32Top 7 Reasons to Hire a Large Design Company
This post is in response to Calvin Cox’s Top 7 Reasons Why It’s Better to Hire a Freelance Designer or Small Design Firm Than a Large Design Company. Let me state up front that I agree with everything Calvin said. This post is not a rebuttal, just an attempt to keep things balanced. Continue Reading Top 7 Reasons to Hire a Large Design Company »
7Republican & Democratic Convention Website Review
Update: Read the comments below. I totally blew it and reviewed the wrong Democratic Convention website!
Personally, I’m sick and tired of the convention coverage already so I thought I’d put my own twist on it and take a detailed look at the convention’s websites. Continue Reading Republican & Democratic Convention Website Review »
6The Secret to Painless Google Website Optimizer
For me, Google Website Optimizer (GWO) has been the best new tool or service launched in the last three years. It has literally created tens of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of dollars in additional revenue for my company and my freelance clients. That said, I initially found GWO very difficult to implement. Essentially, GWO works through code such as this: Continue Reading The Secret to Painless Google Website Optimizer »
4This Post is Guaranteed to Boost your Conversion Rates
I’ll be honest. A year ago, I was an unbeliever. The idea that something on your site could influence me to buy or not buy was hogwash. No stupid seal or testimonial was going to change my mind. Let me tell you, if you’re not doing everything you can to boost the conversion rate of your website - you’re either losing your money or losing your client’s money (and your client should probably fire you). Over the last year, my eyes have been opened and I’ve begun to realize how much power I have over website visitors to squash their fears and nudge them toward making larger purchases. Here’s an overview of three of the tools at your disposal: Continue Reading This Post is Guaranteed to Boost your Conversion Rates »
3How to Improve the Client Experience and Charge More
At my last job, we worked right above a hair salon. Growing up, my mother always cut my hair, then my wife when she had time and lately, a local barbershop. But since the salon was a client and it saved an extra trip, I got my hair cut after work. The difference between the salon and the barbershop was unbelievable. At the salon, I was treated by an attractive stylist who remembered my name and how I liked my hair. She talked with me about subjects I was interested in and even remembered our discussions from the my previous appointment! The stylist make recommendations for my hair based on current trends and my hair’s personality (red and very thick). My hair was shampooed, conditioned and I received a very relaxing neck massage. She only used the trimmer for the edges. The salon was impeccably clean and had a very modern decor. It was a little upscale and I liked it. It made me FEEL important, stylish and trendy. Continue Reading How to Improve the Client Experience and Charge More »
8Web 2.0 in Six Easy Steps
It’s really quite simple…
5. Get a subscribe-to-beta-launch-e-mail-list button
That’s all there is to it folks!
0Does your web design business have goals?
Are you merely wandering around looking for clients or do you have goals and targets for your company? For your team? The importance of goals has been covered many times as well as methods of goal creation. Here are some specific areas to create both short-term and long-term goals for: Continue Reading Does your web design business have goals? »
17 Reasons You Shouldn’t Charge by the Hour
Matthew Griffin has written an absolutely great post with 7 Reasons You Shouldn’t Charge by the Hour. It’s great reading for a freelancer or any company that often uses hourly billing.
84 Tips to improve your Design Firm’s Website
After running the Xemion Directory for several years, I’ve seen my fair share of web design company websites. I’ve noticed four elements that many companies leave off their website which negatively impacts sales: Continue Reading 4 Tips to improve your Design Firm’s Website »
1The Death of the Confirmation Password
Removing the confirmation password from signup forms has become a growing trend. Two recent examples I noticed include Twitter (follow me) and Raven SEO Tools. This is an awful move for usability. I’ve mistyped my password and confirmation password enough times to realize that I’m not a perfect typer. Nothing is more annoying than going through a forgot my password request, especially when a simple form confirmation would prevent this from happening.
Am I crazy? Why is this trend spreading?
0How to Find New Clients via LinkedIn
Before you start seeking new clients on LinkedIn, your LinkedIn profile must be up-to-date and include detailed information on at least your last three job positions. Include what your responsibilities are and what you accomplished while you were there. Your profile is essentially your resume.  This is what a potential client will look before contacting you.  Be sure to point out areas in which you have expertise. Your LinkedIn headline must reflect what it is exactly you do. Include a word like “expert”, “specialist”, “senior”, “consultant” or “experienced” in your title. Your title will be the first impression you make.
Secondly, post links to your website and your portfolio. If you regularly update your blog, post a link to it too. An infrequently updated blog gives off a bad impression, so don’t link to it unless you’re posting at least every other week.
Once your profile is ready, connect to as many people as you can. This includes clients, vendors, friends, colleagues, past colleagues, family, etc.. If it’s not a close acquaintance, be sure to include a personal note stating who you are and how you know them. From now on, attempt to connect to everyone you meet. Building your network is extremely important. When a search is conducted on LinkedIn, contacts are often ranked by the number of connections they have. Plus, the larger your network the more often you will show up in searches. Get as many recommendations as you can (tip: recommend your connections first).
Those are the basics. The real key to finding new work on LinkedIn is participating in the network and increasing your visibility. The best way to do this is by asking and answering questions on LinkedIn Answers.
Answers are by far the most visible part of the LinkedIn community.  Answering a question helps someone out and establishes yourself as an expert in that field (it will show up in your profile too). Many questions are often along the lines of “Do you know someone who does…?” Be sure to state that you have experience in that area and you’d be happy to help (if you truly do have experience in that area). And if you answer enough questions in a particular category, you’ll be shown as an expert in that category.
Asking a question also increases your visibility.  If you need help with something business related, LinkedIn is a great place to ask. Keep your tone and grammar professional at all times.
It’s important that you be genuine with all your answers and questions. Make sure your answers are detailed and relevant. LinkedIn is just like networking in the offline world. It’s a great place to meet people and help them fix their problems. If you simply try to hand out business cards, it won’t do any good.
The second great way to pick up new clients is through a recommendation. Recommendations can come from a connection’s profile or from a connection answering a question. The easiest way to get recommended is by recommending others and remaining active in the network and in their lives.
If you’ve found any clients on LinkedIn and have any additional tips, please share!
0CSS Text Gradients - No Javascript!
Both WebDesignerWall and CSSGlobe both posted today a really neat trick for making CSS-only text gradients (albeit, not semantic…but it’s not a perfect world). The same-day posting was just an odd coincidence, but this will be a very handy little code.
