Charlotte Web Design Advertising Tips

Web design is all about driving traffic, without traffic to a site no e-commerce or brand awareness can occur. So your biggest concern when advertising on the web or designing a web site is how you are going to drive traffic to specific pages within your web site. Obviously some form of online advertising is suggested, but there are so many options out there that this can get overwhelming. When you add in the industry terms like PPC (Pay per Click), SEO (Search Engine Optimization), CMS (Content Management System), etc. it just becomes a blur of acronyms and Internet babble. At CGR Creative we do our best to simplify the process. Our clients run the gamut from Internet savvy professionals to novice business owners that know they, "just need a good web site." No matter what your level of expertise we can help make your online based advertising more successful.

We have compiled a list of Web Advertising Tips that we think are the core of a good online campaign. These represent tried and true ways to increase traffic to your site whether it has been around for years or weeks, and while CGR Creative is based in Charlotte, North Carolina these tips will work no matter where you are located!

CGR Creative's Web Design Advertising Tips

1 Update and maintain your website in every way possible using blogs, social media, online articles, etc. Basically branding yourself within your market.

2 Contribute to any and all reputable online forums, groups, or associations within your market. Many of these exist online and it is therefore easy to maintain a more constant presence than with traditional groups.

3 Always collect the name and email addresses of visitors to your business, trade shows, or your web site. Send these contacts relevant updates and a company newsletter.

4 Make sure your site and other marketing efforts provide honest and useful information so that your clients begin to view your company as a resource.

5 Write reviews on products and services in your specific market to establish your name or brand. This will bring about trust if you take your time and are honest.

6 Submit press releases about anything new happening at your company or within your market. This will help keep your name in the headlines of your market.

7 Get feedback and input from your customers. Send out surveys, comment cards, calls for response, etc. The more engaged they are the more likely they are to do business with you. Plus if you ask them they will tell you what they want to buy!

Again these tips are really just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to online advertising, but they represent low cost ways to establish your brand. At CGR Creative we work with all our clients to help place their business exactly where they want it. Call us today to see what we can do for you!

Charlotte Web Design Specialists CGR Creative Lists Six Questions your Business Should Answer Before Designing Your Website

Charlotte’s Web Design specialists CGR Creative explains the importance behind answering these six questions before designing your company’s website. CGR takes pride in taking the time to fully research a client’s market and industry before beginning any creative project. Located in the historic South End neighborhood of Charlotte, North Carolina, CGR Creative has been quietly cranking out some of  the best web design in the Country.

CGR Creative’s Six Web Design Questions

Who is your client? It is critical that you identify your target market. This is not as simple as it sounds. Often business owners make assumptions about their market that do not stand up to investigation. Knowing your core demographic can inform design decisions and directly influence the effectiveness of your web site.

What problem are you solving? In order to be really successful you must solve a problem for your customers. Your first job is to inform your audience about the problem and then direct their attention to your ingenious solution. The more dramatic the problem the more valuable your solution becomes.

What is your core service or product? What product or service are you most interested in selling? Often this is not the most or least expensive option you have available. At the movies this is called MEDIUM. What product or service has the highest profit to effort ratio? In other words what is your company best at?

What is your USP? Why should they buy from your company? If you can’t answer this question you need to reevaluate your marketing plan. What makes your cookie better? Does it taste better? Is it healthy? Is it made locally? Does it float? Can I see through it? Many times the Unique Selling Point does not have to make a whole lot of sense. Ivory soap designed a marketing campaign about the fact that their soap has more air than their competitors. Ivory soap floats in water… so obviously it’s better!

What is your call to action? Now that you have their attention, what do you want them to do? Should they call your 800 number? Should they, “Click here Now?” Do they need to visit your showroom in order to be sold? You must decide exactly what you want your customers to do and then ask them to do it. Most restaurants do not want you to email their manager. They really don’t want you to fax them either. They either want you to show up and eat or to call and order take-out.

What are the objections you must overcome? Finally what are the likely objections someone might have before making a buying decision? Can you lay the groundwork for overcoming those on your website? If price is a concern you should provide comparisons right on your site. If service is a potential problem you should provide some sort of warranty or quality assurance. If style or size could pose a problem address this clearly and have a return policy that clearly and politely states your guidelines.

Answering these six questions can literally put your business on the map, and you need to do that before you put it on the web! Give CGR Creative a call today to see how we can help meet your business' design needs.

 

 

 

 

Today Julio Colmenares of our very own CGR Creative addressed a luncheon crowd on the topic of new media and web design. One of the questions from the audience was, "What are the top 10 things you can do do get your site ranked higher on Google?" Julio explained how each of these ideas work and how to gain maximum benefit from them. We think that question was worth addressing again here on our blog, so here is your Top 10 list of Search Engine Optimization Tips:

10. Titles - Each page within your site should have a unique title that is relevant to your business and the content on that particular page.

9. Keyword Rich Content - Every page should have at least 250 words of plain text that contains the relevant keywords from your page title. It is best if those keywords are mentioned in the first few lines.

8. Don't Use Frames - Frames prevent search engines from searching the content on your site. If you view the source of your web page and you don't see the content of your page your site is hiding that content from search engines.

7. Don't Use Graphics in Place of Text - Search engines can't search the content of pictures yet, so they can't read your cool graphic that explains what your business is about. Use plain HTML text throughout your site.

6. Avoid Flash Heavy Content - Just like pictures, search engines can't read the content of Flash files, but worse many browsers and even more mobile phones can't see Flash files at all.

5. Tag All Your Media Files - For the pictures and graphics you do have on your site, make sure you fill out their alt tags and meta tags as completely as possible. Be sure to repeat your keywords here as well.

4. Don't Create Outgoing Links - Outgoing links send search engines the message that your content is not as valuable as that of the pages you are linking to. You never want to have more outgoing links than you have incoming.

3. Create Incoming Links - Incoming links make your content look more valuable. Search engines will begin to treat your site more like an expert on your subject with every additional incoming link. Social media can really help here.

2. Keep Page Viewers Occupied - Search engines actually monitor how long viewers stay on your site. So, make sure all your pages have visually pleasing, fast loading, interesting content.

1. Update Your Content Regularly - The best way to keep moving up the search engine ladder is to continually update your content. This keeps your site looking valuable to search engines and it promotes new visits from existing viewers which also increases your rankings.

Charlotte based CGR Creative is a full service advertising agency offering cutting edge Web Design and more. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

Julio Colmenares of CGR Creative to Speak About New Media in Charlotte

 

Thursday, May 20, 2010 Julio Colmenares, Chief Creative Officer of CGR Creative, will be speaking at Working Charlotte Magazine's Lunch and Learn Series. Join us on May 20, 2010 and learn how to leverage technology to build awareness of your company.

 

What 'new media' means changes rapidly so the question becomes, "how can I keep current without going crazy or bankrupt?" The answer is simple, "Jump In!" Learning to swim requires that you get in the pool. You can research, compare, look to your competitor, etc. but eventually you must get wet. Julio Colmenares teaches you how to take control of new media and promote your business! Join us for a Business-to-Business Lunch & Learn designed specifically with you in mind, Charlotte's small and medium sized business owners. Let's grow your business! Attending this event only costs $19.50!

 

The event will be held from 11:30 to 1:00 at Vivace Italian Restaurant in Charlotte. Vivace offers five star quality at 3 star prices with excellent presentation and service.

 

About CGR Creative: Charlotte based CGR Creative is a full service advertising agency, marketing firm, design studio, and interactive marketing agency. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

 

For more info on CGR Creative visit http://www.cgrcreative.com

Verve' Beauty, Charlotte Spa and Salon announces CGR Creative as 'Advertising Agency of Record'

 

Charlotte, NC, April 22, 2010 - Verve' Beauty, Charlotte's most luxurious Spa and Salon, formally announces the renewal of CGR Creative as their 'Advertising Agency of Record' to manage the Verve' brand image. CGR Creative has worked with Vervé in the past, developing their brand, collateral, and web presence.

Verve' Beauty offers the highest level of spa services from massages and facials to their signature Therapeutic Manicures and Pedicures. Verbena Wilson owns and operates Verve' Beauty with an eye toward merging the relaxation of hair care and spa services under one roof. Verbena has been a Licensed Cosmetologist for over 20 years and she and her team of highly qualified stylists and technicians truly offer a complete experience of beauty and therapy.

"We are proud to have been named 'Advertising Agency of Record' for Verve' Beauty," affirms CGR Creative's, Jason Ramsey. "We look forward to further developments including a possible product launch in 2010." CGR Creative has already partnered with Verve' on several magazine advertisements and email campaigns so this is just the next logical step for a great business relationship to take.

About CGR Creative: Charlotte based CGR Creative is a full service advertising agency, marketing firm, design studio, and interactive marketing agency. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

 

Charlotte Advertising Agency CGR Creative Launches Mobile App for Android Phones

April 15, 2010 Charlotte NC – CGR Creative recently launched an Android based mobile app so their customers can stay on top of the advertising agency’s latest news. CGR Creative’s Android app streams all their social media channels directly to one feed. This incorporates CGR’s award winning blog, their twitter feed, links and updates from their facebook fan page, and even their tumblr mini blog. CGR is offering this free application to Android phone users immediately with an iPhone version to be released in the next few months.
CGR Creative believes Charlotte, North Carolina is a prime location for mobile application development because of the growing tech economy it’s top twenty-three media market rating. CGR Creative is poised to take advantage of the fact that every major US city is within an 800 mile radius of Charlotte, North Carolina.
More and more mobile phone owners are using their phones in novel ways. They are searching the Internet and consuming content at a constantly increasing rate. This adds to the perfect storm of mobile development that CGR Creative predicts will hit the Charlotte Market in the next five years.

About CGR Creative: Charlotte based CGR Creative is a full service advertising agency, marketing firm, design studio, and interactive marketing agency. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

Charlotte Advertising Agency CGR Creative was featured at Working Charlotte’s Business Prosperity Conference Saturday

Charlotte, North Carolina - Julio Colmenares, Chief Creative Officer of Advertising Agency CGR Creative, LLC, spoke about New Media at Working Charlotte’s Business Prosperity Conference on Saturday, April 10, 2010. Charlotte Advertising agency CGR Creative has been a supporter of small business in Charlotte since it's founding in 2002. The Working Charlotte Business Prosperity Conference 2010 was a great way for CGR to give new media advice to small and medium sized business owners seeking to boldly unlock the "know-how" and the "how-to" of doing business in Charlotte.

Julio began his presentation by explaining that, "What ‘new media’ means changes rapidly so the question becomes, “how can I keep current without going crazy or bankrupt?” The answer is simple, “Jump In!” Learning to swim requires that you get in the pool. You can research, compare, look to your competitor, etc. but eventually you must get wet."

Julio also provided these 7 pieces of advice for attendees to take away from his presentation:

Enjoy the Water: Don't try to be everything to everyone. No product or service will appeal to everyone. Many business owners, including corporate executives, try to come up with ways to reach every market. Typically, this does not work. It can spell disaster for small businesses, who cannot afford to spread themselves too thin. Therefore, find your market and be everything you can be to that audience.

Swim with a Strong Buddy: New Media is one area where people try to tell the professionals what to do and how to do it. You wouldn’t tell a doctor what treatment to prescribe, just like you wouldn’t tell your lawyer how to defend you. Companies can lose a lot of time and money while trying to act as their own ad agency. Agencies are experts. They charge for their time and experience and have one goal in mind: To get the best results for their clients in order to keep those clients.

Beware of Rip Tides: Many companies offer quick fixes for little investment. These are often a simple "Buy your Rankings" package which can work for a short time and leave you stranded in deep water after the initial investment is gone. Work toward developing a consistent managed strategy that will work for the long term.


Know How Deep the Water is: Make your new media decisions based upon research and a formal marketing plan rather than a predetermined target budget. New media is often less expensive than traditional channels but you still get what you pay for.

Constantly Work on Your Stroke: Monitor your new media performance! You need to find out what works best for you. After you find this out, you’ll want to stay the course. Keep track of how SEO efforts and keyword campaigns not only how they drive traffic to your business but at what rate they actually produce sales. Consider testing each new media channel before deciding on which to explore more fully.

Have a Lifeguard: You should always have a professional that you can rely on for no nonsense feedback and creative ideas for all your new media campaigns. Preferably this is someone with a vantage point with which to measure your efforts and who can point you in the right direction.

Pay Attention to the Other Swimmers: Put your new media dollars in the right places. Your favorite website, social media outlet, blog, or even search engine might not be a favorite of your audience. Know what they read, peruse, and where they get their info, and advertise in the new media channel that reaches your target market.Julio Colmenares, Chief Creative Officer, CGR Creative, LLC - Description: Explore "New Media" (Websites, Search Engines and Social Media) and how to stay current without going crazy or bankrupt. Learn how to leverage technology to build awareness of your company.

About CGR Creative: Charlotte based CGR Creative is a full service advertising agency, marketing firm, design studio, and interactive marketing agency. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

Charlotte Advertising Agency CGR Creative Helps Promote North Carolina Charity

Charlotte Advertising Agency CGR Creative recently completed a brand image overhaul for Statesville based Purple Heart Homes. The charity was founded by Dale Beatty and John Gallina, two former Soldiers injured in the line of duty. Charlotte Advertising Agency CGR Creative helped create a new modern brand image for the charity including their logo, supporting graphics, business cards, brochures, and other collateral. CGR Creative is known for their cutting edge graphics and their ability to develop and manage memorable brands. As an Advertising Agency, CGR Creative takes pride in being Charlotte, North Carolina's Agency of choice among new businesses.

Jason Ramsey, CGR Creative's Creative Director said, "Work like CGR Creative's brand management for Purple Heart Homes is what every Charlotte Advertising Agency should be doing more of." He went on to explain, "They [PHH] had a clear idea of what their goals were and they let us develop the brand image that would deliver on those goals."

About Purple Heart Homes: Purple Heart Homes wants to help other service connected disabled veterans achieve the quality of life they deserve. PHH is committed to helping Veterans with a variety of injuries regardless of when they served. Full construction of a new home will generally be reserved for recent medical retirees without an established home, who have a need for new housing after medical retirement. Smaller projects such as improving accessibility within existing homes can be completed for qualified Veterans regardless of when they served.

How you can help: PHH is not a construction company, but instead they are a Public Charity that seeks ways to pool community resources for our candidates. Our ultimate goal is for the communities where our Veterans reside to accept a role of ownership in the projects we undertake. This gives Americans a chance to show their appreciation for local Veterans, thru donations, labor, and by participating in projects that reward the volunteers as well as the recipient. 

We are currently focusing our efforts in the North Carolina region. To join us in our mission, or to find out more about how you can help, or to apply for assistance, please visit us at www.phhnc.org

About CGR Creative: CGR Creative is a Charlotte advertising agency, marketing firm, design studio, and interactive marketing company. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

Julio Colmenares to Speak at Working Charlotte’s Business Prosperity Conference

April 7, 2010 - Charlotte, North Carolina - Julio Colmenares, Chief Creative Officer of CGR Creative, LLC, will be speaking at Working Charlotte’s Business Prosperity Conference on Saturday, April 10, 2010. The Working Charlotte Business Prosperity Conference 2010 is a one-day experience for small and medium sized business owners seeking to boldly unlock the "know-how" and the "how-to" of doing business in Charlotte. The "Business Prosperity" theme is appropriate as Charlotte business owners, entrepreneurial-minded professionals, and their employees will access strategies, skills, resources, and connections to prosperity, productivity, and power. The entire conference will be focused on removing barriers to business by empowering attendees to drive revenue and control expenses.

Breakout Session #3 - NEW MEDIA: SINK OR SWIM

Presenter: Julio Colmenares, Chief Creative Officer, CGR Creative, LLC - Description: Explore "New Media" (Websites, Search Engines and Social Media) and how to stay current without going crazy or bankrupt. Learn how to leverage technology to build awareness of your company.

The Conference will be provided in English, Spanish, and Mandarin Chinese!

DATE: Saturday, April 10, 2010
TIME: 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
LOCATION: UNC - Charlotte
REGISTRATION FEE: $99
College of Health and Human Services Building
9201 University City Blvd.
Charlotte, NC 28223


About CGR Creative: CGR Creative is a full service marketing, design, advertising, and interactive marketing agency. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

CGR Creative is certified as a Historically Underutilized Business (HUB)