Thursday, October 27  

Domain Names For $2.99 US

Domain Names For $2.99 US

Just a quick heads up. If you want a cheap domain name, Yahoo! is currently selling .com domains for $2.99 US.

That's the best price you'll ever find.

Cheers

Brendon

Wednesday, October 26  

A Pigeon Vs Dial Up - The Race To Deliver Fastest

A Pigeon Vs Dial Up - The Race To Deliver Fastest

I gave a couple of talks to some business delegates at a seminar in the beautiful coastal town of Byron Bay this morning.

One of the talks was about marketing and I briefly mentioned generating media coverage for your business. My point being that if you do something newsworthy then you stand the best chance of gaining some coverage.

During the morning tea break a guy called Peter Lewis - he's the Deputy Mayor of Kyogle - came up and had a chat about how he last attracted excellent media coverage for his town in regard to its poor telecom services - and it's a story worth repeating.

Here's The Media Release From The Pigeon Vs Telstra Race

The Pigeon Has Landed
Date: 23 November 2003


Hermes the pigeon took on Telstra dial up and won.

With the task of sending 51 photos from Kyogle to Casino (32 km), Peter Lewis, Manager of the CTC Kyogle, knew that the dial up connection that they currently have would take between 2 1/2 and five hours to send.

"There has to be something better. Even a homing pigeon would go better than that." said Mr Lewis.

No bets were taken as it would have beeen an unfair advantage to the pigeon.

Hermes in his last start from Rockhampton to Casino did it in 10 hrs averaging seventy kilometres an hour. Thats seriously fast.

How fast was a dial up and what was the point of the race?

Well for most home user's dial up and the new ISDN service is just fine but for business and heavy user's of the internet it is just too slow. If Telstra had installed ADSL in Kyogle, as Lismore and Casino have Hermes would not have stood a chance.

The 64mg of data would have been sent in under 3 minutes.

Telstra says that Kyogle residents have to prove the case for having ADSL put on in Kyogle, so here is your chance to tell them. Phone Telstra on 131282 and then choose option 2 sales. Then option 2 again put in an expression of interest.

You can also register your expression of interest at http://www.telstra.com.au/adsl/reg_int.cfm

In a postscript to the race, Hermes the pigeon was not only carrying a 64mg of data but also an egg which she laid at 7pm the next day.

==========

Now that's smart thinking to draw attention to your issue and a great example of newsworthy stories generating good publicity.

Regards

Brendon

Tuesday, October 25  

40 Million Hits In A Week

40 Million Hits In A Week

Howdy. I find this hard to believe but apparently this site: www.subservientchicken.com has received 40 million hits in 1 week.

It's a pretty funny site, but I wouldn't call it exceptional.

What it does do is show the importance of something quirky and interactive as part of your branding (It's a Burger King branding exercise).

And yes, the chicken does stand on his head if you ask!

Brendon

Monday, October 24  

A Few Web Site Changes

Sometimes We Don't Have The Information

Sometimes we don't have the information that visitors are searching for. So what we've done is added Google Adsense to our articles pages.

Check out this example.

How It Works

How it works is this - Google looks at what it thinks the page is about. Then it displays ads relevant to that page.

So the above example page is about customer service - but in it I mention tents a few times.

So the ads shown are relevant to tents.

If they can't find what's on our page then they might find something relevant in the ad.

Of course there is also the issue that the ads generate income for this site.

Hope that helps.

Regards

Brendon

Sunday, October 23  

• "The Web Design Business Kit is probably the most important thing on our business that we have read. I only wish I'd read it years ago."
  
• "It's my bible and I read it everyday."
  
• "The web design business kit is great. .. Brendon has shown me why my advertising and marketing has brought so little results."
  
• "I am making notes furiously. I love the tips in it and it has redefined my view on customer service and professionalism."
  
• "I don't even know how to put my appreciation into words. This product is nothing short of outstanding."
  
• "A million thank yous to all of you who have helped bring this Web Design Kit to the people!"
  
• The Web Design Business Kit also won this award last year.
  
• The kit sells for $247 US.

Saturday, October 22  

My Restaurant Rules

My Restaurant Rules

Mel and the children were at a school concert yesterday that I couldn't attend. After I finished up here at work I went out to dinner.

The restaurant I chose was an upmarket one (not too flash) with a nice feel about it. It had subdued lighting, good food and a guy playing guitar and singing quietly in the corner.

What The Girls Did All Night

I sat down next to a table of 8. 4 guys, 4 girls. They were about 20 years of age.

The girls spent the entire time either texting from their mobile phones or calling someone. They hardly spoke with the guys all night. They were annoying me, so I can only imagine how the guys felt.

Things Change

I'm an old man of 38 and I think going out to dinner with someone and then texting or calling others on your phone is just plain rude. If I was out on a date and my partner did that I'd happily walk off and leave them to it.

But it's becoming the norm.

And as a marketing guy I have to be aware of the changes in society behaviour to keep up with the current trends. Although I might think the girls were being rude I have no doubt that they would be amazed that anyone saw anything 'rude' about what they were doing.

I might think that the guys keeping their caps on during the meal was bad manners. But the response to that might be "Get a life old man."

Respond To Trends

It's critical in business to be aware of trends and fashions. Who's hot, who's not. That sort of thing. Because then you can respond effectively for your market.

So my restaurant rules might not be to toss out people using their mobile phones. I might set up a wireless restaurant and you can even bring your laptops in too!

Cheers

Brendon

Wednesday, October 19  

From This Week's ABC Radio Show

From This Week's ABC Radio Show

Hello. From this week's radio show Kim asked about spyware.

The free anti-spyware below is from Microsoft and does the following:

• Scans your computer for spyware and removes it when found.
  
• Has a "real time" shield that keeps some new spyware from entering your computer.
  
• Automatically updates itself with new spyware signatures so it can locate and remove new forms of spyware.
  
• Scans your computer when you are not using it for new spyware infestations and alerts you as to what it has found.

Get it here: http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx

Regards

Brendon

Monday, October 17  

Is A $60 Web Site Rubbish?

A couple of people have posted comments under the seminar post below suggesting the bit about the $60 web site design is a 'trick' to entice people to the seminar.

But it's not.

Sure, there is work to be done after you buy the design for $60, but it is a great alternative for people on a budget and who don't need a built-from-the-ground-up site.

You need to customise the site and add content, but the design being done means that's one less thing to do. And that means savings in time and money.

Web Site Hosting At 1/10th The Price

Someone emailed me and asked about the hosting at $150 pa. They were also paying $1,200 pa for the hosting of their web site.

Their main concern was that with the hosting so cheap the host must be very poor. But it's not. We've been in the Internet industry for 8 years now and have trialed literally 100's of different web hosts.

We know the best hosts. We know the best deals. The host of the site for $150 is superior to many hosts that charge $1,200.

It's that knowledge that can save you thousands in costs.

Cheers

Brendon

Wednesday, October 12  

How To Build A Wildly Successful Web Business.....On A Shoestring
Learn The Secrets Of Australia's Leading Internet Expert

After quite a few requests we have organised a Web Business Seminar for Tuesday November 8, 2005 at Outrigger on the beach at SALT (that's at Kingscliff - 15 minutes south of the Gold Coast Airport and 30 minutes north of Byron Bay).

The seminar goes from 10 am to 4 pm and will be presented by yours truly.

At the seminar we'll show how to:

• Get a world-class web site design for $60
• Find the web developer for you
• Market your web site
• Get to the top of the search engines (and make a fortune)
• Make money from other people's web sites
• And much more
• Read more here

The cost is $160 + GST per attendee and includes morning tea, lunch, afternoon tea and full seminar information (we'll provide CD's, printed information as well as our 'Web Site Marketing Kit' valued at $99).

If you want to learn how to make web sites work, how to get the absolute best value for money and much more then this is the seminar for you.

It's targeted for the beginner who hasn't set up a web site through to the web site owner who wants more from his web site.

Click here for the full seminar details.

If you have any questions please let me know at seminar@tailored.com.au.

Regards

Brendon

Info sites discussed on today's radio show

Info sites discussed on today's radio show

On today ABC radio show we discussed information web sites, web sites to save you money etc.

Here are some of the links we discussed:

Hotdockets.com.au - find the shopper docket you want, print off and you have a great discount.

Motormouth.com.au - finds you the cheapest petrol on the Gold Coast.

Shopbot.com.au - comparison shopping site finding you the bargains.

Coastshop.com.au - Gold Coast discount shopping spots listed.


Sites to find out about the weather beaches, the ski fields, etc:

Bom.gov.au - Click on the Queensland link for weather info.

Yahoo.com.au

Burleighcam.com.au

Coastalwatch.com

Ski.com.au


Sites to find out about the traffic:

Mainroads.qld.gov.au

Racq.com.au


Sites with maps and directions:

Whereis.com.au - check out the Maps & Directions link.

Whitepages.com.au


Sites to find out about current news:

News.com.au


Brendon

Aaron Wall Reviews My Review

Aaron Wall Reviews My Review

I little while back I reviewed what I consider to be the best book on search engine optimisation by one of the world's leading experts - Aaron Wall.

Aaron Wall the author of SEO Book came across my review and mentioned it on his web site:

"Toot Toot, etc

Sorry for tooting my own horn here, but Brendon Sinclair, of The Web Design Business Kit & Tailored Consulting fame just reviewed my ebook.

As an SEO it is fairly hard to get recognition from people well known in the web design field, and few voices are more credible than Brendon's, so that review has got me pretty stoked."

We sound like a mutual admiration society! Check out Aaron's book if you're trying to fight your way to higher search engine rankings.

Cheers

Brendon

Tuesday, October 11  

Influencing By Design

Influencing By Design

In my line of work I have to demonstrate the need for a quality web site on a very regular basis. I'm always looking for research to back up the fact that a web site can be a tremendous business asset for a whole range of reasons.

I often refer clients to this study by Stanford University: How Do People Evaluate a Web SiteÂ?s Credibility? which found a major correlation between the look' of a web site and how credible that company was in the eyes of the visitor.

"Participants seemed to make their credibility-based decisions about the people or organization behind the site based upon the site's overall visual appeal."

And then there was the influence, of course, on the information provided, frequency of updating, etc.

RainToday.com Release Report

I've also been sent a copy of the latest research from RainToday.com. In my initial review I note that "web sites" are documented as a leading influence on people learning more about potential service providers.

That is consistent with my experience.

The first thing many people do these days when reviewing a firm is to review their web site. From there manyjudgmentss are made about the company .

Essential Part Of Branding

The bottom line is simple - develop a quality web site because your prospects and customers are influenced by it.

It is an essential part of your branding and marketing strategy.

I'll update with more information when I get more into the report.

Regards

Brendon

Power Of Blogs

Power Of Blogs

We saw it with Hurricane Katrina in the US and I talked about how top access information on major disasters on my radio show last week.

Now the devastating earthquake in Pakistan has seen people using blogs be able to very quickly and effectively disseminate information.

Here's a great example of one personm moving quickly to start to provide information and help on the earthquake in Pakistan.

Regards

Brendon

$30 To Scouts

$30 To Scouts

David from Oz Internet Phones was the winner of the Scouts competition.

David tells me he is an ex-Scout and has kindly donated the $30 to the Palm Beach Scouts.

Thanks David.

Cheers

Brendon

Monday, October 10  

And The Error Was......

.....drum roll please.

Firstly, thanks to everyone who emailed me. Most mentioned the fact that I didn't have the web site address on the certificate (I'm a guy who develops web sites and I implore all of our clients to publicise their web address at every opportunity - and then I forget to put it in the most obvious place!).

But That Wasn't It

Here's the winners email:

"I would suggest that you put on the certificate "Club 100 Member 2005". With the aim of getting them to repeat their contributions yearly instead of a once off contribution (ie recurring income)."

Exactly right. And pretty basic marketing.

If their is no time sensitivity with their membership their is no incentive to donate again next year.

Thanks David.

Regards

Brendon

Friday, October 7  

Call Me "Mr. President"

Call Me "Mr. President"

My wife and I are the fundraisers on the Committee of the local Scouts (our 13 yo son Jack is a Scout). At least we were until last night.

That was when I was elevated to the lofty position of President (I accepted only on the condition the Committee call me "Mr. President" or "Big Boy". They agreed between themselves to call me "Idiot").

Mel and I initiated a Club 100 a few months back. It's gone very well and raised quite a bit. The deal is you donate $100. We'll give you a framed certificate, a mention in our newsletter and on our web site (the donor also receives a few surprises throughout the year).

We also send a personal thank you letter expressing our sincere gratitude.

Spot The Marketing Error On The Certificate And Win!

On the "Thank You" certificate (it's a pdf file of 75 kb) that goes out to donors, I made a basic marketing error.

Can you spot it?

Email me at scoutscomp@tailored.com.au with what you think is the marketing error and, if it's the same as what I think, then you win a prize. Let's say a $US30 book from Amazon (or I'll donate $30 to the Scouts on your behalf) to the 1st person who gets it correct.

One guess per person and I get to have the final say on the winner.

Cheers

Brendon

Thursday, October 6  

Would Someone Please Turn On The Think Music?

Wednesday, October 5  

Finding Information When Disaster Strikes

Monday, October 3  

Daughter Is Back From Japan

Daughter Is Back From Japan

My beautiful daughter Laura returned from a school trip to Japan on Sunday. She had been away for 2 weeks with 11 other students and a couple of teachers.

Here's Laura with Chiko - the Japanese student she stayed with.



Anyhoo, Laura had a great time as you'd expect and came home with many wonderful memories.

Thank You

On Friday Mel rang me to tell me that there was 2 letters at home for me from Japan. She wanted to know if she could open them (I think she thought that they might be from Laura).

Anyway, she opened the first one up and it was from a Japanese boy called Yoshi who came and stayed with us for a few weeks a couple of months ago. It was a warm, loving letter thanking us for our hospitality and care.

Inside the envelope was also a letter from Yoshi's mother and father thanking us for caring for their son.

Work Fantastically Well

Thank you letters work fantastically well at expressing your thanks (sounds a bit obvious but stick with me here!). And they work so well because they are so rare these days. Almost no one sends them. Which makes them even more effective.

Use thank you letters in your business. They will make a difference.

Cheers

Brendon