The Blog

We’re currently busy working with Yorkshire based company, Calder Security on their website.

Calder offer security solutions for both homes and businesses throughout the Yorkshire area.

We’re looking forward to working alongside the team at Calder to help them with their future marketing campaigns.

After month’s in the planning, we’re pleased to announce the launch of the newly revamped website for Yeldersley Hall.

The Hall stands within 12 private acres, including formal gardens, kitchen garden, walled garden, paddocks, restored Victorian greenhouses, and an orangery. Steeped in history and heritage, and with stunning period features at every turn, it’s easy to see why The Hall has today become a sought-after venue for exclusive wedding receptions, sophisticated private functions, and indulgent self-catering escapes.

You can view the website here - www.yeldersleyhall.co.uk

Photographs courtesy of Red Square Photography.

5 reasons why an IT support contract wins over PAYG fixes

All businesses use computers, in fact all businesses completely rely on computers; whether that simply be to keep a record of accounts or to run a comprehensive businesses system that supports the core activity of the company. If all businesses need computers then it also follows that they all require IT support, in some capacity. You then have 2 options – an on-going support contract or PAYG.

Paying for IT support as you need it can seem attractive; who wants to pay for services other than when you actually need them? For some businesses this is the best way, particularly if usage is low and your system is not central to the delivery of your core service. For most though, an IT support contract is the most effective, efficient and economical strategy and while we would say that, here are our top 5 reasons why:

1. Better budgeting
   By spreading the cost of IT support over the year with equal fixed payments you know exactly what the costs are upfront and there are no unexpected big bills to pay when something goes wrong.
2. Better prevention of problems
   Rather than waiting for your computer to fail, your IT support is proactively keeping your system as healthy as possible through regular system checks, proper security measures and other on-going monitoring. Your system will also be optimised for your own requirements. These preventative initiatives mean that you are less likely to have problems in the first place.
3. Faster fixes
   The majority of IT firms will prioritise their contracted clients when it comes to fixing problems. They will also have already established remote support access which means that many issues can be resolved without even requiring a site visit. Faster fixes mean less downtime and less inconvenience for you.
4. Knowledge is power!
   Because your contractor already knows your system and has been involved with maintaining it, if something does goes wrong it can usually be sorted out pretty efficiently because of that prior knowledge.
5. IT lifeline
   If you don’t have an in-house IT person and you get stuck with a minor tech issue there’s not much you can do but try and figure it out yourself. At best this can be frustrating and time consuming, at worst you can end up making it a whole lot worse. On a support contract you have someone that you can ask, either by telephone or by submitting a support ticket, so you’re never on your own.

At Clarke Computer Systems we offer a range of support contracts suitable for any business and completely tailored to your needs. If computers are vital to your business then we strongly advise that you consider an IT support contract.

Get in touch for more information about our full range of IT services for businesses across the Midlands.

Unless you are a consumer retailer there’s no point doing any marketing in December. Hmmmm, really? That’s what a lot of companies still believe based on the theory that people are so pre-occupied with Christmas that businesses across the nation shut down from the day they open their first advent calendar window. But is that really true?

It is true that there is a lot of ‘noise’ around Christmas time; people are pre-occupied and possibly a little bit stressed and you might think it’s difficult to get a marketing message to filter through. Actually, you wouldn’t be wrong but how about taking a slightly different approach – think of it more like customer relations than marketing and you might find it’s quite easy to get yourself noticed.

Don’t give to receive
Start with what you want to get out of a customer relations exercise. Set yourself the objective of raising awareness rather than achieving direct sales and use the opportunity to demonstrate that you care about your customers’ business. The message should be more ‘thank you for your custom’ than ‘please buy more stuff’.

Something as simple as a Christmas card or e-greeting can show that you value them as customers. A gift, perhaps delivered by hand, is a great way to get in touch with people or why not offer a better rate of discount/special offer for 2013 based on what they’ve spent with you this year. You could even send something in the New Year if you want yours to stand out a little more (but make sure it looks deliberate and not like you’ve just left it too late!). Whatever you give make sure it’s something that people would actually want and perhaps think a little out of the box rather than go for the same old diary/calendar/desk jotter.

Make it personal
If you have the time take an individual approach. Instead of buying 1000 branded pens and sending one out to everyone, why not segment your customer base a little – either by personal characteristics such as gender, age, interests etc or by the level of business that they’ve done with you; those who have been top spending customers, those who have spent but have the potential to increase their level of business and the ‘bread and butter’ clients – and give something more tailored that demonstrates that some thought has gone into it.

Follow up the fuzzy stuff
As Cliff said, Christmas is a time for giving so use it as an opportunity to give something back. Of course, we are still in business so it never hurts to capitalise on those warm and fuzzy feelings you’ve created amongst your customers by striking while the iron’s hot and following up with a well thought out marketing campaign in the New Year – ho ho ho!

Our offer to you
If you think a professional e-newsletter would be a useful marketing activity for your business then our Christmas offer will be of interest to you. We can design a branded newsletter template for you and send it out to up to 1000 contacts for just £120 (usual price £200). Simply order yours before Friday 11th January 2013. You have until the end of January to send it so you could use it for a Christmas message now or a New Year offer/greeting! Get in touch with Caroline for more details.

Our good friends, Red Square have got an amazing deal this Christmas!

Their special offer includes a photo shoot, a desktop frame and 2 digital images for social media, all for just £89!
(usual cost £150).

To book your photo shoot call Becki or Caroline on 01335 360103 or visit their website  www.redsquaregallery.co.uk

We’re delighted to announce that we’ve launched a brand new competition in association with our neighbours, Red Square Photography, to give away a completely FREE website with professional photography. The lucky winner will receive a half day photo shoot of their premises and team which will appear within a professionally designed website with free hosting and a .co.uk domain name.

Simply click here to be in with a chance to win this fabulous prize.

Good Luck!

(ps. the competition is open to Derbyshire based businesses, charitable organisations or groups)

Why great websites deserve great photographs

There are 4 important elements that matter when it comes to your website – design, functionality, copy and images. When we say matter we mean from both the perspective of visitor experience and search engine rankings.

Many recognise that the first two – design and functionality – are areas beyond their own technical capability and leave it to the experts. It seems copy and images, however, are fair game! Many clients choose to supply their own photos and text for a number of reasons: they perceive it will be expensive to commission professional photography and copy writing; they don’t imagine that someone outside the company could ever know it well enough to write about it; they don’t think that they have anything interesting to photograph; or they just think that they have enough know-how to have a go themselves. Sometimes they do. Often, they don’t.

If you are investing in having a professional website created for you, you could be failing to maximise that investment by filling it with content that doesn’t live up to the design. Brand messages are conveyed through the look of the site, the words on the site and the visual imagery.

What’s in a picture?…

Actually, quite a lot. Using photos on websites fulfils a number of important functions; they create interest, break text up on the page, are a great opportunity for SEO, illustrate your products and services, reinforce your brand and can create an emotional response. Photos of your staff can humanise your organisation; the use of light, colour and imagery can communicate an ethos and brand values; great product shots can inspire and so on. In short, they need to be good.

So, what are the options?

Take your own photos

This can be a good solution but you need someone in the company with an eye for detail and composition. They need some creativity and a decent brief and, functionally speaking, they need a half decent camera and some good lighting. Not to mention time.

Stock photography

Stock photography can be great. You can source pretty much any image from stock sites such as iStock and they are high standard professional shots. The trouble is that the images are pretty generic and you run the risk of the same ones popping up on lots of different sites – how many times do you see the same photo of smartly dressed business men sealing a deal with a handshake? Quite a lot.

Commission professional photography

People often perceive professional photography as expensive but it doesn’t have to be when you consider the value you get. The images you get will be completely personal to your company, will be consistent with your brand, free to use for any marketing materials, online platforms and PR and you won’t see them on anybody else’s website. Because they are professional they will enhance the design of the site and reflect the messages communicated through the copy – maximising your investment. Plus, a half day photography session probably costs less than you think.

Win a FREE website with professional photography!

Because we believe passionately in the value of combining good web design with good photography we’re running a fabulous competition, in conjunction with Red Square Photography, for a local business, charitable organisation or group to win a FREE WEBSITE INCLUDING PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY! The lucky winner will receive a half day photo shoot of their premises and team plus a professionally designed website with free hosting for 1 year and a co.uk domain. For your chance to win click here

Do you have a blog? Do you think you should have a blog but don’t really know why? Do you have a blog but rarely update it because you don’t know what to write about / don’t have the time / don’t have the skills? If you’ve answered yes to any of the above then blogging is clearly something that has registered on your radar but perhaps you’re not yet convinced of the value. So here’s the thing; blogging IS worth the effort and here are 8 reasons why:

1. Credibility
   A blog adds credibility by demonstrating expertise. By writing about topics within your industry with knowledge and passion you show that you know what you are talking about, that you are up to date on trends and developments and that you can apply your expertise and experience to real scenarios.
2. Reach a wider audience
   Blog posts that have some kind of value or interest to them such as how to guides, advice, humour, interesting points etc are more likely to be shared. This could be via social media or by linking to your posts on your readers’ own sites and blogs. This allows you to tap into a much wider audience as well as build your reputation as an expert.
3. Keep your site up to date
   A blog is a great way to add fresh content to your site. Unlike a News page you don’t have to wait until something happens – you can update your blog as often as you like because there’s always something to blog about. Fresh content is good for SEO and it gives your web visitors more reason to keep coming back.
4. Sell without the HARD sell
   A blog is a really good way to reinforce your key messages implicitly rather than explicitly. By sharing some knowledge, giving advice or voicing an opinion it demonstrates your expertise, showcases your products and services and provides an insight into your work – all in a way that offers some value to the reader without pushing an overt sales message. After all, nobody likes to be sold to.
5. Encourage interaction
   You can use your blog to engage your audience and interact with them. Encourage comments and discussions and use it to drive traffic to and from your social media profiles. It’s a good way to get to know what your customers think and to create new ones.
6. Humanise your brand
   People buy from people. Even a large corporate organisation can benefit from showing a human side to their brand. Express opinions, comment on topics, engage in discussions and show that you care about the way you run your business through your blog and create a really positive customer perception.
7. Visitor experience
   Good quality content on your blog, and elsewhere on your site, is good for visitors. It gives them something of value to read which means they stay on the site longer, they may link to it/share, they are more likely to visit further pages and they’re more likely to come back. All these things help convert visitors to buying customers.
8. SEO
   The big one – search engine optimisation. All of the above things – shares, inbound links, fresh content, visitor behaviour, unique content etc – are metrics that the search engines look for when ranking your website. A blog is also a great opportunity to incorporate keywords, images and video which will all help the search engines direct visitors to your site.

Convinced about the value of blogging yet? You can choose to fully incorporate a blog into your site or have a stand alone blog that links to it. If you’d like more advice on which is the right approach for your business please do not hesitate to contact us.

Our latest website design and build project is now live. Tissington Hall had an existing website but wanted a fresh new look with a new content management system and improved functionality. Designed with user-friendly navigation, the site’s homepage welcomes visitors with some interactive and informative elements.

You can visit the website here www.tissingtonhall.co.uk.

Following our recent office move to Brailsford we’ve won another brand new client.

Midbrook Buildings (our new next door neighbours!) have enlisted our help with all their future marketing materials.

Keep an eye out on the portfolio for updates.