Category Archives: SERVICES

Graphics options for your CityDirect.info web pages

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Your CityDirect.info web pages offer you many different ways to improve the look and feel of your pages. Differentiating your pages and customizing your graphics, easily sets you apart from the competition. There are different places you can add graphics, and there are a few things you need to know:

First, all graphic, color and branding options are exclusive to the enhanced versions of all of our products. Basic pages do not have the option.

Second thing to pay attention to is the size of each graphic and the location from which you are uploading them. Each image can be uploaded from a specific location in Centrepointe, and each image has specific publication requirements.

Publication Requirements are always located right above the location where you upload an image.  In order to successfully upload, an image must be sized correctly, or Centrepointe will not allow you to upload the image.

If you do not have the ability to upload the images your self, here are some great resources that will allow you to adjust the images:

Pixlr’s online photo editor

Photo Shop Express

Avairy’s Image Editor (Watermarks all finished files for free version)

Obvious Ideas downloadable image re-sizer

Resize.it Online image re-sizer (will take a few steps)

Editing graphics can be very time consuming and frustrating,  and often not something that everyone enjoys spending time on. If this is the case, let us take care of it. We offer graphic design services and will adjust and upload your pictures for you. Just call and ask.

Here are a few examples of the graphics we have done: Dr. Chris Schell, Tropical North, Bayview Tree Sales.


 

1. Logo: Your Logo is the most important graphic on your page. This is how people are going to recognize your organization. Once uploaded, it will appear prominently on each of your enhanced pages.

Color Scheme:  Your color scheme is an important part of the overall look and feel of your web pages.  Currently, we have over 60 different color scheme options you can choose from.  You simply need to change your color scheme in one location and it will be applied to all of your pages.  If you are having trouble finding the right CityDirect.info color scheme, talk to your Marketing Specialist to see how you can get a customized color scheme.

2. Background:  A well chosen background can tie the look and feel of your pages together and enforce the overall look and feel of all of your pages.  Background images show on the left and right sides of your information.

3. Header Graphics:  Header Graphics exist on the Start Page, Profile Page, Specialties, Brands, Products and Services Pages.  They are located at the top of the page and are normally the very first thing that someone will see when they arrive at a page. Click to learn more about editing your Header Graphics.

 

4. Paragraph Graphics: Paragraph Graphics are available for each content grouping.  Their purpose is to attract, interest, and inform readers of the content of the paragraph.  These images are visual representations of what you will find in the article and should emphasize your main message.

5. Inline graphics: These graphics exist between different sections on your Start Page and Profile Page. They are great ways to visually attract visitors to a particular aspect of your business, whether it be a specialty of yours, a brand you carry, or a product you offer.

 

Editing your Profile Page Content Groupings

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Unlike the Start Page, the Enhanced Profile Page has ten groupings, where the basic version only has three.  In other words, the enhanced version gives you ten opportunities to describe different aspects of your business, ten opportunities to tell the search engines what you do, and ten opportunities to get found by potential customers.

Once you have logged in using the pencil icon on the Profile Page Content Grouping, you will be taken directly to the Profile Page editing area in Centrepointe.  The first section you will see is the Graphic Options which are exclusive to the Enhanced Profile Page.

Scroll down past the graphic options until you arrive at the profile information and First Content Grouping.

Are you wondering what should you be writing in each content grouping?  The first Content Grouping should be another overview of your business that reinforces the important parts of your business.  You should tell people the broad stroke of your business, how long you have been in business, why someone should pick you, what sets you apart from other similar business, what are you good at, the core values of your company and your mission statement.

The second, through the tenth Content Grouping should focus exclusively on one important product, service, or aspect of your business.  It should not include any reference to any other product, service or aspect.  They should also be in order of importance. For example, the second Content Grouping should be exclusively about your most important keyword, and the tenth Content Grouping should be about your ninth most important keyword.

The Content Groupings on the Profile Page are very similar to the Start Page. Refer to the Start Page Content Grouping blog to learn how to write a proper 1. Heading, 2. Sub Heading and 3. Paragraph.

A big difference with the Profile Page Content Grouping is that it comes with the ability to create an 4. external link.  Search engines, like Google, will read a particular paragraph and then follow the associated link.  If they find material that is relevant after the link, it will help with your search result for the keyword in your Content Grouping.  For instance, if your paragraph is all about ‘Emergency Veterinary Services’ and you link to a page on your web site that is exclusively about ‘Emergency Veterinary Service’ search engines will consider this a valuable link and you should receive better search results for it.  (Learn more about creating effective External Paragraph Links)

5. Paragraph Graphics are a very powerful way to encourage people to understand what a Content Grouping is about.  Think of how newspapers grab your attention about a particular article by associating a descriptive picture with it.

6. The SEO Assistant is a tool that provides helpful hints on how to best use a particular option.  There is one for each content grouping.  For each one, you should include 3 keywords that are closely related to the content grouping.  By including these words in your SEO Assistant, you are clearly telling the search engines what particular keywords the associated paragraph is focused on.  Keyword included in the SEO Assistant will also appear in a keyword list at the bottom of the page, further optimizing those words.

7. Should you wish, you can have the update that you have made to the first Content Grouping, published to the different social media pages for your particular CitySite.  This satellite box remains checked by default, and we encourage you to publish all updates when you alter your first Content Grouping.

Once you are finished writing your content, scroll down to the very bottom of the page and click on the “Preview Edits” button. This will take you to a preview of how your content will be displayed on the web.

Once you are satisfied with how the content appears, click on “Save and Return to Account Overview.”

 

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Google Places- The Place To Be

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If you sit down and think about it, Google is everywhere- smartphones, laptops, tablets, offices, cars and most importantly- in the hands of your consumers.

Keeping that in mind, and adding in the fact that one out of five searches on Google are related to location, Google Places is a great tool to have for your business.

Google Places helps your business get found by location. Since one out of five searches are related to location, it makes it important that Google knows where your  business is!

Why should I get Google Places?

97% of customers search for local businesses online
Show them exactly where you are with a Google Places Page

Google Places provides very useful information about who is visiting the Place page and where they are searching from
Knowing this information can help you decide on marketing strategies, and learn more about the people who are looking for you.

It gives the searcher a quick snapshot of a business including the address, reviews, products and services, hours of operation, photos and other things that someone might want to know about a business
Making it easy for your customers to find the information they want will make them like you more. In turn increasing the possibility they will come to your store, or call you for more information.

Google Places is a great way to build an online presence, even if your company hasn’t got a website!

 

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The Success of Our House, Barrie, Ontario

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Our House

Our House in Barrie, Ontario –  a seller of unique gifts, jewellery, and home accessories – is doing a fantastic job with their website provided by www.BarrieDirect.info.

The following highlights some of the many things they have done well and the online success these efforts are achieving:

- Enhanced Pages: Our House opted to Enhance their Start Page Package (with Map and Contact pages). They also Enhanced their Profile, Brands, and Social Pages. By doing so, they have unlocked the full power of each page offering.

- Graphic Design: Our House worked well with their  CityDirect.info Marketing Specialist to communicate a look and feel to our in-house graphic designers. Our designers executed design that reinforced the brand image of Our House – upscale and sophisticated, focused on women who care about classic, long lasting style.

- Domain and Hosting: With the domain name OurHouseBarrie.com, and hosting provided through BarrieDirect.info, Our House is sure to benefit from superior reliability and the ease of dealing with one provider of online marketing solutions.

- Local Directory: Being part of Barrie, Ontario’s premier local business directory and CitySite, Our House benefits from having their virtual storefront (their website) and their listings within BarrieDirect.info’s local network – which significantly increases qualified visits and improves search engine optimization (SEO).

Brand Page:

http://www.ourhousebarrie.com/brands/


Profile Page:

http://www.ourhousebarrie.com/profile/

Directory Listing (Enhanced):


Google Search: “Our House Barrie, Ontario”

#1 result with each page individually itemized

Google Search: “Unique gift Barrie, Ontario”

#1 and #2 result from their Start Page and Profile Page respectively.

– Our House knows how important Google has become to local business. They also understand that such an important aspect of their marketing should be managed by experts if they are to remain competitive. Therefore, Our House uses the expert services of CityDirect.info to not only properly setup and optimize their local account but to keep them optimized as the rules of the game continue to change.

– Our House realizes that the Internet is a powerful tool to spread word of mouth. They know that social networks like Twitter and Facebook are now used as much as search engines. By harnessing a Social Page through BarrieDirect.info they not only are able to quickly and easily share information with their audience, but also save time and effort – because their Social Page allows them to place messages into Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn all at once.

http://www.ourhousebarrie.com/social/

– By working with their CityDirect.info Marketing Specialist and by making good use of www.BarrieDirect.info, Our House not only has built an impressive online presence, but has focused it directly at their target market.

 

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Show your contribution on all of your Pages!

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* Improved *

“Last Updated On” Date, “Verified Authentic Page Published by Owner” label and Merit Badges added to each Product Page

Now: These improvements will be added to each of the Product Pages (Start, Profile, Brands, Contact etc.)

With the addition of “Last Updated On” date and Merit Badges onto product pages, Business Members are now being encouraged to update more than just their Listings.

Placing this date on each Product Page lets users see how current the information is on each individual page. This being said, the Merit Badges also change from page to page, depending on the date of the last update.

Just as on the Listings, the breakdown of the Merit Badges is as follows:

Merit Badges

Merit Badges

The “Verified Authentic Page Published by Owner” label identifies pages that are managed and maintained by actual businesses and organizations. Similar to the “Verified Listings Published by Owner”, this label builds trust, credibility and shows that you are paying attention to your listings.

Verified Page

Verified Page

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More Content Than Ever Before

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* Improved *

Headlines are now available on Basic Listings!

Previously, headlines were only available on Enhanced Listings and were followed by a small summary about the organization.

Enhanced Listings Headlines

Enhanced Listings Headlines

Now, Basic Listings have headlines as well!

Placing headlines on the Basic Listings controlled by Business Members is another way in which we can differentiate Business Members from Prospects. The headlines also provide another way for you to get updated, fresh content on your Listings.

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In the Club!

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* New *

“Business Member Since…” month and year now added to Listings

We are now adding the month and the year that a Business Member who has an Organization Location, became a Business Member of a CitySite.

This information will be added to the Organization Location’s Listing, Basic or Enhanced:

Verified Listings

"Business Member Since..."

This date is used to build more trust between visitors and yourself. Long standing Business Members create a positive, trustworthy image for the business and CityDirect.info.

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Get Rewarded

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* New *

Business Members are now awarded Merit Badges for their updates!

The date of the most recent update will determine whether you get a gold, silver or bronze badge based on the following time lines:

Merit Badges

Merit Badges

If the Listing goes 91 days or more, without an update, all badges will be removed from the Listing.

No updates past 90 days, no badges!

The Merit Badges are displayed on the Listing as shown here:

Merit Badges Example

Merit Badges Example

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New Icons, Buttons and Links On Listings

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* New *

We have finally added access to Video, Social, Specialties, Brands, Products, and Services to the Listings on the Directory Pages for Business Members.

Enhanced Listings will have new icons, in an updated style. The Basic Listings for Business Members now have more links, and for the first time, icons as well!

Example of Enhanced Listing:
 

Enhanced Listings
Enhanced Listings
Enhanced Listing

Enhanced Listing

Example of Basic Listing:

Basic Listings

Basic Listings

Basic Listing

Basic Listing

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