Published: 27 July 2022

Written by manager

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Categories: Industry News

GOOGLE CHICAGO AdobeStock 110605758

Alphabet Inc. announces their intent on “Bringing Google to Chicago’s Thompson Center.” The company announcement posted on July 27, 2022 under Google’s Company News section, conveyed the company’s plan to purchase the Thompson Center and “support (their) engineering work in Chicago,” in effort to “advance the growth of Google’s partners and customers across the Midwest and nationally”.

While Google, and their parent company “Alphabet Inc.” are both headquartered in the same Mountain View, California corporate complex, known as the “Googleplex.” The Googleplex has been reported to possesses roughly 2 million square feet of office space, the Thompson Center is not far behind with approximately 1.5 million square feet, spread across 17 floors of office and retail space.

If comparing the actual size and scale of the two facilities is not enough to reveal the level of Google’s interest in establishing a more prominent physical position in the Midwest, Google flat out stated that they view “the tech sector’s economic impact in Chicago to be significant.” While also taking the opportunity to note the company’s already existing commitment and position in Chicago, which was reported in the year 2020 to “support over 4,600 indirect jobs in Illinois, for a total economic impact of $2 billion.”

The two campuses are certainly stark in comparison. Mind you, Google come’s from a place named after a refreshing “mountain view.” Whereas, the California campus possesses rural walking paths, swimming pools, multiple sand volleyball courts, and eighteen cafeterias with diverse menus. While this new acquisition exists in a busy and bustling downtown urban area. The purchase of the unrenovated building will cost Google 105 million dollars. It will require a massive renovation to make it the modern and cutting edge complex that Google envisions. However, Google’s company announcement lauded the Thompson Center’s close proximity to Chicago’s “unparalleled public transit system,” while also balancing the statement by saying the move “also helps meet the future needs of a flexible hybrid workforce.”

The James R. Thompson Center was built in 1985, “the 17-story, all-glass exterior curves and slopes facing its plaza” (as stated on the Illinois Department of Central Management Services website). The building has been awarded the 1986 Distinguished Building Award by the American Institute of Architects (Chicago Chapter). The Center has was called “the Pantheon of Chicago” and was described during the award ceremony, as “a building that makes a strong, powerful, and important statement … and breaks new ground.” It is slightly ironic that the once iconic Thompson Center which was once viewed as a futuristic architectural design (in the 1980’s), will now become a space for Google to develop cutting edge technology.

However, the big announcement seemed to indirectly address many of the unspoken concerns and challenges currently impacting both the State of Illinois, and the City of Chicago. Whereas, many large retailers and companies have been closing locations and/or relocating their stores and corporate headquarters away from the City and the State of Illinois. Each for many of the same reasons, for retailers’: sales are down due to the COVID pandemic, rent is up or just too much to bare, and crime is crazy. “Smash & grab thefts,” car jacking’s and not to mention the frequent and unpredictable violence that plaques the City of Chicago.

Recent companies who have decided to relocate their corporate headquarters out of the City of Chicago and/or State of Illinois include Citadel LLC, Boeing and (Deerfield based) Caterpillar. While retailers like Old Navy, DSW (State Street) and Whole Foods (in Englewood) plus Aldi store on Chicago’s South Side in the city’s Auburn Gresham have also decided to close doors at underperforming locations within the City of Chicago.

While some businesses and brands have experienced disenchantment with the City of Chicago and State of Illinois, other companies like Google, Kellogg and Abbot have increased their commitment and footprint in Chicago. The Google company announcement cited a recent economic impact study which found “creating one high-tech job generates another 4.4 jobs in the local economy.”

After listing various philanthropic programs, benefits and enriching resources which Illinois has and will continue to experience, as a result of Google’s operations in our State, the company announcement closes saying, that they “look forward to continuing to be an active part of Chicago’s community for many years to come.” Google states they “love being a part of Chicago’s diverse and vibrant community.”

REFERENCES:

Google Company Blog: Bringing Google to Chicago’s Thompson Center

Google Message from our CEO: A hybrid approach to work

Illinois Department of Central Management Services: James R. Thompson Center

Crain’s Chicago: Old Navy deals another blow to State Street

WGN Radio: State Street loses another store: DSW

NBC5 Chicago: Large Companies Are Leaving Chicago, And Some Are Citing Rising Crime as a Reason

Published: 30 December 2020

Written by Local Chicago Area Web Designer

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Categories: Industry News, Search Engine Optimization

Published on: Dec 30, 2020

All business owners and entrepreneurs have the same goal: That is to be found on page #1 of Google Search Engine. That single objective requires most conventional businesses to travel along the same path. As a Creative Director based in the Chicago area, I have worked with countless clients over the years, these clients span countless industries. We work for old companies and start-ups, many of these clients even within the same industry, many of who are often even competitors.

In any case, to become relevant in any industry or niche, the path these business owners must travel today, is not like the days of old. They are not buying advertisements in the yellow pages or in newspapers (do either of those even still exist). Client’s seeking success in today’s modern world of business are all looking to conquer search engines.

Therefore, you can imagine the “ground day” conversations that web design and SEO specialists and firms have over and over again when talking to clients who all have the same goal. They all want to be found on page 1 of search engines like Google, Yahoo & Bing! Though this article often refers to Google Search more than Yahoo or Bing, is because (as of the date of this article 12/30/20) Alexa’s top website list holds Google as the number #1 site on the planet. Yahoo (owned by Amazon) is listed at the 12th top site, with Bing (owned by Microsoft) being listed 36th top website on the world wide web. Therefore, I view Google as the premiere search engine. This does not mean that I discount Yahoo Search or Alexa Analytics. I just strive to conquer the greater market.

The Path to Conquering SEO

With all of your competitors seeking the same objective. What will you do to set your business or product apart from the rest of the crowd? Along the path to achieve your desires, you will come across SEO gurus and firms who will sell you pipe dreams. Stay away from those guys. The fact is, nobody can promise you page one status on search engine result pages (SERP’s). Google even states in their guidelines that nobody can guarantee page one results on SERP’s. This is because they know their own algorithms and rules are constantly changing, or better to say “evolving”. Their rules change because their users behaviors change. Their rules evolve because Google and other search engines have goals themselves. Aside from Google Search being the planet’s largest ad agency, their “search engine” is tool or frame to deliver “advertisements” and then …quality “organic” search engine results. The “ads” they control, and for the “Organic” results, their goal is to provide quality search engine results to their consumers, who are “the searchers”. Click here to read: “How Google delivers reliable information in Search” by Google.

With the rules constantly changing, how do you hit a moving target?
The answer is tricky, that is if you ask a trickster.

Some business owners fall victim to hiring SEO clowns that may actually hurt their standings by implementing black hat techniques. This can lead to having your website BLACKLISTED by Google. Google themselves will even warn you against hiring the wrong people. Bad SEO tactics are known as “BLACK HAT SEO”. Good SEO tactics that are inline with Google Guidelines are known as “WHITE HAT SEO”. When I think of “BLACK HAT SEO” I think of the character Barnaby from Disney’s Babe’s in Toy Land.

(You are) The answer to conquering SEO

As an SEO Coach I must tell you the answer to SEO is in you! It is time to roll up your sleeves and learn the nuts and bolts of what it takes to conquer SEO in todays modern world of Search Engines. I know this may sound scary to a busy business owner or entrepreneur, but if you wish to become, or remain a success in your industry or niche, then you must realize that tools are there for you to learn about SEO. I am not saying that you must become your own SEO slave. I am saying become an informed “website owner”. Once you fully understand and embrace a the nuts and bolts of a “Total SEO Strategy”. You can then delegate certain duties (like content creation and social media activity) to a staff member or subcontractor. You may find you can manage the workload internally, or you may realize the true cost of hiring a knowledgable SEO professional.

A Great SEO Coach Shows You the Ropes!

I could never sum up a “Total SEO Strategy” in one article. Nor will I pretend to be the all knowing SEO genius on some soap box preaching the gospel of Google. What I will do, is share the same resources that I use to research to become a better student of Google and I will also share some of my strategies that I implement to become a better player in the game. Here is one simple secret: don’t take it from me, listen to what Google has to stay about operating within their Guidelines. Did you know that Google publishes guidelines on how to best satisfy their own criteria for being indexed in their search engine database? For example check out this webpage published by Google titled “Do I need SEO“. As a good SEO Coach and Web Designer, I do not pretend to be the great and powerful OZ behind the curtain. We teach our clients to become GREAT content managers and informed website owners, so that they can hold the keys to their own success. In that regard, I implore to you to view this video published by Google which is relative to the subject of this article. In fact, watching this video actually inspired me to author this article.

**VIDEO BY GOOGLE**

I will now bombard you with a few checklists and resources of my own, so that you may realize how to become a better student on the path to conquering SEO.

The Nuts & Bolts of Conquering SEO

1. Your website is home base: What is a man without a home? The answer is Nothing. Your own website is the number one, most important denominator when it comes to the success of your business or product. Your websites content, it’s health, it’s traffic are all number one before any social media profile or account. Below is a quick website check list to make sure your home base is in order.

Review of your website content and overall structure: Is it mobile device friendly? Is it easy to navigate.
Technical Review and Professional Advice on Website Development: for example, hosting, resolve redirects and error pages. Use of JavaScript in code? Is your website fast or slow? Google cares very much about your webpage speed, if your site is slow. Off the list you go. Don’t fret. Test your webpages site speed here using Googles Speed Insight Tool. Is your set able to be crawled by Googles robots? Google has settings for their robots which are embedded into your sites code. You may need to consult with a pro web developer for some of the technical aspects on this list.
Implement a Content Development Plan: Google values depth of content. If you do not have fresh and intelligently titled articles being released on a somewhat regular basis. Google will find your website less relevant than a website that is brimming with new content that is visited frequently by unique visitors.

2. A “Total SEO Strategy”: There is no silver bullet to conquering search engines. Even Google recommends “Management of (multiple) online business development campaigns”. This requires keyword research and proper SEO training. Just like the days of old, like the old “Mad Men” advertisers…. you must gain expertise in your specific market and geography and by being everywhere at the same time!

That being said, (follow me through this long sentence please) since the devaluation of back-linking by Google (which is a good example of Google evolving when they realized back-linking was being abused by directories charging for visibility) in my experience I have observed a direct correlation with what I describe as positive social signals, resulting in better placement on SERP’s. This means the more that people find your content by way of social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Linked-In) the more valuable Google finds you. This is because you can check all the boxes, you can achieve unique visitors, you can achieve traffic that is geographically nearby, you can achieve social referrals as tracked in Google Analytics.

To satisfy that hungry social media beast, this requires being active on various social media platforms and targeted groups or lists relevant to your specific markets and geographies. Again you should do this personally so that when the time comes to hire someone or delegate these duties, you know how to train them and you will be wise enough to enough the tasks are completed.

In closing, think of your website as a living breathing thing, let us call it your pet. SEO is like a “food” for pet. You don’t feed your pet once and for all, you must feed it everyday (or at least every week or month).

I realize this article was long. Though I hope you found it useful. If you are an owner of a website, I am hoping you noted some actions to take, think of it as SEO homework. I also realize that readers of this article possess varying degrees of technical abilities. If you must hire a professional Search Engine Optimizer I suggest that you first review Google’s recommendations on selecting an SEO.

I myself, and my staff here at AdverGroup Web Design can also assist you with learning how to optimize your website for search engine success. We offer a free SEO audit of your website and search engine visibility. This audit will help us take inventory of your digital assets (content) and website software. After reviewing your website. we will provide a report documenting our findings and a peak into some recommendations. You can then decide if you wish to hire us to assist with optimizing your website and business for success.

Contact us today to discuss the specifics regarding your company services, products and website objectives.

Published: 10 April 2020

Written by Local Chicago Area Web Designer

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Categories: Industry News

Due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic, the World is seeing a shift in the way business is done. With much of the World’s work-force sidelined, and with retail stores closing across the United States, our economy is evolving and consumers are looking for virtual spaces to wander.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, for those of us who are fortunate enough to remain healthy, some of us have taken advantage of the World being paused, by getting our Spring cleaning accomplished at home. Clearing closets and clutter have been accomplished. However, if you are a business owner and/or website owner, knowing where the World’s economy is headed (online), have you reviewed your business plan and website to make sure they are both adequate vehicles that are capable of carrying your business into the future?

“Advance Monthly Sales Reports for Retail & Food Services” released by the US Census Bureau on March 17th had already indicated the trend towards online commerce (Nonstore retailers were up 7.5 percent (±1.4 percent) since February 2019). This was prior to the shelter-in-place orders, of which were first issued on March 23^rd by nine total States. Three days later, on March 26^th twelve more States joined in issuing shelter-in-place orders. As of April 10, 2020, forty-two total States maintain shelter-in-place orders that are anticipated to remain in place until the end of May (if not longer). The Census Bureau notes that revised estimates are scheduled for release on April 27, 2020.

Just take a moment to consider what the figures will be after 30-60 days of shelter-in-place? (Note: up 7.5% before shelter-in-place)

Since shelter-in-place orders have been issued: those who are lucky enough to maintain employment are mostly working remotely from home. Businesses are using video conferencing to replace in-person meetings and despite many employers valiant efforts to maintain business as usual, for many businesses, business has stopped. All of this has resulted in business owners having to rethink their entire approach to way they do business.

With almost the entire United States on hold, the World is turning to the internet for more than you think. Yes, e-commerce and online sales are soaring due to shoppers purchasing everything from groceries to automobiles. Trends revealed by Adobe in their March 31, 2020 press release, where Adobe Unveils (their) First Digital Economy Index stating that “(the) Index Measures Digital Economy in Real-Time; (concluding that) COVID-19 Drives Surge in eCommerce and Buy Online, Pickup In-Store”. Adobe claims their index to be “the first real-time barometer of the digital economy, which analyzes trillions of online transactions across 100 million product SKUs in 18 product categories. The data is the result of “Adobe Analytics and based on a new “digital consumer shopping basket” measuring sales of online goods and services”.

Another gauge to observe the online surge is the spikes in data usage, as described by the major tele-communications provider Verizon in their 4/9/2020 Press Release titled: Update: How Americans are spending time in the new normal: “After weeks of significant increases in voice and data usage as a result of millions of people transitioning to working from home, distance learning and virtual socializing, new routines and usage behaviors are stabilizing, according to the latest Verizon Network report.”

How should small business owners interpret and re-act to recent data relative to online behaviors?

With COVID-19 sending people to the internet for business and personal use, it is now more important than ever to make sure your business is present and adequately portrayed on the internet. For all website owners, while the world is paused (due to COVID-19), this provides time to review your website, and ask yourself “is my website healthy?

Is my website healthy?

In other words: Is my website “up-to-date” and in “good working order”?

1. Is your website mobile friendly and operating adequately on all devices? Google does not like sites that are not viewable on mobile devices and/or have errors on pages.

2. Is your website truly “Search Engine Optimized” (SEO) and in-line with Google Webmaster Guidelines? If it is, this will liken the chance that your website will be found on “Search Engine Results Pages” (SERP’s). You can have a gorgeous website, but if no one can find it on search engines, then your “pretty” website is useless. When creating pages and authoring page content (and metadata), you should aim to provide the best experience for your website viewers, in doing so your content should prove valuable to search engines, which will reward intelligently titled pages that are frequently visited.

3. Beyond the aforementioned items, regular housekeeping should be performed. This includes updating content, components, plugins and widgets (or whatever else your platform calls them). This will ensure optimal function ability and will minimize the likelihood that your website will be hacked.

Upon reviewing your website, you may agree that there is some work to be done. The answer to these questions may result in the need to develop a new website and/or overhaul your existing website to ensure it attracts new users and potential clients.

If these web design tasks are beyond your abilities, then we recommend contacting a professional web designer for a quote. Be sure to compare apples-to-apples when discussing maintenance and redevelopment options. Please be sure to consult with AdverGroup Web Design when considering among at least 3 different web designers and professional web design firms. We recommend consulting with 3 because we are confident in our presentation, abilities and reasonable pricing. When it comes to writing blog articles to inform our readers and/or assisting our clients in achieving successful websites, we are passionate about our work. We love sharing our knowledge and experiences with other and we love implementing our creative and technical abilities to satisfy our clients needs.

In closing, our team at AdverGroup Web Design realizes that COVID-19 is a serious pandemic. Our team continues to pray for those individuals and families afflicted by this disease. We pray for all health care professionals who put their lives on the line to care for sick people of all kinds. We also pray that EVERYONE does their part and stays at home in effort to contain this horrible virus.

Published: 2 January 2020

Written by Sal Guccione

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Categories: Industry News

Photo by kat wilcox from Pexels This article provides some insight into copyright infringement and/or copyright claims, as it relates to the use of images on websites, while also offering ways to avoid copyright claims. This includes providing proactive actions and links to resources for free royalty-free stock images and paid royalty-free stock images.

If you own a website, or are a web designer who has used images without securing licensing then you probably know this can be a real costly endeavor. Copyright infringement is a real and occurs more often than you think. This occurs both on purpose, and inadvertently. In any case, the attorneys who will be contacting you do not care if it was a mistake or not. This is why it is important to use images from a trusted source (not Google Image Search), and/or license your images from a trusted stock image resource.

Before we get into providing solutions to avoiding copyright claims, let us first understand the nuts and bolts of the issue which can be realized by reviewing some frequently asked questions and answers relative to copyright infringement as it relates to “image usage on the internet”.

Frequently asked questions regarding copyrights of images and photographs:

What is copyright infringement? Copyright infringement (AKA piracy) is the use of works protected by copyright law without permission for a usage when permission is required, thereby infringing upon exclusive rights granted to the copyright holder, including but not limited to the right to reproduce, distribute or display the protected work, or to make derivative works. (source wikipedia).

I used royalty free images, I should be okay? You should understand that “Royalty Free” does not mean “Free”. Royalty-free material is subject to copyright or other intellectual property rights. However, these types of images may be used without the need to pay royalties or license fees for each use, per each copy or volume sold or some time period of use or sales. Royalty Free is a type of license used by stock photography agencies to sell stock images, this typically means you pay only once for use of this image, which can be used in various other ways specific to the sources published license agreement.

What if I as the website owner, was not aware that the image was copyrighted material? Playing that card will not get you out of jail on copyright infringement claims. In criminal and civil law, “strict liability” is a standard of liability under which a person is legally responsible for the consequences following an activity even in the absence of criminal intent.

What if I found the content in question using “Google Image Search”, while searching “free images”? Many images exist on the internet. This does not mean that they are public domain and free to use. Again, unless the source provides a legal license agreement which permits use of this image with no further compensation, then I would not trust this source, nor would I use this image.

How do I know if an image is copyrighted material? To learn if an image is copyrighted, I would first consult with the source of the image. If the source is not able to confirm or deny if the material is copyrighted, then I would assume that it is. If you did not produce or create this image, chances are someone else did. Without written documentation or a licensing agreement provided by a trusted source, I would not use this image.

What if the guilty party removes the copyrighted content after being notified of illegal use of the image? Simply getting caught red-handed and removing the image will not clear you of your wrong doing. Same is if you were caught stealing a car, the damage has been done and these attorneys will seek compensation and payment of applicable retroactive licensing.

What if the image in question was included in a web design template that was purchased, are the images included? This depends on the contract and/or terms of use provided by the template creator. However, most stock image libraries and agencies who manage the licenses for images, do so under exclusive contracts with professional photographers and therefore maintain exclusive representation of these images. As a matter of fact, if you read the licensing agreements provided by your template developer, I would bet that there is a legal statement which states something to the effect of “The demo content provided on this website is intended to provide a sample of how a website could look when implemented.”

What if I paid a person or web design company to create my website for me, and they inserted the images into my website? A good and honest web designer or website development firm would have outlined terms in their agreement relative to image licensing. Those terms would either state that the client is responsible for image licensing, or they would have a separate line item and/or budget in your contract established for image licensing. Images are typically licensed for a very specific use. If the image and/or photo was licensed for use on your websites domain, then you are clear. Simply provide documentation of your licensing agreement and you will be cleared of any wrong doing. However, if you do not have this documentation which secures licensing specifically for use on your domain, then per the Copyright Act, unless you have a contract that states otherwise, the owner of the domain is ultimately responsible for all the content posted on this domain. Same as if you were to use copyrighted text, you could be held liable for stealing any content. This is why it is important to use a reputable web designer and/or web design company which will provide a written contract that should clarify who is responsible for licensing of images to be used on the website. A simple statement such as “Website owner is responsible for licensing of all images” will suffice in passing the buck as to who is responsible for licensing of images.

Ways to Avoid Copyright Claims:

Camera Canon 60d (one camera owned by AdverGroup web design, photo of camera shot using iPhone 6) Now that we know the various legal aspects and ramifications of using copyrighted images without proper licensing, let us explore the various ways to avoid copyright infringement claims for content used on your websites.

Produce and/or Create your own Images: If you want to avoid licensing images and wish to produce a truly custom website, then you can certainly purchase a camera to take photos yourself and/or hire a professional photographer to capture images of your services or products in use. This will result in a truly custom website and you will have zero concerns of copyright claims. The photo provided in this article of the camera (Canon 60d) was captured using iPhone 6.

Use FREE images provided by trusted sources:

Free images sources do exist, but be careful and certain to review their license agreement. You can use these free image sources but we recommend that you continue to maintain copies of documentation relative all images used in your website as described in this article. Be advised that some of these resources note that they reserve the right to change their agreements at any time without further notice, so you should be sure to print and store any licenses offline. Some of these sources offer images with and without watermarks.

1. Pexels.com All photos and videos uploaded on Pexels are licensed under the Pexels license. This means you can use them for free for personal and commercial purposes. For more information read the following questions, our license page or our Terms of Service.

2. Pixabay.com is an international free-to-use website for sharing photos, illustrations, vector graphics, and film footage. You can copy, modify, distribute, and use the images, even for commercial purposes, all without asking for permission or giving credits to the artist. However, depicted content may still be protected by trademarks, publicity or privacy rights.

Use PAID licensing of copyrighted images using trusted sources:

If using copyrighted images on your website, be sure to maintain adequate documentation of any licensed images which you may have published on your website. This documentation can be stored offline. However, be sure that it is readily available for reference. Make sure that if you are licensing images, that you have clearly identified your URL (domain name) as the product for which it will be used on. You should also consider providing a “policy page” on your website which either addresses use of copyrighted materials and notes contact info for reference and verification.

1. istock.com is a leading source for user-generated stock photos, vectors and illustrations, and video clips. iStock is part of the Getty Images family of companies. iStock provides more cost effective solutions for content royalty-free content than Getty.

2. Shutterstock.com offers cost effective subscription plans for individuals and companies. Offers millions of royalty-free stock images, photos, videos, and more for your creative projects.

3. Stockenterprise.adobe.com Adobe Inc. is an American multinational computer software company that produces a variety of media editing software including but not limited to Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, Adobe Premier and more. Adobe Stock is Adobe solution for royalty-free content. This premium collection images are handpicked by Adobe’s curation team from our most inspiring artists and partners. From illustrations, photos, and videos to 3D assets and even creative templates.

4. Gettyimages.com Getty offers subscription packages that include any combination of HIGH QUALITY royalty-free creative photos, videos, illustrations, vectors, and most editorial images. However, their packs exclude all rights-managed images. Their subscription packages don’t expire as long as you sign in at least once a year.

All images used in this article were provided by www.pexels.com

Published: 11 February 2019

Written by Local Chicago Area Web Designer

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Categories: Industry News

In October of 2018 Google announced they would be “Protecting your data, improving our third-party APIs, and sunsetting consumer Google+“. Later in December another update would come as Google announced “Expediting changes to Google+“. Most recently in December of 2018, deletion dates were provided when Google emphasized that it will shut down Google+, “due to low usage and challenges involved in maintaining a successful product that meets consumers’ expectations.” as provided in Google’s official statement.

While the number of mobile device users is growing, the number of social media networks is also constantly growing. However, with the recent news of Google sunsetting Google+, the “social media battle field” just got thinner.

Google Fails in the Social Media Arena

We have seen Google venture into the arena of social media before. Google+ is the company’s fourth attempt into social networking, following Google Buzz (launched 2010, retired in 2011), Google Friend Connect (launched 2008, retired by March 2012), and Orkut (launched in 2004, as of 2013 operated entirely by subsidiary Google Brazil – retired in September 2014). Google+ launched in June 2011. The Google+ platform experienced strong growth in its initial years. Although usage statistics have varied, depending on how the service is defined. However, their actual amount of monthly active users has not been released and is difficult to determine due to their membership being linked to so many other Google platforms such as Gmail and Youtube. Some put Google around 300 million monthly active users, while some skeptics put the number of monthly active users for Google Plus closer to 20 million monthly active users.

Facebook maintains their position as the king of social media, with 2.32 billion monthly active users in the fourth quarter of 2018 (as reported by Statista.com). LinkedIn follows with 590 million (as reported by the Omnicore Agency in December of 2018) monthly active users with Twitter coming in third place with 321 monthly active users (as reported by Statista.com).

In reviewing the Wikipedia entry for the Google Plus Platform, “The company noted that 90% of user sessions on the service lasted less than five seconds.”

Google Loses to Facebook by Technical Knock-Out Due to Privacy Issues?

The same Wikipedia entry for the Google Plus Platform, “It (Google) also acknowledged a design flaw in an API that could expose private user data. Google said it found no evidence that “any developer was aware of this bug, or abusing the API” or that “any Profile data was misused.”

According to The Wall Street Journal, “Google exposed the private data of hundreds of thousands of users of the Google+ social network and then opted not to disclose the issue this past spring, in part because of fears that doing so would draw regulatory scrutiny and cause reputational damage, according to people briefed on the incident and documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.” The newspaper said that “the move effectively puts the final nail in the coffin of a product that was launched in 2011 to challenge Facebook, and is widely seen as one of Google’s biggest failures.

How the Demise of Google+ Impact Social Media Optimization (SMO) as it relates to Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Social media optimization (SMO) is the use of a number of outlets and communities to generate publicity to increase the awareness of a product, service brands or events. SMO is accomplished on social networking sites, such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+, blogging sites and video sharing websites like Youtube and Vimeo. Social signals (which essentially mean referrals or backlinks from social media ) have gained priority in search engine algorithms in recent years, as noted in Google’s own guidelines for Search Engine Optimization (SEO). With Google+ now folding, this means SMO specialists have one less social media platform to post content on. However, might it be possible that the only traffic occurring in the past, on the Google+ platform was the result of the SMO and SEO industry made up of internet consultants who faithfully believed that the Google Search Engine would reward users of their social media platform.

Facebook Remains the Social Media Champion

Beyond basic communication and sharing of media, social media is now targeting local businesses and individuals more than ever. Facebook has silently monetized their platform with tactfully and geographically placed advertisements for local businesses. Facebook has also expanded to allow eCommerce sales directly from a company Facebook page. Going even further, Facebook now offers a local marketplace that allows users (regular people) to sell item locally for FREE! Thus creating a virtual garage sale that could compete with another internet giant like Ebay.

Tech Giants….Stay in Your Lane Bro!

While Google lost their bout in the social media arena, they still own the search engine game. Some industry insiders have predicted that Facebook will soon enter the world of search engines and attempt to expand their platforms search options to outside of Facebook’s social media platform and into the world-wide-web. Is it possible we will see Facebook manufacturing phones or operating systems soon, or perhaps they should learn from Google and focus on their niche. Without arguing which tech giant will succeed in world domination, it seems some of today’s tech giants realize their niche and remain in their box, while others expand and think outside the box. I guess the point is, you never know?

Despite the TKO and Google+ loss in the social media arena, the Facebook versus Google battle continues in the advertisement arena, but not really. As Statista.com reports Google’s 2018 advertisement revenue amounted to almost 116.3 billion US dollars. While Facebook stands far behind with 34 billion in worldwide advertising revenue as reported by statista.com.

In Closing, Google+ Will Delete All Content

On April 2nd, your Google+ account and any Google+ pages you created will be shut down and we will begin deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts. Photos and videos from Google+ in your Album Archive and your Google+ pages will also be deleted. You can download and save your content, just make sure to do so before April. Note that photos and videos backed up in Google Photos will not be deleted.

The process of deleting content from consumer Google+ accounts, Google+ Pages, and Album Archive will take a few months, and content may remain through this time. For example, users may still see parts of their Google+ account via activity log and some consumer Google+ content may remain visible to G Suite users until consumer Google+ is deleted.

As early as February 4th, you will no longer be able to create new Google+ profiles, pages, communities or events. See the full FAQ for more details and updates leading up to the shutdown.

AdverGroup Web Design is a Chicago based internet consultant specializing in SMO and SEO services. If you are seeking a social media optimization consultant or search engine optimization consultant, contact AdverGroup Web Design today!

Published: 12 January 2017

Written by Local Chicago Area Web Designer

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Categories: Industry News, Social Media

Published on: Jan 12, 2017

Mobile devices and social media have surely become a part of most peoples daily life. Today, these pocket sized computers have proven useful for users of all age groups. While smart phone owners use their devices for a variety of tasks including: entertainment, information and/or business; mobile devices coupled with the growth of social networks maybe changing the world beyond providing convenience as relates to access to email on the go. The use of mobile devices and the growth of social media may very well be responsible for shaping history, as it is widely believed that social media may have played a major part in the 2016 Presidential election.

Though politics are discussed in this article, the focus of this article is technology based.

Whether you use social media for business, pleasure or politics, you may of noticed that more and more people are using social media. Friends are joining for fun, while businesses, celebrities and political figures are joining because they can achieve a direct connection into the pockets of their consumers, fans and followers. And yes, this is because they realize that the number of mobile device and social media users are growing daily!

While the idea or notion that the recent leaps and bounds of technology, (specifically mobile devices) could have fueled the growth of social media is not far fetched at all. What if we take the question a step further:”could the combination of the mobile device boom and social network growth TRULY change the world?” When we are talking about Presidential campaigns changing the world, it takes on a whole new dynamic. Perhaps more then we could ever have imagined.

Beyond believing that social media tweets won the election, all Americans should be fair and consider the possibility that President Trump won the election for other reasons which are relative to his positions and policies, and not strictly due to the result of his social media activity. It is true that many said the same for President Barack Obama. As his 2008 election was also lauded as a grass roots effort which gained momentum through social media. For President Trump one could also argue that the Twitter soap box could have killed his chances of winning. As he often made statements that sounded radical to some.

Moving on from politics, lets analyze some facts as to where social media was during the early days of the internet, compared to more recent years where mobile device technology is unprecedented. Perhaps realizing where mobile device and social media was during the 2008 election could shed some light on the topic.

TIMELINE: Mobile Device History as it relates to Social Media Growth

Social Media has come a long way since the birth of the concept in the late 1970’s. What first started as an archaic “Bulletin Board System” (B.B.S.) on large, limited computer mainframes; has now morphed into the most popular medium for communication, which happens to be fully available on a mobile device that can fit into your pocket.

The first smartphone which was available to the public was the IBM Simon which was released in 1993 (Photo from wikipedia). The iPhone was introduced in 2007 and is approaching it’s 10 year birthday. iPhone was perhaps the first widely used smartphone to hit the market with Android models following in 2008.

In 2007, Facebook was 3 years old and boasted 20 million active users (according to the Associated Press). According to Statisca.com: “As of the third quarter of 2016, Facebook had 1.79 billion monthly active users.

Twitter was born in 2006 and reported a growth from 16,000 users in their first year to 790,000 active users in 2007. As of January 30, 2017, Twitter’s website advertises 313 million monthly active users with 82% active users on mobile devices.

In 2016, the International Data Corporation (IDC), released a press release stating that “personal computer (PC) sales are forecasted to decline through 2017”. Though this is mostly attributed to the lack of new technology offered in today’s PCs. Further evidence came when Google (the leading web search engine) reported that “more Google searches take place on mobile devices than on computers in 10 countries including the US and Japan”. Other data offered by Zenith Marketing supports the confirmation of a mobile movement, predicting that 75% of internet use will be mobile in 2017.

After reviewing the facts, it is clear that social media growth is certainly the result of technology providing easy-access to one’s social media accounts while on-the-go. It should also be noted that these mobile devices also possess high definition video cameras which makes posting still images and video directly to social media even easier on a mobile device compared to a desktop computer.

Now that the world has plugged into the “social media matrix”, has the combination of mobile devices and social media actually changed the world?

Aditi Hajirnis M.D. noted further in his recent article which was published in The Brown University Child & Adolescent Behavior Letter: “Recent data suggests that social media venues like Facebook and Twitter have surpassed e-mail as the preferred method of communication in all age groups”.

Email and communication with friends and followers is only one service that today’s social media networks offer. In that regard, social media is taking communication beyond sending written, photographic and video messages. In 2016 Facebook released Facebook Live which allows users to stream live occurrences and events over their social media feed. Meanwhile, in 2016 the NFL and Twitter reached an agreement to broadcast 10 professional football games live over the Twitter network.

Perhaps an even better example of how social media is now being used to broadcast major television events directly to your smart phone/ handheld device, is the inauguration of President Donald Trump. While the physical attendance at President Trump’s inauguration has been a hot argument between the Trump Administration and the media, it is likely true that while physical attendance suffered, the inauguration was probably more widely viewed by more humans than any other presidential inauguration due to the fact that more people have access to mobile devices and social media now in 2017 than they did in 2009 during President Barack Obama’s inauguration. Without arguing politics, I am not supporting any claims as to how many viewed what event. All I am saying is that in 2016, more people where plugged into social media via mobile devices than in 2008. Now on to the real question:

Did social media impact the 2016 Presidential election?

In closing, I would like to offer an answer to the question which exists in the title of this article. Did social media growth and the mobile device boom impact the 2016 election? My answer would be no. Though the number of social media users and mobile device owners has quadrupled since the 2008 election of President Barack Obama, the overall voter turnout was actually less, then in 2008, but more than 2012 when President Barack Obama was re-elected. When I do not see a major spike in the direction of Candidate Trump, it tells me that despite his loud and frequent tweets, it was not social media that afforded him a presidential victory.

For me the most telling fact is that the highest voter turn out in the past 50 years was actually in 1960. Kennedy versus Nixon. There was no internet and no social media then. People were engaged in that campaign for many reasons. I guess there is always the possibility that the american people where simply sick and tired of seeing political posts in their social media feeds and decided not to vote at all in the 2016 election. Could it be that social media had the reverse effect on the 2016 campaign?

Add that to the list of “things that make you say Hmmmmm?”

Voter Turnout Data taken from http://www.fairvote.org/voter_turnout#voter_turnout_101

This article is part of a Social Media Series: “Social Media Leaders of the Pack” & “Social Media Activity as it Relates to Search Engine Results”

ADDITIONAL REFERENCES FOR THIS ARTICLE:

Source: The Asscoiated Press

Article Title: Number of active users at Facebook over the years

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/number-active-users-facebook-over-years-214600186–finance.html

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Source: QR Code Scanning

Article Title: The History of the Smart Phone

http://www.qrcodescanning.com/smartphonehist.html

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Source: Statisca.com

Article Title: Number of monthly active Facebook users worldwide as of 3rd quarter 2016 (in millions)

The “Brown University Child and Adolescent Behavior Letter” features the latest research findings on behavioral issues, along with practical applications and techniques for working with your younger patients.

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Source: Brown University Child and Adolescent Behavior

Article Title: Social media networking: Parent guidance required

The “Brown University Child and Adolescent Behavior Letter” features the latest research findings on behavioral issues, along with practical applications and techniques for working with your younger patients.

http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/cbl.30086/full

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Source: Digital Trends

ARTICLE: “THE HISTORY OF SOCIAL NETWORKING”

Digital Trends was founded in 2006 with a simple mission: to help readers easily understand how tech affects the way they live. We are your authoritative guide to the world around us. We love, live and breathe tech so that we can explain it to you simply and clearly. Read more: http://www.digitaltrends.com/about/#ixzz4VYwUW1RT Follow us: @digitaltrends on Twitter | DigitalTrends on Facebook

http://www.digitaltrends.com/features/the-history-of-social-networking/

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Source: The International Data Corporation (IDC)

Press Release: “PC Market Stability Remains Elusive as Markets Continue to Struggle, According to IDC ”

http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS41489916

Published: 17 February 2016

Written by Local Chicago Area Web Designer

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Categories: Industry News

In 2015 Google notified all website owners of issues on their site relative to mobility issues. If your website was deficient and/or you have received an email that provided a warning stating that “Google systems has tested your site finding a percentage of your website’s pages to have critical mobile usability errors”, then this is something you really should resolve.

Is it a valid concern if a website is not optimized for mobile devices? That question depends on the answer to another question. How many mobile device users are their versus desktop users. In May 2015, in the “Google Inside Adwords Blog”, within the article titled “Building for the next moment“, Google stated that “Google searches take place on mobile devices than on computers in 10 countries including the US and Japan”. Furthermore, www.statista.com authored an article titled “Statistics and Facts on Mobile Internet Usage” which reports that “mobile phone internet user penetration was 52.7 percent in 2015” and suggests the figure will climb to 63.4 percent by 2017.

Could mobility issues impact your visibility on Google Search Engine? The message in your Google Webmaster Tools dashboard clearly states, “These pages will not be seen as mobile-friendly by Google Search, and will therefore be displayed and ranked appropriately for smartphone users.” So the simple answer is yes, if your website lacks the code and/or design to present a mobile-friendly view of your website’s content, then it is likely that other websites which do comply with the directives set forth by Google, will be seen as more valuable to search engine users that are identified to be using a mobile device.

The genesis behind Google’s mobility issue notifications is that Google is constantly aiming to improve the web users experience on the internet. Being that Google is perhaps the industry leader in all things internet. They have taken it upon themselves to gently nudging the rest of the world into modifying the way they submit their content to the world-wide-web. The issue stems from the use of iPhone, Android, Galaxy and other mobile devices to search the world-wide-web are growing at lunatic rate. Unfortunately, much of the web is not optimized for these mobile devices. Mobile devices are constrained by display size and require a new and different approach to how content is presented on mobile devices screen.

What kind of issues does Google view as usability issues?

Here is a list of common issues detected by Google’s Mobility Inspection Tool.

1. Touch elements too close: Small or tight placed buttons or links are more difficult for website users to press accurately on a small touchscreen. Make sure your links and buttons are far enough apart.

2. Small font size: Make sure all font sizes comply with mobile usability standards. This issue is often a result of a website being designed using “CSS Pixel Sizes” which vary based on device size and density. Coding should be written in EMs and/or percentages which result in a “relative” unit. This issue may best be remedied by hiring a web developer that can modify your code to comply with typography guidelines.

3. Viewport not configured: On mobile devices, users are used to scrolling websites vertically but not horizontally, Pages that are too wide force users to scroll horizontally or to zoom out in order to see the whole page results in a poor user experience

4. A viewport scales the page to the correct size for mobile browsers: Coding a meta viewport tag into the head of your document gives the browser instructions on how to control the page’s dimensions and scaling resulting in a true responsive web design.

5. Flash usage: These pages include Flash content that cannot be viewed on mobile devices.

6. Content not sized to viewport: Make sure your pages don’t require horizontal scrolling to view completely. A good general rule is not to use large fixed width elements.

How do I resolve mobile usability issues found by Google? There is no reason these issues should go unsolved. Google provides easy to follow directives on how to build mobile friendly websites. Furthermore, Google offers a Webmaster Central Forum that allows users to share questions and solutions on mobile friendly and/or responsive web design.

Google goes a step further by providing a comprehensive guide to customizing various website software solutions (more commonly known as Content Management Systems) for mobile friendly websites. The Google Developer Guide to Developing Mobile Friendly Sites provides specific directives for WordPress, Joomla, Drupal, Magento, vBullettin and more.

if you discover that the directives provided by Google are too hard to follow, or if you find that your websites current software is just too old and obsolete, then you may need to contact a professional web developer to assist you in making the corrections or redeveloping your website into a responsive web design.

What is a responsive web design? Responsive web design is the result of coding which successfully reacts to the resolution used by the users device. Responsive designs are considered mobile friendly and should not result in usability issues when inspected by Google.

In closing, beyond authoring articles that assist website owners in understanding Google, their websites and the world-wide-web, AdverGroup Web Design also provides internet consulting and web development services which include resolving mobile usability issues for outdated websites. We provide web development services to clients across the United States of America and local to the Chicago area and suburbs.

If you are anywhere else in the United States and seek assistance with making your website mobile friendly, then open a support ticket with our Web Design HelpDesk so that we may begin the process of making your website mobile friendly and returning you to the search engine results pages for mobile users.

Hiring a local website designer or web developer to assist you in making your website mobile friendly is not always required but is recommended. Selecting a local web designer does provide advantages. If you are seeking a local web designer near Chicago, then we will be glad to meet with you. Contact us today!

Published: 6 February 2016

Written by manager

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Categories: Industry News, Product Photography

Think of it as free money, or free “images of money”. As this collection of money (hundred dollar bill) photographs are yours to use on your website or printed literature with out any further licensing. All that we ask is that you provide photo credits to www.advergroup.com (feel free to remove the watermark as long as photography credit is provided).

I hope that the world finds use for this free collection of money images and $100 bill photographs which AdverGroup now donates into the public domain. Enjoy!

License Free Money Images $100 Bills, One Hundred Dollar Bills, $20, Twenties

About these free photos of $100 Bills: This entire session was planned with the intention to capture and provide free images of money ($100 dollar bills) to the world-wide-web. We treated this project just like every other product photography photo shoot. We organized product in positions, we shot hundreds of angles. and we used various backgrounds and lighting techniques. Upon completion of our photography session, (just like every other product photography session) we also processed these images using Adobe Photoshop cleaning up any imperfections.

As product photographers specializing in e-commerce product photography, AdverGroup often finds ourselves shooting a wide variety of products. Outside of e-commerce web design, our product photography services also provide a perfect compliment to our basic web design packages. Where as, if one of our projects requires imagery of any kind, lets say pictures of money or specifically “hundred dollar bills”. Then we simply capture these images ourselves! That’s right, instead of searching the web for free images or stock photography, we simply hit the studio. Or if you are a Plumber, again we do not waste time with stock photography, we step outside and take a photo of you and your service van!

We typically like to utilize the blog section of our website to provide samples of our work. However, there is something a little different about the sample product photography images provided in this article. Where as the owner of these images, “John Guccione” and AdverGroup Creative Media Solutions” hereby releases all rights to the images attached in the body of this article for “free use to the world”!

It is kind of ironic that this photography session’s subject “Money”, is actually the objective of all business owners and e-commerce website owners.

So here is a gentle reminder: if you are a business owner or an e-commerce website owner and wish to sell your services or products online, it is very important that you look good! If your services or products are not presented in a positive light (no pun intended), then it is not likely you will sell many services or products.

Another reason we selected money and $100 bills as the subject for this license free gallery of images is because money motivates nearly everyone on the planet! Additionally, we felt that many would share these images on social media or use them on their own websites and/or blog articles. I personally, enjoy some of these images so much that I intend to use them as “Money Wallpaper” for my computer.

Published: 22 November 2014

Written by manager

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Categories: Content Management Systems, Industry News

Wordpress-vs-Joomla-320px-VOTE Published on: Nov 22, 2014

Developing a new website triggers many questions for those seeking to develop a successful website. Perhaps the first and most important question is: which website software or platform should be used? This article compares the two leading content management systems: WordPress and Joomla. While also offering criteria to adequately determine which web design software is right for you.

Before proceeding into a side by side comparison, you must first understand all of your website’s needs which may reveal which option best suits your needs.

Whether, you are a web design professional or a person with zero web development experience, the information shared in this article and criteria to consider are pertinent to both perspectives.

{loadposition myposition}Therefore, this article will explore the following criteria:

A. Understanding all your options when selecting a web development platform for a web development project:

1. Web builders provided by hosting companies

2. Open Source Solutions (WordPress and Joomla)

3. Custom Developed Proprietary Software

B. Criteria for basing your selection

1. Function ability required by project objective

2. Ease of use

3. The future of your website and the website software you are leaning towards.

C. Comparing WordPress versus Joomla

1. Popularity

2. Origins

3. Core Features

Moving forward with “understanding all of your options”, first realize that most professional web design solutions are now built utilizing a content management system which allows it’s owners to update their websites easily with-out any professional web design or web development training.

Today, there are essentially three categories of web design solutions which offer content management systems allowing easy updating of your website:

Web Builders provided by hosting companies or website’s whose services are strictly web building and hosting. This option can be quick and easy for those who are on a strict or zero dollar budget. Though developing a site using these tools may be cost effective to a start-up business, unless you are technically savvy and possess good graphic design skills your site will likely be blind to search engines and may lack visual appeal. For more information on this topic read my blog article entitled: Are Free Web Builders Good for SEO?
Open Source Solutions such as WordPress , Joomla or Drupal. Open source solutions are free to use and many hosting companies offer easy install options! “Open source” is a development model which promotes a universal access (per a free license) to software’s code and design, and universal redistribution of such code and design. Most open source web design solutions are developed using PHP scripting language which is also a free software with open source libraries intended to share code. Though open source solutions are free, to implement a proper installation, configuration and professional design, you may wish to employ a professional web designer that specializes in the software which you have selected. The good thing about selecting a popular open source solution such as WordPress or Joomla, is that they are widely used. Therefore, the pool of talented web designers that support these solutions is huge. Open Source website solutions can be extended to include expanded function ability such as eCommerce, Paid Membership Access, Gallery Functions and more with the use of extensions, modules, plugins and/or widgets. Many of these extension/plugins are free, while others are developed by third party developers and require licensing fees.
Web site developed using proprietary software. Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. A website developed using proprietary software can be coded in various scripting languages (which include ASP, Html, CSS and php). Custom developed websites can prove to be a bit more costly, as developing a front end template and custom content management system that is up-to-date with a constantly evolving internet and world-wide-web is a daunting task. When proceeding with a web site developed using proprietary software you are definitely using a professional web development firm, and you better like them because you will be in bed with them for the rest of your website’s life! As they will own and control your code and content management system until death do you part!

Now that you know a little about the different web design solutions and content management systems, we can move on to understanding the criteria which should be considered when comparing WordPress versus Joomla!:

Function ability required by client or project objective.
Ease of use
The future of your website and the website software you are leaning towards.

Criteria for basing your selection Item#1: Function ability required by client or project objective.

The first of the three criteria is the most important: Which option, Joomla or WordPress provides the function ability required for your website? The platform you use to develop your website be based on the type of function ability which his needed. Both WordPress and Joomla both offer easy install options and can be extended using a variety of components and/or plugins. A good web developer will know this and analyze your required functions prior to pushing you into any web design solution.

If you have consulted with or have hired a professional web designer/web developer who is interested in using one option over the other, then be sure to ask them why? This is important to verify that you are not only selecting the correct software, but also the right developer.

If you are not working with a professional web designer that is familiar with all of the extensions, modules, plugins and/or widgets provided by WordPress or Joomla then you will need to do a little research yourself. For instance, if you wish to be able to sell and allow your users to send eGreeting Cards on your website, you may want to confirm and test the eGreeting Card components offered by both WordPress and Joomla to ensure the function ability is available and suits your needs. Again, many of these extension/plugins are free, while others are developed by third party developers and require licensing fees.

Here are links which provide the extensions, modules, plugins and/or widgets provided by WordPress and Joomla:

https://wordpress.org/plugins/

http://extensions.joomla.org/

Granted, if your website requires no special function ability, then the next most important criteria you should base your selection on should be: “Ease of Use”.

Criteria for basing your selection Item#2: Ease of use

This criteria falls under a matter of preference and may require a slightly different perspective depending on if a person with zero web development experience or a web developer building a website for a client.

From the perspective of a person with zero web design experience: Many business owners and website owners feel it is wise to consult with, or hire a professional web designer to configure their WordPress or Joomla website correctly. However, it is true that a user with little or no web development experience can install the core systems automatically using applications offered by most hosting companies. When it comes to posting updates to your website, WordPress and Joomla are almost identical. Both WordPress and Joomla possess easy to use dashboards and word pad editors which allow users to update pages and/or articles text and images easily. There are also many reputable template developers that produce professional templates for both WordPress and Joomla. I would summarize “criteria item #2 Ease of use” by saying ease of use is a matter of preference. Therefore, a prospective website owner should sample both dashboards to see which they feel more comfortable with. This is where it would be wise to consult with a professional who has experience with both WordPress and Joomla. Whereas, a pro developer could a quick test drive of both dashboards and various extensions which should reveal which platform is easiest for you! At the time this article was authored, Joomla does provide an online demo version while WordPress does not. You can demo the core version of Joomla by clicking here to visit Joomla’s official demo site. While you You can also demo the core of WordPress by clicking here (demo posted on http://demo.opensourcecms.com)

From the perspective of a web developer: After verifying your clients needs and matching available extensions or plugins, you might typically discover that either WordPress or Joomla will suit the clients needs and your decision falls back onto “ease of use”. Which usually defaults to what are you more effective and proficient in using. Most true web developers can navigate and develop in WordPress and Joomla with ease, equally. However, most web developers will have a preference to one or the other (again resulting from efficiency). Note to a website clients seeking a developer: if your web developer can not develop in both WordPress or Joomla then find a new developer. Being a web development professional, I am active in many online communities and forums where the question of WordPress versus Joomla is a common argument. I love reading into the comments when developers begin to get heated and put-down one option or the other depending on their position. This usually occurs when a developer lacks skills in one of the options and their frustration is revealed in some sort of ranting comment. As an active web developer serving clients in the Chicago area and surrounding suburbs, I feel it is required to be able to offer web development services for both WordPress and Joomla. As the old adage goes, “If the client wants a brown suit, then you sell them a brown suit”. Even if you think it not your cup of tea.

Criteria for basing your selection Item#3: WordPress and Joomla are both here to stay! Therefore, you will enjoy software updates and continuing third party development on both platforms. Additionally, due to the popularity of open source solutions, you will always be able to find a professional web designer and/or web developer that will be able to assist you in upgrades, installations and so on.

The future of your website and the website software which you are leaning towards is perfect segue into the actual comparison of WordPress versus Joomla.

Now onto the topic of this article which focuses specifically on comparing WordPress versus Joomla!

This article will compare the following aspects of WordPress and Joomla

Popularity WordPress versus Joomla
Origins of WordPress and Joomla
Core Features Comparison Chart WordPress versus Joomla

Popularity Comparison WordPress Versus Joomla:

When comparing popularity of WordPress versus Joomla, what better source then Alexa.com. Alexa Internet, Inc. is web based service owned by Amazon.com which provides commercial web traffic data. As November 21, 2014 (the date of which this article was authored) Alexa.com listed WordPress.com (web based version of wordpress includes hosting) as the 27^th most viewed website on the planet and 31^st in the United States. While WordPress.org (the free download version) is listed as the 89^th most viewed website on the planet and the 145^th in the United States. This is a stark comparison to Joomla which Alexa.com listed as 668^th ranked in the world and 815^th in India (no USA figure provided). This statistic provides a good segway into the origins of WordPress and Joomla.

Explaining the origins of WordPress and Joomla:

The orgins of WordPress: WordPress is an Open Source project, which means there are hundreds of people all over the world working on it. WordPress was developed and first released in 2003 by Matt Mullenweg (Houston, Texas USA) and Mike Little (Stockport England). WordPress is the official successor to a blogging tool developed by French programmer Michel Valdrighi named b2/cafelog. WordPress started as a blogging software, but has evolved to be used as full content management system and more. As WordPress can also be extend by way of the thousands of plugins, widgets and themes which have been developed by third party developers all over the world. Visit the “About Us” page provided on the WordPress website which provides a listing of it’s core development team.

The origins of Joomla: Joomla is also an Open Source project, also developed by hundreds of people all over the world. Joomla was born resulting of a “fork” of Mambo in 2005. In the world of software engineering, a project fork occurs when a developer takes a copy of source code from one software package, and independently develops on its base, creating a distinct and separate piece of software. Upon the rebranding of Mambo, the development team announced the new name for this software as Joomla! Derived from the Swahili word: jumla, which means “all together or as a whole”. The leadership of Joomla consists of three teams: The Production Leadership Team (PLT), Community Leadership Team (CLT) and Open Source Matters (OSM). The Joomla website reflects a Leadership Team which is comprised of member all over the world. Michael Babker (Burlington, North Carolina, USA), Brad Baker (Sydney, NSW, Australia) Isidro Baquero (Seville, Spain, Europe), and Guillermo Bravo (Iquique, Chile, South America) to name a few.

Core feature comparison chart for WordPress and Joomla:

	WordPress	Joomla
Easy Installation and Upgrades	Core	Core
Easy Theme/Template Installation	Themes	Templates
Full Standards Compliance www.w3.org	Core	Core
Application Framework	Various / Depending on Theme	Bootstrap/Responsive Core & Various depending on Theme
Database Type	MySQL & MySQLi	MySQL & MySQLi
Primary Language	PHP	PHP
Content Creation	Pages	Articles
Menu Manager	Core	Core
Blog features	Core & Extend	Core & Extend
Media Management	Core	Core
Search Engine Optimized	Core & Extend	Core & Extend
Multilingual	Core & Extend	Core & Extend
User Management	Core & Extend	Core & Extend
Access Control	by extension	Core
Publishing Tools	Core	Core
Banner Management	by extension	Core
Contact Management	by extension	Core
Web Link Management	by extension	Core
Polls	by extension	Core
Extend Ability	Plugins & Widgets 34,582 per WordPress website	Components, Plugins and Modules 8,586 per Joomla website

In closing, upon reviewing the above core feature listings, it is obvious that both WordPress and Joomla provide powerful tools and extend ability that would suit various types of websites. In reviewing each of their respective websites you will see that many big name companies and celebrities that use both WordPress and/or Joomla.

While it is clear that WordPress is winning in the popularity contest, this appears to result from the fact that WordPress started out as a Blog Software that can be extended into a content management system and many beginners are drawn to WordPress due to it’s ease of installation and use. While Joomla began as a content management system that could possessed blog features. My own personal polling of both beginners and web developers results in finding that are consistent with this statement. Whereas, most beginners and bloggers choose WordPress. While those with more coding abilities prefer Joomla and/or are willing to endure the minor challenges of configuring and customizing Joomla.

I often compare the ongoing rivalry of WordPress versus Joomla to the rivalry McDonald’s versus Burger King. Both make cheeseburgers (or open source content management systems). The bottom line is that most websites do not require reinventing of the wheel. Therefore, either option could work. At the end of the day, if your sites function ability does not dictate your web design platform then if the client wants a brown suit, then sell them the brown suit!

My preference revealed…… (when first published on: Nov 22, 2014)

I will add this final note, as a professional web designer I actually prefer Joomla. I develop sites daily, in both WordPress and Joomla. However, I find Joomla to be able to handle more complex extend ability and I find it easier to customize and configure. I also find that with a little coaching my clients who have zero web design experience find Joomla’s dashboard to be easier to use when moving forward with managing their website. In any case, I typically offer both options to my clients and go as far as to demonstrate both dashboards to them, rather then forcing them into Joomla. After a quick show and tell of both WordPress and Joomla, most of my clients decide to go with Joomla. Perhaps my Joomla pitch is a bit more convincing because I am partial to it?

My preference 1o Years Later.

I must confess I have moved on from Joomla and now prefer WordPress or Shopify. Joomla became to demanding to keep up with their many updates. I have to admit, the updates did bring wonderful new features but they also required frequent maintenance which was time consuming. With WordPress and Shopify, the updates are much easier to manage and require less technical knowledge. This allows me to focus more on designing and creating content for my clients rather than constantly worrying about keeping up with updates.

Another reason for my switch is that WordPress and Shopify have a larger community of developers and users, making troubleshooting and finding solutions much easier. Joomla’s community has become smaller over the years, making it more difficult to find support when needed.

However, I still believe that Joomla is a great option for those who prefer its dashboard or are already familiar with it. It offers a variety of extensions and templates that can be easily customized to fit your needs.

Published: 14 March 2014

Written by Sal Guccione

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Categories: Industry News

“Respected SEO professionals fight over what they think he meant!”

“His guidelines become gospel”

“He lives vicariously through spammers”

“If he was to mention your name, you would list it on your resume”

“He is the most interesting man in the world of SEO!”

As head of Google’s Webspam Team, Matt has become Google’s most influential spokespersons, often answering questions in the press and by online users relative to webspam and developments related to Google search algorithms. Matt’s statements often send ripples and sometimes tidal waves throughout the industry of SEO Professionals (Most recently: The decay and fall of Guest blogging for SEO).

Matt Cutts Education and Employment

Prior to working at Google, Matt Cutts achieved his Ph. D. in computer graphics at the University of North Carolina, his M.S. from UNC- Chapel Hill, and his B.S. in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Kentucky.

Matt Cutts played and continues to play a pivotal role in the growth and development of the Google Search Engine. In fact, he is listed as one of the co-inventors on a Google Patent related to search engines and webspam. Matt Cutts joined Google as a Software Engineer in January of 2000 and credits himself (on his website http://www.mattcutts.com) in writing code for the first version of Google’s Safesearch (Google’s family filter). More recently Matt has worked in Google’s search quality and webspam team for the past several years.

Before going on to learn about Matt’s duties as Head of the Webspam Team at Google, you should understand a little more about Search Engines and what Webspam is:

What is a search engine? A web search engine is designed to search for info on the World Wide Web, in which results are generally presented in a line of results often referred to as “search engine results pages (SERP’s)”. Unlike web directories, which are maintained only by human editors, search engines maintain real-time information by running an algorithm on a web crawler.

It is important to realize that since the birth of the internet, ad revenue created by search engines is steadily becoming a significant source of contributing revenue in the advertising industry. Per the data reflected in Google’s 2013 Financial Tables, Google’s total revenue generated by advertising was $50,578 Million Dollars, with $14,073 million dollars generated in Q3 of 2013. To put that figure in perspective, the IAB’s Internet Advertising Revenue Report, which is a survey conducted annually and independently by PricewaterhouseCoopers; reported internet advertising revenues for Q3 2013 to be $10.7 billion dollars. At that rate, if internet advertising generates roughly 40 billion dollars per year in revenue, then Google’s market share in internet advertising is equivalent to a little a little more than 10% of the total internet advertising industry.

What is webspam? Most are familiar with spam as it relates to emails. However, savvy and unethical web designers and developers have learned the value of hijacking search engines and have set their targets on strong-arming “Search Engine Results Pages” (SERP’s) and tricking web crawlers. Thus the term Webspam, also referred to as spamdexing. Webspam and/or spamdexing involve a number of “Black Hat SEO Techniques” that are constantly evolving. In order to protect their search engines, Google must constantly modify their search engine algorithms to stay a step ahead of these unethical practices. If they did not manage this threat, then search engine results would surely be hijacked by clever web pirates. The web would be sort of like the wild west! Fortunately, Google lives up their philosophy which is conveyed on their corporate website, “Focus on the user and else will follow.” Whereas, they understand they must provide an effective user experience for those using their search engine. If users where to search Google and the result was content created by black hatters, then the outlaws would have won and the users experience would suffer.

This is where Matt Cutts and his webspam team comes in. Think of them as the Marshalls or the Sheriff of the Wild West! The never ending cycle of modifying behaviors and algorithms certainly provides job security for Matt Cutt’s and his Webspam Team as they continue to guard Google Search. Just like I tell my clients, “search engine optimization is not something you complete, it is something you must continue to implement or risk losing your ranking”. Another good analogy would be to say, “completing SEO would be like trying to eat once and for all, that will not work….you must eat every day”. The same goes for Matt Cutt’s and his Webspam Team. They must continue to figure out how to filter results providing valuable and relative content in search engine result pages.

Aside from Google Search’s objective to assist those searching the web, Google’s webspam team and “webmaster tools” does an awesome job of communicating guidelines for webmasters which convey best management practices for search engine optimization. It is not a guessing game, Google offers a starter guide to Search Engine Optimization. Additionally, Google’s “webmaster tools” allows webmasters to monitor their website’s health as well as allow submission of URLs and sitemaps to Google for indexing. It does not end there. Furthermore, Google provides what I find to be the most useful and interesting of all resources, which are videos released on Google Webmaster Youtube Page that feature various Google staff members answering questions and explaining their intentions and objectives to regulate spammy techniques.

In closing this article, I thought I would share some Dos Equis style phrases which are consistent with “the most interesting man in the world campaign” but relevant to Matt Cutts.

SOURCES:

http://www.mattcutts.com

http://www.mattcutts.com/blog/

http://www.iab.net/about_the_iab/recent_press_releases/press_release_archive/press_release/pr-122313

https://www.youtube.com/user/GoogleWebmasterHelp

http://investor.google.com/financial/tables.html

https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools

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