Google’s new look

So I am wondering around on Google today, at approximately 4pm cst,  and from one screen to the next Google changes. I couldn’t tell what the difference was right away, but if you use Google often any changes are sure to be noticed. I looked at the logo first. I thought.. that looks different. Indeed it was.

This new logo looks great. Kudos to who ever cleaned it up. With the two side by side it looks like the old one was hanging out in the smokers lounge. The new logo has less of a drop shadow, brighter colors and less of a bevel. Seeing the new logo makes the other one look so wrong. I think that is the sign of a good logo refresh. It should be obvious that this is a good move. To the point where you wonder , how did we ever put up with that old logo.

The logo is not the only thing that has changed. There is now a group of icons to the left that had originally been and still are at the top. However in the past they where only text links. Now there are these snazzy icons. This is most likely to help new or inexperienced users to find the other great things that google offers.

Beyond  the logo and the new added icons there is the new bottom that is the same idea as the old one just cleaner brighter color.

So what do you think of the new look. Let me know in the comments.

Update

As of just recently the new logo from google has disappeared. It looks as though they have gone back to the old logo and done away with the icons on the left. This may have been a beta test of the new google logo and icons. Or just a random glimpse at a better logo just to be taken away as quickly as it came.

Are you seeing the new logo still?

My First Squidoo Lens – Paula Scher

I made a Squidoo lens today about a designer that a like. Check it out and let me know what you think. Have you used Squidoo yet? Sign up and make a lens yourself and get
$5 from Squidoo
for me and you. You have to use this link or we both get nothing.

Read the lens about Designer Paula Scher here.

This is a great way to share info that your are interested in that may not belong on your website. Or if you don’t have a website but have some knowledge about something that other folks may be interested in.

Also they have a cool way of sharing the revenue generated by your page. So if you want to make some money online this may be a good way to do it.

Nashville Mortgage , Home Loan website SEO

I just recently did some lite SEO work on a Nashville Mortgage website for Jim McVey who recently did a refi for me. Check out the site and also check back for the stats of his improvement. Currently for the 3 main keyword phrases he is focused on there is no listing on the first 20 pages of google.

Hopefully with some work and future tweaking we can get him on the first page.

Facebook Fan Page for your Business HOWTO

This video is on youtube and is easier to see in HD. Leave your questions in the comments section.

Best Freinds Forever Brands

Not many people really consider brands to be friends ,or are looking to have a productive conversation with a brand online. We don’t want to share birthday and vacation pics with brands. We don’t expect them to come over for a bar-b-que. So why do brands ask you to become a friend online ,or become a fan ,or follow them on twitter? Likewise why should your clients do the same for you?

Some research suggests that the most popular reason a customer would follow your social updates is for a discount or a freebie. Other popular reasons are customer service and product updates. However if the majority of people will sign up in hopes of an discount shouldn’t you give them one. This is also a great way to encourage these people to spread your message. If you give this savvy social user a discount through twitter they are going the retweet that thing to all their friends telling them what a good deal it is. The ones I see the most are for free food. Give away a taco with a twitter code word and everyone will know. If only Rush Design Group sold food.

Word of Mouth Branding

You here the question all the time. “Where do you get business?” the reply often is ” Word of Mouth” . Word of mouth is certainly a great way of getting business. However this response is usually code for ” I don’t have a plan. Work kinda just comes in slowly”. Again not a problem. Although if you really believe in word of mouth and believe that it is responsible for the majority of your business shouldn’t you nurture it.

Generally when people think of word of mouth they think of one person having a good experience and letting another person know one at a time. The great thing about social media is that the word of mouth can now be more than one at a time. It can be hundreds. Do you have a facebook fan page? Do you have a twitter account? Do you drive happy customers to a preferred website to leave positive feedback? These are ways to give that new found fanatic a way to spread the good news quicker. Its like giving them a megaphone compared to the one to one way they had before.

Emma Email Marketing Coupon

Rush Design Group is a branded reseller of emma email marketing. If you are familiar with emma you already know that they are the industries premier email marketing system. We chose to offer emma to our clients because it has the best system available. As a reseller we provide the design for our clients emails. As a special offer to our blog visitors we are offering 5 free account setups. This will include the custom design of your email header and set up of your account. There is no contract. We are only offing this to the first 5 that respond. Please click the graphic above for a contact form.

Websites Fight. How will your site do?

Have you ever wondered if websites could fight who would win. Well I found this nifty tool today that I thought you might like. It lets you compare two sites and see which one has what it takes in the world of Search Engine Optimization. Try comparing your site with you competitors site. If your site isn’t holding its own than maybe we should talk.

Be sure to let me know how the fight goes in the comments. And if you like it please Retweet.

click here SEO challenge

Website Opportunity in Nashville

Courtesy of Driving in Heels - Flicker Creative Commons

This economic slump has made people wake up and realize that not having a website is just not ok anymore. There are huge opportunities waiting for companies that will make the investment. The days of setting back and watching the business come through the front door are over. The question now is do I want to spend money on a website and hope that in will generate some income or continue to rely on my yellow page ad.

The answer is get a website. If you don’t have a presence on the web what are waiting for. Do it now. The web is where people go to find a product or service to purchase. Most people that have a computer and the internet search online first  If they can not find it there they may look in the yellow pages. The fact is that being in the yellow pages may be good, but if all the competition is there as well it will just be that much more difficult to get the business. And does that ad really let you sale yourself like a website could.

I think that the web is a huge opportunity for service related business like roofers, plumbers, and air conditioning companies. They have typically flooded the yellow pages because it was easy. However I am surprised at the low number of those businesses that also invest in their website. If people look on the web first you should be out there to be found. Especially since there is less local competition in those areas. Don’t get me wrong their is opportunity in the phone book but there is less local competition on the web.

For example. I live in Springfield, TN. When searching on Google there is not one local plumber with a website. There is no local competition. However if you look in the phone book. They all have an ad.

Where do you look first for a company? The phone book or the web? Let me know in the comments.

Seo for Nashville Home Inspection

I just did some lite SEO as I like to call it. For a Nashville Home Inspection service. It is a new site that my customer created using Go Daddy. The site has been up for a few months but is not showing up in Google for the most popular search terms related to his business. After checking to make sure his site had been indexed by Google, which basically just means they know he exists, I looked for his site under the common keyword search. I quit looking at page 31. So I will continue to monitor his progress and report back with updates.