We’ve all run into error pages in our travels through the internet – some good, some bad. What made the good ones good and the bad ones bad? Many sites simply tell you the page your requested isn’t found and they’re sorry. Sure, that gets the point across, but what about being nice to users?

It’s easy to customize 404 error pages on your site, and you should! Here are some approaches to take and why they’re good:

• Humor: post a graphic or joke to keep the mistake lighthearted and turn a bad thing into a fun time
• Features: give the user a list of current features on the site, or other pages you think they should visit
• Search: with a little coding, you can get the title of the link that brought them to the page. Use that to search your site and try to provide them with links to relevant articles

There are countless other things you could do with them. Feel free to post ideas and screen shots below!

One hundred and one?  Who has time for that?  Well take a peak and I’m sure you can find at least a couple helpful tidbits.  This article on seopedia.org highlights some interesting tips when it comes to marketing your company online.  Here are a couple which I found interesting/helpful.

1.  Suggest related web sites on your site

2.  Survey your visitors

3.  Pay close attention to stumbleupon

4.  Build a blog and link to important web sites

Entrepreneurs often prize themselves on their ability to think outside of “the box”. They view the box a constraints on thinking that prevent them from generating good idea. Budding entrepreneurs attempt to rid themselves of constants and as such seek after the most ridiculous and sometimes unachievable ideas.

But, in terms of thinking of new internet based entrepreneurial ideas, thinking inside the box might be exactly what is needed.

Limitations on creativity can actually better allow for creativity. This happens because the human brain has an incredible ability to solve problem. Rare is the individual that can just create for creations sake. For example, if I asked you to think of a new idea, the endless possibilities could keep you from actually formulating anything. But, if I gave you a lot of constraints; the maximum cost, some issue it needs to address, or some geographic location, your brain sizes up the situation and can better brainstorm a solution.

A point of clarification: it is important to not be narrow minded. These limitations need to be flexible –after all they are designed to foster not hinder thought- but, at the same time, they need to provide enough resistance that you can build off of them and reach greater height.

Thinking within the box can allow for your ideas to bounce around and pick up speed that, once there is a breakthrough, can propel your idea into the stratosphere of success. Happy thinking!

With the prevalence of easy DIY website applications, starting an online company can be really easy, and thousands of people – without any coding knowledge or experience – are becoming internet entrepreneurs! That’s just awesome. Everyone who has internet access and basic computer knowledge can start an online business – so can you!

But wait, it can’t be that simple… can it? Not quite. Even the quickest research on how to start an online business will at some point mention search engine optimization (SEO). However very few sites about internet entrepreneurship really dissect what SEO is or how to do it.

You’re in luck! You have stumbled upon a thorough and complete guide to internet entrepreneurship, including SEO! The term search engine optimization refers to the process of selecting keywords and optimizing your site so that you will rank well on Google for those keywords.

For more information, please visit the other blog I contribute to:

http://www.gccwebsites.com/seo/

I post articles on each site weekly, so follow us and check back regularly!

Questions? Leave them in the comments below or email me at dabonz413@gmail.com

During this winter break, I spent quite a few hours working on a wordpress site for an on-campus organization known as Stonebridge Concerts. This is the third website I have designed in the last year and was by far the easiest one I have ever designed before. My past websites have been my own website Alexanderwmoore.com and a website for a local coffee shop called Beans on Broad. Both of these sites were built utilizing different themes available for wordpress, and were the source of much frustration for me as a novice web-designer (not to mention the pressure of making a website that is for an actual business that has my name on it like beans on broad). I wrestled through the builder+child themes in order to build beans on broad, but as the course I was taking on content marketing continued to expand my knowledge of wordpress, things gradually got easier.

I am not going to be so bold as to say that after these two sites I was an expert on web design, but things have gotten a lot easier. It is so true that practice makes perfect. You can read tons of blogs about webdesign, but until you get the chance to really try it out, it’s not going to click. For example, the Stonebridge website I created over break took a total of 20 hours as opposed to my previous endeavors which took upwards of 60+ hours to design, and even then there is still work to do. This is merely a result of having logged hours on wordpress and growing in an understanding of how to work with wordpress.

Make learning easier:

1)      Take the time to learn the theme you are using. As one might expect, each theme has different features that require a certain learning curve, but do not allow this to scare you away from using the theme. I spent a full semester switching themes whenever I did not understand things after five minutes, which is an awefull way to do things. Instead of running away, stick with it. I would give it at least an hour or two of solid usage to understand the theme (as long as it is actually capable of the things you desire it to do). If you are just starting with wordpress, I would recommend using a builder + child theme because it allows you to form a foundation of understanding about wordpress and web-design.

2)      Check out youtube/google for help from experts. Giving away information is part of the internet content marketing revolution, which is great for you because there are tons of bloggers who are giving away great information that can really help you make your website.

3)      Use plugins: Plugins just make life easier. Here are a few I really like

Gravity forms: This widget allows for the easy creation of forms that you can install on you site to get user feedback with ease.

Smart youtube: This widget enables you to post youtube videos in a simple yet aesthetically pleasing way.

WYSIWYG Widgets: This widget allows you to install your own text/photos/logos/etc. into widget bars on your website. This is a super handy plugin that is also free.

WordPress editorial calendar: If you are planning to do a large amount content marketing (which you should) this will help you organize things and store up posts in advance so that your content gets spread out throughout the calendar month.

Do you find yourself wishing your online shopping experiences were more rewarding?  If so, consider PriceBlink.  PriceBlink is a Firefox browser Add-on that will automatically search for lower prices or coupon codes for many online products and services. Although, PriceBlink does not have entries for every product I have every purchased online, it has saved me from paying a higher price multiple times. I don’t know about you, but for me, saving money is fun.