Category Archives: Content

6 Critical Website Design Questions to Help You Bring Home the Gold

by admin

 

With the Olympics now behind us, reports are starting to come out of
London that a higher than expected number of local businesses – from
boutiques, to restaurants, and hotels – saw a decrease in revenue this
year as compared to the same time last year because of the games. This
is shocking news to many because you would think with the added tourists
these types of businesses would experience a positive financial win
fall just for being in the right place at the right time.Many
businesses and organizations make the same assumption with their
websites believing that if they get their site in front of enough
traffic, they will convert visits into viable income. However, there’s
an art and a science to creating effective websites.Whether
someone visiting your site reads information, views a video, or
downloads a white paper, they’re a potential prospect. The key is to get
them to come back to your site frequently and convert them into a
customer. If your website is struggling to convert, take an honest look
at it. See how you would answer these six questions to determine if you
have a winning website.1. What purpose do your customers want the site to serve?Customers
visit sites for a variety of reasons. Are they coming to yours to learn
more about your business? Do they want to be able to access certain
industry information? Do they want to make a purchase? You don’t always
need a one-site-does-all solution. You may have your branding site as
the primary source of information about your business while linking to
landing pages or micro sites to handle other specific functions for
satisfying your customers’ needs. Knowing why people are visiting your
site will alter the choices you make for the written content, visual
design elements and composition.2. What proof do you provide about your claims?If
Michael Phelps were to boast that he’s the best swimmer of all time, he
has a chest full of 22 gold and silver Olympic medals to prove it. If
you declare that you’re the best at servicing a particular niche or that
your product is far superior to the competition, you need credibility
on your site to back up your claims. Have you won awards? Do you have
testimonials and/or case studies? Do you have results from independent
organizations when testing your products alongside the competitions’?3. Do you have more than one type of ideal customer and does your site effectively speak to each group?There
were 36 sports represented at the Summer Olympics. The marketing for
getting tourists and locals to attend say gymnastics was different than
beach volleyball. The same holds true for your business. It isn’t
uncommon for you to have multiple target audiences. For example, if you
manage a nonprofit for children with autism, you likely have different
types of visitors that you want attract to your site and engage, from
the parents of children on the autism spectrum, to donors, and possibly
even medical professionals. If this is the case, does your website
design include imagery, copy, and calls to action for each of these
specific groups? Each segment has specific interests and desires. You
can’t create one effective marketing message that will speak to each of
these.4. Is your site easy to navigate and understand?The
average website has less time than it takes Usain Bolt to run the 100
meter dash to capture the attention of new visitors. Effective websites
have copy that speak predominately in “you” and “your” terms instead of
“we”, “I” or “us” and they drop as much of the industry lingo as
possible (unless that’s what attracts your ideal customers). People
don’t buy what they don’t understand. Second, sites that are hard to
navigate because of look, layout, and functionality increase their
“bounce” rate. A “bounce” is when people show up and quickly “bounce”
back to wherever they came from prior to your site instead of clicking
through to other pages. Your website design should make it easy for
visitors to find the information or solution they’re looking for in just
a couple of clicks.5. How easy is it for your visitors to contact you?Does
your site have one method for people to connect with you on a plain
Contact Us page or do you include multiple methods, from phone, to
email, to fax, an easy to use form that are posted on several places on
your site and links to your social media profiles? If your site’s
visitors want to get a hold of you, make it easy for them. Accessibility
often improves the perception of credibility and increases your
likability, which is critical for converting visitors into customers.6. Do you know how to design your site for human visitors and search engine spiders?If
trying to win over customers wasn’t challenging enough, in today’s Web
2.0 world, your site needs to compete on multiple fronts. What gets your
site noticed and ranked by the search engines versus that which
attracts your ideal customers and gets them to take action isn’t always
the same thing. An effective website design requires a team effort
between a SEO specialist, professional copywriter, graphic designer, and
a web developer.For more information about what’s involved in
creating an effective website design worthy of an award, contact us
online or call us at (410) 366-9479 ext. 2#.

Article Tags:
Website Design

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dina Wasmer is President of Incite Creative, a
marketing and graphic design firm that provides offline and online
brand-building services and strategies for small-to-middle-market
businesses and non-profit organizations in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Additionally, Dina is an adjunct professor at the University of
Baltimore teaching typography and graphic design principles. For more
information, log onto www.incitecreativeinc.com or contact dina@incitecreativeinc.com

5 Home Business Ideas To Consider

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The wonderful thing about the internet, is there is no saying what you cannot start a business in. As long as there is public appeal, you have the ability to start a business out of it. Here are five home business ideas you should take into consideration.

1. EBay, What started out as a way for people to sell items they did not want to interested buyers has now transformed into an actual online opportunity. You would be amazed at what people are willing to spend money on. Whether you want to get rid of some of your stuff or are upping the price you paid on limited edition items, there is money to be made on EBay.

2. Freelancing, When looking to make money online, it is always best to get involved in something you have knowledge in. Freelancing allows you to put your skills and experience into play. There is a demand for freelance writers, graphic designers, advertisers and much more. Get out there and see what opportunities are there for you.

3. Blog writing. More and more entrepreneurs are beginning to realize the importance of having a blog in conjunction with their web site. The problem is they do not have the time it takes to run a successful blog. This is one of the most overlooked home business ideas, but it has tremendous potential. All you have to do is write some blog posts for people and get paid for doing it.

4. Affiliate marketing. There is nothing better than getting the rewards for someone else’s products. Affiliate marketing gives you the chance to make money by selling other companies products. There are thousands of programs to choose from allowing you to promote a company and niche you actually have an interest in.

5. Build a web site. Although this demands the most attention from you, building a web site of your own can have the greatest rewards. There is nothing more satisfying than starting your own business and promoting your own products. And having a web site opens the doors to many more opportunities as well.

The list of home business ideas could literally go on forever. There is a niche for everyone out there and nothing stopping you from starting a business. Whether you are looking to apply the skills you already have or want to promote someone else’s businessArticle Submission, the options are there for you to choose from. Consider each and every one of the opportunities listed in this article carefully.

Performance Improvement: Dare to Elevate Engagement

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Did you know that 21% of the global workforce considers themselves actively engaged in their work right now (loyal, passionate, positive, enjoying their work)? 38% are actively disengaged (meaning they’re complaining, bringing morale down or looking for another job). And the remaining 41% aren’t sure where they stand. Wow!

Does that surprise you? Surprised me, but then not too much because I’ve watched chaos, scheduling, technology, travel and the demand for instant results increase dramatically over the years. We are busy! We can get a hold of each other in ways now that make one dizzy. Technology in many cases is replacing face-to-face contact. Travel on Sunday for a Monday morning meeting is becoming quite the norm. So, as an executive coach, it doesn’t surprise me that we are bumping up against the following performance improvement challenges.

Some of the biggest concerns reported in the ‘disengaged and unsure categories’ are:

As an effective leader in your organization, would you like to do something about that? Studies show that if you can move a ‘disengaged employee’ to be an ‘engaged employee’, you get an instant twenty percent increase in productivity. Not bad performance improvement. Seems to me that would be worth doing. How about you?

So what to do?

Here are four tips by which you, as an effective leader, can address personal sustainability, engagement and performance improvement at the same time.

Performance Improvement Tip #1: Design ‘Personal Sustainability Time’ into the day.

Some rules to support this tip are: schedule regular breaks for your team, schedule workouts, bring healthier choices for food into meetings, provide a ‘decompression’ or ‘renewal room’, or do whatever feels like a good next move towards work/life balance. Just taking regular ten-minute breaks every 90-120 minutes can do wonders.

Performance Improvement Tip #2: Link people’s jobs to the bottom line.

Challenge your people to link their roles to the major goals, outcomes and initiatives in the company. Help them see the importance of their work in relationship to what the team and organization is accomplishing. In this busy world, it is quite easy to disconnect from the, “Why I’m doing this work and what’s important about it?” Reconnect with that, and you’ll be reconnected with some passion and purpose.

  

Performance Improvement Tip #3: Are your people matched up with the right roles that excite, invigorate and give them a place to shine?

Are your people passionate about their work? Are they in roles that best use their strengths and energy? Do you showcase their gifts and talents? If not, it’s a fabulous opportunity to see where things can be rematched and leveraged. If I’m not loving my work and passionate (or aware) about my purpose then I’m not playing to my strengths. I’m probably not going to be giving it 100% and I’m definitely not going to be as engaged as I could be.

  

Performance Improvement Tip #4: Finally, assess how engaged your people feel with you.

Do they feel seen, acknowledged, respected and honored? Or not? Connection to human beings is not only a key element of feeling engaged, it’s also key to the human spirit – we want to be connected to others. If even in a quiet way for work/life balance, connection is important.

Yes, ideally, it takes two to engage, and as many of my executive coaching clients hear me say, “The best place to make an impact is to be the first to engage.”

Make it a point this month to fully engage daily with at least ten different people in your life. If even for two minutes, dare to fully engage. Notice your impact, and see what shows up.

These are all ways you can begin to engage your work/life balance in one way or another today. So pick one thing or four, whatever feels meaningful and do-able. Something that you can write down (right now) and with which you can create a tangible action plan.

You may not see the full impact immediately. But stick with it! The performance improvement will be there. Imagine the impact you can have on one person, and what impact they’ll have on anotherBusiness Management Articles, and then another.

How to Remodel A Small Bathroom

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Before beginning your small bathroom remodeling, design a floor plan that maximizes the room’s useable space. Don’t be afraid to design up by incorporating free-floating cabinets. Use mirrors to stretch a small bathroom’s space, and keep the color scheme simple. Keep a small bathroom bright, fresh, and inviting with coordinated colors and accessories.

Pare down the scale in your bathroom. Big items take up more space in the bathroom and look bulky. Corner sinks are simple and small. These sinks free up visual space below, but don’t provide the counter space and cabinet space that a traditional sink provides. Another option is a pedestal sink. These sinks have a more classic design and are free standing. Wall-mounted sinks save space but do not have counter space. Both types of sinks do not provide storage space underneath. Most home-improvement stores stock smaller sinks, or you can custom order one from a cabinet shop for a price.

A simple way to conserve space is to do away with a tub and just use a shower. Smaller tubs, however, are available, although most cannot handle whirlpool faucets. Any tub less than five feet long will probably spill the water sprayed by the whirlpool faucets.

Pick a toilet that can sit close to the wall to conserve space, and the size of the seat and tank design determine just how much space the toilet will use. Also pay attention to the size of the home’s original toilet. Older homes have toilets with 10 to 14 inches between the wall and the toilet drain, but newer homes typically have 12 inches. The wrong toilet won’t fit. Buying a toilet with a low tank takes up less visual space and compact toilets leave more room, but as with any small bathroom remodeling project, use these suggestions to find a toilet that is both stylish and fits in the room.

Finally, limit what you bring into the bathroom. To save space in a cramped bathroom, for example, it may be best to have a dressing area in a bedroom. Limit the number of accessories — clutter can easily make a small bathroom look smaller.

Planning a small remodeling may take extra planning, but the resulting clean, beautifulArticle Submission, an uncluttered bathroom will be an inviting space.

Basic Steps Of A Bathroom Remodel

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Bathroom Remodeling in Rocky Hill CT is a time-consuming project involving many decisions, contractors, and finances. Yet it is a project that will be undertaken by most homeowners at one point or another. The benefits of remodeling your bathroom include convenience, style, improved function, and increased equity in your home, but the greatest benefit of all is your pleasure and enjoyment. If you are thinking about or have decided to remodel your bathroom you may be wondering what really stands before you. Bathroom Remodeling in Rocky Hill CT involves a number of basic steps. Reviewing them here will help you get a basic sense of what you will need to do and what will happen.To start off with, you need to determine whether you are going to give your bathroom a facelift in its existing layout or redesign it altogether. These decisions involve the placement of items like your sink, shower, tub, and toilet. If you want to change the basic layout, you will need to meet with a professional designer to help you. They can guide you through the options you have based on building codes and where water and power are already running in your bathroom. They can also inform you as to permits that may be required before certain changes can be put in place. Of course, they will work with you to develop a final design plan you will adore.In order for demolition and construction to begin, you need to secure the necessary building permits. Secure them prior to the onset of structural work. Then have everything in your bathroom that you will be changing removed. This may include the tub, shower, sink, toilet and/or vanity. Have everything cleared out before contractors come in to be start building.Once plumbing and electrical lines have been adapted and everything has been built or placed in your new bathroom, you will need to paint. This will include the ceiling and walls, as well as any doors and trim. It is best to apply two coats for rich and true color. After painting is complete, you can have your new floor laid. Fixtures and towel racks are typically installed at this point as well.Now your Bathroom Remodeling in Rocky Hill CT is basically complete. All that remains is to purchase accessories such as towels, window treatments, and rugs. You can also select wall or other décor at this time. After placing these final embellishments, you new bathroom is ready for use.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Bathroom Remodeling in Rocky Hill CT is a large project to take on. By following some basic steps, you can get through the process in an orderly manner. You will find Bathroom Remodeling in Rocky Hill CT to be well worth the temporary inconvenience it may cause.

Opportunities in Interior Design Continue to Grow

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The interior design market is alive and booming. Each year there are many people who seek out contractors from the area to help them improve the appearance of the inside of their homes and businesses. Many people tend to speculate that the art of decorating is something that anyone can do if they have a little imagination; however the art of designing also requires knowledge of many different procedures, techniques, creativeness, and the ability to think outside of the box. Many artistic people seem like they could be good candidates for the industry, but it is a very competitive field where only those who are personable and properly trained are the most successful.Training for a career in interior design does not require as much time as most traditional career choices such as teaching and medicine require. There are many online, certificate and vocational programs that allow anyone who is interested to receive training and certification at their own pace. During the training period, a person can expect to learn more than just what colors can do to the atmosphere of a room. Being able to research and create are highly desired traits that a designer must have. Learning all about how to incorporate building codes and environmental limitations while providing the client with a plan that they are very satisfied with is also emphasized.Interior design contractors are able to work for themselves. It is a very lucrative and satisfying career choice for many people who want to have more control and flexibility over their time and income. The most successful contractors are able to market themselves, build up repeat business and new business from their previous customers. People who make successful designers are able to engage their clients and help them visualize what their goal is.There are some very successful interior design contractors who are not licensed or certified. Although obtaining some sort of certification is highly desired, it is not required to be successful. A person who is very determined could study and become a designer if they decide to do so. In order to work with many reputable companies, some sort of degree or certification is often requested. However, a person who has some sort of certification or degree has a much easier time setting their own rates, schedule, running their own business and gaining more clientele.The popularity of the interior design industry is steadily increasing each year. There is such a high demand for professionals that can provide decorative and designing services that are unique and aesthetically pleasing, that many businesses and individuals are willing to spend quite a bit of money. There are numerous reality shows on television that encourage anyone who has a creative spark in their body to become more involved in transforming their homes into structures that are more pleasing to the eyes and mind. This is a great career choice for anyone who is very creative and interested in bringing her visions to life.

Article Tags:
Interior Design, Many People, Some Sort

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

For the best in interior design New Jersey residents go to the best showroom in the area. For innovative design, check out http://www.speedwelldesign.com/.

Finding A General Contractor

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If you have decided to build your dream home or remodel your existing home you will become quite familiar with the words, general contractor. This is the person you will hire to run your project, coordinate the efforts of all of the materials needed for the job hire the sub-contractors and take care of payroll for everyone involved. In other words your general contractor will assume all of the responsibility towards making your remodel or new construction, go as smoothly as possible. You as the homeowner can of course be the general contractor of your own project if you choose to do so. But if you take on this role you would have to assume the duties of hiring all of your own subcontractors and handling payroll as well as ordering supplies and materials. Most homeowners simply don’t have the time to commit to being a general contractor or have the needed knowledge to make the endeavor anything but stressful.If you have made the decision to hire a general contractor you should plan on interviewing at least three or four contractors before you select one. In fact if you are getting a bank loan for the home or improvement project you will probably be required to get at least three written bids. Who you hire will ultimately be your choice since you will be on the hook to repay the bank for the advance but the bank likely want you to hire the bid that falls in the middle. Of course your ultimate decision on which general contractor to hire will be based on more than just a bid price. You need to hire someone you are comfortable working with and someone that is professional. You can judge how professional the person will be before you even hire them by how much effort they put into trying to get the job. Do they show up on time to meet with you and write up a bid? Do they turn the bid back into you within a reasonable amount of time? It is not too unreasonable to expect a remodel bid to take a week or more and a bigger project such as new construction to take even longer. After all, before your general contractor can give you the bottom line they have to get to the bottom line which means they have to check prices on materials and estimate the time and number of employees they will need to complete the job.Finally of course you should take some basic precautions and check with the state contractor’s board to make sure your contractor has a current license in good standing and does not have any open claims on his record. And of course, with a general contractor to take control of the project all you have to worry about is paying for it.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Choose a http://www.thomashomecenter.com/services.html”> general contractor in Eureka, CA that has a reputation for being reliable and getting the job effectively done. For more information, visit http://www.thomashomecenter.com”> http://www.thomashomecenter.com/

Why There Is A Need For Green Interior Design?

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Green Interior Design is a part of sustainable architecture, it means adapting the techniques which in return saving nature from pollution. 

Importance of Green Interior Design

What Is Green Interior Design? 

Eminent top Interior planning firms lead the framework in detailing sound, non-harmful, practical homes (developed with maintainable materials) for the admirers of greenery as well as something else. The interest in green interior homes has expanded over the long run. Individuals have begun requesting their families to be defined with sound and non-poisonous materials to have a solid climate. The green Residential Interior design stands immovably on the side of this exertion and sends across similar viability. 

 

HOW IS GREEN INTERIOR DESIGN SUBJECTED? 

Green Interior Design doesn’t demonstrate having Green shading all around the house and having plans or adornments of a similar shading. It is an impression of bringing a change by quitting for methods and materials for the insides that are eco-accommodating Green or eco-accommodating home Interior Design Idea focuses on creating indoor cool and orders on decreasing the feeling that movables have on the climate. 

 

WHAT ARE THE ELEMENTS THAT CAN BRING TOGETHER AN ECO-FRIENDLY INTERIOR SETUP? 

Eco-accommodating wooden house interior design is ordinarily the association of deck that is wooden or cover based. The discretionary arrangements that straightforwardly or by implication sustain nature fall under green interior planning. Supportable components – like bamboo sheets, have a level carbon trail, yet can likewise length over inside the healthy fixings range since they don’t shed the unpredictable natural mixtures normally found in terminations of other ground models. 

Continuing eco-accommodating plan changes could be sensible by adding brightening clocks and dimmer changes to decrease power exhaustion, introducing bay windows to allow in more regular light. Acquiring ledges made out of recovered components made with soy-based rather than petrol-based froth. 

Is it accurate to say that you are Opting into a Sustainable Future through Eco-Friendly Interior Design? 

Green Interior design has numerous comparative styles and contemplations related to it, other than manageable extension by means of feasible materials. A few edges keep up the climate and have accepted terms like eco-plan, eco-friendly interior design, and even arcology. Earth-accommodating development, ecological plan, common plan, and still calm arranging have Green Interior plan stages. Biomimicry is a term utilized by Architects and Interior Designer who allude to the uniqueness of Nature as a Green Interior Design. 

Green Interior design ought not to be an extra. It ought to be a method of ingesting the organization of considering a set up biological system. The most significant standard of green Interior designers is to be completely practical. Basically, individuals do “green” things to accomplish maintainability. 

Some of the ways adopted by the Architects in Gurgaon for implementing the green buildings are: 

 

Green Interior Design is a way to development that decreases improvement plans’ harming consequences for humanistic wellbeing and the climate. The “new” Interior Designers in Gurgaon endeavor to protect the environment, springComputer Technology Articles, and ground by receiving eco-accommodating plan outline bodies and construction disciplines. 

 

Eco-accommodating planners are expected to oblige the top-notch most ideal choices for the green interior design to save energy and to come full circle into the best arrangement of a changed or building space.

As I conclude my article with the popular saying by Coco Channel “ An Interior is the natural projection of the soul.” 

Home Improvement Projects – How You Can Make Them Less Of A Hassle

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Few people who have experienced a major home improvement project will state that the entire thing went as hoped for, or was completed ahead of schedule and without difficulties. There are just too many individuals mixed up in such an task, and so many different things can go wrong. You can ward off the majority of home improvement hassles by planning in advance, to help make certain work goes along as easily as possible.It’s smart to have somebody direct the entire home improvement project. Because the general contractor can ascertain everything that will have to be executed to complete the project, they’re often an excellent choice to have running the show.Create a financial budget and keep to it. The whole job can develop into a disaster if you find yourself short on finances. If you do not prepare for everything beforehand, and set a budget that you will not go over, you can quickly start adding things that you have not put aside funds for. You might find that you can’t find the money for the work after all, if you do not control your spending. When you engage a general contractor to work on your project, make certain that you find one that agrees to a fixed price contract. That way you will know precisely what the construction will cost you, no matter how long it takes them to finish your home improvement project.This can keep you from receiving an unpleasant surprise when you receive the final bill, and will also encourage them to finish as fast as they are able. It might take a little time for you to acquire a builder who will consent to these conditions, nevertheless they are out there. Just be positive that you are planning on paying a fair price for the job to be performed. Be sure to call around and obtain a number of estimates before you sign a contract.Don’t get involved with hiring a bunch of specialty contractors for every single portion of the construction that needs done. Permit your contractor to take care of this area of the job. They can hire other people that they already know and work with regularly, to complete the parts that must be performed by a specially skilled contractor.Your builder or general contractor will without a doubt be aware of who is experienced, does the best work, and is least difficult to work with. Let your builder hire their favored specialty subcontractors, instead of becoming involved and undertaking it yourself. The individuals you retain might not be very good ones, and could take an excessively long amount of time to finish the work.The more you can refrain from needing to be involved in the everyday progress of the home improvement project, the easier it will be on you. Let your builder cope with the scheduling and installation of the various elements of the project that require working on.They will have taken care of this sort of thing many different times previously, and will recognize exactly what needs carried out and the best time to take action. Letting your general contractor be the boss will help make sure the entirety of the work is carried out on time, and moves along without a problem.By sticking to your budget, and not trying to include all kinds of extras to your home improvement project, and let your general contractor or builder handle all the logistics, you won’t look back on your home improvement project with a sour taste in your mouth.

Article Tags:
Home Improvement Project, Home Improvement, Improvement Project, General Contractor

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Visit 9×12 Area Rugs and Oval Area Rugs to find great deals on hundreds of Area Rugs for Your Home.