Web Development Denver Ecommerce Developers

Why page templates are key to executing your website strategy

By Brian Rants | Published: August 3, 2012

“A promise is a cloud; fulfillment is rain.” This Arabian proverb gets at the heart of what makes a successful website strategy: execution! Many clients make promises to themselves that they probably can’t keep: Even though I normally update my site about once a month, now I’m going to write a blog article every day Our product descriptions are all out of date, but with this new site I’m going to triple my online inventory My marketing team is already stretched, but now they will have to manage a new [...]

Posted in Design / User Experience, Web Development, WordPress Development | Tagged denver web design, wordpress ecommerce, wordpress page templates, WordPress Web Development | Leave a comment

In Mobile Marketing, Avoid “Shiny Object” Syndrome with a dose of Pragmatism

By Brian Rants | Published: July 26, 2012

Increasingly our clients recognize that mobile apps can be great for business. Among smartphone users in a recent ClickFox survey: Almost half reported using an app on their smartphone more than 10 times per day (more frequently than they spend grooming or eating) 73% reported using a mobile app in the purchasing process, either to buy or to assist in the decision 78% of those surveyed preferred mobile apps for customer service purposes and 72% would replace some traditional channels with mobile apps for customer service purposes I’m putting the [...]

Posted in Design / User Experience, Mobile Applications / Websites | Tagged denver mobile app developer, denver mobile application developer, mobile apps | Leave a comment

Going Digital with a Historic Beverage Industry Publication

By Brian Rants | Published: June 28, 2012

The Beverage Journal is the official trade magazine of the licensed beverage industries in Connecticut and Rhode Island. It has provided brand and price listings, news, and promotions for industry professionals and beverage licensees since 1949. They came to Blue Riot Labs with a nascent digital strategy, seeking to get out ahead of their competitors in delivering value to their community online. Who says print people can’t go digital? See what we came up with…

Posted in Design / User Experience, News, Open Source Development, Web Development, WordPress Development | Tagged denver web development, denver wordpress development, WordPress multi site | Leave a comment

“Coming to America” – Hitron turns to BRL to make a splash in America

By Brian Rants | Published: June 22, 2012

Hitron Technologies provides over one million DOCSIS products annually around the world. With a world class manufacturing campus in Suzhou, China and regional offices in Shenzhen (China), Windisch (Switzerland), and Amsterdam (Netherlands), they chose our mile high city for making their entrance into the American audience. Their previous site was a splashy affair better suited for the Asian market; we gave them a clean site that allowed their products to be the center of attention. Check out the before and after screenshots…

Posted in Design / User Experience, Web Development, WordPress Development | Leave a comment

Getting the most from Google Analytics: Custom SEO Dashboards and Email Reports

By Brian Rants | Published: June 5, 2012

Google Analytics SEO Monitoring Dashboard

Google Analytics works pretty well out of the box, but with a little bit of work you can turn this Ford Focus into a Porche Boxster. Here are three SEO dashboards I use to understand how our clients sites are performing in Google. Even better, I’ve included the link where you can add these dashboards to YOUR Google Analytics account! SEO Monitoring Dashboard Description: Taken from the fantastic SEOBook.com, this is a powerful 360 view of your organic SEO performance. Link: Click Here This Week vs Last – Dashboard & [...]

Posted in Marketing Automation, SEO / PPC, Social Media Marketing | Tagged Denver Search Engine Optimization, google analytics for marketing, seo | Leave a comment

Tortoise vs Hare – Why “Steady” Wins the Online Marketing Race in Small Business

By Brian Rants | Published: May 1, 2012

In the famous fable, the steady tortoise wins over the flashy hare with steady, consistent effort. Too often companies approach launching a website as the finish line, when it is in fact the starting line. A website gets you in the race, but then you have to start running! Here’s some tips on how small business owners can get ahead with steady, consistent marketing efforts. Create a Marketing Plan (Quickly) For most small business owners, having a Chief Marketing Officer or dedicated marketing team is the stuff of dreams. That [...]

Posted in Local Business Marketing, Marketing Automation, Social Media Marketing | Tagged denver email marketing, internet marketing campaign, small business seo, strategic marketing plan | Leave a comment

Shotgun vs Sniper Rifle – Why “Focus” is Key to Online Marketing Success

By Brian Rants | Published: April 25, 2012

“The key to online marketing success is a good blog. Also a Newsletter. And Facebook. I mean Twitter….errrr, or maybe LinkedIn? Ok, it’s Pinterest, I promise! What, what’s this Google+ thing?” The media and the business “experts,” whoever they happen to be, love shiny things. And Silicon Valley is happy to constantly churn out the next “great idea” (with a flimsy if discernible business model) that is certain to “revolutionize online marketing forever!” (Take a breath). Ok, let’s have some straight talk: the only thing that revolutionizes online marketing is [...]

Posted in Local Business Marketing, Marketing Automation, Social Media Marketing, WordPress Development | Tagged WordPress Web Development | Leave a comment

The New & Improved Google Analytics

By Brian Rants | Published: April 20, 2012

If the last time you looked at Google Analytics was around the last time you cleaned out your basement, it’s time to meet this powerful (and free) tool all over again. What’s New? Google has done quite a lot to the old version of Analytics. The interface has been completely redesigned and is now faster than ever. There are also multiple dashboards that allow you to create a custom dashboard for each department. You can track Event Goals and you can even configure two-minutes of play time on a video [...]

Posted in Local Business Marketing, Marketing Automation, SEO / PPC | Tagged denver seo consulting, Google Analytics Flow Visualization, google analytics for marketing, Google Analytics Real-Time | Leave a comment

Consistency + Simplicity = “Winning” in Website Design

By Brian Rants | Published: April 17, 2012

As a business owner you might groan when your designer talks about “white space” and “branding consistency” (as this video parodies so well). However, consistency and simplicity are indispensable ingredients to a site that is not only attractive, but effective. Simple User Experience A website is a business tool, a means to achieving ends including lead generation, new product launches, and providing support to end users. Therefore the primary goal is not a “pretty” site, but a “useful” site. Design elements like colors, textures, and fonts should support the business [...]