My Website Workshop

Why You Need a Website & Why It Needs To Be Awesome | 017

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:57:06 +0000

Recently I ran in to a business owner here locally in Tallahassee and they were struggling to make things happen in their business. Having seen drops in sales and traffice they were in a bad place and in a place they didn't want to be.

We got to talking about websites, e-commerce, and I was shocked to find out that they didn't ahve any web presence at all. Nothing. Zilch. Nada. I know - I coudn't believe it either! But it was true. What's even worse is they weren't able to see the opportunities they were missing. I gave them my card, hoping that they'd change their mind.

I know it's hard to believe, but there are still businesses in 2012 that don't have any kind of web presence. The big problem is that, not only are they failing to keep up with their competition, who are kicking their tail, they're failing to provide a way for a new generation of customers to find their business.

It's not uncommon for a potential customer to visit a website numerous times before contacting the company, and if you're not even on the list you don't stand a chance.That's what this week's episode is all about.

This week's question

How do you efficiently and effectively manage all the pieces of having a presence on the web, social (twitter, Facebook, google+, pinterest, etc.) plus blog posts and keeping your website up to date? - Dawn

News Items covered in this episode:

Michael Hyatt - Platform: Get Noticed in a Noisy World
Chris Guillebeau - The $100 Start Up: Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future
Charles Duhigg - The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business
Upcoming Free Webinar for Websites 101

Mentioned during the show:

How Easy Is It to Build a Website? | 016

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Thu, 17 May 2012 16:53:59 +0000

It's a simple question, right? After all, if you've seen the advertisements by various different companies talking about how easy it is to build your website in "just minutes" you'd think that it's a snap.

In some ways you would be right, but in other ways, you'd be way wrong. That's the main topic of today's episode of the podcast.

The old adage holds true:

We offer three kinds of service: Cheap, Good, FAST - you can pick any two.

GOOD service, CHEAP, won't be FAST
GOOD service, FAST won't be CHEAP
FAST service CHEAP won't be GOOD.

When it comes to building your own website you have to contend with the technology, the design, and the content. There are awesome tools out there for all three, but you also will get out of your website what you put in to it.

News Items covered in this episode:

The new edition of Magento CE 1.7 is finally in stable release
There is a new update available for Wordpress - 3.3.2
Google launches "Knowledge Graph"
Upcoming Orracle Media Webinar Series - Websites 101 (stay tuned for details)

Mentioned During the Show

Ecommerce, Abandoned Carts, Social Media and Wordpress | 015

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 23:21:25 +0000

In this latest episode of the Orracle Media/My Website Workshop Podcast, we cover all kinds of things.

I cover the importance of owning your listing on Yelp and Foursquare both create new and unique opportunities for brick-and-mortar stores that you will definitely want to take advantage of. Lots of brick-and-mortar establishments are doing very cool things with these location-based social platforms and you need to make sure you business is making the best use of them.

Do you know why people abandon their shopping carts on your ecommerce website? Have you asked? Abandoned cart cues in your ecommerce store are a great opportunity to increase your sales and serve your customers. Abandoned carts are the concern of any ecommerce website owner, but have you thought about how to make the most of it? Opportunity often shows up as a problem and in this podcast I cover a few things you can learn from abandoned carts, and how you make the most of the opportunity to serve your clients by paying attention to what's going on and reaching out to them.

Are you taking advantage of the opportunity to invite your customers to return with your shipping packaging? This is a fantastic way to say thank you to your customers and invite them back to buy again, and give them an incentive to do it. If you're like me, you don't often look at packaging in which items ordered through the web come. But if you take a minute to think about this easily overlooked commodity - your packaging - you'll see there are opportunities to do some cool things.

News Items Covered In this Episode:

This Week's Website Question

This week's question deals with Wordpress.org vs. Wordpress.com. There are good reasons why you would choose one or the other, but I've got a few different things to keep in mind when you're choosing one or the the other.

How comfortable you are working with raw site files
What your goals are long-term for your site
What you budget is overall

Mentioned During the Show

I can't think of many reasons to choose a Wordpress.com blog over a a self-hosted Wordpress blog and I go in to some detail here about making that choice and some easier alternatives.

Here is the article posted by Rae Hoffman that I talk about in the podcast regarding building your site on a free subdomain

Here is some more information about the Wordpress custom domain name setup

My question going out, "Who would be interested in a Website Workshop/Bootcamp?

Also mentioned in this podcast:

The Return of the My Website Workshop Podcast! 014

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Thu, 01 Mar 2012 21:39:23 +0000

Finally It's here! The relaunch of the My Website Workshop podcast is finally here! I'm incredibly glad to be able to say that the podcast has returned and I'm more excited about it than ever.

It's been a long time coming, but I needed to make some changes and there were so many things that needed to be done to get it back going and get it going right that I figured that I would just hold off and wait until I could relaunch it the right way.

That means a more consistent schedule. This podcast will be published every other Thursday. Weekly was a bit much for me as there just don't seem to be enough hours in the day, and my clients like to see there work get completed! So every other Thursday there will be a new podcast.

What's covered in this podcast

This week it's all about me :) Next week we'll get back to the regular news, but on the show today I cover:

a couple things about what happened and where the podcast went
What's staying and what's going
New subjects that will be covered
The new content schedule
An intro in to how I redesigned this site

Tell me what you think in the comments below!

PPC and CPC ads with Google - When it Works and When it Doesn't | 013

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:25:10 +0000

Struggling with SEO (search engine optimization) is a problem for every webmaster and website owner. Sometimes, the thought is, "why don't we just buy the traffic?" There is definitely a time and place for paid placement, PPC and other traffic generating marketing efforts, but just because you're investing to get the traffic to your site via Google PPC, Facebook PPC, or any other cost-per-click opportunity it doesn't mean that this is going to be good traffic, or traffic that converts.

In this episode this is the main point of discussion. When is it a good time to use PPC? Why are your pay-per-click efforts not doing anything but cost you money? I'm no expert or guru when it comes to PPC but I've been a part of enough of these campaigns to learn a little bit about what works and what doesn't work, so I invite you to check this podcast out and learn about the potential benefits and perils of advertising with Google.

News Items Covered in This Episode

This Week's Question

"I have a new ecommerce site, but i'm struggling with getting traffic. We are completely internet-based, and I'm not sure what to do...."

Mentioned During the Show

Targets for keywords - whether by organic SEO, or by CPC or other premium ad strategies - always come down to four things:

Relvancy - your site and content must be relevant to your keyword
Traffic - there must be acceptable levels of traffic for a given keyword phrase
Competition - there must be acceptable levels of competition for a particular keyword
Commerciality - there must be acceptable opportunity for the keyword to convert to real income

WordPress & Magento: A Match Made Made in Heaven | 012

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:20:46 +0000

Wordpress as a blogging platform is just about as awesome as it gets. The same thing goes for Magento and ecommerce platforms - it's second to none. But what if you need both ecommerce and a blogging platform? Magento has a variety of plugins that may work, but none of them are really as good as Wordpress. The same goes for Wordpress - there are options out there that will work, but don't have the features or power that Magento has. So why not combine them?

That's exactly what you can do now. Fishpig.co.uk has created a plugin that integrates your Wordpress blog in to your Magento store so that you get the best of both platforms and that's what I'm talking about on today's show. You can even extend your Wordpress functionality deeper in to Magento by using some XML and good placement of blocks and widgets in Magento. If you're a Magento store owner and you want to integrate Wordpress to manage your blog, this plugin is your ticket.

News Items Covered in the Show

Harry's Question about two sites

I have been split between two sites that I would like to combine to one. I have more content up at the one site than the other. The only trouble is that I am not sure which one to scrap or if there is a way to combine all the sites I have together into one site. I also have a few additional sites as well that I have been working on but I am not to tech savvy and could use help or advice on how to better focus my energies. I am very passionate about Eco-friendly topics and products and enjoy helping others as well. I enjoy business as well and my ultimate goal is to automate a few sites or retire them so I can focus on my main service I am looking to launch locally and online.

Thanks so much,
Harry
My Eco Guy

Mentioned During the Show

ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income

Fishpig.co.uk Wordpress Plugin

Communicating What Your New Awesomeness Will Deliver | 011

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:16:43 +0000

Communicating the value that your new "awesome" website feature is going to provide is sometimes the job of us "web guys" and "web gals". I've done it numerous times to roll out new ideas and plans for sites I've worked on for companies I've worked for. You have to be able to communicate the value of what your new "awesomeness" is going to deliver.

Helping those who are not familiar with web technology isn't always easy, but there is a language that they understand: "Return on Investment". If you can demonstrate how you're new idea is going to help the organization reach its overall goals by your new tool then you have a really good chance of winning the approval and getting the budget you need to get it done.

Paul Boag has been running a series on the redesign of the BoagWorld.com website and he recently discussed quantifying a website's objectives. This is the language that decision makers love! Help them meet their objectives and deliver value beyond the expense of the project and you've got a winnner.

These are the things we cover in today's show.

Covered in Today's Show

New Question: What do I need to know about updating/upgrading my wordpress site?

Communicating what your new aweseomeness will deliver. If you're the website manager, or coordinator, or webmaster, your job becomes helping the people who make the decisions understand what's at stake, what value is gained, and what's involved.

News Items for Today's Show

My Question for you: What are you struggling with on your website? Let me know in the comments below.

Hustling to Make Your Website Awesome | 010

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:10:07 +0000

Building your website can be a lot like building a house: Even though the initial construction may be finished, you're just getting started. I know this from my own experience building websites - not only for myself, but for my clients too. And if you're doing it right it's really a labor of love, but it's still labor. Getting off the ground is one thing but making your site awesome is entirely another.

Today that's what I'm talking about on the show. Most of this stuff is from my personal experience building websites, but is applicable in so many ways. I've got clients that have huge websites with hundreds of pages that are looking to go to the next level and to do this, you have to roll up your sleeves and prepare to get in and get dirty. Well, as dirty as you can writing code and working with websites!

As the website owner you have to invest at least some time in getting involved in learning new things and understanding where you want to take your website.

Covered in Today's Show

Glenn's question: My question I had for you is about modifying the Standard theme beyond just the css. I went to wordcamp Columbus and they were talking about using as few plugins as possible.

If you could easily modify the code instead of using a plugin then do it. But my concern is how to keep track of my changes and protect those changes from the the update from standard.

Hustling to Make Your Website Awesome

Are you relying on technology to make your site great, or are you busting your posterior region (hustling) to make it awesome?
Getting creative - starting your own video show via Ustream, or Livestream
Brogan's Pulse Network
Mobile versions of your site
Who are you helping?

News Items for today's show

image by boxchain

Five Essential Elements to Creating Outstanding Design | 009

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:06:29 +0000

On today’s episode of the MyWebsiteWorkshop.com Podcast I covered Five Essential Elements to Creating Outstanding Design.

I can't claim credit for having thought of these concepts myself - Megan Fisher did an outstanding job covering these during the Think Vitamin CSS3 Webinar last year, and it was a fantastic conference.

The main point of the conference was to cover the new possibilities of creating stunning and amazing work with CSS3. However what I learned was above and beyond the talk about code, there was some great stuff on design in general and this podcast is a result of that.

Covered in Today's Show

Today we cover the Five Essential Elements to Creating Outstanding Design:

Texture
Tone
Type
Shape
Light

News Items

Viddler offers video subscription service

Here is a bit of the email that I received regarding their new premium digital product service. Viddler is getting things done - if you're a content creator this might be a way to market your business.

Hello Viddlers!
Make the entire world your marketplace. Use a Viddler business account to set up an online store and sell digital access to your videos through Viddler’s Subscriptions.

Allow customers to subscribe to a set of your videos and charge them on a daily, weekly, monthly, or annual basis.
Create a free private sub-domain on your public account.
Customize the name, look, and feel of your store to fit your brand.
Easily get paid with PayPal.

Google Wallet is Announced

Google + 1 Button and Klout +K

Google Merchant update to tax and shipping requirements

Create quality feeds people! The Google Merchant Center Blog announced they have extended the June 6th deadline to September 1st, where the requirement is to have shipping and tax information within your data feeds.

And the couple that I didn't mention on the show:

Google Simplifies Site Search Ownership Transfers

Yet another new Twitter Tool, good for monitoring your business and brand http://www.twilert.com/

The Three Pieces the Website Puzzle | 008

info@orraclemedia.com (Rob Orr) — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 22:02:16 +0000

Websites can be a bit daunting when you look at what some of the huge ones out there are doing - Amazon.com, Yahoo!, MSN, etc., but they all have three elements in common and that is what today’s episode is all about. From the smallest site, to the largest every single website must address three issues: technology, design, and content.

Sure, you can talk about e-commerce, but that’s really a technology issue. And you might say that branding and marketing are core categories, but they’re really associated with content and design. Marketing? Sure, but on-site marketing is really design and content, the rest is external. So that’s what I cover in todays’ episode - what they are and why you need to think about them long and hard if you want your site to be awesome and successful.

Covered in Today’s Show

Scott’s Question - “What would you recommend in regards to upgrading my site to something that looks and works better?”
Technology - Don’t put the cart before the horse - choose your tool wisely
Design - Don’t show up to a job interview in a t-shirt and flip-flops
Content - Create compelling content that addresses the needs of your market