Eden Project Accommodation

• This is an in-house directory of accommodation designed to cater for visitors looking for easy access to the Eden Project. In addition to offering a comprehensive accommodation database, this website provides a great deal of general information on the Eden Project itself and an extensive photo gallery of this popular and world famous attraction.
• This website has recently been given a “makeover” by the design team here at Connexions Web Solutions. The new look website is fresh and up to date with crisp, pastel shades and integrated imagery of the Eden Project itself. Although this site is not part of the official Eden Project’s web presence, the Connexions Eden Project Accommodation website maintains a standard of presentation and content in keeping with the status of Cornwall’s most famous attraction.
• The layout of the website has been kept simple by the designers in order to maintain focus on the two primary areas the website is concerned with; Accommodation and information about the Eden Project. Accessing the accommodation sectionis easily achieved through one of several navigation links.|The accommodation index page provides visitors with the option to narrow their search to the type of accommodation they are looking for, whether that is a hotel or guesthouse, self catering accommodation, B&B or camping. Again, selecting an option can be achieved through one of several easy to use navigation links. If preferred, the entire list of accommodationcan be viewed to evaluate all options.
• The directory layout is clear and easy to use. The options run in a list down the page, clearly demarked by shading. Each entry has a picture and brief description. Clicking anywhere on the text takes the visitor to a page dedicated to that accommodation provider. Again, the layout of this section is standardised for ease of use and comparison.
• Information on each provider can be found in the same location on every individual page. Examples of the information provided include price range, full contact details and a link to the accommodation provider’s own website. Each individual page on the Eden Project Accommodation Directorycontains an online enquiry form making it easy for potential guests to get in touch with their holiday accommodation requirements.
• Imagery is an important element of any website but is particularly so for holiday accommodation. Guests prefer to be given a clear idea of what’s on offer, both in terms of surrounding location and the internal facilities. The website provides three photographs of each entry on the individual page in addition to the picture in the main listing section. This gives guests a good starting point from which to make their choice. The ability to link to the individual accommodation provider’s website and to effortlessly request a brochure mean that additional information is easy to obtain.
• A significant proportion of the website is dedicated to information about the Eden Project itself. There are sections on how the Biomes were constructed, the project’s plans for the future and information on the project’s aims and objectives. This section of the website is rich in Eden imagery and contains an extensive photo gallery to allow visitors to get a taste of what the project has to offer. Overall, this website succeeds in providing a high quality holiday accommodation search service with specific links to a main holiday attraction.
• Visit this website at www.eden-project-accommodation.com|For more case studies view our portfolio at www.cnx-solutions.com

The Tregorran

• This medium sized hotel uses its website to shamelessly “show off” its facilities and commanding elevated position above Carbis Bay. To ensure that potential guests are in no doubt as to what is on offer, the Tregorran website provides several 360 degree views of the hotel and its facilities.
• The site is welcoming and easy to navigate with potential guests able to access details about rooms, facilities and local tourist information quickly.
• The imagery on the website is stunning, matching the Mediterranean style of the hotel itself with views of the sun-drenched landscape. The website proudly flaunts the hotel’s accreditations with Cornish accommodation organisations and the AA.
• A page is dedicated to the hotel’s prime asset, the outdoor heated pool, but the website boasts generous links to a variety of holiday attractions which would be of use to guests with & without children who might be planning a break.
• A detailed booking enquiry form has been integrated into the site whilst full contact details are prominent on the hotel’s home page.
• The overall feel of the site is one of a welcoming atmosphere and high standard of care. Thought has gone into making the site user friendly and helpful, which bodes well for the reception guests would receive when they visit.
• The website makes it very clear that the venue is both suitable and welcoming for children which is an important factor for many people thinking of booking somewhere to stay.
• The Tregorran Hotel is an eighteen bedroom hotel above Carbis Bay. With a terrace, heated pool and direct access to the beach it has a great deal to offer holidaymakers visiting Cornwall.

Successful E Commerce

• E Commerce websites are particularly demanding sites to design. There is as much design work “behind the scenes” as on the pages the public gets to see and the sites need to carry out quite complicated functions in a way that feels intuitive to the user.
• Cnx Web Solutions have designed a variety of e commerce websites on a bespoke design basis. Businesses, their products and their customers are all different. Creating bespoke E Commerce solutions is the best way to ensure that the website fits the needs of a client rather than the other way about!
• Key features we have found essential to a successful e commerce website include:

• Clear navigation
• Easily accessible product images
• Logical structure to the product database
• Easy to use and edit “basket”
• Easy to maintain/update/amend product database
• Easy to access contact details for queries
• Web pages that are attractive but uncluttered
• Secure SSL payment

• These are just the main features of a good site – there are many more! A few examples might include Coopers Ladieswear which is a highly specialised E Commerce site. In addition to the products the site includes features to select size and product colour, reducing a great number of permutations to a simple “select button” action by the customer.
• The site is fully controlled by the client who can add stock, descriptions, images etc as needed.

• A smaller but still very successful e commerce website is the Seachest Nautical Bookshop. Meeting this client’s needs involved a less grand approach, visually speaking, but functionality remains important with stock sub-divided into sections to quickly narrow down the search and images of most products available once that product has been selected.
• The “human faces” behind the e store are highlighted in the About Us section which offers some store history and some information on the people who run it.
• In addition to marine books, Seachest’s online store also has sections for sea charts as well as instructional media and software.

• Different again is the Fairtrade Giftshop  retail website. A vast stock range is cleverly sub divided and all product and section navigation is accompanied by product images which combine to make this a visually rich website that really encourages browsing. Some subtle yet eye-catching flash animation has been worked into the header image as a nice visual touch.
• E Commerce is an increasingly lucrative and popular field. The public is turning to website purchasing in ever increasing numbers and though a good e commerce website is not the cheapest to create (compared to a static site) the on going costs are very low, meaning that on-going revenue can provide a very good return on that initial investment.

Absolute Software

• Absolute Software is a Cornish specialist embedded software developer that is looking to the future with considerable confidence. The launch of their new website very much asserts this positive outlook with a crisp, fresh layout that is professional looking and easy to navigate.
• The company has an impressive project portfolio covering a range of technologies and applications including clients within the automotive, scientific, consumer and industrial sectors.
• The new website details the skills the company offers along with the specific languages, chips and applications the firm has expertise in.
• This website acts as much more then an information site though. It is a practical tool for both Absolute Software and its clients, with online bug tracker and project tracker applications to ease communication between client and service provider.
• The site also includes a news section which the client has full control over and some very positive testimonials from satisfied clients.
• This website achieves all that a good business site should, serving the client, informing new customers about the company and providing a useful means of communication between clients and their project team.
• To view the website click here.

Spiraclimb extends it reach

• Spiraclimb has been successfully selling via the website for quite some time now. The recent addition of the ability to make card payments on the site has done it no harm at all, but the latest innovation is quite bold.
• We have added an "Oversees order" section to the website, allowing orders of the product to be placed from anywhere. As with domestic UK orders, these are despatched on the same working day as the order is received.
• This was an interesting move for Spiraclimb, if only because it was not clear how high the product's profile is overseas (though the site consistently performs well in google keyword searches which must help).
• However in a very short time, we have received orders from both the US and Australia proving that in the World Wide Web if your website crosses boarders so too can the product you sell!

Holiday Park website design

• Cnx Web Solutions has provided two full website redesigns for holiday parks in the last few months and the success of these two projects has seen us joining the British Holiday & Home Parks Asociation (BH&HPA) as a national associate member.
• Both designs were very much client-led and so though they have a common purpose on the face of it, the two websites appear quite different. Appearances are a bit deceptive however as these sites in fact share the same design philosophy.
• Mother Iveys Bay is an exclusive and tranquil holiday park near Padstow on Cornwall's north coast. The site offers a selection of self catering Rose Award caravans as well as touring pitches for caravans, tents and motorhomes.
• The first task in designing the website was to ensure that the navigation made it very easy to access the relavant information. For this reason the hire caravans and touring sections are organised separately, with a navigation button for each section. Within the caravans & camping/touring sections sub level navigation makes it easy to obtain all the relevant information needed for booking.
• Clarity of navigation sounds like a simple concept but it never ceases to amaze me how frequently I come across websites that are an absolute nightmare to navigate. Its like walking into an unfamiliar supermarket that has taken all the aisle signs down "for a laugh". With the Mother Iveys Bay site we prioritised the order of the navigation buttons, made them very easy to spot and utilised sub navigation within sections to keep the primary navigation uncluttered.

• A similar organisational task was required to design the website for Ayr Holiday Park. The difference here was that within the overall company/organisation there are two park sites plus a holiday home letting business. the previous website design failed to distinguish between these facets of the business which was costing the client bookings when we inherited it.

• We first split The sitemap into three sections, one for Ayr , one for Trevalgan and the holiday homes . Selecting one of these sections is easily accomplished from the home page but internal navigation throughout the entire website makes moving between sections asy at any time.
• The simple expedient of colour coding the sections helps the organisation and makes the site much clearer to use. within each section we employed the same nav principles as for Mother Iveys Bay - resulting in a functioning website that is easy to use, easy to navigate and makes booking straightforward.
• The goal of each website is to create a resource that meets the vision of the client, serves the needs of the site user and generates income through booking. Both clients were very pleased with their websites and their assistance in helping us to become HP&HPA a member is very much appreciated.

Blowing your own trumpet successfully!

• A successful website sells your company, its products, and celebrates the strengths of your company. Many of our clients include a section within their website for case studies/successful contracts. It might feel like shamelessly blowing one's own trumpet but actually such information has an important function
• It's no different, really, to us including a portfolio of our designs on our own website. If you are proud of something your company has achieved, you should not be shy about advertising the fact and your website is an ideal place to do it for a number of reasons.
• Firstly, it sells your business by establishing your successful track record, not with general sales slogans but through concrete examples. This method is far more convincing then fine words which we are increasingly skeptical of in any case. It allows potential clients to see examples of your work and which other companies have entrusted work to you.
• Secondly, it is a productive way to add regular new content to your website. A case study/portfolio page, in combination with a company news page, means that you can generate relevant content onto your website quite easily. It shows visitors that your company is self assured and proud of its achievements, moving forward constantly.
• Of course regular fresh content is also something the search engines reward, particularly if you flag up the articles using Digg, redit, stumble, twitter or similar Web 2.0 applications. There really is no downside to be honest!
• In the case of Naston, this self assured positive attitude has paid off in a huge way as they have recently become part of the SEMCAN group. SEMCAN look for precisely the qualities Naston have long proudly announced on their website; innovative products, specialist knowledge and expertise, a loyal and expanding client base and a healthy order book!
• For a good example of the case study approach, take a look at Naston's project reference list list, whilst our own company news page serves to show just how much content, along with useful links, can be generateed by celebrating the regular achievements of your company.

Case Study St Ives Hotel & Guesthouse Assoc.

• This website is an excellent example of a local business sector coming together to promote a common product. St Ives is a thriving holiday destination with a huge amount to offer holiday makers of all ages and interests. The website aims to provide comprehensive information on the town, its facilities and its unique selling points.
• With Cornwall as a county firmly established as a favourite holiday destination, St Ives has taken the pioneering step of targeting those visitors directly. The website home page is bright, colourful and exciting offering links immediately to sections of interest.
• The accommodation section follows good practice in that it allows selection by preferred type of accommodation ensuring that options are relevant. Links take the user directly to the website of each accommodation provider for full details of what is on offer and the chance to make a booking enquiry.
• Visitors need to eat, so the site has a section dedicated to association approved restaurants, again with links direct to the service suppliers to aid bookings and enquiries. The site provides a sense that the businesses in St Ives are working together to provide both complimentary services (restaurants with self catering accommodation and bed and breakfast guest houses) and a common standard of quality and service across the town.
• Finally, the site provides a great deal of locality-specific information on activities and recreation opportunities in and around the town. As a resource to holiday makers, this section is certainly useful and helpful. It serves both to inform and promote; highlighting the variety of provision which includes some of Cornwall’s most popular beaches and the Tate St Ives gallery.
• Locals have something to gain from the site too, since the restaurant information is equally relevant, but specifically the site addresses the other function which tourist destinations offer all year round; that of very special venues for weddings. Information is provided on all aspects of wedding planning. You can browse venues licensed to hold wedding ceremonies, source flowers and a photographer and even order your wedding cake.
• If St Ives is your wedding venue of choice, this site can take a great deal of the hassle out of planning the big day!
• To conclude, what has been created here is a functional, informative, vibrant website reflecting the energy and enthusiasm of the businesses that have made welcoming visitors to their town a way of life. It would not be greatly surprising if other popular holiday venues follow St Ives’ lead.

Case Study; Eflo

• Eflo International commissioned a new-look website from us which was launched this month. This UK based company is a truly international concern in the field of waste water management. A fresh, accessible website is, therefore, a key asset in terms of attracting potential customers and providing them with information on products and services.
• Our web design team gave the site an uncluttered look using blue as the main colour – an obvious choice. Information on the different products and business areas can be easily accessed through more than one link on the home page.
• Individual sections provide both general and technical information whilst each has a rich selection of photographs of the company’s products in action. The inclusion of pictures of water treatment products – not the most photogenic of things one would have thought– was important as it livens up what could be a drab, technical website by offering tangible examples of the processes and equipment in action. The imagry is also an important way of quickly establishing Eflo’s expertise in their field for any potential client.
• EFLO is a well-established company which has been in business since 1970. Its expertise has never been in greater demand with environmental considerations for waste water management a significant factor now in both industrial and domestic developments. An example of this would be recycling of grey water – domestic waste water excluding toilets. Eflo’s systems can treat and recycle grey water for re-use ensuring it is free from clouding, odour and contaminants.
• EFLO’s industrial waste water systems offer significant savings to companies by pre-treating waste water to reduce levels of contamination. Further processing can produce “boiler quality” water which can be re-used.

Case Study Coastline Surveys

• The Coastline Surveys website is a good example of a corporate "information" website that introduces the services and skills of this specialist marine survey company. The site provides easy to find opportunities for visitors to contact the company directly either by email, post or telephone. Sufficient information to serve as a good introduction to the services and capabilities of the company is available on the website with a view to eliciting conatact by interested parties.
• Layout, prsentation and general attractiveness is no less important for an engineering type corporation as any other though in this case we opted for a more pastel palette. Nonetheless images and the use of sea tones create a design that is smart and professional.
• The absence of flash elements is by choice of the client. This is a static page site though with dynamic potential for the client to add new content through the company news section when they choose. What the site also offers the client is the facility to create pdf downloads, something that allows to offer detailed technical specifications to those who are interested yet still keep pages of the site easy to read and navigate.
• We have provided general navigation beneath the main image/company logo whilst also providing clear "quick links" to sections within the more general sections at the foot of each page. This enablres users to move quickly to the key sections of the website without going through more general navigation. In this way the site serves those looking both for specific service information, such as marine surveys or charter of their workboats, or those wanting to understand the breadth of expertise the company has in more general terms.
• This website serves Coastline Surveys well as their "web presence" acting as a professional first point of call for online clients both existing and potential.

Newquay Hotels

• These two hotels share a website; www.newquay-hotels.co.uk. The stylish and modern appearance of the site reflects the standard of accommodation on offer with both hotels looking fresh from recent interior designed refurbishment.
• The Espanade caters for a variety of guests including young families. The breadth of appeal is reflected in the accommodation section which offers a variety of room styles to suite different needs and tastes. The website is very easy to navigate with information presented clearly. Images are integrated with a visually attractive style of page formatting which presents guests with a highly favourable impression of the accommodation and holiday experience on offer.|The site also provides information on using the Esplanade for functions, such as weddings and business conferences. You can contact the hotel through an enquiry form on the contacts page which also provides phone, fax and postal address details.
• The Esplanade is a 93 bedroom hotel situated at the southern end of Fistral Beach. The hotel boasts a spacious dining room, indoor and outdoor swimming pools, a ballroom, cabaret bar and childrens’ play area.
• The Bay Hotel’s website details an impressive array of business conference, function, spa and gymnasium health facilities. Maintaining the same style of layout and user navigation, the Bay Hotel’s website is both informative and visually stunning; exuding class and style. Clearly catering for the active, health conscious holidaymaker, the website offers details of facilities and services on offer in a clear context. The site succeeds in selling the hotel as a quality venue for business conference events.
• The 97 bedroom Bay Hotel is situated at the very southern tip of Fistral Beach. Linked to this hotel is the Bay Bar and Fistral Spa.

Case Study; Toms Holidays

• This is an example of a website where a vast quantity of information needed to be presented in a manner that would be easy to navigate. Toms Holidays offer self catering beach accommodation in a spacious park containing both holiday chalets and holiday bungalows. The accommodation is varied in terms of sleeping capacity, layout, appearance and location with the tariffs reflecting these differences.
• The layout and style of the homepage reflects the twin requirements of artistic/design appeal with a large volume of information. The colours, choice of background and use of pictures show the best of the Cornish holiday experience; sun drenched beaches and azure seascapes. The colour tones of the page reflect the warmth of summer and the beach-front location. To cater for the information, a clearly labelled, easy to use navigation bar is placed at the top of the home page.
• Searching out information on your choice of holiday accommodation couldn’t be easier. The accommodation link leads to a map of the holiday park. Clicking on a given location brings up a side bar containing pictures of each individual self catering chalet and bungalow, both interior and exterior shots, as well as detailed information on the facilities each holiday home has to offer. The site literally offers holiday makers the opportunity to pick out their choice of holiday accommodation and name the chalet/bungalow on the booking form giving them total control of their holiday.
• Locating the tariffs and terms is equally straightforward; clicking the link at the top of the page brings up a table of dates and chalet sizes with the varying rates in an easy to read format.
• Like all high quality holiday websites, Toms Holidays don’t limit the scope of their site to their accommodation alone. Using a photo gallery, links and information pages prospective visitors can learn about the local area around Hayle and St Ives as well as a wide variety of attractions and activities (including information for those on surfing holidays in Cornwall) to allow visitors to plan ahead and get the most from their time in Cornwall.

• Toms Holidays is a well established company whose accommodation occupies a prime location among the beach front dunes at Riviere Towans near Hayle. The investment in the website, in terms of quality and attention to detail, reflects an ethos of providing the best self-catering holiday experience possible whether for holiday makers on the active surf scene or families wanting easy access to fantastic beaches and safe communal play areas to keep the younger family members happy. If you’re looking for self catering beach accommodation in Cornwall, Tom’s Holidays should be your first port of call

Case Study Hotel St Eia

• This family-run hotel has commissioned a website which exudes style and class. The format is straightforward for ease of navigation but the hotel owners have included a wealth of information on both their hotel and the immediate area.
• The stunning location of the hotel is clearly a major selling point and the site makes good use of images to show potential customers the attractive location in which the hotel is set. The site offers an additional informative section on the more general locality with plenty of ideas to attract guests with a range of interests as well as useful links to other websites.
• Equally important to any accommodation website, is the need to give guests a good idea of the interior of the hotel. Sections on both the facilities and accommodation provide images and details which are necessary for people thinking of booking accommodation.
• The emphasis is on customer service and on a subtle level the website reinforces this strongly. Clearly much thought has gone into the content and the ease with which information can be accessed. Touches like a brief history of the building itself and the origins of the name add interest to the hotel and make it more appealing to customers.
• Contacting the hotel is easy, with the full range of methods/options clearly signposted on the site.
• Hotel St. Eia is an eighteen bedroom proprietor-operated hotel situated in a commanding position overlooking St Ives harbour and Porthminster beach. Facilities include a 36 cover restaurant, roof garden, lounge and bar as well as a great springboard location to experience the best of Cornwall.

Porthminster View Guesthouse

• The website for this family-run guesthouse is packed with information for the convenience of guests. The appearance & layout of the site is fresh and easy to navigate. The guest house’s owners make full use of Porthminster View’s stunning location by providing several images of the building and views across St Ives bay.
• To assist potential guests, each room has a photograph and description, with many rooms having a 360 degree viewing facility. The owners list the features and facilities available with each room and try to ensure that all booking related questions are answered within the text of the site.
• In an extra personalised touch, visitors to the site can view the entire history of the property from 1876 to the present day, giving the guest house a historical context within the location. The site is well stocked with advice and holiday ideas and the popularity of Porthminster View with artists and photographers is well signposted.
• Navigation around the site couldn’t be easier & the website provides a template form for enquiries about bookings and room availability along with a direct email address and telephone contact details.
• Porthminster View is a 6 bedroom guest house which has been trading as such since the late 1930s. The present owners have run the business since 1998, continuing a long tradition of providing a warm welcome to guests, including families with children aged 11 and upwards, wanting to enjoy the sites, activities and stunning beaches of Cornwall.

Case study: Seachest Nautical bookshop

• The Sea Chest Nautical Bookshop website has a smart, yet appropriately nautical feel with “lifebelt” buttons being used for navigation around the site. The use of this motif makes the identification of links obvious and aids quick navigation around the site which is always an important consideration.
• This website is primarily to provide online retail capability for an existing well-established specialist shop (est. 1989). The online catalogue lists an impressive selection of charts, books on all things nautical and additional seafaring goods (such as electronic charts, software etc.). Navigating such a vast selection of stock could be problematic but a great deal of thought has gone into avoiding the common “navigational pitfalls” which can blight the online retail experience.
• Sea Chest initially divides the catalogue into eight distinct sub-sections which are selected at the click of the mouse. The catalogue is then sub-divided again, steering the customer precisely to a final list of products closest to their needs from which they can make a selection. Complete details, and images, of each book or product can be brought up without having to put it in the shopping cart allowing the purchaser to ensure that they have located what they are looking for.
• Although this is very much an online retail experience, visitors to the website are made aware that this is the online interface with a physical shop, staffed by helpful and knowledgeable assistants. Contact details are readily available and the site makes it quite clear that help is just a phone call (or Email) away if needed. Swift service is assured with the majority of orders being despatched on the same day.
• Sea Chest is an excellent example of a specialist business. The bookshop stocks a comprehensive array of admiralty sea charts, Imray charts and sea maps. In addition Sea Chest sells a selection of navigation plotting instruments including gps. Sea Chest’s staff are themselves experienced sailors and so able to offer sound advice on the purchase of equipment, software and charts.
• To access the seachest website click on the link in the title of this post.

Web design Case Study The Nook

• The home page of The Nook guesthouse’s website appears fresh and welcoming. Following recent refurbishment, The Nook has achieved 4 star AA Guesthouse rating and the website is a proud showcase for the contemporary facilities that this St Ives holiday residence has to offer.
• Allowing gusts to find the right accommodation has clearly been a priority. Potential guests can first select the type of room they require (family, double, twin or single). Then, by clicking on the room numbers that their choice brings up they can view each room and its facilities before making a choice confident that it will meet their needs.
• The Nook provides bed and breakfast accommodation with a lounge and TV/DVD facilities (most rooms also have TV & DVD) provided for the recreation of their guests. A section of the website is dedicated to providing a comprehensive list of local restaurants and cafes to assist holiday makers in the planning of their stay.
• St Ives offers an excellent base for holiday makers wanting to explore the best that Cornwall has to offer. For family holidays, St Ives offers stunning beaches and numerous local attractions and activities. The Nook provides family friendly accommodation from which to explore and the website contains some suggestions about starting points.
• You can link to The Nook Website by clicking on the picture link on the right hand margin of this page.

Case Study; Pixie Tours

• Visitors and holiday makers to any locality are at a distinct disadvantage when trying to experience the best that their chosen destination has to offer. A wealth of information exists, pointing them to various attractions and venues, but the real “jewels” in any location, be it the rugged lake district, welsh mountains, Scottish highlands or here in Cornwall are often the bits the guide books don’t mention. They’re the places the locals go to escape during the tourist season!
• That being the case, getting some local knowledge during your stay would seem like a good idea and that is precisely what Pixie Tours offers. A qualified local tour guide takes responsibility for organising walks, visits and outings which offer the most stunning views – and the most intriguing local myths, stories and history.
• The website points visitors towards a variety of guided tours options, dependant on their interests and the locality they are visiting. Key to the tour experience is the tour guide’s extensive knowledge of stories and local myth which prevails across much of the rugged Cornish landscape whether it be smugglers, pirates and wreckers or the hard-working miners who had such a lasting impact upon the Cornish landscape.
• Pixie Tours own a selection of luxury vehicles allowing them to assist disabled visitors to get the most from their holiday by going on a tour in their wheelchair or powered scooter at venues which are known to be both stunning and wheelchair friendly – the local knowledge factor at work again.
• The company’s website makes specific reference to it’s suitability for the cruise ship trade which is steadily growing at both Falmouth and Fowey with guided tours designed specifically to suit the timescale and start/finish points.
• The key function of this small but popular website is to provide enough information about the services and tours available to elicit enquiries from customers. The site performs this function well, with contact details easily available and an online enquiry form.
• For more information on this company and its unique local service, view their website at: www.pixietours.co.uk

Getting It Right - Business to Business Sales

Getting it right: A case study in business to business sales

• If you were to stumble across the World Art and Crafts website you would initially be forgiven for assuming you had found an online shop selling a truly stunning array of ethnic handicrafts from around the world. You’d be right, up to a point, but in fact this website (www.worldartandcrafts.com) is in fact a wholesale outfit which sells to trade customers only.
• For the most part, buying from a wholesaler is very much a pale shadow of the domestic shopping experience. Their premises lack many of the finer comforts we expect from our daily retail outlets (small things like carpet, natural light possibly even heating!). Not so this online wholesaler. The website cuts no corners, presentationally speaking, and indeed is one of the more visually striking sites we’ve been involved in at Connexions Web Solutions.
• The site follows many of the conventions of an e-commerce site but only trade users who are registered can actually place items into the “basket” and proceed to checkout in the usual manner. Products are clearly categorised down the right hand margin, with photographs of examples. Clicking on a category brings up a detailed list of products, illustrated with high quality photographs and product information. The buyer can be clear exactly what they are ordering and the products on offer are stunning and beguiling, representing the best in artistic style and craftsmanship from around the world.
• The World Art and Crafts website goes beyond merely supplying products, however. The company offers a variety of schemes aimed at getting new businesses off the ground with initial stock packages. These range from smaller scale working from home party plans or craft fair packages to a more impressive franchise, style package to support a newly opened shop. The information is clearly presented, free of small print and hidden catches, with photograph illustrations of examples of the stock on display. In all, an impressive example of straightforward, ethical business practice.
• This ethical approach is central to the company ethos with all stock offered being purchased according to Fair Trade standards so that the benefits of the company’s activities are felt by the artists and craftsmen who make the products as well as traders here in the UK. Overall, World Art and Crafts present a corporate image and standard of service more commonly associated with a small, highly focussed service provider whose survival depends on delivering above expectation at every time. We all know this type of business always delivers superb value.
• It’s refreshing to see the same standards applied to an online wholesaler and I image World Art and Crafts’ customers feel much the same way!
• Incidentally, though this is a “trade only” website it’s worth a browse regardless since you can explore the entire range of products without registering your details. Follow the link to
• www.worldartandcrafts.com

Web Design and Marketing Services (Part One)

• When to call in the professionals?
• Does your business need our services? That’s a question I’m likely to answer “Yes” to, since I work for a professional web solutions company. So, by all means assume I’m biased for now but please judge the content of this post on merit!
• In my defence, I’m relatively new to the internet and e-commerce sector, my background being more in face to face (or call-centre to telephone) customer service. I’ve worked as a recruitment consultant, a sales support manager and (I hesitate to admit) an insurance claims assessor. When I examine a website, or evaluate a service, I look for practicality and value for money. I’ve a pretty good understanding of what a business customer is looking for from a service or solution provider.
• So, with my credentials in the open, I return to the question above. When do you need the help of professionals with your corporate website?
• Firstly, it has to be said that it depends greatly on the level of expertise available within your own company. Many businesses handle their own website design, hosting and maintenance in-house. If you have the resources and expertise to achieve the desired result that’s fine. Obviously, having a full time staff member dedicated to your web presence creates a significant “running cost” but if the nature of the website requires full time development and supervision, in-house might well be the way to go.
• Perhaps less wise is tacking responsibility for a website onto other job responsibilities. I’m aware of websites which are updated sporadically, and frequently contain inaccurate or out of date information because of the fluctuation in workload of the person responsible for website maintenance. Websites which are out of date, or contain “under development” pages for considerable lengths of time are every bit as damaging to a corporate identity as a shop window left boarded up for months after the shop has opened for business. Rather than showcasing your company, such a site can really put people off – and that affects the “bottom line” in real terms.
• If your website suffers from sporadic up-grade syndrome then seeking the services of a web solutions company might be the way forward – if you care about your web presence. The web solutions company is being paid by you to ensure your site gets the attention it deserves and improvements will follow rapidly.
• On a smaller scale, it is of course possible for computer literate, but relatively inexperienced, business staff to create their own website. For any business the prospect of paying for something you think you can probably manage yourself does not, on the face of it, make a great deal of sense. However, if that were truly the case web solution companies would only get business from clients too lazy to make the effort and a professional site would look no different at all from thousands of “DIY” websites. We’d be unable to convince anyone of the benefits of our services – and that’s definitely not the case.
• Website design is a profession. People working in the field have to be creative; constantly seeking new looks, styles and fresh ways of doing things. They’re craftsman of a sort, having refined many aspects of what they do over time. They have the benefit of experience and that is always worth investing in because it takes years to replicate in-house (and if you’re counting on your website to generate revenue you probably don’t have the time for trial and error). Website designers know what works. They can match the requirements of your site to solutions which generate the desired results. Critically, a good company can also ensure that your website appears prominently in search engine enquiries. That’s trickier to do alone.
• Putting a website “out there” in no way guarantees people can find it!
• So what it comes down to, finally, is a single question: “How important is my web presence to my business?” If you intend to sell your goods and services by e-commerce, or expect a significant proportion of initial enquiries to come via your website then I think the answer is obvious. That being the case, surely it makes sense to bring as much expertise as possible to bear on what is a crucial foundation of your hoped-for success?
• To learn more about the services available to businesses from us, view our website at http://www.cnx-solutions.com/ or contact us by telephone on 01326 375556.

Spiraclimb on Squidoo

Squidoo is an excellent site for creating your own content about anything and everything! In this case we have created a page dedicated to the Spiraclimb climbing plant support.

Case Study - Sub marine Services

• This specialist company, based at the A&P Docks in Falmouth, UK, have a proud history of providing a very technical service in the field of marine maintenance. The home page of the company website is sleek and visually impressive with high promonence given to the numerous accreditations Sub Marine Services has achieved.
• To the left of the home page is a stylish nav bar detailing the specific areas of expertise and operations offered by the company. As well as a considerable base of technical expertise, Sub Marine services has built up an impressive array of specialist marine plant, including crane barges, enabling them to meet the challenges of any project large or small. The website provides details of these specialist pieces of plant to enable the reader to judge the company's capability to tackle whatever job they have in mind.
• The company, as its name suggests, is able to tackle just about any "below the waterline" job connected to marine maintenance and underwater repair. This includes conducting underwater surveys, propeller polishing and hull cleaning to name but a few. Information on each of these services is easy to find on the website with comprehensive details of the services along with photographs of staff and the company's equipment in action.
• The website conveys with style a company confident in its expertise and its future prospects. The site boasts a tradition of service provision, quality and a high degree of flexibility; essential in a field where no two jobs are exactly the same.
• In addition to its ship husbandry capabilities, Sub Marine Services has built up considerable expertise in the field of marine civil engineering with dredging, pile driving, cable and pipe laying and land reclamation projects to their name.
• This is a Cornish success story; a specialist company that is a leader in its field.
• To learn more, visit their website at ”www.submarineservices.com”

Top Tips for Website Design

1. NAVIGATION: How easy is it to navigate your website? As a business, it is important to you that potential customers can access the information they need. Links to key aspects of your site need to be clear and easy to find. If a potential client has to jump through too many hoops to get where they want they will probably give up! After all, they’re probably using the internet because, like most of the human race, they can’t stand automated telephone answering programmes! Take pity and make life easy for them.
2. CLUTTER-FREE WEBSITES: We’d recommend avoiding the temptation to “overdo” things. It might be that you have a lot of things you want to tell your customers. Information overload can be a huge turn-off, however, and trying to hit visitors with too much info can have the opposite effect. Similarly, whilst you want your site to appear visually interesting overdoing the graphics and animations can just distract from the business of providing the client with what they visited the site for.
3. IMAGES: Are a must for any business website. Potential clients like to see the human faces behind your business – so feature your staff looking friendly & helpful (perhaps not using photos of the office fancy dress party!). Also, images of your product are key when attracting buyers. Just one little thing though, better not to use images at all then use poor-quality images or images which don’t present the desired impression of your business.
4. ATMOSPHERE: The look of your website needs to convey something about the style and feel of your business. A site which relates to a health spa, for instance, is going to fall rather flat if it adopts a metallic, minimalist style. That might be great for a construction company, or even an architect, but a health spa really should feel warm, soothing and welcoming. Colours, texture of background, choice of border and artwork all help to make an impression about the experience of doing business with your company.
5. CONTACT US: I put this in recognising that I risk sounding patronising but, honestly, the number of websites where it’s almost impossible to find contact details is quite shocking. I’ve even had problems on sites where the WHOLE POINT of the site is to elicit contact from readers! So, basic though the point is, ensure that if someone visits your website they can contact you. This should be easy to find and you should provide the FULL RANGE of contact details. Email, post, fax and telephone. Personally, I wouldn’t even consider buying from a site where I couldn’t find contact details. If those details are well hidden, I ask myself “why?” and head off somewhere else.
6. SEARCH: On a site with plenty of content, the ability to search the website for a specific piece of information is useful. We all know that supermarkets occasionally move the shelves around so we have to visit every aisle to do our shopping. Such skulduggery does not go down well with internet users! What will “sell” your website, your product and your business is the ease with which the user can get the info they want. If they want to read a history of your company, they will. But some might want to cut to the chase and find out how much a red sofa will cost them!