JB Design and Photo

CoTweet – An awesome new Twitter tool for businesses

Jon — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 19:34:16 +0000

Now that Twitter has become the latest and greatest thing in marketing and social media, and many businesses are looking to use it to their advantage. Enter CoTweet, a great new application to streamline the Twitter experience for businesses, including tracking conversations, multiple users, an easy to use dashboard, and the ability to follow up with other Twitter messages and users.

My personal favorite feature of CoTweet is the ability for businesses to manage multiple users, and allow employees to be registered as “on duty” for the company’s twitter account and replies. When a user is “on duty” they are automatically sent email updates of new tweets for the accounts they manage every 15 minutes, allowing them to reply, or assign other users to follow up at a later time.

Did I also mention that CoTweet is currently being used by big names such as Ford, Pepsi, Sprint, Microsoft, and some 700 other businesses? CoTweet is actively working with it’s current user base to expand and improve their tool, and they are currently offering a free public beta to all businesses that wish to sign up. Unfortunately CoTweet does have plans to implement a subscription-based system at some point in the near future, but after trying out the public beta I must say that this app is completely worth the money.

By the way, I’d also like to mention that JB Design and Photo is also on Twitter at: www.twitter.com/jb_design_photo or you can view my personal Twitter stream at: www.twitter.com/jrbeilke

New Website for True Insurance Agency

Jon — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 16:24:25 +0000

The new website for True Insurance Agency (www.trueinsagency) is now live!

True Insurance Agency was founded by experienced Allstate Agent, Jay Henry. Jay Henry and True Insurance are active members in the local community, and are always looking for smart customers that take personal risk decisions seriously.

You can learn more about True Insurance Agency, meet the staff, or contact them directly through the online contact form www.trueinsagency.com.

True Ride Home featured in the Pioneer Press

Jon — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 20:12:44 +0000

I’ve just been informed that Jay Henry, True Insurance Agency, and True Ride Home have been featured in this week’s Pioneer Press. True Ride Home’s revolutionary new idea to reimburse people for taking a taxi cab instead of drinking and driving has become a hit.

True Ride Home has become a highly successful program over the last few months, and has even received endorsements from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and many other organizations. So far over 600 people have called in to the True Ride Home hotline, although only some 11 have taken advantage of reimbursement for their cab fares.

You can learn more about True Ride Home through their website at: www.trueridehome.com, or call them at 952-929-9998. You can also read an online copy of the article about True Ride Home, True Insurance Agency, and Jay Henry on the Pioneer Press website at: http://www.twincities.com/ci_12920395?source=most_emailed

JB Design and Photo has a new phone number!

Jon — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 21:11:45 +0000

In order to better serve everyone, JB Design and Photo now has its own phone number – 651-998-9861!

You can also still reach me at the old number, but the sooner you can change to the new number the better, as all future phone calls will be routed through the new system. The new system also allows me to forward calls to several different locations, so that the incoming calls will be routed to me wherever I may be. This is also includes any voicemails or sms/text messages that are sent to the new number as well!

So what are you waiting for, give the new number a try today!

New Website for Red Maple construction

Jon — Sat, 21 Mar 2009 19:14:51 +0000

The new website for Red Maple Construction (www.redmapleconstruction.net) is now live!

Red Maple was founded 6 years ago and has established itself a reputation as a recognized Design/Build company. With an unending focus to individual quality project services, we strive to offer a creative cost-effective solutions to your building project ideas.

You can learn more about Red Maple Construction, view a gallery of their work, or contact them directly through www.redmapleconstruction.net.

Inspire One Foundation website launched

Jon — Fri, 06 Mar 2009 15:17:39 +0000

The new website for the Inspire One Foundation (www.inspireonefoundation.org) is now live!

The foundation’s mission is to promote the humane treatment of and maintain the quality of life for all animals whether they be domestic, exotic, wild, or farm animals. It is the purpose of this foundation to foster a public attitude of gentleness through education towards animals and an awareness of the importance they have in our daily lives.

You can learn more about the Inspire One Foundation, including their mission, their program, and you can even purchase merchandise to support the foundation, or contact Inspire One directly through www.inspireonefoundation.org.

Anthony Office Solutions Website Re-Design goes Live

Jon — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 02:17:13 +0000

The website re-design for Anthony Office Solutions (www.hollyanthony.net) is now live!

After working fifteen years as an administrative professional and surviving two corporate acquisitions, Holly decided to start her own business as an independent administrative professional and launched Anthony Office Solutions, LLC.

As an independent administrative professional, her responsibilities consist of generating correspondence, including business letters, newsletters, and presentations while meeting the deadlines established by her clients. In addition, she provides services such as calendar management, database management, Internet research, invoicing, travel planning, and desktop publishing.

You can check out a list of Holly's services, customer testimonials, and contact her directly through www.hollyanthony.net.

What to Know before Hiring a Web Designer

Jon — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 02:12:21 +0000

It’s no secret, everyone and their dog (or cat) is joining the online revolution, and getting involved with websites, ecommerce, blogs, and more. If you’re considering starting a website, and hiring a web designer, there are some very important things you should know first:

Before you even begin looking for a website, start with a list of exactly what you are looking for in a website. This will make it much easier for you and the web designer to build exactly what you are looking for, and Sitepoint has a great article on finding a web designer.

What Do You Want?

In order to find help, you need first to figure out what you want. Ask yourself the following questions:

What kinds of information do you want on the site? How big do you think your site will be?
Who are your users? Do you know which operating system and browser they are using?
Will your site require regular updates? Would you like to make changes yourself?
Will you be selling something?
Will you need a database to store and retrieve information?
Do you want to rely on search engines to send more traffic to your site?
When do you need the job done?
What is your budget?

Any Web Designer worth their salt will have their own website, and one of the first things you need to do is check their website:

Is it easy to find information and to get back to where you started?
Do you like the navigation system?
Are the pages accessible (no broken links)?
Are the pages and overall design consistent?
Are there a contact page and site map and can they easily be found?
Is there enough relevant information on the site (eg. details about the company including location, what they do, the people, policies, etc.)?
Are things aligned properly?
Is the text easy to read?
Do the pages load fast?
Are the pages short, so that it’s not necessary to scroll horizontally, and there’s little or no vertical scrolling?
Do links open onto the same page?
Is there a portfolio you can view?
Does the site discuss the designer’s technical background?
Does the site make use of the right colors?
Are page titles appropriate and informative?

Read through the Web Designer’s website, read their bio, peruse their portfolio, “kick the ties” if you will. Look at the other sites that the designer has built, and try to get a feel for the style and type of work that the designer produces. If you’re comfortable with what you’ve seen so far, then it’s time to contact the designer(s) and get a few different quotes for your website project.

Also don’t forget that JB Design and Photo offers Minnesota Web Design, Graphic Design, and Photography Services to meet your needs as well.