How to Acquire Free Web Site Promotion

You have finished making your own website. You have introduced your company and presented your products and services. You have added propositions and promos to catch your target audience’s attention. You have achieved the dos and don’ts of building a company web site. But why isn’t your website a major success?

Maybe you’re not planning the key to the best promotion of your web site. Here are some guidelines on how to acquire free web site promotions for your company’s success.

If you have started to promote your web site, keep it constant. If you promote your site with persistence, it will catch your audience’s attention.

Be patient. Try each method in promotion until you acquire the best, free promotion there is. You have to accept trial and error for your web site to reach the top.

There are many ways for your web site to be seen. Here are some free web site promotions you could try until you find the most effective.

*Free promotions such as search engines and directories would give your web site the deserved traffic you always wanted. Make sure to check your web site’s ranking to know whether or not this type of free promotion is right for you.

*Make a deal with other web sites on trading links which could help both web sites. Make sure to use words that could easily interest the audience.

*Find free classified ads that could boost the promotion of your web site. These ads could be seen by other people who you are not targeting for, but may as well be interested in your services.

*Free and low-cost internet banners are spread all through out the World Wide Web. Banners that pop-up at the top of a page or in a separate window would automatically catch your target audience’s attention.

If your web site and its free promotion did not work even after accomplishing these methods, analyze your web site. Track down all visitors, advertisements, and transactions. Then locate errors in your web site. Upload new files to your web site continuously for audience to return for new products and services. Monitor your own web site if it’s up in the market or down.

Then be ready to try the methods again and surely it will work.

It has always been said that the best things in life are free. Yes they are. And as soon as your free web site promotion proves to the audience its worth, then you’ll believe it’s true.

Popularity: 17% [?]

A Great Idea For a Blogging Web Site is No Longer Enough

Because there are so many blogs and web sites about blogs on the internet, it can be tough to distinguish your blogging web site from all of the others. Whether you are starting up a new web site aimed at bloggers or whether you are looking to make your existing blogging
site more distinctive, the key to building and maintaining a site that will capture the interest and attention of the blogging community is finding your niche. If you can fill a unique need in a way that no
other web site does, you’ll be able to build a lasting readership among web surfers. Once you have discovered a niche, you will still have a lot to do, but finding your place in the blogosphere is the place to
begin.

Every great blogging web site starts with a great idea, and you can’t build a successful site that will last without one. There are many great sites aimed at today’s bloggers, and competition for the attention of this growing demographic is fierce. To make your
blogging web site stand out from the pack, you will need to offer something that no other site is currently offering, or you will need to do the same thing that an already popular site does but in a more impressive or valuable way.

One way to discover an ideal model for your blogging web site is to look at the sites that have successfully captured a blogging audience already to determine if you can appropriate some of their strategies to help realize your vision. Of course, you will also need to add
a unique flair to your project in order to stand apart from your competition. Many people agree that the web sites that do the best in today’s market are the sites that have the most personality. The fiercely individual surfers who are bloggers are a demographic that
responds especially strongly to personality, so consider how you can give your site a unique and attractive feeling by lending your own voice and sensibility to your site’s design and content.

Once you have a great idea for your site, have pinpointed a special niche that you are well equipped to fill, and have infused the site with personality, the next step is figuring out how to get the word out to bloggers. In the long run, a great idea just isn’t enough to propel
your blogging web site to success. You will need to draft a smart and realistic marketing plan in order to draw readers to your site. Once you hook a blogger, your great content will keep them coming back, but it is vital to get that first glance or your site won’t have a
chance to shine.

Popularity: 24% [?]

Podcaster Training: Interview with Kevin Micalizzi from DimDim.com

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Due to an oversight, Jeff Chandler’s Wordpress Weekly Segment did not air during this episode. You will find his audio segment in his show notes for this episode.

Last week, we had our Special Guest, Larry Genkin, the CEO of the Blogger and Podcaster Media Network on for an interview. He told us a lot about his new network including who their first member was, Bill Bartmann.

Tonight, I am pleased to bring on Kevin Micalizzi from DimDim.com. Kevin is the Community Manager for DimDim and he left some comments to a recent Web Conferencing Series that I posted about.

Here are some of the questions I will be asking tonight as well as questions from the chat room too:

1. What are the primary differences between the free version and the $100.00 branded version.

2. What is the server capacity for the free version and what has the up time been?

3. What is the maximum length of a meeting?

4. Any thought being given to increase the number microphones that can be given away without using the call bridge?

5. What browser do you recommend for the ability to use the “Share Desktop” feature? I’ve had difficulty with Safari, Chrome and IE 8 Beta.

6. Can a DimDim Session be encoded or embedded on a web site or blog?

7. Are the sessions recorded and accessible after the meeting is over?

8. Since the sessions are being hosted on DimDim’s servers, does the person hosting the event use a lot of bandwidth?

9. How does DimDim compare to other services, such as GoToMeeting?

10. Can DimDim be ran as a standalone product, say if one has their own server space, like with GoDaddy?

11. Could you address and describe the “Record” feature… what actually is recorded and what format is it recorded in?

I will also be fielding questions from the chat room during this interview and will run a demonstration of DimDim, with the help of Bruce Turner, during the interview as well.

Listen to this great interview in the player below!

Popularity: 51% [?]

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Be A Success! Making Web Conferencing a Hit

Web conferencing is starting to replace fact-to-face meetings. Web conference aims to make employees more productive at the same provide significant improvement on how the company runs.

There are several things to remember to ensure that web conferencing was done or conducted effectively and is a success. Preparation is important for a successful web conference. According to Resource Center, it is never to early to prepare for the conference. A month before the web conference, it is important to determine if it is indeed necessary and design who will be participating in the conference and rough outline of the topic to be discussed.

Two to three weeks before the scheduled conference, invitations to the participants should already be sent out. A week before the conference will just be for polishing of the details planned couple of weeks earlier.

A week before the actual date of the conference, it is important to conduct a dry-run or trial run. This would help or eliminate any possibility of technical issues.

Check the participants’ bandwidth. It is important to know if anybody from the participants would have any problem about the video or audio. It there is somebody from the group whose bandwidth is not enough to support the conference, then advice the group member to call and coordinate with their internet service provider.

Testing the equipment before the conference is very important. Check the web cameras if they are working properly with the web conferencing programs. Also, check the sound system. See if the microphones are giving out feedback that may deafen the other participants. Make sure that all the attendees have the right tools needed for the conference.

Aside from the web cams and sound system, also check for the camera angles. It is important, and professional, that your whole head will be shown in the camera, not just the neck or the top of the head. Also double check the lighting on the camera. If telephone is needed in the web conference, using headsets is more effective than the phone.

Also test the software you are going to use in the presentation. There are test or free trials of the software available. Try using these software to be familiar with its features and food.

If the person involved in the meeting is located in a different country, it is important to double- check the time zone. Also try to use more muted colors like blue or gray. Bright colors and patterned clothing doe not really match with transmission.

Using clear and thorough instructions can also help the participants to have an enjoyable session. Since web conferences come with lots of features, it is important to use the feature that will enhance the quality of the presentation or demonstration. Familiarize yourself with the features before the meeting.

To use time efficiently, set an agenda. Agenda setting will help the moderator and the participant’s to know the expectations from the conference and address those expectations. Agenda setting is a great way of managing time. Starting and ending the meeting on time is also a way of valuing time.

The day after the conference, send out thank you notes to the participants who have attended the session. A week after the conference, ask the participants to provide any feedback to improve the flow and the conference itself. Through this, we can ensure that the participants had the greatest web conferencing experience.

Popularity: 24% [?]

Desktop Sharing Wonder: A Web Conferencing Feature

According to a 2003 study by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, 84 percent of American workers use computers at home. More and more workers are also working at home or on the road. In 2004, about 20.7 million Americans did some or all of their work at home. Web conferencing enables work or professional collaboration among co-workers and clients even if they are geographically apart.

Web conferencing enables document, file, application and even desktop sharing. Web conferencing can use a downloaded software or just access a URL and use a password or access code to join the group conducting the web-based conference. Web conference lessens the company funds spent on travel and also the time and effort invested on traveling.

File sharing, conducting presentations, orientations, product roll-outs and consultation can be done – in real time – through the internet. Desktop sharing is one of the most important feature/component included in web conferencing packages. Desktop sharing enhances the ability to interact and communicate with colleagues despite of being away from each other.

With desktop sharing, workers can access their work computers from any device that has internet connection, including home computers and laptops. Desktop sharing makes it easier and more engaging compared to teleconferences. With desktop and application sharing (another feature of web conferencing), one can use the applications without buying, downloading or installing any software.

According to Dave Roos (author, How Desktop Sharing Works), desktop sharing works by sending packets of information from a host computer to a remote computer. Data travel through the internet. Data maybe in JPEG and GIF format, while other data may arrive as individual pixels assigned to a particular X and Y coordinate. Data is compressed before sending it out to minimize the bandwidth used in the transfer process.

With desktop sharing, remote login or control is possible. With remote login or control, it is necessary to have a downloaded software for the sharing, internet connection and secure desktop sharing network. To share a desktop, the host computer allows a remote user to view the contents of the host computer’s desktop.

The host computer can also hand over the control of the mouse and keyboard to the remote user. Handing off the control will enable the remote user to manipulate the mouse and keyboard of the host computer.

Desktop sharing has been frequently used by technical support representatives to trouble shoot technical and software problems without physically visiting the clients. Desktop sharing provides a better customer experience. Complications brought about by providing too many instructions over the phone are lessened by remote login and access.

During a web conference, the host or presenter may allow other attendees to view his desktop to show the presentation or data that he’s encountering some problems. Attendees, then, can have control over the host’s equipment and further explain the other steps the host can take.

Desktop sharing also enables workers to enhance their collaboration and cooperation towards productiveness. If an employee is sent to a another location to conduct seminars or to do a very important presentation, this employee may contact his co-workers and ask for their opinion about his presentation. Co-workers can access the employee’s computer and provide some input about the presentation without physically going and visiting the employee who is away.

Through desktop sharing and web conferencing, working and professional relationship are improved. Conducive and productive working atmosphere is developed inside the workplace.

Popularity: 25% [?]

VoIP: Providing the Voice in Web Conferencing

Web conferencing is making big waves in the last few years. Through web conferencing meetings, consultations, collaborations, presentations, orientations and other business matters can now be done even if the participants are geographically dispersed.

Web conferencing offers different features that enable all of these possible. File, document, application, even desktop sharing are available. Instant messaging, polling, surveying, recording, and playback of meetings is also readily available. VoIP is also another feature almost present in all of web conference programs.

VoIP stands for Voice over Internet Protocol. This is the method of transmitting analog audio signals through the internet. Analog signals are converted in digital data so it can be transmitted through internet connection. VoIP can turn a standard internet connection into a way to place free phone calls.

VoIP enables the user to make phone calls from anywhere with broadband connectivity. There are also VoIP soft phone providers. A soft phone is client software that loads VoIP service onto the desktop or laptop. It would display an interface on the screen that looks like a traditional telephone. Microphone or headset is a requirement to place phone calls on the soft phone.

Adding VoIP into web conferencing is like merging data and audio in a more convenient system. But there are some doubters on the affectivity of VoIP in web conferencing.

There are advantages and disadvantages for using VoIP. VoIP dramatically cuts the costs allotted for voice minute charges. Adding audio and voice in web conferences enhances the effectiveness of the meetings. Requirements for VoIP set-up is also minimal, like personal computer, broadband connection and a communications headset or other audio input device.

Before VoIP web conferencing, companies and businesses pays a lot of money for international calls using landline connections. But with VoIP, companies can save hundreds of thousands of dollars each year. By using a phone adaptor (ATA), the VoIP technology can travel anywhere. The user just have to connect their phone adaptor to a broadband connection to use it.

Two persons are not the only people that can speak on the phone line. With VoIP, setting up a conference for the whole teams in real time is possible. More calls can be handled on one access line. VoIP also has several features like Caller ID, Contact Lists, Voicemail, etc.

Meanwhile there are people who cast doubts over the VoIP use in web conferences. The voice quality is one of the biggest question over the use of VoIP. The biggest issue is echo, especially if the participants are using speakers and microphone instead of headsets.

Another consideration is that VoIP is dependent on electricity or wall power. For normal telephones, if power goes down, the phone is still working. With VoIP, no power means no phone. Since VoIP also uses computer and internet, it is susceptible to worms, viruses and even hacking. To resolve this issue, VoIP developers and providers are already working on VoIP encryption.

For worst case scenarios, a computer crashing in the middle of the call will also mean no phone. VoIP phone system is entirely dependent on personal computers and the broadband connection.

VoIP and web conferencing are still very young and developing technology. There are sill room for improvement to further improve the efficiency of VoIP. Similar to other emerging technology, the start is always the jittery part. VoIP service providers are still facing a lot of challenges to better improve the services they are offering.

Popularity: 25% [?]

Choosing the Right Web Conferencing Package

The web conferencing technology is making business lives easier. With web conferencing: file sharing, document sharing, application sharing, instant messages, recording, VoIP, desktop sharing, etc. are parts or features of the web conference system sold on the market.

Compared with the prices when web conferencing started, you can say that the price went down considerably. Before, web conferencing is only available for big companies. But right now, there are providers catering to small scale businesses or little people.

There are several options to get the web conferencing service. Service providers have several options you can choose from. Pay as you go is the most common set-up of web conferences. It is commonly used by people who do not use web conferencing technology often. Price ranges from $0.08 -$0.40 per minute per participant for the web portion. Another $0.08-$0.25 per minute is being charged for the audio.

Another option for the web conference service is getting a plan where there is already a fixed number of seats that can be used for a certain amount of time. This costs a monthly fee of around $50 -$200 per seat. Taken into consideration about the prices would be the overage charges, additional seats and minutes. There can also be an extra set-up charge which can be around $0-$100.

If web conferencing is always being done in the company, the best way is to get a package for unlimited web conferencing for the month. Prices range from $150 per month and can reach until $3,000 per month.

There are companies that purchase licensed software that can hold their entire company and use it internally. These companies would normally have in-house web conferences. Purchasing the conferencing software, the price may be at $5000 dollars or tens of thousands dollars. This does not include the annual maintenance and other service fees.

To further contribute and enhance your web conferencing experience, there are add-ons or additional features that you can avail for extra price of course. Web cameras are very important part of web conferencing. A web camera normally costs at around $50 - $100.

Other features include confirming reservations, assisting with interactive features and speaking with the moderator through a private line. An operator-assisted web conference costs $1000- $5000, depending on the participation of the operator in the project.

Recording and archiving- another great web conferencing feature- is also available for additional fees. Recording and archiving is a great way of storing documentation of the meeting for future reference. This feature is available for $50 -$250 per meeting.

Aside from comparing prices, there are also several pointers to identify the best web conferencing program suitable for your needs. Reviewing the pricing plans is also an important factor, there are providers that required to be paid on a rate-per-person. However, there are providers that gives an option of paying a flat rate monthly for unlimited web conference service.

Keep in mind the possible locations of people who are going to be included in the web conferencing group. If the service provider limits or is unable to ensure that these locations will be tapped by web conferencing, then it is not for you.

To get the best service fit for your needs, make sure that you are armed with relevant and detailed questions about the service these providers are offering. Don’t get overexcited and join a provider just because they are the most popular in the market.

There are many web conferencing service providers out there, all you need is patience to get what you need for a reasonable price.

Popularity: 23% [?]

Different Web Conferencing Services and Features

Web conferencing makes business life easier. With the web conferencing technology, business cut their travel costs and other logistics expenditure by cutting down face-to-face meetings and replacing it with web-based conferences. Web conferencing enables people physically and geographically separated to conduct meetings, presentations, consultations and collaborations.

There are numerous web conferencing vendors in the market nowadays offering new features and services. Here are some of the common features of web conference programs:

• Web conferencing programs use common applications like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Adobe Flash Player to create graphic presentations with enhanced audio and video streaming. For PowerPoint presentation sharing, the presentation is compressed in the presenter’s computer and then sent to the server. The server then sends it to all the participants, caching it in the presenter’s computer. This allows the presenter to change the presentation slides.

• File sharing, document and application sharing allows the presenter to share a selected document with the participants. Documents or files created in Word, Excel, layouts in graphics program can be shared. File sharing is the same as the PowerPoint presentation sharing.

• Web page viewing allows the presenter and the participants to launch a browser and make it visible to everyone. Web page viewing is mainly used to check a competitor’s website, testing of the new website with technical and creative teams, and conducting software product tours.

• The moderator can also hand off the control of the flow of the discussion. One of the participants may run the meeting.

• Desktop sharing is also another great feature of web conferencing. Desktop or screen sharing allows the presenter to display everything that’s on his computer screen to be seen by the participants in real time. The presenter can also allow his desktop to be controlled by any of the other participants.

• Whiteboard encourages brainstorming and other on-the-spot creative process. With this feature, web conferencing provides text and drawing capability. Participants can illustrate or outline projects or ideas in the whiteboard.

• Most web conferencing providers have a window dedicated in viewing the roster of attendees of the conference.

• There are also backup systems. In case the first server fails, the conference is seamlessly moved to a second server. All the meeting materials are stored so that the important data will not be lost.

• Recording allows online archiving of the actual meeting. This is a reliable source or point of reference. Only the moderator determines who are allowed to access the recording after the conference.

• Instant messaging is also an important communication feature offered by web conferencing vendors.

• Aside from text chat or instant messaging, audio communication is in the form of VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol). This allows users to make telephone calls over the world wide web.

• For the security of the conference, web conference providers are using Secure Sockets Layer for full meeting security. Meeting attendees require a conference security code to access both live conferences and recorded meetings.

Web conference service providers are promoting different kinds of feature for their conference products. Knowing the right web conferencing program to use would rely on the objective for using this kind of program. Once the need and the ability are drawn, then the solution will be easier to find.

Popularity: 26% [?]

Web Conferencing Benefits

More and more companies are using web conferencing. Web based seminars or presentations or web conferencing is a more convenient way for conducting seminars and meetings for participants who are geographically separated from each other. Web conferencing allows participants to participate or conduct presentations, share applications, chat and send out instant messages about the seminar or presentation.

People and companies are investing in web conferences because of its advantages. Web conferencing is said to reduce the travel costs of a company. It is not necessary to meet participants physically or face to face. Let’s admit it, travelling is not cheap. With the fuel prices so expensive nowadays, who is excited in spending money on the pump. Travel stress is also being avoided like airport delays, flight cancellations, traffic jams, and long and irritating travel hours.

Since web conferencing replaces in-person meetings, not only does it reduce travel costs by the company or business, it also keeps employees near their families and staff. Less travel means more family time and time spent with work staff to improve productiveness.

Saving time can also be equivalent into saving money. Travel delays not only waste time but costs money. All the time and effort put into organizing the meeting can be allotted to other organizational and company tasks. This time can be used for generating sales and income for the company and the business. Web conferencing also adds to the workers’ flexibility. Meetings can be held on short notice even if participants are in distant locations.

Web conferencing also reduces other company or business costs. Some companies are using web conferencing to enhance customer service and learn more about customers in distant location. Knowing more about the customers the business is catering to, helps improve the quality of service they are providing.

Training departments can be turned into e-Learning centers thus training more people for less money and shorter time. Guest lecturers can give employee up- training, without the cost and time of travel.

Employers, even if they are away, can monitor, check and be in touch with their employees. Immediate company or business issues can be addressed even if the employer is in a different location. Key employees in different locations can have regular collaborations or consultations to improve the company productivity.

The ability to frequently meet and consult about pertinent business issues, strengthens the working and professional relationship among the employees even if they are far from each other.

Employers can even conduct interview to potential employees without having to leave the office, this is particularly useful for businesses or positions that are tightly integrated with technology. By performing the interview, via web conference, this can ensure that the candidate employee can perform basic computer tasks involved in web conferencing.

Another beneficial feature of web conferencing is its recording and archiving capability. Recording and archiving not only provides the necessary information to those who are unable to attend the meeting, but is also very useful for future reference.

Education institutions also use web conferencing. Education institutions can offer distance education programs and can have blended learning setting. Students can be liberated from the physical classroom set-up but still maintain teacher and classmate interaction. Education institutions see that web conferencing can be way of reducing drop-out rates since students can continue their education through distance learning programs.

Businesses are not the only institutions that benefit from web conferencing. Education, personal relationships are experiencing some advantages brought about by web conferencing. Technology, of course, is here to improve our daily lives.

Popularity: 23% [?]

Where Did It Come From? Web Conferencing History

Through web conferencing, there is an opportunity to chat and communicate with co-workers, even facilitate meetings, presentations and demonstrations. Web conferencing not just offers communication exchange but also allows participants to trade documents, share applications, access desktops, use whiteboards and PowerPoint.

How did this technology started?

Lucy P. Roberts, author of “History of Web Conferencing - Multifunction Conferencing Comes of Age” (2004) traced the roots of web conferencing long before there is internet.

The University of Illinois developed a system known as PLATO during the 1960s. This is for their Computer-based Education Research Laboratory (CERL). This is just a small system supporting just a single classroom of terminals connected to one mainframe computer. In 1972, the terminals being supported by PLATO increased to over a thousand.

Although PLATO was long before internet technology and it is mainly designed for computer-based education, it paved several communication features that became the foundation for web conferencing and instant messaging. PLATO Notes, was the world’s first online messaging boards, while Personal Notes is used for electronic mails. Talkomatic is used for real-time instant messaging or for chat. PLATO even developed a tool for monitor mode or remote screen sharing.

David Wooley, creator of PLATO Notes in 1973, eventually designed Lotus Notes which was released in 1989. Lotus Notes is mainly an e-mail client, but it can also be used as an instant messaging client, browser, notebook, and calendar reservation client. Roberts cited that Lotus Notes was the first commercially released product that offered document sharing, user-created data-bases and remote location communication.

The PLATO technology gave birth to several communication tools that paved the way for web conferencing. But it wasn’t until mid-1990s that the complete web conferencing started to shape up and become available in the market.

Roberts cited PlaceWare as one of the first companies to provide complete web conferencing. It was developed by Xerox Palo Alto Research Center in the 1990s. In 2003, Microsoft acquired PlaceWare and renamed its core product Microsoft Office Live Meeting.

Meanwhile, file sharing started proliferating the World Wide Web. Peer to peer (P2P) file sharing refers to sharing of file containing audio, video, data or anything in digital format. With peer to peer file sharing, peers act as equals, the roles of clients and servers are merged. There is no central server that manages the network nor a central router.

Peer to peer file sharing was seen as a way of hosting web conferencing, rather than running the application through a single server. With this P2P format, it is more dynamic and involving.

Groove was the first to apply the P2P concept in web conferencing. It was released on 2000 and was upgraded in 2002 with impressive results. WiredRed Software, in 2003, released the first web conferencing software that does not require significant installation time.

Most web conferencing providers offer packages that contains voice over IP,co-browsing and application sharing, additional features that can be readily available like polls, event management, PowerPoint presentation, playback, recording and live annotation and mark-up.

With a lot of web conferencing providers and vendors in the market today, web conferencing is becoming more and more common. A lot of people are using this technology in their businesses and companies. New development in the web conferencing system is inevitable due to competition and continuous technological innovation.

Popularity: 25% [?]

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