http://www.nickyjurd.com Effective Small Business Websites Mon, 21 Dec 2009 11:21:11 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en Unlike Kaj who is here for the penguins, I am here to hunt seals. Not in a Canadian club baby seals kind of way, but to photograph them. We've had great success finding the New Zealand fur seal, but the elephant seal has proven elusive. First attempt at seals was the ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/seal-hunting-in-new-zealand/ It's really cold outside. Not just a little bit cold. It's bitter, but without snow. I think the wind chill factor is -15C. But despite the icy outdoors, we've still managed to get sunburnt! We spent 2 days in a little charming town called Oamaru. It is famous for its Blue ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/oamaru-penguins/ Today is our only full day in Auckland, so we picked up some of those 'Auckland in 24 hours' style publications and weeded out most of the options as self-promotion advertisements. We're staying on Auckland's North Shore, which is an historic and architecturally quaint, in a gorgeous bed and breakfast Stafford Villa. Our ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/auckland-for-a-day/ I’ve discovered a secret is hard to keep once you’ve told several hundred people. Even though they too know it’s a secret, it’s easier for them to slip up than it is for oneself. For Kaj who rarely pays attention, he missed all 7 people who told him directly the secret ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/holiday-destination/ There's not enough website awards in Australia with credibility, but SmartCompany have just held their inaugural SmartCompany Web Awards which shows some outstanding contributions from the Australian web community. Having entered a website I can tell you that the criteria is thorough and asks a number of probing questions regarding cost ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/smartcompany-web-awards/ It's rare I receive an email newsletter that I pay close attention to, but the team at Returnity sent out a great one this morning, which perfectly highlights the points they were trying to get across regarding how visitors read your web and email content. Heat mapping studies provide great insight into how ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/improving-website-readability/ Today I attended a TTNQ function to explore the newly created digital strategy blueprint for the marketing of Far North Queensland through online channels. The comments were generally positive, and the mood at the function was one of satisfaction and warmth. Strategy Overview TTNQ have strongly adopted the recommendations of the Kleinhardt ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/destination-marketing-web-strategy/ I'm so pleased to hear the results of a survey which confirm web developers' suspicions that sound on your website is bad. Here's an article I found today on Mumbrella. One of online users’ biggest turn-offs is when websites run ads that play sound without prior warning, says a survey published ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/sound-bites/ I received this article by email today from Gail Geronimos, the co-founder of Achaeus. It is an excellent summary of how email can assist businesses to make sales. Well worth the 4 minute read as it's not your standard advice that I've read elsewhere. Most business people I speak to don't understand that ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/4-surefire-ways-to-use-email-to-increase-sales/ We take over lots of websites owned by small businesess that need a reliable web developer to manage their website, and unfortunately the process if often hampered by the lack of essential details held by the business owner. Here's a list of things you should keep tucked away in a ... http://www.nickyjurd.com/your-website-essentials-file/