It happens more often than you’d think! I get a call from a new client and they’ve totally lost access to their website. Someone designed it for them, but they weren’t sure how it was set up – they just paid the bills. The Investigation Begins: Step one in the investigation is to figure out where your hosting and domain are located. If you aren’t sure what these things are, check out my article on
So you have registered your domain and picked out a hosting service. Now you’d like to sell something. Here’s where you can have so many options and it’s hard to tell what might be a good fit. One of the things I pride myself on is being able to explain complex systems to people who get bogged down in “tech-speak” and trust me the world of web design is full of “tech-speak”, but the reality
The pitfalls of setting up your small business online: Part 1 Hosting If I could afford to just help out every “little guy” that approached me with their website in an uproar or unreachable and un-updatable or valued at the thousands of dollars for a simple page I would. I’d have to be a non-profit because frankly most of the people have been taken to the cleaners already. As I pondered this today I decided
Primarily we’ve worked with a lot of non-profit organizations that want to take variable donations or have membership fees and all can be problematic when combined with limited sales platforms. Woocommerce is a powerful sales platform that has a lot of plugins that can add options. However, recently we have worked with several clients incorporating Gravity Forms (which can be used to enhance the checkout process with WooCommerce) and with Salesforce. Both platforms can sync
So you have registered your domain and picked out a hosting service. Now you’d like to sell something. Here’s where you can have so many options and it’s hard to tell what might be a good fit. One of the things I pride myself on is being able to explain complex systems to people who get bogged down in “tech-speak” and trust me the world of web design is full of “tech-speak”, but the reality
It’s tempting to curb your marketing budget during an economic downturn and in in some cases it may make sense to turn to lower cost alternatives, but marketing is still important. One of the best ways you can keep on top of your marketing is to make sure your website is up-to-date and working correctly. It’s intimidating sometimes to reach out to get help, but your website is usually your first impression for most customers.
Having an Email newsletter is still one of the best online marketing tools, but starting February 2024, email authentication will be a requirement if you’re sending to Gmail and Yahoo Mail customers. If you’re not familiar with it, Email authentication is a process of verifying the identity of an email sender. If you have your own domain name – like apricitymarketing.com and your own email address (like mary-frances@apricitywebsolutions.com) you will want to send email that
I love working with small companies. These are the small companies who maybe are a tad too big (or not technical enough) to build their own website, but they need a web presence, and it should be an amazingly simple task. These sites often enlist the support of a child, brother-in-law or neighbor create a website for them. There is nothing wrong with this! Most web companies do not even want to touch your site
Over the last year, there have been numerous lawsuits regarding lack of accessibility of websites. In working with my clients, it’s apparent that this is an evolving area that will become more and more necessary for business owners as well as public entities like government and educational institutions to address. According to an article in “The Economist”, the early guidelines were just that websites should create “effective communication” but the actual rules of what that
Until just recently, unhappy customers had two options to complain formally: send a written letter/email, or ask to speak to a manager. Of course, this was in addition to personally telling all their friends about their experience. Along comes social media and now unhappy customers can now announce their complaints to a much larger audience: not only to their friends, but to anyone who’s listening. One statistic says that more than 93% of people shop
I created my first podcast years ago with a show called “Denver Urban Lifestyles”. Along with a marketing friend, we featured neighborhoods in Denver and area events. It was a lot of fun, but a lot of work! However, I’ve had the podcast “bug” ever since. More recently I’ve created and hosted an ongoing podcast for Denver Parent Magazine. It’s a magazine format and I’m in the process of cutting it up and re-releasing it
Primarily we’ve worked with a lot of non-profit organizations that want to take variable donations or have membership fees and all can be problematic when combined with limited sales platforms. Woocommerce is a powerful sales platform that has a lot of plugins that can add options. However, recently we have worked with several clients incorporating Gravity Forms (which can be used to enhance the checkout process with WooCommerce) and with Salesforce. Both platforms can sync
Client Overview Founded in 1998, Blazen Illuminations is a family-owned experiential creative services company renowned for integrating cutting-edge lighting and multimedia technology with theatrical techniques and immersive storytelling. With a focus on cinematic vision, problem-solving engineering, and event management, Blazen produces award-winning, integrated event productions. Their patented media technology positions them as a single-source production partner for clients seeking innovative, immersive experiences. Challenges and Objectives Blazen Illuminations needed a comprehensive digital strategy to support its
Client Overview The Northern Will County Special Recreation District (NWCSRA) in Illinois was formed by merging several organizations dedicated to providing recreational opportunities for individuals with disabilities. As part of their evolution, NWCSRA recognized the need for a cohesive brand identity and an engaging online presence that reflected their expanded mission. To achieve this, they partnered with Campfire Concepts for a comprehensive marketing analysis and rebranding initiative. They then entrusted us with the critical task
Client Overview Founded in 1904 by Julia Lippitt Mauran, Mary Parsons, and eight other visionary women, The Handicraft Club of Providence, Rhode Island, has a storied history rooted in the promotion and practice of traditional crafts. For over a century, this private club has been a haven for artisans, offering classes in basketry, decorative arts, fiber arts, jewelry, needle arts, painting, printing, drawing, and weaving. As the organization grew, so did the need for a