Website Mentors Blog|Kentucky’s Premier Web Design Firm

Graphic Design is an art, and not fully understood by many companies.  I am grateful to have work with some of the best graphic designers in the world, on several various projects, and have learned what it takes to make a graphic design stand out or even be a beautiful piece of art.

Although many people think graphic designers and website designers are total opposites, they couldn’t be more wrong.  A professional web designer should be able to perform any of the tasks required for an expert “graphic designer”.  That being said, there is a difference between the specs of creating a piece for print design or to showcase on your internet portfolio.  But what is not understood is that if you have a talented designer working with you, you can teach him or her how to design for print or for any other service that a graphic designer would be used.

The trick is to hire a freelance designer or firm who understands both fields of expertise and can provide you with the “perfect designer” able to adhere to standards, provide beautiful designs, and at the same time understand the difference between a brochure which looks attractive and is used as a marketing machine, utilizing tons of free viral advertising.  Once you have found the perfect combination, you have a goldmine!

Justin Chelf is the President and CEO of Website Mentors, LLC, a Louisville, Kentucky based website design and internet marketing firm.

Having a prominent web presence is one of the best ways to run a successful online business. The more prominent your web presence the more traffic is directed to your website. Whether you have a home-based business, freelance on the side, or preside over a fortune 500 company, people cannot visit your website if you cannot be found. As a business owner and mentor of web developers and designers, it is my job to ensure companies do this successfully. Is your website ready to be put to the test?

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is an international consortium of member organizations, consortium staff, and the public who work together to develop Web Standards and Guidelines. One of tools I frequently use to ensure my clients’ websites are above this standard is The W3C Markup Validation Service. This is a free online tool that checks your website to validate its source code (html, xthml, etc.) using the guidelines set by the W3C for correctly developed websites.

Now, let us ensure your website is following the Internet standards of web design with a little test. Open your web browser and navigate to: http://validator.w3.org/. Enter your website’s address in the field and click “check”. The tool will now scan your source codes and report back with “This Page is VALID” or “This Page is NOT VALID”. Should you receive the dreaded “NOT VALID” simply scroll to the bottom of the page where an error report will display the number of errors contained in your website, as well as instructions for making corrections.

The reason you want to put your website through this test is that improper coding will cause your website to generate errors when tested on multiple operating systems, screen resolutions, and Internet browsers, making it difficult for some viewers to see your website’s content. Another reason is that valid coding will make your website more search engine friendly. Thus, correcting any coding errors would improve your organic search engine rankings and increase site traffic.

For those of you who think your website is beyond reproach, I recently researched all web developers, both freelancers and firms, in Louisville, Kentucky and throughout the state. I created a spreadsheet of 25 + companies, along with their website addresses, and began to validate their URLs. I discovered that in addition to my company, only URLs created by two other web developers passed the test! If you find errors in your website’s coding, but the terminology in the report is confusing, contact Website Mentors, LLC to take care of all your website development needs. After all, as a business owner, your time is valuable and should be spent developing your business, not worrying about your internet presence. Let us help!

Justin Chelf is the President and CEO of Website Mentors, LLC, a Louisville, Kentucky based website design and internet marketing firm.

A beginner’s guide to marketing your website online:

A lot of people just beginning to market their products or services on the internet have the same problem: little or no budget. And a host of others are lured by “gurus” into spending valuable monetary resources on how-to books and courses to become rich online. The truth is, what the gurus fail to reveal is that they did not become an internet marketing success overnight, and neither will you. No matter what experience you have, if you want to learn to market yourself on the internet, read on.

Step 1: Have a professional-looking website to market your product. And by professional-looking, I mean have a professional design the site for you. If you need a reference, I recommend Website Mentors.

Step 2: Have an online newsletter to send to site subscribers. When your web developer is creating your website there are two things you should tell him you need:

1) A CMS (content management system) which will allow you to make changes to the text, photos, links, literally everything on your website, rather than paying your designer an hourly fee. Click here for more information on CMS.

2) A Opt-in form on each page of your website. This will allow visitors to sign up for your newsletter which will allow you to stay in touch with them when you have a promotion or add a new product or service. The best way to lure visitors into giving you their information is to offer them something for free when they sign up. Be creative in selecting your give away as it can be anything.

Step 3: Search Engine Optimization (SEO). SEO is a form of internet marketing which focuses on optimizing your website for improved search engine rankings rather than paying for advertising. It is a very detailed process and will probably need to be done by a knowledgeable webmaster or an SEO professional. Other than the design of your website, this is probably the most costly thing that you will need to do to get started with your internet marketing. Click here for more information on SEO.

Step 4: Pay per click (PPC) advertising. If you want to get your name out to a large number of people quickly, PPC advertising is a good way to start. Just as it sounds, pay-per-click means that you only pay when a visitor clicks on your advertisement, rather than every time it is simply viewed. This will ensure that you are paying to be in front of only the select, targeted audience who needs your products and services, and not each random visitor a sight may have. Two good companies to begin your PPC advertising with are Google and Facebook.

Step 5: Create a blog. From high school students to Fortune 500 company CEOs to individuals in nursing homes, everyone is blogging these days, and so should you. Believe it or not, there are people interested in hearing what you have to say. Adding a blog to your website is a good way to increase traffic to your website. Write about anything you want, just make sure it relates in some way to the information on your site. When people visit your blog and want additional information on a topic of interest, they will be re-directed to your website therefore increasing the traffic. A great, free blogging platform that can be added on to your website is wordpress.

Step 6: Create profiles on social networking sites. Facebook, Myspace, and squitoo are not just for your kids. These social networking sites can generate both qualified leads and a heavy traffic flow. To begin, create a professional profile on each of the above listed sites. Be sure that everything you say pertains to your website because that will entice people to visit. Next, send friend requests to people you do business with, meet at social functions, or just recognize. Then send friend requests to all of their friends. After a few months, you could have more than 1,000 friends, each of which you could ask to visit your blog. Those who are interested in the blog’s content will return periodically to read the new information you have posted, thus creating a loyal following of subscribers.

The six steps listed above are an example of the several hundreds of techniques and tricks-of-the-trade to get exposure for your website on the internet. Many are free of charge, and some come with a nominal price tag. If these suggestions are of interest to you or if you already have them mastered, sign up for Website Mentor’s newsletter to receive weekly updates on industry trends and creative marketing tips. Or, better yet, contact Website Mentors directly and let them assist you in creating the perfect online marketing strategy for growing your business online…

Jonathan Klunk is the Senior Account Manager of Website Mentors, LLC, a Louisville, Kentucky based website design and internet marketing firm.

In today’s over-populated field of website design it can be difficult to distinguish what separates one design firm from another.  Many times these differences can be drastic - separating a creative, leading-edge firm from a run-of-the-mill firm. Other times they are only minimal.  Here are a few questions to ask when interviewing website design firms, and deciding who should receive the award to design or redesign your company’s website.

Are you committed to providing unique, leading-edge designs? As you can imagine, discerning clients love customized website designs. However, many companies today still use tired templates and cookie cutter layouts. It is important to ensure that the company you choose accurately represents their design standards. And as a consumer, you should Know what recourse you have if you are not satisfied with the end result.

Do you value superior customer service? Good design firms will often assign a personal account manager to work with you, no matter the size of your project. Their main job is to act as liaison between you and the design firm. They should also keep you involved throughout the design process and make themselves available to answer questions and address concerns promptly.

May I contact past customers to ask about their experience? Anyone can talk the talk, but can they walk the walk? If you have any doubts about the performance standards of a design firm, ask for a list of recent clients that you can contact with questions. And when you call, don’t hold back! You are about to enter into a relationship with the company you select. Make sure you know exactly what to expect.

Are you a full service design firm? This could potentially be a deal breaker if your company has a need for graphic design, web hosting, and internet marketing. When working on a tight budget a full service design firm can help you get more bang for your buck.

One reason is that a marketing or advertising firm may charge you for market research. When a full service firm is working with you they know and understand your market, know the scope of your work, and know what other companies within your field are doing to corner the market. The benefit is two-fold.

Do you know the difference between design and development? Some argue that good website development is more important than the website’s design! As more and more website designers join the flock everyday, good website developers become more difficult to find.

Justin Chelf is the President and CEO of Website Mentors, LLC, a Louisville, Kentucky based website design and internet marketing firm.