Custom Web Apps are the Way of the Internet

I read a terrific post in ClickZ by Gary Stein about the new direction of the internet and how the changes introduced by Google’s intelligent Chrome web browser, for example, have changed the way in which we relate to the internet. 

Toting the importance of web apps over static websites, Stein stated, “The Web app model is really a new way to think about how you package up content and functionality on the Web, if you are a developer or publisher….Web apps take the distinct content and functionality under a particular brand (NYT, Gilt, TweetDeck, etc.) and bundle it up into a single-click-and-I’m-deep-in mode. Services that live up to this model and expectation will win in the long run.”

Google’s Chrome web browser is not yet fully understood by most users. Its real power lies in the way it communicates with your machine’s operating system. Certain of the more demanding tasks that require processing are seamlessly passed from the browser to the operating system. The browser’s resources are effectively freed up, providing you with faster speeds and a more efficient approach to the data you are interacting with online. Shortcuts to web apps can be easily dragged onto your desktop, which are launched just by clicking on them. Think of the apps you have on your iPhone or Blackberry. It works the same way.

Industrial business owners will do well to have web apps developed that help their targeted buyer groups interact with their product and service data online in the fastest, easiest, and most convenient way possible. Early adopters of this new technology will be prepared for the future of the internet, which is moving faster and faster toward mobile and handheld devices as opposed to desktop computing. Stein said it best, “….you can begin to explore what it means for someone to have consistent, one-button access to your service and how you can use the tools available to you in HTML5 to create an experience that feels less like it is a page-being-visited and more like an experience-being-had.”

Be prepared for 2011…..call Industrial Web Solutions (800) 399-9859 to learn how your business can benefit from custom Web Apps that get you Leads….to Sales.

Google's Ultra High-Speed Internet Experiment

Back in February of this year, Google announced that it planned to start building ultra-high speed Broadband networks in select locations in the United States. The objective was to experiment with new ways to make the internet faster and better for everyone.

With the popularity of services like YouTube, the streaming of robust applications over the web, and the sheer volume of people accessing the web simultaneously, bandwidth is always a concern because it affects both the rate at which information travels and the ability for it to travel at all. Recently Google announced it made a deal with Stanford University to build an ultra-high speed Broadband network to the university’s residential sub-division, a group of approximately 850 faculty and staff owned homes on campus. The goal is to provide internet speeds at a rate 100 times faster than the rest of us are accustomed to, equaling 1 gigabit per second.

The results of the micro experiment will then be applied to the challenges faced in the installation, operation and maintenance of such a system on a larger scale. Armed with a team of highly skilled engineers, Google is committed to understanding how to accomplish its goal with as little impact on the environment as possible. To make the initial stage of learning fun, they even hosted a micro-trenching competition on their site to award a prize to the ‘trenchers’ who were able to fulfill the requirements of the challenge with the least mess and impact on the road surface.

What will higher internet speeds mean for the rest of us? The ability to communicate in a powerful, high-speed online environment opens up all kinds of possibilities for conducting and marketing your business such as:

• Confidently reach out to more clients and prospective clients with engaging, interactive rich content like webinars, interactive advertising, videos and 3-D illustrations without fear that the media is not transmitting at rate that maintains its sound and image quality
• Global team building for more advanced project development becomes possible with the flexibility of online communications, collaboration, and productivity made possible by ‘cloud computing’ Office Suites like Google Apps for Business and the ever-growing selection of third-party applications

Along with the technology comes the growing responsibility to meet even higher audience expectations. Flat, brochure-like websites are a thing of the past. Audiences expect to be engaged with informative, highly focused, and highly produced media they can interactive with easily and enjoyably. Whether you are emailing it, broadcasting it over the web, or participating in an online advertising or marketing program, your value and level of professionalism will be judged by the quality of the digital media you produce.

What should you do? Start planning for the dawn of the ultra high-speed internet now. Decide what you need to do differently to reach, engage and motivate your prospective and existing clients. Learn where you can save money by utilizing cloud computing where it makes sense. Change your mind-set and meet the new challenges head-on with clarity, understanding and intelligent foresight and planning. There are great rewards awaiting those who are ready when the new information speedway becomes widely available. One of Google’s micro-trenching competitors said it best, “Be first or be last!”

Call Industrial Web Solutions at (800) 399-9859 now to learn about the options that make sense for you.

This new browser feature is going to spell disaster for many website owners who have not created professionally-looking search engine optimized web pages that are highly focused on a particular product, service or type of information. Conditioned to having their expectations fulfilled, users will be visually scanning the web page preview to look for:

1. The specific product, service, or type of information they are seeking
2. Ease of access to that product, service, or type of information
3. A company that looks like it is professional, dependable and trustworthy (i.e. one they can work with without hassles or disappointment)
4. Qualities that appeal to them

Proverbially speaking, Google’s users will be judging your book by its cover. And once they pass it over they are not too likely to go back to it. Instead, they will go forward to look at the next instant preview. Website owners have a bigger burden than ever to do the preliminary research to understand:

1. Exactly what their target audience groups want
2. The language they are using to search
3. What they expect to learn when they find it
4. The qualities in a website that appeal to them

Getting your website in business order right now is critical if you do not want to be passed over by legitimate potential customers who find your web pages lacking. Now is the time to conduct the research and make the changes so your new or existing website serves your potential customers the way they expect to be served, in every capacity.

Your website offers you reach and opportunities that no other marketing channel can provide on an on-going basis for the type of investment required. Consider the ‘zero multiplication factor:’ any number multiplied by zero equals zero. That one thing you didn’t fix may be the zero on your website that keeps potential customers away. Instead, if you make the necessary fixes now you will set the stage for success and reap the benefits exponentially over the long term.

Call (800) 399-9859 or visit Industrial Web Solutions to get started.

Cookies Are Not Monsters

The New Your Times recently published information aimed at consumers for Removing and Blocking Ad Cookies, Browser by Browser. For those who are uninformed about the function of cookies, and perhaps even fearful of them, these procedures are likely to be followed. Since there is no such thing as removing or blocking ad cookies versus other types of cookies, this is particularly disturbing news for those of us who implement cookies for website functionality and providing our customers with useful web features.

Unfortunately, the NY Times article does not explain what cookies are, or how they function within the browser. This lack of explanation only serves to further portray cookies as something evil and undesirable when, in fact, they are extremely useful to both the browser user and those who wish to maintain an ongoing relationship with the browser user.

Many consumers do not understand that a cookie cannot be used to access their hard drive or email accounts to steal their identity or personal data. They also do not understand that by disabling their cookies they will not have access to many websites or browser features, such as site personalization, storing logins and IDs, and online shopping sites, all of which require cookies to be enabled in order to use them. They also do not know that many cookies have an expiration date, meaning that after a certain amount of time, the cookie will no longer be associated with their web browser.

So how do you combat this? If cookies are required by your site, then make an announcement on your website to that effect. Additionally, create an error message page that displays when a user who has disabled his cookies tries to access your site. You can see a good example at the DecisionAide Analytics site. Talk to your customers and site visitors about technology such as cookies. Help them to understand what the technology is and be clear about how you use it. The best way to combat unwarranted fear is through disclosure and proper education.

Believe it or not I still hear business owners say that a website does not fit into the way they do business. In today’s marketplace, a website fits into every business model. Your website does two very important things for you. First of all, it serves to reach a broader audience whether you are marketing locally, regionally, nationally or globally. People who don’t know you exist have the opportunity to find you on the internet. There are many ways to help people find your web pages, such as: search engine optimization, or the preparation of your web pages with language and code to ensure they are discoverable in the major search engines like Google and Bing; search engine marketing (AdWords, MS AdCenter, and other pay per click or CPM (cost per thousand impressions) search engine marketing programs); industrial supplier directories and search engines (remember to check out Industrial Web Search if you’re looking for more control to reach your targeted buyers or just a better way to search for suppliers with 100% accurate search results);  including your web address on your collateral print and offline marketing materials; press releases; writing articles that are posted to online journals; online white papers and case studies; blog posts; links from social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google Buzz, Digg, MySpace, Delicious, Reddt, and others; and the list goes on. If you don’t have a website then these opportunities to reach your targeted audience groups where they are spending time online are lost to you.

Secondly, your website works as your 24/7/365 tireless sales person and customer service agent, ready to provide information, answer questions, and take orders or requests for quote at any time of the day or night, particularly useful when your ‘brick and mortar’ office or facility is closed. If your website is effectively designed with powerful copy, images and hyperlinks (calls to action) that motivate and guide your site visitors through the conversion process then it is ready to work for you to bring you measurable business results. Add website tracking such as Google Analytics and you also have access to actionable data to help you make informed business decisions that help you to reach or even surpass your business goals.

“Build it and they will come” does not apply here. You have to actively manage your website, including its content and its presence on the internet. The idea is to learn everything you can about your online targeted audience groups: where they are spending time online; the language they use to search for what you offer; what interests them today; as well as what you expect will be their need in the near future.  Keep your content updated, topical, and easy to interact with. Help your site visitors understand what they have to do next to get what they want from you. And do everything you can to help them find your web pages in the places they are spending time online, whether it’s in the major search engines, on specific blogs or social media sites, or even news sites.

Need help with your website or website promotion? Call (800) 399-9859 or visit Industrial Web Solutions.