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Ryan DesRoches

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Principal, Massachusetts Web Designs

356 points

Owner and lead designer for Massachusetts Web Designs - specializing in designing and developing web strategies for businesses and non-profits in Massachusetts and southern New England.

Personal:
Web Architect with a strong software engineering and web development background. Vast experience developing ...

Owner and lead designer for Massachusetts Web Designs - specializing in designing and developing web strategies for businesses and non-profits in Massachusetts and southern New England.

Personal:
Web Architect with a strong software engineering and web development background. Vast experience developing e-commerce, portal, and blogging platforms using a variety of tools and languages including Websphere and Wordpress. Experienced in Search Engine Optimization, Google Analytics, and Social Media Marketing.

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WEB: LDP Web Solutions

Ryan DesRoches and 27 other people answered this question

Jan. 23, 2012

Which social website is best for business use?

It all depends on the business and where your customers are. If they are not on Facebook - why spend the energy on creating things on Facebook?
However, in very general terms - the big four social networks are a great place to start: :LinkedIn, ... more

Online Marketing

Ryan DesRoches and 10 other people answered this question

Dec. 30, 2011

How do you determine whether or not to follow a blog?

Typically if I find something relevant on a site I will "follow it" for a short period of time to see what other stuff the site might produce. If the site continues to produce good content - then they stay on my blog reader. If ... more

Human Resources

Ryan DesRoches and 11 other people answered this question

Dec. 30, 2011

Many think Facebook will replace e-mail. What other business apps might it augment or replace?

Agree a little with Jacek, for bigger corporations - Facebook is too dangerous. Anyone just has to look at the security holes and the lack of privacy in Facebook to make you worry about using it for personal use - never mind for corporate emails, ... more

Professional Networking

Social Business

Ryan DesRoches recommends this answer by Esteban Kolsky

Dec. 27, 2011

Are surveys and polls still a valuable tool for learning from customers?

There is no better way to learn from customers that asking them directly. Focus Groups, Surveys, Polls are all excellent at this.
There is a misguided conception that social feedback replaces all those tools -- which is nonsense, as there is no better way to learn ... more

Customer Service

Customer Conversations

Customer Experience

Ryan DesRoches answered this question

Dec. 27, 2011

What questions must you ask yourself before beginning a website redesign?

Here's some:
1) What is my target audience?
2) What does my target audience "Like" as far as my product/services are concerned? How can I create a site that puts those things up-front for my visitors/clients?
3) Do I need this site to be mobile ready? (most ... more

Ryan DesRoches is now following Craig Rosenberg and 4 other people

Oct. 3, 2011

Ryan DesRoches and 21 other people answered this question

May 25, 2011

Facebook or Email: Give up one.

I actually use Facebook more than my traditional email now (even have clients e-mail me through Facebook messages) - so I would have to say that I would give up email.
Facebook for me is too powerful of a marketing tool now, if I wasn't ... more

Information Technology

Ryan DesRoches recommends this answer by Kirsten Knipp

May 18, 2011

Should I be using inbound links?

100% YES!
If you aren't cultivating & managing inbound links to your site, you are ignoring somewhere between 50-75% of the drivers of SEO value.
Our friends at SEOMoz have a great article that showcases what the primary search ranking factors are: http://www.seomoz.org/article/search-ranking-factors
You'll note ... more

Online Marketing Strategy

Ryan DesRoches recommends this answer by Andrew Kordek

May 17, 2011

How many opt-ins do I need to start an email program?

Mike,
First and foremost, I completely disagree with Dan's idea on sending an email out to your LinkedIn contacts. Yes, they are your LinkedIn contacts, but they did not become a contact of yours and give you permission to send them an email to ask for ... more

Email Marketing

Ryan DesRoches recommends this answer by Kirsten Knipp

May 16, 2011

Facebook "likes" vs Tweets: which is more profitable for business?

Echoing a few of Lewis's comments & adding some more depth on how to measure:
-We use social media quite a bit at HubSpot ... and we have seen it generate leads and customers, though it isn't our 'TOP' channel ... it is actually meaningful.
-We can ... more

Ryan DesRoches and 20 other people answered this question

May 16, 2011

Should a small business blog or just set up a Facebook page?

Totally disagree with Bob above - Social Media is huge for small businesses because its a relatively free form of advertizing that can get huge returns on investment.
I have to agree with everyone above that both Facebook and Blogging is the best way to ... more

Ryan DesRoches recommends this answer by Varun Dubey

May 12, 2011

For SEO what is more Important ...title of a web page or meta tags?

Definitely URL, these are the basic thing and contain more weight then backlinks and meta keywords.
VapvaruN

Online Marketing

Ryan DesRoches and 1 other person answered this question

April 14, 2011

Are mobile applications the best investment for SMBs with limited funds for social media efforts?

Got to agree with Bob that Social Media and Mobile Marketing are not mutually exclusive. To really be successful - you really do need to be holistic in your approach, combining the Social and mobile with your other marketing activities (e-mail, web, and print).
The good ... more

Information Technology

Cloud Computing

Ryan DesRoches recommends this answer by Barbara Wilbur

April 8, 2011

How do you make your office run more efficiently, especially if you work from home?

I work from home, at the office and on the road occasionally. Two things have really made a difference in my effectiveness. First, I moved from on-premise software applications to cloud applications almost exclusively. This immediately allowed me to access everything I need quickly and ... more

Office Management

New Media Services selected a best answer for

April 7, 2011

What is the best way to increase traffic?

Some says Social Media, some says Forum Posting and Article Marketing. But which of these really work? more

Ryan DesRoches and 2 other people answered this question

April 7, 2011

Video content creation: what are some tips for creating video marketing content for a website?

Jake,
Your video really needs to be thought out, pre-planned, scripted and story boarded before the camera is even taken out of its case.
Are you going to use real actors? While actors may be an expense, they can get the job done faster and usually ... more

Naimah Fuller selected a best answer for

April 5, 2011

Will social media sites replace websites, or will websites become less important in the future?

I've noticed something changing in the way the entertainment industry is marketing recording artists. Take Lenny Kravitz (http://www.lennykravitz.com/) for example. His new "website" is more of a landing site than what we've come to expect as the "traditional" website with all the accompanying pages, i.e. ... more

Ryan DesRoches and 3 other people answered this question

April 5, 2011

What thoughts come to your mind about redesigning your website?

I'm doing that right now as I am expanding on my consulting business. I'm turning a personal blog into a full fledged company site . . .
What I'm looking for in my site is the following:
- Standards Compliance - use as much CSS/HTML as ... more

Information Technology

Non Profit Organizations

Ryan DesRoches and 3 other people answered this question

April 5, 2011

What is the best way to get website registrations? Low cost and high relevant customers?

A couple of things:
- SEO for your website will help people get to your site. Once they are there, you need to push them to your registration pages.
- Use coupons/discounts/prizes as a way to entice more users to your registration pages.
- Only ask for relevant ... more

Conversion Rate

Online Marketing

Registration Form

Ryan DesRoches recommends this answer by Tim Rutledge

March 28, 2011

How do you motivate your employees when there is limited upward mobility for them in the company?

Sometimes executives make the mistake that other employees are like them, motivated by a desire to climb the corporate ladder. But not everybody is motivated by a desire for bigger salaries and grander sounding titles. Here are some possible non-monetary motivators.
1. Link the employee's work ... more

General Management

Leadership and Management Development

Helen Bain selected a best answer for

Feb. 25, 2011

How to make my site stay the same in IE and GOOGLE CHROME

I redesigned my site recently. It looks fine in Google Chrome but changes in IE, all the text is to the left and the size is bigger and I cannot see my Google Pisca Album, What happened and how must I fix it, I am ... more

Information Technology

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