Articles « ARK Squared Productions

The Importance of Networking

December 06, 2010 | By Anna Kouwenberg Posted in Marketing, Networking

One of the most important things for marketing your business is Networking. Flyers, brochures and mail outs all have their place, but think about it, would you choose, say, a mortgage broker from a flyer you got in the mail or a referral from a trusted friend or colleague? We all like to go with someone credible and known and what better way to feel that way than to hear about them or meet them directly? And in order for someone to refer to you they need to know you – so when you network remember it’s not about who you know but who knows you!

Networking is internal and external; internal at your work, external outside of work. At work you need to make sure you’re seen. Be assertive – be INVOLVED. When projects or events come up, offer to help. Spend time with people over lunch and change up who are with regularly to get to know more people. The more involved you are, the more visible and memorable you are.

Externally, get involved with professional organizations within your field, join your local chamber of commerce, board of trade or other local networking groups. If networking in large groups like these make you nervous arrive early when the group is small and less intimidating or bring a colleague with you. If you really want to be visible in the group, and beef up your resume, join the board.

In today’s world remember also to think online. Join websites like LinkedIn, Twitter, or the like. And remember when you’re using social media it’s important to supply useful information to others not just sell, sell, sell. If all you do is try to sell your product you will get ignored!

Make sure when you’re networking that you exchange business cards. NEVER attend a networking event without ensuring you are fully stocked with cards to hand out. Always bring far more than you think you’ll require, then you can give out a handful to someone if they request. You should not have to be stingy with your cards – they’re advertising! How is someone supposed to remember you if they do not have something tangible to refer to after? And of course this also gives them contact information for you.

Finally, remember when you attend networking events – it’s better to make contact with someone that brings you 10 clients than it is to meet one new client. So make sure you’re not just focused on selling your product but expanding your circle of influence.

Events on a Budget

November 22, 2010 | By Adam Kouwenberg Posted in Events

There are many ways in which you can run an efficient event on a limited budget. Last week I covered a number of ways to run a smooth and stress free event, keep all those ideas in mind and incorporate them in with these ideas as well.

The first thing that you want to keep in mind when on a limited budget is that there is a point where you go from being responsible and frugal to cheap and tacky. Remember to balance cost savings with keeping a professional image.

One of the largest decisions and expenses for any event is the choice of venue, and the amenities that come with that choice. For example, having the event at your office means that you will be responsible for finding catering, table and chairs rental, setup, tear down, all A/V requirements and the co-ordination of everything. Now you can hire an event planner to look after this, but if your are on a tight budget that may not be feasible. Having the event at a hotel means that you have someone to look after and co-ordinate all these things, and more, but you may be restricted to using their services and providers when you may not want to. Most ‘outside’ venues have strict rules on bringing in outside food. Sometimes having the event at a hotel may seem more expensive at first glance, but once you factor in all the benefits, and your time it may be a better option.

Other things to consider are the time of day for the event to take place, if you start at 8:00 am people will expect breakfast, while 9:00 am you can get away with just coffee. If you are not providing meals, are their near by options for your guest to partake in? Do your guests know that they will be on their own?

When in the planning stages ensure that you get detailed quotes, and find out exactly where you can cut little items. For example coffee may be a set price per head, but soft drinks are on a consumption basis (per can, often $4 or more per can!), you can ask that no soft drinks are put out. Are you being charged for a power-bar and extension cord? It may make more sense to bring your own, or even buy one for the event. I worked with a group once in which they determined that for their week long event it was about the same price for them to purchase a brand-new high-end projector as it was to rent the equivalent model for the week, and then after the event they had an essentially new projector to use for future events. Also make sure you know if there is a cost for Internet, it can be surprising how much this can be!

Another way to reduce your costs is to consider doing a joint event. Partner with a complimentary business and split the costs. If you are a mortgage broker, then partner with a real-estate agent, moving company or insurance broker. This can be a great way to also expand your client base!

Plan well in advance, things always get more expensive at the last minute. Consider contacting other local businesses and offer sponsorships or partnerships. For example partner with a local restaurant and get them to provide a deal for your guests.

Consider using green practices to your advantage. Now you need to be careful with this one, but if there is complementary Internet, offer to e-mail the presentation materials to your guests upon check-in, or provide a link for downloads. But make sure you have a few printed copies for those guests who do not have a computer or prefer a hard copy.

There are many ways to trim costs, but you always want to have a balanced approach. Make sure you have a feedback form at the end of the event to judge the strengths and weakness of the event and make sure to include questions like “Please rate the venue 1-5” or “What would you like to see at the next event.”

Pulling of effective, cost efficient events can be a time consuming endeavour, consider hiring an event professional, such as the ARK2 team to help you navigate through the process!

Successful, Low-Stress Events

November 15, 2010 | By Adam Kouwenberg Posted in Events

Pulling off a successful event is something that everyone wants; however to pull off a successful event with minimal stress and relative ease takes organization. Here are a few key things to keep in mind to pull off a fantastic event with little to no stress.

Plan ahead. – This one may seem obvious, but there may be aspects that you overlook.
- Visit the venue long before the event, and look for the little things that you will need during your event; where are the power outlets near the registration table, is there a house phone in the room or hallway of the hotel. If not ask the venue for an onsite contact number for during the event. Is there storage onsite during the event for your boxes, is this easily accessible by you, or is it in an employee only area? Learn where the restrooms, coat racks, and garbage cans are located. This way when you show up on the day of the event you don’t need to look for these things, and you can direct your staff and guests to these items. If you are unable to visit the venue, ask your contact to provide a floor plan with this information.
- Find out when you have access to the venue, can you deliver your materials and supplies early? Is there a cost for this? The less work you have to do on the day of the event the easier it will be. Have your boxes and materials well labelled, that way you can delegate on the day of the event. Give yourself at least an hour buffer, two is better! Setup always takes longer than you think, and if you finish early, relax and grab a cup of coffee!
- Take photographs, draw diagrams, make lists of table setups, room layouts and things to do, but be flexible if things don’t work out to plan. No event ever goes 100% to plan, so remember that things will change and just roll with them.
- Communicate with all those involved and provide them with the information that they need. If you revise documents clearly label them as a new version. Have printed copies of these documents ready to hand out during the event setup.
Confirm Everything. – The number of times I have had a simple phone call save so much hassle is astounding!
- In the week leading up to your event contact the venue, the catering, the audio visual provider, the guest speakers etc. Confirm that everything is in order, that no papers need to be signed, that your numbers and their numbers match etc. This should only take you a few minutes, but can save you an immense amount of stress! Verify that you can still get into the venue at the time you had originally booked, the venue may have had another booking prior to your event. Be polite and understanding if things have changed, this is why you contacted them at this time.
- Don’t be afraid to ask for another copy of the contract, or event order, particularly if anything has changed; make sure that everything is still in order.
On the day of the event be prepared.
- Arrive early, nothing gets you more stressed out that running up against the clock, often you are able to get in to the space early if it is available.
- Have everything clearly labelled, and delegate tasks prior to arriving, that way everyone can get down to the task at hand.
- When you first arrive on site meet your contacts for the day. Confirm again that everything is in order and on schedule. If you have third party contractors, introduce yourself to the head representative on site. Knowing who your contact points are, and having them know who to contact is extremely valuable, particularly as the event time approaches.
- Staff appropriately. If possible the event organizer should be able to float and supervise the different tasks. This allows you to feel comfortable that everything is getting done to your specifications, and you are available to answer the small questions that come up.
- If you have a physical set up, bring a change of clothes, set an alarm on your watch or phone for when you need to go change, and actually go when it sounds.
- If you are going to leave the venue, let someone know. Leave a business card with your cell phone number on it with your key contacts, not only does this allow them to contact you with pressing concerns, but it also allows you to network with them in a no pressure manner.
Relax. This is probably the most important thing for the organizer to do the day of the event. Nothing ever goes completely to plan, but if you are relaxed and in control these hiccups will be easily dealt with, and those around you will be able to function better. Stress is contagious, so is being calm and assertive.
Plan for teardown. — This is so often overlooked!
- Know ahead of time what you want to do with your supplies, are they being packed up to be reused at future events, are you giving the items away as door prizes or to a charity, or are you simply going to throw the items out. Make sure that if you are keeping items that you have kept the boxes from setup.
- Make sure you have staffed this appropriately, if you had four people help you load in; make sure you have some help for the load out. The more hands you have after the event to help out, the sooner you get to go home. You can’t have too much help!
- If you are shipping items from the venue, what is their policy on storage? Better yet can it be picked up immediately?
- Say “Thank You!” Being polite and courteous to the venue staff can go a long way, if they like you, and feel appreciated the more they are willing to help you out in the future. Never burn your bridges!
Post-event evaluation. – Learn from your mistakes!
- After the event review what worked well, and what almost sank the entire event. If it was your fault, determine how to avoid it in the future. If the problem was with one of the service providers, communicate that with them.
- Give recognition where it is due. If you received good to great service consider tipping, or write a thank-you letter. If you don’t have budget for tipping, if you have extra swag (marketing material, pens, bags, hats etc.) give it to the staff (this is of course if you would want to receive it yourself! But it would be if you were giving it to your clients!) Simply writing a note thanking the venue for the services is often more powerful than money. If you received stand out service from any one employee write a letter to them or their supervisor. If you develop a good rapport with the event staff, they will be happy to go above and beyond during your next event.

Events are always a challenge, but with a little planning and a calm and assertive attitude you would be surprised at how easy and stress free they can be!

Business Card Do’s and Don’ts

November 08, 2010 | By Anna Kouwenberg Posted in Marketing

As we mentioned previously, a business card is one of your, or your contact’s, most important pieces of marketing material. So, with that in mind, here are a few things to remember to help you make a great first, or continued, impression:

Do:

Have a professionally designed card. Ensure that you’re putting your best foot forward visually. I will say again, who would take a photographer seriously if they have a poorly designed card, particularly with bad images on it? And make sure it’s consistent with the rest of your marketing material!
Make your card as memorable as possible. Good colours, unique die cut, photo of you or a major product, something that will help someone remember who you are after they get home.
Keep your cards somewhere where they won’t get damaged – a dog-eared business card is tacky! Besides, a nice card holder can look very professional!
Present your card well. Don’t just throw it on the table in front of your contact, with your right hand, or both, place it in their hand right side up, facing them. Some Asian cultures take business cards very seriously and can be offended if the card is presented haphazardly! (Reference Video)
Look at someone’s card when you receive it. Not only does it signify genuine interest in your contact but you could find out something to talk about from the card and have a better connection for it! Compliments are great too!

Don’t:

Print off your cards yourself – if you don’t take yourself seriously enough to have one of the easiest marketing tools look good, what does that say about your company?
Have an oddly shaped business card that’s larger by height or width than traditional cards. Most people have standard storage systems and if your card is too wide, tall, etc, they may not keep your card. A unique shape can be memorable to a degree, but be reasonable!
Run out of cards! Ensure you have a generous supply that you can easily re-stock your card holder, suit jacket pocket, purse, etc, from. And if you’re going to a networking event always bring more than enough. Someone may bring a guest, extra people come, or maybe you’ll make a great contact that wants to be able to hand out cards for you – you’d want to be able to give him at least half a dozen cards, right?
Write on cards you receive in front of the person who gave it to you. If you must write notes on the card wait until after your meeting, it can be very insulting, particularly in some different cultures.
Stuff someone’s card into your pants pocket, particularly rear pockets, as you receive it, particularly in front of them. Put it on the table in front of you or in a business card holder. If you need a space why not in the back of the card holder you use for your own cards? You likely just made a space when you gave the person your card anyhow!

Keep these things in mind the next time you go networking – or go grab a coffee – you never know when you’ll run into a great contact. And a great way to remember how to treat a card well is to treat the card as you would treat the person.

Importance of a Business Card

November 01, 2010 | By Anna Kouwenberg Posted in Marketing

Your business card is one of the most important ways you present yourself today. Almost all companies supply, or should supply, all their staff with business cards – it’s inexpensive advertising that’s easy to do. It is also something that is easy to get wrong and make a bad impression. Just as one judges a book by its cover your company will be judged by your business cards!

So if your business card is going to be a face for your company – make it look good! If you’re a modern business, say an interior designer, or urban clothing store have a flashy (but professional!) card, perhaps shiny and colourful on one side. If you’re a more traditional company, such as a bank or a law firm, then go for a more traditional look with less glossy and a nice linen textured card with a “basic” look. If you use a flashy card for a traditional company, or visa versa, you could confuse your potential client, or turn them off completely and lose their business!

So now that you’ve thought about design, you need to put the content on the card. How much contact information you put on the card will likely depend on the size of your company. If you’re a one man shop, working out of your house, you may not want to put your home address on your card, but try to put the geographical area that you want to do business. A larger company you absolutely want to put your address down, as more clients will likely be coming to you.

The basics that you want to have on your card are:

Company name & Logo
Your name & position(s) with the company
Email address
Phone number
City you work out of/Geographical area you work in
Tagline/description of your company

You need to think of your business card like an advertisement, but it’s pocket-sized and you hand it out directly. But, you also need to remember your card may very well be passed along to someone you did not meet and have a chance to talk to! So make sure it can stand alone, let someone know who your company is, who you are in the company, and how to contact you.

So the next time that you’re out networking, make sure you stock your pockets full of cards. If you want someone to remember you, out of a room full of 50 other business professionals, you want something to leave them with – and you want that something to be remembered! Don’t print your cards yourself on the perforated edge card stock; make sure you leave one of your most important marketing tools in the hands of a professional!

Consistency Is Key

October 25, 2010 | By Anna Kouwenberg Posted in Branding, Marketing, Web Design

Now that you have high quality graphics the next important thing is ensuring that they are used consistently throughout your company/organization and your marketing. When you are trying to put your best foot forward a key way to do that is to have a consistent look throughout your graphic material. So if you have a website, business cards, brochures, stationery, etc, etc, you want to use the same logo, colours, fonts, photos and more.

There are a number of reasons why you want a consistent look, let me list a few:

Your company is easily recognizable. Take big corporate brands for example – the Nike swoosh, “IBM Blue”, the McDonald’s golden arches or their catchy jingles, or a great Canadian example is Telus. When you see Telus on TV, their vehicle wraps, envelopes, their website, wherever, you instantly know who you’re looking at because of their consistent use of colours and cute animals.
You portray a professional image. If you hand out a business card referring someone to your website and they have the same look you can make a very good impression.
It shows you’re organized – you have a game plan. You’re not just doing things “off the cuff”, you’ve thought things through. You’ve done the research to get an effective logo, colours, etc, and are portraying that through the consistency.
Makes your material easy to read. How annoying would it be if you sat down to relax with a good novel and the font changed every paragraph? It would drive you nuts and negate the “relax” time! Same goes for your promotional materials – if every way you present yourself visually to a client is different you would confuse them.
It saves you money! Once you get your logo, colours and overall “look” together it’s faster for your graphic designer to produce different items. A good website can make designing a business card or brochure a snap. Or if you run print advertisements regularly you can use the same basic framework each time and just change some of the content, if you need to at all, and this can save money with the place you are advertising especially if you purchase a batch of advertisements. Another saving is if you re-use photos because you will not need to hire someone to take more or purchase additional stock photos.

So remember, when you’re coming up with your company’s marketing plan choose graphic elements that can be used for many different purposes. It will be easy to recognize, increase your professionalism and save you money!

The Need for High Quality Design

October 18, 2010 | By Anna Kouwenberg Posted in Branding, Marketing, Web Design

Tell me, how seriously do you take a professional photographer if they give you a business card with bad graphics or a poor layout – or generally a “cheap” looking card? You’d probably not think of sending your best friend to him when they’re looking for wedding photos would you? Or how about a law office that doesn’t use professional stationery? I’d hope if they are going to write an important document for me they could at least have a professional look in their stationery!

What it all comes down to is if you want to be taken seriously, you need to put your best foot forward. In today’s electronic world a huge portion of that look comes not only from your website, but other materials as well, be it stationery or brochures, promotional items or trade show booths. You want to make sure when you’re potential customers/clients see you, wherever they see you, they get a good impression. And as we’ll discuss next week, consistency is key.

Lets use websites for an example. Below are two examples of websites, one using poor design techniques and the other good design techniques.

The poor design comes to us courtesy of www.webpagesthatsuck.com, and it is Yale’s School of Art website. I would think that, being art minded myself, that they would have a more professional looking page, but this one really makes you shake your head and think, really? Yale? Wow, maybe I’ll check out a different art program… But the good design, Blue Mountain Baptist Church, employs current techniques that, if you knew Church, draws from their current material. Consistent look that is very professional and pleasing to look at. Welcoming to someone that may be looking for a new church to attend or a regular attendee to know what’s going on.

These websites are a perfect example of how even just one presentation tool for your company or organization can have such a large impact on how you are perceived. And one can easily assume that Yale would probably have more money to put towards a professionally done website than one’s local Baptist church! So if a church can do it it can’t be all that hard can it? Now imagine if you have ALL your presented material, business cards, envelopes, advertisements, etc, looking professional? That would be a great impression.

So the next time you’re getting ready to hand out business cards with a sticker over your old phone number or forward someone to your website that someone in your office quickly threw together with Microsoft Word, remember, “a picture is worth a thousand words” – so make sure they’re getting all good ones! And if you or someone in your company or organization does not have the expertise to compile the professional designs, contact us!

Presentation Do’s and Don’ts

October 14, 2010 | By Adam Kouwenberg Posted in Events

Presentations are funny things. We have all been to countless underwhelming presentations, you know the kind, the ones in which you walk out of the door afterwards and if someone offered you cash to summarise the 3 key points you would stand there with a dumbstruck look on your face and you would try your best to stumble though the fog of the past hour. However, there are those few presentations that stick out in our minds, the ones in which you can vividly remember the stories, speakers or products in great detail. What makes a memorable presentation? What are some of the secrets of a good presentation?

Many people who are wiser than I have written many books, created training videos, and taught courses on presentation tactics, but I will use some of my extensive real world observations, made of more than 10 years working in and around corporate presentations. These are merely observations that I have made, and by no means a formula to a perfect presentation.

Know your audience. There is nothing more awkward than watching a professional speaker walk into a room full of people and watch them talk to the crowd and treating them like they know nothing. I once witnessed a business speaker addressing a room full of cardiologists and he proceeded to explain to them how blood flows through the body and how the heart works. Looking around the room you could watch these brilliant doctors snicker at the 5^th grade science lesson that was also full of mistakes! This speaker instantly lost all credibility with his audience because he did not change his ‘stock’ presentation to suit the audience.
Be dynamic. Anyone can stand up in front of a group of people and read off a PowerPoint presentation, but the best presentations are the ones in which the presenter barley references the presentation material, yet still managed to weave a tale and cover all the material in an engaging manner. To make this seem effortless takes practice, but most of all comprehensive knowledge of your topic. Don’t let the data cover up your passion for the topic! If you know that your widgets are the best around and innovative, focus on why they are better, what makes you more relevant than your competition. If you need to touch on sales figures display they key figures on the screen, but tell a story about some of your new clients and why they switched to your product, this will be way more effective than reading out the raw data. People love to laugh, there are countless studies that show laughing is healthy, fun, release endorphins and can help you remember content.
Use technology to your advantage, but don’t let it overshadow the message that you are communicating. We all like to be wowed, with lights, sound, video, fancy animations and the like, and all of these things have their time and place, but make sure that people remember why they are there, and don’t just remember the dazzling rotating pictures. That being said, if you are launching a new and exciting product you may want to control the lighting, have exciting music and lots of souvenirs to give out.
Keep on schedule. Let people know in advance your projected start and end times, and stick to them! Start no more than 5 minutes late, and try and end at least 10 minutes early. Respect your audience, every one has a hectic schedule, and if you allow people to have a little extra time in their day, they will appreciate it! If you are having a productive discussion when you are approaching your end time, inform the group of the time and either let them know they are welcome to leave if necessary, let them know of an upcoming time when the discussion can continue, or move the conversation to a more informal one-on-one setting.
Be confident in your presentation. Everyone can tell when a presenter is nervous or unprepared. If you are not good at presentations have someone else in your organization do most of the talking. If you are the only person available, relax. If you find speaking challenging or terrifying consider joining a group like Toastmasters or take a course at a community college on public speaking. It just takes practice, and if you know your material it makes everything easier!

There are many other things to keep in mind while presenting. I will touch on more in future posts, but in the mean time if you have stories about fantastic presentations, or fantastically awful presentations, let us know by commenting on this post!

Remember that a great way to ensure a fantastic presentation is to get help in the areas that you are not strong in. You should focus on your presentation, let others, like us, help organize the details of the event.

Top 10 Website Don’ts

October 04, 2010 | By Anna Kouwenberg Posted in Web Design

Just as there are good things to do to make a great website, there are some important things to make sure you DON’T do as well. One could make a rather large list of things to avoid, a sampling of some of the most common errors are below, again, in no particular order:

Avoid flash intro pages! Not only do they drive people crazy with a delay at getting to your information, but the main landing page is where search engines get most of your keywords, pick up your navigation, etc, etc. Easy navigation is key!
Don’t use too many graphics, movies, sounds, etc that make the page too large in file size – if it takes more than 10 seconds to load you’re going to lose your audience.
Don’t use frames. Search engines cannot navigate outside of the frames and will not be able to access all your content. Frames are also old technology; better alternatives are available through css or at least tables.
Don’t use graphics that flash and distract – because they’re annoying! They can distract from the content that you are trying to provide and make people not want to visit your site.
Don’t try to trick search engines! Avoid things like hidden words (same color text and background), sketchy link-exchange sites, etc. You can get black-listed and taken completely off of search engines!
Don’t use page counters – they can tell your visitors information that they do not need to know and they make you look like an amateur. If you want the information yourself ask your host server for stats or use a tracking system such as Google analytics.
Don’t make people download plug-in’s or programs to view your page. If people have to work to get at the content in your page they will seek it from an easier source.
Don’t use background music! It can be annoying if people are somewhere where they don’t want sound to play and can delay the page from loading.
Don’t use too many colours, particularly bright colours. Just like a flashing graphic can distract, an obnoxiously bright colour or clashing colours can distract as well and make paying attention to your content difficult.
Don’t use too many fonts, font sizes and font styles. Using one font for your header or headings and another for text is fine, but different text on every element of the page just looks busy and sloppy. Fewer fonts can make for a more uniform look. Being consistent with font sizes works much the same way. Font styles, such as bold or strong text, italics, etc, can detract from the message you are trying to get across if overused. Drawing attention to a word or short phrase is one thing, but stylizing a whole paragraph can make it difficult to read.

Some good examples of people that have ignored items such as those above can be found at www.webpagesthatsuck.com.

Top 10 Website Do’s

September 27, 2010 | By Anna Kouwenberg Posted in Web Design

There are many tips and tricks to making a good website. In the next couple of posts we’re going to touch on things to focus on and avoid when designing a great website.

Here are 10, in no particular order – they’re all important – that I am often surprised many people do not pay attention to:

Use major (but not too many) keywords in the title bar & use your meta tags to get your keywords and description out to search engines – and put them on every page! You can, and should, use different title and meta tags on each page that relate directly to the content of that page. Meta tags are tags that you put in the “head” section of your source code that list your keywords and give a brief description of your web-page for search engines to use.
Content is King! Ensure your content is very keyword-rich, but still reads naturally, don’t over-do the keywords, and only supply content that is necessary. If things get too wordy people won’t read it.
Make sure your website is easy to navigate. Main navigation should be static & make sure you have a site map. Any additional navigation that changes depending on content should be in a consistent place with a consistent look. This not only keeps your customers from getting frustrated but helps search engines navigate your page and makes your page accessible for those using assistance devices.
Make sure that your website is visually appealing. It doesn’t matter how easy to navigate, content rich and useful a page is if it’s ugly. If someone doesn’t like the look of a page they’re not going to take the content seriously. Along that note, ensure you design your site appropriately. If you’re a serious corporate company use serious, professional colours not bright crazy colours and childish graphics or clip art!
Make sure that your most important information is “above the fold” (people don’t have to scroll to see it); particularly pay attention to the top left section. People’s eyes tend to travel along the top of the page quickly (where most navigation bars are) then start top left and work their way down.
Title your pictures and graphics well and make sure to put “alt” text (what you get when you mouse-over an image) that describes it well and is as keyword rich as possible. Search engines like this and the descriptions help people who have images turned off or are using assistance devices to view your page.
Design your website to be 800×600 friendly. If someone has to use the right to left scroll bar continually that can be annoying. Yes, many if not most people do have larger resolutions but you also have people that prefer the larger-looking resolution, have an older computer, or have a new laptop that has a small screen.
Create a custom 404 (Page not found) page. This helps with consistency and can give better alternatives to users than a standard blank screen. This can allow you to provide link options that lead back to main pages and keep your customers on your site.
Have contact information, location and business hours listed on your site and easy to find. How frustrating is it to look at a great site for say, a restaurant, be all excited about going but then not be able to find where they’re located, what their hours are or a way to contact them to find out? Don’t leave your customers guessing!
Have a simple domain name. www.abccompany.com is better than www.abc-company-inc.com. Easier to remember and less to type – and easy to guess. Many people will skip search engines for finding you and type your name straight into the title bar.

Keep these items in mind when designing your site and you will have much better success! When in doubt, contact a professional!

ARK Squared Productions