Your Website's Usability

Everyone is interested in a good looking website as well as driving traffic to it. That should go without saying. One of the other things to take into consideration is your website's usability.

The concept around web usability if primarily similar to that of software applications. Does the website provide an intuitive way to navigate throughout the content, or is it simply too hard to distinguish where one would go next? As part of our quality assurance process we allow others to take a look as the test site's pages and navigation in order to solicit feedback on whether or not it is too hard to get to where they intended on going. Since most users that land on your home page are simply scanning the content, one wants to make sure that they are more compelled to stick around and move deeper into the navigation.

Some of the following are some helpful tips in making sure that your website is more usable to your visitors:

• The home page should successfully describe the purpose of your site.
• Each individual page should be properly titled.
• Avoiding spelling mistakes and other errors.
• Taking into consideration how the page would look if printed.
• Using consistent styled for text and links throughout.
• Imagery that is distracting should be removed.
• Wording should be clear and understandable.

These are just some of the tips that can be applied to your current or future site. We keep these in mine when developing our clients', so feel free to drop us a line to see how we can help you.

Creative Ops secures agreement with the Australian New Zealand - American Chamber of Commerce

In an effort to promote their existing website and drive membership, ANZACC of Arizona will be working with Creative Ops to actively market their Arizona internet destination site.

Creative Ops Launches Website Re-Design for Phoenix Based Construction Company

Creative Ops worked with the VP of business development to update the look and feel of the prior site for AAC Structures. AAC Structures of Arizona is one of the only Aerated Autoclaved Concrete builders in the Southwest and is experiencing rapid growth.

A New Flavor of Spam

No, I am not talking about the tasty dinner treat that I often had as a kid. What I am talking about is my least favorite subject. I really dislike spam (the email kind) due to the fact that I had to remove my Internet domain name from the spam blacklist. To this day, some people are still not receiving my emails from my business domain. I have since taken care of the problem and it is just a matter of time before all of the ISPs have their databases updated.

The latest message was from an unknown source that had an attached mp3 file labeled "llcoolj". I like LL so I gave it a listen. To my surprise it was the latest insider stock information. Right on! Not really. Generally there are people out there that will try to sway the market for meaningless stocks. I am sure that you have received some of those emails.

Anyhow, just thought that I would let you guys know. They are harmless until someone figures out how to launch a virus in an mp3 file. Here are some resources that will help you to report spam.

http://www.spamcop.net/
http://www.ftc.gov/spam/

Weekend in Phoenix

I decided to go for a hike this morning. I hiked the Camelback Mountain in Paradise Valley, AZ. The last time that I took this hike was when I was just out of boot-camp so its been a while. Anyhow, it was pretty crowded and I had known that it was a pretty popular way for people around Phoenix to get exercise. I decided to bring my camera and share some pictures. The first of which is a view of the pretty challenging trail. At times I was not sure if I would be able to make it to the top.

As I neared the summit, there were plenty of hikers that would help motivate me by telling me that I was almost there.
As I reached the summit, I saw some amazing views of The Valley of the Sun. A complete 360 degree view of the entire area. It was simply amazing.


Although I have been working hard over the last several weeks, I am glad that I have taken the time out to enjoy some of nature's marvels. The hike was quite challenging but, well worth the effort.
As in hiking and life, entrepreneurship is also a challenging journey. Just when you think that you have made a number of accomplishments, you see that there is another rock ahead to climb. Once you have completed your goal, you realize just how fulfilling the journey has been and you realize that there are more obstacles to come.

Remember to always stay motivated on your journey. A wise entrepreneur once said, "If you can dream it, you can do it."I sincerely believe this and you should too. Until next time.

Lord Stanley's Cup in the OC

Today is Sunday and in my efforts to relax a bit I decided to go get a shake and take some pictures. Who would have thought that I would run into the Stanley Cup?! Anyhow, I just thought that I would share with the sports lovers that might be reading my blog. The Keeper of the Cup straps hockey's most coveted award into the front seat in Newport Beach, California.

Your New Venture - A Creative Catalyst

I have been working with several people over the last year, to help them get their businesses up and running. One of the primary words of advice that I would give them is persistence.

Patience also plays a key in developing your new venture. If you have a sound business plan, you will find that you will discover new money making opportunities that can help your business thrive. But, this does not happen over night. When you least expect it, it is not unusual to stumble upon partnerships that can be beneficial to your clients and that can potentially translate into some added income potential.

You can see some of the affiliate programs that Creative Ops has obtained as an example at: http://www.creativeops.com/affiliates.html.

In order to be successful with the inclusion of affiliate programs into your business portfolio, it is important to analyze who would make the best compliment to your strategic objective. For example, I am often asked if I know where to get an 800 number, where to get licensed photography or where to conduct business formation on-line. These questions have prompted me to partner with some of the premeir providers of these services.

If you have visited as a result of a referral from me... thank you. If you have stumbled upon this as a result of your venture, best wishes. An remember, success is not determined by what you have achieved alone but by what you have overcome to meet those accomplishments.

Cheers

Working, working out... then working

Today was another excellent day at the office. It is looking like I will be able to use one of my marketing ideas on one of our new projects at the office. Unfortunately, I am back at it early in the morning so I have to get some shut eye. More to come on that.

I am back into a regular routine at the gym. I love my new gym. The parking lot is always crowded but there is barely anyone inside. I did my two hour work out routine which included arms, abs and cardio. I was able to squeeze over eight miles into twenty minuets for only the second time. The irony continues here in California for me. For those of you that remember where I learned to ride my bike, I killed my last cardio record at a gym in the next lot over.

Barry Bonds broke the home run record this evening but I returned home to do some work for Creative Ops. Things continue to pick up as I have secured another potential lead and I am working on four new sites with one in maintenance mode. I addition I continue to receive traffic and purchases through my affiliate programs. I continue to enjoy helping people make their dreams a reality by getting their presence on the web.

A Successfull Outing in Tennessee

As we depart from Dickson, Tennessee we leave with a sense of satisfaction. We enjoyed meeting the riders and their families and hearing their stories. Being at the Amateur Nationals in Hurricane Mills at Loretta Lynn's Ranch was truly an experience to remember.

Kawasaki Live is dedicated to the hard core enthusiasts that are not able to make it to all of the race events so that they can experience them online in the comfort of their own home. It has been hot and humid here and, as one of the team members aptly put it, "The best thing about Tennessee is getting back into the air conditioning."


As we depart from this small town, our travels will take us to Nashville, where we will spend the evening before our return to Southern California. In the meantime, feel free to take a look at all the work that we have done for this event at: http://www.kawasakilive.com/lorettalynn

Night and Day

I have decided to start a blog to get friends and family informed of my latest ventures in and out of the office. I have not been able to spend the time with them that I would like to so I thought that this would be the best way to keep them informed. I sincerely hope that you enjoy.

It seems as if night and day are running together in addition to the fact that Dickson, Tennessee is a complete switch from Monterey, California. I am hard at work on another project for the day job that has taken me to the Amateur National Motocross Championship. The last project that we did was Laguna Seca which was a huge success as a result of countless hours of lost sleep and tons of hard work by the team on the track and at the office.

Today, we are off to an early start to go get content for the new portion of the site. Be sure to check that out later on since we will be gathering pictures and video throughout the day.
You can take a look at the latest sites at: http://www.kawasakilive.com.