Weblog
Curacao's guide to fast web 2.0
10-11-2009, S. Opschoor
First I would like to explain web 2.0 real simple. Websites used to be real static: almost no updates and you decided what your audience liked. Nowadays it is the other way around: people/ customers want simplicity, useful information and interactivity. They decide what they want from you, what they do with your information, and how they get in contact with you. So let’s make that as easy as possible.
The last couple of months Curacao was overloaded with information about the ‘new’ Internet hype: web 2.0. Governments communicating through Facebook, the rise of Twitter, seminars about crossmedia and newspaper articles. When talking to clients they are all very excited to get started but they all have similar remarks:
- Do I have to participate in all web 2.0 activities?
- My back office is not ready for it
- I don’t have the time to manage it
Curacao is a small country with tighter budgets. Which means it seems impossible and too expensive to get started. But remember that most of the tools are free of charge and quite simple to implement. I want to point out, that even as a small business owner, you can take simple steps into the world of web 2.0. Of course they will cost you time, but you choose one or more and decide what works for you.
There is only one simple rule: If you do something, do it right!
Don’t take on too much work because old or insufficient information can be dangerous. Everything you broadcast will be out there for everybody to find on the web. It can make your company look good, but also bad.
See which tool works for you and try it. Hereby a list of easy steps to get started.
Share buttons
People love to share on the Internet. That is why you have all those social networks, weblogs and even e-mail. It is quite easy to let people share your page if they find it interesting enough. You can get free sharebuttons, which have all the possibilities you want. Before you know it, your page is buzzing around Twitter or Facebook. Ask your web designer to implement the html-code.
http://www.addthis.com/
http://www.addtoany.com/
Skype
With millions and millions of global users, Skype is very popular. It is an Internet-phone service, which is free of charge. Because we are on Curacao, there are a lot of companies with foreign target markets. How great is it when a client can contact you for free, which lowers the boundaries of contacting you.
With the Skype-buttons you can let your visitors know if you are online and contact you immediately. The button is also easy to add through your web designer.
http://www.skype.com/share/buttons/
LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a networking site for professionals, which is a great way to meet new people and get new business opportunities. It is free to set-up an account, but make sure you make a complete and professional profile. As businesses are relatively small on Curacao and ‘everybody knows everybody’, chances are your name is a popular search term on Google. LinkedIn comes up high in the search results so you want to look good. LinkedIn gives visitors an opportunity to get to know you better.
Online video
If you have good video, put it on your website. It is fun for visitors and it gives you a chance to show your company instead of plain text and images. More information about online video and how easy it is to put on the web, click here.
Facebook fan page
Where are people from Curacao to be found? Facebook. There are thousands of accounts and already a lot of fan pages. Get up close with your customers, become their friends and inform them about interesting information. What is good about Facebook is that the reader decides what they want to read. Don’t overdo your information because it will result in a ‘spam-like’ feel.
Facebook also provides a html code to create a button on your website.
Twitter button
When you use Twitter and Facebook as a business they are quite alike. The difference is that you have less space for youw message. So make your message short and link to your website or your Facebook page. Whatever works for you. I feel, in general, that you have to separate your business account from your personal account. Some might disagree. But if you do mix them up, be careful.
Remember that Twitter and Facebook may require a lot of work.
Weblog
When someone hears the term weblog, it doesn’t sound professional to most people.But it doesn’t matter what you call it because the basic principle is very important:
Update your website with interesting information regularly. Why?
- It creates a reason to come back to your website
- It gives you an opportunity to create a page which you can share in the social networks
- Search engines love updated and useful content. So it will help you get better search results
You don’t have to put this under the category ‘weblog’. But you can call it for example News. Update regularly and as often as you have interesting information to share.
You can make your articles more interactive when people are allowed to comment.
In conclusion
Find what works for you and do it right. It is difficult to measure the results of these steps in Marketing terms. Of course you will see where visitors come from in your website statistics. But I feel that making your company as open and personal as possible with great information, will definitely result in a better approach, which will lead to more and loyal customers.
If you have more questions or want to have a strategy for your web 2.0 you can contact me. If you want, you can share this article through the button below...
Sebastiaan Opschoor
