Your domain name could be expiring and be dead, gone and buried unless you follow a few simple directions.

Today I lost a friend. She expired with little warning after a few years of vitality. What did she die of? Neglect!  She was not the first of my friends to expire this way. Others I know have suffered the same fate. You, too, could expire in exactly the same way.

Protect Your Domain Name

I’m making light of a very serious subject—keeping your domain name intact. I can tell you many stories of websites that have cost hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars and which have all vanished in the blink of an eye, all for want of auto-renewal.

Don’t let squatters and domain pirates purchase your valuable domain. Protect it by making sure you have it set to auto-renew. Most people’s domains lapse because they don’t keep an up-to-date credit card correct (current) e-mail address on file with the domain name registrant.

Domain Name Renewal Process

Normally, within 90-60 days of your domain name’s expiration, you will receive a notification from the registrant about the upcoming renewal. Your registrant sends the renewal notification to your e-mail address of record. *Read that sentence again!* If you don’t have an up-to-date e-mail on file with your registrant, you will not receive your notification and if your credit card is not current, your domain will expire. It’s that simple. There’s no mystery to it.

Registrars commonly allow people to search for expiring domain names. Here are results suggested when I searched for CharlestonRealEstate.

And when it expires, there are pirates lurking. Even now, domain registrants are promoting the resale of about-to-expire domain names. If you don’t think this is big business, think again! Once your domain has expired, some will buy it and then if you want it back, it will be held for *ransom*.

Prevent Domain Name Loss

When you purchase a domain name, you are securing your brand. You have the option of registering it for one or more years and to protect it by associating the domain’s renewal with your credit card.  Select multiple years or if you must purchase only one year’s registration, set a calendar reminder for 60 days prior to your registration renewal, so you’ll be prompted to go ascertain all is in order.

When registering, you also are asked for an e-mail address. Make sure you use an e-mail address that is based on your domain name or one that is associated with your Internet Service Provider. People change Internet Service Providers and forget or trash e-mail addresses. Use a webmail address, such as a Gmail or Yahoo account e-mail, but make sure you check it regularly and add your registrant to the list of “safe” senders.

Check Now!

Have I made you paranoid enough? Go check your domain registrant’s files now. Make sure they have a credit card that will still be valid come your renewal date and that they have a valid e-mail address with which to communicate with you.

By taking these few precautions now, you will prevent the expiration of your brand

**Gravestone image credit: flickr user Martin Pettitt

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As you plan your website, you will take inventory of the images of your staff, your products, your office or facility. You will be examining each of them and considering which can be used in the development of your site.

You may be tempted to take your own photographs.  Many people assume that because they have a high resolution digital camera, that they can easily take shots suitable for use on their website.

While this is true in fact, it is often not true in execution. Taking photos requires patience, planning and persistence. Understanding just how to light, or frame the shot, or which angle will yield the most pleasing composition are challenging if you don’t shoot professionally. It’s not that you can’t do it, it’s just that someone who shoots for a living brings years of knowledge and understanding to a shoot. And they often bring professional quality equipment to a shoot as well.

If you decide you want to take your own photos for use on your website here are a few guidelines that may help you get better results:

1. Set your camera for the highest resolution you have. More digital information is better.
2. Shoot in RAW or lossless format, choose that setting. Your website designer will be able to enhance the images more easily if you can do this.
3. Scout your shooting location in advance. Know where the sun is. If you are shooting near a window, make sure the sun is not pouring through the window “blowing out” one half of the room.
4. Don’t shoot in the middle of the day, if you are shooting outside. Plan your shots for early morning or late afternoon when the sun is not straight overhead. However, if you shoot in the morning or evening, make sure you are not shooting towards the sun. The sun should be behind you. Even better is shooting on a cloudy day. Your colors will come out brighter and more crisp.
5. Use natural or ambient light if possible. And if not, use indirect, even light from both sides unless you are trying to achieve shadows.
6. Avoid reflective surfaces that bounce back light. An “onboard” flash (which is what most point and shoot digitals have) will put too much light in the center of your shot, washing it out.
7. Frame your shots so there is not anything distracting in the background.  You don’t want extraneous items to take attention away from what you are focusing on.
8. Take test shots and review them to be sure you have lighting, framing, and composition planned well.
9. Don’t get too “tight” on your subject. Leave the web designer enough room to crop the shot as needed for use on your website.
10. Use a background. For products, you can set up a simple background of black velvet or light colored paper to achieve an isolated product shot.

And if this all seems overwhelming, ask your web site design company to recommend a local, professional photographer. The expense will improve your website and it will be worth the money.

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CBS Web Designs launched a new website for ExecuServe as well as designed the firm's new logo

Summerville, SC, July 22, 2010–ExecuServe, LLC, an executive administrative appointment setting firm exclusively for financial wholesalers, has launched their new website. The site provides tips to those who work with executive appointment schedulers as well as gives a way to communicate with the firm.

The firm serves financial wholesalers across the United States and books appointments for Insurance Wholesalers, Mutual Fund Wholesalers, Retirement Plan Wholesalers, Institutional Wholesalers, Variable Annuity Wholesalers and Insurance & Long Term Care Specialists. Through the website, current clients can sign up or participate in ExecuServe’s Referral Program.

Information about ExecuServe, LLC’s services which include travel and expense reporting, management reports, comprehensive territory management, marketing services and special event coordination is available on the site at http://www.ExecuServellc.com.

ExecuServe LLC’s, difference is in their extensive knowledge of the regulations and demands placed on financial wholesalers. ExecuServe, LLC was founded by a group with experience and knowledge in financial wholesaling. Unlike other firms whose schedulers may work off-site, all ExecuServe’s schedulers work from a central headquarters.

ExecuServe, LLC provides dedicated service that produces results for financial wholesalers.

ExecuServe invites financial wholesalers representing any line to contact them via the website for more information or to download their “Get Started” package.

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This video gets to the heart of what I want to discuss today.

When your firm or company hires a creative agency to design a website, advertisement or marketing materials to support your business goals, I hope you do so because they are professional, experienced, and knowledgeable.

Then, when you’ve selected your professionals, hopefully you’ve provided clear direction and then stepped back so they could “work their magic.” Unfortunately, those of us in the creative world all too often experience the dreaded “Design by Committee.” It can be either a challenge or a curse. Often what happens is the creative team brings back solid work that gets MUNGed (Messed With Until No Good) to death.

That adage came to mind today when reading the Smashing Magazine article on design by committee.

Dare to be different

Just last week we presented a concept to a client. The concept was designed to be different from his competitors. It incorporated a generous use of white space, and had an open feeling. It was elegant just as their product is elegant, but it was distinctively different from their competitors. Upon first viewing there was a resounding “We love it” and as we progressed through options for other aspects of the project, we were all feeling good. At the end of the meeting however, the client began second guessing himself and the open, unrestricted feeling of the concept. He said, it “didn’t look like a webpage.”  The client proceeded to point out how all his competitors had website pages that looked more like pages of paper lying on a surface. He then suggested that he might show it to a group of up to 20 people and get their input. Our questions and response, “Why would you do that? What would it achieve? We know you want to stand out, be interesting, be different. And we agree you also need to love your website. But you don’t need a committee to each add their 2¢ and MUNG the idea.”

Know what works

I champion usability research and understanding click patterns, heatmaps, gender differences, trends and other insights informing us how people behave when interacting with websites. We expect our clients to know their brand promise and we expect to bake that into our concept. We prefer not to have concepts chewed up and spit out of the mouth of a committee like so much chewing tobacco on the sidewalk.

Know that when your designer brings you an idea that they’ve torn up way more than you are seeing, that they’ve tested, vetted and destroyed the weak ones and have brought their very best professional recommendations.  And isn’t’ that why you hired them?

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Owner Janet Collins of J. Collins Reporting has chosen CBS Web Designs as the web development firm to convert her existing website to a content-managed (CMS) website that J. Collins Reporting will be able to manage and update. In addition to the site’s conversion to a CMS, CBS Web Designs will add functionality to the site and fully integrate the firm’s existing blog.

Mrs. Collins, said, “A big ‘THANK YOU’ to you and Bill for the time and attention paid to J. Collins Reporting.  The amount of detail you provided … has made all the difference…  I truly feel like I was heard in a way that had not happened before, and that I have found a home for the realization of the vision behind J. Collins Reporting.”

Mrs. Collins’ redesigned website is expected to launch mid-summer of 2010.

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Carter-Bignon, a luxury home builder and renovation firm in the Charleston area, chose CBS Web Designs after a competitive interview process. General Manager Bob Carter decided on CBS Web Designs in part, because of our extensive knowledge of marketing for homebuilders as well as our deep knowledge of developing content managed websites.

Carter-Bignon’s new site is expected to be complete mid-summer, 2010.

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We create:  Logos, Business Cards, Letterhead, Envelopes, Pocket Folders, Note Cards, Promotional Items, Logos and corporate identity materials. We design graphic materials for homebuilders including community logos, lot maps, location maps and sell sheets.

Discover the Middle Way

For San Diego dining and restaurant consultant Discover the Middle Way CBS Web Designs created the firm’s logo, business card, letterhead, note card and envelopes.

Linnen Place

For the new home community in Mt. Pleasant, SC, CBS Web Designs created the community logo, designed the location map and created the lot map.

Comfortable Cuisine

For Summerville SC, personal chef and caterer Comfortable Cuisine CBS Web Designs created their logo, business cards, letterhead, envelopes, menu cards and wine list templates in MS Word.

ExecuServe

For Summerville, SC appointment setting firm ExecuServe CBS Web Designs created their logo, business cards, letterhead, envelopes,  pocket folder and brochure.

Divine Creations

For Charleston , SC interior designer Divine Creations CBS Web Designs created their logo, business card, letterhead and envelopes.

It’s Wine Time

For Charleston, SC wine tastings company, It’s Wine Time, CBS Web Designs created their logo and established their brand colors. Playing on the idea of wine and time, we presented the client with this gestural drawing of a wine glass incorporating a clock with hands pointing to a bit past 5:00 p.m., playing on the addage, “It’s five o’clock somewhere…”

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“You don’t have any idea of how much money you’re losing by not having a professionally designed website.” ~Mary Cantando

I’ve been receiving The Woman’s Advantage Newsletter and have really come to enjoy the words of wisdom from Mary Cantando. In her recent newsletter she referenced the video below and I found myself nodding in agreement.

I’ve been on all sides of this argument; as a client; as a representative of an agency and as an entrepreneur. Mary’s right. There are things on which you must spend money. One of them is professional website design.

Here is an excerpt from her video that she shared in her most recent newsletter. She urges us to stop making excuses for why are aren’t successful.

We can all make excuses as to why we don’t do the things that will help our businesses thrive, but really, there is just no excuse!

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National financial wholesale scheduling firm, ExecuServe, LLC had an outdated website. The company engaged CBS Web Designs to redesign their corporate identity as well as to design a new website to present the firm’s services.

The resulting site is built with WordPress as a CMS (content management system). The site features a custom designed theme with multiple templates.

CBS Web Designs also provided copywriting services, and is providing ongoing site maintenance and content updating.

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Charleston area Realtor® Jason Ogden is a tech savvy real estate agent. He uses social media to engage with current and potential buyers. He regularly posts items to his blog and to his Facebook page, so the design of a new website was to be built with full social media integration.

CBS Web Designs designed and coded a custom WordPress based website, based on Ogden’s established brand’s look and feel. The site features a  theme with four templates that provide the features Ogden needed in his new website.

The site features a section that displays Ogden’s real estate listings as a separate menu, an area which creates dynamic content for specific location pages through the use of Custom Fields and a page which incorporates  Ogden’s personal MLS IDX search window.

The site initially incorporated a blog, but Ogden later installed a separate blog with a unique theme. This is offered as a sub-domain and is not part of the project designed by CBS Web Designs.

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