Welcome back to the Silentblast Toronto Web Design News Blog. Today we are going to give some pointers in your blog development. Blogs for business purposes are gaining significant traction as a useful tool for web sites to gain popularity both in media circles and as an search optimization method within a given website. We have gleaned through many articles on this topic and have found some useful tips that one should keep in mind while developing their blog.

Logo and Branding

If you don’t have a logo, get one designed for you. It is part of your overall marketing strategy and creates brand awareness.

User Comments

To have or have not; is up to the creators of the blog and depending on the purposes of the blog overall as part of your marketing and awareness strategy; you can continue to use your blog without comments being allowed.

Show Consistency

Probably the hardest part of blogging overall. Write to the audience that is visiting your blog, while serving your own purposes in your marketing strategy. Try to set a goal as well to continually add to your blog. You don’t have to write 20-30 blog articles a day; but you should show you are contributing on a regular basis or your readership will fall off the map.

Proper Writing

Unless you’re backed up by an editorial department proper writing can be a coin toss. If you can’t write fairly decently, get someone to do it for you.

Simplicity

One topic per post if at all possible. Short paragraphs.

Categorize and Tag

When possible categorize and tag your posts. Great for SEO and great for your users to find specific categorized topics they may be looking for on your website.

Social Media

Use social media such as Facebook, Twitter and other mediums to promote your blog and allow others to promote your blog and articles.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Twitter - Silentblast Interactive - Social Media Consultants

Twitter is without a doubt one the largest social media sites on the planet. On average depending on which research avenue you search on the internet; Twitter gains roughly anywhere between 12000 and 20000 new unique users a day. We have a Twitter account at Silentblast and use it somewhat sparingly to promote some changes done within Silentblast such as revisions to the website, new client portfolios, and promotion of blog articles. Feel free to check it out here; http://twitter.com/silentblast

While we don’t Twitter as maybe as much as we really should, nonetheless we do have an account and are re – visioning as it were our social networking strategy to go beyond just the website and blog.

A Twitter account named similar to your company can help in getting your brand or organization out there. Again, with a short URL it is not hard to advertise your current web presence, blog and company to a wide audience and gain a following.

I am personally relatively new to the Twitter phenomena so I have not a lot to say on the subject at this juncture other than I recognize absolutely the potential for marketing is there. I have however found this excellent article on Copyblogger on How to Use Twitter to Grow You’re Business. A very interesting read I must say.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Hello readers and welcome back to the Silentblast Blog. Today I am going to speak generally about business blogging. I know I have talked about blogs and blogging in general and why businesses should consider having a blog but I never really discussed business blogs from the perspective as part of a business plan.

As everyone should be generally aware a “business plan� is essentially a formal statement of planned business goals. The web design and development of a web presence for example can be included in a business plan. Even more important if the business tends to derive most of its revenue and deliverables from the internet; than the business plan will certainly have significant areas of the overall business plan where there is focus on internet, website development, search engine optimization or SEO as it’s commonly referred to and content development.

Somewhere definitely in the mix of will be most likely as well social media sites such as Twitter, FaceBook or LinkedIn and of course blogs. One of the things that have to be clear for business decision makers will be what is the focus, direction, goals and objectives for the business blog. What are the expectations of the blog as it pertains to the focus, direction, goals and objectives and then of course how the message is delivered and who delivers it?

From a business standpoint unless your business is comedy per say, the blog will tend to be more of an informative, editorial, press release sort of tone. While there are blogs that are satirical in nature or adult themed in both content and language that tends to not be the approach of business if they wish to incorporate a blog.
So for business the focus, direction, goals and objectives for a business blog can be some of the following if not more:

• Public Relations – mission statement, company vision, new developments

• Education and Product Information – giving your customers information on your products and services and even information on how to use them

• Development and Research – garnering feedback and suggestions from your clientele

• Community Development – developing a client community around your products and services, charitable efforts of your company

• Marketing and Sales – announcing new products and services to your customers

Blogging for business ultimately will take time and if there is no inherent commitment to invest time into the development of a business blog than it should not be high on the list of business priorities. All stakeholders within a business have to believe in the process. If you wish to establish yourself or are already established as a professional business, your blog has to reflect that.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Hello readers and welcome back to the Silentblast Blog. Interesting news article I read some days ago about a couple from the US, Mellisa and Jackson Brandts were hiking in Banff Alberta and decided to take a photo of themselves for keepsakes. They had set up their camera to auto-shoot some pictures when they were noticing this little squirrel scurrying all around them checking them and the camera out. When their camera snapped a shot of them sitting down the squirrel at that moment decided to stand up and look directly into the camera.

It didn’t take long for the power of the internet and of course some encouragement from friends to submit their photo to National Geographic and then CNN also did a news story on the couple and their camera adventure with the squirrel. From that moment, the squirrel, now more affectionately known as “Crasher Squirrel� has taken the internet somewhat by storm.

The picture of Crasher Squirrel seems to be popping up everywhere; including Silentblast. Here we have a photo of him popping up in front of a billboard with the Silentblast logo.

To read the original “Crasher Squirrel� news article you can find it here; “Web Goes Nuts for Crasher Squirrel�

There is also a website where they have the Top Ten Crasher Squirrel Pics

To modify your own pictures to include the Crasher Squirrel visit The Squirrelizer

Have some fun with it; bring Crasher Squirrel into some of your family photos, wedding pictures and your travels.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Hello readers and welcome to the Silentblast Blog. One of the questions I get asked from time to time is whether blogging is for the person, or the right thing to do as part of a business’s web development, content management system or web design.

Well there are some easy and difficult answers coupled with some easy and difficult choices. From a web development perspective implementing a blog as part of a strategy to increase web traffic and awareness should be one of the features you should consider.

Blogging for business is more or less a do it yourself public relations strategy. Every company or organization considering some form of public relations strategy should consider a blog. It is especially something to consider if your company cannot afford to implement specific content management modules that are often highly customized, but come at a greater cost than a blog.

Blogging can help your company in the following areas:

• promote your company and services to a wider audience
• place the human factor to your business
• help establish your company services, products and brand
• reaching out to potential customers or current customers
• increase your visibility on the search engines
• over time, increase your profit potential
  

As a company and the individuals charged with the responsibility of the blogging strategy and providing content to the blog you have to be committed to the blog and its ongoing development in order for it to be successful. In other words, if you implement a blog as part of your business strategy you have to treat it as part of your business processes. You have to set a pace or schedule for regular development; meaning articles added to the blog. In doing so, you have to thus maintain the blog by continually providing information.

I will be discussing more about blogging for business in articles in the future as part of the strategy of Silentblast in not only promoting the web design and content management systems we can implement for business; but also to assist our clients in developing their web development strategies.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Hello Silentblast Blog readers. I get asked this question a few times whenever I get into discussions about blogs. Do I allow comments or not allow comments? I usually follow-up their question with further questions to get a greater sense of what they are trying to achieve with their blog, what is the focus or theme of the blog, do they have time to respond to comments and maintain the blog beyond just placing articles?

Blogs I think are great for many reasons. They have allowed the common person to express an opinion or view on literally anything and publish it at very little cost for the world to see. With expressing an opinion I still believe one has to take responsibility mind you but even still there are very few boundaries that have not been transcended by blogs.

I manage a couple of blogs actually. I manage this one and one that is part of a professional association where there is editorial, opinion, notification of events and so forth. With the Silentblast Blog there was a decision made to allow comments from people who visit the site and on the other blog I manage a decision was made to not allow comments.

While in essence the media; blogs, are the same. The message or theme is different. If your posts are written as such that invite commentary I think to allow comments can be positive. Ultimately you will pick and choose which comments to allow or disallow. No different really than mainstream media that allows comments to news.

If your blog is more informational in such things as specific products, services, or educational seminar details or courses, then allowing commentary is in my opinion a coin toss. Some have argued and commented on other blogs that a blog is just another website if comments are not allowed. But to me that is like saying a book is not a book unless it has a cover. Yes not quite complete by the definition of what we all know a book to be but still arguably a book. I would counter that a blog is absolutely on the web, and absolutely a site by virtue of a specific URL; so in essence a website. How that website interacts with its audience should be up to the discretion of the owners.

Some argue that by allowing comments it becomes a measuring stick to the popularity of your blog. Actually I would tend to favor the web statistics on the back end as the measuring stick. Others argue that if you don’t allow comments you are doing nothing more than preaching to the masses. My opinion on that is if you speak to something and you can captivate a live audience or a virtual one, it is in essence preaching.

Ultimately the final decision is up to the individuals or organizations that have incorporated a blog in either their web development or business strategies.  For Silentblast the strategy is primarily providing content that speaks to the many different facets of business and how the internet and having a web site can be more than just slapping up your virtual billboard on the net. Blogs can help your website presence with search engine optimization by providing relevant links and content to your customers and potential customers.

But a blog is also a medium of communication and if you use it for nothing other than virtual link farm than I believe the essence of blogs and blogging go completely out the window. I think you have to as a blog owner, stand in your audiences shoes at times and really think that despite the positive strategies and techniques for search engine rankings there can be down sides. I would personally not open a newspaper if for example every 10th word or so were highlighted in bright yellow or pink.  That would be annoying as… well you can add whatever word you feel is best. You probably wouldn’t bother reading papers ever again suffice to say. Personally and in my opinion the same applies to a blog.

Admittedly I do “some� back-linking into the main Silentblast website… look… I just did it. I use it sparingly. SEO purists would comment I don’t do enough. I won’t argue with that. I know from an SEO perspective I don’t provide maximum potential back-linking but I also believe a blog is a strategy that goes beyond pure search engine optimization.

Ultimately the decision for strategies on blogs and in particular to allow comments or not allow comments is up to the persons or the businesses operating a blog. I believe in blogs for business especially because of one thing and actually the most important thing in business.

Communicating with your customers.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Hello readers and welcome back to the Silentblast Blog. This entry is going to be somewhat shorter than my normal postings of late. It is more focused actually on a specific question I was asked by an associate of mine. Will blogging affect a websites search engine rankings?

Well in my research across various websites, other blogs and in fact performing a Google search on the topic itself the shortest answer is yes a blog can assist your business for example in ranking in the search engines. The caveat on the matter and I am no particular expert on search engine optimization but know enough that I can say if you provide reasonably significant and relevant content that pertains to the overall context of your website with content and specifically key wording, increasing your ranking status is very possible.

For example, if your blog is part of an actual overall web site strategy it is the avenue by which you can relate as I do for Silentblast product and services that are readily available. This is done by providing linking within the site to other web pages that should have content that is also relevant. However if I was to write about only topics pertaining to racecar driving for example there is very little if nothing relevant to Silentblast in that context.

The goal of course is to provide not only information that works for your website or blog in moving up the search engine ranks but also to provide information that a person can use. Consider also that each blog entry specifically is the equivalent of you adding another page to your website. If you have built your own website and constructed pages or had a web development company such as Silentblast build a website for you; each page takes time and obviously money. A blog once established within your website is something that you will be responsible to maintain. The continued cost more or less is you committing time to contribute to your blog.

A website overall is still obviously the way to highlight key specific aspects or facets of your company or organization in a more static approach unless you have something like CMS (Content Management Systems) in place that change specific aspects of a given web page or pages. A blog and its purpose in my opinion is to provide continual content from a personalized approach that complements an overall web presence.

As you provide blog entries over time they archive. So imagine for a moment if you had a business you could write something about at least once a week. Overall that is 52 articles; 52 pages of relevant content and key words with links that point within your website in a given year. Again the more you contribute the more content you are providing and it should not be hard because in reality you should have an opinion or viewpoint on your business and be knowledgeable of it. So as you are providing content the search engines are indexing not only your website but also your blog. If you are not doing a lot of changes with your core website doing something with a blog will be of benefit.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Website Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Welcome readers to the Silentblast Blog. Antonio and I hope you have been reading through these blog entries and implementing some of the suggestions into your business strategy in an effort to increase your overall web presence but more importantly leveraging your current business marketing strategy to bring in new customers and most importantly informing your current customer base.

If one thing you notice as a centralized theme as I discussed briefly in my last blog post is the importance of “communication.” Quite frankly despite all the methods and means of today’s technology a lot of businesses still fail somewhat in the communication aspect of their business.

It should be no surprise and in reality I am more or less preaching to the choir when it comes to the majority of the suggestions put forth in this blog. However, if you know it but have done nothing sometimes it is good to hear it again but without the pressure of a heavy handed sales pitch. Further if you notice I have not really pitched Silentblast services. Reading between the lines however, you know as well as I do, discussing things like blogs for example is a product service offering Silentblast can assist you with.

So Email Marketing as a Business Tool. If you look at your current business and all the customers you have; there are in effect continual and residual income streams that can be tapped into. But it is also a way of notifying your customer base of current and future product offerings or services. Case in point; some time ago I signed up to the www.makeitseven.ca website. If you read the news you might know that the CEO of Research in Motion (Blackberry) Jim Balsillie is currently striving to bring an NHL franchise to S/W Ontario.

So I went to the website; signed up using my name and an email address to be kept informed of future news regarding his efforts. Just a few days ago; I received a very well written email from Jim Balsillie outlining his current efforts and also to visit the website again as they now have areas for people to voice their views on the issue. It is estimated that by Friday May 15^th2009, the website had over 120,000 people sign up. So I visited the website; read some commentaries by people, and even bookmarked it in my web browser.

So you may be going; “yeah so what, big deal.” Your absolutely correct; but in the wrong context of what a big deal is. It is a huge deal. As this effort grows in capturing names and email addresses they are in effect growing a potential customer base.

If Jim Balsillie is successful in being able to bring an NHL franchise to S/W Ontario he now has 120,000 names and email addresses and counting to lean on from a marketing perspective to potentially sell tickets, advertising, corporate sponsorships to. He is also the CEO of Research in Motion aka Blackberry. You don’t think he might throw that in the arena once in a while in an email to over 120,000 people.

Another example is I am involved in a professional association and I am responsible for the updating of the website and our mass email/newsletter campaign. In June 2008, my mass email database had roughly 530 members. It now has over 1000; including an increase overall to our membership, substantial increases to our seminars and events, increases in corporate sponsorship and huge increases in terms of visits to our website.

A lot is attributable to a well designed website, continually adding information and content on a regular basis and more importantly direct communication to the membership through a professional email marketing service. Without even really no effort, the website I manage on behalf of the association I am involved in typically captures between 10-30 people a month by them voluntarily signing up for our email/newsletter service. That is without even trying.

Imagine what you can do if you were even able to target email market 10% of the customers you have currently. It might be a small number customer wise but it could represent a huge number potentially to your bottom line depending on your product and service offerings. Both ways, there is potential for something simple as an email and turn it into a viable income stream for your business.

Now, realistically depending on your needs and the size of your customer base an email marketing system will cost money. However, in comparison to other forms of media such as newspaper/periodical ads, TV spots and the like, it is vastly cheaper and its target marketing. You are connecting with customers you already have, or those who voluntarily want to potentially do business with you.

Silentblast is positioned to help you with an email marketing campaign solution. I know, as I had the Association I am involved in not only approve Silentblast to design our website but also the recommendation for email marketing as a tool to communicate with our current, potential and future members. Oh yeah, before I forget, remember my last post where I talked about business potential from family, friends, associates. Family friends and associates are potential customers too, never forget that! The Association I am involved in has not only used Silentblast services initially, but several times; in database development, content management, search engine optimization but also implementing our email/newsletter campaign for our members.

But back to;

Silentblast is partnered in my opinion with the leader of professional email marketing solutions. There are aspects of it that can even be implemented directly into your current website, such as voluntarily signing up for your mass email/newsletter. So seriously consider discussing this business tool with the Silentblast team.

You’re free of course to explore your own options or solutions. Again the centralized theme over the last few blog posts is that communication is important in your business model. Look at all options available to you and if you are interested email us, talk to us… send a smoke signal. There are many keys to business; and communication is a very important key that you do not want to lose or misplace.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Hello readers and welcome to another entry for the Silentblast blog. Today I am going to discuss the merits of having a blog for your business if a blog is suitable to your business model as a business web strategy.

Like many aspects of business there are some facets and tools that are suitable to employ in your overall business strategy and some that are not. In keeping with the topic if your business for example is to provide end user products or services for government in the national security or intelligence field than in all likelihood it would not be in your best interests to have a blog; let alone being allowed corporately or by your current or future client base.

However if your business model is for example a high end furniture retail outlet; then there is definitely strategic possibilities in using a blog to supplement your current business website strategy and bringing products, services and information to your client base.

But before we continue; what is a blog? Well before that is answered it is prudent to illustrate that there are essentially two key types of blogs. One is personal, the other is more business related. A personal blog is really someone’s effort and personal opinion on a myriad of topics. Some personal blogs follow a specific theme such as a hobby, passion or cause. The articles or posts tend to follow two unique trends. The posts are either short or extensive depending on what that person wants to express that given day.

The other type of blog is business focused and usually in the form of hopeful or realized revenue generating income streams by providing relevant information on products or services offered by said company. In some cases a blog for a business is the sole internet presence as a cost effective method of establishing a footprint on the web. Ideally and this is my personal opinion if a blog is the cornerstone of your web presence eventually you should migrate to and certainly incorporate a blog in your future business web development strategy of a website presence beyond the blog.

However a blog as another item in your business toolbox can bring in definitive benefits if your business is prepared and focused to use it. As stated earlier, it can provide a connection to your current customer base, potential customers, and drive web based traffic to your site and probably the most critical, showcase your companies expertise in its product and service offerings. Coincidentally those aspects are also important if you currently have a website.

Today blogs are becoming highly accepted by end users and businesses alike as an effective means of not only drawing in potential new customers but also continually informing the customers after the cash register has rung in a sale. It is no secret that you as a business owner want that customer to come back and not only that, tell others so they in turn will walk through the door either in a brick and mortar business or virtually on the web and become clients.

I have read in magazines and periodicals that on average a business in a year can lose 20% and higher of its current customer base for a myriad of reasons. I would guess there may be several reasons for that loss but I believe at least part of the loss is the result of lack of communications with your current customers, let alone potential customers.

So sit back a moment and reflect on your current business and its potential loss of customers realistically. Examine what one single customer can bring in financially to the bottom line in a given month as an example; that you could have retained had you communicated product and service offerings in a cost effective manner to that individual. If it’s significant enough to raise an eyebrow than as a responsible business you should be concerned. Considering today’s economic climate a business cannot afford to have the mentality of it being acceptable that you “win some, lose some.�

By incorporating a blog to your current web development and business strategy the goal is “win/win� and in a cost effective manner that employs your subject matter expertise on your products and services.

So if you’re current customers of Silentblast consider and examine the possibility of a business blog as part of your customer development and retention strategy. If you are considering placing a business footprint on the internet consider as well a business blog either as the first phase of development or part of an overall strategy to both bolster and increase your business potential.

Either aforementioned method can be effective in getting your business on the internet as a cost effective interim solution or as a supplement to your current internet business strategy.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast

Hello and welcome readers to a revitalized Silentblast blog. I was asked by Antonio if I could steer this ship for him while he is focusing on bringing the end-user aspects of Silentblast such as CMS Development, Web Design and so forth to the forefront for both his current customer base and obviously future customers.

In truth I am no stranger to this form of media and I will be discussing  blogs in future posts as part of a business strategy for current and future customers and why in some instances it is good for businesses to have this media reach to the public and in turn trying to convert a reader to a potential customer or prospect.

I suppose an introduction is in order. My name is Chris and I am actually part of Antonio’s extended family. I work as a Risk Manager for a real estate management, development and investment firm in the greater Toronto area. So I will speak more to the business aspects of the internet and website development. I will still encourage Antonio to speak on topics of design, look and feel, user functionality and so forth in his blog posts.

But back to Antonio and our relationship that has grown actually not only on the basis of family but also our common love for computers and associated technology. Things that go beep and have some lights flicker have always caught our attention and we have over the years had some rather interesting conversations on technology and the future of it.

This in turn actually planted the seeds to what Silentblast is today. Going back several years both Antonio and I cut our teeth as it were on a simple website that focused on the Mac community. Antonio was the designer and coder and I provided relevant content. There also was and well known; a unique difference between Antonio and I. Antonio was Mac concentric and I was PC concentric. We were in fact the equivalent going back to 2000 no different than what Apple capitalizes on in their current marketing campaign of “Mac Guy� and “PC Guy.� Next time I bump into Steve Job’s I should discuss this with him possibly.

For close to 2 years we built essentially a small site and transformed it into actually part of a greater community. We never really discussed the idea of turning it over into a revenue generating project but rather kept it as it was. More or less a hobby website that was niche based.

Eventually we did close it down as both our personal and business commitments were increasing and so was the website. While free in all respects to the community; freedom comes at the price of commitment if you open up your doors on the model of free and you end up getting flooded with requests that exceeds the expectations of what free should be about. We decided before it would get beyond our hobby based time commitment to notify our user base, close our virtual doors and ride off in the internet sunset with some unique lessons learned But it really never ended for Antonio and he would build a successful business based on some of the lessons learned and core values of web design inherited from that hobby site we worked on. It is interesting as I reflect on it now while writing that I have somewhat of a fingerprint on the foundation of what Silentblast is today.

So there you have it readers; the Coles Notes version of the origins of Silentblast and my personal connection to both Antonio and Silentblast. I will, as I stated earlier in this post provide articles and I even have some ideas on methods using current technology and readily available services that you as a reader can employ to better your current website development by demonstrating them through the Silentblast blog.

Silentblast Interactive - Toronto Web Design and Development

Canadian owned and operated, Silentblast is a professional web design and development company in Toronto serving small and mid-sized companies in the GTA, Brampton, Vaughan, North York, Markham, Mississauga, Oakville, Richmond Hill, Scarborough and Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Silentblast also develops mobile web site design and development and mobile applications for the iPhone and other mobile phone platforms.

Website – www.silentblast.com

Silentblast Blog - www.silentblast.com/blog

Twitter - http://twitter.com/silentblast