For the Beginners: A “check-in” is when a person uses their Smart Phone to share their location to their friends via a mobile app like Foursquare or Facebook. So a customer could check-in to your establishment, basically announcing their loyalty of your business to their friends. The apps usually allow users to tag friends,  add a photo, comment or tip.  This is part of Location-Based Marketing, and with the surge of Smart Phone usage, is becoming increasingly more popular and effective. No matter what your location, word-of-mouth and customer loyalty matters. But, why will your customers check-in?  You need to give them a reason – by offering a Special or Deal, whether it is targeted to first-time check-ins, after a certain number of check-ins, or to the mayor (whoever has checked-in to your business the most).

Local 4Square Check-in Specials:

• Affiliated Community Medical Center, Willmar, MN – Discount off purchase of eye wear with check-in
• Fieldstone Vineyards, Redwood Falls, MN – Free glass of wine with your first, and every tenth check-in
• Walgreens, Willmar, MN -With every check-in, a chance to win a $200 gift card
• Vivid Image, Hutchinson, MN – Free Seminar when you check-in 3 times
• Remax Preferred Realty, Olivia, MN – Free Re/Max Coffee Mug for first 10 check-ins

 Local Facebook Check-in Deals:

• Pep’s Barber Shop, Willmar, MN – $3.00 off haircut
• Stacy’s Nursery, Willmar, MN – 25% off one regular priced item
• Redwood Area Community Center, Redwood Falls, MN – Check in at RACC and get a free day pass

*All specials/deals were active at one point but are not guaranteed to still be running. If you check-in to a business who has a special or deal, be sure to tell them that you like seeing them there!  Let your favorite businesses know that you enjoy checking in!

If you like the idea of having your customers check-in, ask yourself, “what is in it for them?” Offering a check-in deal will reward your loyal customers and potentially bring in new business. If you are considering running a incentive for checking-in, be sure to promote it within your store, on your website, and through your other social media sites.  The best part about setting up a check-in special or deal, is that besides the reward that you give the customer, it is FREE.

Interested in learning more about Mobile Marketing?  Download this free white paper “Simple Mobile Marketing” or  contact us. Or better yet, Stop in to Vivid Image in Hutchinson, MN, and check-in!

Did I miss a business in your area who is using Foursquare or Facebook check-ins to their fullest potential?  Please tell us what they are doing in the comments below!

Pinterest is a “virtual pinboard” or “image social bookmarking” tool so instead of using only tags or words to find and save what interests you, you just browse and pin images.  Pinterest is kind of like a virtual marriage between Flickr and Delicious with an extra twist of creativity. Pinterest makes it easy to quickly scan photos (most that link back to DIY blogs) until something catches your eye. Plus it is functional – you can use it as a bookmarker and organize your pins into boards (your custom categories).  For instance, some of my Pinterest boards are “Social Media Stuffs“, “Things Kids are Made of“, and “Eat Me”. When users (pinners) pin something, they can also choose to share it on their other social networks (Facebook and Twitter) at the same time which sets the sharing factor into overdrive.

You can search for all types of creative items on Pinterest and usually find oodles of fun things to look at.  However, most of the items that get “pinned” on Pinterest are very “pretty” and have to do with style, décor, food, and crafts and link to a “how to” tutorial, recipe, or blog.   So it is not a surprise that the majority of heavy users on Pinterest right now are females  - brides to be, fashionistas, and artists of handmade crafts whether for a hobby or business (i.e. many sellers on the Etsy marketplace).

Before you decide that Pinterest is not for you, consider if and how your product, service or blog would  be displayed on your customers’ “Products I Love” or “Gift Ideas” boards, as an example.  If you have a  product that displays beautifully in a photograph, Pinterest could be an opportunity to network with a creative community, drive traffic back to your website, and possibly create sales. In fact, I have had some of my Facebook friends comment that in addition to getting great DIY projects and recipes, they have made purchases or started following blogs, as a result of following Pinterest links.

Although Pinterest does not have pages specifically  for brands yet, many brands are doing it well and fitting right in without being obtrusive. One nice feature of Pinterest is that users can follow specific boards from people, without following everything from people they follow, which helps create a unique user experience.  There are many creative ways that you can use Pinterest for your business or personal brand (depending on what type of business you are in). Photographers, artists, retailers, interior designers, and graphic designers are just a few of the general areas where Pinterest could be a great fit. The possibilities are endless if you have an amazing idea or product, are good with a camera, and of course, a zest for social media.

Here are some examples of brands on Pinterest:
Whole Foods
Real Simple
Unity Stamp Company
Travel Channel
Nordstrom

Get Started

1. Request a Pinterest invitation from their website or a Pinterest friend (or email me!)
2. Complete your Pinterest Profile- You will be able to display an avatar, bio, website, Facebook (will link to a personal profile only right now), and Twitter account on your profile which can help connect people to your brand and your other social networks.
3. Link your Pinterest to your Facebook account so you can easily invite or be notified of when your Facebook friends join Pinterest.
4. Search for items to Pin, Like and Comment  and follow pinners that interest you personally or are related to your business or website’s niche.
5. Start inviting people through your email list or Facebook.  Pinterest is still invite only, so go ahead and invite your friends!

4 Ways to Pin Images

1. Browse or search the images already in Pinterst and “Repin” or “Like” onto your boards.
2. Upload images from your computer. In Pinterest, goto Add, then upload a pin. This is easy and fast, but one disadvantage is that you don’t get the link back to your website (unless you add it manually, and it is relevant to the pin).
3. Make it easy to pin while searching the web: Download the “Pin it” Button into your browser to make your pinning easier.
4. Download the Pinterest app for your iPhone, so you can easily take photos and pin your images, on-the-go.

4 Ways to Get Re-Pinned & Shared

1. Take stunning photographs and add captions, @mentions, #tags, or $prices.  When you @ mention a friend they will get notified, and when you add a $ price banner and it will automatically go in the gifts category.
2. Organize your Pins into interesting and unique boards that will help you create your niche.
3. Make it easy to be pinned: Add Pinterest follow buttons and promote your Pinterest profile on your blog to make it easy for your readers to share and connect with you.
4. Engage with other pinners – follow, comment, re-pin and like their pins. Build relationships just like you would in other social network like Facebook or Twitter. Search out and recognize your customers and friends– for instance if you find a pin of your customer using your  product or displaying your DIY project, repin it on your board with a comment, showing  appreciation for the purchase or adaption.

Pinterest is fun, inspiring, and growing like crazy! You may find it is a great fit for your personal creative side, for your business/blog or both.  Do some pinning and determine if your products have the niche (products that are pretty or cool and photograph well) and target market (currently 60% of Pinners are women ages 25-44) that melds nicely with Pinterest, and have fun.

If you have tried Pinterest, what did you think?  How have you used it for personal or business use? Do you see potential for your business or blog?

Two Key Components of Setting your Goals:

1)      Write your goals down. You hear people say this all the time, but some studies suggest that only 2% of people actually write down their goals. Writing your goals down makes it concrete and tangible and creates motivation to do it. If you don’t write it down, you lose focus on what your goals are, and your goals become more of dreams (most resolutions do not get written down at midnight with champagne in your hand).

2)      Keep your goals SMART. This is difficult to do but helps you clarify your goals, especially for business or marketing purposes. When writing goals, it is OK to start with a draft, then re-write or evaluate to make sure it fits the SMART model. Try to keep the goal positive (resolutions tend to be more negative or about stopping a bad habit). A SMART goal fits these criteria:

S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Attainable
R – Realistic
T – Timely

Example Goals to Kickstart SMART Goal Writing:

Make more Connections

If you want to grow your network in 2012, there are many great ways to do it, whether you join a local organization or a broader industry-related group of like-minded people. Beyond our local communities, there are opportunities with networking via social media through Linkedin, Facebook, or Twitter.

SMART Goal Example: Grow personal Linkedin network to 200 connections by June 30, 2012.

Learn Something New

Whether you attend a class at Vivid Image, read a few new books, or subscribe to your favorite marketing blog’s RSS feed, there are tons of way to learn new skills in social media, web marketing, business, or whatever new venture or hobby you want to pursue.

SMART Goal Example: Attend 4 WordPress and Social Media seminars or webinars by the end of 2012.

Get Organized

Managing a business or even a family can require an immense amount of organization. There are many great social media and web tools to help you stay organized, such as Evernote, HootSuite, Constant Contact, and WordPress Editorial calendar just to name a few. When time and/or focus is needed in a specific area such as social media management or blogging, you could also consider hiring Vivid Image to help with the workload and offer insight.

SMART Goal Example: Plan an annual blogging Editorial calendar and write weekly blog posts that will lead to a 10% increase in blog traffic.

Help Others

Whether you volunteer with your favorite organization or just help friends and family out during their time of need, charity feels good all around. Do you have skills or knowledge that you can share with others?  Maybe just providing little things like a referral, a recommendation, or support via a blog comment or feedback can be a tremendous boost for someone.

SMART Goal Example: Support my favorite businesses and professionals by providing at least one written recommendation or referral monthly.

Grow your Sales

Above all, the first goal for most businesses is to grow their sales, because without a healthy bottom line, the rest of the goals become harder to tackle (here are some low cost marketing ideas for small budgets). Through building relationships online and off, creating valuable website content for customers, and creating products and services that people love and recommend, your business will achieve success.

SMART Goal Example: Increase overall sales by 20% over last year.

Start Now

SMART goals that are written down and shared within your organization (when business related) or with your spouse or family (when personal) can help create a team effort and support system.  Make sure to review them periodically or post in a spot where you will see them often. Go ahead and make adjustments and carry over goals to the next year as needed. With persistence you will reach the goals that once started as only dreams.

Do you think writing down goals makes a difference?  Will you be tackling your goal setting differently this year? What goals are you trying to achieve?

Website: http://www.claycoyote.com/
Blog: http://www.claycoyoteblog.com/

Making pottery may sound like a hobby, but for Tom and Betsy it is their business and passion.  Between them and another potter, they produce nearly 5000 pots per year.  70% of that work is sold on their website but Clay Coyote also has a store front in Hutchinson, Minnesota. Their work focuses on pieces for everyday use; such as casseroles, vases, tableware, oil lamps, mugs, bowls, etc.  Recently Clay Coyote added a flameware line of cookware that will withstand direct flame cooking, making them one of only four potteries in the US doing handmade flameware.

As one of Vivid Image’s earliest customers, Clay Coyote has gone through several website redesigns and added a blog, where they write about pottery, food, and cooking. They also have a fun “travel mug” photo blogs featuring a Clay Coyote mug in different parts of the world.  Clay Coyote is very in-tune to their target audience and keywords since they have highly specialized customer segments and a competitive market.   For Clay Coyote, a key reason for choosing Vivid Image was because they were a local Southwest Minnesota business.  Tom values the face-to-face communication with the Vivid Image team and sees things happen quickly. He remarks, “Our last team had a good sense of urgency on tasks.”

Tom, who has a background in marketing and advertising, looks back to when they first brought their business online, “We started the website in 1998 as a catalog so people who saw us at shows could refer to it and then call to order (this was four  years before the online shopping cart).” Clay Coyote was ahead of the curve with technology and found that many people still wanted a printed catalog sent to them.  But by October 2001, they noticed a shift when women starting shopping on the internet. Clay Coyote adapted quickly and again teamed up with Vivid Image to add a shopping cart to their website.

Clay Coyote has come a long way since their first website in 1998 and adding a shopping cart in 2001. They recently worked with Vivid Image to upgrade to the e-commerce platform called Volusion. Although the transition to Volusion was challenging, overall they have found it to make a positive difference to their business.  Tom has noticed, “Our employees who work on Volusion, like it compared to what we had previously for managing and editing our e-commerce business.”

“Our employees who work on Volusion, like it compared to what we had previously for managing and editing our e-commerce business.”

Today, the majority of Clay Coyote’s business comes from their e-commerce website. Tom explains, “It’s taken awhile, but we’re finally getting up into the 65-70% of overall sales coming from the web.  75% is probably going to be tops since we are limited in supply.”

Clay Coyote is a remarkable company that we are proud to work with over the years. Check out Clay Coyote’s awesome pottery, Like Clay Coyote on Facebook, or follow Clay Coyote on Twitter!

Check out the clever and cute commercial below, where Santa asks Siri for weather updates, directions, and emails of naughty & nice lists. I love the whole thing, but Siri saying, “you have 3.7 billion appointments” tops it off.

By the way, did you notice that nowhere in that ad were the words “iPhone” or “Siri” mentioned? This is the kind of subtle attention-getting commercial that we expect from Apple.

Smart phones (and yes, I undoubtedly lean towards Apple products) have changed the way we communicate and stay connected in more ways than we can imagine. As marketers, we need to think about how we can reach our customers on their mobile device, in addition to how we can use our Smart phones to serve our customers better.

Just for fun, going back to my pal Santa…

Imagine how else Santa could use his iPhone 4S:

1. Check-in on Foursquare for (you could offer a Special of extra cookies and milk at your house!)
2. Connect with new elves and toy makers and build the “Santa” brand on Linkedin
3. Send a tweet about his dirty chimney experiences
4. Do some price comparisons to make sure his elves are staying competitive
5. Leave a review for the restaurant that made that amazing hot cocoa for his commute home
6. Scan a QR code on a real estate sign while making his Florida deliveries (off-season vacation)
7. Facetime with Mrs. Claus to tell her what time he will be home
8. Manage his Naughty and Nice list in Evernote
9. Use Instagram to take funny photos of his reindeer
10. Do a Google search the nearest lumber yard so his elves can have supplies for next years toymaking

The Apple iPhone and iPads are sure to be popular Christmas gifts this year, whether they are delivered by Santa himself or generous friends or family. Great mobile devices and apps expanding the number of people who are searching, shopping and socializing while on-the-go.  Mobile marketing should be an essential part of most marketers plans of action as we move into the new year.

Do you think an iPhone or iPad is under your Christmas tree? How else would you use your iPhone if you were St. Nick? Is mobile marketing part of your 2012 marketing plan?

Photo Credit: netzkobold

Marketing Methods to Spread Christmas Cheer

Traditional Christmas Cards: Traditional Christmas cards can make a lasting impact when they have messaging that fits your companies personality and beliefs.  A photo of your employees, a Christmas “letter” with a special message, and real signatures can set your card apart from the others.

Bike-themed Christmas cards from Skeese Greets are fun!

Creative Christmas Cards: Creative Christmas cards are the icons that stay on a reception desk or bookshelf all year long because no one wants to throw them away.  Think of how you can make your Christmas card 3D, a tree ornament, or have other “staying” power.

Email: Email programs like Constant Contact make sending out holiday greetings and email newsletters a breeze. You can wish a Merry Christmas to your customers without spending the cost of postage or addressing envelopes. You can also include videos, a Christmas sale flier, coupons, or links to relevant blog post.

Giving: Christmas is about giving, and what better way to celebrate then by donating money or goods to a local food shelf, family in need, or charitable organization. Whether you choose to give as a company or match employee donations, or give anonymously or share the news, the end result is equally awesome.  Giving a donation to a group in need could be a substitute to printing and mailing Christmas cards, especially if your list is large.

Video: You can get really creative with creating a video message for the Christmas season.  I have seen many over the years (such as the Office Max’s Elf Yourself) that were very engaging.   EasyStand has a fun “Christmas Movie Trivia” video campaign this year that ties YouTube videos into Facebook engagement (“Like” the EasyStand Facebook page to check it out).

Facebook: You can grow your fan base with a Christmas promotion on Facebook.  For instance, you could run a Christmas sweepstakes, where a merchandise prize is awarded to the winner.  Another promotion idea that pairs beautifully with “giving” is to donate $1 to a worthy organization for every new “Like” within a certain time period.  A campaign like this could grow virally, but can also expand your reach when combined with a targeted Facebook advertising campaign.

Blogging: How does the nature of your business tie-in with Christmas?  Blogging about Christmas topics can help shed new light on topics related to the season.  Some examples of Christmas blogging topics are Chappell Central (who provides HVAC  products and services) blogging about Christmas Safety & Energy Efficiency and Harmony Enterprises (who manufactures industrial balers for recycling) blogging about 10 Ways to Recycle & Minimize Water this Christmas Season.

Best of all, you can take a handful of these ideas and use them together for an even greater impact. However you are wishing  your customers a Merry Christmas, make it meaningful and fun!

Merry Christmas from everyone at Vivid Image!

What does your business do reach out to your customers during the Christmas season? How has your methods evolved over the years? Does what your doing catch peoples’ attention?

Creativity (the idea)

Remember that great idea you had in the shower last week? Or the new spin to the tactic that worked five years ago? Creative ideas can be big or small, short-term or long-term, custom-created for your business, and your industry. How do you get creative? Sometimes the idea just comes. Other times you need to work REALLY hard at creativity: Put your brainstorming hat on. Read. Have a designated place to write down your thoughts, no matter where you are. Take a break, and then come back. Change your environment. Exercise your body and brain. Think like a kid. Share your ideas with others who are creative and see where it goes. And do it all again until the creative solution is there.

Consistency (the plan & action)

Writing down a goal or plan makes it concrete. Reviewing your plan frequently helps you focus on the tasks the you need to do to achieve that goal. Show your customers that you “walk the talk” by giving them the quality they expect and over and above. Your marketing messaging also needs to be consistent to stick. Consistency in your marketing and actions help reduce customer confusion. When the customer is clear about who you are and what you stand for, you will gain customer loyalty and trust.

Connections (the people)

More than ever in today’s social marketing landscape, connections and knowing your target audience are key. Who you are connected with – in real life, in your customer file, on Facebook, Linkedin, and Twitter truly defines your community. These are all the people who can help you build referrals, tell your story, and recommend your products and services. Giving back to your connections can help build trust and credibility. Marketing is relationships. Your relationships today can bring you new connections (and customers) tomorrow. Continue to build, nurture, and grow your connections in a meaningful way.

If you have Creative ideas, a Consistent marketing plan (and action to back it up), and you are nurturing your Connections online and offline, you are on the road to marketing success.

What do you think? Is it that simple? It’s not as clear cut as the 4 P’s of Marketing, but the 3 C’s of Marketing work for me.

Six Black Friday Social Media & Mobile Trends:
(and a few tips for shoppers!)

1. Facebook Ads – Many big brands ran Facebook ads this year with a direct link to their Black Friday Sales Flier.  It seems that Facebook made their real-time ticker show sponsored stories just in time. Since this change happened Monday, I saw when my friends liked “sponsored stories” from brands like Best Buy, Toys R Us, and Target right before the Black Friday rush, and “Liked” a few myself as a result.
2. Exclusive Coupons for Facebook Fans – Many local stores are offering their Facebook fans sweet deals to say “thanks” for their loyalty or referrals.  For instance, Factory Direct Furniture in Hutchinson has a “Facebook VIP” coupon with a $25 value.  The Stash in Waconia is giving their customers a 20% off coupon for every new Facebook Fan they recommend. Check out your favorite stores’ Facebook pages before shopping to see if they are offering any “Facebook Fan Only” coupons.
3. Mobile Coupons – Last year, a survey found that 4.5% Black Friday shoppers used their phone for Black Friday Shopping, and in 2011, 15%  and more shoppers are planning on using their phone to find deals. The are some great Smart Phone apps for coupons, such as the Coupon Sherpa app which has  valuable coupons for stores like GNC, Bath & Body, Dunham’s and JoAnn Fabrics just to name a few.
4. Comparison Shopping Via Bar Codes/QR Codes – Ensure that your Smart Phone is equipped with an app that will let you compare prices from different offline and online retailers quickly.  I use Red Laser which has worked great to scan items for more information, or to see if their price is competitive. Another clever use of QR codes this holiday season is the JCPenney Santa Tags – See the video of how it works here.
5. Check-ins with FourSquare – If you have not been using your Foursquare account, now is a great time to start checking back in.  Lots of stores have Foursquare check in deals for Black Friday including JCPenney, Aeorpostale, Toys “R” Us, and Macy’s.  Foursquare has also teamed up with American Express to offer deals at hundreds of thousands small businesses on Small Business Saturday.
6. Shopping Small – There were many big brands who have Promoted Tweets on Twitter, but one that stood out to me was the #ShopSmall Promotion -  an extension of last year’s popular Small Business Saturday started by American Express.  Their quest is to get people to pledge to shop small and it has worked. They are getting consumers and business owners talking about it all over the web.  I was happy to see in today’s West Central Tribune, a cover story was about a local small business and the message of the national “Small Business” campaign.

Remember, there are many great local stores that sell online too, such as We Got Green, Clay Coyote Pottery, and Solid Rock Jewelry, just to name a select few.  Gift certificates for the local theater, car washes, hair salons, or other professional services are also a great way to support or local economy.

How are you doing your Christmas shopping this year? Are you braving the busy department stores or keeping it more low-key with small businesses and online shopping? What  other creative mixes of social media and holiday shopping have you seen?

Here are 10 Facebook Event Marketing Tips (And a Bonus!):

1. Give it a photo: If you have access to a graphic designer, make a custom picture that pulls together your brand’s event with a graphic or picture of a person. Otherwise, find an engaging photo that is eye-catching and inviting. The ideal size for an Facebook event photos is 200 pixels wide by 296 pixels tall. Whatever you do, don’t leave the default graphic.
2. Invite some Facebook friends, but NOT everyone: Be selective with who you invite and include a personal message. Think quality over quantity – are there some friends you should invite with a personal message or email? This may get their attention and help build a lasting relationship, which is what social media marketing is all about.
3. Encourage sharing: Social media is all about word-of-mouth, and people will want to go to the same party that their friend is going to! Remind people to share your event on social networking sites and blogs.
4. Connect with Partners: If you have vendors or partners that are taking part in the event, work with them to cross-promote the event, especially if they are active on Facebook. Tagging them in status updates or photos helps keep them connected and part of the event promotion.
5. Give them a reason to RSVP: What is the benefit for your attendees to RSVP? Do they get access to something special, entered in a drawing, or VIP access? Give them a reason to take the extra step.
6. Promote on your Facebook Page’s profile picture: Use the image on your Facebook Page to promote the event. Remember, the maximum space that you have here is 180 pixels wide by 540 pixels tall –don’t be afraid to use it.
7. Give all the details: When describing the event, provide all the details you can, even if you have to add them as it gets closer to the event. This gives you lots of possible hooks that may be just what your “Maybe” attendees need to make the decision to attend (professional event organizers and event planners know this secret!)
8. Use other Social Media Marketing- Your event, whether an in-person or a virtual networking event, can get a more exposure when you promote it through your blog and other social media channels such as Twitter, Linkedin, and Google+. Look closely at all your social networking avenues to see how it can be integrated.
9. Talk about it on your Wall - There are lots of ways to do promote the event while still providing engaging content on your page as well. On your wall, you can mention/tag the event by proceeding it with the @ sign. You can also share things like “Top 10 reasons for attending”, photos, or questions to get people talking. Of course, you will also want to promote it on the event’s wall, as well, to keep the people who have been invited updated.
10. Promote with a Facebook Ad: When you create a Facebook event, you can also create a Facebook advertisement that links directly to that event. Facebook advertising has some amazing potential because you can get the ad in front of new people. Ads can target people based on their location, interests, and even friends. For instance, a Facebook ad could be placed in front of “Friends of Friends” with a link that says: [Your Friends Name] is attending.

And a Bonus —> Mix it up with integrated marketing: Facebook marketing can do a lot to spread the word of mouth for your event. But, depending on the nature of your even, you may also want to tie-in other traditional marketing. Email blasts, fliers, or direct mail may help you to gain new “Likes” and “RSVP’s” on Facebook if there is a compelling “reason to RSVP” (see #5).

With these ten ways of promoting your Facebook Event (and probably many others I have missed) I think you will agree that the key to successfully promoting an event on Facebook is having diverse methods (many that are social media marketing) of reaching a targeted audience.

Are you envisioning some ways that promoting your event on Facebook can enhance your overall marketing strategy or make event planning easier? Have you promoted an event through your Facebook page? What marketing tools and tactics worked well for you?

Photo Credit: nickoneill

Here is a basic, but important website maintenance checklist that also includes links to blog posts with more detailed information.

Daily/Weekly Website Maintenance Tasks:

1. Login to your WordPress website daily to check for completed customer forms.
2. Fix any broken links weekly.
3. Write one blog post or put time into new content development for you website weekly.

Monthly/Quarterly Website Maintenance Tasks:

1. Review your website statistics (i.e. Google Analytics) monthly and take action when needed.
2. Review your local search visibility with Google, Bing & Yahoo quarterly.
3. Review and tweak title tags and search engine optimization quarterly.
4. Sign up for additional training sessions at Vivid Image on WordPress, blogging or social media quarterly.
5. Test & tweak forms and automated messages quarterly- If you have forms on your website, you need to review them to make sure they are working properly and are collecting the information that you need.  Remember, the fewer fields you have in a form, the more likely you will receive lead conversions. But, with less fields, the leads will probably be less qualified.
6. Test your website on new web browsers quarterly – Web browsers are updated frequently and sometimes it affects how your website will display. To make sure that your website is compatible with the latest browsers, visit browsehappy.com and download the latest browsers.  View and navigate your site in each browser to ensure it is up to your standards.

Yearly Website Maintenance Tasks:

1. Update time references and copyright in footer of your website or other locations.
2. Review each page on your website for consistency (fonts, photo sizes, grammar & copywriting).
3. Evaluate your active email accounts and delete unnecessary ones.
4. Review your website domain names and expiration.
5. Schedule an annual (or quarterly) to review your overall web strategy with your project manager.

If you have questions or need help with any of these tasks, please contact your Project Manager. We would be happy to provide you with solutions to making sure these necessary website maintenance tasks get done so that your internet marketing is successful.