Blog Action Day 2008
In Blogging News | 7 Comments
Today is Blog Action Day. If you don’t know what that is, it’s when bloggers from around the world unite to talk about a specific subject that affects us all. The idea behind it is simple; if we can get enough people to to talk about a social concern, maybe we can do something about it and make a difference. Last year the topic was the environment, and this year we’re talking about poverty. Currently, blog action day has over 11,000 blogs participating with an estimated combined audience of over 12 million. We feel here at iePlexus that since we’re a big advocate of blogging, it was natural for us to participate in this great cause and encourage the same from our clients and readers. It’s important to sometimes take a step back from business and realize that we all have a social responsibility to help others and contribute to the greater good. As a business, iePlexus has also taken steps to reach out, providing no-cost services to community organizers and churches, and participating in charity events to benefit programs like Habitat for Humanity.
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iePlexus,
Being what I consider an industry veteran (I’ve been building and marketing websites since 1998), there’s always been one constant that separates the successful sites from those that fail: good design. It’s not the only rule to abide by, but it has very few exceptions. With the plethora of content management systems and website templates out there, it still baffles me that site owners don’t take advantage of these resources and still expect their sub-par design to have a chance against competition. I don’t claim to be the expert on this topic, but I certainly can spot a website where the owner has taken the time to consider form, function and presentation versus one that has enlisted cousin Jim, who’s a “webmaster,” to put together a company’s internet presence. Sure, saving a few bucks on a designer seems like a good idea, until you realize that the only traffic you receive is from a link in the design hall of shame (see this digg and 
There is no limit to just how much the internet has revolutionized our world. Not only has information become an immediately accessible commodity, but it has also changed the way people all around the world are working. Especially in the world of blogging, people are able to transform their homes into offices and effectively become their own bosses. While this sounds like every worker’s dream, for many people, home offices quickly become little else than digital sweatshops.
In the world of internet searches and usage, there has officially been a changing of the guard. While pornography and adult sites used to reign supreme as the number one reason people flocked to the web, it seems people are now more concerned with updating their MySpace and Facebook pages.
One of the fundamental components in advertising is utilizing effective word of mouth. People telling other people about your products or services is an excellent way to build a base and introduce new customers to your business. Many industries rely on word of mouth to support their business model, like real estate, where your success can sometimes depend solely on who you know. Of course the quality of your product or service has something to do with the success of this word of mouth, but not always. I’ve known some really successful people in business who were much better at socializing than the actual work. The bottom line is word of mouth advertising is an important practice to understand, especially for the business owner looking to market for minimal dollars.
With the adoption of Web 2.0, no longer can a company rely solely on their own marketing to establish an online profile and create company legitimacy and credibility. The read/write web has enabled anyone with an internet connection and a keyboard to become part of the conversation, and the reader is left with the daunting task of sorting through the fiction and non-fiction to arrive at an intelligent conclusion. Needless to say, this affords anyone with an opinion the opportunity to express it, regardless of whether it is beneficial to the web community in general.
Let me preface this post by saying I’m a big fan of Google and their online applications. Even Blogger, their online blogging software has its benefits, to some extent. Also, although my company offers