Case: Shiraz Software deliver state of the art printing solutions on all major platforms for all related large format printing markets with very strong after sales support.  As they did not previously have an independent website, instead they shared webspace with another company, they were not in a position to capitalise on potential opportunities from web promotion.  They wanted their own website to showcase their product range.

Solution:  We created a professional site that allowed Shiraz to promote each of their products.  The site is clean and easily navigable.  We have provided the facility to view video demonstrations of products when they are completed and view  resource materials for each product in pdf format.

Results: Shiraz Software now have a professional site that enables them to compete on a global level with other major large format printing companies.

Don’t forget to trace Santa’s journey on Google Earth tomorrow! While you’re waiting, and if you have small ones to entertain, you might like the games in Santa’s village.

Read all about Google’s history tracking Santa as her circumnavigates the globe here.

Finally, let me take this opportunity to wish all our customers and readers the most festive of Christmases! Ho ho ho.

We’re so used to thinking of Google as the number one search engine, that it can be hard to remember that this isn’t the case everywhere. In the USA, for example, Google’s market share stands at about 71.5%. In the UK, it’s more like 90%, which explains the way we talk of ‘Googling’ something as easily as we talk about ‘Hoovering’: both brand names have come to stand for their generic actions.

In Japan, Google really hasn’t gripped the market with anything like as much success as either of these countries: a mere 33.7% turn to Google, with Yahoo! being the preferred search engine. The news is that Google, famous and praised for its iconic almost-blank homepage, is looking at adding a multitude of links to its interface, all the better to fit in with Japanese cultural expectations.

It’s a salutory lesson for us all, on a number of fronts: number one, localisation is important. If you hope to sell to foreign markets, never underestimate the value of a little research. Number two, optimise for all search engines, not just Google. You’ll reap the benefits of potential visits from 10% of UK users, 30% of US ones and 70% of Japanese!  And finally, well, it is sometimes nice to think that Google hasn’t got quite everything right.

The big news this week is ‘real time search’ from Google, which, in a nutshell, means the inclusion of the very latest news stories, blog posts, tweets and other social media activity in their main search results.

Now, more than ever, every business needs to consider its social media activity when building an online marketing or SEO strategy. Where the two strands may have been quite distinct, the lines are now blurring.

Case: Denbigh Under Fives is a small pre-school near Ladbroke Grove in London located in a mews off a quiet side street. The pre-school wanted a web presence to promote themselves as they felt that many people were not aware of their existence and due to their physical location there was not much opportunity to be noticed by passing traffic.

They did not have a web presence and had spent a lot of time with a web designer to create a website. However, time constraints of the designer meant the project was at a standstill.

Solution: We were approached by Denbigh who asked if we could complete the website. Denbigh already had a design concept they liked so the core design was recreated by us. We added an online registration form for new students, downloadable information guides for parents and a blog so the pre-school had a place to promote and showcase events.

Results: The pre-school now has an online presence so can compete with other local pre-schools for internet traffic. They have an information source to direct potential students to and several online registration forms have been completed which is testament to the success of the site already.

Case: Kensington Physio is an established physiotherapy practice located off Kensington High Street in London which has been in business for nearly 20 years. They had a website but it had become outdated both in its style and the information it contained. Kensington Physio was constantly evolving, including the addition of a second practice off Kings Road in Chelsea and a third in the pipeline, but their website was not keeping up. Adding to their difficulties, the domain name, web hosting and website design were handled by three different companies which made getting things updated much more complex.

Solution: We firstly consolidated the management of the domain, web hosting, website design and maintenance which meant that Kensington Physio only had to place one call to us if any problems occurred.

We created a bespoke Content Management System (CMS) website for them with a blog. If any changes were needed to their site they were now able to make them themselves. This gave them complete flexibility to manage all content on their website which was ideal considering the ongoing changes within their business.

Results: Kensington Physio now has an up to date website with a wealth of information on their practices and the industry in general. As information changes they can update the website instantaneously so they have full control of their site. Through the blog they can also engage customers with additional updates to their business practice.

National newspapers are reporting today that Amazon may be moving to open up a number of “bricks and mortar” high-street shops across the country.

It’s an interesting development from a company that we’ve always believed has blazed the trail for online business. We often look to Amazon for best practice in e-marketing, website structure and internet retailing, but we didn’t foresee that they would be taking this seemingly retrograde step.

Still, if Amazon sees the value of ‘real-life’ premises, then no doubt we soon all will. So far, the only reason given seems to be that people are fed up of waiting at home for deliveries, and prefer the convenience of ordering online before going to physical premises to pick their purchases up. It seems more likely to me that Amazon has seen a chance to reach that small sector of the population who do not, for whatever reason, purchase online.

Amazon have already been accused of driving small bookshops out of business. Now it is just possible that, with their enormous inventory, they will also be competing with every kind of shop, large and small, mainstream or niche.

Whether it is a successful project remains to be seen, but it is interesting to see the reversal of the usual situation whereby a brand that is well-known on the high street goes on to establish its online presence. Can it work the other way round? Let’s wait and see, and in the meantime, hope that Amazon won’t prove too much of a threat to the independent retailers that give character to any town.

I’m sure we all have experience of projects which go over budget and run past their deadlines – but can you imagine a website that costs you over two and a quarter million pounds more than you’d bargained for, and launches almost four years later than projected?

When we read about poor Birmingham City Council’s website project, which is in just the state described above, we didn’t know whether to laugh or cry in sympathy. Clearly, an ambitious online presence for the council of Britain’s second city is not going to be a simple job. No-one would envy the council as it attempts to deliver an all-singing, all-dancing solution, representing the city’s many stakeholders – and all from the public purse.

A council, one might argue, will always find the money it needs, one way or another. For a business, on the other hand, such budgetary derailing could spell bankruptcy. This story made us realise, once again, the value of our one-price packages. We can certainly guarantee you that we’ll never present you with a bill of £2.8 million, nor indeed will we charge a penny above what is initially agreed.

As Google announces several upgrades to its Product Search, is your website primed to take advantage of them?

Websites that will do best from these enhancements are those which have ensured their product information is registered with Google’s ‘merchant centre’. Additionally, adding customer reviews, clear product photos, and ensuring that your physical location is well-represented on Google Maps will all reap dividends.

Are you using Google’s Business Centre to its full capacity? You may be surprised to know that you can add coupons and special offers – a great way of learning just what proportion of your customers come via that channel.

Don’t worry if this all seems too much to keep up with: as ever, you can of course delegate the nitty gritty to us!

Matt Kelly from the Daily Mirror has made a fascinating speech on the importance of content and character over SEO, as reported in The Guardian today.

His basic point is that newspapers have been too keen to optimise their sites, putting more importance on visitor numbers than on loyal readership.

It’s fascinating reading, which flies against many of the myths the average SEO company will try to sell you. The lesson for all of us out there, from huge news corporations to small businesses, is that the tide is turning. We need to be looking at all-round strategies that also include meaningful content, social media marketing and a sense of individual character.

It means building sites that perform well for humans, not search engines, says Kelly.

We believe you can do both: indeed, we start with the principle that if you do the former, the latter will come to you naturally, over time. We also believe that Notting Hill Internet Services has been ahead of the wave on this one – because these are things we’ve been saying for a long time.