Companies and organizations of all sizes struggle with their website.  After all, everybody knows you need to have a website, but how do you make it work for you?  The lack of real investment in a website shows the lack of confidence a company and/or person has in the use of a website.  (The result of this is that people put up inexpensive or free websites, and that can cost you.  See my articles here.) Oh sure, we use “hits” like a banner.  We put a hit counter on our website to show the world how many hits we have.

The reality is that “hits” refer to the number of times a file has been accessed from your website.  These days a web page can contain dozens of files.  One person looking at one page on your website can account for 12-15 hits, or more!  If that is the case, then why are we counting “hits?”  A better question to ask is, “What is the purpose or the goal of your website?”

Often companies and organizations aren’t sure what the goal is for their website.  It is widely assumed, now, that having a website is indispensable.  We see the stories of websites who bring in business for it’s owner, but we figure that it is rare since it doesn’t happen for us.  But, what if we took the time to decide our goal for having a website?  Website owners learn after a while that simply having a website does not mean that thousands of people will show up every day!

What is your goal for a website?  To look cool?  To communicate with your team or organization?  To generate revenue or leads?  This is the first question to ask.  Everything else flows from this question.  It will determine everything about how you design your website from the function, the look, the architecture of the website, everything.  It is the beginning of your online strategy.  If you look past this, you will be spinning your wheels.

How can you decide the goal or purpose for your website?  That, of course, starts with your marketing plan or strategy.  What role does the website play in your larger marketing strategy?  What do you want the website to accomplish?  Do you want it to function as a team communication hub?  Do you want it to keep fans updated?  Do you want it to be a news outlet for all things related to your team?  Do you want it to help you fill the stands?  All of these are questions you need to ask yourself in regards to your website.

Remember, if you are looking for help, you can always contact me.  I talk about using online tools for businesses at my blog, www.toddejones.net.

My style is relaxed, fun, and a little bit silly. Aww, who am I kidding, a lot silly. I want to photograph you – being yourself – it’s that simple.

She offers sessions for children, couples, pets, seniors, families, and seniors.  Not only does she specialize in candid shots, she prefers them.  Therefore, she told me, she can do kids sporting events too.

An avid athlete herself, Karyn regularly participates in runs, rides her bicycle several times a week and even participated in the DFW Mud Run a couple of years ago.  Karyn has a great work ethic that she learned, no doubt, growing up on her parents’ farm in Ohio.

Something else readers should consider is that Karyn can do professional head shots.  This is important in this day and time because we are routinely asked for pics for profiles such as at Google, Linkedin, Twitter and other promotional materials.

So, if you need a new family portrait, someone to take pictures at your child’s games, baby pictures, or any other photography needs, just give Karyn a call and tell her you read about her here at Dfwfootball.net!

Karyn is available on the web at www.KarynKelbaugh.com and @karynkelbaugh on Twitter.

Cassie was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in March of this year, and she is only 21 years old.   She and her twin sister, Kelsey, are members of the Women’s Professional football team, the Lone Star Mustangs.

The website not only has news of Cassie, but it provides readers a way to donate to help with the cost of Cassie’s treatment.  You can also order bracelets with Cassie’s theme, “2 inspire” which will help with Cassie’s expenses.

In addition to Cassie’s Corner, readers can check out her CaringBridge page at www.caringbridge.org/visit/twin2.

Chris Ghanbari started DFWReporting.com just a few months ago, and the site is already picking up momentum with a team of reporters reporting positive news.  Chris has a background in video producing, and he spent time working with WFAA TV, channel 8.

The site is fresh and takes advantage of social media initiatives.  Working behind the scenes for DFWReporting.com is Dallas online marketing expert Shama Hyder of Clicktoclient.com.  She is the online marketing guru and designer of the DFWReporting.com website.

Chris has gathered a team of talented reporters, but don’t think that all they do is boring, non-sports news.  On their site right now is a 2 part video interview with former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Quincy Carter.  Reporter Kimberly Torres caught up with Carter who is playing indoor football for the Abilene Ruff Riders.

DFWReporting has plenty of sports videos if you click on Browse Categories in the top navigation bar.  On the side bar in the Categories section you will see several categories including sports, inspiring, education, pets, etc.

The site has a clean interface with a straight-forward navigation bar at the top.  It takes advantage of features such as RSS feeds, a big search box at the top of the page, and lots (and lots) of videos.  The logo including the slogan is prominent at the top center of the page.  The page is laid out very well.  The colors are eye-catching and seem to convey modern.

It has just been a short time, but DFWReporting.com has already gathered some nice interviews in the world of local sports.  First, there is the interview with Carter.  Further, Torres was at the casting call of the Michael Irvin reality show and got an interview with Irvin.  Then, there are the interviews with 3-time Indy 500 Champ Helio Castroneves, Olympic Gold Medalists Nastia Liukin and Carly Patterson, and a Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader.

Be sure to bookmark DFWReporting.com and catch the positive news stories which are being produced by the innovative site.

I listened to Jerry talk with Randy Galloway of Galloway and Company last month, and I was impressed with his passion and knowledge of the game.  Of course, Jerry has been a world-class football coach for decades.  Now, he coaches one-on-one including getting players ready for the NFL and help improve their draft stock.

Jerry coaches players as young as 10.  He can help take your talent to the next level.  If you are a middle school, high school, college or semi-pro football player, you might want to consider droping Jerry a line to find out what it would take to get Jerry to coach you.  If you are able to get him, you might just find yourself playing in the NFL.

www.jerryrhome.com

It is an easy way to compile a list of internet friends.  If you would like to be featured in this segment, click on the contact page at the top and send me an email.

The first site we are going to look at is Getting Better Television by Jeff Atkinson.  Jeff has put together a website explaining his ideas for having a better television experience.  It seems as if he is a little partial to satellite TV.  I understand that.  Some cable companies act as if they don’t have competition.

Jeff’s site has been up for almost a year, and he seems to write about two articles a month.  He recalls some of his own experiences with TV and how he has found the best experience.  He is offering advice from his own experiences.

The site looks good.  It is a classic looking blog set up with the latest articles posted on the entry page and sidebars on both sides.  He has gathered quite a group in his blogroll.  He has some advertising, but it doesn’t get in the way of the writing which is a good thing.

He has a nice big pic of himself (but not too big) in the upper left corner showing that he is open and unwilling to hide behind some avatar or cute slogan.  He has added the “add this” feature to his posts so that you can share them with your friends, etc.

Us football fans are often looking for the best TV value to catch all of the games.  Maybe Jeff’s suggestions can help you.  As I commented on one of his posts, I use AT&T Uverse.  But to each his own.  Until AT&T starts giving me money to exclusively mention them on this site, I will not censor anyone’s opinion based on their expereinces with TV.

Check out Jeff’s site.  Maybe he can save you some heartache.