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Facebook is about to get more important for Business. Fact.

I quite often hear people saying “Yeh, but Facebook is for family and friends not business, right?” and then normally spend the next 10 or 20 minutes to convince them it isn’t so. It doesn’t always work. To many, the informality of Facebook, the way you can banter with ex-school-mates and existing office colleagues alike, doesn’t lend itself well to ‘promoting a brand”. Yet last week’s announcement from Facebook about the changes coming to their portal is about to make Facebook even more important and a vital business tool.

We often recite the mantra of ‘Content is King’ and until now Facebook (despite already hosting 4% of all photographs ever taken in the world) hasn’t really towed the line with that one, until now. Facebook is moving to a more newsy type-look and will be placing content on a more newsworthy basis. Content now is very important on Facebook.

What changes?

From the 30th September (i.e. today) Facebook will no longer be driven by a long line of posts from those a user has linked to but instead a Timeline and a set of organised post. In fact it is an intelligent timeline that will create more a chronological story or scrapbook than just a series of posts. If you’ve ever seen the impressive Flipboard app on the iPad you will get the idea. Facebook is looking to organise us. That includes the basic like function. This is being opened out to developers given them more scope to create their own versions connected to online activities. That is likely to make users more savvy as to who, what and when they like.

So Facebook will decide what is relevant content to us and place this in our timeline. As a user though you won’t miss out on the other content completely, that will be available as part of a rolling ‘ticker’ on of each user’s home page.

Dspite this apparent information gatekeeping, Facebook claims the new changes will allow you more control over what appears as a top news item as, users will be given more options over these sorts of preferences via new setting controls.

The idea is that with one quick glance users will easily catch-up on the actions of their important friends over the past 24 hours without having to scroll through countless updates “you should see the things you’re most interested in” claim Facebook, yes but not necessarily the most recent. To the writer this move is perhaps more about understanding where Facebook sits alongside other social networks. During the recent UK riots, during live sporting events and reality tv shows, the ‘as live’ action and interaction has taken place on Twitter not Facebook. Twitter has almost become the default for immediacy, Facebook something more of a reflection. In tradtional analogy, Twitter is to TV and radio what Facebook is now becoming to newspapers and magazines. Again that makes content on Facebook even more important.

If you are a business, the stronger or more unique your message the better the chance it will attract interest from an audience. From a user perspective the chances are their top news will become stale for those who log on more than once per day, so any new engaging content will be lapped up

The true impact – and whether it makes Facebook users leave in droves or new sign-ups happen – won’t be seen for months yet, but we suggest you concentrate on ensuring what you have on Facebook is as up to date and relevant to your daily business as possible.

Let us know what you think of the new look Facebook.

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If ever there was a single factor in web design that could alienate or entrance a client in one hit, it is colour. Colour schemes are incredibly emotive things and have many connotations to different people so here are 6 tips to try and help you get it right first time.

1. Ask the client first

We all know what the client thinks in design terms is unlikely to be what they really need – you are the designer after all – but what they will know is what they don’t like. At least if you know this from day one, you can eliminate that from your choices and avoid those tumbleweed moments when you first present the new design to the client.

2. Work to brand guidelines

The chances are the smaller of your clients won’t have a nice formal, shiny brand guidelines booklet or PDF. If they have great – certainly ask – and make sure you work to them. If they have taken the time to create the guidelines then don’t expect there to be any leyway to deviate from them unless the client expressly asks in the brief. If there are no formal guidelines, create your own based on what you know of the client. What uniformity, branding, etc do they use on their headed paper, sales literature, business cards, website etc.

3. Imitate images

In many cases a client will give you a brief asking for a specific image to play a big role in the design or content. If so, it makes sense to compliment the image with the rest of the design, so use the colours in the image  as a basis for your colour pallette.

4. Look at what they like

Colour is a very emotional response and there is countless research and theory on what inspires and causes this, but the quickest way to decide what will work is have a look at websites, magazines, even clothing design that appeals to your target audience and is successful with them. What works for them? Is it solid colur? Certain shades? Colour can be very influential and something familiar (although obviously not a blatant copy) is re-assuring to new visitors.

5. Think textbook. Think Theory

Yes we are creatives but the reason those academics keep plugging on about Chevreul’s law and Newton’s colour wheel is because they work. The audience will also have their brain trained to these methods, so it would be foolish to risk too much immediate jarring when they first view your new site. Adobe Kuler is a great starting place if you need some help coming up with colour scheme options.

6. Note your responses to the first 5 tips

No we are not just stretching a 5 point tip article to 6. In fact this is probably the most useful one to remember. If you have made a decision on choosing a colour scheme based on the above criteria, as least you have something very substantive to put to the client when they say “why did you choose that colour?” Again, remember you are the designer and any client worth their salt who has commissioned your professional skills will be impressed if you can justify your colour choices in this way. That probably applies to the amount of white space you have left too.

Happy colouring.

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If you read our blog of yesterday you will know that we attended the very successful MumpreneurUK annual Conference and Awards over the weekend.

While we were there, we caught up with co-founder Laura Rigney and asked her what MumpreneurUK is all about, why mumpreneurs are overcoming the current economic crisis and what it takes to be a successful mumpreneur.

Don’t forget to check out the other videos on the 123-reg YouTube channel too.

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If ever the politicians needed an example of how British resolve will pull the country clear of these sad ecomomic times, they needn’t look much further than the working mum (or dad). It sounds clichéd but most parents would do anything for their kids and whereas once that used to be taking on a couple of extra part-time jobs, many are now turning to starting up their own business, especially via the internet.

123-reg were lucky enough to be a sponsor at yesterday’s MumpreneurUK Annual Conference and Awards event  and the creativity, positivity and passion in a room of 150 entrepreneurs (mainly mums, but a handful of dads too) was electrifying.

The organisation set up by mums Laura Rigney and Amanda Farren in 2009 celebrates and supports mumpreneurs who they define as “a mum who juggles running a business with family life” and lets would be mumpreneurs know that starting a business is achievable, whatever your background.

There were book publishers, book sellers, toy sellers, theatre groups, support organisations, PR gurus, keepsake producers and many, many more; all assembled to network, learn off inspirational speakers and seminar hosts but more importantly, they were there to celebrate each others success and support each other – there was a lot of love in the room.

There was also a lot of positivity about how the internet has changed their lives and helped businesses compete and flourish. So many of those assembled were tweeting and connecting to the web that the in-house WiFi consistently crashing became a talking point of the day. There wasn’t one person there who didn’t already have a web presence and it was nice to meet with so many 123-reg customers with lots of positive stories of their dealings with us, but also to help solve some niggling issues about the next steps online for their business. It was a day of sharing knowledge and ideas all round.

If you missed the event, have a look at the Twitter hashtag #mumpreneur11 to see what went on and we’ll be posting up our exclusive interview with MumpreneurUK founder Laura Rigney soon to, so watch this space. UPDATE 27/09/11: View the interview here.

Finally, big congratulaions to Suzanne Dibble of Lawyers4mumpreneurs who won the Best Supporting Business Award sponsored by 123-reg and seemed a very popular winner.

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A new infographic from anti-virus company Kaspersky Labs suggests the cost of an individual’s lax approach to online security could be over US$2,000 with criminals able to make more money from any initial loss to the hacked individual.

As revealed by this blog on ExpertReviews once your security has been compromised the average cyber criminal could make a fortune from additional access to the services you now take for granted online.

Scaring yourself to death and shutting down your internet use however is not the answer. With just a few small investments and some use of common sense you can help yourself to minimise your risk of being hacked. For starters purchasing and installing Panda Global Protection from 123-reg will give you up-to-date anti-virus protection, a firewall, spam protection for your email and the peace of mind of a back-up to ensure your personal data is secure and protected.

Have  you been the victim of cyber crime? Are the values in the infographic realistic?

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We’ve written before about how the way people view and use TV is changing, but the focus of interest for visitors at the latest IFA electronics fair in Berlin perhaps offered the biggest insight into the future.

It was not the further advanced 3DTV stands, where the 3D experience can be obtained without the need for sci-fi looking eye-ware, nor the latest tablet technology harvesting the same power as a standard desktop wielded this time last year. Instead it was the integration of television with the internet.

Samsung appears to be leading the way in connected TVs as they did in the early large-screen LCD markets. Already Samsung offers SmartTVs with internet technology built in, using a range of Samsung apps ready loaded on the equipment, but their newest models show true integration that suggests your TV in the corner of your sitting room could take over from your desktop or laptop for all your computer needs.

“But people watch differently nowadays” is the cry from many. True. This writer for one, will admit to ‘watching tv’ while working or surfing on a laptop or tablet and I don’t suppose I am the only one. Yet TV manufacturers know that too. With sociologists suggesting the art of social interaction is dying out because we are constantly engaged with one technology or another, the manufacturers are trying to combat that too. LG for instance, are set to bring out a new TV featuring a gaming mode that utilises 3D technology to allow viewers to see different pictures on the same screen – picture in picture being taken a step further.

With those sorts of changes happening in the living rooms of the masses, so web designers need to be thinking how that impacts on them. With possible future internet viewing taking place several metres away form the screen, small fonts and intricate designs could become a thing of the past. Furthermore, “the fold” could become even more important with no touchscreen control and possibly a move towards wand technology for control of the screen. Start making those considerations now and planning how best to meet the challenge and you could steal the march on your competitors.

How do you think truly interactive TV sets will impact on the work of a web designer?

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YouTube is massive. As a stand alone search engine it’s the second largest. It is the third biggest online destination behind Facebook and Google. Those facts alone mean that is has to be a part of your online media mix.

But when consider how engaging video is, YouTube becomes even more important. Consumers like watching video online. YouTube offers a fantastic environment for it.

As a marketeer YouTube also gives you lots of tools. It’s possible to target people by groups, video, and by channel. YouTube makes it easy to forward and share your video content to others or on their own website.

As YouTube is a search engine you can use your video content to answer users search queries, putting brand in front of others people looking for your services.

YouTube also makes it easy to link other content, closing the loop between YouTube and your website tools.

And currently YouTube is currently very cost effective. Apart from the effort, a user or enhance channel is free to set up. You buy ads on a CPC or CPM basis. And at the moment there are more eyeballs than advertisers.

So here’s a 9 tips to make sure your YouTube campaign gets off to a good start.

1. Choose the right name

Your channel name should be keyword rich, to improving its chances of ranking in relevant search queries. If you have a well known brand then include that, so your video content shows up for brand searches, highlighting your great content to new and current customers.

2. Think about SEO

Make sure you use titles, descriptions and video tags that are keyword rich, and include links to your website. YouTube search results are based on these, assessing their relevancy and popularity. Just 1,000 characters show up in the initial search, so keep is short and sweet. Although you get 426 characters for tags, stick to 150 or less.

3. Customise your Channel

Brand channels used to cost £25,000, but in the last couple of months Google has allowed many advertisers to create ‘enhanced channels’ for no cost at all. These give you almost all the cool design elements of a brand channel, minus a bit of functionality. It’s a great opportunity to create a customised environment for your video content. See our Social Media Guides for how to do that.

Check out the British Gas YouTube channel for a great customised background:

4. Think about disabling comment options

Negative comments can harm a brand. Consider your Social Networking Policy and work out how you are going to respond to poor feedback. If you don’t have the time – or want to retain the control – consider disabling the comment option.

5. Keep it short

Before you start adding content, decide on some basic rules such as the length of each video, and the number of points you want to make. Although YouTube lets you add up to 15 minutes of video, users don’t often watch more than 1 or 2. And don’t forget your call to action too – give people something to do next.

6. Add plenty of video

Make sure you have at least 3 videos at the launch of your channel, to make it look at bit busier. It keeps users satisfied, and helps it gain popularity and visibility in the Youtube search results. And if you’ve paid for someone to click through to your channel, then it makes to give them plenty to watch once they get there.

7. Consider watermarking

Users love to share video content. Make sure you get the benefit of this share by watermarking your video, or including a call to action to your website.

8. Use Promoted Videos to drive traffic

One of the most effective PPC areas of YouTube is promoted Videos. These serve your videos at the top of the search results. Ads appear as a video thumbnail and several lines of text. Users just click to video. You can then use text overlays to push users onto your website.

The concept of promoted videos – giving users something they’re looking for – is broadly similar to regular paid search, and as such they can deliver an ROI in line with those.

9. Make us of Insights and Analytics

As a channel owner to you can use YouTube insights to find out lots of interesting stuff about viewers of your content. You can identify their demographic, and how they found your videos – through search, sharing or direct links. And you can also see which parts of your video they liked (hot spots) and what turned them off. Use this information to improve your campaign targeting and video content.

That’s it

When it comes to audience and engagement, YouTube is huge; but as a marketing channel it’s underused and undervalued.

Don’t forget to check out the new 123-reg YouTube channel.

Nick Leech runs Digital Marketing Agency Euston Digital

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We’ve not run with a story for a while of somebody nearly losing their business by failing to re-new their domain name, so we thought this story last week from the other side of the world was worth repeating.

Last week investmentproperty.com.au was sold at auction for an Australian domain name record of Aus$125,000, a fantastic windfall for the domain name owner who sold, but a sickener for the person who used to own it. That’s because it appears the former owner appears to have let renewal lapse on the domain, leaving it available to the open market and a new owner. Indeed according to this report it appears the former owner wasn’t even aware he no longer owned it, let alone the fact that he had just seen a potential fortune slip from his grasp.

The moral, make sure your domain names are set to auto-renew and make sure suitable payment methods are also registered on your account. With 123-reg you can register several different payment methods as well as use auto-renewal to make sure you won’t miss a vital renewal. Even if you don’t intend to use the domain immediately, it is well worth renewing a domain. If you felt it had a value when you registered it, the chances are others will feel the same now and in the future and with the supply of snappy, easy to read domain names ever limited, that domain may one day form  your pension. In relation to the investmentproperty.com.au domain name, even the domain name speculators and experts on web forum DNTrade.com.au only thought that domain would sell for $10,000, so the final price of $125,000 shows just how value of a domain can reach far above expectations.

Do you auto-renew domains? Have you ever let a domain expire and later regretted it?

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The official 123-reg YouTube channel has arrived offering some funky and informative videos aimed at helping people understand domain names.

Built as a series of 5 short animated presentations, our opening batch of videos have been  designed as the perfect introduction to domain names, how they work and how to get one for beginners and experts alike.

The first five videos are:

1. Understanding domain names
2. What is a domain name?
3. What are domain name extensions?
4. How to choose a domain name?
5. How to register a domain name?

We suggest you watch them in that order too as they have been created to build upon the information and knowledge provided by the other videos in the series.

Have a look and please let us know what you think.

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This week, Joomla announced that its open source content management system has passed the 25 million download mark.

Joomla claims some 2.7 percent of the web runs Joomla and it is not just being used by small businesses or start-ups looking for a cheap alternative. The modular appeal and proven stability means it has been used for the backend management of websites for brands including McDonald’s, eBay and Ikea.

The Joomla community has thrived over the years, with apparent competitors offering support, help and technical know-how to one another in traditional internet style. Over 225,000 developers are now registered at the joomlacode.org site where developers are encouraged to contribute directly to the development of the core Joomla codebase. Meanwhile, Joomla developer communities exist in almost every nook and cranny of the web on forums and blogging networks.

Joomla’s announcement included a rider – it may be even more than 25 million downloads. Although first released in 2005, Joomla admits it only started tracking the number of downloads for its CMS system in 2007.

You can of course build your own Joomla-based site with 123-reg web-hosting with Joomla available as one of the free to install 123-apps, 25 million others can’t be wrong.

Have you built your site with Joomla? We’d love to hear from you. Is Joomla capable of running a full corporate site?

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