// fathom news

//business technology: christmas 2011

Looking to spruce up your business with a Christmas gift? If you’d like something practical and useful as well as delightful, here’s our pick of the newest must-have office technology essentials...

Zomm Wireless Leash

Logitech K750 Solar Keyboard

Keyboards get old, the keys become sticky and if you’ve traded up to a wireless keyboard you’ll know they eat through batteries. This keyboard, (also available in both PC and Mac versions) has a solar charger so providing there’s a reasonable amount of light in your office – and if not, how do you work? – it stays charged. No more replacing batteries. It can even stay charged if it’s left in darkness for three months. It’s slim and stylish-looking and extremely comfortable to use, which is important. Simple and effective.
£69.99 - www.logitech.com

3 Huawei E586 wireless modem

Whatsapp Messenger

// google analytics redesign

With Google Analytics being one of Google's most useful and widely used products on the internet there is no wonder that its tracking code finds itself embedded in the headers of an increasing number of websites, opening them up to a world of statistics and information.

But with all of this information available how do you avoid the trap of suffering from paralysis by analysis which could could make you sweep this valuable asset under the rug or file it with the 'should use but looks too complex' tools you've been always meaning to give a proper try. There are plenty of resources available to help you get started, including Google Analytics Training courses and with Google's latest revamp of the user interface there hasn't been a better time to find out how numbers can really help your website's performance.

The new Analytical look

Falling in line with many of their other services such as Gmail and Google Docs, Google are in the process of rolling out their new clean, sleek looking interface complete with an orange horizontal navigation bar to switch between views to their Analytics users. Newcomers are helped to avoid any feelings of being overwhelmed they might have felt on first viewing of the old layout with this new shine, however old users may have to dig around a bit to become reacquainted with many of the features they already know and love.

Google's shiny new look has actually been available since April 2011, but many people haven't noticed or have put over switching to avoid relearning a tool they're comfortable with. Hopefully this article will explain why you should make the switch!

If you haven't switched over to the new Analytics interface then simply log in to Analytics and click 'New Version' which can be found at the top right of your screen alongside your email, Settings, My Account, Help and Sign Out. Then make sure you click 'Make new version default' (appears in the same place) to make sure you're always using the new version!

Google have also recently unveiled Google Analytics Premium, a $150,000 a year deluxe version of Analytics for those with deep pockets!

Navigation

There are a few instances where menu items on the left navigation bar will require an extra click to be found due to the new minimalist aesthetic and some data such as "Visitors" is now split into subcategories which are found under "location" and "language".

The new orange bar offers different methods to quickly view your data; with "Home" effectively being your dashboard, "Standard Reporting" being the default Google statistics to browse and "Custom Reporting" giving speedy access to your ready made reports. For those of you who want their data quick and statistics hard these will be the main screens you frequent, especially when you have customised them to show all the key data you want.

What's the view like?

The "Home" dashboard now allows you to insert widgets on to it, meaning you can set up graphs, charts and tables of your most important data ready for your eyes to feast on. There is a widget set up page (shown below) which really lets you sought and sift through data, ensuring you get to see the really meaningful information you need.

Another new feature is the ability to have multiple dashboard pages, so you can really break down that data and group it effectively.

Visualisation has become an increasingly important part of this update, giving users new and inventive ways in which to look at their website's performance. If you want to see exactly what's being clicked on on your site then the "In-Page Analytics" (found under "Content") is for you; showing you data sets such as 'clicks' in neat orange boxes around your content while browsing your own page.

If you want to find out more about what your users are doing on your site then look no further than "Visitors Flow". This new pictorial form of viewing the routes users take through your site is a valuable resource which will help you tighten your funnel and direct users to the places you need them to go.

By arming you with this information you can see the good, the bad and the ugly of your site; namely what content is drawing the most hits, what is under performing and where you are losing your users.

This form of visualization can also be applied to "Goals" with the new "Goal Flow" so you can view your targets in an all new way. Such a system would be ideal for an E-commerce site that want to track it's users through its check out procedure, to ensure that it isn't losing high volumes of users which could hint towards a site or usability issue that needs fixing.

// christmas opening hours

Fathom will be CLOSED for the festive period from Friday 23rd December at 1pm, until Tuesday 3rd January 2012

Please note that during this time, support issues may be submitted by email only to support@fathomgroup.co.uk between the hours of 9:00 am and 5:30 pm on any working day.

Thank you for your custom in 2011. We look forward to working with you in the new year!

// fathom moves to virtualised hosting

Fathom has recently made a six-figure investment into a privately owned and managed virtualised hosting platform, which will benefit both our clients currently on dedicated servers as well as our clients who have shared hosting. Over the course of the next few months we’ll be migrating all clients onto our new technology.

So what does this mean for you? Firstly, our hosting will be more reliable than ever with a significantly reduced risk of downtime from hardware and even software failures. Reboots necessary to install server patches will also take less time which again mean less scheduled downtime. And the super-high specification servers and web acceleration technology will deliver your web site’s pages faster than ever, which will also help with Google and Bing as faster sites equals better rankings.

Our new environment will also allow us to introduce a number of new services to you over the coming months; including fully managed and supported virtual server packages, a web hosting control panel to manage your own web site, detailed management and monitoring of your site, and much more.

Fathom are one of just a handful of full service web agencies to have invested in hosting technology to this level, and our commitment to this helps to secure us as a leader in the industry. Combining our excellence in web design and development with our excellence in hosting means that your web site really is in safe hands.

If you don’t currently host your web site with us or would like to discuss upgrading your hosting, please do call us today on 0845 123 5810 or email us at info@fathomgroup.co.uk

// four steps to building the B2B website of your dreams!

Step 2 – Less is sometimes more! For most B2B companies, simple works best. Don't get so creative that users can't easily find the information they are looking for and make sure you choose a colour scheme and graphics that reflect your brand, industry sector or purpose.

Step 3- Sell solutions, not products. Most site visitors won't have a clue as to which one of your products they need. "Try placing a huge graphic button on your front page that says 'XYZ keeping you up at night? Click here for a good night's sleep.' Then watch the analytics to see how effective it is," she writes.

Step 4 - Keep SEO in mind, but don't be a slave to it. Determine the best 3-5 keywords for your site, and double-check that you used them 2-4 times on each page. If you're writing clearly about your products and services, the optimization process should happen naturally.

The Po!nt: It's all about the user experience. Put yourself in your viewers shoes, and match the look, feel and content of your site to their expectations.

If you’d like to find out more about how Fathom can assist you with your website enhancements, why not email to our expert account managers today or phone on 0845 132 5810 to have a FREE no obligation chat. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

// the power of on-line video

CASE STUDIES: CREATE VIDEO VERSIONS

If you’re committed to creating case studies by going to the trouble of interviewing clients, why not take it one step further by capturing the interview on audio (via the phone) or video (via webcam or live interview)?

Audio recording is easy to do and can be edited into your video as a voiceover. But directly capturing the interview on video is just as easy nowadays and needn't be a logistical nightmare.



WEBINARS: SNIP & EXPAND

Have you delivered webinars? An hour-long webinar can be snipped into several shorter video topics. Taking things further, you can go deeper on key topics from the webinar by creating additional slides. Or, add value by addressing common questions you received before, during, or after the webinar.

"Bookend" the webinar segment with a short introduction and conclusion—in the form of new slides with a voiceover, or a spokesperson from your company speaking on camera.

Supporting Source: Marketing Professionals

// factors to consider when re-designing your website!

WHAT DOES AND DOESN'T WORK CURRENTLY?

Now is the time to go through your site and identify things that simply work well or those that could use improvement. Maybe your content is too verbose or your sales page isn’t very user-friendly. On the other hand, that photo gallery and the blog may be big-ticket items that do really well for your image and bring in lots of traffic. Some elements will need to remain (though possibly given a makeover), some will need to be cleaned up and some will have to go.

HOW IS YOUR SITE BEING USED?

Along these same lines, don’t forget to take a look at how users are currently interacting with your site. This will help you identify great content and problem areas. Study your traffic statistics and site analytics for information on things such as entry and exit pages, sales conversions, and search engine keywords. This will help you to understand how visitors find your site and what they do once they get there.

// how Google + is can boost your site’s SEO

By now you've probably heard about Google+, the latest social networking craze and most recent effort by Google to take on Facebook and Twitter. But did you know that it could affect how your business's website gets found on Google's search engine?

Google's aim with its "+1" button -- the equivalent of Facebook's "Like" button -- is to determine the social value of websites, or, in other words, they want consumers to add personalized recommendations to Web content and business sites.

Since its release on June 28 , more than 20 million people have already jumped onboard Google+.

The most relevant SEO feature is"Google Circles," which gives users the ability to share content with specified groups, or "circles" of people.
As users build these circles, they'll be able to see the sites that members of their circles have +1'd in Google's search engine results pages, or SERPs.

While "+1"s are currently appearing in the search pages for users that are logged in to their Google accounts, it's too early to say exactly how "+1"s will affect users who aren't logged in. Looking at how Facebook and Twitter "Likes" and "retweets" currently affect where a site appears within search pages, one has to assume these +1's will be as influential, if not more.

Google has built upon some of the best features of existing social media sites in an attempt to make search less about computer algorithms and more about real people. Google+ and the +1 button are empowering users to influence other peoples' online activity.

This isn't SEO in the traditional sense, optimizing for these trusted endorsements is an entirely new strategy altogether. Now more than ever, marketers must focus on providing the best customer experience possible, and encourage +1 recommendations everywhere they can.

// be 1 of 3 people to receive a FREE bottle of wine by following us on twitter today!

• Instead of brainstorming sessions and recruiting consultants, Twitter can bring new business ideas that can be used to expand the existing business setup.
  
  

• Brand building is a big challenge and businesses build brands to succeed. Twitter helps in building better brands without having to spend millions on brand building and promotion.
  
  

• Twitter and all the feedback it brings for the business helps the entrepreneur improve the customer service by addressing the complaints of customers and taking action to rectify mistakes and problems.
  
  

• Twitter helps in getting more business to expand the existing one.
  
  

• Twitter enables businesses to go viral
  

• Notifying customers becomes easy through Twitter and this benefits all businesses
  
  

• Finally, Twitter becomes the public face of the business and as the network expands it sends the right signals about the popularity of the business.
  
  

Did you know that Fathom send out daily tweets with hints, tips, hot off the press industry related news, company updates, and many many more useful links.  Why not follow us today and we will send you a complimentary bottle of wine.

// how to lose customers in three easy steps!

Customers provide us with purpose; the reason our businesses exist and can grow to be really successful. But if you’d like to change all that, we’ll show you three easy ways to lose them!

Wanted! One Pre-Loved Web Site!

Have you reviewed your web site recently? Does it look like it could do with some Tender Loving Care? Does the © Copyright still say 2007? Did you know that 9 out of 10 customers will base their decision on the quality of your site (sometimes subconsciously) even if you don’t sell online, and an out of date, tired web site will turn people away?

Is there Anybody There?

Have you interacted with your customers recently? Do you ever send them news updates via post or email about your products and services, offers or your success stories? Losing contact with your customers can be a sure-fire way to lose them to your competition.

Tada! The Disappearing Act

If you search Google for your company, your products or your services, does your web site come up or are you buried somewhere in the pages of results (or not even there at all)? Many customers use the web for research even if they don’t buy online, so if you’re not listed you could be completely off the radar to many potential sales.

// 15 easy steps to website success!

The reason good navigation is important is because if your website
is difficult to travel around(for anyone unfamiliar with it - i.e. new visitors!) then potential customers will rapidly bale out - for the most trivial of reasons.

• Make links blue and underlined like this
• Put your company logo on the top left hand side
• Include a telephone number at the top in an obvious place
• Put the main menu along the top margin
• Include any sub-menus along the left hand margin
• Avoid FLASH or Javascript navigation unless it's vital
• Include a Site Map - usually at the bottom
• Links within the site are important and help SEO
• Search boxes go on the top Right hand side
• Don't bother with splash pages
• Don't use FRAMES if at all possible
• When linking to external sites - open a separate window
• Make any image links look like obvious buttons!
• Check regularly for missing / broken links
• Breadcrumb navigation: In large sites - or sites where you have to "drill down" - very useful to include this e.g. Homepage >> Shop >> Fishing Stuff >> Rods >> Shark Rods

// how a cms can help seo efforts

A content management system (CMS) is not a search engine optimization (SEO) magic bullet, but it can make the SEO job less painful by standardizing format and structure; adhering to best-practices; making it easy to promote internal links; and ensuring easy, flexible integration with analytics tools. Lots of basic SEO checklists start out with the same list of to-dos: use descriptive title tags, use header tags (h1, h2, and so forth), and use a CMS. These are all updateable and maintainable via a good customised CMS.

With a web content management system, this process can be dramatically quicker, as content can be updated in house when required, and much more easily by a third party if not done in house. Not only are maintenance costs lowered with CMS, but your content will be fresh in both your customer's eyes, as well as demonstrating to the search engines that your site is topical and updated. Advanced meta data, alt and title tags can be simply edited through content management system, so you can really keep control of search engine elements.

// top website released this week by fathom

Every month we will now be informing you of our latest projects and websites that we have launched. We are proud to announce the following website re-vamp.

BRADLEY ELLIS

Bradley Ellis is one of the UKs leading GT and sportscar racers. Crowned British GT Champion in 2007, he narrowly missed out on the European FIA GT3 championship title the following year.

His extensive racing experience stretches from the single-seater ranks across the echelons of sportscar racing, including the British Radical Enduro Championship in which he finished third in 2007 despite only contesting selected rounds.

Through his Bradley Ellis Racing performance coaching, Bradley draws on decades of race experience and numerous championship accolades to tutor clients and create champions across a plethora of racing categories while he is also a respected trainer for the MSA Master Classes.

For further information regarding driver coaching:

Telephone: +44 (0) 77 3317 4404

Website: http://www.bradleyellisracing.com

Email: info@bradleyellisracing.com

If you would like us to feature your website next month in our e-news, you can email us at info@fathomgroup.co.uk or call us today on 0845 123 5810

// meet 2 of our new members

Somiya Bhargava joined Fathom in April as a Project Manager, and has a Masters Degree in Software Systems Engineering and has over 3 years delivering complex software / web development projects.

“I am enjoying working in this environment with friendly and helpful team members. I hope to add some valuable insights to the company by giving my full contribution and commitment.”

Danny Hartigan joined us in April as Operations Manager. He is currently in the process of reviewing our internal processes to ensure that we are delivering the best results to our clients.

Danny has over 5 years’ experience in web management and software solutions, bringing with him an enthusiastic approach to the dreaded task of ‘process’.

We are currently recruiting a Web Developer here at Fathom, read vacancy info, so if you know of anybody who may be interested in applying, please ask them to contact Fathom direct on 0845 123 5810 or email their CV to recruit@fathomgroup.co.uk

// so you want to stay ahead of your competition?

1) Meta Tags

Visit their website and right mouseclick on it. Then Mouseclick where it says 'view source'
or 'source code'. There's a load of HTML here but don't worry about that. Just lookout for the lines that say 'Meta Keywords =' or 'Meta Description =' and notice what descriptive words they're using. It gives you an insight into what they want to be found for in the search engines.

2) Monitor Domains & Trademarks

Cool site - www.domaintools.com - tells you all about a domain name and can alert you when someone's using a key phrase(e.g. trademark) that you want to keep an eye one. You can see who owns the domain, what servers they're using
- if they're blacklisted etc.

3) Google Page Rank

This is Google's measure(0=useless, 10=perfect, 2 or 3=average) of your website's popularity. A high page rank means that your competitor's site is well ranked in their search engine as they value the website highly. This is in turn a function of inbound links(See 1) For a slightly different service - but offering good popularity info checkout www.alexa.com

4) Newsletter/Brochures

An obvious one but as usual most people ignore it. Sign up for their newsletters or free stuff and see what they're offering. There's software that enables you to automatically track a competitors' website which can email or text you when they've changes their website, blog or inbound links etc.

5) Who made their website?

Very often there's a link to the web design company. If you're cheeky enough you could simply ask them what the website cost to produce and other details.

// seo - the basics

Fictional business – Townsends Carpet Cleaning Service Location – Nationwide Franchise Typical Customer – Homeowner who uses the service twice a year Goal – To optimise webpages to attract more business

· Website Domain – www.TownsendsCarpetCleaning.com – the domain contains the keyword ‘Carpet Cleaning’, making it easier for the search engines to find.

· Keywords – Carpet cleaning, carpet cleaning service, carpet shampoo, carpet cleaning tips. After extensive research using keyword tools, these are some of the most profitable keywords for the business, ie: most likely to be used in a search. Knowing your best keywords is the essential first step to good SEO.

· Page Titles -Carpet Cleaning Coupons, Carpet Cleaning for Spring. Google sorts by pages, not websites, so each page has a keyword title. This is very important as it tells the search engines what each page is about.

· Metatags -Same as the keywords. These are not as important as they used to be, but they still help along with a brief description of each page.

· Content – Articles, tips and testimonials about carpet cleaning, plus a FAQ. All of these contain optimised keywords that are carefully placed and balanced.

· Link Building – This is the big one. Google is obsessed with incoming links. This business gets good incoming links from quality sites by writing articles, commenting on forums, writing a blog, commenting on related blogs, registering with directories and using social media to promote all the above marketing efforts. Search engines reward good quality incoming links by giving the site a higher page rank.

If this seems like a lot to do – welcome to SEO – and this is just the beginning. Good SEO takes time. We’ll be coming back to SEO frequently in the months ahead. For now, focus on optimising your pages for relevant keywords and building incoming links each month. Then you’ll be well on your way to increasing your search engine listing and attracting more business.

(Source – Chris Cardell.org)

// recent client feedback...

A wonderful service. Easy to use and understand, the staff were very friendly and we were able to get a time that we wanted. The designer was amazing, we did the process over the phone and the internet using a screen sharing website which meant we could see him designing the logo in real time. He did what we asked, gave us a number of options to look at and was able to use a photograph we sent in the design. It was better than we could have imagined and the process only took about half an hour. The prices are excellent and I would use them again and again.

// £100 Voucher Offer from Fathom

Need some new business cards?

Tell us just a few details about yourself and we will give you a £100 Fathom voucher, redeemable against any of your Fathom projects over the forthcoming year.

Simply tell us about yourself to claim your £100 Voucher today

• Promotional offer ends 28th February 2011
  
  
• Redeemable voucher valid up until 31st Dec 2011
  
  
• VAT Offer applies to new & existing Fathom clients
  
  
• Reedemable against invoices exceeding £500 exc.
  

// new technology

Below are the three top new technologies available:

Apple iPad
Price: £429
Pros: An extremely up to date product with a range of programmes available for.
Cons: Can attract alot of unwanted attention.
Size: 9.7in screen.

The iPad still the front runner in the tablet market, and with a recent software update giving it the ability to run more than one programme at once. It has gained a cult following, and parents in particular have taken to it, finding it makes the perfect (if expensive) educational tool for teaching through games. Watch this space as there is a rumour an new updated version will be released soon.

The Googler - Motorola Xoom
Price: TBA, available later this year.
Pros: The software is easy to use.
Cons: Not as many available programmes as what Apple offer.
Size: 10in screen.

The Xoom is arguably the best of the latest breed of iPad killers, and is fast, easy to use and crucially also has a big number of apps available. It's the first tablet to run Honeycomb, a new version of Google's mobile phone software. The screen makes reading books easy, and two video cameras allow you to make video calls as well — meaning you can keep in touch from anywhere.

The writer and the email addict - Samsung TX100
Price: TBA, will be available in March.
Pros: A very unique design.
Cons: Quite large and heavy.
Size: 10in screen.

Samsung has an interesting take on the tablet with this tablet/PC hybrid. It looks like a normal, although somewhat large tablet, but once the screen has been slided open a full keyboard appears, turning it into a fully functional laptop. This product runs Microsoft's Windows 7 software, and is perfect for someone who is constantly emailing.

// the psychology of web design

FIRST IMPRESSIONS
When you see a website for the first time you make an instant judgement on its quality and relevance. Even if it is done subconsciously, we are able to take a fairly accurate impression very quickly. This first impression is then carried over to other parts of the website, like content and professionalism.

LESS IS MORE
The simplest designs are often the best. You don’t want to over-populate any one of your web pages with too much of anything (images, content, etc) and you certainly do not want to make your readers scroll down a page for 30 seconds to find what they are looking for.

COLOUR
The psychology community has conducted studies since the early days of the internet. A study last year showed that websites using shades of blue or brown as their colour themes tend to receive better user response than those with themes of other colours.

WEBSITE TRIGGERS
If turkeys moo are they cows too? What kind of question is that? It’s the kind that made you stop and think. It grabbed your attention. Probably made you shake your head and say, huh? Without realizing it, you just reacted exactly as you were meant too. That, my friend, is psychology at work.

WEBSITE SECURITY
Psychology and website design have always overlapped, even before the first study was conducted. One factor to consider that is common to both fields, and is generally one of the most important factors in either, is security. All humans have a psychological need to feel secure, and on the internet that need is multiplied considerably. Taking this into account, websites must incite a feeling of security within a visitor before they will take any action on your website.

FOCUS
Where is the eyeline on the page? The eye line is the line of site that the eye follows on the page when scanning it quickly – e.g. top left to bottom right, right to top left then down the sidebar, etc.

MEMORABILITY
The challenge has always been memorability. A niche must be created in the mind inspiring people to return. Specific words are used causing the mind to remember the site. It is because of this process sites are bookmarked, remembered, and passed on. Grammatically challenged web sites can be just as successful as perfectly written sites.

// Have you met our new account's manager?

Next time you contact Fathom, you’re most likely to deal with Tom, our new Account Manager. He is the one who picks up inbound enquiries, does all client liaison including site visits, and prepares quotes and technical documents. He joined us in September after working in a marketing company in central London.ter working in a marketing company in central London.

Outside work, Tom likes to cook, go to the cinema and theatre, and is thinking of taking up swimming since he doesn’t get the chance to play football any more. He doesn’t support any particular team. “I just support good football!” he says.

Tom’s main message to clients is: “Relax, you’re in good hands with Fathom!”

// Get Into 'Sleep Mode'

We're increasingly dependent on our mobile phones during the day, but it seems they may not be doing us any favours at night.

If you use your phone for a goodnight chat in the hour before bedtime, studies have found that you may experience insomnia and headaches, as well as reducing the time you spend in deep sleep.

"There is more than sufficient evidence from a large number of reputable investigators who are finding that mobile phone exposure an hour before sleep adversely affects deep sleep."
Dr Chris Idzikowski, director of the Edinburgh Sleep Centre

It seems your sleep can also be disturbed if you leave your phone on your bedside table, too close to your head.

If you use your mobile phone as an alarm clock, we suggest you place it safetly on the other side of the room. This makes it even more effective, because you'll have to wake up and get out of bed to turn it off when the alarm goes!

One last tip for a good night's rest - it's not recommended to check your laptop just before you go to bed, because the light it emits from the screen is also though to interupt sleep patterns.

// Half Price SEO Offer

We'll analyse your organic traffic and recommend terms where small gains in the listings will give you big gains in traffic.

For a limited time only, we’ll optimise your website for 10 keywords when you pay for 5. With our search engine skills, we’ll guarantee you’ll appear in the organic search engine listings for these 10 keywords andso get more traffic (and hopefully, more conversions).

TO APPLY FOR THIS OFFER PLEASE CONTACT US