Pick Me & Moore Blog

2008-05-05T07:44:00.000-07:00

Esther Kane of Eckweb.com wrote a gleaming recommendation on LinkedIn for Paula Moore of Pick Me & Moore Affordable Website Design.

Esther Kane is a seasoned, highly successful search engine optimization specialist that knows her craft inside and out.

Read what she has to say about Paula Moore's ability to combine SEO friendly coding behind the website design's 'window dressing':

LinkedIn Recommendations

Esther C. Kane has endorsed your work:

"I have worked with Paula Moore for many years and it has not only been a pleasure to work with her, but my clients are extremely happy with her work and the end results of her work.

There are two types of web designers out there.

One type is the web designer who can create beautiful aesthetically pleasing websites filled with all the elements the website owner wants on their website.

The second type is the web designer who can create beautiful aesthetically pleasing websites filled with all the elements the website owner wants on their website PLUS makes sure that the website is also search engine friendly and filled with Call To Actions throughout the website pages.

Paula Moore is the second type of web designer, she not only creates beautiful and creative websites but she also incorporates all the search engine friendly aspects in the coding, in the graphics, in the layout so that when the website is completed it is ready for any search engine marketer!

It simply does not make sense to go through the expense of designing or re-designing a business website and NOT implementing the search engine friendly aspects for marketing. After all, what's the point of having a business website if it doesn't bring you business?

If you're even thinking of re-designing or creating a business website, just give Paula a call or an email, I am positive you will be very happy with the work you receive from her."

2008-04-09T10:18:00.000-07:00

Going Green with Website Marketing

Earlier today I was speaking with SEO specialist Esther Kane of Eckweb.com about the fact that clients don't realize that putting a little more money into more website pages to attract more traffic makes way more sense than paying for big money for 5,000 printed brochures that usually just end up in the trash can. And websites are so much 'greener'. She said "Yeah, or how about $5,000 dollars for a Yellow Page ad . . ."

So Esther decided to write an article on 'Going Green with Website Marketing'.
Read what she wrote:
You know, in these times of recession the higher prices we’re all paying for necessities cuts into the expenditures that may not be so necessary.
Marketing tends to be one of the first business expenditures that gets cut.
I’m seeing that trend in my number of phone calls and emails! In the last month they have both doubled with more and more requests for proposals from website owners who are already marketing their websites but are searching for a marketing firm that can offer a lower cost alternative.
But another trend that I think may take hold is the “going green” concept. After all, what’s more “green” than website marketing? No need for paper, marketing is entirely virtual. And the geographical reach can be as small or large as you want it.
So, the next time you’re trying to decide whether you want to spend $5000.00 on a yellow page ad or $2500.00 on a website re-design or marketing, consider the re-design the better choice. It’s greener, it lasts longer, it reaches further and the ROI is greater.
It’s a no brainer for companies in this recession.

-Esther C. Kane
SEO Optimization & Marketing Specialist
Eckweb.com

2008-03-31T04:41:00.000-07:00

Recently, Esther Kane, an SEO specialist business associate, published a very informative (and flattering) article about Pick Me & Moore.
The article touts our ability to code 'behind the window dressing' of a website, and how we use a modern CSS web page coding strategy that's specifically tailored for search engines.

Read what she wrote:

It's The Little Things That Count

A few months ago, I got a call from a web designer about working on a website for a Lee County Florida Attorney. The website owner wanted to market the website and the design company, PickMe&Moore wanted to incorporate as much SEO into the design as possible.

So, we worked together to create the website and as it turns out, with great success.

It's only been a few months and the website is already bringing in so much business for the website owner that he has referred several other clients to us. Now that's a testimonial!

So, What Did We Do?

1) PickMeAndMoore made sure to allow me to work on the keyword research before she began creating the website pages. Why? Because once the keyword phrases were chosen then she had a plan on what to name the pages and how to structure the website.

2) PickMeAndMoore also made sure to create the website pages using CSS which allowed them to create extremely clean and 100% validated coding AND, to create a navigation menu which "appears" to be on the top left corner of the website where in reality, it is actually sitting near the bottom of the pages. The positioning tricks by CSS allow the body of text to be read FIRST by the search engines. This, in my opinion, is extremely helpful in ranking higher in the search engines.

3) The website was created with a balanced combination of SEO and web design aspects so that the website is not only visually appealing but also technically appealing to the search engines. This website owner is not just getting traffic, he's getting business. Which means that the words and the design on his website are not only bringing in visitors, but they are converting them to customers. This is the best of both worlds.

4) PickMeAndMoore and I continue to work together with the website owner to research more keyword phrases and add more content to the website. At this point, there is no need to "convince" him of the benefit of the website. His investment has been returned many fold.

So, if you're a website designer and you want your customers to come back for more and to refer others to you regularly and enthusiastically, hook up with a reliable SEO firm. You and your clients will never look back!

Esther C. Kane
Eckweb Designs, Inc.
Small Business SEO Services

Thank you Esther for such a fine compliment!
Paula Moore
Pick Me & Moore
Affordable Website Design & Services

2008-01-31T06:50:00.000-08:00

How we came upon the extremely talented copywriter, Taylor DiMeglio.

Some time ago I was invited to work on a project for John Rizvi, a patent attorney, (www.ideaattorneys.com). John had also called upon Taylor DiMeglio, a very talented copywriter, to aid in the expression of his articles and other written materials. The project went smoothly and I was very impressed by Taylor's writing and expertise as a 'wordsmith'.

Later I was invited again on a another collaborative venture with John and Taylor. This time I was even more impressed with Taylor's copywriting talents.

Now convinced of Taylor's writing ability, I inquired if she could write for the Web - specifically for search engine optimization (SEO). Not surprisingly she stepped up to the plate and provided us at Pick Me & Moore with some fantastically targeted SEO copywriting.

I highly recommend Taylor DiMeglio for copywriting.

Paula Moore

2007-02-12T10:47:00.000-08:00

Text Content On Your Website

The Written Word Is A Powerful Marketing Tool

The written words on your web pages are a effective and powerful marketing tool. Not to mention the importance of having an abundance of text for the text hungry search engines. Yes, the old saying 'Content Is King' still stands today and if you want to be found on the internet, this cannot be ignored.

Writing For 'BOTH' Kinds Of Audiences

Yep, we got 'BOTH' kinds of audiences here – the average internet surfer AND the search engine. The challenge of writing for the internet lies in writing for both of these audiences – which tend to be 'natural enemies' in the wild.

Writing for the average visitor could be easy enough. Write a few relevant sentences about your product or service, throw a few colorful adjectives into the mix and voila – instant, beautiful, tastefully targeted content to capture your visitor's undying appetite for your product or service. But wait – this kind of writing just won't do for the OTHER audience. The insidious, calculating, creeping, crawling search engine feeds on a much more cold and lifeless fare. Stark, bland keywords, repeated over and over and over again. Hours of calculated research, digging around and studying to find out what people type into the almighty search box, only to discover a few keywords and phrases. And these drab bits and pieces of seemingly irrelevant copy have to be splattered all over your website. Paints a sad picture for sure.

Visitor Friendly Content & SEO

The fact is that if you want to be found on the internet, you have to accept that search engine optimization is imperative. One very good solution is to enlist the services of an experienced search engine optimization specialist. Then have us implement the seo specialist's recommendations into interesting, organic text content for each page on your website. Spending that little extra bit of money could make or break your internet based business.

2006-09-06T07:11:00.000-07:00

"Organize For Life" Office Organizing Tips

Diane Hatcher of www.timesaversUSA.com offers office-organizing tips to help you on your way to a better organized life in your office, home-office or just your desk in your home. With even some of these small changes you may see an improvement in your productivity, stress level and control over time, space and activities.

As always, tips are only one piece of the puzzle and are not intended to be
a substitute for working individually with a professional organizer. Happy Organizing!

1. Clear your desk of only the most used items, limit to one family photo.

2. Keep only one project on your desk at a time to avoid distractions.

3. When leaving a message for a return phone call, indicate what time is best for you.

4. When writing appointments in your planner, calendar or PDA, indicate applicable phone numbers so they are readily available in case of the need to confirm or cancel.

5. Clean your desktop daily to tie up loose ends, providing a fresh start the next day.

6. Maintaining your level of organization means putting things back where they belong.

7. Answer any mail that can be completed in less than 60 seconds immediately.

8. Respond to correspondence on the original letter you received.

9. "Files, not piles" makes papers easier to locate and helps avoid distractions.

10. Purge files annually. Remove closed or inactive files, before purchasing more file cabinets.

11. Use industry-related retention guidelines to determine what papers need to be kept.

12. Keep supplies handy and available. Make a list when running low and replenish supplies.

13. Minimize the use of sticky notes to temporary information that can be discarded shortly.

14. Use a phone call or a written response, choosing which would be quickest in a situation.

15. Use computer folders to organize email.

16. Delete e-mail without reading it if it looks like spam (unsolicited advertising).

17. Back up all pertinent information on your computer regularly.

18. Organize your desk in stations- computer related, phone related, activity related.

19. Locate your "in-basket" outside your office to avoid interruptions and distractions.

20. Group files into 3-5 broad categories and color code with folders and hanging files.

21. Avoid making files for only one or two pieces of paper. Use broad titles.

22. Make a "miscellaneous" file for papers with only one or two pages associated with it.

23. Keep your to-do lists (daily and master) on your desk rather than keeping files and projects on your desk.

24. 80% of what is filed is never referenced again. Save only what can't be replaced.

25. Hire a professional organizer for systems to organize your desk, paper work and time.

NEED MORE TIPS?

Interested in more organizing tips, articles and products? Check out Timesaver Usa’s website at www.timesaversUSA.com.

2006-08-03T10:27:00.000-07:00

If you're new in business and/or new to web design, this information will explain some of the technical aspects of print versus web design that you may not have considered.

Where Does A Typical Web Site Design Project Begin?
It may come as a surprise for the layman that the web site design process starts at the end – designing for the traditional high resolution printing process and not with low resolution ‘web design development’.

Why Design High Resolution Graphics First?
The reason for this is that ‘high resolution’ graphics can be reduced to ‘low resolution’ graphics for the web. However, graphics that are originally created in ‘low resolution’ format cannot be generated into ‘high resolution’ for print. Simply put, you may go ‘down’ in the pixels in an image, but you cannot go ‘up’ as the image gets more and more ‘pixelated’ as the size of the image is increased, resulting in a chunky, low resolution quality looking image.

Example – A Company Logo
A company logo should initially be created in a ‘vector’ based program, such as ‘Adobe Illustrator’. The ‘vector’ format is the industry standard format and is extremely flexible. It allows the traditional print shop to produce high quality printing of the logo in ‘spot color(s)’ or in ‘full color’ for all high resolution printing materials.

And so it goes for all material that may at some point need to be printed in ‘high resolution’ format. Be sure to consider that your company will need high resolution printed materials using your logo and other related graphical elements for traditional marketing purposes.

Contact Pick Me and Moore for a FREE ANALYSIS of your existing graphics or a FREE QUOTE to create a
custom logo design and corporate branding.

Always start by designing the high resolution version of your company branding first. The reason for this is that ‘high resolution’ graphics can be reduced to ‘low resolution’ graphics for the web. However, graphics that are originally created in ‘low resolution’ format cannot be generated into ‘high resolution’ for print.

Understand the importance of starting with developing traditional print media materials first.

2006-07-23T08:56:00.000-07:00

How To Create A Simple Custom HTML Email

As promised in the last post, here are the simple steps for creating your own custom email campaign.

HTML Email is still somewhat new, but it’s a great marketing tool. Try a simple email marketing campaign by following the steps below:

1. Create a new directory for your email campaign files.
For example: www.yoursitename.com/email_campaigns. In this directory you should include all the graphics and html pages.

2. Create a simple html email page design (the person receiving the email will be viewing in their email application not a browser). Remember to focus on your message. Save the page in the new directory that you previously created for your html emails.

3. DON’T use Javascript, Flash, style sheets, framesets rollovers or nested as the receiver of the email may not be able to view them.
LIMIT your use of graphics so as to ensure quick download and viewing of the email.

4. Always use correct absolute urls addresses for your graphics and links.

5. When your design is ready, upload all the necessary files to your web site. Now you are ready to test your HTML email document.

6. Open your Email Software. For example, if you are using Outlook Express (since it's the most popular), go to: create mail - insert - text from file - scroll to your saved HTML document.

7. Email a test to email to yourself before you sending to your subscriber list. You may want to send it to a colleague or family member who has a different email program to further test if most of your subscribers can view your email the way you intended. You may also want to create a ‘text based’ email for subscribers that may not be able to view your graphics.

8. To ensure consistency for future email campaigns, you should save your html page design as a template.

That’s all there is to it!

2006-07-08T06:53:00.000-07:00

Create and Send HTML Email
These days it's quite easy to create and send your own custom designed emails.
Currently HTML email is so much more appealing than its predecessor 'text based email'. Studies show that text based email is falling behind fast in popularity.

What is HTML email?
A custom designed email looks like a custom designed web page. You can design the page layout using any color scheme you like. You can add photos of friends and family or if it's business related you can add your logo, product images, sale 'hooks', specials . . . the sky is the limit!

However, there are some things to think about before deciding to create a custom email.
1. Not everyone will see your custom design when they open their mail.
2. Graphics are slower to load and take up much more room than text.
3. There is not 100% support of HTML email on all computers.
4. Hackers can send viruses or other intrusive code embedded in an HTML email.
5. Users may have some settings on their computers turned off preventing the HTML email from being viewed.

Even with the aforementioned caveats, HTML email is rising rapidly in popularity and to top it off - it's easy to create your own custom HTML email!
Wanna know how? Stay tuned and look for our new post on 'How To Create A Custom Email Design'.
:-)

2006-06-25T12:20:00.000-07:00

Flash Animation: Good or Evil?
Animation attracts the eye and can be the reason a visitor will remain at your web site, however Flash files cannot be 'seen' by the search engines. It is recommended to use Flash animation similarly to the way images are use, tastefully and sparingly, keeping in mind that 'text' is king on the internet highway.

2006-06-21T07:33:00.000-07:00

To Web or NOT to Web?
The Web is an infinite market. If you have a small business it's absolutley critical that you have a web site. Currently 90% of people looking for local services are searching for that service on the web. To state quite frankly, if you don't have a presence on the web, you're nowhere.

2006-06-21T07:21:00.000-07:00

What is the importance of a LOGO?
A logo is the first graphical building block to any company's marketing toolkit. It is crucial to a company's image. A company's logo is the 'face' that is seen and identifies the company. Consistent usage of a logo in a company's marketing campaign will visually impress a company's message or product and keep the company's image forefront in the consumer's mind.