So, that’s why I’ve created the Chichester Design What We Do series. Using our blog, I’m going to describe these services in a bit more detail so that you will be able to better understand how they can benefit your business. First up is social media optimisation.

Social media is no longer merely the preserve of the young – it’s a rapidly growing business tool and the future of B2C and B2B communication. The likes of LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and blogs are helping businesses to reach out to both brand new customers and existing ones.

By using these social media networks and by creating and maintaining a business blog, companies are building a stronger awareness of their brand in the marketplace, creating a position of authority, achieving leads and generating revenue.

Using social media also helps your website become more search-engine friendly, which means it helps your company achieve a higher ranking in Google and better exposure to the marketplace.

We can recommend social media sites best suited to your business, set up and co-ordinate your accounts, write your blog copy and advise you on social media marketing. We can make social media a seamless part of your overall marketing strategy.

To find out more about Chichester Design’s social media optimisation services, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

Here at the Chichester Design office, we’ve been fed news, views, limited trials and all sorts for what seems like an eternity, so its arrival hasn’t been of the rabbit-out-of-a-magician’s-hat variety, but it’s still really interesting to finally see it in the flesh, so to speak.

And its arrival is important for the company, make no mistake about it. Office Web Apps is a response to Google Docs, a free online word processing and spreadsheets application (including remote collaboration on documents) whose launch was an aggressive move into Microsoft’s territory.

In short, Microsoft Office Web Apps allows you to use and store Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneNote files online and then access, view, edit and share the content from wherever you are, as long as you have an active internet connection.

So, what’s the next step? Well, for Microsoft, I think it’s growing its relationship with Facebook. The launch of Docs.com earlier this year enables Facebook users to create, edit, and share Microsoft documents with their Facebook friends and the arrival of Microsoft’s Social Connector application as part of Office 2010 surely points towards further integration.

That Microsoft has owned shares in Facebook since the very beginning and is already testing the water (very typical Microsoft strategy) with Docs.com says to me further collaboration isn’t too far away. We’ll have to wait and see.

To find out more about how to use the latest web technology to drive growth at your business, contact Michael at Chichester Design on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

One of Anne’s major requirements was being able to easily update the website with images and details of new clothing products as and when she liked. So, a content management system (CMS)-based website was the obvious choice for her.

She also wanted visitors to the new website to be able to upload all the details of their own clothing (logo, positioning of logos, colour of clothing, etc.) and to be able to purchase it online. So, we built in this design and e-commerce functionality.

As I’ve mentioned before, I think CMS-based websites are the perfect fit for small and medium-sized businesses. This type of website gives the user the independence to make changes whenever and wherever they like, easily and for free.

It also makes the customer experience simpler and more attractive, which should have obvious benefits for sales. Just ask the Chichester Design team! Snappy Crab now supplies embroidered work wear to everyone in the office – we’ve posted a review here.

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and related services, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

Of course, the information you can get from Twitter goes way beyond train schedules – the latest industry news, discussions on practices and projects, information on related industries and topics – it’s a long list.

Clearly, in my opinion at least, social media is fast becoming an essential tool for businesses, whatever their size. So, with this mind and with a nod to the recent social media seminar I attended, I’ve got together some tips for businesses on how to use social media.

What not to do

• Swear. You should conduct yourself as you do in any other business context.
• Put up with boring/endless Tweets – block them!
• Automatic follow people because they follow you.
• Discount people who initially don’t seem relevant to you or your business.
• ReTweet links without reading them first.

What to do

• Meet people in real life that you make contact with through social media.
• Be organised – do your blog, LinkedIn, Twitter, etc. at specific times. Target times when people are more likely to read what you write (e.g. lunch time/end of the day).
• Be consistent: don’t stop and start.
• Ensure that your blogs, Tweets, etc. are high quality. Quality is more important than quantity.
• Get lots of advice before you start and employ the right people.

And, talking of the right people, Chichester Design offers a comprehensive package of social media services, including social media optimisation and social media copywriting.

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and related services, including social media, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

Most of the websites I’ve looked at have put me off right away: poor information, hard to navigate, low-quality pictures and a generally uninspiring feel. All of which says to me: don’t stay here!

What makes this particularly surprising (and irritating) is that these are the type of business for whom a good website is essential. Potential customers, especially those who are visiting the area for the first time, can be put off in an instant by a bad website. Equally, they can be enticed to make a booking by a good one.

Talking of guesthouses and B&Bs with good websites, we have just finished a new website for Landseer House in Sidlesham, near Chichester (www.landseerhouse.co.uk). We overhauled their website, adding up-to-date information on what they offer and a selection of brand new images, taken by the Chichester Design photographer.

As part of the redesign, the website was fully search-engine optimised by our specialist team, giving Landseer House a higher Google ranking, which makes it more visible to potential guests. We also set up a Google AdWords online marketing campaign to help boost its online profile further.

If only more guest houses, B&Bs and hotels would follow suit, my trip planning would be a lot easier!

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and development services, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

Kabuki springs to mind because Ajay is featured in the next edition of Business First, a quarterly magazine for the business world. Hence, I thought it would be a good time to tell everyone that we’re the brains behind their website – www.kabukiproductions.co.uk.

Obviously, the look was important to a company that puts on live corporate events around the world, but Ajay was keen to be able to update the site as and when he liked. So, it is based on a user-friendly content management system.

We also built in a blog page, which is easy to use and allows Ajay to keep his followers up to date with all that’s going on at Kabuki. The blog is becoming an increasingly important business tool as more and more companies are becoming aware of the power of social media marketing.

Aside from the advertising aspect, social media marketing allows a business to create a position of authority and develop key relationships. It also generates the opportunity for peer-to-peer recommendation. All essential in today’s marketplace I’d say.

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and related services, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

She is one of an increasing number of people who recognise social media as an extension of traditional marketing and public relations, and as a means of building your reputation and establishing yourself as an authority in your sector, or a “thought leader”, as she put it.

If there were any doubters as to the effectiveness and value of social media for SMEs, I’m sure they would have been converted by the end of Françoise’s lively talk. She backed up her enthusiasm with hard facts as well – since starting blogging, tweeting and using LinkedIn, traffic to her website has increased by 20% and she has had various commissions as a result of her online networking efforts.

One thing Françoise emphasised was that quality and consistency are crucial for successful social media networking. Talking of which, we offer a range of social media services for businesses, including social media optimisation and social media copywriting. For more info, just give us a call.

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and related services, including social media optimisation, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

It was quite a busy night, as some of the team also had tickets for an early evening talk by the BBC World Affairs Editor John Simpson, which was part of the Chichester Festivities.

He talked about how the news had been reported over the last century or so. It was particularly interesting to hear him talk about the Andrew Gilligan scandal at the BBC – he was the chap who accused the government of “sexing up” reports concerning Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction. I think it’s fair to say that Alastair Campbell will never be on John Simpson’s Christmas card list.

Back in the big tent at Priory Park, local singer-songwriter Sarah Saville kicked off the music, before Katie Melua took to the stage about 9.45. She treated the crowd to some of her hits, including “The closest thing to crazy”, and some songs from her new album, The House.

In amongst all the music, ale and food, I got to have a quick chat with some of the guys that help organise the event. They had nothing but praise for the website, which was good to hear!

All round, it was a great night. We’re already looking forward to the 2011 event!

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and development services, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

Director Alastair contacted us with a brief to overhaul their existing website. They specifically wanted to add functionality that would enable them to list products they have for sale at Amazon, eBooks and Audible.co.uk, while at the same time permit a third party to manage these online sales.

And this is exactly what we’ve delivered – a great-looking site whose key aspect is a bespoke content management system (CMS). Designed specially for Summersdale, the system allows them to easily and quickly update their website for free.

You can check it out here: www.summersdale.com. The site also prioritises new and forthcoming releases and bestsellers as well as providing clear and straightforward access to its catalogue.

All of our customers prefer bespoke CMS-based websites – nobody wants an off-the-shelf one anymore. Why? I think flexibility is the main answer. Businesses don’t want to be bogged down going backwards and forwards to designers to change their websites, and paying every single time.

And having a CMS-based website means that you can more readily use the likes of online videos, search optimisation, search media optimisation, Google AdWords and Google Apps. Check out the Chichester Design portfolio for more info.

How the web works and how we are doing business is changing, and the use of increasingly sophisticated CMS-based websites is part of this evolution.

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and development services, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.

Ray at Inderford approached us and asked us to create something for him, using the company’s existing visuals, that he could then update and expand as and when he wanted. So, once we had the photography in the bag, we designed and developed a content management system (CMS)-based website for him.

A CMS-based website gives the user the independence to make changes to their website whenever and wherever they like. New products, new services, details of new staff members – all can be added easily and for free.

Simple, easy to navigate and easy to amend – I think that this kind of website is going to become the standard for SMEs everywhere. You can visit our online portfolio for more info and a look at the new Inderford website, as well as many others.

In addition to photography, we offer lots of other services that complement our web design and development, such as digital marketing, Google Adwords, Google Apps, branding, SEO, copywriting and more.

To find out more about Chichester Design’s web design and development services, contact Michael on +44 (0)1243 787542 or info@chichesterdesign.co.uk.