As well as encouraging potential web entrepreneurs to learn about Web 2.0 and it's efficacy, I have had a root around YouTube to find some videos that simply outline the marketing, business aspects and benefits of Web 2.0, rather than just all the buzzwords and technical terminology.

To their credit, these videos have been created by David C Skul of Relativity Business Technology Solutions http://www.relativitycorp.com, and despite their own site lacking in design finesse, the concepts and content are rock solid.

That's it. I am drawing a line (throws down hat, draws line), no more eCommerce sites.

Aha! I hear you say, but you have just launched Roadkilltoys.com and that is an eCommerce website... Well, yes...and no.

We shaped Roadkilltoys.com into being a lot more than that. It is a brochure site and blog site with lots of lovely keyword rich content - and you can also buy the products from the site. It is not just an online shop with hundreds of products and a complicated 'automated' eCommerce workflow behind it. The power is still there, but it is more 'plugged-in' and modular, than custom built.

I get the impression that non-web savvy people think that online sales are the soft option, that it is an easier and more automated approach than selling in a real world shop or by mail order. In fact, quite the opposite is true, and requires far more work and systems preparation on the back end to make it easy for the user on the front end, as a website can't think for itself or call the manager when it is not sure...

The result of this, is that 60-70% of all carts/orders are abandoned before the sale is complete. Selling on the internet is a highly competitive area and the next shop is only a back button click away. You may increasing your target audience by selling on the web, but you are also multiplying your competition as well.

Every month, depending on the ranking of my sites, I have a number of enquiries about work placements and internships (a phrase that seems to becoming more common). Unfortunately this is something that I am unable to accommodate here at Infiniti, as I do not have the resources (time, money, space, workstation, insurance etc) available to facilitate this.

I always aim to be straightforward and transparent about this whole design business and try to offer advice and assistance in furthering the careers of designers and students alike, although sometimes it is not always possible to reply to enquiring parties directly and give them specific feedback. 

To succeed in this area you need to raise the bar a little on your initial enquiry and make it stand out from the hundreds of other enquiries that are jostling for attention. Think of it as a great opportunity to demonstrate your design talent even before the studio manager/creative director has even looked at your portfolio.

Make CVs interesting, inspiring, unusual (but not so unconventional that they are difficult to read or inconvenient to file). Deliver the information using any and all methods available to you. That doesn't mean just making a pdf of your cv (although you should at least do that) and emailing it to the company. Create an engaging and interactive website, cd rom, portfolio, podcast, dvd video, collection of samples or even (new idea!) make up your own 'design book' at lulu.com.

It is this little bit of extra application and thought that can make all the difference. Get your target contact excited about you, your ideas and more importantly; your potential, and you are one step closer to an interview and ultimately, a job.

After a few initial hiccups, www.roadkilltoys.com was finally launched this week. It's not been a perfect development timeline, and was slightly complicated by a London newspaper leaking the web address (and posting a link to it on their website) creating a viral effect that came out of the blue and knocked the server down. Ouch!

When is a holding page not a holding page? When it is a fully working web page in it’s own right.

There is no need to ever have one of those pages with the dreaded words ‘Under Construction’ on it, for the search engines to pass you by, when it is a simple matter to produce a keyword rich, informative and optimised web page that can be indexed and start to work for your domain whilst the full website is in development.

For example, this is a page that I have built at http://www.phoenixrestoration.ie while the full site is under development. The intention is to get the domain and page indexed before the site goes live, so when it is finished it can mostly hit the ground running.

This webpage is currently working quite well http://www.gilmartins.com as it is already returning high ranking results for both the terms ‘catering supplies mayo’ and ‘hygiene supplies mayo’ in google.

Today marks the launch of the new site from Handcraft Furnishings, Tubbercurry, County Sligo. It is a neat and simple brochure website utilising AJAX components and powered using the Joomla CMS, as a platform for further development in the future.

http://www.handcraftfurnishings.com

One of the best features on the site is a dynamic gallery of images, so it possible to browse through a mixture of feature and detail shots of the latest commissions by Handcraft Furnishings. The sites contains general brochure copy outlining the complete service provided by Handcraft Furnishings, with an emphasis on quality and bespoke cabinet making.

Take a look at this neat little example of a site that creates a classy and elegant image for the company, optimised for search engines, andd flexible for development, without breaking the bank on the budget.