http://www.robertbethell.co.ukThe latest news and updates from North West Web Developer Robert Bethell.en-ushttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/rss.xmlFri, 05 Feb 2010 15:20:31 +0000 Regular readers of this site over recent months will have been made aware of the impending launch of our new trading name and accompanying portal at Devto.co.uk and were pleased to announce that the vision has now become a reality.The majority of our news output will now be moving to the new domain, meaning that Devto.co.uk is an address worth bookmarking if you want to keep in touch with what were doing you may even read about what your company is doing on there! Theres no reason to completely disregard this site though, because well still be using this as a satellite for various important snippets that we dont want you to miss, and we may even throw in a couple of irreverent asides every now and then to let you know about some of the less corporate affairs were getting on with.The new site at Devto.co.uk incorporates a number of new features, including better front page incorporation of our key services, and more prominent positioning of featured clients to showcase some of our stand-out work... not to mention the latest craze Twitter integration into our news section; so you know exactly what we had for lunch!http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Devto-Is-Gohttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Devto-Is-GoFri, 05 Feb 2010 15:13:14 +0000 Our exciting start to 2010 continues as we link up with a high profile organisation who could be in a position to offer great savings to all of our existing clients, so dont miss our finished product to find out how you could benefit!The latest partner to reach an agreement with Devto is Shine Telecom, a UK-wide telecommunications specialist whose head office is located in central Manchester. They offer a variety of telephone, internet and data management systems for numerous SMEs across the country and are a well-established brand from a team that sold their previous company to Carphone Warehouse.Well be helping them to generate extra online trade by redesigning their site and providing extra features to their customers, helping increase their market share in a competitive industry.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/A-Deal-Worth-Communicating-To-Youhttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/A-Deal-Worth-Communicating-To-YouThu, 21 Jan 2010 10:43:30 +0000 We're delighted to announce an agreement with Lancaster based Ark Group to provide ongoing support and develop a number of interesting new projects, including an online events registration system.The Ark Group is a major wholesaler of outdoor clothing and accessories, owner of "The Original Mountain Marathon" brand and has a number of e-commerce interests.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Ark-Group-Agreementhttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Ark-Group-AgreementTue, 19 Jan 2010 23:53:20 +0000 Our clients, Pagoda Furniture, are eager to build on the excellent traffic we generated in 2009 so we recommended they give one of their top products away, absolutely free! Conscious of the importance of bringing in good visitor numbers for potential sales and SEO benefits, Pagoda have launched a ten-week competition, which can be promoted offline as well as online to raise awareness of the company's product range.The prize on offer is a luxurious Wicker Recliner Suite, which will come into its own by the time the competition concludes in early Spring. Winning couldnt be simpler all you have to do is visit the Pagoda website and enter your name, e-mail and post code in the competition form on the front page, and then cross your fingers that luck will be on your side!As a genuine freebie, the competition stands to bring in thousands of additional visitors to the site. Free to enter competitions can be listed on competition portals such as Loquax, UK Competitions and The Prize Finder, which are hugely popular amongst competition fans, and can help to increase visitor numbers considerably, even for the smallest of prizes.With Pagodas prize being a stunning, high value offering, were sure their site will experience some great footfall between now and the closing date of March 31st.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Free-Furniture-A-Great-Way-To-Drive-Traffichttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Free-Furniture-A-Great-Way-To-Drive-TrafficThu, 14 Jan 2010 10:18:18 +0000 Greetings for the first time in 2010. It has certainly been an unusual start to the year for most businesses, but there have been no complaints from us, as the new decade gets off to a busy beginning.With the snow and ice forcing many employees to work from home, and many premises much quieter due to the lack of clients and consumers wanting to head outside and face travel difficulties, those that have made it into work are largely able to undertake an extended period of business analysis.What many are finding is that in order to stay busy when the outside world grinds to a halt, they need a credible and fully functioning web presence. Companies who rely heavily on online trading have been the ones experiencing the most promising starts to 2010, with both the pre-Christmas and post-New Year snowfall convincing most purchasers to do their shopping online and let the postmen and couriers run the risk on the roads. Those who have so far been missing the boat have been contacting us in larger than normal volumes, with our calendar already looking pretty full for much of January as we look to arrange meetings galore to help those who realise their online presence needs a timely boost.Several of the chats weve had so far already look like yielding some exciting new projects for the early part of the year, so well keep you posted about all the key developments as they happen.Heres to the thaw... or maybe not!http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Avoid-Freezing-Your-Chances-Of-Web-Success-In-2010http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Avoid-Freezing-Your-Chances-Of-Web-Success-In-2010Fri, 01 Jan 2010 16:12:59 +0000 We're pleased to welcome on-board Wolverhampton-based Interchoice Holidays, a well-established provider of Coach Holidays from the West Midlands. We'll be developing their search engine rankings over the coming months, helping to source more traffic and business from their existing website.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Welcoming-Interchoice-Holidayshttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Welcoming-Interchoice-HolidaysWed, 16 Dec 2009 11:55:12 +0000 With 2009 all but at an end, wed like to take this opportunity to extend a warm thank you to everyone we've worked with throughout the course of the year.It has been an excellent 12 months for us, and we look forward to further exciting growth in 2010, when we are scheduled to be launching a number of new projects, both for incoming and existing clients, and we look forward to whatever challenges await us. Youll have to spend those long Christmas nights dreaming up new and challenging site developments that we can turn into reality for you over the course of the coming year!If youd like Santa to bring you a new website this Christmas, well be open for business until Tuesday 22nd December 2009, before closing for our own short break (during which time well be preparing a re-design of our own site). We return to the office on Tuesday 5th January 2010, though we will be available for support issues during this period.We hope that you all have a restful and enjoyable Festive period, but hopefully a productive one too if youre active sorts like us.Best wishes from all of us here, and heres to a happy and healthy 2010 for all of us.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Festive-Thanks-To-All-Our-Friends-and-Clientshttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Festive-Thanks-To-All-Our-Friends-and-ClientsTue, 08 Dec 2009 18:28:27 +0000 Were pleased to announce that weve fought off tenders from a number of rival web developers in the region to provide an e-commerce implementation and SEO package for a Merseyside-based manufacturing company.Our latest partnership sees us working with an industry leader, who have asked to remain anonymous for competition reasons, and we are looking forward to helping them to transfer their offline reputation into the online environment.We look forward to helping them to online success in 2010 and are pleased that our quality and attention to detail has once again helped us to reach an agreement with a company of great standing within their industry.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/A-New-Site-To-Manufacturehttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/A-New-Site-To-ManufactureWed, 02 Dec 2009 17:50:42 +0000 Recent UK weather has made the concept of a holiday in the continent all the more appealing at the present time, and if youre wanting to see water as a thing of beauty rather than a destructive beast that darkens your winter, one of the new websites in our portfolio could have the answer to your weather woes.Yacht Charters Majorca is the brainchild of Shaun Beverley, owner of Nakita, a Beneteau 57 which sails from Barcelona and the Balearics to a variety of destinations in the perennially sun-kissed Mediterranean, offering holidays, day trips, sunset cruises, parties and much more on one of the most enticing expanses of water in the world.Our recently completed sea blue site helps to portray the luxury and glamour of the yacht, with the photo gallery alone bearing testimony to its beauty. The site features full specifications of the craft, a Captains Log news section, an itinerary of potential events offered on board, and an availability calendar so you can check whether the dates of your choice can be met before placing your booking. With heavy optimization for the search engines, the site targets people searching for 'Luxury Yacht Charters Majorca'.Take a look at our latest creation and start dreaming of warm, stress-free sunsets in the Med by sailing over to YachtChartersMajorca.co.uk now.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Sail-Away-For-An-Amazing-Holidayhttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Sail-Away-For-An-Amazing-HolidayTue, 24 Nov 2009 15:40:30 +0000 Were pleased to have successfully concluded our site build for Preston-based Spatial Intelligence, who specialise in Property & Public Sector Asset Management, regularly working on large-scale projects with public authorities to make the most out of their land-based assets.This meant that they needed their first website development to make the most out of its structure, and we have worked within the challenge of needing to design a site that takes their corporate colour of yellow not usually an internet friendly shade and turning it into something that is instantly vibrant and attractive to its users.The easy-to-navigate site is already proving a hit with the company, and were delighted to see that theyve been quick to utilise its potential by adding plenty of news content via the powerful but user-friendly CMS. We hope Spatial Intelligence enjoy great success with their website, and look forward to working with them on an ongoing basis to develop their search engines rankings and provide technical support.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Intelligent-Site-For-Spatial-Intelligencehttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Intelligent-Site-For-Spatial-IntelligenceTue, 17 Nov 2009 17:15:06 +0000 Most shopkeepers in Lytham are finding that theyre being kept off the top spots in the Google rankings by an elite group of outlets in the coastal towns Clifton Walk Arcade and its all because weve put our clients there!Less than a year after going live with ShopsLytham.co.uk a resource detailing the exciting range of products available within all nine stores that make up the Clifton Walk Arcade the site ranks #1 with Google for both Lytham shops and Shops Lytham, and is within the top 10 for a whole host of other terms relating to shopping in Lytham.Three of the outlets within the arcade also rank at #1 for a Lytham-related search that includes their primary offering Lytham fashion shop being one example with two more within the top five and a further two sitting within the top ten when applying the same search criteria.The management of Clifton Walk Arcade have also reported back to us that they experienced a notable increase in footfall during the summer months, which they largely attributed to the increased exposure offered by the site, with many of the retail units having previously been without a credible web presence.View our case study to find out exactly what has propelled Clifton Walk Arcade to its new lofty position.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Top-Ranking-On-Google-Sends-Footfall-To-Lythamhttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Top-Ranking-On-Google-Sends-Footfall-To-LythamTue, 10 Nov 2009 12:57:00 +0000 One of our most remarkable clients, Mark Mills, has furthered his portfolio with us following the launch of a site that can be of benefit to the most influential figures at every organisation, Director Skills.The new slick, clean site showcases the skills he can offer to company directors, assisting them with numerous aspects of planning, financial dealing, leadership and much more. With a tremendous CV to his name and tremendous levels of knowledge ready to impart to even the most experienced of directors, DirectorSkills.co.uk is well worth a look now.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Director-Skills-Websitehttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Director-Skills-WebsiteTue, 03 Nov 2009 12:08:06 +0000 October 20th & 21st 2009Rob was able to steal a couple of days away from the screen in order to attend the recent E Commerce Expo at Londons Earls Court the leading event of its type for anyone involved in the field of online trading.With 80 per cent of the visitors hailing from the south, Rob was able to get a step ahead of his competitors here in the north west by checking out many of the 150 exhibitors and 60 conference sessions, in which numerous developments and success stories were discussed.With keynote speakers attending from the likes of eBay, Thorntons and the Hilton hotel chain to share their advice on how to achieve online success, there was plenty to ponder and consider for our future developments. The Hilton presentation was particularly mind-blowing in terms of its figures they spoke of their presence in 70 countries and the 33 million keywords they maintain in over 20 different languages in order to gain the best possible search success!Many of the orators on show were discussing the importance of speed for success in online trading, whilst others spoke of emerging technologies that well be keen to take advantage of, including a number of development companies who are offering some interesting ideas that well be investigating further.Exhibitors included the likes of Adobe, Barclaycard, Google and Paypal, meaning that the main players in the industry were represented and made for a very interesting chance to compare and contrast which suppliers are best for our customers based on their specific online trading aspirations.The event is moving its northern arm to a new venue next year, with a one-day version of the Expo heading for Manchester Uniteds Old Trafford stadium on Thursday 27th May 2010.This is a sign that the industry is recognising what a boundary-free application the internet is; this is a commerce in which some of the very best are based far away from the central London hub, and Rob is hopeful of putting this company on the map as one of the best web developers in the north as the formal launch of Devto edges ever closer.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Ecommerce-Expo-2009-Reporthttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Ecommerce-Expo-2009-ReportFri, 09 Oct 2009 10:45:40 +0000 I'm pleased to announce an agreement with Preston-based Spatial Intelligence to implement a business to business website. Established in 2002, Spatial Intelligence are data specialists in asset, facilities and energy management. The new website will feature strong search engine optimization and a robust CMS, allowing Spatial Intelligence to source new business and better promote their services.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Spatial-Intelligence-Ltd-Website-Agreementhttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Spatial-Intelligence-Ltd-Website-AgreementTue, 15 Sep 2009 17:55:02 +0000 Next month I'll be attending PHP NW 2009, the regional conference for PHP developers. There are a large selection of talks this year, so there should be plenty of information and ideas to digest. If you're interested in attending, see the conference website for further information.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/PHP-North-West-2009http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/PHP-North-West-2009Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:24:18 +0000 A busy month saw the start of new projects and extensions to a number of existing client's websites, helping to bolster their functionality and ease of use.Harbour Guides continues to go from strength to strength, with the team now expanding into the far reaches of Europe. Thanks to a new look yacht charter section, visitors can now easily find services such as Yacht Charter Mediterranean. Further, the site's popular on-board recipes and nautical sayings are now available for download in PDF format - these are generated instantly by the staff thanks to some clever coding.The Pagoda Furniture website has enjoyed a terrific summer of traffic, despite the dodgy British weather. With well over 100,000 page views, the website has made a great impression - with people eager to purchase outdoor garden furniture. We continue to innovate the site, recently integrating SMS alerts to retailers when their local customers make an enquiry regarding furniture and adding an advanced chart display section in the trade only area.Another website enjoying strong traffic this summer has been Lastminute Coach Holidays. Thanks to strong search engine optimization, the site is now sitting 5th on Google for "Coach Holidays". We've added a number of new features to the website recently, including checkout integration with SagePay to make processing orders quicker for both customers and staff members.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/August-Updateshttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/August-UpdatesFri, 14 Aug 2009 12:37:48 +0000 Bungalows To Rent is the latest website for Bungalow To Rent LLP, a company providing North West bungalow rentals. The new website lists their properties and is designed to help capture targeted search engine queries. A content management system allows the company to control the bungalow lists and post news updates. To view more information and the project and how it was realised, please see the client brief.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Bungalow-To-Rent-Websitehttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Bungalow-To-Rent-WebsiteMon, 10 Aug 2009 09:15:15 +0000 Commercial Warehouse Storage is a new website for Halsall International, promoting their warehouse storage and distribution facilities and providing a private retailer's area to their clients. To view more information and the project and how it was realised, please see the client brief.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Commercial-Warehouse-Storage-Websitehttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Commercial-Warehouse-Storage-WebsiteMon, 03 Aug 2009 20:28:29 +0000 An agreement has been reached with financial services company, Parkland Market Insight Ltd, to produce a marketing web application that will be targeted at the UK's leading commercial banks.The application will centre around an advanced charting and display interface, with a strong focus on usability and speed.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Parkland-Market-Insight-Ltd-Agreementhttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Parkland-Market-Insight-Ltd-AgreementFri, 10 Jul 2009 20:59:35 +0000 Business Speaker Mark Mills required a new website to help promote his Non Executive Director services. Mark has a wealth of industry experience working on the boards of national and international companies, as well as founding and running numerous businesses, including AIM listed Cardpoint plc.The Non Exec Director website is strongly optimized for search engine queries and is designed to help generate business enquiries. If your company requires a Non Executive Director UK, pay a visit.http://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Non-Executive-Director-Websitehttp://www.robertbethell.co.uk/index.php/archive/Non-Executive-Director-Website