Have you submitted your website to all the top search engines?

At my recent presentation at Pace University on Social Media I was asked, "Why can't people find my website when they search online?" My answer, a bit flippant, was that it would take another three hour class for a decent response about search engine optimization (SEO).

On reflection, my answer should have been another question. Have you submitted your website to all the top search engines? Seems obvious, right, but often this first very simple step is overlooked. Search engines are the most used sites out there, and there is a much greater possibility that people will find you if you are registered in their database. The good news, you don't need to be a programmer or a website whiz or pay somebody loads of money and it's simple to do!

How To Do It
First: Visit the search engine that you are interested in submitting to and at the bottom of the page; there is usually a link that says something like, "submit your site." If you cannot find this link, try the site map or the "about" page.

Second: Make sure that you completely fill out each section of the submission form and submit your site only ONCE to each engine.

Another interesting fact is that after a website is indexed in Google, Bing and Yahoo then new content will automatically be picked up by the crawler each time it visits the site. And don't forget social media sites. After you have submitted your site to the big search engines, you can submit it toask.com and stumble.

Crossing An Imaginary Line In Order To Build A Career

Living the life and career we want means taking ownership and making our own luck.

If we pay attention, insight comes at us from all directions. In a recent special Chris Rock does a bit about jobs vs. careers, really nailing the difference on the head. And because he made me laugh hysterically while doing it, I still remember the message.

Chris’ skit talks about his former job as a shrimp scraper at Red Lobster and how he played the "I'm not going to look at my watch" game for hours (who of us can say we never played that game) only to give in after what seemed like an eternity and realize that only 10 minutes had past! Chris took risks; faced fears followed his dreams and built an amazing career.

Working at a Job vs. Having a Career

According to the book How Remarkable Women Lead, one step is just crossing the line “When you choose to cross that invisible line from being a person to whom things happen to, to becoming a person who makes things happen…choosing to act on opportunities that carry risk, and facing your deep-seated fears…there’s no going back.”

Once you’ve tasted the joy of autonomy, influence, and a sense of meaning it becomes a defining moment. Crossing that line has had a huge payoff for me, and I’m not referring to money. When you have a career that you have chosen, worked hard for, and love, it never feels like work. It's only when you have a JOB that time never passes fast enough.

There is always a downside. A career may not mean stability, and for me the fear of failure doesn’t ever go away completely, but I've learned how to stay ahead of it and have people to call for that extra shot of positive thinking when I need it!

Any thoughts on the subject, would love to hear from you.

Web Tips 101 : The Importance of a Little Analysis

If you’ve attended any of The Byne Group’s seminars, you’ve probably seen
the following formula:

Promise + Experience = Your Brand

An often neglected, yet supremely important, way that clients experience
your brand? Your website.

For all of you whose websites look and function like they were created by your nephew Ned… that’s because they WERE created by your nephew Ned! Sure, Ned’s got mad skill and probably created a super fab flash intro, but are your users able to find what they need, and does the caliber of your website match the caliber of your organization?

Here at The Byne Group, we believe using a website should be easy and pleasant. It should accomplish the user’s goals (They need to find what they are looking for quickly), and your goals (communicating your key message to them).

What’s the most crucial step in your website’s development? A little strategic analysis. Not only does it save time and money in the long run, but you’ll end up with something that looks great and meets your needs.

Here are a few of the things we look at:

1). Your functional requirements. Do you need to manage your own content? Does it have to conform to your corporate style guide? What accessibility laws must it obey?

2). Don’t forget your stakeholders. What does the CEO expect to see? What features does the fundraising committee need?

3). What tone and personality should the site have? What “voice”?

4). Who is your target audience? Who is using your website now and what information are they looking for?

5). If you build it, how will they come? Look at search engine optimization, social networking, and other ways to drive traffic to your site.

-Jennifer Zapf, Art Director

IKEA'S Big Change

A couple of weeks ago I received the new IKEA catalog in the mail and promptly cuddled up and enjoyed some moments of fantasy about the beautiful clutter free Swedish mod apartment I could have one day. As I was perusing the home decor bible, I noticed that the headline type and some other elements did not feel as streamlined and clean. In the past IKEA was one of the fore-runners of the streamlined and clean Bauhaus style.

Well, it turns out I was right ... IKEA has changed their catalog and store signage typeface from Futura to Verdana. To the dismay of MANY of their design-minded clientele. Actually dismay seems too subtle of a word, it’s more like outrage! There is currently a petition online to get rid of Verdana with over 6,000 signatures. Not to mention 100's of blog postings and online articles including Time, New York Times, and Business Week.

For those of you that don't know the history of the two typefaces I will explain things a little.

FUTURA
A classic modern typeface following the Bauhaus design philosophy designed by Paul Renner between 1924 and 1926. He followed the Bauhaus esthetic in that he avoided creating any non-essential elements making use of geometric proportions with no serifs** or frills. It has a crisp, clean form and gives the feeling of efficiency and forwardness.

VERDANA
Designed in 1994 by Microsoft with the intent to create a new typeface that had exceptional readability online at small sizes. Because it was designed for small on-screen text some design elements were overlooked ... and the outcome was a clunky and awkward type when it was displayed large.

For someone who hasn't studied typography or worked with it extensively it’s hard to understand how important small typographic details can be in marketing design. The space between individual letters and the way shapes of letters move our eyes can determine how long people will look at an advertisement or how captivating it will be. The feeling of the type treatment can make or break the feeling of an entire Marketing piece!

Anyway, so Ikea's rebuttal to the outrage was this statement, "Verdana is a simple, cost-effective font which works well in all media & languages." Basically they choose Verdana for functionality over aesthetic. I think it’s hard for many of us to look at things from IKEA’s perspective. I mean, their catalog is the third most printed publication in the entire world after the Bible and Harry Potter! Most of us are not generating marketing pieces on such a global scale. One of the most important things Verdana and Microsoft's design has helped is to quickly and easily translate languages. If this helps them to keep their production costs down and therefore maintain their fantastic price deals ... then I suppose I can be at peace with Verdana too.

**Serif definition: any of the short lines stemming from and at an angle to the upper and lower ends of the strokes of a letter. Usually horizontal lines for example the feet of the letter "h" in Times New Roman.

http://www.idsgn.org/posts/ikea-says-goodbye-to-futura/
http://www.underconsideration.com/brandnew/archives/verdanagate.php

Fundraising for Arts Organizations in a Down Economy

At a recent seminar I gave about marketing and social media, someone from the audience wanted to know how to raise money during this economy when your organization is in the arts. (hers focused specifically on African dance, culture and music). Interestingly, I had watched children from their troupe perform at an outdoor festival the prior summer. It had made a real impression on me, they were really amazing.

It's a tough question. We all know non-profits in general are hurting, so how do arts organizations compete with non-profits who help people with basic needs of life? First, can we please begin to eliminate the word compete and competition from our vocabulary, instead lets come from a sense of abundance!

I feel very strongly that now more than ever we all need to have our spirits lifted and dance certainly meets the bill! It seems like a given that all arts should be an important component of our lives and especially our children. Here are some thoughts and ideas I gave her to consider:

Find Ways To Connect With Your Donor

• Remember when you openly talk about challenges that we all face in a difficult economy, it creates a sense of community. Convey your understanding of and empathize with the challenges they may be facing. At the same time, be clear and honest about the challenges your nonprofit is facing.
• No matter what your organization does, be it dance or caring for the sick, be sure to share a specific story about one child or adult that your program has helped. Give enough details to make them care, but not so much that they lose interest. Use it everywhere, on your website, in your letters, in conversations.

Think Outside Of The Box, Be Creative

• According to John Munger, research director for the National Service Organization Dance/USA, "You no longer market a performance that you sit and look at. What you offer is a complete experience that begins before the performance even starts and may continue afterward." Meals and discussions beforehand, maybe dance lessons after”.
• Find ways to partner with other non-profits to create new and more interesting events. You’ll introduce new audiences to each other and hopefully grow your fan and mail list. Brainstorming ideas is more powerful when there are different points of view. The best part, as a team you share the expenses, the work and the money raised.
• Take advantage of social media, it should be all non-profits best friend. Create a Facebook page for your organization and invite fans but also create a cause page where people can donate directly.

Never Give Up

• Last but not least don’t be discouraged, positive thinking is a powerful tool, just fake it until you make it! My grandmother used to say that worrying is like sitting in a rocking chair, you might be moving but you’re not getting anywhere.
• Remember why your organization began and how many lives you have changed through your work. Try to write down each success, and remember to pat yourself on the back once in awhile.
• I think we are in a time of resurgence for the arts, our leadership has an understanding of its vital role in humanity and especially for our children. Hey, a President who even writes poetry can’t be bad!

Do you have any thoughts or suggestions on this subject. Has your organization come up with some creative ways to raise awareness and funds. I would love to hear them, you never know who you could inspire to continue to fight the good fight!

-Ann Byne, Creative Director/Principal of The Byne Group

Feeling the Love

If social media was the soul mate of any type of organization, it would be the not-for-profit.

On June 19th, Ann Byne, President of The Byne Group, along with Howard Greenstein, social media strategist and President of The Harbrooke Group, presented at the Cornel Cooperative Institute for Not-For-Profits to an impressive group of not-for-profit executives who wanted to find out more about using Facebook and other social media tools to add significant value to their advocacy, fundraising, member retention and marketing efforts.

The group learned about how social media was a perfect fit for building community, publicizing events, increasing involvement, and fundraising to a wider audience. They were also facilitated in a discussion of the concerns and challenges they face in implementing a social media marketing program.

Groups vs. Pages on Facebook

So what's the difference between a "Group" and a "Page" on Facebook? This question has been swirling around our office lately and I have gotten to the bottom of it. First of all, a Group and a Page look different but there is much more to it then that.

Pages can only be created to represent a real public figure, artist, brand or organization. Groups can be created by any user and about any topic, as a space for users to share their opinions and interest in that subject. Pages can have photos, videos, event listings and interactive applications to engage Page visitors. Applications can't be added to Groups.

Pages are designed to allow Page admins to maintain a personal/professional distinction on Facebook (there's that word again, "branding") while Groups are a part of your personal Facebook experience. If you're a Group admin, your name will appear on that group, while Pages will never display their admins' names. When you take actions on your Group, such as posting on your Group's wall, these actions will appear to come from you as an individual. However, if you post or take other actions on a Page you own, it will appear to come from the Page.

Here is a list of other key differences:















The bottom line... Groups are better for hosting a quick active discussion while Pages are better for long-term relationships.

-Melissa Behrens, Senior Graphic Designer, The Byne Group

Search Engine Journal: http://www.searchenginejournal.com/facebook-group-vs-facebook-fan-page-whats-better/7761/