WordPress GPL

WordPress, developed by Matt Mullenweg has a General Public License (GPL) which means that it is distributed freely to all and as such it has allowed development from 1000′s of people who are part of the user base and community. With 11.4 million users out there hosted on WordPress and an estimated 12 million more on self hosted solutions it has established itself as one of the top platforms to use for a blog or website.

Thesis Theme

The Thesis Theme by Chris Pearson has been developed and sold as a separate entity (164 dollars for an unlimited license) but it is based on the WordPress platform. It has an estimated 27,000 users and is NOT under GPL (apparently it is as of recently but I’m still seeking confirmation on this.)

Chris as a business person is arguing that he isnt beheld to WordPress, the license and is resisting the GPL. Have a listen to the debate, arranged by Andrew Warner in the vid and see how you feel on the two sides to the story.

Personally I think Matt came across as more convincing and with a stronger basis for the “correct” thing to do in this particular situation. What do you think?

Paper.li allows you to sign in with your twitter account and gives you three options to produce a daily newspaper based on the information you want to read. You can:

• Add you name and create a newspaper about you and your social network (like this one: The Justin Parks Daily)
• Add in a #hashtag that you monitor or wish to keep a good eye on and you read about alot.
• Add a Twitter list of specific people you want to read about daily.

*Word of warning, paper.li is still in Alpha testing, you can only do this with 5 different names, lists or #hashtags!  So DON’T waste them!

The end product is split into different sections for Business, Media, Technoloy and such and includes your own tweets in there (if you created a paper on your own twitter account name) and the thing I like about this is definitely the format as its familiar and similar to reading a newspaper.  the newspaper updates everyday andso once you create it then you just have to return to that URL and you can read the updates anew.

It will probably change some more as it moves through the testing stages but as far as I am concerned its already looking good. Nice job!

The final aim = To convert visitors to consumers.

If they do not become consumers then they should be converted to one of three things if possible beginning with the most important.

Primary Goal

• Purchase and item or order

Secondary Goal

• Email subscribers on the blog
• Facebook Fan page members
• Twitter followers

The Company Blog

With the inclusion of the blog we must look at it as the hub of the social media efforts.  It is the content provider that is used to compliment current promotional campaign efforts and as such is the focal point where visitors are sent.

Currently we are discussing sport as the next marketing effort.

To begin with, content about sport should be created in the generic form.  Rules about the sport or competitions and some history of the sport and its development are good areas to cover. Then, content should be aimed towards more up to date news about the current leagues, teams or individuals and their standings and form. Eventually and if possible, interviews are an excellent form of content from players or teams as human interest pieces are the most “sticky” and also it is the easiest content to produce as the players themselves fill in the blanks.

While being exposed to the content then visitors should also be exposed to the opportunity to choose one of the three options listed above AFTER they have been offered the possibility to purchase and item or make an order on the company site.

This is achieved by the placement of text or attractive graphics at the end of content articles linking to the necessary product order pages on the main commerce site. Should this option not bear fruit then the secondary options should be available for consideration at little to no effort for the visitor via floating sidebars or unmistakable icons placed on the page and linking to the relevant profile.

The FaceBook Fan Page

Once this drive of content is in place we must begin the social media effort of talking about sport on the FaceBook Fan Page (not exclusively but enough for it to be a major subject).  This can be achieved by adding in the content form the blog automatically to the Facebook page and asking the current fans if they are involved in a sport or know anyone that is.

Of course, much more of a response is forth coming the more fans the page has, so I would strongly recommend that the mail shot to the current client base be completed at the earliest opportunity in order to establish a base and solid foundation to work on in the FaceBook ecosystem.  Having this available allows more depth and feedback to be gathered and more reaction to different promotions and campaigns assessed quickly and honestly from the user base. Indeed, it can be an excellent way of helping to generate sales as old clients are reminded of the excellent service and quality provided by the company though simple conversation.

In regards the administration of the page one person will responsible for this at the initial stages.  By administration we mean that conversations will be monitored and keep in the realms of decency and on point and of course, members that single themselves out to be particularly abusive or have little or now positive input can be removed.  allow this may sound ominous, due to the members on FaceBook carrying their own names and faces, this rarely happens as it did in the past on anonymous forums whereby users posted on fake or unidentifiable names.

Other FaceBook Groups and Fan Pages.

In conjunction to this the company then need to source and join some sport or sporting related groups and engage these groups in conversation about the sport.  the engagement should not be overbearing or pushy at this stage.  It should be a process of listening, engaging and assessing the groups nature and context by reading the information already available on the wall then asking a series of questions such as:

“How are the team doing this year?”

“Who has the best average score per game?”

“When is the next match?”

“Are any matches local to my area (put the specific area)”

Gradually this may lead onto things about the team and its events commenting on the team strip and mentioning how the company have supplied other sports teams and showing the results of this service via photos or links to the product itself on the company website or blog.

This whole process can take seconds and be done in a single burst if the group and users are active or it can happen over several days as comments and replays are made and the company react to them. Several groups can be run at once of course and by several it can be two or hundreds depending on time and resource and if those groups are exist.

The group sourcing aspect can be facilitated by searching or asking your direct network for advice but the actually conversational process must be completed and maintained by the company are it is the company that are most familiar with the product, service and price.

Beginning with Twitter

At this early stage twitter must be considered a fall back option.  It is an excellent tool for networking and locating individuals to connect with so it should be available and maintained to some extent at this stage in order to gather and increase its natural follower count.

The account can be maintained via the blog as the content created there, much like Facebook, can be automatically feed into the Twitter profile updating the status and increasing the visible content.  Twitter should be monitored on occasion for information requests (all of this will arrive via email regardless) until such times as the the company account can be run effectively and in a more hands on manner.

No big deal really but a nice touch that allows the more creative types out there to make the sidebar much more interesting with a well placed graphic or indeed to simply let more of the background show through.

I tested this out and here is how you can do it to:

Step One – Login to twitter and head to the Design section on to this link http://twitter.com/settings/design

Step Two – Copy the code below:

javascript:d=document;c=d.createElement('script');d.body.appendChild(c);c.src='http%3A%2F%2Fwww.justinparks.com%2Ftwitter%2Ftwitter-sidebar.js';void(0);

Step Three – Go to the address bar on your browser (where it says http://twitter.com/settings/design) and select the URL. Copy over it with the code from above. Just like this.

Now hit Enter/line break/return to make the change take effect.

Step Four – You should see this message appear if its all went well:

Final Step – Hit the save button at the bottom of the Design page and your done!

And you can see that the sidebar is now transparent:

Now what if you want to change back to a normal sidebar with a coloured background. No probs. Just login into the design page again and select “Change Design Styles” and hit save and your all sorted.

Nothing major, just thought you might like this little touch!

I didn’t know what to make of Justin when I walked in their offices for the first time, nice enough guy confident etc, but if you’ve been here in Spain long enough you know how first impressions can quickly be expensive and disappointing.

I explained my reservations to Justin and and that his quote was high. He explained that if that’s the way I feel but I can leave and go elsewhere with no hard feelings. But to remember that I´ll still want that web presence no matter what and be just as suspicious talking to the next firm, then the next and the next.

So he said why not save time write a cheque to 123 Marbella right now, put a bit of trust in us, and once we´ve taken your money and disappointed you in the highest possible way, with a hopeless effort of a web site, then at least we´ll have fulfilled your expectations and you ll be able to put the horrible experience behind you and move on to the next web company!

I thought, he does make a point doesn’t he? ok why not? and handed over a cheque.

I´m grateful to Justin now because he and Craig have done a great site that so far that has produced results and both Craig and Justin are still just as obtainable by phone and generous with their time long after they were paid.

Thanks!

Steve Walden – MD
Home Loans Spain SL

Without doubt I can say that 123 Marbella are 100% professionals in all aspects of the internet. No problem is to large or to small for them to look into and resolve in providing a top quality customer service.

No one need look any further to find quality of this standard in Spain or indeed anywhere else.

If one wants to see an example for “going the extra mile” first in line is 123 Marbella.

Wolfgang Brand
Clever Marketing SL

“Working with 123marbella.com was like a breath of fresh air. So many companies claim they are tops and they promise you the moon. But very few actually deliver.

With 123 Marbella – Craig and Justin – we found a Company which delivers highly professional services in a minimum of time.

They are always there whenever you need them. Very reassuring!”

David Ash – Managing DirectorFiesta Property SL

Orion Software where recently developing software to help protect our clients computers and faced a rather unique problem, the specifics of which we wont go into at the moment but suffice to say it was technical.

Without the help of 123Marbella.com we may still be working on a technical solution.

After being recommend their services by an associate and consequently reviewing their website, portfolio and testimonials we where impressed by the extensive work 123 Marbella have completed and the services they provided.

Further conversations with Craig Edmonds, the director and Justin Parks his associate, further proved 123 Marbella to be both professional, knowledgeable, approachable, responsive and courteous.

After an initial consultation and some extensive research by Mr. Craig Edmonds we where presented with a solution to our technical issues which was more than equal to our high standards.

Never under estimate the power of expertise when dealing with your business online and as such you will never be disappointed with the services and expertise provided by 123 Marbella. 5 Star.

Johnny Johnson – Director
Orion Software

I would like to thank Craig and Justin for the great service and support they have provided over the years and can say without any doubt that we will continue to be clients for many years to come.

Jose Maria Navarro – MD
Construcciones Navarro Piquer