flyte blog: small business web marketing blog

Long-Term Florida Home Rentals: SelectDwelling

flyte has just redesigned and re-engineered a website for SelectDwelling, who offer affordable residential listings for homeowners in SouthWest Florida seeking long-term renters. 

In three easy steps, owners can list their properties, provide a detailed description, select from a list of amenities and upload up to 12 photos along with a link to Google Maps.

Flyte programmed a simple-to-use admin that allows multiple levels of user access: owners can list and maintain multiple properties and manage their inquiries, SelectDwelling can administer the entire site and edit/confirm listings while site visitors can search for properties multiple ways.

Visitors search for long-term rentals by clicking on city names on the home page map, typing in specific cities, or by clicking links for popular towns.  While searching for properties by city, site visitors can refine their search by number of bedrooms, rates and specific amenities. 

Recent posts from their blog automatically populate the home page, providing fresh content with no extra work for SelectDwelling. The SelectDwelling blog offers relevant information on various Southwest Florida towns and activities year round.

Apart from being a great resource for home owners looking to enter the property rental market, the site is a veritable goldmine of information for Southwest Florida, offering travel guides and a calendar of events.

If you're looking to rent your home, or looking for a long-term rental in Southwest Florida, be sure to give SelectDwelling a visit.

Cybele Brooks
Project Manager

Alaska Vacations with Goldbelt Tours

Flyte recently launched a Web site for Goldbelt Tours, an Alaskan tour company with a tram, hotel and marina.

Goldbelt Tours is a one-stop-shop for your next visit to Juneau, Alaska. Goldbelt, Inc. owns and operates the Goldbelt Hotel, the Mount Robert’s Tramway, and the Seadrome Marina. They also offer unforgettable adventures and excursions in both Juneau and Ketchikan.

Flyte designed and built the site on WordPress, allowing Goldbelt to update their site, upload images and embed video without needing to know any HTML.

Flyte is also working on the redesign and redevelopment of Goldbelt Corporate, offering shareholders and natives access to the latest news/information that Goldbelt offers. Stay tuned.

Lindsay Babayan
Project Manager

Every Day Love: A New Approach to Commitment

Earlier this week flyte designed and launched a blog for David Sanford's new project: Every Day Love.

David is an experienced couple's therapist located in Greater Portland, Maine. As he says on the site:

My experience as a couples therapist and relationship coach is that far too many marriages and committed relationships fail because partners are too intent on getting love and too disinterested in giving it.

I want to use this blog as a vehicle for sharing what I know about loving behavior and for exploring the many ways in which a committed life with a partner can be an adventure – not just the burden that so many people find it to be.

The blog is part of a bigger project. David also has a podcast for Every Day Love, and is writing a book on the same topic. 

If you're in a committed relationship, or just want to be ready when you are, be sure to check out the Every Day Love Blog, and follow David Sanford on Twitter.

Rich Brooks
Maine WordPress Development

Allied/Cook Construction: Commercial Construction on WordPress

Recently we worked with Allied/Cook Construction, a commercial construction company in Maine serving all of northern New England, to redesign and redevelop their Web site.

Like so many businesses these day, Allied/Cook was looking for more than a simple online brochure. They needed an interactive Web site that they could update themselves.

We gave them a sleek, modern design that put the focus on their work. A simple Flash slideshow on the home  page shows off some of their newer work, while search engine friendly navigation lets visitors dive right into their portfolio. You can check out their LEED & Green Building construction, historic restoration or some of their retail construction.

WordPress slideshow plug-ins not only provide a slick interface, but it also allows them to add new projects and upload new photos into the slideshow without any programming knowledge.

If you're looking for a Maine commercial construction company, be sure to check out Allied/Cook. They can help you with construction or pre-construction services, green building and historical restorations.

Rich Brooks
WordPress Web Design for Small Business

Wellesley Weston Magazine Blog

Last week flyte launched a new photo-centric blog for Wellesley Weston magazine.

When Beth Furman, the publisher, first approached us she was looking for a way to easily display all the photos that wouldn't fit in her beautiful, glossy magazine targeting residents of Wellesley and Weston, Massachusetts. The About Town section was extremely popular, but it was impossible to add all the event photos to the print magazine.

With WordPress, a few key plugins and some experienced know-how (thanks, Andy!) we were able to make it simple for her to upload those photos and categorize them by events. We also made adding new ads to the rotating banners point-and-click easy.

Additional benefits include the ability for attendees to leave comments below their photos and additional advertising opportunities for Wellesley Weston Magazine. If you're looking to reach this attractive demographic, be sure to visit The Wellesley Weston Magazine blog and contact Beth.

If you're looking for a way of extending your magazine's reach, be sure to contact flyte new media.

Rich Brooks
Blogs for Print Media

Reliable Networks: A Flash to WordPress Conversion

flyte recently worked with Reliable Networks, a Portland, Maine based technology company servicing businesses of all sizes.

Reliable Networks offers hosted services, technology consulting, hipaa compliance and proactive maintenance, as well as being experts in Zimbra Groupware.

RN had a beautiful, clean Web site when we began working with them. They had received lots of compliments on how easy it was to use and find the information once you were there.

The problem was that it was built entirely in Flash. The images, the content, the navigation, all Flash. While there's nothing wrong with using Flash (the current Web site still uses Flash banners), using it for the entire site rendered the site nearly invisible to search engines.

Flyte rebuilt the site on WordPress, using some neat javascript tricks to mimic some of the, well, flash of Flash, without hurting the site's search engine visibility. Now all of their keyword-rich content can be indexed by Google, Bing and the other search engines, delivering more qualified leads through their Web site.

Now that the site is running on WordPress, RN is able to update the site, adding new content, uploading images and embedding videos as necessary. With flyte's help RN's also added a blog, tackling such topics as "strong passwords" and password rotation.

If your business is located in southern Maine and you need support for your emails, network and/or help with other technological issues, be sure to visit Reliable Networks.

If you're looking to build a world-class Web site that can grow with your business, be sure to talk to flyte new media today.

Rich Brooks
Maine WordPress Design

Designer Sale Rack: WordPress + E-Commerce = Success

Flyte recently launched a new fashion e-commerce blog at DesignerSaleRack.com with the tag line "Still in Style. Now on Sale."

DesignerSaleRack offers contemporary women's and men's clothing and denim at extremely discounted prices.

Using WordPress's categories and tags, it's easy to find men's denim or women's jackets or any sweater that's on sale. (Wow! $43.20 marked down from $160!)

We implemented a PayPal & e-junkie solution for handling e-commerce in an extremely cost effective way; no startup fees, and only $5/month for e-junkie. (Terrible name, great shopping cart solution. I find myself apologizing for the name as I continue to sell people on the slick interface and easy-to-use features.)

You can also follow DesignerSaleRack on Twitter at @dsignersalerack.

If you're a fashion diva with an eye for value, be sure to visit DesignerSaleRack.com. If you need a blog or e-commerce for your growing business, be sure to talk to flyte.

Rich Brooks
WordPress Design & Development

Healthcare Jobs in Midcoast Maine - WordPress Delivers

Last week flyte launched a Web site for Lincoln County Healthcare called LCH Careers.

The new Web site is the go-to place for people looking for healthcare positions in and around the coastal communities of Boothbay Harbor and Damariscotta.

Visitors to the site can learn more about working in midcoast Maine, living in midcoast Maine, and current, available healthcare positions. 

The site was built in WordPress, so that LCH could have multiple people continually updating the site, adding content, uploading photos and embedding videos...all without any HTML knowledge.

If you're looking for a healthcare job in one of the most beautiful spots in the world, be sure to visit LCH Careers. If you're looking to build a Web site that you can manage yourself, and that will grow with you, be sure to talk to flyte new media.

Rich Brooks
Maine Web Design

The Elms: Greater Portland Bed & Breakfast

Flyte recently worked with The Elms, a historic B&B located in Greater Portland on their Web presence and visibility.

We started with a keyword analysis to help Scott, the innkeeper, get a better understanding of what people were searching for when they needed Portland, Maine lodging. We also identified some link building opportunities to help further increase the site's search engine rankings.

Next, we rebuilt the current Web site on WordPress, and added a blog. WordPress--an open-source content management system--allows Scott to add, edit and delete content to his heart's desire. Also, as we continue to work with him to uncover trending topics and new keyword opportunities, he can update the site himself, keeping his costs down.

The blog is a natural fit for bed & breakfasts; we all expect our innkeepers to know the local area, and a blog is a way to establish this expertise before the guest even arrives at the inn. It also increases the chances that the site will come up for different searches.

If you're looking to stay at a historic bed & breakfast in Greater Portland, be sure to check out The Elms. If you want to increase your search engine visibility and Web site conversions, contact flyte today.

Rich Brooks
Maine Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Maine Quality Counts: Powered by Joomla CMS & flyte

Today flyte launched a Web site for Maine Quality Counts: Measurably Improving Health & Healthcare in Maine.

Maine is one of 16 communities across the United States selected to participate in the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's (RWJF) Aligning Forces for Quality Initiative.

As part of this effort, Quality Counts works directly with consumers to help them choose healthcare based on quality and take a more active role in managing their own care. There are many tools and trainings that consumers can use to learn more on the Web site.

MQC wanted a Web site that they could manage themselves. They also wanted one where they could provide password-protected, member only content, and feature members prominently on the home page. Most importantly, they wanted a Web site that would grow with them.

The site also allows them to easily promote important events, like the upcoming Maine Healthcare Forum.

Flyte designed and developed the Web site on Joomla, an open-source content management system (CMS) that's powerful, but easy to use. Just the kind of online publishing platform MQC needed so they could focus on their core mission, and not spend unnecessary time and money updating their site.

Rich Brooks
Joomla Web Design & Development