Here is an idea I had for a website template. After working on it for a while and being dissatisfied with it I put it aside. But as I’ve been reading Linchpin, I’m realizing that it’s important to ship, even when it’s not perfect because at least then I’ve done something, I can learn from it, and I haven’t completed wasted my idea and time. So with out further ado, here it is: (full size image here)

I sent this post out a few weeks back in my newsletter, but I thought it would be worthwhile to re-post it here.

Optimization deals with making or choosing the best of something, and with Web Optimization that’s what we are aiming for, the best of web pages.

It’s very possible to improve your conversion rates, ROI, and customer satisfaction through the process of Web Optimization, and in this newsletter we’re going to begin to talk about that process and the first step.

Measure…Test…Improve…Repeat!

Measure

The first step in Web Optimization is being able to measure several important details of the web page or website you are trying to improve. That’s what we are going to cover in this edition of our newsletter.

Google Analytics

While there are many tools for doing this, Google Analytics is the most comprehensive free tool that will get you going with the most crucial ingredients to successful Web Analytics and then Optimization.

Step 1: A Google Account

If you don’t already have a Google account (i.e. gmail) you’ll need to get one from here. You can register an external email account (i.e. info@dqsupport.com) as the username, so you don’t necessarily have to get a gmail account to do this. Additionally this is a free account, so you don’t have to worry about paying for any of this.

Step 2: Get the tracking codes from Google Analytics

This part is really self-explanatory if you just follow the instructions once you log into your Google Analytics account which can be found here.

Step 3: Insert the tracking Codes from Google Analytics in your page

This part is the most complex part, and it’s best to follow the instructions that Google gives, or find someone to help you with it. We do these kinds of setups for our clients frequently and it’s not a complicated process, it’s just different for each website. If you’re using a self-hosted Wordpress blog, you can check out this blog post we did about how to get it to work with Wordpress easily using 2 plug-ins here.

Step 4: Wait for results from Google Analaytics to appear

Getting results back from Google Analytics will take a little time. I usually recommend giving it about 24 hours, and then look back for the information.

Step 5: QA

Start looking through the results for any interesting information or outplace information. Now the fun part begins. First you should check to make sure the traffic they are showing seems reasonable with any other information you may have on this already. This would also be a good time if you use Google Adwords, to make sure that information is being pulled in so you can do some advance testing and measuring later. And just take the time to look around the tool because there’s a lot to take in and learn!

Enjoy!!!

I’ve just updated this site from mySQL 4.0 to mySQL 5.0 in order to update Wordpress to the newest version. If you notice any problems with the site, I’d love to know about it!

You can always email me at dquigley@dqsupport.com

Thanks!

Per the request of one of my great friends, Chuck, I’ve turned comments back on in this site. I had turned them off for some time, because I didn’t feel they were necessary, but I’m relenting and turning them back on again.

Chuck, you got your wish!

I was just sharing with a friend today the two tools I’ve found most useful for using Google Analytics with Wordpress.

1. Google Analytics for Wordpress

The title of this one says it all. Just insert your tracking code and you’ll be working in no time!

2. Google Analytics Dashboard Wordpress Widget

This tool is great because it intergrates the information from your Google Analytics account directly into wordpress so you can get the overview of your site traffic on your dashboard as well as page details when you look at each page in the listing. Great for keeping your eye on page and site traffic quickly as well as putting it in front of everyone.

Tools I’m looking for…

Now if you know of a good plugin for these tools I’d love to know (I’ve tried several, so it’s not that I haven’t looked for all of them already).

• Google Web Site Optimizer tool (easy integration of Google multivariant and A/B testing in Wordpress
• A plugin that will allow me to modify the entire page layout of the site, not just content like Google’s tool does
• An excellent calendar tool
• A registration tool that allows downloads based on a password, but not using any login/username. Just the password. And the ability to track downloads would be great too!

Any ideas or suggestions, let me know, and i hope my short list points you in the right direction for your next or current wordpress project!

Boxee announced yesterday that they are releasing in January a beta version of their software and soon with the help of D-Link an actual device to run Boxee. I’m excited to see this project growing and to see what comes of it.

You can read a full write on Mashable’s website: http://mashable.com/2009/12/07/boxee-box-dlink/

Since the iPhone has been enabled for MMS, how many photos have I sent? 1, only 1.

I think it’s interesting how much we as consumers think we want a feature while in reality we may never use it when we actually can use it.

I realize that other people may be using MMS extensively, so if I’m the odd ball who thought he’d want MMS and now never uses it, please let me know!

Today was the first time I had been able to make it out to a Chicago Graphic Design Meetup! (And I’m the organizer now)

We had a great meetup over lunch that was informal but allowed me to meet lots of new people. For those who have possible never heard of www.meetup.com, it’s a site where you can connect offline (in person) by finding people with common interests to meet with on the website.

I’m looking forward to planning the next meetup, and I’m hoping it goes as well! We had 14 people come out this time!

I recently purchased a high-end Antec computer case for a client’s computer I was building. It was a high end computer, so I wanted an excellent case to go with it. Unfortunately I was sorely dissapointed by the construction of this particular case.

Here is a link to the Antec case I purchased.

Now you would think that a case that cost’s almost $200 would come be pretty sweet right? Because you can get so many other cases in the $75-150 range, that I thought I would be purchasing a premium case, but it turns out that while it was a solid case and very heavy, but not easy to work with. I had two major problems with the case. First, documentation was extremely slim. Second, the case design made it difficult to add and remove cards in the expansion slots.

Next time, I’ll probably choose a different brand (sorry Antec).

I recently became the organizer of the Chicago Graphic Design meetup group on www.meetup.com

http://graphicdesign.meetup.com/71/

It’s a large group with just under 800 members, and I’ve never been able to make it out to one of the meetups before, so right now I’m figuring out how it works.
I’ve got lots of ideas on how I think it could work, and I’ve been trying to recruit the help of a few people I know in the graphic design area, who could give ideas, input, and help with the process.

If you have ever worked with meetup.com as an organizer and would like to share so of your thoughts on the processs and role, please feel free to email me at dquigley [at] dqsupport [dot] com!