Page not found – Hoot Media https://www.hootmedia.co.uk Tue, 26 Feb 2019 10:22:33 +0000 en-GB hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.8.9 How Devon web design helped turn a hobby into two successful businesses https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/how-devon-web-design-helped-turn-a-hobby-into-two-successful-businesses/ Fri, 11 Jan 2019 09:42:09 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=2042 When Fi Darby’s husband suggested that she and her friend Lucy Atkins started an outdoor blog about their adventures walking and wild camping on Dartmoor, little did she know that six years later she would not only be the co-director of a successful outdoor business, she would also be running her own freelance copywriting business from her Devon home.

Over the six years since Two Blondes Walking wrote their first outdoors adventure blog post, their blog has gone from strength to strength and led them down unexpected and exciting avenues. With full time teaching jobs and voluntary responsibilities teaching youngsters expedition skills for Dartmoor’s Ten Tors Challenge and the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award, Lucy and Fi soon found themselves catapulted into a world of outdoor promotion, children’s book publishing and TV appearances.

As the Two Blondes Walking blog grew, it became clear that the simple WordPress website, initially created by Fi, was not going to be up to the job of managing a burgeoning load of e-commerce, daily blog posts and media requests. This is where Hoot Media stepped in. Fi was looking for a local Devon design agency that would understand the Two Blondes’ need for an eye-catching but affordable design whilst allowing her to keep content management control. The design needed to incorporate a large image gallery, present and organise daily blog posts and provide a solid e-commerce platform, all within a look that took the Two Blondes a step beyond, but not too far away from their quirky origins. Tom understood these needs immediately and added his own successful suggestions to the mix. The result has been a website that is robust enough to cope with daily updates, facilitates the need to build on existing audience growth and has achieved excellent SEO results. With the help of Hoot Media, Two Blondes Walking now regularly features in first page search engine results for key outdoor queries and has led to increased sales of their outdoor and navigation workshops, press trips to review a number of holiday experiences, ambassadorships with Ordnance Survey, Visit Dartmoor and Nearly Wild Camping and influencer offers from internationally recognised outdoor providers including Rab, Rohan, Icebreaker, Blacks/Millets, Columbia and Craghoppers.

With the desire to make a break from teaching and a growing love of writing, in October 2016, Fi decided to launch her own freelance copywriting business from her home in Torquay, Devon. Once again she turned to Tom and Hoot Media and once again their advice, expertise and helpful approach to customer service have been a real boost. Fi Darby Freelance now has an escalating portfolio of international clients and Fi writes on a wide variety of topics including technology, travel, careers and the outdoors.

‘Growing your social media following is important,’ says Fi, ‘but it is next to useless without a professional website that has been designed to allow your talent to shine through. Tom and the team at Hoot Media have recognised our needs and helped us move forwards. We look forward to working with them more in the future as both Two Blondes Walking and Fi Darby Freelance grow.’

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Featured Client: The Devon Beach Co. https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/featured-client-the-devon-beach-co/ Tue, 08 Jan 2019 12:48:59 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=2033 A Devon Web Design Company Helping Businesses Grow

Four years ago, Marilu Wren, owner of The Devon Beach Company was looking for a company providing web design in Devon to help her business grow. Hoot Media took on the project, liaising closely with Marilu to create a website that displayed her wide range of products, inspired by the serenity and beauty of Devon’s local landscape, in a way that made it simple for customers to browse and purchase from their extensive range of award winning items.

The website designed by Hoot Media receives more than 11,000 visits each year and presents each of the items sold by The Devon Beach Company in a user friendly manner. Over 200 different products with 300 different options for sizes, colour or fabric textures are presented on the website over four separate groups – Relax, Cook, Décor and Explore.

Along with ensuring the website was responsive for mobile, tablet, and desktop computer users, Hoot Media integrated multiple payment methods and a weight based shipping function that makes it easy for customers in the UK or abroad to calculate postage for their purchases or even arrange to collect from one of three Devon stores in Churchstow, Salcombe, or their latest premises, picturesque Dartmouth. Built on a WordPress platform that makes it simple for business owners to manage their content from, The Devon Beach Company’s customers are able to locate items they wish to purchase and complete transactions in an average of 2 minutes and 24 seconds.

A Rapidly Expanding Devon Based Business

From beanbags to coastal inspired furniture and onto artwork and bodycare products, The Devon Beach Company have covered all customers’ desires to bring a little of Devon’s coast into everyday life. Their dedication to sourcing and designing truly functional, eco-friendly and award winning products has paid off. In 2017, The Devon Beach Company were featured as shop of the month in Coast magazine and in December 2018, their gorgeous Corono blanket and popular Welshman’s Caviar were featured in the Christmas Gift Guide.

The Devon Beach Company’s website has helped the business grow from one retail location to three and enabled customers from all over the UK and Europe to browse their varied range of coastal inspired items with ease.

“Hoot Media took everything I wanted the website to be and delivered a beautifully designed website that was not only noticeable, but a pleasure for my customers to use.” Marilu Wren said.

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Supporting Torquay Businesses’ Success Since 2002 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/supporting-torquay-businesses-success-since-2002/ Tue, 20 Nov 2018 08:53:50 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=1999 For more than 16 years, Hoot Media have been working with businesses of all kinds in Torquay to create well-designed, professional websites that really help businesses grow to their full potential. Ross Kernick one of Hoot Media’s Directors and founders, lives in Torquay and believes it is important to support his local economy and community.

“Torquay is so much more than simply a holiday destination. We have a really vibrant and strong business community here that supports our population of over 65,000 residents with jobs, services and some really quality products. As a web design agency with links to the area, I believe it is important to support the growth of these businesses. One way to do this is by creating websites and then providing other supporting services for those sites that really make them sing.”

Hoot Media have worked with a wide range of clients in Torquay, from professional organisations such as Vincent & Co Accountants and Datel Electrical Ltd, through to smaller businesses like award winning H&Co Hair Salon. Each website design and build is approached with a fresh outlook and the client’s requirements top of mind to ensure that the website works for them in every way.

For Hoot Media, websites are not just ‘shop windows’ but an opportunity to engage remote workers or help them manage their clients and bookings. This is exactly what The Driving School South-West were looking for when they approached Hoot Media with their brief. Not only did their website need to attract people who wanted to learn how to drive with great Google ratings and social media capabilities, it also needed to connect their instructors in an engaging and helpful way that kept them up to date with the organisation’s news.

A deep interest in technology and a true passion for creating intuitive, polished websites that support businesses is at the heart of Hoot’s attitude and evident in their selection of their team members too; each member of their team as a clear passion for technology and keeping up to date on developments in their industry.

“Building websites is at the core of what we do at Hoot Media” says Ross “But then we also provide a range of other services and products like smartphone apps, Google ads and the like, that really support our main work and make a business’ website stand out in a way that enriches their wider marketing plan and longer-term goals.”

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New Plymouth Website Review https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/new-plymouth-website-review/ Tue, 27 Feb 2018 17:03:13 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=1432

“Tom at Hoot Media is a pleasure to deal with. He listens to what you want and is able to offer helpful advice. I have a beautifully designed website that gets lots of positive comments. Tom has also been really helpful with the Outlook problems I have had after recently moving to Windows 10. I would highly recommend Hoot Media for your website design and it’s hosting.”

Diane Thyer

 

Supplied Services
Web DesignWeb DevelopmentDigital Marketing

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New Mercedes Web Design Review https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/new-mercedes-web-design-review/ Tue, 20 Feb 2018 16:56:56 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=1426

“If you want a website that not only look’s great but performs great too, then look no further. A great company with great people.”

Dan Curley, Mercedes On Lease

 

Supplied Services
Web DesignWeb DevelopmentDigital Marketing

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5 Star Torquay Web Design Review https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/5-star-torquay-web-design-review/ Tue, 13 Feb 2018 16:59:45 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=1429

“Hoot really listened to what we wanted from our new website and came back with a design we loved – and that has been praised for its attractive appearance and ease-of-use by customers and stakeholders. Hoot have always been responsive, fuss-free and a pleasure to work with and I would thoroughly recommend them.”

Emma Seaman

 

Supplied Services
Web DesignWeb DevelopmentDigital Marketing

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Lubitec Website Review https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/lubitec-web-design-review/ Thu, 25 Jan 2018 10:14:30 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=1398

“Hoot offered us exactly what we discussed and excelled in their final presentation. We are a new company in an global market and since we engaged with Hoot our enquiries have grown 40% from UK / EU markets and 60% from the Far East and USA. We constantly ask for small changes and updates and to be fair these are usually done with in 48hrs. Tom and his team really do deliver what it says on the tin! a please to do business with you all.”

Peter Farthing, Lubitec

 

Supplied Services
Web DesignWeb DevelopmentDigital Marketing

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Parkers Farm Cottage & Caravans https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/parkers-farm-cottage-website/ Wed, 20 Jul 2016 10:21:23 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=907 In business, if your company stands still it will inevitable go backwards which is why its so important that your website is regularly updated and reviewed. After all, for the vast majority of businesses a website is their shop window to the world. Over time, your businesses services/products will evolve and Parkers Farm Cottages & Caravans was no exception.

Set in the heart of South Devon with fantastic views across Dartmoor, Parkers Farm Cottages & Caravans attracts tourists throughout the UK. Ideally located on the doorstep of the moors and a short drive to the beach, their self-catering cottages, wide selection of static caravans and on-site facilities makes the location highly desirable.

From the brief, it was important that design retained elements from the old site so that there was a familiarity and a transition from old to new. Older, long term holiday makers would therefore be able to easily recognise and be comfortable using the new Parkers Farm Cottages website. Furthermore, the colourful playful design needed to reflect the welcoming, family friendly holiday location that sees people return year on year.

In regards to technical application, the responsive website design works on desktops, tablets and mobiles – expanding or shrinking to the desired browser size and device. The WordPress content management system allows the owners to securely login and easily update it, changing pictures, prices, text and much more! Tourism in Devon is fiercely competitive as well all know with the search engine optimisation focused on the self-catering and static caravans in South Devon.

View Parkers Farm Cottages & Caravans

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Dartmoor Preservation Logo Re-Brand & Website https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/dartmoor-preservation-logo-website-re-brand/ Wed, 01 Jun 2016 07:04:47 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=848 Hoot Media Ltd have been working closely with The Dartmoor Preservation Association (DPA) to update their website and logo, which was in need of a revamp.

The Dartmoor Preservation Association (DPA) has been at the forefront of protecting and conserving Dartmoor since 1883 and is one of the oldest organisations of its type in the country. The DPA has a hard-won reputation for opposing activities which threaten the National Park.

Our brief was to update the DPA logo, carrying out a re-branding and public relations exercise to increase public awareness and distinguish the DPA from the many other organisations with similar names. Similarly, the website needed to enable visitors to quickly and easily navigate their way around the site, whilst looking professional, traditional and uncluttered. Being a membership driven organisation, particular importance was placed upon joining and donating.

The Logo

There were a number of key elements to include in regards to the DPA heritage such as the Bowermans Nose tor, the greens and purples (moorland and heather) and the ‘DPA’ acronym. In short, the logo needed to evolve, maintaining the traditional feel of the previous logos – that dated back to 1883 – whilst incorporating a contemporary cleaner look through the Bowermans nose mark.

dpa-dartmoor

The Website

The Dartmoor Preservation Association website appeals to a wide range of users, from those wishing to support and conserve Dartmoor to those finding out about its archaeology, events or upland farming. The responsive website has a wealth of information with portal images implemented to enable users to find the various sections and large images reflecting the diverse and fascinating ecology of Dartmoor.

With a loyal membership base that’s growing year upon year, being ‘part of Dartmoor’ needed to enable and encourage the general public to join. The easy-to-use content management system makes updating the website quick and simple, with selected members having their own secure login area.

To visit website, go to www.dartmoorpreservation.co.uk

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Survival School https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/survival-school/ Fri, 20 May 2016 13:52:04 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=909 A long term client of Hoot Media Ltd, Survival School is a forward thinking company that always embraces change. Over time the website has also adapted to various scenarios such as monitors becoming bigger initially then the demand for mobile web browsing.

As technology improves, buyers demands change and their preferences evolve, the design of Survival School has also seen a shift away from the usual dark forest colours of black and green. The lighter design of white and greys reflects a more minimalistic approach as users, more than ever now, want to find a product and buy instantly. This trend does away with more artistic elements and strips a website back to its bare bones of category, product, checkout – a movement similar in the architecture industry of the Le Corbusier’s buildings from the 1920’s.

The product range of Survival School hasn’t changed, although the speed at which content is now presented to customers is quicker by building the website from the ground up, integrating a better caching system and using a new framework.

In short, a new website is always nice however the key question most online shop owners will ask is… is it cost-effective? Can the cost be justified in terms of paying for itself through an increase in online traffic and sales. At this stage, the improved search engine optimisation, the faster loading website and the streamlined design have collectively increased the number of visitors, which in turn increases sales.

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How Important is Google Analytics? https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/google-analytics/ Tue, 17 May 2016 14:00:44 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=885 Monitor & Track Site Information

Google Analytics is a digital marketing tool that businesses are often unaware of. It allows you to measure results from company websites, comparing the data to previous time periods, a simple way to monitor your sites traffic.

Data

It also shows you data from channels that are directing traffic to your website, including: SEO, PPC, Social Media, Referrals & Direct Traffic. It makes it a lot more convenient having all your data in one place as it allows channels to be compared with ease. In addition to many other features, Google Analytics also allows goals to be set and tracked for when a user completes a certain action on your site.

Bounce Rate

A ‘Bounce rate’ is simply the percentage of visitors that leave your website without interacting, often after viewing one page. A ‘Page/Session’ is the number of pages visitors view for example; Home, About, News, Gallery etc (doesn’t include bounce rate).

In Addition to this, the ‘Average Session Duration’ shows the time spent on the website by each visitor. In general, viewing individual pages can sometimes give you a better idea of what pages need optimising to improve use.

Summary

To conclude, Google Analytics provides you with the information needed to improve your website, making it the best it can be, which in turn, brings your company more business. Something to keep in mind is that Google Analytics now requires sites to be mobile friendly, meaning it’s compatible for mobile phones, in order to receive a higher ranking within Google.

This is important as it improves the user experience on your website when viewing on a mobile phone. Having a mobile friendly website means users avoid the annoying need to pinch and zoom the display in order to make the content legible.

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New Red Herring Events Website https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/new-red-herring-events-website/ Sun, 24 Apr 2016 09:38:53 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=856 Red Herring Events has been a long term client of ours for roughly 9 years. Based in Brockenhurst, Hampshire Red Herring Events have twenty years experience in catering for parties, weddings and corporate events along the South Coast, London and the Home Counties. Their professional, highly skilled team of chefs create a menu specifically tailored to their clients taste, preparing all the food freshly on site.

In terms of a website brief, it was important that the website looked and functioned differently to what would be considered the ‘norm’ for websites. Standing out from the crowd is what Red Herring Events is about, with the website combining a vertical navigation and part-horizontal masonry look to reflect their uniqueness.

Your website is the most important marketing tool you can have for generating new work. The eye-catching homepage is image heavy in order to show off the best of Red Herring and its services with users encouraged to hover over the various photographs. Furthermore, this unique layout also need to look great on all devices whether it’s on a laptop, tablet or mobile device whilst being easily found on all major search engines.

To view the website, visit www.redherringevents.co.uk

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Hoot Awarded New AADO Logo & Website Contract https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/hoot-awarded-aado-logo-website-contract/ Sat, 23 Apr 2016 15:31:20 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=873 Hoot Media are pleased to announce the launch of the new Association of Anaerobic Digestion Operators (AADO) website and logo. Both the responsive website and acronym logo was delivered on-time and on budget with the responsive website taking inspiration from the recently completed logo.

The brief was short and to the point, ‘to provide a clean, minimal website that is visually striking by utilising lots of images that compliments the logo’.

Green was the logical choice of colour for the logo, whether it’s the connotations of nature or the ‘eco’ foundations of The AADO – sometimes the best step forward is the conventional. Many designers feel the need to over complicate, to add extra bits and to use a plethora of colours however the real skill… ‘less is more’. Crafting a logo that works at any size, from a business card to the side of van as well as looking good if it’s in colour or black and white.

The website uses a combination of photographs and graphics to visualise the various aspects of anaerobic digestion. The AADOs primary target audience are operators wishing to join the association as well as the general public wishing to learn more about subject. All information is easily updated through a content management system, enabling new pages to be created, text to be changed, menu items reordered and much more. With mobile browsing  continually growing year on year, it was important the responsive website crushed down to various sizes based on the user’s screen size whether thats a laptop, tablet or phone.

To view the new website, please go to www.aado.org.uk

 

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6 Web Design Trends Worth Considering https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/861/ Thu, 10 Mar 2016 15:00:52 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=861 1. UI Patterns – Increased Usage

Responsive website design is becoming increasingly popular due to a combination of the rise in WordPress sites & other theme purchasing sites like Themeforest. This results in a lot of websites looking very similar, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

From research into the way we consume the web, it has been discovered many sites have a lot of common UI design patterns. This is due to the fact it is becoming harder to create a theme which has new, exciting features in addition to a responsive theme.

To explain in detail, a checkout doesn’t change it’s functionality from site to site, it always remains a checkout with the simple shop, basket & my account sections. This system works perfectly, combining a smooth experience with easy navigation for users.

Popular Features & Patterns

There are a few patterns that you may be familiar with, one of which is Long Scrolling, which is a continuously scrolling website, often only consisting of a singular page, displaying all the website information in sections. Another is the Card Layout, AKA the tiled effect.

This consists of a load of boxes, containing both text and imagery, all fitting together in either a randomised grid with various sized boxes or a set grid where all the boxes are restricted to the same dimensions to create a more sleek, clean look.

Other popular features within a website currently are account registration/advertisement pop-up boxes, these appear in the middle of your screen, often with a transparent box behind in order to dim down the website in the background. These are only able to be exited by a cross often appearing in the top corner of the screen within the website.

2. Animations

Animations are being used more and more recently to enhance a sites interactive experience & entertainment. The placement of animations is not to be skimmed over, this is an important element as it can either make or break your website design.

You have to carefully consider whether animations will add to your sites elements & personality, sometimes they can result in an overcrowded, busy website, meaning its harder and more confusing for your users to navigate around.

Types of Animation

There are two types of animations, large scale & small scale. Large scale animations consist of pop-up notifications & parallax scrolling, they often create more of an impact on users when being used as a primary interaction tool. Small scale animations include spinners, hover tools and loading bars. Other than hover actions, these elements don’t require any interaction.

The 7 most popular animations used are loading animations, nonscrolling navigations, hover animations, sliders & galleries, motion animations – includes video – and scrolling functionalities.

3. Micro-interactions

Micro interactions are actions such as turning off an alarm on your mobile phone to liking a post on Instagram. Each action is done with minimal thinking processes, it’s likely the majority of people reading this article started off their day by using their mobile phones.

It has been proven with recent research that 80% of smartphone users check their phones within 15 minutes of waking up. Micro-interactions help to achieve a few things such as communicating a status or feedback, seeing the result of an action or helping you as the user the manipulate something.

Micro-interactions are also vital to the success of any mobile app, the trick is to not overload your design with elements of interaction, keep it simple and easy to use, maybe consider researching into conversational text to prevent your information from coming across robotic.

4. An Alternative to Flat Design – Material Design

In the past few years, Google launched material design. This uses shadows, movement and other effects in order to create a more realistic and interesting design for users.

The goal of this launch was to offer a modernistic, clean design with a more 3D effect. Material Design Lite consists of lightweight coding and less regimented framework, allowing a wider range of front end tools to be used. Before now, a lot of the material design projects were limited to app design.

5. Responsive Designs

Responsive designs have become increasingly popular in the recent years thanks to the rise of mobile internet usage and the evolution of the mobile phone itself.

Responsive websites aren’t going anywhere anytime soon as they represent a relatively simple and cheap way to build a fully-functional site that in addition is mobile friendly; catering for the wide population of people who use mobile internet.

The performance of a responsive design depends partly on the usage of responsive, low file size images as this can majorly effect speed and loading times. This style of web design is starting to be more of a practice for designers than a trend.

This is down to the fact responsive design is so useful and versatile along with being a lot faster than other styles of websites, meaning users aren’t waiting for extensive times to load different elements of your website.

6. Flat Designs

Flat design has been around for a while and links closely with minimal, material & responsive design. The usage of flat design will eventually start to decline as it doesn’t include features such as drop shadows, which are key in some cases to highlight and promote important elements and information on a website.

Some parts of flat design will remain unchanged, such as minimalism and the use of simple typography, as these features are desired in web design to create a simple and responsive website.

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‘Upgrade to Internet Explorer 11’ says Microsoft https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/upgrade-to-internet-explorer-11-say-microsoft/ Wed, 13 Jan 2016 15:00:37 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=817 Old versions of Internet Explorer are being ‘killed off’

Microsoft announced as of yesterday they will no longer be supporting early versions of Internet Explorer (7, 8, 9 & 10). They are aiming to push users towards using the new Windows 10 and Edge, the latest versions of Windows. Internet Explorer 11, the most recent version of Internet Explorer will continue to receive updates, fixes, plus both technical and security support. This applies to Windows 7, Windows 8.1 and Windows 10.

The reason behind the sudden change to Internet Explorer 11 is due to improved security, increased performance/compatibility plus better support for websites and services. Microsoft are encouraging customers to upgrade to the latest browser for a faster, secure experience. Microsoft recently revealed that over 200 million people are now using Windows 10 software, with the figures continuing to climb, however they are still aiming to have the software on a billion devices.

Joe Belfiore of Microsoft

Joe Belfiore of Microsoft said: ’It’s a browser that is made easy sharing, reading, discovery and getting things done online.’ He also admitted the firm would still allow users to install Internet Explorer. ‘We will continue to make it easy for our enterprise customers to make Internet Explorer 11 the default browser via group policy. Internet Explorer 11 is supported on Windows 7, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10 for all customers, also providing a consistent platform that’s great for enterprise Web apps.’

Free upgrades

Microsoft is currently offering the new software as a free download for people who want to install it on their existing PCs/Laptops. The free upgrades contributed greatly to the millions now using Windows 10 unsurprisingly, after all, who doesn’t like a free upgrade! Internet Explorer 11 is intended to work on PCs, tablets, smartphones plus any other devices.

Conclusion

In conclusion, you need to take action now, Microsoft will NOT provide security updates or technical support for old versions any longer. The security updates are very important to protect your computer from vulnerabilities such as malicious attacks attempting to access your personal details, keep your data safe and your device up to date with Internet Explorer 11!

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Why use WordPress for your website? https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/why-use-wordpress-for-your-site/ Fri, 11 Dec 2015 11:19:24 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=795 Why is WordPress an award winning platform?

The award winning WordPress platform has been around for over 10 years now and is widely used across the globe by various companies both big and small. Why? Because it’s one of the easiest, user-friendly publishing platforms out there are as far as websites go. The WordPress back-end is continually evolving, improving its CMS, features such as galleries, custom post types, editor and more. There are plenty of plugins for WordPress too, yes, many other publishing tools may have this, however the plugin functionality with WordPress is one of the smoothest out there. They allow you to add useful sliders, shopping carts, maps, forms and so much more, the options are very diverse and accommodate for every individual.

As your business grows, so can your website!

When you add up all of WordPress’s features, you very quickly realise how easy it is to update your website to keep in trend without losing any content! WordPress is used by millions of sites globally, including some of the bigger names such as the Samsung, Spotify, New York Times & Flickr. Yet to be mentioned, WordPress is also mobile friendly meaning your website looks good on devices such as laptops, macs, tablets, computers or mobile phones!

Why Google loves WordPress

Within WordPress there are some very popular search engine elements that are highly recommended for it’s ease of use. This combined with the simple layers of WordPress, the permalinks and the easy linking within WordPress it’s no wonder Google loves WordPress! Matt Cutts the head of Google’s Webspam Team spoke about how WordPress is a great website platform for your website and of how it will get you much better results in Google itself. As far as WordPress reviews go, SEO advice from a member of the Google Team is the best you can get!

In conclusion…

If you aren’t already using a WordPress website, we strongly advise you to convert! We can offer a starter website pack from only £395! If you are interested and wish to enquire, visit our contact page and fill out the form by clicking the link provided here.

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WO Salon Torquay https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/wo-salon-torquay/ Tue, 01 Dec 2015 15:00:01 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=754 About WO Salon

WO Salon (White Orchid Salon) is based in Torwood Street, Torquay. WO offer the best in modern, traditional and cutting edge hairdressing, they can even create the perfect bridal hair for your special day, tailored to your all your wants and needs, putting the Torquay salon amongst the best stylists for bridal hair in Torbay. Personalised wedding packages are available so you can have classic, elegant, modern, romantic, tousled, extravagant or whatever you desire! Torquay residents can also take advantage of WO Salons beauty department too! Recently they purchased a new sun shower, they’re now one of a few places in Torquay to own this equipment.

The Bright Salon App

WO Salon have recently purchased our Bright Salon Mobile App tailored for both mobile hairdressers and salons, this Mobile app built for both iOS and Android devices can offer you a range of facilities such as a ‘book appointment’ feature and personalised options such as your choice of imagery for your background pictures. Our last minute appointment alerts allows you to easily notify customers with a push notification. ( similar to text notifications ) This notification shows any empty spaces your staff may have, allowing you to fill any cancelled slots. It specifies the day, time and person – with option to book online or call.

Another feature of the Salon Mobile app is the Loyalty Card. This is a great addition as you can create business have special offers & increase your product sales. For each loyalty card you can set the number of stamps and offers. Customers are able to ‘stamp’ their cards by using a QR code reader. Plus, our share to a friend option enables customers to recommend your salon to all their family and friends, meaning your salon can receive even more business!

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How Social Media Benefits Torquay Businesses https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/how-social-media-benefits-torquay-businesses/ Tue, 24 Nov 2015 15:00:25 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=689 Facebook – How Can It Help Your Torquay Business To Grow?

Facebook is often undermined when it comes to using it as a business tool. People’s perceptions are entirely wrong on the subject of marketing through using Facebook. There are over 1.19 Billion users currently with active profiles on Facebook and 88,000 Facebook users living in Torquay, this gives plenty of opportunity to market your local business to this wide audience by targeting your posts to a specific demographic.

Setting up a business profile on Facebook doesn’t cost anything, you can spend a little or a lot of money depending on your budget, however there are no initial costs unless you choose to boost your posts.

If you’re a Torquay business, direct your ads to target customers within a 10-15 mile radius of Torquay, Paignton & Brixham. The ads might cost you more as you are targeting it to a very specific area, however the potential likes and business from using this method are usually pretty high, depending on how well you narrow down your target ads. 

Just having people like your page and posts isn’t really substantial enough to provide long-term, sustainable business. The key is to engage further with your audience by creating competitions and leaving a link within a post that leads back to your own website with an entry form, this way people are more likely to then proceed to check out your Torquay website as its easier to press a link than it into search a company.

Our Torquay Web Design Clients

We have a range of clients within the Torquay area, for example, Marmalade Bed & Breakfast, The Driving School SW, JML Property Maintenance and many more all found us via ‘website design Torquay’. We manage many businesses websites and social media accounts. Often clients who don’t have a personal account prefer for us to manage their business profile so that our experience is put to use in order to create posts on your behalf and gain as much clientele as possible.

Another handy tool on Facebook is ‘Facebook Insights’. This is basically an overall review of your page, showing how many likes you have, the reach of your posts, ( The reach means how many people have viewed or interacted with your posts ) also post performance, page views and more! It’s a really easy and simple way to view how your overall page statistics are looking, this allows you to work out which areas need more focus, if you need to boost your posts with a higher budget etc.

In conclusion Facebook is a free way to advertise your business and gain more clients, so why not use that to your advantage! Check out our Facebook page… #webdesigntorquay

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Hair Salon Mobile App Launched https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/hair-salon-mobile-app-launched/ Tue, 17 Nov 2015 15:57:34 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=685 Newton Abbot hair salon, Pure Elegance at Giovanni’s is the latest Devon salon to take advantage of the ever growing demand of mobile app usage.

The app includes click-to-call, Google Maps, opening times, social media networks, last minute times and salon booking system integration to name but a few.

Their last minute appointment alerts allows Pure Elegance to easily notify their customers of any empty spaces their staff may have. Customers will receive a push notification on their phone with the day, time and person – with option to book online or call.

With plenty of features to help their salon business grow – reaching existing and new customers instantly – the mobile app will enable Pure Elegance to stay ahead of competitors with a simple, cost effective solution.

The app is now live and available on both the Apple iTunes store for iOS devices and the Google Play Store for Android devices.

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Website SSL Hosting https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/website-ssl-hosting/ Tue, 17 Nov 2015 15:34:47 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=646 Boost your search engine status

Google’s page ranking system is the most important part of the search engine, Google recently announced that they’re using HTTPS as a factor towards your ranking.

Currently this factor is affecting fewer than 1% of global queries, however, Google also noted that this could easily change and have more weight in the future.

It’s pretty inexpensive and doesn’t take too much time to set up. It gives you the ability to make sure the right information goes to the right recipient, it can also provide increased security for you, and your customers.

SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is trusted by customers, meaning they will be happier and feel safer when using your website. It also means less opportunities for hackers and another chance to improve your ranking.

If you are not currently using HTTPS via SSL then make the change! There are no real downsides and the advantages are that your website, visitor data and search rankings will all benefit!

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Why You Need A Business Email Address https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/why-you-need-a-business-email-address/ Mon, 14 Sep 2015 14:00:44 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=602 Unprofessional Names

An email address reflects your business and professionalism. Potential clients may be put off when they discover your email address is something unprofessional for example ‘krazykathy@gmail.com’.
You should avoid using personal email address’s as it can instantly put doubt into a customers mind, you should try and brand your business at every possible opportunity. For example, a more acceptable domain name would be something similar to our own email ’info@hootmedia.co.uk’. This way you are marketing your own business every time you send an email.

Advantages of paying for your email

When you pay for an email account it tends to come with antivirus and spam filters to keep your inbox clear of any unnecessary junk emails. This also means your account is secure from email which may contain dangerous spam. Another reason to get a paid business email is that you can manage all email accounts in one place! It’s handy and at the same time it keeps you organised and professional.

Using your company name

Past clients may forget what your business is called, however if they have your email in their contact book which includes your company name within it, (info@hootmedia.co.uk) it means they can quickly and easily find your website.

Domain names

Your domain name is used in various networking contexts however in general, a domain name represents an (IP) such as a personal computer, a server computer hosting a website, or the web site itself. Keep your domain name short so that it is easy to remember and easy to spell. Your domain name / company name should be used for your email & website to maintain consistency.

Conclusion

In conclusion keep your freemail address for your personal life and your business address just for business. Arranging a professional email address is easy. Whether you have a website with us or another company, ask your website developer to create a new email address for you and if you don’t, first secure a domain name using a domain register website!

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‘Winter is coming’ for the Allen Valley Stoves website https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/winter-is-coming-for-allen-valley-stoves/ Tue, 08 Sep 2015 07:20:15 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=625 We are delighted to launch the new website for Allen Valley, based in Bodmin, Cornwall. The family run Cornish company provides their customers with a full stove experience from choosing a stove to suit their needs through to annual servicing and chimney sweeping.

Today, the average user now decides within a matter of seconds whether to stick or twist on a website they’ve not visited before.

Therefore it was vital for potential customers to see a wide range of stoves instantly in an eye-catching layout. To stand out from competitors, we opted for the masonry look that fits any users screen size.

Allen Valleys website is an extension of their showroom, with the intention to display their best selling stoves through a catalogue format.

In order to improve the customers experience and interaction, each stove opens in the category page rather than opening in a separate page.

The website will play a vital role in launching the brand. With a new website and wider digital marketing initiatives, Allen Valley will be able to engage with its target audience; increase awareness and understanding of the products.

To visit the new website, click Stoves in Cornwall

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The Top 10 Website Mistakes Businesses Make https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/the-top-10-mistakes-small-businesses-make/ Thu, 13 Aug 2015 15:16:03 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=574 1. Trying To Do Everything On The Cheap Is A Big No No!

With running a business comes a lot of expense, money can sometimes be tight and this can tempt people to cut corners and choose the cheapest option. This can save you money, yes, however you could be damaging your business for the future. Cheap web designers or SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) agencies advertise appealing prices, however the saying ‘You get what you pay for’ can become all too true in situations like this. In order to build your business you have to sometimes be prepared to spend that extra bit of money to ensure your website is good quality and looks professional. Investing in your business the high majority of the time means you benefit from it in the future.

2. Building A DIY Website

Trusting a cheap company with your website design and build is just as bad as taking on the task yourself! Too many small businesses think it’s a good idea to save money by building their own website. However it will in-fact just waste your time, bring on stress and create more damage than good! It’s really not worth the hassle! Let professionals build your website for you, that way if you ever have any problems you can ring the company you chose to use and let them handle it! After all, it is their job!

3. Website Optimisation

Internet Marketing strategies may encourage potential clients to visit your website, however this doesn’t always mean you’ll get sales or enquiries from it. The most important thing is that your website is designed and optimised for conversions and that your contact details stand out. Another good method is to display offers or discounts on your homepage to encourage clients to look further into your website, if people who are looking to save money happen to find your website they will always be drawn into a good discount meaning they save their money but use a good company!

4. Is Having A Mobile-Friendly Website Worth It?

It’s important for websites to look aesthetically pleasing but also function well on computers so that they are simple and easy to use. Another important aspect of having a good website is for it to be mobile-friendly too. A good website is usually designed to adapt to suit the electronic device that it is being viewed on, whether this is a laptop, a mobile phone, a tablet etc.

Google’s latest update means that your website is ranked higher if it is a mobile-friendly design. They have also introduced mobile-friendly labelling in search results which will put websites without a mobile-friendly version at a disadvantage. You can check if your website is mobile-friendly using Google’s own mobile-friendly test! Go ahead and try it, please don’t hesitate to contact us if you do need an update for your website to make it mobile-friendly!

5. ‘About’ Or ‘Contact’ Pages

When the public visit your website they expect to be able to find information about your company effortlessly. Usually this sort of information is located on the pages ‘About us’ or Contact’. If the information isn’t clear on your website about your business then they may assume you aren’t professional.

Less isn’t always necessarily more, always include contact details and vital information that will reassure your clients that you’re professional and trustworthy. Never miss out this information from your website! You may think that they’ll contact you if they want to know more… however the majority of the time they won’t! They’ll move onto a website which is clearer and easier to use! Often this means your competitors benefit from your mistakes!

6. Balance Of Content

It used to be the more keywords you could fit into your website content the better. However, over the last few years Google has become more and more sophisticated to the stage where it can now identify if you’re trying to force in too many keywords! This means Google will penalise you for trying to cheat the system. If you want to win Google’s support you should write high quality, relevant content for your website. This will be more beneficial to your search engine ranking!

7. SEO Strategy

Another mistake is to not have an SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) strategy. When you first set up a website you should think about what keywords/phrases are most relevant to your business. These keywords should be used when you first start getting your website and the website’s content built. SEO isn’t a success if you use it just on your website it’s more effective to include the same keywords in social media blogs that you write etc. The more places you use them the better!

8. Social Media Presence

Social Media is used by billions of people every day! This is potentially one of the best places to market and advertise your business… for free! You may not think spending a few hours promoting your business on Social Media is a productive use of time, however, having one or two active social media accounts is a really good way to help promote your business for free. It also helps to strengthen your online presence.

You can choose from many different sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google+ etc. It’s really worth signing up to any one of these sites with a business account and start posting today! You could even sign up to them all! We can help you if you feel you want someone to manage your social media accounts for you, please don’t hesitate to contact us!

9. Know Your Competition

The best way to success is to learn from someone with more experience than you. Knowing who your competition are and keeping an eye on them not only allows you to stay ahead of the game, but also means you can learn what works and what doesn’t. If your competitors’ marketing campaigns are successful or unsuccessful learn from it and reflect what they’ve used in your own strategies.

10. Regular Updates

Good quality website content is vital to a good online reputation and presence. It is important to ensure all content is regularly updated and kept relevant. This keeps clients and potential clients interested in your company by having new information and posts to read every time they visit your website or social media page. It also means search engines pick up that your website is active and up-to-date.

An amazing way to achieve this is by installing a blog on your website. You can update it with recent news and information to help gain yourself a more authoritative voice in your industry.

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A new gear for The Driving School South West https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/the-driving-school-south-wests-new-website/ Wed, 12 Aug 2015 07:14:13 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=430 We have recently launched a brand new website for The Driving School South West. The driving school is dedicated to providing quality personalised driving lessons from both male and female driving instructors to students of all ages throughout all of Torquay, Torbay, Teignbridge and The South Hams.

As part of the brief, we have integrated and built a bespoke booking system which allows customers to select and book lessons quicker and simpler, connecting straight to PayPal.

The website is designed to attract new users to the section of the website they want.. whether the driving lessons are for you, a friend or a family member.

In terms of website marketing, the site has been developed for improved search engine optimisation and to build a social media presence. With social networking links to their Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus in order to increase their exposure in the area.

The website also has a wide selection of resources to help students prepare for and pass their test as well as a new blog which includes hints & tips, news articles, guidance on changes to the law and useful links.

http://www.thedrivingschoolsw.co.uk/

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Never use a website theme! Why? https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/never-use-a-website-theme-why/ Wed, 05 Aug 2015 11:33:43 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=490 The advantage of a theme is that can be installed with ease and will cost no more than £100. The down side is that a lot of the themes are very similar, so this means the website is often unlikely to look original, or unique. If a theme isn’t exactly what is desired it will need to be customised anyway, therefore defeating the object of buying a pre-built theme.

The advantage with a custom built websites is that it can be designed exactly to fit a specific criteria, or someone’s personal taste. The designer does not need to fit the required information into pre-built boxes, instead they can start with a blank canvas to produce a truly original bespoke design.

It won’t match your business’s visual identity

If someone is customising your theme for you, they will probably add your company logo and change the colours, apart from these small changes to the pre-built template there isn’t anything else they can customise without altering the code. The problem with this is company’s that use pre-built themes won’t know how to change the coding of the template.

This leaves you with a design, which is pretty much the same as anyone else’s design! It completely takes away any unique qualities. You want people to instantly recognise that they’re visiting your website. If a customer comes across another website that looks just like yours, but with a different logo, it gives off completely the wrong idea about your company and it’s just embarrassing!

Large themes affect site speed

A lot of pre-made themes and templates, especially the ones you have to pay for online, have extra features that in reality you won’t ever need to use. This means they are unnecessary and can  increase the loading time for your website. Lots of businesses will tend to get complaints about their website if it takes a long time to load or refresh.

Site speed is an important factor for Google rankings, it really impacts users experience of your website. If a site visitor has to wait more than a few seconds on your site, they may decide its not worth the wait and consequently head to your competing rivals. In conclusion a pre-made theme can cost you valuable customers, and cause a lower rank on Google’s search results pages.

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

There are lots of SEO plugins for WordPress. If you choose the right ones you can achieve some sort of level of optimisation for your website. However you can never get a good result compared to what you get with a custom website, therefore full search engine optimisation is not possible using a pre-made theme. You can see a distinct pattern trending here with the disadvantages of using pre-built WordPress themes!

Compatibility

Errors in websites tend to be common, usually the website will look different on a laptop compared to how it looks on a mobile phone. Often you have to zoom in and pinch the screen on a mobile phone to use some websites. Well this is just a normality with websites as company’s are usually unaware of the fact their website is not mobile friendly, however it tends to be more common in websites created using software such as WordPress.

Conclusion

WordPress is a piece of software that allows people with minimal knowledge of web design set up a web site quickly. However, for business use you have to question whether it is a good choice to use software that is regularly hacked, offers slow performance and requires technical attention often. Your business is unique and your website should reflect that, hence why you should avoid pre-built website themes and templates at all costs.

Unless the budget is exceptionally tight, it is often better to get a website developed properly at the start.

If you wish to make any enquiries about how much we charge for bespoke website design please email us on info@hootmedia.co.uk or call us! 01803 670 069

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10 ways Social Media can benefit your business! https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/10-ways-social-media-could-benefit-your-business/ Wed, 22 Jul 2015 10:16:32 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=433 92% of marketers in 2015 claimed that social media marketing was important for their business!

This shows big potential for social media marketing to help increase sales, but often people are unsure of how to use social media and which one is best; such as Facebook, Twitter, Google plus etc. Lack of understanding on how to achieve those results means that some companies aren’t achieving the maximum impact that social media could have on their businesses by marketing correctly using these sites.

The Benefits Of Social Media!

1. Increased Brand Recognition. Social Media Sites are just a new way to promote your brand. It’s important because it makes you easier to be found by new customers, and makes you more familiar and recognisable for existing customers. For example, a frequent Twitter user could hear about your company for the first time after scrolling past it in a newsfeed. This can easily be the case for Facebook too.

2.Improved brand loyalty. According to research brand loyalty can be improved if you are on Social Media Sites so that customers can follow you and discover your new products. The best way to keep loyalty with customers is to maintain a steady and regular use of your accounts on Social Media Sites so that your products are constantly being posted out onto News feeds allowing them to keep up to date with any changes and updates.

3. More Opportunities to Convert. Every post you make on a social media platform is an opportunity for customers to discover your brand and convert to using you as a company. When you build up a gradual group of followers, you’ll have access to new customers, recent customers, and old customers, and you’ll be able to interact with all of them. Every post of an image or video, or every comment you share is a chance for someone to find you, the more feeds you have out on different accounts of Social Media the better it is for your company as all of these sites will link back to your website, meaning more visits and potentially more sales.

4. Higher conversion rates. Social media marketing results in higher public interest rates in a few distinct ways. Perhaps the most significant is its humanisation element; the fact that brands become more interactive in social media channels. Social media is a place where brands can act like people do, you can send them a quick message via messenger on Facebook, or post a comment on their wall etc. This is important because people like doing business with other people; not with companies.

5. Higher Brand Authority. Interacting with your customers regularly shows good connection and good faith for other customers. When people go to write a praising comment or brag about a product or service, they turn to social media, often Twitter and Facebook. And when they post your brand name, new audience members will want to follow you for updates. The more people that are talking about you on social media, the more valuable and authoritative your brand will seem to new users.

6. Increased Inbound Traffic. Without social media, your inbound traffic is limited to people that already know/use your brand and people searching for keywords you currently link into in the rankings. Every social media profile you add is another path leading back to your site, and every piece of content you post on those profiles is another opportunity for a new visitor.

7. Decreased Marketing Costs. 84% of marketers found as little as six hours of effort per week was enough to generate increased interest in their brand. Six hours is not a massive amount of time for a channel as large as social media. If you can spend at least around one hour a day developing your content you could start seeing the results of your efforts. Even paid advertising through Facebook and Twitter is reasonably cheap, this however depends on your goals of course. If you want to gain a lot of interest through paying for advertisement, you may wish to spend more than the minimum amount.

8. Better Search Engine Rankings. SEO is the best way to capture relevant interest from search engines, but the requirements for this to happen are always changing. It’s no longer enough to regularly update your blog and distribute links pointing back to your site. Google and other search engines may be calculating their rankings using social media presence as a significant factor, because of the fact that strong brands almost always use social media. As such, being active on social media could act as a “brand signal” to search engines that your brand is legitimate. This means if you want to rank for a certain set of keywords, having a strong social media presence could help massively!

9. Richer Customer Experiences. Social media is basically a communication option like email or phone calls. Every customer interaction you have on social media is an opportunity to publicly show off your customer service level and strengthen your connections with your customers.

10. Improved Customer Insights. Social media gives you a chance to gain valuable information about what your customers are interested in and how they behave, via social listening. For example, you can monitor user comments to see what people think of your business directly.

Your Competition Is Already Involved So The Sooner You Start, the Sooner You Gain the Benefits. The Potential Losses Of NOT Using Social Media For Advertising Your Business Are High. In Conclusion The Longer You Wait The More You Have To Lose! So Go On! Get Some Potentially Great Advertisement For Your Brand.

If You Would Like Hoot Media To Handle Your Social Media Accounts We Offer Package Deals That Cover This. Contact Us Or Visit Our Services Page.  https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/digital-strategy/

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New Look for Westcountry Tiles https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/new-website-for-westcountry-tiles/ Mon, 13 Jul 2015 15:28:34 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=423 A brand new website launched for Westcountry Tile Centre. The Cornish company has been a client of Hoot Media for over 8 years now and required a contemporary design that is easy to navigate and enables customers to discover Westcountry Tiles top sellers. The minimalistic colour scheme really helps to highlight products meaning there is no difficulty in customers finding exactly what they need for their own personal preferences.

Their tiles are available from stock or within a few days of order and include a wide range of options such as ceramic, porcelain, glass, mosaic, slate and natural stone. If you are in need of the materials to complete the job they also have a full range of grouts, adhesives, tiling tools and accessories as well as an exclusive Original Style range of tiles.

From a functional point of view the website is user friendly and if you have any questions they are very happy to speak with you on the phone! Have a browse of the website at www.westcountrytilecentre.co.uk

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We’ve moved to Dartington https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/we-have-moved-to-dartington/ Wed, 21 Jan 2015 14:53:25 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=315 As a number of clients are aware, in the New Year we moved to our new studio office in Dartington. The location is a logical choice, with an equal distance from Plymouth, Exeter and Torquay whilst the office offers great facilities and speedy broadband.

Based at the ‘Dartington Space’ which is south of the Dartington Hall, there are wonderful views across Dartington and Totnes.

Should you wish to pop in for a cuppa and a chat, you are more than welcome to!

 

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BBC Countryfile Features Dartmoor Farmers https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/bbc-countryfile-features-dartmoor-farmers/ Fri, 26 Sep 2014 12:57:34 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=72 On Sunday 21st September, Dartmoor Farmers was featured on the ever popular TV programme, Countryfile. First aired at 7pm the programme is to be repeated this coming Sunday and focuses on the skills, landscapes and farming in Devon. For those of you who missed it, you can catch up again on the BBC iPlayer, by clicking here

The Dartmoor Farmers Association supply quality beef and lamb to both retail and trade customers. All their beef and lamb has been born, raised, finished, slaughtered, hung, cut and packed within the bounds of Dartmoor National Park and farms.

The TV coverage comes at a perfect time, coinciding with the launch of the new Dartmoor Farmers website whilst providing the company with national coverage and exposure. The new website needed to reflect the quality meat as well as inspiring website users of the wide range of beef and lamb dishes available – in order to encourage them them to buy the ever popular meat boxes.

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Having a Social Media Presence is no longer an option https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/having-a-social-media-presence-is-no-longer-an-option/ Thu, 18 Sep 2014 12:54:54 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=69 With the massive use of social media together with the change in search engine algorythms means that having a social media presence for your business is no longer an option.  Below are some convincing reasons why every small business should be using social media.

Social media marketing increases awareness of your business

“100% of business decision-makers use social media for work purposes,” according to Forrester.  According to businesstocommunity.com “68% of consumers check out companies on social networking sites before buying.”  iMedia says“70% of marketers say that social media content marketing has increased their brand awareness.”

Social media drives new business and increases sales

According to Crowdspring, 50% of small business owners reported the gain of new customers through social media, most notably through Facebook and LinkedIn.  Linked in themselves say that “82% report that it is effective for lead generation.” HubSpot’s State of Inbound Marketing says that, “77% of B2C and 43% of B2B companies say they’ve acquired customers through Facebook.”

Provides credibility for your business

According to a Morpace Omnibus Report, “a huge 68% of Facebook users say a recommendation from a Facebook friend would make them more likely to buy a specific product or visit a certain retailer.”

Your target audience is using it.

Here are the official statistics from Facebook about usage.

  • We had 845 million monthly active users at the end of December 2011.
  • Approximately 80% of our monthly active users are outside the U.S. and Canada.
  • We had 483 million daily active users on average in December 2011.
  • We had more than 425 million monthly active users who used Facebook mobile products in December 2011.
  • Facebook is available in more than 70 languages

Source: http://newsroom.fb.com/content/default.aspx?NewsAreaId=22

Of course these numbers are for Facebook only and don’t include any of the other social media sites which have hundreds of millions more users.

Google counts social sharing when ranking.

The whole concept of the internet is a web. If you think of a web there are many layers or paths to a single point. The more paths, called links, to this single point the more authoritative, or stronger the point becomes.

When many different people on social media refer to your content, your website, your articles, or your video it means that those individual people find your content useful, entertaining, informative or all of the above. When this happens the search engines pay attention and in return use this as a factor to provide better search engine placement for your content.

Provides great brand exposure

Everybody wants to expose their brand to a larger audience. The more targeted people who are aware of your brand, the greater the chance you have of turning those into leads, paying clients and brand advocates.

It’s the next generation of Word of mouth marketing

The are few better ways to interact with potential clients than via people who have already experienced what your business has to offer.

When your social media presence starts to generate conversation and reactions such as; likes, shares, tweets, pins this social recommendation is visible to that persons individual following and acts as a great method of introducing your brand or business to their friends or family.

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Why all businesses need a Mobile version of their website NOW https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/why-all-businesses-need-a-mobile-version-of-their-website-now/ Thu, 18 Sep 2014 12:54:14 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=66 According to research, by 2015, mobile Internet use will surpass desktop use. So, if you think a mobile website is a waste of your valuable business pounds, think again. The whole world is “going mobile.”

This huge increase in mobile browser usage indicates a significant shift in how users interact with online content.  The good news is that if you have a website, then you have a site that can be accessed by any mobile devices such as smart phones and mobiles however the chances are your site looks pretty bad on mobile devices meaning users will leave your site earlier than they would on a desktop site.

Here are 10 reasons why you need a mobile-ready website today:

1. The fastest growing communications channel in history
Your current and potential customers are using their smartphones for everything – information, news, entertainment, shopping, research, purchasing decisions, finding local areas of interest, and much more. According to Eric Schmidt, Google’s CEO, the mobile Web is growing eight times faster than the first wave of online Internet adoption.

2. Immediacy
Customers carry their smartphones everywhere and use them regularly to make immediate decisions and to take quick action. The very nature of consumer behavior mandates that your business have a mobile presence so you’re business website is easily accessible anytime/anywhere your customers need you.

3. Quick access
Typically, mobile website visitors are looking for quick access to your business, they don’t necessarily need everything that’s on your main website but they do want a phone number, a contact form so they can leave a message, your hours of operation, directions to your business, services, pricing etc.

4. Benefit from a larger mobile audience
Having a mobile website makes your company easily accessible to a growing mobile audience with many users making decisions on who they wish to use exclusively by mobile phone. Don’t give customers-on-the-run an excuse to browse elsewhere.

5. Mobile websites are device independent
Mobile websites reach all audiences no matter what smartphone they use. Every smartphone has a browser – so users can immediately find you on the mobile web.

6. Easy for mobile users to read your content
Websites designed for desktops and laptops don’t often work well on mobile devices. Asking your users to pinch and zoom to navigate through your site and read your content can be frustrating for them whereas a mobile-ready site makes finding answer to questions quick, easy and friendly.

7. Your competition
If your competition already has a mobile friendly website, you also need one as soon as possible – or risk losing your customers to businesses with a mobile presence.

8. Make a bolder statement and stronger brand impression
Your business has already invested time and money into its marketing and branding … so don’t let that go to waste with a sloppy mobile presentation.

9. Higher search engine rankings
A business with a mobile-friendly website and a standard site enjoys a distinct advantage over businesses that do not have a mobile site. Google, Yahoo!, Bing and other search engines and directories rank mobile-optimized businesses higher than their competition.

10. Lower your ‘Bounce’ rate
Our own research and statistics clearly illustrate that sites without a mobile optimised website have a larger percentage of mobile users leave their site without looking at more than one page.  Increase the time that users spend on your site will increase the likelihood of an enquiry or sale

Incidentally, if you’re considering a mobile app rather than a mobile website,  go for the website as most users are going to look for you via their web browser.

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New Look for Devon Hair Salon https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/new-look-for-devon-hair-salon/ Fri, 08 Aug 2014 12:49:02 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=56 Award Winning Devon Hairdressers, The Andrew Hill Salon, has launched their new website, andrewhillsalon.com

The design is minimal and contemporary, making for an uncluttered intuitive user interaction. The black and white look reflects the quality experience and expertise at the salon, whilst dovetailing with the evolution of the Andrew Hill brand.

Their new responsive website integrates and embraces new features such a masonry look gallery and news section as well as a great looking mobile version.

Why not also check out their recent full page feature article in the Financial Times, view here

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Hoot Media get a mention in the UK Financial Times! https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/hoot-media-get-a-mention-in-the-uk-financial-times/ Wed, 02 Jul 2014 12:44:12 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=46 Thanks to the Search Engine Optimsiation work undertaken by Hoot Media for client Andrew Hill Salon a Hairdresser in Newton Abbot we have been interviewed by a Financial Times Business Columnist.

The story in the Financial times was prompted by a Financial Times Columnist who happens to also be named Andrew Hill.  He was interested in how we had managed to achieve a number 1 ranking for the Andrew Hill Salon for the term Andrew Hill in a national search of Google UK.

We spent about an hour with Mr Hill discussing both The Salon and the benefits of Google position and the internet as a whole for the business.

 

mercedes image 150x150 - Hoot Media get a mention in the UK Financial Times! mgallery2 150x150 - Hoot Media get a mention in the UK Financial Times!

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New website increases orders significantly https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/new-website-increases-orders-significantly/ Fri, 27 Jun 2014 12:45:33 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=53 For over 8 years Hoot Media have looked after House Signs In Slates website and online marketing. Building upon the success of their existing website we developed 4 years ago, with its bespoke sign designer and effective search engine optimisation, House Signs In Slate wanted to revamp their website and stay ahead of the game.

With this in mind, the website and sign builder has been developed from scratch, moving from flash to an intuitive jquery one as well as creating a fresh design, improved search engine optimisation and compatibility on multiple devices.

In essence, the website enables users to easily design and pay for their own bespoke slate sign, changing the slate size, font type and colour, with an instant example of how the sign will look. To order your custom slate house sign, please visit www.housesignsinslate.co.uk

“Delighted with the increase in orders. Thank you! Brilliant response to the website.” Lynne Drew

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Same make, different model for Mercedes On Lease https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/same-make-different-model-for-mercedes-on-lease/ Fri, 09 May 2014 12:52:17 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=63 Hoot Media were approached in the summer by Mercedes On Lease to design and develop a new website. Mercedes On Lease provide the lowest personal and business car leases on all Mercedes models across the UK.

The new design needed to include a lot of information without being overwhelming to users or looking cluttered; integrating call to actions such as request a call back, request a quote and send to a friend. Furthermore, the design is an evolution of the previous layout in order for existing customers to have a familiarity to the website.

From a functional point of view, the website required bespoke integration throughout from uploading a spreadsheet of car prices to list only the cheapest offers to filtering Mercedes cas on multiple types and creating bespoke finance applications for customers.

To lease your Mercedes car, please visit www.mercedesonlease.co.uk

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Putting the Chicken, Before the Egg https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/putting-the-chicken-before-the-egg/ Tue, 29 Apr 2014 12:30:52 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=39 Established in 2004, Laydilay Eggs have been providing fresh organic free range eggs across Devon. The eggs are sold in local shops and delis as well as used in cookery schools, cafes and restaurants; throughout the county such as Newton Abbot, Ashburton, Totnes, Dartington, Dawlish and Torquay to name a few.

It was important the new website reflected the rural Devon countryside setting where the hens live, whilst reminding Laydilay customers of the quality organic eggs they are purchasing rather than the cheaper, commercially produced eggs. Laydilay therefore opted for a friendly inviting design that takes advantage of their new branding and fabulous products!

In any industry, having more than one string to your bow is always an advantage, Laydilay also produce a number of egg products with mayonnaise, meringues and macaroons all available to buy.

To find out where you can buy organic eggs locally, please visit www.laydilay.co.uk

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New Website for Dunn & Baker Solicitors https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/new-website-for-dunn-baker-solicitors/ Wed, 19 Feb 2014 13:36:46 +0000 https://www.hootmedia.co.uk/?p=42 Hoot Media are pleased to announce the launch of a brand new site for Dunn & Baker. A Devon based solicitors who have been providing legal services to private clients and the business communities of Devon for over 100 years.

The new site enables Dunn & Baker to maintain their extensive range of services for both business and personal law with ease. Whilst new functionality such as an intuitive easy-to-use content management system and assigning team members to their relevant specialist services adds to the overall user experience.

The target market was the South West, encompassing Devon, Cornwall and Somerset with a whole host of terms from personal services like family law and employment law to business services such as property and business disputes.

You can visit the new website at www.dunnandbaker.co.uk 

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