WordPress Services
Provided by Digital West Media, Inc.

Digital West Media, Inc. is now offering WordPress installation, design and hosting.  Web development trends are indicating that self-employed individuals and small businesses are looking for cost-effective Web services that they can maintain themselves.  Many of our WordPress clients are real estate agents, sports clubs, private clubs, professional service providers or small businesses.

WordPress, a popular blogging platform, is the perfect website solution for small businesses.  For a reasonable set-up and design fee of approximately $500, a business can be online with a Web presence in about one day.  If the site requires more customization and design work the fee may be closer to $1000. WordPress provides a template-based interface (content management system also referred to as a CMS) that is about as easy to use as sending an e-mail with a few extra steps.  This makes WordPress an attractive alternative to traditional Websites which require html knowledge and special software to update.

WordPress can also be attached to an existing Website to provide pages or content that can be updated on a daily basis by a company’s staff.  News, press releases or a company blog are a few ways businesses are utilizing WordPress in conjunction with their existing Websites.

Another  benefit of a WordPress-based Website or blog is the ability to syndicate the content to social media tools such as twitter and facebook.  For example, if you add a news release to WordPress you can set it up to feed the same article, automatically, to your company’s facebook and twitter pages.  One push of the “publish” button sends your content to multiple destinations.

Are you interested in learning more about WordPress?

If you would like to learn more about WordPress or if you have a project that you need help with, please give us a call or email us today.

Digital West Media
Lynn Bremner
760-619-2401 or lynn@dwmi.com.

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Web development is shifting away from traditional HTML-based web sites, and towards web content management systems (CMS). Marketing professionals and corporate clients want to be able to post on web sites without having to constantly interact with a webmaster or developer.  CMS systems save money, and most importantly in today’s fast-paced internet, allow users direct control of the timing of content publication.

What is a web CMS (Content Management System)?
A web CMS is a group of pre-programmed components, usually including an administrative module, designed to simplify the publication of web-based content to a web site or to mobile devices. WordPress, Joomla and Drupal are examples of CMS systems.  WordPress is generally considered to be the most user-friendly of the three platforms, and the easiest to learn quickly.  No HTML knowledge is needed to publish text, images or video in WordPress, making web publishing fast, easy and affordable.

WordPress Installations and Hosting

Is WordPress easy to use?
The process of adding or publishing content to a WordPress website is similar to sending an email with an attached photo or document.  You insert a title, copy and paste text into the body of the page, and insert one or more images.  You select where on the web site you want the page to appear, and then click the “publish” button.  It is that easy.

How much does a Web CMS cost?
WordPress is a free CMS. If you don’t want to set it up yourself, you will need to pay a web host or web developer to install and customize WordPress on the server where you host your web site. They can insert graphics and customize a template to create a unique design for your website.  The cost will vary between developers.  Digital West Media typically charges between $500 – $1000 for a standard WordPress installation and customization.  The cost will vary depending on which template you choose, how much customization is needed to give the template the look and feel you desire, and the amount of content that you have Digital West Media insert for you.

Is WordPress the right choice for your business?
WordPress is the perfect solution for a company looking for an inexpensive web site that they can update themselves.  The time required for set-up and customization of a WordPress site is a fraction of the time necessary for designing and building an HTML-based web site.  Thousands of  WordPress templates are available to choose from, and all of them can be customized to give your web site a distinctive look that reflects your company’s business style.

If you want a web developer or webmaster to manage the content for you, WordPress is still a good choice for your website.  It takes less time to insert content into WordPress vs. building a traditional HTML-based web page.  Links, categories and an underlying database help organize and archive content automatically for easy reading and retrieval.  Style and menu updates are much simpler as well.

Web Sites We’ve Designed In WordPress
Digital West Media, Inc. has helped many small- and medium-sized businesses transition their web sites into WordPress.  Following are a few sample web sites that we have recently built or converted into WordPress.

http://www.californiadesertart.com

California Desert Art is a new web site project that Digital West Media, Inc. built for a freelance author who wanted to start her own online art publication.   The project cost was about $700, which included web site set-up in WordPress, customization of a template to meet the design requirements of the project, and insertion of some content into the system.  Customization of the WordPress template on this project was more extensive.

Poway Arena Polo Club had a free web site hosted on Tripod.  They decided to convert their existing web site into a WordPress-based site.  The process took less than two days.  The cost of this project was about $500. The cost included installation and set-up of WordPress, registration of a domain name, new site design and the insertion of some content from the old site to the new site.  Customization on this project was minimal.

http://www.poloblogs.com/powaypolo/

For other samples of WordPress-based web sites that Digital West Media, Inc. has installed, set up and customized, please visit the links below …

Desert Road Trippin’
Lara’s Lane
Shutterbug 101
Desert Denizen’s
Desert News
Desert CADDIE
PoloZONE
Polo 101

For more information about WordPress and web site development, please contact Lynn Bremner at Digital West Media, Inc.  Tel. 760-619-2401 or email lynn@dwmi.com.

HOSTING AGREEMENT

This Hosting Agreement (“Agreement”) governs your purchase and use of all Web site hosting & e-mail services provided by Digital West Media, Inc. You must accept the terms of this Agreement in order to use the Services.

Digital West Media, Inc. may modify any of the terms and conditions contained in this Agreement and any policy or guideline incorporated by reference, at any time in its sole discretion and may also determine whether and when the modifications apply to existing or future customers. Any modifications are effective upon posting of the revisions on the Digital West Media, Inc. Web site (the “Site”). Digital West Media, Inc. will post a notice of modifications to this Agreement on the Site for 30 days. Digital West Media, Inc. may post modifications to referenced policies and guidelines without notice to you. Your continued use of the Services following Digital West Media, Inc.’s posting of any modifications constitutes your acceptance of the modifications.

1. Term and Payment for Services

1.1 Term. This Agreement will be for an “Initial Term” of 30. This agreement is a month-to-month agreement. This Agreement will be automatically renewed (the “Renewal Term”) at the end of the Initial Term for the same period as the Initial Term, unless you provide Digital West Media, Inc. with notice of termination either: (a) at least 7 days before the end of the Initial Term or the Renewal Term, whichever is then applicable. You must provide Digital West Media, Inc. with your notice of termination via e-mail or in writing. Any notice of termination will be effective upon Digital West Media, Inc.’s receipt of notice.

1.2 Termination Policy. If you terminate the Services before the end of the Initial Term or the Renewal Term, whichever is then applicable: (a) Digital West Media, Inc. will not refund to you any fees paid in advance of termination. You must submit your termination request to Digital West Media, Inc. in the manner described in Section 1.1. Digital West Media, Inc. may terminate this Agreement at any time and for any reason by providing to you 30 days’ prior written notice of termination. If Digital West Media, Inc. terminates this Agreement, Digital West Media, Inc. will refund to you the pro-rata portion of pre-paid fees attributable to Services not yet rendered as of the termination date, unless otherwise expressly provided in this Agreement.

1.3 Liability and Obligations on Termination. If the Agreement expires or is terminated for any reason, Digital West Media, Inc. is not liable to you because of the expiration or termination for compensation, reimbursement or damages on account of the loss of prospective profits, anticipated sales, goodwill or on account of expenditures, investments, leases or commitments in connection with your business, or for any other reason whatsoever flowing from the termination or expiration. If you terminate this Agreement, Digital West Media, Inc. will not relieve you of any obligations to pay fees and costs accrued before the termination date or any other amounts you owe to Digital West Media, Inc. under this Agreement.

1.4 Charges. You will pay all charges for your use of the Services at the then current Digital West Media, Inc. prices, which will be exclusive of any applicable taxes. You are responsible for paying all federal, state, and local sales, use, value added, excise, duty and any other taxes assessed with respect to the Services, other than taxes based on Digital West Media, Inc.’s net income.

1.5 Payment. You will pay all charges for Services in advance according to the then current price for the Services.. Digital West Media, Inc. may bill you for any supplemental charges that you incur in your use of the Services (“Supplemental Charges”). Digital West Media, Inc. may also send periodic invoices to you for any applicable Supplemental Charges associated with your use of the Services. You will pay to Digital West Media, Inc. the amount indicated in each invoice by the due date reflected on the invoice.Your failure to fully pay any fees and taxes within 10 days after the applicable due date is a material breach of this Agreement, justifying Digital West Media, Inc. in suspending its performance and terminating this Agreement. If Digital West Media, Inc. terminates for your material breach, you must still pay past due fees plus interest. You are responsible for any costs Digital West Media, Inc. incurs in enforcing collection, including reasonable attorneys’ fees, court costs and collection agency fees. If you reinstate Services, you must pay any fees associated with reinstating Services.

1.6 30 Day Guarantee. If you are not fully satisfied with the Shared Hosting Services, you may terminate this Agreement at any time during the first 30 days from your initial order date and receive a full refund of all payments you made to Digital West Media, Inc. for the Hosting Services. To receive your refund, you must terminate this Agreement in the manner described in Section 1.1 and cease using the Services, and Digital West Media, Inc. must receive your termination notice within the 30-day period. Your notice must describe why you are not satisfied with the Services.

2. Use of Services

2.1 Material and Product Requirements. You must ensure that all material and data placed on Digital West Media, Inc.’s equipment is in a condition that is “server-ready,” which is in a form requiring no additional manipulation by Digital West Media, Inc.. Digital West Media, Inc. will make no effort to validate any of this information for content, correctness or usability. If your material is not “server-ready”, Digital West Media, Inc. may reject this material. Digital West Media, Inc. will notify you of its refusal of the material and afford you the opportunity to modify the material to satisfy Digital West Media, Inc.’s requirements. Use of the Services requires a certain level of knowledge in the use of Internet languages, protocols and software. This level of knowledge varies depending on the anticipated use and desired content of your Web site. You must have the necessary knowledge to create and maintain a Web site. Digital West Media, Inc. will charge you for any additional Services that are required.

2.2 Bandwidth, Storage, and E-Mail Usage. For Services, you will not exceed the bandwidth (2 GB), storage (20 MB) and E-mail usage limits described in the Basic Hosting Package. If you use any bandwidth or storage space in excess of the agreed upon number of megabytes per month or if you exceed E-Mail storage and attachment size limitations, Digital West Media, Inc. may, in its sole discretion, assess you with additional charges. Your use of your account and access to it is your responsibility. You are responsible for any unauthorized access to your account resulting in bandwidth, storage and/or E-mail usage exceeding the limits stated for the Basic Hosting Package.

2.3 Domain Names. As part of the Services, you will provide Digital West Media, Inc. with a registered domain name or names, or Digital West Media, Inc. will register domain name(s) you select if the domain name is available for registration and does not violate any Network Solutions’ or other registration services’ policies, or any law or regulation. You will promptly reimburse Digital West Media, Inc. for any fees Digital West Media, Inc. pays to Network Solutions or other registration services for registering and maintaining the domain name(s). If any dispute or cause of action arises out of or is related to your domain name used in connection with the Services, then upon your request, Digital West Media, Inc. will attempt to register with Network Solutions or other registrar an alternative domain name you chose. Upon registering your domain name, you are bound by the terms of Network Solutions’ then current domain name policy and the policies of the national DNS registration authorities. Digital West Media, Inc. will not refund any fees you paid with respect to the registration of a domain name you are unable to use.

2.4 Security. You are solely responsible for any security breaches affecting servers or accounts under your control. If your server or web site is responsible for or involved in an attack on or unauthorized access into another server or system, Digital West Media, Inc. will shut it down immediately. You will pay any charges resulting from the cost to correct security breaches affecting Digital West Media, Inc. or any of its other customers.

2.5 Commercial Advertisements via E-Mail. You will not use Digital West Media, Inc. services, your account or server to send or facilitate in any way the transmission of unsolicited commercial email. Digital West Media, Inc. will enforce substantial penalties, including charging you for related network costs and terminating your account, for violations.

3. Intellectual Property Rights

3.1 Your License Grant to Digital West Media, Inc. You grant to Digital West Media, Inc. a non-exclusive, worldwide, and royalty-free license for the Initial Term and the Renewal Term, if applicable, to edit, modify, adapt, translate, exhibit, publish, transmit, participate in the transfer of, reproduce, create derivative works from, distribute, perform, display, and otherwise use your content as necessary for the purposes of rendering and operating the Services to you under this Agreement. You expressly: (a) grant to Digital West Media, Inc. a license to cache materials distributed or made available for distribution via the Services, including content supplied by third parties, and (b) agree that this caching is not an infringement of any of your intellectual property rights or any third party’s intellectual property rights.

3.2 Your Warranties And Representations to Digital West Media, Inc. You warrant, represent, and covenant to Digital West Media, Inc. that: (a) you are at least 18 years of age; (b) you possess the legal right and ability to enter into this Agreement; (c) you will use the Services only for lawful purposes and in accordance with this Agreement and all applicable policies and guidelines; (d) you will be financially responsible for the use of your account; (e) you have acquired or will acquire all authorization(s) necessary for hypertext links to third-party Web sites or other content; (f) you have verified or will verify the accuracy of materials distributed or made available for distribution via the Services, including your content, descriptive claims, warranties, guarantees, nature of business, and address where business is conducted, and (g) your content does not and will not infringe or violate any right of any third party (including any intellectual property rights) or violate any applicable law, regulation or ordinance.

3.3 Digital West Media, Inc. Materials And Intellectual Property. All materials, including any computer software (in object code and source code form), data or information that Digital West Media, Inc. or its suppliers or agents develop or provide under this Agreement, and any know-how, methodologies, equipment, or processes Digital West Media, Inc. uses to provide the Services to you, including all copyrights, trademarks, patents, trade secrets, and any other proprietary rights inherent therein and appurtenant thereto will remain Digital West Media, Inc.’s or its suppliers’ sole and exclusive property. Digital West Media, Inc. will also maintain and control ownership of all Internet protocol (“IP”) numbers and addresses that Digital West Media, Inc. may be assign to you. Digital West Media, Inc. may, in its sole discretion, change or remove any and all IP numbers and addresses.

4. Enforcement

4.1 Actions. Digital West Media, Inc. may restrict or remove from its servers any content that violates this Agreement or related policies or guidelines, or is otherwise objectionable or potentially infringing on any third party’s rights or that potentially violates any laws. If Digital West Media, Inc. becomes aware that you have possibly violated this Agreement, any related policies or guidelines, third party rights or laws, Digital West Media, Inc. may immediately take corrective action, including: (a) issuing warnings, (b) suspending or terminating the Service, (c) restricting or prohibiting any and all uses of content hosted on Digital West Media, Inc.’s systems, and (d) disabling or removing any hypertext links to third-party Web sites, any of your content distributed or made available for distribution via the Services, or other content not supplied by Digital West Media, Inc. that, in Digital West Media, Inc.’s sole discretion, may violate or infringe any law or third-party rights or that otherwise exposes or potentially exposes Digital West Media, Inc. to civil or criminal liability or public ridicule. It is Digital West Media, Inc.’s policy to terminate repeat infringers. These rights of action, however, do not obligate Digital West Media, Inc. to monitor or exert editorial control over the information made available for distribution via the Services. If Digital West Media, Inc. takes corrective action because of a possible violation, Digital West Media, Inc. will not refund to you any fees you paid in advance of the corrective action.

5. Disclaimed Warranties Digital West Media, Inc. exercises no control over, and accepts no responsibility for, the content of the information passing through Digital West Media, Inc.’s host computers, network hubs and points of presence, or the Internet. ALL SERVICES PERFORMED UNDER THIS AGREEMENT ARE PERFORMED “AS IS” AND WITHOUT WARRANTY AGAINST FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE INCLUDING, ANY FAILURE BECAUSE OF COMPUTER HARDWARE OR COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS. EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY PROVIDED IN THIS AGREEMENT, DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. DOES NOT MAKE AND DISCLAIMS, AND YOU WAIVE ALL RELIANCE ON, ANY REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES, ARISING BY LAW OR OTHERWISE, REGARDING THE SERVICES, INCLUDING IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, OR ARISING FROM COURSE OF DEALING, COURSE OF PERFORMANCE OR USAGE IN TRADE.

6. Limitation and Exclusion of Liability

6.1 Limitations. IN NO EVENT WILL DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. OR ITS SUPPLIERS HAVE ANY LIABILITY FOR UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO, OR ALTERATION, THEFT OR DESTRUCTION OF INFORMATION DISTRIBUTED OR MADE AVAILABLE FOR DISTRIBUTION VIA THE SERVICES THROUGH ACCIDENT, FRAUDULENT MEANS OR DEVICES. NEITHER DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. NOR ITS SUPPLIERS WILL HAVE LIABILITY WITH RESPECT TO DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC.’S OBLIGATIONS UNDER THIS AGREEMENT, OR OTHERWISE FOR CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES EVEN IF DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF THESE DAMAGES. THE LIABILITY OF DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. AND ITS SUPPLIERS TO YOU FOR ANY REASON AND UPON ANY CAUSE OF ACTION IS LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT YOU ACTUALLY PAID TO DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. UNDER THIS AGREEMENT DURING THE 3 MONTHS IMMEDIATELY PRECEDING THE DATE ON WHICH THE CLAIM ACCRUED. THIS LIMITATION APPLIES TO ALL CAUSES OF ACTION IN THE AGGREGATE, INCLUDING BREACH OF CONTRACT, BREACH OF WARRANTY, NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, MISREPRESENTATIONS, AND OTHER TORTS. THE FEES FOR THE SERVICES SET BY DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. UNDER THIS AGREEMENT HAVE BEEN AND WILL CONTINUE TO BE BASED UPON THIS ALLOCATION OF RISK. ACCORDINGLY, YOU RELEASE DIGITAL WEST MEDIA, INC. AND ITS SUPPLIERS FROM ANY AND ALL OBLIGATIONS, LIABILITIES, AND CLAIMS IN EXCESS OF THE LIMITATION STATED IN THIS SECTION 6.1.

6.2 Interruption of Service. Digital West Media, Inc. and its suppliers are not liable for any temporary delay, outages or interruptions of the Services. Further, Digital West Media, Inc. is not liable for any delay or failure to perform its obligations under this Agreement, where the delay or failure results from any act of God or other cause beyond its reasonable control (including, any mechanical, electronic, communications or third-party supplier failure).

7. Indemnification. You release and hold harmless, and agree to indemnify, Digital West Media, Inc. and its affiliates and suppliers (and their respective employees, directors and representatives) against any and all claims, actions, proceedings, suits, liabilities, damages, settlements, penalties, fines, costs or expenses (including, reasonable attorneys’ fees and other litigation expenses) incurred by Digital West Media, Inc. or its suppliers, arising out of or relating to: (a) your violation or breach of any term, condition, representation or warranty of this Agreement, or any applicable policy or guideline; (b) your improper or illegal use the Services; or (c) your violation, alleged violation, or misappropriation of any intellectual property right (including trademark, copyright, patent, trade secrets) or non-proprietary right of a third party (including defamation, libel, violation of privacy or publicity).

8. MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

8.1 Entire Agreement. This Agreement, in conjunction with all policies and guidelines incorporated by reference, constitutes the entire agreement between you and Digital West Media, Inc. with respect to the subject matter of the Agreement, and there are no representations, understandings or agreements that are not fully expressed in this Agreement and the related policies and guidelines.

8.2 No Fiduciary Relationship; No Third-Party Beneficiaries. Digital West Media, Inc. is not the agent, fiduciary, trustee or other representative of you. Except for the rights of Digital West Media, Inc.’s suppliers under sections 6 and 7, nothing expressed or mentioned in or implied from this Agreement is intended or will be construed to give to any person (other than the parties to this Agreement) any legal or equitable right, remedy or claim under or in respect to this Agreement. This Agreement and all of its representations, warranties, covenants, conditions and provisions are intended to be and are for the sole and exclusive benefit of the parties to this Agreement.

8.3 Amendments. Except as expressly provided in this Agreement, no amendment, change, waiver, or discharge of this Agreement is valid unless in writing and signed by the parties.

8.4 Identification. Digital West Media, Inc. may, free of any obligation to pay compensation, use your name and identify you as a Digital West Media, Inc. client, in advertising, publicity, or similar materials distributed or displayed to prospective clients.

8.5 Choice of Law and Forum. THIS AGREEMENT IS GOVERNED BY THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES AND THE STATE OF California WITHOUT REFERENCE TO RULES GOVERNING CHOICE OF LAWS. ANY ACTION RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT MUST BE BROUGHT IN THE FEDERAL OR STATE COURTS LOCATED IN San Diego COUNTY, California, AND YOU IRREVOCABLY CONSENT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THESE COURTS.

8.6 Compliance With Laws. You will comply with all applicable laws and regulations and will indemnify and save Digital West Media, Inc. harmless from your failure to so comply. Digital West Media, Inc. will not have to perform any obligations set forth in this Agreement if the performance would violate any present or future law, regulation or policy of any applicable government.

8.7 Non-Assignment. You may not assign this Agreement or any right or obligation under this Agreement, by operation of law or otherwise, without Digital West Media, Inc.’s prior written consent. Digital West Media, Inc. may assign its rights and obligations under this Agreement, and may utilize affiliates and agents in performing its duties and exercising its rights, without your consent. This Agreement are binding on, inure to the benefit of, and be enforceable against the parties and their respective successors and assigns.

8.8 No Waiver. Digital West Media, Inc.’s failure to enforce the strict performance of any provision of this Agreement does not constitute a waiver of Digital West Media, Inc.’s right to subsequently enforce the provision or any other provisions of this Agreement.

8.9 Severability. If any term or provision of this Agreement is deemed invalid, void or unenforceable either in its entirety or in a particular application, the remainder of this Agreement, if applicable, will remain in full force and effect and, if the subject term or provision is deemed to be invalid, void or unenforceable only with respect to a particular application, the term or provision will remain in full force and effect with respect to all other applications.

8.10 Headings. The section headings used in this Agreement are for reference and convenience only and will not enter into the interpretation of the Agreement.

8.11 Survival. All provisions of this Agreement relating to your warranties, intellectual property rights, limitation and exclusion of liability, your indemnification obligations and payment obligations will survive the termination or expiration of the Agreement.

Google Local Business Center
Free Tools For Businesses On Google

Google offers a great service for businesses with a local business office or retail location.  Businesses can add their address, contact information, store hours, photos, and location on a map and even offer a coupon to customers who search for them on Google.  The Google Local Business Center lets you add your business location and you can keep it up-to-date.  It also has a reporting dashboard so you can see what words your customers are searching for to find your business and where they are coming from.

Does your company have a new product or service?  Have you hired a new customer service representative or sales person?  Has your business been presented with an industry award?  Have you just attended an industry conference and learned some new, interesting trends?    If so, you should be blogging about these topics on your corporate Website.

The act of blogging has long carried with it the stigma that a blog is an opinion column.  Blogs have so many uses in today’s marketing mix that it is hard to keep track of them all.  Every business has unique qualities and characteristics that can be creatively infused into one or more blogs.

Here are a few examples of how businesses are using blogs:

A polo club is using their blog to distribute game reports, to promote events and news to its playing and social members as well as to the general public. They are syndicating news via an rrs feed to an online polo magazine for additional distribution and promotion.

Desert Road Trippin', a blog by DesertUSA.com.

DesertUSA.com, an online outdoor and travel magazine, uses a blog to keep reader’s up-to-date about topics that will appear in upcoming issues. They also publish multiple blogs by multiple authors on a range of topics that are also disseminated to their social network via an rss feed (to Twitter and Facebook).  Their author blogs help readers learn more about the authors who contribute to the magazine.  Plus, the author blogs are about topics that are of interest to the magazine’s subscribers. The blogs extend the content of the magazine into a forum where readers can share their travel experiences, add to an authors trip notes or simply share there love for the desert.

An attorney is using a blog to keep clients up-to-date on industry standards,  current cases that may influence the law, etc.  They cover topics and blog about issues related to their specialty.  The blog keeps their clients informed and it opens up the opportunity for clients to ask the attorney questions.  The two-way communication enhances the attorney/client relationship and establishes the opportunity for new business to be developed.

A sports association uses a blog to share stories of how member sporting clubs are using various marketing programs to promote and grow their club and their sport.  The sharing of information between peer clubs is a great way to grow an industry. One of the organizations managing members is using a blog to share the associations plans for future growth and changes within their own programs.  The members like the blog because they have a better idea of what the organization is working on behind the scenes.  The blog increases communication between the association and it’s members.

Blogs are two-way

Blogs create an informal and friendly approach to distributing information and for developing closer relationships with your customers.  The tool that makes a blog two-way is the commenting feature.  All blogs should enable this feature and encourage readers to participate in a conversation about the article/topic posted in the blog.

The commenting feature available on the bottom of a blog page enables readers to add additional details or content to the topic of the blog post.   This enhances the content on the blog and provides information that is multidimensional.  A blogger may write about a new smart phone and then readers can post their experiences with that particular phone.   Other readers may post additional questions that then lead to more detail about a particular fact or function on the phone.

If your company does not have a blog, you should consider adding one or more to your corporate Website. If you have a Twitter profile or facebook page for your business you can set-up your blog to feed via rss to your social network.    The cost to set-up a blog is minimal and the results will be well worth the effort.    If you are not sure how to use a blog in your particular business, just send me an email and I’ll see if I can come up with some ideas for you.  Email: lynn@dwmi.com.

Blog Costs

Recommended blog software:  WordPress
Software cost:  FREE
Cost to host blog on  DWMI’s servers: $19.95 – $50 depending on specs
Cost to customize blog to match your Website: $500 Set-up

Contact:
Lynn Bremner
Tel. 760-619-2401
lynn@dwmi.com

Concept

The PCCPolo.com Website was designed and built in WordPress.  The PCC Polo site is owned by a regional circuit of the United States Polo Association (USPA).  The Pacific Coast Circuit (PCC) has news that they need to share with their member polo clubs and member players.  The site is designed to make the syndication and delivery of news low maintenance and fast.

Visit http://www.pccpolo.com to view this website online.

Technical Details

WordPress is the software used to design and build the site.  The site is designed for syndication of content into the site and out of the site using rss feeds.  Feedburner is used to pull in rss feeds from related polo news sources in the right column of the site. Outgoing articles are also fed into the right column of the Website using Feedburner. This same feed sends the articles to the PCC Polo Twitter and Facebook pages.

A few months ago I was at the PGA Show in Las Vegas. I was chatting with a vendor at one of the booths about one of my new Website about golf, DesertCADDIE.com. He asked me how many contacts I had on my email database. He was trying to promote a new book about golf and he was looking to buy some emailing lists. I just looked at him and smiled. “Well, I’ve got a great fan base on facebook and a good sized group of followers on Twitter, but I haven’t even started an email list.”

It was in that moment that I realized my own marketing focus has already shifted. E-mail newsletters and promotions were no longer on the list of my top marketing tools. I now use WordPress, a blogging software, to get my news out to my various Websites. I use Twitter to route news and articles over to facebook so “fans” can read the news summaries on their facebook pages, and if they want the full story, they can then link to my website in one click. You can also use facebook notifications to send direct e-mails to “fans” or “friends.”

What do I need an email list for? My readers and customers either visit my Website for news or they read the same content and promotions on facebook. I have several other Web-based businesses that I do have active email databases set-up for, but I’ve been phasing them out. By the time I send out an email newsletter or promotion with links to articles on my Website, readers have already read them. The news is old. E-mail is becoming the “old” method and social media networks are taking the stage as the new, faster way to connect with customers.

Social Media also makes for a closer, more personalized relationship with customers. The “fans” and “friends” on social media sites feel comfortable joining various business social networks because they know they have control. They can remove their fan connection or friendship with an individual or business by clicking a button. They know they won’t get stuck in the unsolicited email cycle where they can’t get rid of the spam once they sign up for a new email list. People are more comfortable joining a social media network than they are signing up for a new email subscription or list.

While businesses are still behind the social media curve, some innovative companies are figuring out that email is on its way out and fans, friends and followers are in. Social Media Marketing is going to take traditional marketing tactics out of play. While email was responsible for significantly downsizing the direct mail industry and the postal service, social media is going to make email marketing a distant second to a new, more powerful marketing medium.

The good news . . . social media tools are free, there are no printing costs, no postage costs and you don’t have to buy mailing or e-lists. What you will need to do is spend a lot of time on the social media platforms and you will need to build your fans, friends and followers. This is not a “build it and they will come technique.” You have to interact with customers online, provide feedback, get creative with your promotions and serve your fans, friends and followers content and information that they will find useful.

If you need help developing a successful social media network for your business, give Digital West Media, Inc. a call at 760-619-2401 or email lynn@polozone.com

Web site built using WordPress.

Using WordPress To Build Your Business Website
By L. Bremner of Digital West Media, Inc.

Over the past year I’ve been using some new tools that have really revolutionized the Web industry. One of these software tools is called WordPress. In the past, it used to take weeks, a Web designer and a programmer to design a functional website. While this may still be the case with some of the more robust sites, WordPress is a software tool that can be used to build a new Website in about 1 day and for a fraction of the cost of traditional HTML-based sites.

While WordPress is well known as a blogging software it can also be used to create an entire website, or it can be linked in seamlessly to an existing website. What everyone seems to get hung up on is the phrase “blogging” or “blog.” When these terms are used people generally think of an opinion column or someone’s online journal. While WordPress can be used for those applications, it is really a much more robust tool with many other applications and functions.

So what does this all have to do with syndication? If you build a Website using WordPress, or if you add WordPress to your existing Website, you can syndicate your articles, posts and content via an rss feed. What does this mean? It means that you can post a press release on your WordPress Website and with the click of one button it will appear on your Website, Facebook page, Twitter profile and any other social media site or other Website that can import rss feeds.

Syndication will save you time and a lot of money. By upgrading your existing Website to WordPress or by adding WordPress to your existing Website, you will be able to get your news out faster and to more locations in a shorter period of time. It will also enable you or your staff to update your Website content and posts yourself. Another one of the many benefits of WordPress.

What is the cost? Digital West Media, Inc. (DWMI) can get most small businesses set-up with a new WordPress Website in about one to two days for a set-up fee of about $500. This includes setting up your rss feed to link to your facebook and twitter accounts. All you have to do is learn how to post content in WordPress, which is about as easy as sending an email with a few extra steps. Or for an extra fee, DWMI can post content on a monthly basis for you. DWMI will also provide hosting for WordPress sites will cost between $19.95 per month to $50 per month depending on your Website needs and traffic to your site.

For more information on Digital West Media’s WordPress Services, please contact lynn@dwmi.com or Tel. 760-619-2401.

Visual of RSS feed between social media network and web site.

Facebook Tip of The Day

Businesses need to set up a business page on facebook, not profiles.  This will enable “fans” to sign-up and follow your facebook page news without having to be approved for friendship first.  This will build your fan-base faster.

A Guide To Social Network Marketing

This original article was written for polo clubs, but the principles can be applied to any business.

As we prepare for the 2009 – 2010 Winter Season many polo clubs are gearing up for business. Some of the challenges that polo clubs and general managers are focused on this year are related to sales, marketing and a shrinking budget. Many polo clubs may find themselves facing these tough questions:

• How can we reach new customers?
• How can we retain members during tough economic times?
• How can we grow our sales with a smaller advertising budget?

One inexpensive way to do all of these things is to dive head first into the fast-paced world of “Social Networking.” There are tons of social networking tools out there, but which ones does your club need? Which social networks reach your demographic and which ones are going to get you results?

With all the hype about Twitter, Facebook, Linked In, MySpace, YouTube, etc. it is hard to know which tools you really need. There seems to be some stigma about using facebook and some of the other tools as many people believe they are for teenagers or for babbling about the meaningless details of your personal life. While these stigmas may hold some truth, the demographics are changing in huge leaps and bounds.

• 45% of Facebook’s US audience is now 26 years old or older
• Facebook’s fastest growing demographic is those 35 years old and older
• Twitter’s monthly growth rate is 20% (1460% annually ’08-‘09)
• Twitter – 72.5% of all users joining during the first five months of 2009

As a Web developer and social marketing consultant, I’ve had some time to experiment and use many of the social networking tools. Over the past few months I’ve come up with a comprehensive social networking solution that can be applied to any business or industry. I’ve taken the one marketing tool that all business currently have, a website, and integrated three social networking tools together to build an effective marketing network.

• Facebook
• Twitter
• WordPress

Why Facebook?

After setting up profiles on facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Linked-In, and several other social networks I discovered that more of my friends and colleagues were on facebook. The fastest growing segment of facebook users is the demographic of individuals 35 +. They have a very user-friendly interface and you can have a facebook profile set up in a matter of minutes. Facebook also offers “facebook pages” which are like profiles that individuals set-up only they are designed for a businesses vs. an individual. The best part about facebook is that both “profiles” and “pages” are FREE. Once you set up a facebook page your members, new customers and other interested individuals can opt-in to become a “fan” of your club’s facebook page. As your fan base grows so does your social network.

All businesses will have a facebook page in the near future. It will become as common place as a Website or a listing in the yellow pages. For this reason, your polo club should set up a facebook business page.

Once your facebook page is set-up you will then need to push content to it . . . news, tournament results, member announcements, events, etc. This takes a monthly commitment and time, so if you decide to have a staff person handle this, make sure they have the time to do it.

What is Twitter?

Twitter is a “what are you doing right now” type of service that allows individuals or businesses with twitter profiles to publish 140 character messages (that can include links) to anyone who is “following” them on twitter. These messages can be short news clips or specials that your club is offering to members and to potential new customers. Every polo club should have a twitter account in addition to their facebook business page. You can establish a free profile on twitter within a few minutes

What is WordPress

WordPress is a blogging software that can be set-up to allow a non-technical person to post content easily to an existing Website and to popular social networking sites like facebook and twitter. For example: Lets say you have a press release that you want to get out to members and customers. This press release can be posted to your Website, to your Twitter profile and to your facebook account with the click of one button in WordPress. How is this possible?

WordPress is the workhorse where you insert your content for distribution. It is a software that can be plugged into an existing Website. It makes posting news and content to a Website as easy as sending an email with a few extra steps. No code, no programming, just copy and paste your text into the template and click publish. Voilà, it appears on your Website, on your facebook page and in your twitter profile.

Once I build It Will They Come?

Social networking is only effective if you have people in your network and if you push content to those people via the network. You also have to actively interact with the network by answering questions, providing content and offers that add value to those individuals on the network and by participating in conversations. Once your network is set-up you need to continue to build traffic to it by actively pursuing new fans and followers. Building a successful social network takes a lot of time and work.

The first step is letting your existing members know that your club has a facebook page and a profile on twitter. One way to get the word out is to put links to your social network pages on your existing Website. Post a flier on your game schedule board, announce it on your voice mail notifying members that your club is on facebook and twitter. Every email you send out, e-newsletter or printed collateral material should also have a link or the address to your club’s facebook and twitter profiles included.

Finding new customers, members, fans and followers takes a bit more work. It requires that you spend hours on the social networks posting fan requests, participating in related groups, by following other profiles on twitter and by becoming fans of other pages. Participation is key in building your network.

Once you have fans and followers you can start marketing to them. You can do this by “pushing” content to your social network. Post useful information for your fans and followers, offer them exclusive specials and provide them with the opportunity to interact with your club through the social network.

How is this going to help your sales?

If you are able to reach more people with your advertisements, tournament results, event and membership information you are bound to increase your membership and event sales. Each month your social network will grow as more “fans” opt-in to your facebook page and as more “followers” choose to follow your polo club on twitter. It also gives you a very fast way to distribute news and specials to members and customers. More people log into facebook daily than those who go to your Website. If you deliver your news to your “fans” facebook profile they are more likely to see it than if you just posted the same content on your Website.

Here are some of the key benefits to social networking . . .

• Social networking is the future of marketing
• It simplifies the communication process (takes less time to reach more people)
• It is less expensive than traditional print media
• You can reach an unlimited number of people and it won’t cost you more
• You own the network
• As the network grows so does its value
• You can get news out immediately
• Increase member communication
• Receive real-time feedback from customers
• Reach new customers

The relationships you develop with your members and customers through the social networking tools will become invaluable as the polo industry becomes increasingly competitive. A strong social network will give you an edge over the competition. With the current state of the economy, the polo industry needs to work harder than ever to retain their members and to bring in new members. Polo clubs will soon discover that social networking will become one of their most useful sales and marketing tools. It is also very cost effective.

The Cost?

Clubs can’t afford NOT to get into social networking. The cost savings alone in distributing ads, news, and specials through a social network will pay for itself. You save money by reducing other marketing media such as newspaper ads, magazine ads and printed direct mail pieces such as newsletters, fliers and other types of marketing materials. All of this content can be sent digitally via your social network and save your club thousands of dollars in print and advertising costs. It will take time to build your network, so as it grows you can slowly transition over from traditional media to social marketing.

You or someone on your staff can set-up a facebook page and a twitter profile, but WordPress and linking it all together requires more in depth technical skills. It also takes time to maintain and to build the social network by increasing your fans and followers on a monthly basis. You also have to factor in who will maintain your social network and push content to it on a regular basis.

Many clubs are already using social networking tools as a main communication tool to reach the polo industry. What clubs have not done yet, is link all of the tools together with WordPress. This would save time and loop the content they are publishing so it appears on their Website. Traditional HTML-based Websites require a Webmaster with programming skills to update and maintain. That is why most polo sites are not updated with daily or weekly news. It costs money and takes too long to post news to the Website. The WordPress installation linked to the Website and the social networking tools solves this problem. WordPress is the key to simplifying the process of publishing news and content to your existing Website.

The cost of setting-up a social network will vary depending on how you go about it. Web developers and server/hosting companies charge a minimum of $75 to $125 per hour to do this type of work. As a web developer and social marketing consultant, I’ve set-up WordPress installations myself. It takes me about 6 to 8 hours from start to finish. This includes the software installation, inserting the graphics/design elements, setting up the buttons and content structure with links. Categories need to be added and plugins installed to link your WordPress installation to your Website, facebook and twitter.

Who Can I Hire To Help?

The skills needed for the set-up and maintenance of a social network requires several types of Internet and marketing specialists. This can make the task of hiring the right company a bit daunting.

An easy and cost-effective solution would be to contact Digital West Media, Inc. We specialize in social networking and advertising for the small to medium-sized businesses. Digital West Media, Inc, is a Web development company and our staff is able to provide you with everything you need. We can set-up and link your social network for a flat fee of $500 (WordPress, facebook and twitter). Digital West Media, Inc.  also offers maintenance packages to help your club build its social network once it is set-up. The set-up process takes about one to two days.

Every club has different needs based on their staff, budget and marketing goals. Digital West Media,Inc. can help with part or all of your social networking and Web development needs. Don’t hesitate to call us if you have questions about social networking or if you want to schedule a free phone consultation. We are here to help the polo industry with the transition from traditional print media into social networking and online advertising.

Following is a list of polo clubs who are using Digital West Media’s social networking services:

USPA Pacific Coast Circuit – WordPress, Facebook, Twitter and PoloBLOGS News Feed

The Villages Polo Club – Wordpess, PoloBLOGS News Feed

Eldorado Polo Club – Wordpess

San Diego Polo Club – PoloBLOGS News Feed

OC Polo Club – PoloBLOGS News Feed

Santa Barbara Polo Club – PoloBLOGS News Feed

*PoloBLOGS News Feed is a WordPress-based polo news feed service published by PoloZONE.com.

For more information about social networking for polo clubs, please contact Lynn Bremner at Tel. 760-619-2401 or via email lynn@polozone.com.