Subtlety in my alliteration is left to be desired. I have hope though. Google Apps includes Gmail, Google Docs, Google Calendar and Google Contacts. A point of clarification is needed before we move on in that Google has “Apps” but “Google Apps” is their suite of collaborating apps coupled with domain and user management for business, schools, and non-profits. The easiest way to think of Google Apps is it is Google’s answer to Microsoft Exchange and Apple’s MobileMe. While Google Apps are useful at the individual level, they are especially useful for businesses. A variety of businesses have made the switch to Google Apps.
I’ve already hinted at one of the things that sets it apart, integration. There is more to it than that. Each of these applications has valuable attributes in and of themselves. The incredible ways each of these applications integrates with the other is well…incredible but on top of that. Each one of these integrates with a number of devices and other software. So let’s take a moment to peruse some of the individual virtues of these apps and then delve a little further into the cardinal virtue of integration.
Gmail was one of the first apps to be released from Google. A hallmark of Gmail is the enormous amount of storage it offers. When it was first released to a limited number of users, Gmail did not have a delete button. This was one way that Google was able to boast of the large amounts of storage it offered. Instead of deleting or sorting messages, the powerful search engine in Gmail allows you to quickly access that one message you need at the precise moment you need it. Gmail does come with a delete button now but it is as powerful as ever offering 25GB of storage.
Another great feature with Gmail is its spam filtering. When it comes to spam, there’s not a speck of potted meat in your email. The integration that Gmail offers is also powerful. Pushing email to your iPhone is simple and easy. Outlook also easily syncs with Google Apps. Holding in consideration the storage, filtering, and easy access, it is clear to see the dynamic appeal of using Gmail.
The level of enterprise service that Gmail offers is usually only accessible to larger organizations that can afford the IT-beast that is Microsoft Exchange. If you use Exchange then you will most definitely save money. See how much here!
Seamless in its integration with Gmail is Google Docs. Collaborating and sharing information with clients, friends and family is simple and easy. Google Docs allows you to share files or folders with others. It also allows you to limit how much access others have to these files. Word documents, spreadsheets and presentations are all featured in Google Docs providing a cloud computing format for accessing, editing and sharing these documents without attachments. Google Docs’ formats are also compatible with many popular formats offering quick and easy exporting.
The calendar app is an extremely useful tool. It offers group calendaring as an easy way to manage scheduling of groups. It also offers a feature for employee individual calendar. This app makes it easy to schedule appointments, integrate with email, share project calendars, and has access with a number of mobile devices. It even allows you to publish calendars and embed them into web pages. It is no wonder then why so many businesses are taking advantage of these numerous virtues.
Google Contacts integrates with all of its apps offering a powerful and efficient way to connect your contact info with the number of other apps that Google features. It also syncs easily with the iPhone and gives you the ability to share group contacts.
The cardinal virtue of Google Apps is integration. The connectivity of information is mind boggling. From one source, all of this information is stored and interconnected in a user-friendly way. Access, usability and functionality meet with such seamless integration that the lines between the apps are blurred. Beyond its compatibility with itself, Google Apps offers compatibility with a number of devices and other software. These benefits have found their way into being actualized by non-profits and small businesses alike.
Google Apps have a number of benefits for non-profit organizations. For one thing, it’s free, free, oh and by the way, it’s free! The learning curve for Google Apps is more like a small bump. Typically, with functionality comes a trade-off of needing a lot of technical know-how. Google has managed to decimate this trade-off exchanging functionality with no money and techie knowledge needed. One other really cool feature for non-profits is that it allows you to send email from your name@domain.org without paying expensive fees.
Small businesses also have much to gain from switching to Google Apps. It is free for up to 50 users. As mentioned a number of times, it offers full and seamless integration with the iPhone. Having access to all of this information from anywhere offers you the ability to share and collaborate on documents on the go whether you are working from the office or even the coffee shop. Instead of spending all of your time trying to keep employees on the same page, Google Apps offer simple and easy sharing options that allow your employees to be connected to information with little sweat on your part.
If you haven’t considered Google Apps before then this is the horn blowing. Switch to Google Apps and start collaborating! There are a number of testimonials of businesses who have completely enhanced the way they do business by switching to Google Apps. This is innovation as it is rarely encountered. Experience it for yourself if you aren’t one of the many already encountering the virtues of Google Apps.
Deployment Guide: http://deployment.googleapps.com/
Case Studies: http://www.google.com/apps/intl/en/business/customers.html
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To say that the internet has revolutionized the accessibility of information is a gross understatement. The web has very quickly become one of the most important and widely used socio-technological advancements well, ever. As the number of stuff on the web increases, the variety of stuff on the internet also increases. More pertinent here is that the number of junk or noise on the web also increases. Utilizing web standards is a way to optimize the so called stuff on the web to be more than noise but rather, a melody.
Why do web standards matter? It can feel like the advocacy of web standards support the suppression of individuality while pushing for a conglomerate of conformity. Certain groups such as the Web Standards Project definitely don’t hold this view. Uniformity can be good! No, I am not saying you need to be a member of the communist party or anything. Rather, consider how web standards can increase your web site’s usability, accessibility, and all around function-ability (pushing for that 3rd –ability there).
Just having information on the web is not enough. Somehow, that information needs to do something; to inform perhaps. The Web Standards Project describes Tim Berners-Lee’s dream for his invention, the World Wide Web, as “a common space where users can share information to work together, to play, and to socialize.” In this dream we see information doing something, being accessible and useful. Web standards allow for web designers to address several constraints of the web including those of search and devices.
The surfing metaphor is extremely overused when describing how people use the internet and will be further overused here. So, you put a web site up, a wave if you will. How will you get surfers to that wave? One of the greatest and underappreciated things to come out of the web is Google. Search engines are an integral part of how people use the web. Search engine optimization (SEO) is a way to organically optimize a web site to work with search engines, effectively bringing your wave to the surfers. Google provides so many great tools to assist you in SEO even if you are not an SEO expert. What this gets to is attracting a bigger audience to your site. Basically, mais get on dat Google!
An interesting thing to point out about surfing is that people use so many different types of boards to surf. Your wave may behave very differently from those taking their time on the long board (beefy desktops) to those looking for quick access on their new boogie boards (iPhones & Blackberries) . Web standards matter in that they allow you to work with the variability of the numerous devices out there that search the web. Amazingly enough, following web standards allows you to optimize your web design for a multitude of devices without a lot of effort on your part.
Moving on from the surfing metaphor, let’s consider how web standards can affect load time. Even with the behemoth processors that are out today, the fact remains that messy code will increase load times. Web standards emphasize simple and elegant coding methods which produce faster load times. This allows for optimal processing for everything from the long board to water skis to pirogues (ok, had to use the surfing metaphor just one more time).
Staying informed about web standards is yet another way that web standards do matter. This allows you to stay on top of the technology that’s out there and effectively utilize what works from the hassle of experimenting with what doesn’t for future proofing.
For these and many other reasons, web standards do matter. They don’t suppress individuality as much as they provide an optimal paradigm for expressing that individuality.
Web Standards Projet: http://www.webstandards.org/
A List Apart: http://www.alistapart.com/
World Wide Web Consortium: http://www.w3.org/Consortium/
Web Standards Entry on Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Web_standards
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I have to admit…I am lazy when it comes to things that don’t pertain directly to my family, clients, or friends. So social networking is one of those things that I know is important but I just can’t waste an entire day on it. But below are a few suggestions to help you spend time doing what is important and let social networking fuel itself.
Finding a service that lets you sync or link all of your various networking services together. HelloTxt is a great service that connects most of the major social sites and provides a mobile website as well when you are on the go!
This goes for email too, but pick a time of the day to allow yourself some social networking time. Set an alarm if you need to and say “when the clock strikes 2PM I am done!” This will eliminate the distraction of getting sucked in for hours just checking who did what in Mafia on Facebook (I hate Facebook Apps by the way)
If you spend more time on MySpace make that the one that you do most of your work on, and connect people through your site to this “home social base”. Having a central location for things can also help when we talk about the last step intergration. Mine is Facebook…MySpace is just too cluttered for me 
Linking is a huge part of social networking. When you retweet some random company’s post they notice. It is a free chance for you name and profile to pop up on someone else’s radar. This is also true about making comments on blog posts. This not only puts your name and website address on someone else’s site it can help to boost your Search Engine rankings. This also rings true to following others. Make sure you keep up-to-date with what other people are saying about your business or your industry in general.
If you use a blog to syndicate content and keep people updated on your business then you have one of the greatest tools to save you time. If you are using WordPress there are countless plugins that allow you to connect your blog directly to your various social networks, I am a fan of Twitter Tools and Wordbook myself. You can also add services like ShareThis to your site to allow your users to post your content to their social networks. Make sure to use your website to also alert people to the various places you network. Don’t be afraid to be bold and say “I DON’T USE MYSPACE! DON’T MESSAGE ME!!” Just make sure to tell them that you are plugged in and show them all the ways they can find you!
What People Are Saying..