Animoto – Cool Image Display
At Rounpdeg we are always looking for new tools to add features to the websites we design for clients. The criteria:
- Easy to use – Even though our skill set has grown and we can usually figure out how something works, we won’t use plugins and features which are not easy to use. Why? Because most of our small business clients come to us for web sites which they can maintain. It doesn’t do any good to end up with a simple website, with the most interesting feature something we can not edit
- Free is great! But not all our tools are free. We often try free versions, and if they add value, we will upgrade, and offer our clients the opportunity to use our subscription, or get one of their own
- Compatible with Wordpress. We stopped designing traditional static websites two years ago, and have never looked back. The plugins have to work flawlessly with Wordpress, or we won’t work with them.
So in our quest for new and cool plugins, I have one I think is going to be a favorite. It is called Animoto. It converts simple photos to a cool interactive slide show. Check out the video I did with images of my husband’s art.
The thing I liked best, was how quickly I was able to put this together. Of course I am hooked, and will probably pay for the upgrade so I can create longer videos, and even some without the Animoto logo. But in the meantime, this is really cool!
Create your own video slideshow at animoto.com.
Lorraine Ball in Action
Are you looking ofr a speaker for your next meeting? I would love to talk to you about my small business programs on marketing, networking, business planning, and team building.
To get a preview, check out some of the previews below.
Cool CoolIris
Written by Neil Chaggar
With so many new applications being created almost daily, it is rare to come across something which makes you say: “Wow… that is cool!” I had one of those moments just the other day when Lorraine showed me CoolIris.
What it is: CoolIris is a simple yet innovative software which showcases media on your website. It displays both images and video in a manner of an interactive 3D wall in which you can drag your files to go back and forth, and make them bigger or smaller. Did I mention the installation is a breeze?!
How it works: CoolIris works with various different third party websites for your images such as Flickr, Picasa etc. and YouTube for videos.
Once you have uploaded your pictures and or video to these accounts, you can select just the content you want to feature on your website. It works well with social media sites like Facebook and MySpace too. You can even customize the wall with your own background!
Why use it: If you deal with lots of images and/or videos on your website, CoolIris may just be what you’ve been looking for to organize and uplift your media content.
If I haven’t sold you on this cool new web feature yet, please go on CoolIris website and check out how simple it is to use and what it can do for you.
And check out the video wall I created for Lorraine.
Neil Out
Shop Local!
As the internet makes the world seem smaller and smaller, it is easy to forget that you are part of a local business ecosystem. As you make purchase decisions you choices impact the local economy. If, like me you are concentrating in a specific community, hoping to generate revenue from the community, then you need to put money into that community.
As consumers, we have power. Use it to actively support the businesses you care about and force change in the ones we don’t. Seth Godin summed it up well when he said:
If you don’t like what an organization stands for, work actively to spread the word and force them to change
AND
If you will miss a product, a service, a book, a site or a professional when they close up shop, stand up, speak up and bring them masses of new business.
This was the theme of my presentation at Rainmakers last month. ( I just got the video links) . The video is in two parts and it contains a serious call to support local businesses.
With this local focus in mind, I thought I would share just a few of my favorite local restaurants. These are places I would miss if they were gone. . I hope you will consider voting with your dollars this holiday season, paying them a visit, and helping to build a strong local economy.
No links to websites sorry, but more importantly I have listed address so you can check them out yourself.
Ocean World on 86th Street and Ditch. Some of the best and most reasonably priced sushi in town. The food is so good it is easy to overlook the mediocre service. It is usually busy, but not overcrowded at lunch time, 1/2 prices specials on Sunday, and always a long wait on Friday night.
LaPeidad 6524 Cornell Ave – Great, authentic TexMex. Fast friendly service, good food, reasonable price. Nice outdoor dining when the weather permits. When I need a TexMex Fix this is my favorite.
Kona Jack – Meridian and 96th Street – Not to be confused with the Kona Grill chain in Clay Terrace. This Indy tradition has a wonderful, diverse fish menu, and even sells fresh fish for you to take home and prepare yourself. Sharing a kitchen with Daddy Jacks, you can often convince your waitress to serve something off the menu from the other side.
Santorini Greek Kitchen – 1417 Prospect Street, in Fountain Square – Well worth the trip to Fountain Square for the huge portions, home-style Greek food, and great service. It is also the only place in the city that makes Eggplant parmesan the way I like it – I think you will too.
These are just a few of my favorites. What are yours? List them here, and more importantly, pay them a visit this month!
Facebook video chat? Sounds… interesting.
Written by Melinda Cooper
So before bed I always read over the news that I didn’t have time to read during the day and I came across this
Being a HUGE Facebook user for pure social reasons and still unhappy with the FB chat feature – I find myself excited yet nervous.
I was really excited when FB put the chat feature up because I could shorten all contact with relatives and people I went to high school with to even LESS than 140 words. Ha. But… when I went to use FB chat, it seems filled with gliches. It’s always sloooooow and always ’sending my message’ and then randomly signs me offline.
For small businesses, it seems that the fastest and most reliable plug-ins, applications and software usually come out on top. Facebook chat is nice – sometimes – but for business people, it’s much easier to just open your BB or iPhone and send a text or e-mail.
And even if it gets around the connection problem by going through this other company (as the article says) – what will make it different from Skype – which is easy to use for quick video chats? Small businesses don’t have the time to deal with unreliable add-ons like Facebook chat and (probably) Facebook video chat.
So whereas I am thrilled at the IDEA of a FB video chat… seeing the disaster that is FB regular chat makes me want to just run back to Skype and AIM.
Ahhh good ol’ AOL instant messenger. Maybe I’ll even go way back and rejoin ICQ. They say all trends repeat themselves right… or is that just fashion?
What do you think? Do you think Facebook is just shooting itself in the foot? Also, on the subject on Facebook – what do you think of the new status tags?
Internet Marketing Trend – Video Marketing
Tom Now, writing for StartUp Nation kicked off the year with a list of what he considered to be the 20 hottest Internet Marketing Trends for 2009. Over the last few months I have taken a look at many of these trends and how we or our clients are using them as part of a comprehensive marketing strategy.
Now almost four months into the year, I thought it would be interesting to take a closer look at Video Marketing.
In describing this trend, Tom Now says:
Many studies show that adding videos to a website increases traffic and time-on-site. Look for a major increase in online videos in 2009. If your website does not yet have any videos, look to add them this year, but be sure that they are relevant and useful to your target audience. Look for interactive video technology in 2009, through which users can click on elements within the videos to be taken to associated content, microsites and shopping carts.
I have had video as part of my website since I launched the redesign 
a year ago. I get many positive comments from visitors who seem to enjoy my greeting on the home page and as I look at the statistics, my videos are viewed on a fairly regular basis. For me, the video is a valuable part of the site, giving clients a chance to get to know before we actually meet.
Here are just a few of my favorites:
- Cinderella, Magic Wands and Small Business
- Past Failure is No Indicator or Future Success
- Go for the Gold!
Cinderella, Magic Wands and Small Business
When I was a little girl, Cinderella was my favorite story. But unlike most of my friends, I didn’t want to be Cinderella. I wasn’t looking for a handsome prince to rescue me. Instead, I thought the fairy godmother had the coolest gig. With the wave of her wand she could make magic happen. I wanted to be her! And in a way, maybe I am. Today, I work with business owners, and make magic happen. My magic wand is my keypad, telephone and address book.
But the truth is, just like in the story of Cinderella, the real magic didn’t come from the wand… Check out my video to see how you can create your own magic.
Past Failure is No Indicator of Future Success
A few days ago I posted a Nike commercial with Michael Jordon talking about success and failure, and it reminded me of a story I often tell about my son and the first time he dove off a high board. Watching him that day, I learned a valuable lesson: Running a business is like jumping off high dive. Every time you do it, it gets easier!
Video is Viral
We are a visual population. Raised with the TV as a babysitter, we are comfortable with images being delivered via video.
While we no longer have the patience for a commercials, moving through them with the flip of a button we will watch clever marketing messages delivered via video to our email. This is a great example. Gary Busey’s content is short, and funny, interspersed, with a simple advertising tag.
Networking Begins with Strategic Relationships
It is often said, that it is not what you know, but who you know that makes the difference. So Who Do You Know?
Successful business owners form a few great strategic relationships. Here’s why:
