New Site Media Group » charlottesville web design

WordPress and IDX

Steinar — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 22:15:02 +0000

It’s a common question – how do I integrate IDX with WordPress? Unfortunately, there are a few factors working against you.

1) Feed formats vary by regional so it’s unlikely you’ll find a one size fits all solutions

2) Because WordPress plugins are built to handle a specific data format, it would require considerable customization to make it work.

Personally, I found it easier to write my own PHP, CSS, etc and link to the feed stored daily in a MySQL database. It took some time, but the end product was exactly what the Realtor needed.

See virginiasportingestates.com/advanced-search.php for an example.

Contact me if you want to discuss.

Anyone using wordpress and know of a good plugin to display IDX listings?

via WordPress and IDX.

2009 Internet Marketing Trend #8 – Behavioral Targeting

Steinar — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 21:48:37 +0000

Online behavioral marketing is similar in nature to traditional behavioral marketing. The idea is that online content adapts to a users behavior on your site or on the web in general. Several applications from leading online retailers, such as Amazon.com, already employ this technique and can therefore serve more relevant ads and content based on a users previous actions.

In its simplest form, behavioral marketing might include suggesting a new product or newsletter subscription to a vistor who is reading a particular article on a related topic. A more advance application might identify cookies from a visitor’s profile and leverage that information to highlight content that might be of interest.

The advantges of understanding an incorporating behavioral targeting techniques into your internet marketing strategy are numerous. As with needs based segmentation, behavioral marketing taps into the specific needs and interests of your customer, serving individualzed communication. If your interested in discussing the online behavioral marketng for your company please call me @ 434-806-3272.

2009 Internet Marketing Trend #5 – Blogging

Steinar — Wed, 04 Mar 2009 21:20:08 +0000

Blogging will continue to be a major force for Internet Marketers in 2009. So much has changed with blogging over the years and as new tools develop, blogging continues to morph into a very promising platform. The expansion of Web 2.0 tools, video commenting, and mobile applications continues to drive the blogging platform as a useful channel for people to connect, either one-on-one or one-to-many.

There are several outstanding blogging platforms to consider when building a blog. My preference is for WordPress, the leading open source blogging platform that is free to download and has a loyal following of top-notch programmers. On the surface, the beauty of WordPress is it’s simplicity – the administrative dashboard is intuitive and requires little if any real technocal know-how. The real power comes on the backend with the ability to completely customize your user interface and add a number of plugins to enhance the functionality of your site.

If you would like to learn more about blogging or set up a blog for your company, please feel free to give me a call @ 434-806-3272.

Integrating CAAR MLS IDX into website with WordPress

Steinar — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:58:15 +0000

Integrating real estate IDX feeds into one’s website seems to get a great deal of attention and many Realtors are faced with the prospect of spending a ton of money to make this happen.

After several weeks and some sleepless nights, I’ve finally completed my first CAAR MLS IDX integration. For a sense of the end product see Virginia Sporting Estates.

Of course, there is still some styling work to complete, but the functionality is there, which really is the toughest part to learn.

Call me at 434-806-3272 if you’d like help getting the CAAR MLS IDX feed on your site so you don’t have to reinvent the wheel.

Sony Refreshes Bravia HDTV Line, Promotes 240Hz Refresh Rate

Steinar — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 00:20:22 +0000

Sony Electronics showed off its latest high-definition televisions today. The new HDTV models reflect the company’s emphasis on improved color reproduction, fast 240Hz refresh rates, and Internet connectivity.

Sony announced 18 televisions in total, across six product lines.

Fast Refresh Rate

Six new models introduced today at CES 2009 feature Sony’s 240Hz technology. Designed to compensate for motion by inserting extra frames to smooth out fast-moving sequences, 240Hz is currently the fastest technology commercially available (LG Display has shown a prototype of its forthcoming 480Hz panel).

Sony has a two-prong approach to its 240Hz technology. The company inserts nine interpolated frames between each actual frame of video when playing back film content; and it inserts up to three additional inerpreted frames between each actual video frames. In addition, Sony has an image blur reduction circuit to help reduce motion issues along the horizontal and vertical axis.

The Sony Bravia XBR9 series gets 240Hz Motionflow technology in all models greater than 40 inches. These three models–the Bravia KDL-52XBR9, the Bravia KDL-46XBR9, and the Bravia KDL-40XBR9All–also feature an ethernet connection, Bravia Link HDMI CEC for accesing additional entertainment components, integrated Bravia Internet Video (first introduced two years ago), DLNA and USB host support (for playing mulitmedia files), and Sony’s newly announced Bravia Widgets for additional Internet content (financial news, Yahoo Video, Flickr, weather reports) via the Yahoo Widgets Engine.

All also feature Sony’s Wide Color Gamut Cold Cathode Fluorescent Light (WCG-CCFL) backlight technology, which enables the panel to access a broader color palette.

The 32-inch Bravia KDL-32XBR9 boasts both full 1920 by 1080p resolution and Motionflow 120Hz refresh technology, impressive specs to find in a relatively small-screen television. But, this model lacks integrated Bravia Internet Video and WCG-CCFL backlighting.

New Bravia Z Series

Also new is the Bravia Z- series. Three models–the KDL-52Z5100, the KDL-46Z5100, and the KDL-40Z5100–all pack Motionflow 240Hz and all of the features of the XBR9 series but the WCG-CCFL technology; and adds in Energy Star 3.0 compliance.

All of the Bravia XBR9 and Z-series models are due out this spring.

Energy Efficien

In keeping with this year’s energy friendly trends, Sony introduced its Bravia VE5-series. Due out in the summer, this line–Bravia KDL-52VE5, the Bravia KDL-46VE5, and the Bravia KDL-40VE5– features high-efficiency HCFL backlighting, which uses reduced-size cathode tubes in order to improve power efficiency by 40 percent compared with other Sony LCDs. These models also feature a zero-watt standby power switch, a light sesnor with dynamic backlight control to adjust the screen’s brightness down for use in dim environments, and a presence sensor that turns off the TV if it doesn’t detect motion for a specified period of time. These models all feature Motionflow 120Hz technology, are Bravia Link-compatible, have a USB port, and have Bravia Sync HDMI CEC.

Notably, only one line in Sony’s Bravia HDTVs lacks 120Hz technology–the Bravia S5100-series. Also, with this year’s lineup, Sony has just two 720p models left in its arsenal: The 32-inch Bravia KDL-32L5000, and the 26-inch KDL-26L5000.

Conspicuously absent from Sony’s announcements today: Any mention of LED backlit displays. The company will continue to ship its XBR8 series with LED backlighting, though, and LED remains on its radar.

Internet Video Marketing on the Rise

Steinar — Sun, 21 Dec 2008 18:19:32 +0000

New research has suggested that internet video marketing is to become more prevalent in 2009 and potentially help to increase brand awareness and online lead generation.

According to PermissionTV, which surveyed more than 400 senior decision-makers, over two-thirds of firms are looking to focus more on online video as part of their marketing strategies next year.

Seven in ten respondents said concentrating more on online video would help to build brand recognition, while 47 per cent said it would offer a boost for online lead generation.

“As corporate and brand marketers look to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of digital marketing initiatives, online video will play an increasingly critical role in all interactive campaigns,” remarked PermissionTV vice-president of solutions and chief strategy officer Matt Kaplan.

UK spending on embedded display ad formats such as banners, rich media and video increased by 36.6 per cent in the first six months of 2008, according to the Internet Advertising Bureau.

Charlottesville Website Design Related Search Activity

Steinar — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 05:04:45 +0000

Every week I like to share my top search queries from Google. My goal is to rank high for specific keywords so tracking these on a regular basis is important. Let’s see what’s changed this week …

The following is a list of the most popular terms for which this sites appeared in Google last wekk:

1	40%	charlottesville seo
2	8%	seo charlottesville
3	5%	web design
4	4%	“search engine optimization” “charlottesville va”
5	4%	internet marketing services charlottesville va
6	4%	internet marketing charlottesville va
7	3%	caar idx feed
8	3%	media and design
9	3%	“internet marketing” “charlottesville va”
10	3%	internet marketing charlottesville virginia
11	3%	fallacies in the media
12	2%	relavent media group
13	2%	charlottesvile seo
14	2%	new site media group
15	2%	ecommerce website design
16	2%	charlottesville media group
17	2%	charlottesville website design
18	2%	charlottesville web design
19	2%	media fallacies

and the search engine results from last November:

1	20%	charlottesville seo
2	16%	charlottesville web design
3	12%	charlottesvile seo
4	6%	simplify media groups
5	6%	“internet marketing” “charlottesville va”
6	4%	charlottesville va chatroom
7	4%	“search engine optimization” “charlottesville va”
8	4%	charlottesvilee seo
9	4%	internet marketing services charlottesville va
10	4%	stamp collectors in charlottesville va
11	4%	charlottesville website design
12	4%	internet marketing charlottesville va
13	4%	charlottesville web designer
14	4%	charlottesville website designer

Charlottesville Web Design Related Search Activity

Steinar — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 06:46:31 +0000

It’s always interesting to analyze your site’s recent search activity and search engine performance to understand the implications of various seo tactics. This will also provide you will valuable insight into the search behavior of those looking looking for you and others within your niche.

The following is a list of the most popular terms for which this sites appeared in Google in November:

1	20%	charlottesville seo
2	16%	charlottesville web design
3	12%	charlottesvile seo
4	6%	simplify media groups
5	6%	“internet marketing” “charlottesville va”
6	4%	charlottesville va chatroom
7	4%	“search engine optimization” “charlottesville va”
8	4%	charlottesvilee seo
9	4%	internet marketing services charlottesville va
10	4%	stamp collectors in charlottesville va
11	4%	charlottesville website design
12	4%	internet marketing charlottesville va
13	4%	charlottesville web designer
14	4%	charlottesville website designer

Now compare this with the results from October:

1	20%	newsite media
2	20%	new media website developer charlottesville
3	20%	charlottesville seo web optimization
4	20%	charlottesville media group
5	20%	what makes a good web page

Clearly, from October to November the number of keywords and phrases picked up considerably. This is due to several factors including both on-site and off-site activity. For example, using proper keywords in my blog posts and on other sites helps increase the sites exposure and clarify for the search engines what this site is about.

There are several other search engine optimization tactics to help rank your site better for keywords within your niche. Give me a call at 434-806-3272 for a free evaluation of your site.

Charlottesville Web Design Tips

Steinar — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 18:09:02 +0000

The Charlottesville web design market has several outstanding firms that offer website design, graphic design, and search engine optimization services.

Based on my experience, here are a few tips to enhance your website and create an enjoyable experience for your user. Much of this depends of course on your intent, so these are just general guidelines to consider.

Simple Navigation – Much like finding your way through a grocery store, it’s important that your site guide users with meaningful navigation that’s easy to find.
Meaningful Graphics – Used properly graphics can add value, but in many cases graphics are ambiguous and distract from the message rather than provide meaningful illustration relevant to the topic at hand.
Great Content – Content is still very important and the volume of content you include with vary considerably depending on your niche market. Golden rule is to keep content original – duplicating content is not only unfair to the original author, but unfair to your business and customers as well.

These are just a few basic tips. I’ll continue this discussion with a more robust list in later posts.