November 2 , 2009

Dear friend,

I have to confess, I’m a bit of a hypocrite.

I tell companies that they should hire a professional web designer like Green Chair to create their web site or to market them through the search engines. Many of them have designed their own sites or trying to do their own search engine optimization. I, too, am a do-it-yourselfer but learned a good lesson recently on a home project.

Last month, my wife and I decided we really needed to invest in an irrigation system. We got bids from several companies. As I talked with them I picked up ideas and kept thinking, I could do this. It wouldn’t be too hard and I can save a bunch of money.

We ended up hiring a company that a friend suggested with whom he had been happy. Right up to the moment they sunk their first shovel, I still had that nagging thought I could have done that myself.

But as I watched the sweat dripping down the faces of the three employees digging through multiple layers of soil, rock, and weed block, I thought differently. I was relieved I didn’t have to tap into the water line or cut holes through our basement wall. And as I watched the testing and re-routing of electrical connections to make the whole thing work, I knew this was more complicated than I thought.

Three days later, the whole system was done—the yard was put back together, there were no leaks, and water was consistently going where it should. Better yet, we now have soft, bright green blades of grass growing in our former weed-filled stretches of baking clay. It’s amazing.

If you’re determined to be a do-it-yourselfer, ask yourself three questions:

1. What will I do when something goes wrong with my system?

I get frequent phone calls from people whose nephew designed their website. Now a form is broken and their nephew is off working at his new job and no longer has time to handle their rather pressing concerns.

2. Do I have the time to consistently update my site and drive traffic to it through the search engines?

There’s no such thing any more as being done with a website. Your competition is revising their site and search engines are looking for fresh content. And you may have new products or services that you want to let web site visitors know about. So you need someone who will be there to help update your site.

3. Have I done my homework?

My wife and I had a good sense we wanted to hire the company we did, but we took it a step further and called their references. Their customers gave us positive feedback and painted the company in a realistic light. When we ran into a small problem with the work, we weren’t surprised they resolved it quickly and positively.

If you’ve decided you’ve had it with trying to design your own site or market yourself online, please give us a call at 720-922-3124. We just entered our 10th year of business and we will use our experience and expertise to help you succeed on the Internet.

And if you want the name of a great irrigation company, I’d be happy to share one with you, too.

Dave Carlson Green Chair Marketing Group

NEW WEB SITES:

Intergroup Architects

Intergroup Architects, a Littleton architectural firm, asked us to redesign their site and build it on a Content Management System that allowed them to maintain their site. The new site really shows off the first class projects they’ve designed over the years. We put a new piece of Flash on their front page that highlights several of their successful projects.

[ Visit the Intergroup web site ]

A Touch of Class Interiors

After several months of only having a placeholder at its domain name, A Touch of Class Interiors has a new site. A Touch of Class is an interior design and staging company in Littleton. The new site is colorful and classy, reflecting the owner’s design style. Included in the design is a Photo Gallery that allows the client to upload pictures and descriptions of their projects.

[ Visit the Touch of Class web site ]

Proferrin

Proferrin manufactures and sells iron supplements through their new web site. We redesigned their site and added a shopping cart for their customers to be able to quickly and easily order their products.

[ Visit the Proferrin web site ]

CLIENT PROFILE: ArborScape Services

ArborScape is a Denver-based tree service that has been our client for several years. They have been dominating the search engines for most of their major keywords and are seeing great success with residential tree trimming and spraying services.

They are currently bidding commercial, municipal and HOA tree trimming and tree spraying projects for 2010. They also are bringing on staff and equipment to meet the huge demand for mountain pine beetle spraying in Summit County and the Estes Park Valley. 

If you need a bid for tree removal or trimming, please visit their site at www.arborscapeservices.com. ArborScape's client list includes the City and County of Denver and the US Army Corp of Engineers. 

JUST FOR GRINS

If you frequent Facebook, you should check out this video.

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Please visit our site at www.GreenChair.net to see the many services we have to offer. Also, feel free to forward this to friends who might be interested in improving their online marketing strategies.

Dave Carlson
Green Chair Marketing Group
david@greenchair.net
www.greenchair.net
Phone: 720-922-3124

Green Chair Marketing Group is located in Denver, Colorado, and specializes in web design, search engine optimization and email marketing. Give us a call at 720-922-3124 to talk about your Internet marketing needs.