Tuesday Google rolled out 2 new improvements to Googles search feature, both of which will help users to more effectively get the information they need.  The first improvement has an expanded list of  related searches.  Google has implemented this technology to better understand associations and concepts related to your search.   One of its first applications allows Google to offer better related searches.

Google says, ” For example, if you search for [principles of physics], our algorithms understand that “angular momentum,” “special relativity,” “big bang” and “quantum mechanic” are related terms that could help you find what you need.”  Google search is now able to look at  more queries and make suggestions more relevant to what you actually need.

Secondly,  is the addition of longer search result descriptions, or as coders would say longer snippets.

When you search, each result gives you answers that start with a dark blue title and is followed by text.  This text is called a snippet.  Both of these together help you to know what each page is about.  Furthermore, important words in the snippet that are related to your search appear bold.

Most queries over 3 words are to long to do you any good.  Now with Googles enhancements they have been able to increase the number of lines in the snippet, which will allow for more information.  Showing more of the words that you type in the text of the page.

Google states, “Suppose you were looking for information about Earth’s rotation around the sun, and specifically wanted to know about its tilt and distance from the sun. So you type all of that into Google: [earth's rotation axis tilt and distance from sun]. A normal-length snippet wouldn’t be able to show you the context for all of those words, but with longer snippets you can be sure that the first result covers all those topics. In addition, the extra line of snippets for the third result shows the word “sun” in context, suggesting that the page doesn’t talk about Earth’s distance from the sun”

What does this mean to the average person?  Easier methods to find exactly what you need.  As search items grow and become more refined, less time will be spent looking through irrelevant listings.  Now for the website owner, this becomes more important.  Search engine optimization will be increased through keyword recognition.  Longer snippets allows for more exact search terms and keyword associated hits.

-Kimberly Veautour

Acknowledgments: Google Blog

Have you ever sent a business related email you immediately regretted?  Forgot to attach an attachment?  Mistyped a word and as it was being sent noticed it?  Well Google and Gmail have your back!

If you haven’t heard about Gmail, you should.  Google’s website states, “Gmail is a new kind of webmail, built on the idea that email can be more intuitive, efficient, and useful. And maybe even fun. After all, Gmail has:

Less spam
Keep unwanted messages out of your inbox with Google’s innovative technology.

Mobile access
Read Gmail on your mobile phone by pointing your phone’s web browser to http://gmail.com/app.

Lots of space
Over 7309.223600 megabytes (and counting) of free storage so you’ll never need to delete another message.”

Can you maintain your email address with domain name?  Absolutely!  We have been using Gmail at Central Mass Web Design for months now.  I must admit having my work email, web based, is a plus.  I can integrate it into my Palm, as well as check it from anywhere.  (Gmail also has Blackberry applications.)    Not to mention, it’s all free.

So what has Gmail done to make this all even better?  They have added an undo feature to their send mail option.   No more will we send emails to the wrong people.  No more will we forget to send attachments and immediately have to send a second email, making us look unorganized and incompetent. No more will we go on a rant, and immediately regret sending it to our boss.  Gmail allows us to get it back!

Downfalls to this new application… well, if the email is completely sent, there is no getting it back.  Gmail will hold the email for 5 seconds before sending it.  This is the time you have to hit undo, 5 seconds.  Once the email says “sent”, you cannot recover it.  Is this the first step to having completely error proof emails?  Is the future of email a completely integrated email system that communicates with all carriers to allow an unsend feature for all emails no matter how long ago they were sent?  One could hope!

-Kimberly Veautour

CMWD Named All Star

Central Mass Web Design, Inc. is named a Constant Contact 2008 All Star in recognition for our “Excellence in Email Marketing“! Congratulations to the CMWD team! Constant Contact writes, “…That’s why we are proud to designate you as a 2008 Constant Contact All Star! You’re part of a special group of our customers that we want to thank for setting a great example for other email marketers. Congratulations!”

CMWD has used Constant Contact for some time to communicate with our clients and with non-clients who wish to stay updated on latest news and trends. We have advocated the use of building email marketing lists through Constant Contact to all of our clients and have witnessed great results. We look forward to continuing our work through Constant Contact to better inform our customers. If you would like to learn how to use Constant Contact to drive business and better inform your clients give us a call! We will be more than happy to help you integrate a Constant Contact account of your own into your website, and help you to start to enjoy contacting your customers, as well as gaining new clients.

`Kimberly Veautour

We have all heard about town hall meetings. Your local city or town holds a meeting where citizens can ask questions and voice opinions. Usually there is some debating going on, and at least one person loses their cool. They can be at times fun to watch, and a great learning experience for our children. A brief look into government and how it works… So how does this all apply to the white house and the President? Good question!

The White House will be hosting a town hall meeting on Thursday. No matter what your affiliation is, everyone has taken notice on how much more technology savvy the President is. This brings new life and new understanding to the White House, and now a new way for each and every American to be heard.

How do you take millions of people, millions of voices and have them all be heard? You use Google Moderator! Leave it up to Google to find a way to incorporate everyone’s opinion in one place. The White House using Google Moderator will allow every American a chance to be heard one way, or another. By going to an online link (http://WhiteHouse.gov/OpenForQuestions) people can post questions they would like the President to answer at the town hall meeting. Now we all understand this could create millions of questions, so where do you go from there? Well, you can also vote for questions you would like to be answered! The top questions with the most votes will be answered. This allows them to answer questions that the majority of people would like answers to, and not what they choose to answer. Google states, “We think technology can be a force for greater accountability and access between citizens and their elected officials. We’re excited that the White House has chosen to use the power of cloud-based applications like Google Moderator and App Engine to scale the president’s direct dialogue with the American people.”

Technology is constantly changing, and grows at an astounding pace. So what happens next? Someone designs a car that can fly like in the old time Jetsons Cartoon? Oh, Wait, didn’t I just hear that a student at MIT has applied for a patent to do just that, and hopes to begin production in 2009? Didn’t they just have their first test flight? Wow… just wow.

`Kimberly Veautour

Central Mass Web Design, Inc.

Alex Goldman of InternetNews.com writes “Salesforce Taps Into Twitter”, he goes on to say, “Customer contact centers have moved far beyond the phone, says Salesforce, embracing Facebook, Twitter, and other Web applications.”

Read the rest of this entry »

Not everyone can design a logo! Branding a company is one of the most important, and to some, one of the hardest things you can do. There are so many things that need to be taken into consideration, and so many different angles that come into play, that choosing a professional who specializes in branding should be your only option. Anyone can design a logo, but not everyone can design the right logo for your company. Here are some important points to consider when choosing your new branding, new designer…and why!

Look at the strength of their logo design portfolio. Remember when doing this, that you may not like all of the logos shown, but look at the companies they represent and how they apply individually to each company. Make sure the logos in their portfolio are relevant. They may show hundreds of logos, but are they actually any good? Is having a big portfolio better than having a good portfolio?

Does your logo designer have an established design process? What do you know about their policies and procedures? Can they accommodate a quick turn around and have a support staff that ensures you gain immediate response to your questions? Logo designs take time. Usually between 3 – 5 days of design time to ensure a series of potential designs that best represent your company and usually some revisions are required. Prior to the design process do they have a design brief which asks specific questions pertaining to your new logo, the design and use?

Does your prospective logo design company have unique logos in their portfolio or do they all follow the same design style? Your logo should be tailor made for your company and should not reflect a designers personal style.

Is there such a thing as logo design trends and do they change? This topic has been debated over and over on some of the most popular logo design sites, and there seems to be 2 rules of thought. 1.) Yes there are. Companies change, branding changes and consumers relate to new things that are constantly changing. 2.) A good logo, a truly good logo that indentifies the company, is designed to withstand time. Does that mean you will never need to do a redesign of your logo? NO, it doesn’t, but wouldn’t you rather redesign in 40 years and not in 4. Personally, I believe a good logo will stand the test of time. Now this does not imply that there isn’t a progression through time with design techniques, a great designer will be up to date in the newest techniques to use, but do not confuse technique with a good logo design.

Make sure you determine “how” you will use your logo. Will it be for web only, on company trucks, on company uniforms? All of this will determine how to design your logo. Will it need to be all in one color, or do you want both color options and one color options? A logo designed in color may lose its effect if made into an all white logo that is embroidered on shirts. Make sure your logo looks good both big and small. Depending on where you use it, it will need to remain eye catching and effective no matter the size. Lastly make sure it will look good on everything you may possibly use it for… do not forget what it looks like on forms and faxed documents.

Remember a graphic design company that has the ability to work with you on other projects may be an asset in designing your logo. If your logo design firm also specializes in web design, web site building and promotional product sales, they may be better equipped to handle a logo that will be used in all of those areas.

Kimberly Veautour

Central Mass Web Design has been actively using, reporting, and promoting the use of Social Media to promote your business.  We looked into the effect Social Media sites have on our clients and the internet long before the reports that Social Media sites were on the fast track.  We encouraged all of our SEO clients to be blogging, and using Social Media sites to drive traffic to their website.

Now on the wake of all this… a new report made available a few days ago from Nielsen reports that Social Media and blogging are the fastest growing searches on the internet today.  Growing at over 2x the rate of others.  With an average age of not 16, 17 or 18 year old users…  but users in their 30’s, 40’s and 50’s.

I can take this all in stride.  I mean, well, we predicted it over a year ago.

Imagine my shock when I received a news notice, that stated The Boston Massachusetts Police planned on using TWITTER.  Now for those of you that dont know what TWITTER is, it is a web based Social Networking tool where people post updates and tips on what they are doing.   To follow Central Mass Web Design on TWITTER visit, CentralMassWeb.

So how will Boston Police use TWITTER next week.   Imagine a city gridlocked with traffic.  Thousands of people converging on Boston to witness the annual St. Patricks Day Parade.  The Boston Police pulled in every direction directing traffic, moving people along, and keeping the peace.  Now imagine updates directly to your computer or smart phone, on TWITTER.  Police will be reporting up to the minute reports on traffic and crowd control issues, to give everyone a heads up coming into the area, so they may be able to replan their routes.  This also allows TWITTER followers to post their own updates that the police may not be aware of yet.

Simply brilliant!  Kudos to you Boston Police for being on the cutting edge, and making things easier for all of us!

See the story at The Boston Channel.

Kimberly Veautour

The Central Mass Web Design Team is thrilled to announce the release of 2 new websites!

James Stillman of Stillman Landscape came to us with a very short deadline, and a specific reason for starting a new website. He wanted to showcase his amazing work at the Flower and Patio Show in Worcester, Ma that was to take place in just 4 weeks. The Central Mass Web design team, pulled together a great website that shows just what a perfection to detail person James Stillman is, and what great work he has accomplished.

www.stillmanlandscape.com

BSR Labs asked Central Mass Web Design to create a website that was great to look at, easy to navigate, but also showed the field they were in to be innovative and dynamic. Using different types of code, we were able to create a space at the bottom of the page that made the website easy to use and interactive for the client.

www.bsrlabs.com

Check back often for more releases, as the CMWD team breaks ground with some innovative websites coming your way!

Kimberly Veautour