We’re excited to announce the launch of the new website for Tuckahoe Orthopaedics, a Richmond-based orthopedics practice.

When Tuckahoe Orthopaedics came to us, they knew a redesign was needed—badly. Their website had a dated look and felt sterile. The practice envisioned a new website with an inviting, current look, and that was more user-friendly.

On the new website, patient success stories play a prominent role. From our experience in health care marketing, we know that successful marketing efforts focus on patient outcomes. The patient success stories reveal the benefits of orthopedic treatment and illustrate how treatment can be a positive life-changing experience. Plus, they add a more “human” touch to what many perceive as a dry, and sometimes scary, topic.

Each narrative tells the patient’s story, in his or her own words. The success stories also incorporate original photography that shows what physical activities and hobbies each patient still enjoys.

Ultimately, the success stories help the practice build rapport with a wide audience. People of all ages and from all walks of life are represented. Potential patients can learn about treatments and results from the perspective of an actual patient.

Also to help the website be as patient-friendly as possible, website content was restructured and rewritten to ensure that it is to easy to read and understand, and that it can easily be found through search engines.

Additionally, we coded the website so that it will automatically reformat itself to suit different screen sizes. More and more, people are searching online for health care resources. These searches may be performed on a laptop, smartphone or tablet. Now, the website will deliver a consistent experience across devices; it will be easy to read and easy to use no matter where or how visitors access it.

Visit the Tuckahoe Orthopaedics website

When I opened Jacob Nielsen’s Alertbox newsletter yesterday, it only confirmed what we’ve been noticing now for a year.  Screen sizes are getting larger.  And yet, an increasing number of smaller mobile devices are springing up on a yearly basis. So what’s a designer to do?

When I began designing for the web back in 1999 screen sizes were transitioning from 640×480 to 800×600. The 800×600 screen resolution was the standard until 2004, when a larger 1024×768 screen resolution became the standard.  Fast forward to 2012, when Nielsen suggests “the new guideline is to optimize for widescreen monitors around 1440 pixels wide.”

Note: you can see a chart of screen resolution usage from 1999-2012 if you’re interested.

In 2010 it became apparent that we needed to design for both large screens and small screens as web analytics revealed a critical mass of people browsing websites with mobile devices. Of course, each mobile device has a different screen resolution as well (iPhone, Android, iPad, other tablets, etc.).  If you don’t believe me, just have a look.

I’ve been a stickler for usability since my career started.  I want to design websites that function properly on any screen size.  The goal is that the website not “get in the way” of finding information that is important to visitors.

You can see the web designer’s job is fairly difficult with the many screen resolutions and sizes, ranging from large widescreen monitors to the iPhone (or smaller). Today a good web design is one that scales to fit the screen that it’s being viewed on.

Just recently we started showing clients web designs as they will look on the screen and on a smartphone. As we develop these designs, we allow the design to “collapse” to best fit the screen that the site is viewed on.

How does your website look on different screen sizes?  Are you planning for future sizes as you design and develop your website?

Back in 2009, we re-designed the Virginia Urology website.  Here in 2012, Virginia Urology now has a mobile website designed specifically for smartphones.

The website automatically detects what device is requesting the website, then serves the appropriate version.  If a visitor wants to view the full site on their mobile phone, there’s a link for that, too.

Take your smartphone out of your pocket and check out the visit the Virginia Urology mobile website at uro.com (you’ll only see it if you’re using a smartphone).

The last month has brought a couple of website launches, and we’re excited to announce the launch of another economic development website!

Our latest project was a website redesign for Stafford County, Virginia Economic Development.

Stafford County Economic Development’s old website had a dated look, and data was outdated and incomplete.  The website also had a mash-up of economic development and tourism information; there was no clear focus.

The economic development group wanted a new website with a modern, progressive design, updated and expanded data and a better experience for website visitors.

The new Stafford County Economic Development website boasts a fresh design with a rich color scheme, compelling graphics and photography.

Tourism content has been moved to a separate, dedicated tourism website.

New features of the Stafford Economic Development website include a custom report/proposal builder; expanded/updated information about the county; a real estate listing system that pulls data from Virginia’s economic development real estate system and integrates the data seamlessly with the County GIS system; a “featured development areas” section with maps and document downloads; and a news publishing system.

Additionally, the website is mobile-friendly, and automatically reformats itself to maintain usability and readability on tablets and smartphones.

Visit the website at GoStaffordVa.com.

You can see a “before and after” photo and get an in-depth review of Stafford County Economic Development’s website redesign by reading the news release on EconDevWebsites.com.

This weekend in the RVA, the Richmond Street Art Festival is happening down on the canal.  The main works of art are being painted in the abandoned Alcoa Plant on the flood wall between 14th Street and Blackfinn.  I’m a huge fan of street art, and we walked down to check it out this afternoon.  Check out some of the photos I took as the art was being created.

We recently launched a new website for Hanover County (Virginia) Economic Development. This website redesign marks some of our most exciting and groundbreaking work to date.

RWC and Hanover Economic Development envisioned a “new breed of economic development website.” Both parties wanted to create a website that’s not only informational but also makes an impact with powerful messaging and visuals.

The new website presents best practice site selection information (operating costs, transportation and infrastructure, available commercial real estate) in an easy to use, easy to read way. Data is tempered by compelling copy and photography that adds an authentic touch and gives Hanover County a unique, memorable brand…and a distinct competitive advantage.

Check out the website at HanoverVirginia.com.

You can get a more in-depth review of Hanover County’s new economic development website by reading the news release on EconDevWebsites.com.

We recently redesigned the website of Day & Night Family Dental, located at www.DayAndNightDental.com.

Day & Night Family Dental is a cosmetic and family dentist in Fayetteville, North Carolina.

The impetus for the website redesign was to increase the new practice’s patient volume. After putting up a quick, rudimentary website, Day & Night Family Dental sought a more user-friendly, branded solution for its online marketing. They wanted a purposeful web presence that would increase the volume and quality of their new patient leads.

In order to help the practice achieve its goal, we designed and developed a new website that implemented best practices learned from years of experience generating leads for healthcare companies.

We also ran the website through a focus group of potential patients in the practice’s demographic to get feedback and make the website more useful.

Website content was re-architected and re-written to help ensure that visitors can find the website via search engines, and that when they visit the website, they find it relevant and easy to understand.

We paid careful attention to the technical aspects of the project, too.  The website was coded with mobile web visitors in mind. When people visit the website with a tablet or smartphone, the website automatically reformats itself in order to maintain readability and usability.

Day & Night Family Dental is pleased with their new website and the increase in patients resulting from it.  Practice staff are seeing a heavy, steady stream of relevant email and phone leads from the website, which can all be measured with website analytics and phone call tracking.

We recently wrapped up work on a website redesign for the Louisa County, Virginia Department of Economic Development.

Louisa County was ready for a new economic development website that would take the county’s online marketing to the next level.

In addition to a fresh look, the website boasts powerful features that make it easy for businesses and site selection consultants to access key information about the county. These features include:

• an integrated sites & buildings database where prospects can research available real estate
• a custom report builder that allows prospects to choose only the documents they need and instantly generate a PDF to download and share
• a detailed “Companies by Industry” directory that shows industries represented in Louisa County and the companies in each industry sector
• integration with Louisa County’s GIS system to ensure that all critical site selection information is available on the economic development website
• optimization for mobile devices so that the website is still easy to view and use when accessed from a smartphone, tablet or similar device.

The website is also built on a content management system so that economic development staff can easily update and maintain the website in-house.

Check out the website at YesLouisa.com.

You can get a more in-depth review of Louisa County Economic Development’s website redesign by reading the news release at EconDevWebsites.com.

If you’d like to learn more about our economic development marketing work, visit EconDevWebsites.com to read case studies and download our firm profile.

We recently partnered with the Greene County Partnership of Greeneville, Tennessee to redesign their economic development website.

We worked with the Partnership to give them a website that was feature-rich and easy-to-use, and that would effectively market Greene County, Tennessee to site selectors and business consultants.

The website’s new features include:

• A revamped homepage that emphasizes Greene County’s strategic location, available sites and buildings, and quality of life.
• Detailed maps showing the location of roads, rail, airports, industrial parks and other pertinent county information
• Expanded information about demographics and workforce, operating costs, business incentives, transportation and infrastructure, utilities and workforce development.
• Robust commercial real estate listing and mapping system
• Integrated content management system that allows Partnership staff to handle all site updates—including additions to the real estate system—in-house

“We’re committed to helping local businesses thrive and creating jobs in our community. This new website is a step in that direction. Rick Whittington Consulting did a great job articulating our vision. Their knowledge of how economic development organizations work made them a partner, not just a vendor,” said Greene County Partnership’s CEO Tom Ferguson.

Visit the website at GrowInGreene.com.

Do you work for an economic development organization? If you’d like to learn more about our economic development website design work, then visit EconDevWebsites.com to read case studies and download our firm profile.

We’re excited to announce the launch of the website redesign for Timmons Group, an engineering and technology consulting firm that provides civil engineering, environmental, GIS/geospatial technology, landscape architecture and surveying services. Timmons Group has been recognized by Engineering News Record as one of the Top 500 Design Firms in the country.

The website features a minimal, open design. Timmons Group wanted a sleek, modern aesthetic that would separate their website from the “typical” engineering website.

On the homepage, a prominent photo slideshow showcases various projects Timmons Group has completed.

Content is added, edited and organized through a custom content management system (CMS). Timmons Group can update the website completely in-house.

The CMS has also streamlined the process to add new project profiles the firm’s portfolio. Timmons Group can now relate projects to services rendered and to market/industry served, and they can maintain the project portfolio in one place.

“We needed top-notch design, but we also needed great functionality and a seamless, easy-to-use CMS,” said Tim Asimos, Corporate Marketing Manager at Timmons Group. “We got that.”

Visit the website at Timmons.com

We’re thrilled to announce that Shannon Sullivan has joined our team as a Content Specialist.  Shannon is an incredibly talented writer who’s already making an impact after 2 short days on the job.

Before joining us, Shannon was the Director of Internet Marketing at Key Web Concepts.  She earned her B.A. degree in English (with honors) from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Some other fun facts about Shannon:

• She’s a “fashionista.”  Her minor at VCU was in Fashion Merchandising.
• She’s part Aussie.  Shannon has dual citizenship for the U.S. and Australia.
• She likes flying into Aukland Airport in New Zealand. It’s a family tradition to take a photo on the bridge over a central water feature when she travels there.
• Her fiancé Matt is a web designer, and she’s looking forward to getting married in March.

Shannon, we’re glad you’re here!

We’re happy to announce the website redesign for Filtrona Porous Technologies, a global B2B company that designs and manufactures custom fluid-handling components. These components can be found in everyday products, including printer cartridges, wound care dressings, writing instruments, make-up applicators and so much more.

The website features a much cleaner, professional design that is in keeping with newly-established corporate brand standards and sales materials. We improved navigation, streamlined content and built the website around a content management system that allows FPT staff to update the website in-house.

Because Filtrona Porous Technologies is a global company with a global audience, the website includes full translations in English, German, Chinese, Japanese and Spanish.

We also created several product animations that demonstrate how the components work in everyday products.

Visit the new Filtrona Porous Technologies website

The Thomas Jefferson Partnership for Economic Development (TJPED) website, which we launched in 2010, recently received an Honorable Mention for Excellence in Economic Development Award in the category of General Purpose Website for communities with populations of 200,000 – 500,000.

The honor was presented at the International Economic Development Council’s annual meeting and is our second IEDC award for a client.

Read more about this honor on our economic development website.

We’re happy to announce the launch of a website for our economic development and tourism practice, www.EconDevWebsites.com.

After three years and eight economic development clients, we decided to create a special website to showcase these projects and explain our capabilities that are suited for economic development website design.

The website was launched before the 2011 International Economic Development Council (IEDC) Annual Conference.

The site itself has some newer technology that we’ve been working on. It’s built on the same content management system we build client projects on, and the website automatically resizes itself to fit multiple mobile device formats, eliminating the need for a separate mobile version.

See the website at www.EconDevWebsites.com.

Business online has changed from five years ago.  Website visits used to be the only way to measure online interaction with your brand.  Today, we have social networks, externally-hosted blogs and other interactions with our brands that occur away from our carefully-crafted websites. So is measuring website visits enough?

Here’s the situation. I recently met with one of our newest clients whose website traffic was roughly flat over the past year.  This client has a very active blog that’s hosted externally — that is, the blog isn’t part of their website and visits to the blog aren’t included in their website traffic numbers.  They also have a thriving Facebook page.

Their “prospects” visit their website.  We can make the assumption that their “customers” visit their blog more often than their website.  A third group, Facebook fans, probably aren’t visiting our client’s website nearly as much since they’ve created an active community on their Facebook page.

“Customers” are interacting with our client in different places online.  In fact, the blog and the Facebook page may be cannibalizing some of their website traffic.

“Website traffic” as we know it is no longer encompasses all interactions with their brand online.

Rather than just measuring website visits, I suggest you measure cumulative traffic, including website traffic, visits to your company’s Facebook page, your YouTube channel, views of articles via RSS, visits to a blog on a subdomain (blog.yourcompany.com) or third-party service like WordPress.com, and perhaps visits to any niche social network your company participates in — as long as you can track visits or views.

The point here is that meaningful interactions can also happen away from your website.  What part of online interaction could your company measure better?

photo credit: webtreats

Combine an orthodontist with a uniquely fun personality and a website design firm with creative flair and you get GardnerGrins.com, our newest website launch.

Working with SEO firm Your Search Advisor, we created a website for Dr. Gardner’s orthodontic practice that embodies the experience of visiting their office and is optimized to grow the practice.

We started by taking dozens of photographs of the inside of Dr. Gardner’s Richmond office, then incorporating the images into a cohesive interface. The result is a website that mimics Dr. Gardner’s fun personality and the experience of being in the office.

Visit the GardnerGrins.com website

We’re getting more and more requests here at RWC about mobile apps and mobile websites.  I had a conversation last week with an editor of a medical publication about mobile web browsing, and he asked me if we could develop a mobile app for his publication.

But did his publication need an app or a mobile website?

I quickly turned the discussion into whether he needed a mobile app or a mobile website.  Like many, he didn’t know there was a distinction between the two.

Making the differentiation, though, is important. A mobile website is meant to deliver content in a way that is properly formatted for reading on a mobile phone, while an app typically has a more focused objective — a content aggregator, a game, a social sharing tool — something with a single function.

A mobile website can use content from a website’s existing content management system and format that content in a mobile-friendly format — a narrower interface to fit the narrow screen, larger type, and simplified design for easier reading on a phone or tablet.  Because it can pull in content from an existing content management system, a company’s marketing department only has to update content once in order to update the website and the mobile site.

Because a mobile website is platform independent, once it’s developed, it works on the iPhone, iPad and Android phones.  There’s no need to develop multiple mobile websites, saving time and development expense.

An app, on the other hand, is coded for a specific device.  There are Android apps for Android phones, iPhone apps for the iPhone, iPad apps for the iPad and Blackberry apps for Blackberry devices.  Note that most iPhone apps will also work on the iPad, but will be formatted for the smaller iPhone screen.

A final advantage of a mobile website is that content in mobile websites is searchable (via search engine) while mobile app content is not searchable.  When people search the web from their smartphones, search engines are getting wise and often show preference to mobile websites, giving your company an opportunity for better search engine visibility.

If your company wants to re-format your website for a mobile device, then you need a mobile website, not an app. Need a mobile website?  Fill out the form to the right or contact us here.

photo credit: blakespot

Who needs a large sales force when your company website can do the hard work for you? Both B2B and B2C companies are realizing the need to make their websites more effective and optimize them to generate qualified leads.

So where can you start your optimization efforts? These seven universal optimization techniques will vault your online lead generation efforts into overdrive.

Reduce distractions, reduce clutter

People really do care what your website looks like, especially if they can’t find what they’re looking for.   Making your website easier to use starts with removing distractions and unnecessary visual elements.  Identify over-designed elements on key pages and eliminate or redesign them.  If you want more leads from your website, think about ways to simplify and cut the clutter so people can actually find (and easily read) the information they seek.

Include a call to action on every page

Individual web pages should have a singular purpose. The copy, graphics, and page elements should reinforce that purpose, and including a prominent call to action will help entice people to take the next step.  In case you’re wondering, linking to a contact page with the words “click here” isn’t enough.  Don’t assume that your sales prospects will know how your product or service will benefit them — specifically state in a customer-focused way how they will benefit from your product or service.

Improve website navigation

Too many websites have “content silos,” or sections of a website that can only be navigated by using primary website navigation.  If you don’t interlink content on your website, you’re missing out on an opportunity. Not only will linking to other content on your site improve your website’s SEO, it will allow people to navigate your site better and learn more about the benefits of your products and services.  Visitors may also learn about products or services they didn’t even knew you offered, and it will keep them on your website longer, giving you more of an opportunity to convince them to contact your company.

Add a contact form on nearly every page

Rather than making people hunt for a small “Contact” link, add a contact form on nearly every page of your website.  Forms take up more real estate so they are easier to find, and we’ve seen during website testing that people’s eyes are naturally drawn to forms.

Be sure to keep contact forms simple.  The initial contact is not the place to ask detailed questions. Capture only essential information.

Perform usability testing to identify incremental design and content changes

Usability testing is crucial to improving your website.  Testing your website with real people in your target demographic helps find design flaws and weak content.  During usability tests, you’ll often find that participants will ask questions or make comments that can give you ideas to improve your website design and copy.  For extra ideas, test your competitors’ websites as well.

You don’t have to redesign your entire website to make usability improvements. In many cases, changing just a few things at a time can help you fine-tune the effectiveness of a page or page template.

Analyze website usage

I can’t stress the value of website analytics enough. Too many business managers simply look at website traffic and shrug off the rest.  You must realize that actually analyzing your website data can dramatically affect your bottom line.  Don’t know where to begin?  Identify pages with high bounce rates or exit rates and make a list of potential things that could be causing people to leave those pages.

If you don’t have time for a deep dive into your web analytics or don’t have the skills to do it, hire a professional analyst.  True case study: One of our ecommerce clients hired us to diagnose an ecommerce conversion rate problem.  An analysis revealed that few people were adding items to their shopping cart.  We noticed that most of the search engine traffic searched for phrases including “cheap” and “free.”  We set up a segment that excluded those searches, and the rate at which people added items to their shopping cart was almost 3 times higher!  With just web analytics, we found that they had optimized their website for the keywords that attracted the wrong kind of shopper.

Put your phone number on every page of your website

This almost goes without saying, but placing your phone number on every page of your website prevents prospects from having to hunt for it. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that everyone prefers email.  70 percent of one client’s sales leads come in by phone!

It’s also important to track phone calls originating from your website.  Installing phone call analytics on your company website does more than just let you know how many people are calling from your website.  It also can tell you how many calls were not answered or went to voice mail, what time of day or what days of the week most of your sales calls occur, what zip codes calls originate from, which online advertisements are the most effective and much more.

Do you want to find out how real customers use your website?  Do you need a deep analysis of your website usage to diagnose website issues?  Do you want to start tracking phone calls originating from your website?  Perhaps your company website may need a website redesign.  We can help — contact us here.

We’re excited about the launch of WarShotsBook.com, a companion to the book written by Richmond author Charles “Chip” Jones.  The book was released earlier this week, and the website went live the week after Christmas.

The website features exclusive video interview clips and photographs from the private collection of Norman T. Hatch, the Marine combat cameraman that is the book is written about.  You can also watch “With the Marines at Tarawa,” the documentary that won the 1944 Academy Award for short subjects.  The footage Hatch took of dead and dying Marines was so graphic it had to be approved for public release by President Franklin D. Roosevelt himself, and revealed how adept the Japanese actually were at fighting (Americans at the time underestimated the fighting abilities of the Japanese).

“Rick Whittington Consulting helped me see outside the box of my written work, and to see the potential for creating a dynamic, colorful Web-based platform. Rick and his team saw the potential for positioning my book online,” Jones said about the website we designed and developed.

To learn more, read the press release or visit WarShotsBook.com, where you can purchase the book.  You can also pick up an autographed copy of the book at Fountain Bookstore in Shockoe Slip right here in Richmond.

We’ve always avoided doing spec work. No one likes to work for free, and neither do we.  When we get an RFP that requires a homepage design as part of the proposal, we set it aside.  Website design is usually worth what you pay for it.

The single most important reason that we don’t do spec web design work is that we must understand the goals and objectives of the website.  Our clients hold us accountable for the effectiveness — and in some cases specific metrics — of their websites. Knowing clients’ objectives ahead of time is the only way to create a website that gets the desired results.

Good web design requires planning.  Before we open Photoshop, we like to complete a research and planning phase.  We find competing websites and analyze the websites for clues as to what the company or organization is good at (and where areas they’re weak in).  We look at the way they communicate content and use the functionality they present to users.  We look at the photography they use on their websites, and sometimes this gives us insight into the types of audiences that they’re trying to reach.

Designing an effective website requires that the designer know the audience or audiences their client is trying to communicate with. Before the design work begins, we typically will create personas or fictional characters that fit the profile of the people that will use the website.  We try to understand what content they seek, what functionality they will find useful and how they will interact with the company or organization.

Spec work also exposes a design firm to theft of intellectual property.  Every designer I know has a story of a time they provided a free web design with a proposal, only to find out the company used the design without compensation after rejecting the proposal.

Website design is much more than eye candy and artwork — it’s creating a strategic finely-tuned marketing tool.  We find that we work best with companies and organizations that are willing to trust the strength of our portfolio or the referral of a satisfied client. For that reason, we avoid spec design entirely.

We’re pleased to announce that Communication Arts has selected the Greater Richmond Partnership website as today’s “Webpick of the Day.” The website’s purpose is to help attract businesses and companies to Richmond, Virginia. Because of its rich functionality and superior graphic design, the site has already won several awards.

CommArts selects websites with the finest design daily, and commonly selects sites from some of the world’s best and brightest design firms and ad agencies. Read more at the CommArts website or visit the featured website at www.grpva.com.

Located in Southside Virginia about an hour south of Richmond is MAMaC, a 1,545-acre industrial site that could bring a large company to the area.  To publicize the “megasite,” we worked with a top engineering firm and Greensville County to develop a website.

“Our goal was to create a website that relayed a lot of vital information in an easy-to-find format,” said Natalie Slate, Deputy Administrator for Greensville County and MAMaC’s project lead.

“Rick Whittington Consulting has become known for exceptional design work that meets the customer’s needs. The end product is a clean, attractive and user friendly site.”

MAMaC is unique because it is the only megasite in Virginia, Maryland or North Carolina certified by McCallum Sweeney Consulting, an economic development consulting firm.  Sale of this megasite could potentially bring more than $1 billion in investment and create more than 1,000 jobs for the area.

We worked with our client to understand the significance of this certification and help articulate it to the website’s audience.

“RWC met all our goals in a quick and timely manner. Their copywriter worked one on one to make sure the website portrayed exactly what we wanted. Their graphic designer listened to detailed comments until the logo was perfect,” commented Slate. “RWC was quick to respond to any task. The site looks great and has received a lot of compliments since going live.”

Having interviewed economic development consultants for past projects, we were uniquely positioned to develop the MAMaC website.  The website has been optimized to speak directly to site selection consultants and companies that might be planning to develop a large manufacturing facility.

“Everyone is pleased with the ease of maneuvering through the new website. The information is easy to find, the graphics are eye catching and portray vital information, and the logo is recognizable. This site will be invaluable as a marketing tool for MAMaC.”

Visit the MAMaC website

The Greater Richmond Partnership website, which we redesigned and launched in 2009, has just won two web design awards.

The first award was an SEDC Communications Award – Superior for GRPVA.com for the Web Sites: Local, State or Regional Economic Development Organizations category.  It was presented to the Partnership at the Southern Economic Development Council Development (SEDC) Annual Conference in August.

“The competition was stiff this year with over 120 entries, as economic development organizations throughout our region submitted expertly prepared materials,” said SEDC President Gene Stinson.  “The entries submitted by the Greater Richmond Partnership were outstanding and captured the attention of the judges to garner their awards.”  All entries were judged on graphic appeal, clarity and appropriateness of message, positioning, differentiation and content.

Second, the Partnership website won Honorable Mention for Excellence in Economic Development for the GRPVA.com Redesign in the category of General Purpose Website.  The honor was given in the category for communities with populations of greater than 500,000.  The award was accepted at the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) at their annual meeting in September.

“We recognize the Greater Richmond Partnership, Inc. for providing successful strategies to promote new paradigms in economic development in this period of global recovery,” said William Best, IEDC chair.  “Our awards honor organizations and individuals for their efforts in creating positive change in communities. The Greater Richmond Partnership, Inc. is showing that they are at the forefront of the economic development profession and are using innovative and effective practices that can be replicated in other communities.”

Since the website launched a little over a year ago, the Partnership has seen exceptional results.  Web analytics show the site is more effective for visitors. The Average Time on the Site is up 52%, Page Views is up 159% and Pages Visited is up 33%. Site visits are up 95% and GRP continues to receive positive feedback from its target audience and peers.

“Content marketing” might be a new buzzword, but it isn’t a new concept.

Content marketing is the process of creating and distributing unique, original content with the purpose of attracting attention from new customers or customer interactions.

Examples of content marketing include business blogs, web videos, screencasts, eBooks, articles written for online or offline publications, slideshows or presentations, and more. The key is that the content is unique, and it is targeted to your ideal customer.

Why should you add content marketing to your online marketing plan?

• Build trust and credibility
  By producing original content, you are demonstrating your company’s knowledge of the subject matter. Over time, this can build trust with prospects and customers. People want to justify that they are working with a knowledgable company.
• Improve your search engine ranking
  Search engines adore websites that produce original content. Adding unique content not only helps your company build trust with customers, it also can improve your search engine ranking.
• Demonstrate fresh thinking
  By regularly producing new content, you demonstrate that your company is keeping up with current trends. It shows that your company is a thought-leader.
• It will be shared with others
  If your content is helpful, it will be shared via email and on social media like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and aggregation tools. Social sharing increases your content’s reach, increasing your company’s awareness.

In the new economy, you risk losing market share if you don’t publish. Companies — and nonprofits too — need to understand that it’s not enough to simply do good work. Companies must also share their experiences and helpful information with others to earn new business.

Questions

1. How can your company leverage it’s website to produce original content?
2. Who is your target audience, and what types of content would engage them?
3. What content can your company’s employees contribute?
4. Does your company have a content marketing strategy?

A few months ago, I received a direct message on Twitter from Richmond-based non-profit Virginia Blood Services. They were looking for “influential” social media participants to get the message out about their VBS Blood Lifeline campaign. Having participated in their campaign, I thought it would be interesting to study how this non-profit is using social media to get the word out. I reached out for an interview, and here was our conversation.

In a few sentences, tell me about the social media campaign that you’re currently running.

Donor Dialogue (DD) and Virginia Blood Services (VBS) are starting a revolutionary movement with the help of social media to make sure local hospital patients in Virginia have the blood they need.

To do this, we are tapping into social networks to build relationships with individuals in the Richmond area who possess a large local following online, as well as with our current blood donors.

We’re asking these influencers and donors to become brand ambassadors for us; reaching out to their networks anytime a critical blood emergency arises, essentially creating a blood lifeline.

We gave these social media influencers two call-to-action tools to help. One is an online community called the VBS Blood Lifeline (www.BloodLifeline.com) where their networks can go to schedule a blood donation, check the current blood inventory needs, or sign up to become someone’s lifeline. Once registered, the Lifeline registrants can receive alerts via SMS, e-mail, or phone anytime their blood type or product is needed by a local hospital patient.

The second tool is a Facebook application called Ydonate. This tool lets our existing donor base schedule their appointment on Facebook and then share it with their friends inviting them to make an appointment too.

What is/are the goal(s) of the campaign?

DD and VBS’s objectives of this campaign are:

• Get  ”the right donors with the right type in the right chair” donating blood.
• Expand the donor pool by reaching out to potential donors that have not been engaged in the donation process in the past.
• Educate current donors and potential donors in regards to the need for blood, and the best donation type based on the donor’s blood type.

DD and VBS’s goals of this campaign include:

• In 6 months get 250 people to sign up to become someone’s lifeline.
• In 6 months get 250 current donors to schedule and share their blood donation appointment using Ydonate.
• In 6 months get 250 new donors to schedule and share their blood donation appointment using the scheduler on BloodLifeline.

Why use social media to get the word out?

Today, everyone has large personal networks that are easily reachable and readily available thanks to social network sites including Facebook, Twitter, Linked-in etc.

Non-profits are increasingly using social media because of the huge potential reach of their message due to social sharing. photo credit

In the blood industry, many studies have been done that shows one of the main reason people don’t donate is because “no one asked them.” When that personal ask comes from someone they know and trust the message becomes more compelling and will end up motivating that individual to give blood.

We have decided to leverage these social networks and change our recruitment efforts to focus on forming relationships with our existing donors and local influencers. Our goal is to turn them into brand ambassadors by giving them the tools and the message to recruit their networks to give blood more effectively on behalf of VBS.

What social media vehicles are you targeting and why?

For this campaign, we have chosen to focus on the two biggest social networks, Facebook and Twitter. We predicted that we would see better results, since most of our donors’ personal networks reside on these two sites.

We are using Twitter to form relationships with local influencers as well as to broadcast local hospital patient needs via www.BloodLifeline.com. We are using Facebook to target VBS’s existing donor base, asking them to schedule and share their next blood donation appointment using Ydonate.

Is Virginia Blood Services managing this campaign in-house, and how much time is spent monitoring conversations?

Virginia Blood Services and Donor Dialogue are working closely together throughout this entire social media campaign. VBS is focusing on managing its Facebook page and the promotion of Ydonate to its existing donor base.

Our Partner, Donor Dialogue, is managing our new Twitter account called @valifeline to broadcast local hospital patient needs and the www.BloodLifeline.com promotional efforts. We estimate that together between the two social networking sites we spend about an hour a day initiating and monitoring conversations.

What are your expectations for this campaign?

Our expectations for this campaign have been to initiate as much buzz as possible in the social media blogosphere regarding the local need for blood and the importance of donating. Our main objectives are to attract new donors to come and donate, and to get our existing donors to donate at least one more time throughout the year, at a time when it’s needed most.

How are you measuring the success of the campaign?

We are tracking and measuring the success of this campaign by using the following metrics.

• Followers of @valifeline – We are keeping track of the number of followers daily to see when spikes were encountered and analyze what caused them.
• Number of Influencers Promoting - We are keeping track of the number of relationships formed with our influencers, and the number of times they post, tweet, blog or write about us.
• The Amount of buzz – We are keeping track of the number of re-tweets we get from our influencers’ followers. Also, we track any local PR we receive.
• Traffic to our site – We try to make sure every tweet we post has a link to www.BloodLifeline.com, so we can measure the amount of traffic and clicks to the site daily.
• The Number of Lifelines - We track when and how many people sign up to become someone’s lifeline on our site.
• Blood Lifeline Appointments – We track when and how many people (new donors) scheduled their blood donation appointment on www.BloodLifeline.com.
• Ydonate appointments - We track when and how many people (current donors) schedule a blood donation appointment on Ydonate.
• Ydonate registrants - We track when and how many people registered (but not yet scheduled an appointment) on Ydonate. These people have the intent to donate.

What other benefits (besides the obvious ones) do you think this will have for Virginia Blood Services? Have there been any unintended benefits of the campaign?

Yes most definitely! We didn’t realize the amount of positive PR this campaign would receive from our traditional media outlets including our local TV stations and newspapers. We are pleased to see our community come together to promote such an important cause.

As stewards of our community’s blood supply and the sole provider of blood to 22 hospitals throughout Central Virginia, VBS’s goal is to aspire that each local hospital patient has the right blood component of the right blood type, at the right time.

We are now striving to educate donors to give specific blood products based on their blood type and patient needs. This campaign is the first step in that direction.

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Clearly, social media can be a great way for non-profit organizations to engage with people that care about the causes they support. So how can you use social media in your organization? Ask the following questions:

1. What are concrete goals we can achieve by using social media?
2. Who in the organization understands social media sites and conversations well enough to manage a campaign or ongoing effort?
3. How will we monitor and respond what’s being said about our organization?
4. How will we measure the success of social media efforts?