Archive for the ‘Web’ Category

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The Limits of DIY

Wednesday, May 27th, 2009

Independent business owners tend to be do-it-yourself types. I know firsthand. I started my business because I wanted to be a writer. Soon after starting, I met someone who suggested I learn graphic design to provide “One stop shopping” for my clients. So I did. 

After that, I saw just how much I needed a website. So I bought a couple books and built myself a site. Now I provide all three of those services to my clients. 

That’s all been great and wonderful, but now I’m coming up to a new challenge. One that I can’t seem to overcome. 

SALES. 

I’ve read the books, I’ve talked to salespeople I know, but I just can’t seem to master this one by myself. I hate to admit it, but I need someone to really show me the ropes. Someone to work with me directly to help me learn the process. It’s a skill I’d pay a good chunk of cash for, because I know it will pay off for me in the long run. 

And that situation is why I created my web design course. Because I know there are businesspeople out there who just feel safer maintaining control of their own websites.

DIY The Right Way

My course teaches you to build and maintain your site without sacrificing the professional look you get from a web designer. No more broken pages, no more pulling your hair out because your site looks great on your office computer but horrible on your home computer. It’s all the information you need to build websites like a pro with a minimal investment of your time and money.

I’m taking sign ups right now for the first session starting in a couple weeks. There are complete details here, and you can sign up here.

And keep in mind – Sessions will only be open to a maximum of 3 students. Once the class is filled, you’ll have to wait for another session to open. If you want a spot, it’s a good idea to get booked now to ensure you don’t miss the boat.

Blog  Side Note

I’ve made a change to the comments section of the blog. You no longer need to be signed in to post a comment. You’ll still need to sign up once, but after that you won’t have to jump through any hoops to leave a comment.

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Learn Web Design with Me!

Wednesday, May 20th, 2009

A bit of a different kind of post for this week. I want to announce the start of a new program here at www.bradenrussom.com. 

Starting in a couple of weeks, I’ll be teaching classes on web design fundamentals. I’m doing this to serve a portion of the population who simply can’t afford to hire me to design their websites. Ultimately, I know that my services are a good deal for businesses who have the budget for me. But the really small businesses simply don’t have it. Especially now.

 

You Can Learn This Stuff!

You Can Learn This Stuff!

My classes will have three students MAXIMUM. At the end of the class, you can expect to know the ins-and-outs of current versions of HTML and CSS. I’ll be teaching using the most up-to-date standards as well, so the websites you build will work on all major browsers and have the professional look that small businesses need. 

There’s more information here, or you can get signed up here.

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Unnecessary Change

Thursday, April 30th, 2009

I love Apple computers. I bought my first one in 2005, and I’ve never looked back.

But despite my feelings towards their products, sometimes they peeve me a bit.

My new MacBook Pro arrived yesterday.  And the thing is a computing animal. Light, fast, thin, and easy to get around.

Except one place: The flippin’ mousepad!

The old mousepad design was excellent. There was a large pad for your fingers, and one large button right below the pad. Everything you needed to get around your laptop.

But this new design makes it a real pain. Now, there’s an even bigger pad, but no button at all. “No button?” you ask?  That’s right. Because they’ve made the whole pad into a button.

Sounds neat in theory, sure. But if you’re one of those people who’s gotten good at dragging things around with your fingers while using your thumb for the button, suddenly you’ve got to make a major change. Using your thumb for the button-pushing tasks makes the cursor slide around. Just when you’ve got it where you want it, you press the pad and it moves!

This mouse button thing got me thinking about necessary and unnecessary changes. To me, this change seems unnecessary. More than that, it’s a change for the worse. 

And if that doesn’t sound like the marketing decisions a lot of companies are making right now, I don’t know what does. 

This is exactly the kind of thing that happens when we make decisions out of fear. The economy tanks and we panic. We think “Geez, I have to do something!” and we go running full speed into the comfort of old marketing habits. 

That’s not going to help us, people. 

Consumer trust has fallen through the floor. A big “buy now” campaign isn’t going to help you rebuild it. 

Something that will help is establishing a social media presence. Opening yourself and your business and giving people the chance to interact with you on their own terms. That builds trust.

Social Media is just one more way that the Internet has leveled the playing field. If you know how to reach your customers with it, you’re ahead of the game

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Posted in Building Relationships, General Business, Web, community | 1 Comment »

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