Blog - Page 6 of 15 - Drive By Websites Ltd.

Developing the Website of the Future – Web Development

2nd February 2018 by driveby

There are some emerging technologies that are set to change Web Development in much the same way as mobile browsing has in recent years. We have named a few that we predict will be become more and more common in the coming years.

Domain Extensions

We can already see the rise of unconventional domain name extensions beginning. As traditional domains (.com and .co.uk) have been so widely used, people will need to adopt new domain extensions such as .limited, .shop or .events. There are a vast number of extensions now available but we still aren’t coming across them daily. As more people are forced to adopt them, the search engines will respond by putting them on an even playing field with more common extensions. A lot of industry experts are arguing that it’s important to start using them now to ride that wave when it comes. There are currently over 600 new extensions that you could potentially invest in over the next few years.

Cryptocurrency

It seems logical that before ‘cryptocurrency’ (such as Bitcoin) truly finds its place in the real world, it will first become as standard for future ecommerce websites as PayPal is today. With virtual currency growing in popularity there are already signs of this reality. Major websites such as Microsoft, Expedia and Shopify.com have already adopted this payment option. Benefits include anonymity, very low transaction fees and irreversible transactions (a third party such as a bank or PayPal can’t reverse the payment). We’re a long way off a cryptocurrency revolution but if it continues to grow as it has then there will undoubtedly be a market call for this in Ecommerce Web Development.

Online Security

With online security concerns still inhibiting a smooth browsing experience it seems logical that the market will lean towards account security being less troublesome and more secure. Three symbols, two numbers, one capital letter and ten minimum characters leaves users with a problem on their hands. Most of us will have experienced the difficulty of creating a password that has to be written down. This defeats the object of the security measures and ultimately makes the account less secure. The future will offer Web Development options beyond that. Examples of this can be seen with online banking and the technology available to enter your pin securely. Many smart phones are now capable of reading thumbprints therefore thumbprint entry is potentially already an option. Regardless of how this manifests itself, there is currently a need for a solution. With website apps being commonplace for social media, online banking and even ecommerce (such as Ebay and Amazon) it won’t be long before we are able to use the full potential of facial recognition, voice recognition and thumb recognition to solve this problem.

To discuss your own futuristic web development objectives, give us a call on 01775 761512 or contact us online.

Startup Website – Things To Consider

22nd November 2017 by driveby

If you’re currently considering a new business start up or are looking for a new startup website, we have outlined a few considerations.

Domain Name Significance. If you have to introduce your startup into competitive online search results, you’ll need every small advantage. Using a domain name that relates directly to your ideal search keyword can do exactly that. For example – instead of just using a company name – try to include things such as the main service or location.
Jumping the Queue. Website videos are a great way to cut through the search results on your startup website. Unlike organic google website rankings, they’re often listed instantly! Google and Youtube are both linked in a way that other video platforms are not. This leads to much more attractive Google listings. Many would be tempted to watch a video in search results over web links because the listing features a thumbnail image from the video. Click here to read more about website videos.
Google Maps. Configuring a pin on Google Maps with a link to your startup website will massively improve your ranking and can get you on the first page. Localised searching also means that people can stumble on your business map without even having entered a location in their search!
Blogging. Perhaps the most important considerations long term is blogging. If you start now, you’ll see the results a lot quicker. Blogging is undoubtedly a chore but it comes at only the cost of spare time and the results are unparalleled. Continuous fresh content will mean Google needs to regularly index your site. It is also used when Google decides how to rank your website. Click here to read more about website blogs.
Future Proof Hosting. While we do try to pride ourselves on our nonsense services, this jargon is worth a read. Future proof hosting refers to servers that are continually being kept updated with new and innovative performance and security enhancements. Our UK hosting service offers excellent security, speed, safety and support. This is mainly because we run FreeBSD systems, generally considered to be one of – if not – the most stable and high performance operating systems. Click here to see how other hosting server operating systems stack up. Can your startup afford to find that your website has run out of bandwidth, or isn’t functioning as expected? All too often new businesses find themselves in similar situations. A good startup website needs to be prepared for what’s to come as your business expands.

Need help with your new business startup website?

If you would like more information or a quote to get set up with a new business startup website, give us a call on 01775 761512.

Video Production For Websites and Social Media

14th November 2017 by driveby

Drive By Websites Ltd regularly produce website and social media videos for our clients. This improves the Google ranking of websites and generally improves the content quality of a website or social media page.

Videos produced specifically for use on websites are hugely beneficial for a website's ranking in Google. Techniques differ slightly for social media, but videos are equally as effective on social media due to the high number of engagements they can produce.

Youtube For Websites

Perhaps one of the lesser known advantages is how effective Youtube is in integrating videos with websites. Many website developers choose to upload videos directory onto their websites, but this is much less effective than youtube for multiple reasons. Google and Youtube are both linked in a way that other video platforms are not. This leads to much more attractive Google listings, where self-hosted videos often don't. See example below:

Despite being the second result in the Google listings, many would be tempted to watch the video in the above search results. This is because the thumbnail image is only displayed for image and video results. When related to a video, thumbnail results are most commonly Youtube videos over alternative third parties.

Video Editing For Websites and Social Media

In our experience, videos featuring less detail and simpler content result in more engagements via social media. Whereas on a website the context for the video has already been established when searching Google. Social Media users are only glancing at your video for a moment as they scroll through and they are not necessarily in search for the information on offer. A website video can afford to be much more substantive in its content. This can allow for more flexibility when video editing, with a preference for professionalism and content quality over brief attention grabbing content. Take a look at these two examples:

Nick’s Strength And Power Website Now Live

5th October 2017 by driveby

Drive By Websites Ltd are pleased to announce the launch of one of our latest websites, Nick’s Strength And Power. Nick is a successful YouTube personality with over 200,000 subscribers at the time of launching. Nick creates informational videos about natural bodybuilding, the bodybuilding industry, dieting, training, nutrition, supplementation, contest prep, and more.

Website Design For A YouTube Channel

The website features a video gallery (updated live from his YouTube channel), online store and a blog. The online shop is built with simplicity in mind, making it easier for Nick’s followers to purchase merchandise. The blog will help improve the site’s organic SEO ranking, and actually includes all of the blog posts from Nick’s last site as well.

The development was almost entirely undertaken via email, since Nick is not based in the UK. This is becoming a development style that is more frequently required in our industry. It was a pleasure working with Nick on this project and we look forward to supporting the site for many years as Nick’s channel continues to grow.

To view the website, go to: www.nicksstrengthandpower.com

For more information on this or to see how we can help you, contact us online.

What Are the Benefits of a Blog?

28th June 2017 by driveby

Continuous fresh content will mean Google needs to regularly index your site and is also a consideration when Google decides how to rank your website in search results. If your website doesn’t contain a lot of content, or any fresh content, a blog would be the perfect way to achieve this while also target specific keywords.

While it isn’t easy to commit to a blog, keep in mind that it may only be a weekly or biweekly update that is all you need to start increasing visitors. If don’t know where to start, try creating a list of different content opportunities. We regularly suggest using testimonials as blog posts, as they usually contain excellent keywords but also don’t require any writing time for the blogger. You can also use events, industry news and business changes.

How does this bring a return in visitors? As well as ranking new pages into Google, a good blog psot can also receive social media shares and links from other websites. All of this will also increases your ‘Domain Authority’, where Google considers your site a higher authority than your competition.

If you would like more information or a quote to get set up with a blog, or for us to blog for you, give us a call on 01775 761512.

Ransomware – What You Need To Know

15th May 2017 by driveby

By now, you will likely be hearing a lot about ‘Ransomware’. Here’s what you need to know:

Ransomware is a cyber-attack that results in payment demands in return for access to your data. The malicious software (often included in an email) encrypts your information. They then threaten to block access to the files until a ransom is paid. The cost commonly ranges from £400 to £1,500 in bitcoin. These attacks are mostly waged against businesses, for obvious reasons

Back up your files to ensure you don’t lose any data.
Don’t open suspicious emails, websites or mobile apps. Hackers use these to transfer malicious software onto your computer or device.
Get antivirus protection. Antivirus programs can stop ransomware from being downloaded onto computers by scanning files for ransomware before downloading and scanning existing files.
Install updates/Auto update. programs are often updated to fix vulnerabilities that have been exploited to install malicious software. It is best practice to always download the newest version of your software as soon as you can, or enable an auto-update function.

Google’s been busy. Has your hosting provider?

1st May 2017 by driveby

Google has been busy in the last year with:

1,653 new search changes
9,800 live traffic experiments
18,015 side-by-side experiments
130,336 search quality tests

What we don’t know is how many of those 1,653 new search changes are algorithmic or ranking changes. Those would be the changes that impact you and your business. There is believed to be over 200 ranking factors working to compare your site with your competitors. When changes are made to these many factors, webmasters are rarely quick to act. In fact, nearly all of the clients that move their website to our hosting servers are out of date in some form.

While you are keeping your content fresh and relevant, we are working all the time on making the most of that content. Upgrades to our systems take place on a weekly basis and allow your site to remain as relevant in two years as it was the day it went live.

Contact us regarding website transfers for a free quote and helpful advice.

You NEED This App: Super easy site updates from phones and tablets

9th January 2017 by driveby

You’ve undoubtedly heard us say it a million times, “You MUST keep your website up to date”. It’s rule number one for gaining and maintaining a quality space in the Google search engine.

Even with the opportunity to update your website, we know that after a few busy weeks or even a holiday away, it’s not always easy to get back online and refreshing your content. But it should be a priority. We are periodically faced with this challenge, and with Christmas and New Year wrapped up we felt it was time we put forward an alternative.

Picture your website was as simple as Facebook – type in some text, attach an image and hit publish – would you update your website more?

This is essentially where we wanted to be. So that clients looking to make small updates wouldn’t need to refer to a guide to make them. Not to mention, we needed to get people updating their website while going about their business, not having to sit in front of a computer.

The answer lies in mobile technology. We needed the equivalent of a mobile app for users to make their website updates, in a way that would be comparable to the Twitter or Facebook app. While it’s not exactly a good idea to stick to rules like 140 characters or less, the general idea on a website is that 140 characters beats 0 characters. We began rolling out a Mobile App of this description to a handful of clients late last year. Not only has the App surpassed expectations from our clients perspectives, but it has also been intuitive enough to lead clients into new areas such as video blogs, or gallery pages.

So, how is this App so simple?

A mobile provides everything you need to publish your business updates. It has WiFi and data, a camera and a keyboard. Blogs or website updates made from a mobile or tablet are unlikely to be reaching the same quality as through traditional means, but your job is to look at your competition and ask, “Can I write more than them, on a more frequent basis?”. This App aims to help you achieve that, in the simplest way possible.

Contact us for set up and training to use the App for your website. If you are struggling to find the time to update your website or conquer the learning curve, the benefits to your business will be endless.

Doing more with your website and social media