Reason 6 – Jazz Up Your Website or Blog with Ideas from Other Sites

Have you ever seen a cool image, graphic, or feature on another site and wondered how it’s done? With a little knowledge and some curiosity, you can find out how it’s done, and maybe produce something similar on your website.

On most websites, it is possible to view the source code of a site in your browser,
and even examine it in your favorite HTML editor. (I do this all the time when I’m trying to diagnose a problem for a client.) I also collect URLS to code for neat things like countdown timers, background snow effects, and other features that I’ve spotted on other websites. I don’t use the code, though, without first finding out what the terms of use are, whether it’s free or licensed code.

Most of the time, the code that makes those nifty features appear is code someone paid for, and with some investigation, I can go find the site and buy it myself. I am in no way advocating theft of other people’s intellectual property. (Did you hear what I said?) I’m talking about doing research in the code so you can go do the right thing (by buying the code), and enjoy the benefits.

There are sites on the Internet where you can go shopping for features by the type of code you want to use. Let’s say you want to add a background “snow” effect for your website during the holidays. My favorite source for such things is www.HotScripts.com, a centralized search engine for both free and paid scripts (Javascript, PHP, and other languages). You don’t have to be a programmer to install the scripts, you just need to know enough HTML to place the code in the right spot (very much like you do to install a Facebook badge or Twitter feed).

Some scripts on www.HotScripts.com are just features you add to your websites; some are entire programs you can buy. Most of the free scripts simply require that you keep their website URL in the code to give them credit, which is absolutly the right thing to do. Some scripts will allow you to remove that credit if you pay a registration fee, which is also fair. Here are an example:

http://www.dseffects.com — will let you use the script for free if you keep the author credit within the code. It costs $24 for a license for one domain so you can remove the author credit, and $80 for up to 10 websites. (What a bargain!)

Some sites let you take their images as long as you make a copy, rather than linking to their image. Here’s where I found a page of animated snow GIF files:

http://www.scri8e.com/h/xmas/CICED/SnoAni/

The site owner allows you to make a copy for personal use, and explains on this page why you cannot simply link to the images.

http://www.scri8e.com/5/1TermsOfUseNoLinking.html

If I decided to use one of his images, I would create a shortcut to his website in the folder where I store the images so I remember where I found them.

Now, to do the research initially, you need to know a little HTML. But once you do, it opens up a whole world of possibilities. This isn’t just about having the neatest effect to impress your friends; this is about finding and utilizing features that will benefit your customers.

For example, I found a fabulous live chat program on someone else’s site, and decided to switch. That allowed me to stop paying a monthly fee for a chat program that was overkill for my little business. I found that new chat software developer by inspecting the code, tracking down the company website, and buying a license for all my websites. I even recommend and install that chat program now for my clients.

So what are you waiting for? It won’t take long for you to learn HTML and CSS and be
able to track down the features you’ve liked on other sites. You don’t have to imitate, you can customize. Most of all, you can assist and please your customers with the website and blog features that help them buy from you. My website training program will get you started learning HTML and CSS right away.

Tomorrow: Reason 5 – HTML/CSS Skills for More Than Just Web Pages and Blog Posts

At this point, we’re turning from the rather esoteric ideas to more tangible reasons for learning to manage your own websites and blogs. You may have suspected that what I’m about to tell you is true, so I’ll confirm it.

All the really good stuff you can do to enhance your site involves working with a little code.

There. I said it out loud.

Meta tags. Title tags. Google Analytics. Twitter Feeds. Facebook Badges. Blog Widgets. Live Chat buttons. All of these require little bits of code to be created and placed in the right spot in your websites and blogs. “Tell your web designer to…blah blah blah.” Why? Why not take care of these small tasks yourself. You CAN learn how.

I also work with a lot of clients who are ready to move away from a website template for similar reasons. I had a client who took my training course when I was teaching it via webinars, but who decided to stay with the website template he already had. After about a year, he came back and said he was ready to go for an independent site. When I asked him why, he gave me a list of his frustrations (his words!):

• “Lack of control and spotty technical support – I felt like I was on my own when things went wrong.
• “Internet-based work meant every change I make went over the web, and it was dreadfully slow and therefore, a big time waster.
• “I had to upload all images to their web server first and then access them from there – uploads were another big time waster, took forever.
• “No access to parts of the code, so even if I knew how to change something I didn’t have access to it.
• “The WYSIWYG was not really accurate, for unknown reasons. What I saw in the template system was not always exactly as it appeared on my page, so it was difficult to get things precise – like placing an image in an exact place, lining up text. So I would spend hours trying to get it to look just right and then find it wasn’t just right once it was published to my site.
• “Limits on the font sizes: I could use to a few predetermined ones.”

Now he has a site of his own, created from scratch and designed so he can updated anytime he wants. From time to time I get questions and/or we schedule a coaching session to resolve a problem, but for the most part, he is self-sufficient. His growth and confidence is truly breathtaking to watch.

The concepts behind HTML and Cascading Style Sheets are actually pretty simple. They require attention to detail, but they’re not difficult concepts. This is not rocket science! But it is interesting, there’s room for creativity, and it’s fun.

Get the edge on your competitors by being able to make changes at a moment’s notice. Web skills are one of the best investments you can make in yourself and your business. My website training program includes coaching and a membership site where you can post problems and get answers to questions for a low monthly flat fee.

Tomorrow: Reason 6 – Jazz Up Your Site with Ideas from Other Sites

Happy New Year! As promised, on January 14th at 5 pm Pacific/6 pm Mountain/7 pm Central/8 pm Eastern, we’ll discover together my “Top 10 Things You Can Do to Revitalize Your Websites and Blogs for 2010.” I’ll show you demo after demo of 10 effective techniques you can use to make your websites and blogs the client-attracting sites you want them to be.

Click here to sign up for the webinar:
http://www.fixmywebsiteplease.com/20100114-webinarsignup.html

Or just click on the red button at right.

Bring pen and paper or have Notepad ready so that you can get your “to-do” items written down, even if you’re not  sure when and how you’ll get then completed. But I will have the tools to help you decide how much to do yourself, and what you can delegate. It’s all about taking control of your websites and blogs, and really putting them to work for your business.

The webinar will last for 75 minutes, so come prepared to make a plan that will take your websites and blogs to the next level of effectiveness. Plus, I will have all the details about my new “I Can Fix My Website” training product to help you achieve your goals!

http://www.fixmywebsiteplease.com/20100114-webinarsignup.html

Happy New Year, and I’ll see you on January 14th!

Toolie®

Reason 8: Branding, Creativity, and Freedom to Fly

I get asked a lot about how I can possibly make a living teaching website and blog skills when there are so many free website templates and site-builders out there already. My answer is simple: people come to me when they’re tired of bumping into the limitations that both website templates and site-builders have. They’re ready to make their sites work for them, instead of the other way around.

I remember when I learned to ride a two-wheeled bicycle. My Dad bought a bike with smaller wheels, and put training wheels on it. (This was before we knew we should wear helmets, but thankfully all I ever got were skinned knees.) I rode up and down the sidewalk, back and forth, back and forth. After a while I thought I was ready to have the training wheels taken off. Dad ran alongside me and steadied me while I got that wobbly front wheel under control. After a few sideways landings (thank goodness for lawns!) I took off and pedaled as fast as I could until Dad called me back. It was incredible! I felt like I was flying.

Pretty soon I was doing circles and figure-eights in the street, going fast, going slow, even racing with the other kids in the neighborhood. It’s a good thing I liked riding my bike because I rode it to piano lessons, to my first job at the grocery store, and even to driver’s education classes during the summer after my sophomore year in high school. I rode it to go shopping as a teenager, and many years later, I rode it for recreation and fitness. (McAlister and I even rode bikes on our first few dates.)

The point is, once I got the hang of riding with training wheels, I insisted on having them taken off so I could ride my bike without them. I wanted to feel grown up and free. As silly as the comparison may seem, being able to maneuver your own websites and blogs gives you that same sense of freedom and control. And the people who come to me are usually the ones who want a sense of empowerment, freedom, and control. They understand the importance of standing out, of being unique among the millions of websites already online.

There’s another really, really important aspect to consider about your sites, and that is your brand. Usually by the time entrepreneurs, virtual assistants, and small business owners come to work with me, they’ve got a logo and color scheme that they want applied to their sites. That’s the difference between having a site that looks like the other 662 sites using your website template, and having a site that is truly unique and reflects your brand choices. Plus with a site you’ve built or had built, you have the flexibility to do creative things with it, such as audio, video, and other interactive features.

A site with a good design gives you so many opportunities to attract visitors by continually expanding and enhancing it with good content. In my website/blog training program, we’ll talk about both design and content to produce sites that really work for your business.

Tomorrow: Reason 7 – Behind-the-Scenes Knowledge to Really Enhance Your Site

Toolie®

Reason 9: Seizing Opportunities as They Come Along

If you’ve spent any time reading my emails or participating in my webinars, you know that I emphasize how fast the Internet moves, and how important it is for you to be ready to seize opportunities as they come along. Being able to manage an existing website is great; being able to create one or more pages or even a whole site when you need it is even better.

A couple of years ago (before I really knew what direction my business should take), a colleague of mine from the National Speakers Association invited me to deliver a teleseminar as part of another association’s series. I immediately agreed to participate, and we worked out a series of interview questions. I had one problem though; I didn’t have a website for this particular area of expertise. None of my existing sites were really suitable. I was going to need a website, and fast!

Once I had the teleseminar content worked out, I devised a small website to accompany that content. I didn’t have a product to sell, so a salesletter wasn’t going to work. What I planned to do was provide a special page of resources connected to that content for the teleseminar attendees. I needed a multi-page website that listed my services and pointed to the websites I DID have. The resulting site became www.Tooliedotter.com.

Is it an impressive site? No, definitely not my finest work — in fact, I debated about showing it to you at all. Did the site provide the intended information? YES, it did, including the hidden resources page. The site also included links to 2 online demos I already had, an opt-in box for my webinars, a working contact form for future inquiries, and my Live Chat button in case someone wanted questions answered real-time. The site provided evidence that I had consulting expertise, and provided a destination for consulting inquiries.

How long did I spend on this website? Less than eight (8) hours: in fact, I put it up overnight. It has my colors, my fonts, and a simple design I can expand and update in the future. Did I get visitors to my website as a result of the teleseminar? You bet. Did I get business from it? Indirectly, yes, through my webinars and coaching. Am I going to leave the site like it is now? NO! I’ll be revamping it when the time is right. The important thing is that I was able to produce the site when I needed it.

Most of you won’t need to create an entire site to seize an opportunity for exposure and future business. But wouldn’t be great if you could put up a dedicated web page specifically for an opportunity for acquire new clients? With a little HTML and CSS knowledge, you can do exactly that, any time of the day or night. My new training product/coaching program/membership site will show you how.

Tomorrow: Reason 8 – Branding and Creativity Applied Online

Toolie®

This IS the year you can learn to manage your websites and blogs yourselves. To give you a little food for thought, I’ve devised my “Top Ten Reasons to Manage Your Own Websites and Blogs.” I’ll reveal them one day at a time, leading up to the launch of the product I’ve created that can help you learn to do exactly that! I’ll keep these emails focused and to the point, but you’re not going to want to miss any of them!

I decided to set these reasons up in an order going from “somewhat esoteric” to “down to brass tacks,” so if this first one doesn’t impress you, stick around. I’ve got many more concrete reasons (and some true stories) why THIS is the year to finally learn how to manage your own websites and blogs.

Reason 10: It’s One Less Thing to Be Afraid Of…

In 1991, I was laid off from a job in a new career with only 18 months’ experience. I was devastated emotionally, psychologically, and financially. My marriage had ended just 2 years before and I was getting back on my feet from that when I lost my job. McAlister and I had been together only a few months when this happened, and after seeing me sob and moan day after day, he finally turned to me, exasperated, and said, “You’re just out of a job, you’re not out of talent.” He was right, of course. I was letting my fear paralyze my future.

When I came out the other side of that experience (still not understanding why I was meant to endure it), I finally came to the conclusion that having been through it, I was in a position to no longer be afraid of difficult economic times in the future. I wasn’t wishing difficulties on myself or anyone else, but I didn’t have to be afraid of them because I now knew what to do.

There are a lot of frightened people in a similar situation right now, especially entrepreneurs. We often live “promotion to promotion” anyway (instead of paycheck to paycheck), and if we had staff, we might have had to let them go. Now we have to do some of that work ourselves, and much of it involves wrangling our websites and blogs to best effect.

Our websites and blogs are our lifelines to future income. Without a solid understanding and skills to operate them, we’re forever stymied and frustrated because we let our fear of web technology govern our actions. The good news is that having an effective website doesn’t mean you have to learn everything there is to know about HTML and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). There is a reasonable subset of information that will get you about 80% of the way, and the rest you can learn only IF and WHEN you need it.

It’s your chance for a sense of empowerment, of having one less thing to be afraid of…! And I’ll be here to show you want you need to learn to make it work.

Tomorrow: Reason 9 – Seizing Opportunities When They Come Along

Toolie®

When I describe what I do to folks who are not business owners or who don’t operate on the Internet, they’re baffled. “There are plenty of free website templates out there: do you have customers for what you do?”

Yes, absolutely. If you’ve spent any time on the Internet trying to attract customers, you quickly discover that simply putting a website up is not enough. You can set up a website or a blog and have it live in relative obscurity for months, even years. I know this from personal experience…!

“You don’t need to learn HTML to have a website.” That’s true as long as you don’t have a preference as to whether the website is blue or brown or purple. Perhaps you don’t mind that your website looks like the 762 other websites using the same template. However, when you begin to develop a brand for your business and you want your sites to reflect your brand, your colors, your logo, you will start to care very much.

“Have your web designer add this, (and this, and this) to your site.” Why do the experts say use this phrase? Because the assumption is that you as website or blog owner are not willing to learn HTML or Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) skills necessary to make the changes yourself. Perhaps not at first; but as time passes and your sites sit in cyber-obscurity, your priorities change. You can certainly choose to depend on your web designer to make updates, but why not learn how to do the simple things? It makes fiscal sense, and your site updates will certainly move along a lot faster. And on the Internet, fast updates are the name of the game.

When it comes to marketing over the Internet, you need more than just a website or a blog. You’re going to want to create squeeze/opt-in pages, confirmation and thank-you pages, custom HTML for the top and bottom of your shopping cart pages, and of course, pages where you post downloads or giveaways. You can certainly copy and paste from existing pages, but are you confident that you know what to add and what to remove without breaking the template?

There are plenty of things you can do to attract traffic to your site. And what do they usually involve? More often than not, it’s jumping into the HTML or CSS to make changes. The good news is that HTML and CSS are a lot simpler than you think. They’re detailed, but they are not difficult. And that’s where my business is: showing entrepreneurs, virtual assistants, and small business owners a simple method for learning the HTML and CSS they need to feel confident and be competent to work on their own sites.

I’ll have more to say on this subject in the weeks to come. Stay tuned for more of my gentle truth-telling…

Meanwhile, be sure to sign up for Thursday night’s Free Website and Blog Makeover Webinar.

You know it’s coming…the New Year. You can tell because the frenzy over Holiday shopping has begun. Not long after that, the January will arrive, and you’re going to be thinking about how to make 2010 even better than 2009.

On Thursday December 3rd, I can have a look at your websites and blogs and offer you suggestions on how to enhance them to attract and keep more visitors. I’m having another one of my acclaimed “Website and Blog Makeover Nights” and you’re invited! We’ll start at 6:00 pm Pacific and wrap up by 7:30 pm. You can sign up for the webinar by clicking on the ad on the right to sign up for the webinar.

You can supply the URL of a website or blog you want evaluated, or just join us to follow along. Either way, you’re certain to get ideas by observing other sites. The webinar will be recorded, so sign up even if you’re not sure you can attend.

I’ll also be going over the ways you can use my Holiday Sale 30% Off Website and Blog Coaching to get ready for the New Year. While everyone else is distracted by holiday preparations, you have a perfect opportunity to spruce up your sites and get off to a great start in 2010.

Click here or on the red Webinar ad on the right to sign up.

See you Thursday night!

Toolie®

I’m very excited about tonight’s free webinar where I’ll be showing you how to add social media to your websites and blogs. With 5 demos, a resource page of links, downloadable starter files, and a preview of my new website product, it’s going to be a great webinar!

As an “Internet Marketer,” keeping up with the latest methods for attracting traffic is essential. That’s tough to do when you don’t really know how to work on your websites and blogs. After years of watching my clients struggle with their sites, (plus several painful episodes of my own) I created a website training course specifically designed for entrepreneurs. I start at the very beginning and take you all the way through installing social media, plus audio, video, and much more. I’ll be revealing the details of this product during the webinar tonight.

So click the big button on the right to sign up, and I’ll see you at 6 pm Pacific/9 pm Eastern!

Toolie®

Late last month I put the finishing touches on a simplified setup in my office for recording videos for my websites and blogs. I started the process 18 months ago when first delved into Internet video for my weekly webinars. One thing I learned when I started doing webinars; if you want to get good at recording either audio or video and you want to do it often, work the equipment into your office setup as much as you can. If you have to stop to set up the equipment every time, you’ll never get around to it.

Of course I included a detailed full-motion video demo in my soon-to-be released website training product. I really love putting video clips, audio voice-overs, and music together to deliver a business message. I’m inspired though to do more impromptu video as part of my business: at my live presentations, when I work with clients in person, and even at conferences I attend. You know where I get my inspiration for cool ways to tie video elements together? The Discovery Channel’s Mythbusters program.

Yes, I’m a big fan of the Mythbusters; I discovered them about a year ago when I realized that I needed a consistent way to find my “happy place” and decompress at night. I record every episode I can, and I save them up to watch as I get ready for bed. I love their problem-solving approach to myths, their humor, their inventiveness…and their cool video editing! Have you ever watched one of their episodes with an eye for the way their video is edited together? I love the on-the-spot, in-the-moment nature of much of the footage. Imagine doing your job with videocameras recording YOUR every move! No stress, eh?

Watching the Mythbusters also reminds me that I don’t HAVE to have perfect hair when I go to record a video clip; I just need to have a genuine message and a purpose for talking into the lens. It’s the content that matters. And that’s the bottom line when it comes to delivering value over the Internet: real content, whether it’s via audio, video, or plain old email.

Speaking of delivering content, don’t forget my free webinar Tuesday night on “Adding Social Media to Your Websites and Blogs.” You can have a great message to deliver, but you need prospects to connect to you so you can deliver it. Tuesday night at 6 pm Pacific/9 pm Eastern, I’ll show you exactly how to install your choice of social media methods.

And yes, I’ll finally reveal the details of my website training program, so sign up right away! Just click the button on the right to register for the webinar. See you then!

Toolie®