Internet: Forums - Why Join?

Forums - Why Join?

Written by Gina Marie Capatar

With intensified boom of forums nowadays, you may find yourself asking “What do these online communities have that they are slowly but surely spreading like wildfire?”

For starters, let us name a few good things one can get from joining in forums.

First and foremost, repparttar reason why forums are so popular is because they are engaging. In a forum, “forumers” are given repparttar 141125 maximum real person to people interaction. Unlike Chats or Instant Messaging, a forum can let a person interact with not just one or two persons; in a forum, you can practically let repparttar 141126 entire world know about what you think or feel. And what is more beautiful is that there can be anonymity in a forum. Well, being anonymous has its own advantages and disadvantages but let us not dwell on it. The important thing about it is that, in a forum, you can choose to be or not to be anonymous.

Another very nice thing about forums is that they provide participants repparttar 141127 feeling of community and kinship with other forum members. Even if at times, you may not know each other, it is comforting to know that you share things in common. In most instances, participants really develop connection; we are not talking about internet connection but a real personal connection. Sometimes, conversations just don’t end up in repparttar 141128 forums; others may even correspond in emails and end up talking on repparttar 141129 phone. In other words, by participating in a forum, access to companionship, acquaintances, closeness and even relationships, is easy.

Aside from repparttar 141130 social interactions happening in forums, there are also forums that are more into repparttar 141131 professional side and/or forums that target a specific community such as forums for repparttar 141132 marketing community, for repparttar 141133 writing community, for oppressed women, for women in general, and even for specific societies and organizations. The same thing goes for this kind of forums; people interact, share ideas, plans, help and support each other and/or simply talk to each other. The only difference is that they mostly talk about a specific topic. For instance, a forum for women only talks about issues that are unique to women such as PMS, menopause, make-up tips, women’s career and repparttar 141134 like.

How To Avoid The Three Most Common Budgeting Mistakes People Make When Planning a Web Initiative

Written by Frank Cowell, CeM

As we all know, times have changed. Websites have become an absolutely fundamental component to nearly any business. But, while most companies set aside money for website development, they often overlook several key components. As a result, they either far exceed their initial budget or are unhappy with their Website's result.

Many web firms purposely leave these crucial portions of repparttar budgeting process out, so they can 'hook you' in repparttar 141027 beginning, and then get more money as repparttar 141028 process continues. Obviously, this makes creating a budget all repparttar 141029 more difficult.

The good news is that there are some guidelines to help you ensure that your web project is a complete success. The following three components of website development are repparttar 141030 most overlooked in early development and budgeting phases. Considering these three aspects of website development will help you ensure your website exceeds your expectations, but not your budget.

1. Extended Photography and Artwork.

When budgeting for web projects, companies usually forget to budget for repparttar 141031 purchase of professional photography. Your graphic design department at your company or web firm will provide you with an overall website design called repparttar 141032 look-n-feel. Typically, their job doesn't include designing each page of content.

The look-n-feel templates usually have a content area where repparttar 141033 implementation team will incorporate content. You will need to include artwork at repparttar 141034 top of repparttar 141035 page to provide a nice visual to coincide with repparttar 141036 content.

Another example of where you would use photography or artwork is where you have a page of content that talks about a unique process your company uses. Spelling out repparttar 141037 process in text format is good. A nice visual to represent that process in conjunction with repparttar 141038 text is even better. This visual was likely not part of repparttar 141039 design team's original goals when designing repparttar 141040 look-n-feel for your site.

Budgeting for extended artwork and photography:

a) When developing your project's site map, be sure to look at each top level page as its own homepage for a given section. Your website's homepage has a strategic layout that incorporates a nice balance between design and copy, and so should each top level page. (Top level pages are repparttar 141041 initial pages in your site's main navigation areas.)

b) Once you designate what pages are top level homepages, define overall goals of that page/section. What do you want your visitors to learn about? What's repparttar 141042 strategy for that section? What overall branding and feeling should be conveyed? Document this information and make sure your web or eMarketing firm knows about this additional design work at repparttar 141043 outset if they haven't already talked to you about it.

c) A resource for cost-effective stock photography that we like to use is iStockPhoto.com. iStockPhoto.com has a wide range of royalty-free photography to choose from at very reasonable prices. The only drawback is that you may use a photo that is in-use by another company; therefore, it?s not unique to your company. This is an option you must weigh. Unique photography will cost quite a bit more, but if you are a larger company repparttar 141044 expense may be justified. Smaller companies should definitely consider iStockPhoto.com.

2. Copy / Content

There's nothing more disheartening then getting to repparttar 141045 end of your web project and realizing you don't have enough copy to fill your website. I have personally seen web projects have everything complete other than copy only to watch companies delay completed projects for months while they try to write their own content. Consequently, repparttar 141046 project is not only delayed, but repparttar 141047 copy is usually short and weak.

Well written copy is essential for any website, because it grabs repparttar 141048 reader's attention and provides cohesiveness throughout repparttar 141049 site. It is also essential for search engine optimization and marketing. If you don't have a copy writer on staff at your company, make sure your web firm understands repparttar 141050 importance of good copy and helps you budget for it.

Budgeting for copy writing:

a) When you create your site map, in addition to designating which pages are top level homepages, designate which pages you already have sufficient copy for and which pages you don't have sufficient copy for.

b) Meet with a professional copy writer if you don't have one in-house. At repparttar 141051 meeting discuss each area of copy that you have, where it will go and what you are missing. Make sure you give them repparttar 141052 copy you already have so they can polish it as part of repparttar 141053 final deliverable and ensure that all copy is in repparttar 141054 same 'voice.' Ideally your web or eMarketing firm will have a copy writer on staff to coordinate this within repparttar 141055 project and provide strategy recommendations.

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