New Website Brings New Features to SDN Communications

In today’s fast-paced, technological world, businesses need to keep up on the most recent advances. The average website lasts only two years, and SDN Communications has not made a new site since 2007.

In 2007, when the current site was created, social media was something people were just discovering and you would more than likely not be reading this blog post online, as blogs were a new concept. You did not see sites with video clips, as multimedia sites were something still being designed.

The new website, launching soon, will incorporate all of the most recent technology. It will support new features such as live chat and trouble ticketing, which will allow clients and possible business prospects to communicate with SDN. The new site will also include video clips and animations to show just what goes on at SDN. Keep an eye out for the new site at www.sdncommunications.com.

We Are The World

The earthquake that devastated Port-au-Prince, Haiti, on January 12, has been a constant topic of conversation among people everywhere. Through all the buzz, you’ve probably noticed ads for the We Are The World Foundation, a non-profit organization raising money for Haitian earthquake relief efforts.

Insert Electric Pulp, a web development firm local to the Midwest. Although a team of only 11, the small company from Sioux Falls has been developing websites for big names across the country, including Stephen Colbert, Ford, and Hewlett-Packard, since 1996. Quality work is a staple for Electric Pulp that can be seen in each site they produce. Academic Earth, a site by the firm, came in at number nine on TIME Magazine’s 50 Best Websites 2009, beating out internet giants such as Google, YouTube, Hulu, and Amazon.

The WATW Foundation’s new website, world25.org, was built by Electric Pulp. It features We Are The World 25 for Haiti, a music video promoting the foundation and its cause.

The original song, a product of Lionel Richie, Michael Jackson, and Quincy Jones, raised over $63 million for African famine relief 25 years ago. Richie and Jones teamed up for the new release, which was recorded February 1. Over 80 popular music industry celebrities were featured in the remake, and the music video premiered February 12 during the NBC coverage of the opening ceremony of the Vancouver Winter Olympics.

Electric Pulp, in creating a home for the We Are The World Foundation, was able to bring its relief efforts to the web. The official We Are The World 25 For Haiti video is prominently featured on the site, embedded via YouTube. Viewers are also prompted to participate in the campaign’s main call to action: to donate $10 by texting “world” to 50555. Other tie ins include a Twitter feed, and links to find the WATW Foundation on social media sites, including Facebook, Myspace, Twitter, and Youtube. You can purchase the song on iTunes, buy an official tee, or keep updated on the foundation through its widget or mailing list.

All proceeds of course act as charity in support of Haitian earthquake relief.

So take a minute to check out the site built by Electric Pulp, and participate in the efforts if you can. Because it’s going to a pretty inspiring cause.

Online Media Outlook for 2010

The folks over at ClickRain are always an excellent source of insight when it comes to online marking. It’s kind of what they do. As such, when they put out a list of predictions for the upcoming year, it is wise to listen. Here’s what I heard.

Social media is, of course, expected to stay in the limelight when it comes to online content. While its importance has been realized for a long time to people in the know, not everyone has yet embraced it. Soon, even the stogy old service station will use Twitter and every local café will need a Facebook fan page. If they don’t start using social media soon, they will be left out in the dust.

Unfortunately for my home-town grocery store, simply using social media isn’t enough: one must understand how it works for it to be effective. All business, even ones with established web presences, need to understand where their online customers are coming from, what they are doing there, and why. By knowing the customer, it is possible to constantly improve what the message says, where it is put, and when it is most effective.

However, not all is bleak and dreary for the little guy. Of all people, it is local businesses and retailers that utilize text messaging to its full potential. Mobile couponing and other text-based offers are quickly gaining widespread acceptance, and they are fantastic methods of building consumer loyalty.

It is important for everyone to embrace the new. Twitter is quickly becoming a primary means of communication; it is foolish not to utilize it. Try putting your twitter handle on your business card.

But that is not to say one should throw away the old. Email is long from dead, and it remains one of the best ways to accurately reach consumers. Sometimes it is overshadowed by the new guys, but the world is a long way from being able to ditch email altogether.

Finally, businesses will need to focus on building not just sales and loyalty, but also on reputation. Even the most loyal customer can be instantly put off if something unfortunate gets into the mainstream. By building a strong brand image and maintaining it, such shocks will not cause the catastrophic failure that it might have.

As even the fine folks over at ClickRain, it is impossible to predict what will happen in the future. New, better, and more exciting ideas are sure to come in the years ahead, but following these tips will only help when that time comes.