I have been doing this blog quite a while – I just reached the amazing mark of 50 posts! Some blog nearly everyday but I tend to post about twice a month so it’s taken about two years to get to this point. I’ve learned quite a bit along the way and I’d like to share some of those accomplishments with you and offer some quick tips and advice. I still consider myself primarily a writer and graphic designer, but I’ve become highly capable and familiar with websites, blogs, multimedia and social media / social networking sites. Let me share some insights!
First of all, it is possible for nearly anyone to build and maintain a website or blog. Content Management Systems (CMS) like WordPress are pretty darn easy to manage. Graphics are more of a challenge but changing templates by designing a custom header are within the grasp of anyone who can use Photoshop and has a little design sense.
Second, there is no doubt that the world is moving toward the rule of information. Text, in a word, reigns supreme in the web 2.0 era. I shake my head mutiple times a week at the people, some of them accomplished designers/business people, who have flash-based or graphics-based sites. Take my advice: build a blog! Your flash-based site with no meta information (description, keywords, alt tags) is INVISIBLE to Google.
On that same tip, create a video to promote yourself or your business. There are three things driving Google rankings: relevance by way of the text /multimedia content on your site, external links reinforcing your site’s relevance, and the relation your site has to social networking and video sites. In other words, you need external sites linking to your site and content such as video.
Are you a musician with no budget? Put your songs up on YouTube and just use your album graphic! You will at minimum, double or triple your hits and Google ranking. Run a business? Convert a PowerPoint presentation to flash video (flv) and post on your site (along with YouTube). Google rewards rich multimedia content and outside links from social media sites (especially user-created business directory sites like “Yelp” or “Ourfaves.”)
As part of the strategy to build a clients’s search rankings I posted a review on Ourfaves Toronto with a few pictures, links to his site and MySpace page, and the caveat that I was both a fan and friend (and designer of his website). It was an essential part of our marketing strategy. You can learn more about this case study at the “Internet Marketing” page at my design site, strongandfree.ca.
I would encourage everyone to start expanding your skill base and create a list of new things you want to learn more about. The world is changing at lightning speed and it will pay dividends to those with some broader abilities.
I’m curious now about podcasts, rss feeds and web video. I’m also interested in the convergence of media and the need for designers to have familiarity with wide ranging devices from tiny pixel cellphone screens to flash vector graphics on 24 inch widescreen monitors. Your next promotion should seek to create a buzz on both. But don’t forget the text! Build that blog, hire a competent writer, and GET THE WORD OUT! Text rules. It could be the most important aspect of any of your marketing efforts in the near future.
