QC Total Tech

Boredom doesn’t sell

Jason Howell — Fri, 24 May 2013 15:22:18 +0000

It’s pretty simple really, boredom doesn’t sell, nobody gets excited about reading an article or watching a video that is boring and long winded. If you want to keep your customers engaged then make what you do clear, concise and interesting. This applies to everything from the design aesthetics of the material to the content it contains. Avoid using technical terms and inside jargon if possible. When possible, humor is great at getting the attention of your viewers, people will watch something if its funny and captures their interest. Take a look at the new KMart ads (Ship Your Pants and Big Gas Savings), yes they are borderline vulgar and its getting them a lot of attention, but it works. I’m not suggesting you go out and make a series of crude or vulgar videos, but humor (and in this case shock value) works. You have to watch your videos, read your pages and think like a customer, a customer who’s doing numerous other things and your product or service is just one of the items to check off that day or week, would you want to sit through whatever you have produced? If you won’t sit through it in that mindset, neither will they and you’re just waiting time and opportunity, because remember…boredom doesn’t sell.

Internet Explorer Is Holding Back The Web

Jason Howell — Thu, 23 May 2013 17:43:57 +0000

If you follow any of the big blogger/news sites or any tech sites, you’ve probably seen articles mentioning newer technologies such as HTML5, CSS3 or Webkit. Adobe Flash is going away, they’ve stopped releasing updates, iOS and Android Chrome don’t even support it, so we’re moving in a new direction. HTML is the language that all basically all web sites/pages are constructed upon, it’s the code that explains what is on the page, where it goes, what type of information it is, where to place images, etc. CSS is a language that accompanies HTML and it tells the web browser how to make the HTML look (what fonts to use, how things are colored, if there are borders, etc). The latest two languages of these combined give us the ability to make breathtaking web pages that render fast and don’t require the visitor to cache/download a slew of images from the site in order to the view page, you also don’t need to wait for some heavy Flash object to load. So, what’s the problem? The title of this article is “Internet Explorer Is Holding Back The Web”, right? Well Internet Explorer (IE for short), doesn’t support Webkit, it doesn’t support all the latest changes to CSS3 and has some serious problems rendering certain parts of HTML5. Webkit is a technology that allows us to really make things look fantastic and also gives us some great functionality, with these 3 technologies tied together we have the ability to make really wonderfully engaging, interactive and visually stunning web sites, but when around 29% of the web is still using Internet Explorer (see this Wikipedia article for the stats), you have to make something that is cross compatible, that looks the same no matter what type of browser/device you’re using. So, we’re forced to build sites that do not look as good as they could or maybe aren’t as interactive as they could be. As a web developer this is very frustrating, we want to build the best possible sites we can, but we’re held back because Microsoft is still behind the times (even with version 10 of IE, which was released in September 2012).

With usage of Internet Explorer dwindling we’re starting to wonder how much longer we need to consider Internet Explorer worth supporting to a point where it holds back design. Yes, there are ways around these things with JavaScript, use of images, etc, but that is not the point. Why should we continue to develop sites that have a lesser design/functionality because 29% of the population might not be able to use it/see it? It’s a fine line, imagine your brick-and-mortar location automatically ignoring 29% of the customers that walk in the door, not a pretty or sane thought. At a certain point IE must get with the times or go away almost completely, and then you’ll see a revolution on the web.

The Launch of WRS Construction/Deck Doctors

Jason Howell — Wed, 22 May 2013 21:35:32 +0000

Today we launched a brand new web site for WRS Construction aka The Deck Doctors. WRS Construction is a full service home repair, remodeling and construction firm. WRS does everything from repairing a door knob to building an entire house. When WRS contacted us they had a need for a dual branded web site that showcased all their offerings, was compatible with mobile devices and looked fantastic. We delivered a responsive web site that showcased off both brands and utilizes a CMS (allowing them to self update).

You can check out the WRS new web site today by visting http://www.wrsdeckdoctors.com

Mobile App Design Is Here!

Jason Howell — Wed, 22 May 2013 19:59:27 +0000

We are pleased to announce a brand new service offering, Mobile App Design! We’ve worked very hard developing this fantastic new service that is so affordable. We have known for a while that a mobile app design was a gaping hole in what we provide. So we decided it was time to put the wheels in motion and pack our toolbox with awesome new tools that allow us to keep your customers engaged in a bold new way. You no longer have to be major corporation with a full-time dedicated staff and an unlimited budget to stay competitive. So as of today our mobile app design service is fully operational!

Yes its true not every business needs a mobile app, and we understand that, but many of you do, and what’s more…your customers might be expecting it! So, give the audience what they want.

To learn more about this exciting new offering just click here and read all about our new mobile app design service!

Stop Pushing People Away!

Jason Howell — Thu, 02 May 2013 13:48:20 +0000

Quite frequently I see business web sites, blogs and social media profiles (i.e. Facebook) where the business mentions an article or a page on a web site that is not their own. I disagree with this methodology because, you want your customers listening to you. I know you probably think you’re helping out your clientele/fans by sharing this great information you found, but all you’re doing is pushing them to other sources where they may end up stumbling upon a competitor or they simply don’t begin to see you as “the expert” anymore. You want your customers seeing you as the authority in your field and you want them using your Facebook page, your site, blog, etc to learn about your business and industry. On the flip side, its unreasonable for most small businesses to be the end all be all source of knowledge about their industry to their clients, so you just have to pick a few topics you want to write about and stick with that. Remember, your customers liked your page, subscribed to your mailing list, etc because they want to hear from you, not other web sites and magazines.

Happy Webbing.

Design Revamp and Mobile For Miller Time Bowling

Jason Howell — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 17:56:30 +0000

One thing we do for our clients on a regular basis is monitor their sites and review the performance. We noticed a major trend with Miller Time Bowling and Sharky’s Billiards web site, the mobile traffic was increasing… a lot. Each month we were seeing dramatic increases in people visiting the site from their smart phones and tablets. The site we created was built a couple of years ago and there wasn’t much emphasis on mobile users. After seeing over 50% of their customers were using the web site from mobile devices we decided it was time to address this issue. So, we created a new design for the site and made it responsive. Since the launch of the new design we’ve seen an increase in engagement from their customers and overall use of the web site.

You can check out Miller Time and Sharky’s beautiful new site design today by visiting http://www.millertimesharkys.com

The Launch of DeWitt Volunteer Fire Department

Jason Howell — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 16:46:09 +0000

We just launched the DeWitt (Iowa) Volunteer Fire Department’s very first web site! This web site was developed under our non-profit program as part of our continued effort to give back to our community. The DFD staff contacted us with a very specific vision for their web site, we met and went over their drawings and ideas. The result of this project is a web site that matches their vision to a “T” and allows them to communicate with the public about their events, provide information on members, vehicles in their apparatus and give a public face to their very worthy organization.

You can visit the DFD’s new web site by browsing to http://www.dewittfd.com

Mobile Use and Mobile Web in 2013

Jason Howell — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 14:44:20 +0000

We meet and speak with lots of different businesses. Our clientele is a very culturally diverse ecosystem of companies in varied industries and of many different sizes. Having this large breadth of first hand information to work with has given us the insight and advantage to see what’s going on out there and where things are going. That being said we’ve noticed some major changes over the last 18 months, the crazy fast adoption of mobile by consumers. Now, I know what you’re probably thinking…just what the heck is “mobile use” exactly and why do I even care? Prepare to get your learn on, but I’ll try to keep this short.

Mobile use, simply put, means when somebody uses a web site or app to access a company or brand’s information VIA their mobile device (a smartphone or tablet). At the beginning of 2012 we saw most Quad Cities’ web sites (that we manage) hovering around 6% – 12% mobile usage…meaning 6% to 12% of the people using the web site were on their smartphone or tablet. Now we’re seeing most sites checking out around 30%, and some as high as 60%! So what does this mean to you? It means more than likely 1/3 of your customers are visiting your web site on their phone or tablet. Why is that a big deal? I’m glad you asked, great question, kudos to you It’s a big deal because that means if your web site is not mobile optimized then 1/3 of your customers aren’t experiencing your web site/business in the way they should.

Have you ever visited a web site on your phone or tablet and it didn’t work right, menus were inaccessible, things didn’t touch or you simply couldn’t read it? Well, that’s a not a mobile friendly web site. So what exactly constitutes a mobile friendly web site? Well, that would be a web site that appears differently on a mobile device VS a desktop or laptop computer. Mobile sites are developed in way that makes the page perfectly suitable for phone or tablet usage. There’s two methods to accommodate mobile users, mobile dedicated sites and responsive design. Mobile dedicated sites are sites that look almost completely different than the “normal” web site, they have images design for smart phones, touchable menus and different layouts. Most of the time mobile dedicated sites will have less content and a different focus than the desktop/laptop site. A responsive design means the regardless of what device you are using the web site is consistent, the layouts flex, the images may appear to be smaller and some content may drop off the page, making the site appealing to the mobile user.

So how do you know what to do and when? Take a look at your web site traffic, is it 20% or higher? How many customers is that…200…2,000? Don’t you want all your customers to have the best possible experience when dealing with your business? If so, then you need to consider updating your web site for mobile, you can discuss with your web developer which of the aforementioned mobile methods is best for you. It’s a new landscape out there and it changes by the minute, the key is adapting to the change. Even if you don’t use a smart phone or tablet to use the web your customers probably are…and you can’t ignore your customers.

Happy Webbing.

To learn more about QC Total Tech’s mobile web site design offerings, visit the mobile web site page on this web site.

Our 8th Anniversary

Jason Howell — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 13:45:12 +0000

Today marks the 8th anniversary of QC Total Tech! Wow, 8 years, the time sure does fly when you’re having fun. When this company started it was just a small tech firm with 1 client, now we’ve grown to a countless number of clients and we’re launching new sites all the time. This year we’re already on track to launch a record number of new web sites, not to mention continuing updates to a slew of others.

We’ve seen so many changes in technology over the years and there’s no sign of it slowing down. We’re always reading about and learning new technology. This last year brought us the advent of Google Glass and the push down the road of wearable tech, I can only begin to imagine what that will for mean for all of us! We’ve seen mobile usage of web sites continue to rise across the board and we can only imagine what the next big thing is.

So, thanks to all our clients who have brought us their business over the years. We look forward to many more successful years serving you!

Happy Webbing everyone!

The Launch of Allow Abundant Love

Jason Howell — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 20:54:46 +0000

We just launched Allow Abundant Love’s very first web site. AALove (as they are commonly known) is an organization that supports many non-profits. Their goal is to support humanity and fight against threats to mankind. They raise money for the non-profits they support by selling clothing monogrammed with the AALove Logo.

We developed a site that is mobile friendly, gives consumers a variety of ways to shop their products and a has modern minimalist design that met the client’s needs and specifications.

Learn more about AALove and their products by visiting their new web site today http://www.aalove.org