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Yearly Archives: 2012



The Importance of Cohesive Design in Print Advertising

Posted on by Posted in Biz Tips, Business, Guest Post Articles, Marketing, Small Business

In an increasingly digital world it’s easy for anyone, especially businesses, to lose sight of the value of tangible print advertising. Nine times out of ten advertising will be the largest portion of any marketing strategy’s budget. And as such it’s important to maximize the return on investment for every dollar you spend.

One great way to guarantee a good return on investment with print advertising is to create a cohesive message or theme. People are fickle and even the slightest amount of confusion in an advertising campaign could be just enough to cause them to spend their money elsewhere. Today I’d like to share a few ways to create a cohesive print advertising campaign.

Photo credit: toddmadan from morguefile.com

Forms of Print Advertising
Print advertising is any advertisement that is physically printed onto a tangible media, and because of this the field of print advertising is extremely large. A few examples of common print advertisements are mailers and custom banners, as well as newspaper and magazine ads.

Creating Cohesion in Print Advertising
Although the different forms of print advertising are unique in terms of their deployment and target audience, having a similar message, or theme, across the board will help to reduce audience confusion and build a strong brand identity for your business.

In order to produce print advertisements that are cohesive you’ll want to take into consideration the colours, styles, patterns, and logo placement of your ads before deploying any advertising campaign. The colours and styles you use in your advertisements can help tie together different ads regardless of their content.

This means you don’t need to have the same information or images (aside from your logo) on every advertisement, but you will want to use the same colours and styles to make the content look similar across every ad. This builds a unity and helps potential customers begin to recognize your ads. (see picture above)

Rodger Roeser of Justice & Young Advertising and Public Relations in Cincinnati, Ohio, says it takes 17 exposures to an advertisement before it registers to the viewer. For this reason having a cohesive advertising plan is important because it allows multiple ads to work together to achieve the necessary views.

Imagine if you ran an ad in a local newspaper, on a local billboard, and mailed out fliers, each with different colours and styles. Every time a potential customer saw one of your ads they’re registering it differently than they would if you had a cohesive theme. Now if you did the same advertising campaign using like colours and styles people can begin to register them as being similar, and related.

Deploying the Print Advertising
After implementing similar colours and styles into your print advertising campaign it’s time to deploy it. When deploying any print advertising campaign you’ll want to take into consideration how potential customers will see your ads. If you plan to utilize things like mailers or fliers I suggest targeting them to specific postal codes. This will help you in deciding where to place other advertisements such as custom banners or which billboards to rent space on. Place ads where they have the most relevance. For example, an ad promoting noise reducing headphones will be most effective in places that have a lot of noise like subways and busses.

Effects of Successful Cohesion in Print Advertising
A cohesive print advertising plan is a powerful tool for businesses to use. The value of print advertising is not lost in a day and age where digital reigns supreme, but it does require some creativity to remain relevant. A cohesive advertisement campaign will help to build brand identity and keep the products or services your business offers at the forefront of the market and in the minds of potential customers.

About the Author:

Annie Harrington is a small business owner, writer, and amateur photographer. In her free time she enjoys writing about ways other business owners can positively impact their brand image with unique printed material like custom banners and custom poster printing.

New Features unveiled on Danipa’s Website!

Posted on by Posted in Danipa, Domains, Portfolio, Web Development

Over the last several months we have been working hard to upgrade several key features on our website and we have successfully launched all of the new features!

Check out the new features below:

Portfolio
We’ve completely redesigned our portfolio page to allow for larger screenshots of featured projects and new detail pages for each of the projects. You can click on any of the images to visit the individual detail page to learn more about individual projects!  Each of the featured projects contains a link to the clients site so that you can view it live or visit the Portfolio page here!


Blog

At Danipa we love to blog!  Our blog features useful articles that help you with your Online Business.  We’ve updated our blog menus shown on the right side of your screen, so that users can easily navigate to the articles that they like! Visit the Blog to view it live!


Live Support
We want to be able to support you throughout your entire visit at www.danipa.com! That’s why we’ve added a new “Live Support” option to our website.  Simply click on the live support button to initiate a conversation with a Customer Service rep and we will answer any questions that you have!  Live Support is generally available from 9:00am to 5:00pm EST Monday – Friday.  If we are not online, simply leave a message and we will respond as soon as we return!


Domain Registration, Transfer & Management

Registering a Domain is not new to danipa.com, however, we have updated our design so that you can have a seamless experience throughout the site!  Your entire order process is conducted  on our site and with a high level of encryption, so that your information is kept private and secure. Register your Domain today!


Have questions? Please feel free to contact us directly by clicking on the Live support button or visit our Contact Us Page!

Google ends Free Business Email Services for New Subscribers

Posted on by Posted in Cloud Computing, Domains, Google, Technology News

On Thursday December 6th, 2012 Google quietly announced the end of its free basic version of email services for Businesses in a Blog post.  Previously, businesses had been able to set up 10 email addresses based on their domain using the online suite of business applications, including Google Drive, e-mail, calendar and storage.
Google has been reducing free accounts since it first started offering accounts with up to 200 emails, they first reduced it to 100 users, then 50 users, and then finally reduced to 10 users in April of 2011.

New Google business accounts will now be charged $50 per user. However, existing users will see NO CHANGE.  The new “Premium Version” includes 24/7 phone support, 25 GB inbox (Which is huge), and a 99.9% uptime guarantee.

Reports have shown that over 5 Million businesses have taken advantage of the free cloud based services and this move to eliminate free services is widely seen as an attempt to capitalize on its popularity with small businesses and increase its bottom line.

What do you think of this move? Did your business take advantage of the free email prior to this change? Let us know in the comments section below.

Kitchener – Waterloo Chamber of Commerce “Business after Five” Networking Event

Posted on by Posted in Community, Danipa

We were excited to have a booth at the latest Greater KW Chamber of Commerce’s networking event, recently held at Bingeman’s. Patrick Aboagye (CEO) & Danielle Reynolds (VP Sales & Marketing) were on hand to chat about Website Development and other online solutions that Danipa offers!


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See more photo’s from the event on the Chambers Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/GKWCC

 

Visit Danipa at the Chamber’s “Business After Five” event!

Posted on by Posted in Community, Danipa

If you live or work in Kitchener-Waterloo or surrounding area’s, please take some time on December 5th, 2012 to visit our booth at the Greater Kitchener – Waterloo Chamber of Commerce’s Networking Event!  It’s taking place at Bingeman’s in the Embassy Room.  There should be a lot of good food and networking opportunities!

We look forward to connecting with you there!

 

Social Media Management for your Business

Posted on by Posted in Danipa, Facebook, Social Media, Uncategorized

Are you too busy to keep up with your Social Media accounts?  Danipa offers cost efficient social media management programs!  We work with you to develop a monthly outline of projected posts, develop promotions (Facebook Only Contests etc.) and connect with your targeted audience.  We update your page with your latest promotions, events or content that is provided by you.

We make sure that you know what is happening in your accounts by compiling detailed weekly reporting for your reference. Danipa uses several top of the line Brand Monitoring systems to ensure that you are kept up to date on the latest activities within your Social Media Accounts.

  • Minimum of 3 Custom Posts to each Social Media account
  • Daily management of your Social Media Accounts
  • Daily administration of your accounts; deleting spam, forwarding important inquiries to you, respond to comments
  • Respond to comments & inquiries
  • Engaging and communicating with your fan base
  • Monitoring brand chatter
  • Assistance with content creation/distribution with information provided by you via email
  • Recommend strategies for audience growth, implement the strategy!
  • Weekly Detailed Reporting sent via Email in PDF or CSV
Report Details
  • Number of new and total “Likes” or “Followers”
  • Number of new messages (Received & Sent)
  • Number of Brand mentions across channels
  • Number of Unique users who mention your brand
  • Number of “Impressions”
  • Number of Link Clicks, Mentions, Retweets & Shares
  • Detailed Twitter & Facebook follower details
Our plans start at $299/Month.
Contact us today for your personal one on one consultation.

LinkedIn introduces new look for Company Pages

Posted on by Posted in Business, LinkedIn, Small Business, Social Media, Uncategorized

LinkedIn has introduced some changes to their company pages. Using LinkedIn is a great way to connect with other business professionals and to share targeted information to that network.  If you are not using LinkedIn…you should be!

The new look gives you the opportunity to create a better looking corporate brand on LinkedIn, the changes moved the former design away from a text heavy towards a more attractive and visually appealing look.

Banner Image

Similar to Facebook’s recent update, you can now upload a 646px by 220px image to the top part of your page, making the page visually much more appealing.

 

Top 5 Worst Smartphones

Posted on by Posted in Guest Post Articles, Tech, Top Ten Lists, Uncategorized
More and more products are being introduced to the mobile market and there are still those which did not make the cut! 
Below is a list of 5 worst smartphones that this generation has ever had.
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play
Yes, it lets you enjoy mobile internet, but you will not want to continue because of the poor resolution that the screen projects! The Sony Ericsson Xperia Play was expected to come out as a phone that could be used primarily for entertainment and gaming.  But because of the times it consumes loading, it does not serve the purpose well.  It also has very poor storage and that means that you cannot have a large collection of games!  Plus, the screen is to small for a person to be really entertained.
Motorola Titanium

The Motorola Titanium is cheap but the price and it shows in the lack of quality features.  You are better off investing in something better than this item.  This phone lets you enjoy mobile internet but the entire resolution of the pages that you view are below standard.  Another downside of the phone is the poor quality camera (3Mp) that has no flash.  You also cannot store much data because of the poor 150 MHz processor.
The ability for Widgets to change size is also not available on this model, a feature seen on almost all other Motorola models.  There are also notes that a person would like to be able to highlight on the home screen but simply cannot do with this phone. For a phone that claims to cater to business people, this is not a satisfactory option.
Kyocera Echo

People had a lot of expectations from this mobile. A lot even spared its physical properties to still objectively rate the unit.However, it turned out to be a flop  the moment it was released in the market. It is still bulky and there were no signs that the company put an effort to make it easy to bring at home.
Also, the entire dual screen had no impact on the problem of multitasking. It does not allow a person to fully utilize the screen and given that it has a lot of things to contribute it offers  a dilemma for  people especially in business.
HP Veer

The HP Veer has a substandard physical characteristic. It is so tiny that you can only maximize limited activities such as sending SMS.  It is not good for people who have poor eyesight because of the types of fonts that are available for viewing. Its display is only 2.6″ and  it does not give you much of a screen even when viewing your social networking accounts.  It is also not powerful when it comes to software. Its operating system is prone to viruses from downloading or uploading files to the Internet as it does not have strong software to prevent these things from happening.
Blackberry Bold 9900
The Blackberry Bold 9900 makes the list primarily due to its high cost and low feature set.  The amount of features included in this phone are just not worth the amount you have to pay.  Other reasons include the lack of  auto-focus for its camera, the short battery life and keyboard with its small keys.



About the Author


Daphne enjoys writing on all things technical for Broadband Expert.  Her daily routine consists of drinking coffee, keeping up on the latest news in technology, as well as blogging and guest posting.

AdWords Changes Policy regarding Sitelinks

Posted on by Posted in Business, Google, Google AdWords, Internet, Marketing, SEO, Technology News

Google recently sent out an email to AdWords customers notifying them of a change in policy regarding the use of “sitelinks” in ads. Sitelinks are additional links that show below the ad and are supposed to lead the potential customer to a unique section on your website.  Ads viewed on a mobile device can show up to two additional sitelinks and ads showing on a Desktop can show up to 6 additional links.  Sitelinks are generally used to let potential customers quickly see and visit other popular sections of your website.

Google says that they have noticed an increase in the amount of ads that use that same link for the landing page and are going to enforce the different link for each sitelink rule.

Read below an excerpt from the email that Google sent out to AdWords clients:


WHAT ARE SITELINKS
Sitelinks make your ads more valuable by showing additional direct links to specific web pages that you want to promote. Users get to specific destinations on your web site more quickly. And, on average, you’ll see a higher clickthrough rate for your ads. That makes sitelinks a great way to improve your campaign performance. To see images or learn more about sitelinks, please see this AdWords Help Center article (http://support.google.com/adwords/bin/answer.py?answer=2375416).

EXISTING SITELINKS POLICY
To ensure that users have a good experience with ad sitelinks, our existing policy requires each sitelink in a campaign to link to a different landing page URL with unique content on the landing page. That means a user can expect a meaningfully different landing page experience for each sitelink.

ENFORCEMENT CHANGE
Recently, we’ve noticed an increase in the number of sitelinks created with the same landing pages or the same content. So in the coming month, we will begin more proactive enforcement of our existing policy. Initially, we’ll focus on new and recently changed sitelinks. As your ads are being served, our systems will verify that your sitelinks meet the policy standards. Sitelinks that don’t meet the standards will be restricted from appearing.

IMPACT ON PERFORMANCE
Having fewer eligible sitelinks could keep your ad from showing in the larger 2-line and 3-line formats, where more eligible sitelinks are required. Remember, larger formats are more visible and typically have higher average clickthrough rates (CTR). And if you don’t have enough eligible sitelinks in your campaign, then your ads may not display sitelinks at all.

FUTURE ENFORCEMENT
We realize that manually checking and fixing duplicates for your existing sitelinks and landing pages might take some time and coordination. So we’re delaying more proactive enforcement with existing sitelinks for a few months. But don’t wait until the last minute. And remember, any sitelink that you add or change will be subject to proactive enforcement right away.

SUGGESTIONS WITH EXISTING SITELINKS
To increase the chances of having more sitelinks shown with your ads, we recommend having 6-10 unique sitelinks in each of your campaigns.

If you already have campaigns with sitelinks, we’d suggest reviewing each campaign to verify that it has 6-10 unique sitelinks. You’d probably want to start with the campaigns that show sitelinks most often. Usually, this would be a campaign with keywords like your business name and its best-known products and services.

Here’s how you can work through this using the AdWords interface.
1. Log into the AdWords interface and click on the “Ad Extensions” tab.
2. Select “Sitelinks Extensions” from the drop down menu.
3. Sort your sitelink extensions by impressions or clicks by clicking on the column header.
4. Click on each sitelink in the top campaign and follow it through to its landing page (there’s no charge for these clicks).
5. Fix any duplicates you find in each campaign by hovering over the extension area and clicking the pencil icon.

QUESTIONS?
For more information about sitelinks policy, please visit the AdWords Help Center (http://support.google.com/adwordspolicy/bin/answer.py?answer=1054210).

You can also contact AdWords support with questions about this policy change or anything else related to AdWords (http://support.google.com/adwords/bin/answer.py?answer=8206).

2012 Ghanaian – Canadian Achievement Awards

Posted on by Posted in Community, Danipa, Marketing

Danipa is a proud sponsor of the 2012 Ghanaian – Canadian Achievement Awards!  This event recognizes and honours individual Ghanaian-Canadian or groups that have excelled or achieved honour in their field.

This year it is taking place at Claireport Place Banquet & Convention Centre in Etobicoke on Sunday September 23. We are looking forward to meeting everyone, and look forward to a night filled with dancing, music and celebration!

Interested? Check out their Facebook page for more details!

Here is our ad for the program!

 

Turning your Website into a Positive Benefit!

Posted on by Posted in Danipa, Portfolio, Small Business, Web Development
This week we were excited to launch the new home on the web for the Okyerema International Foundation.  This worthy organization funds bursaries and scholarships for students in need in Ghana, West Africa.  The students that they help might otherwise not be able to afford access to education.Okyerema came to us with a basic website that listed the basic information related to their services, but did not give the viewer a realistic sense of the work that they do.  There are many businesses who may have a website that is basic, but who are not getting the full benefit of their online presence.  We wanted to show you this example of before & after shots so that you can see what a difference a well developed website can make!

Check out the BEFORE screen shot of the site below:

We worked with Okyerema to polish their online image and created an appealing new home that gives the viewer a more detailed idea of the great work that they do.

  • Created an appealing layout that integrated the organizations colours
  • Integrated PayPal donation links
  • Reviewed and edited content for a more user friendly look
  • Redesigned the navigation of the site so that it is appealing and easy to follow
  • Scrolling screen that highlights the foundations different services and draws the viewers eye to the site

Check out the new design below!

www.okyeremafoundation.org
Quite a difference!
Is your website less then appealing? Get in contact with us today and start looking forward to your new look!
Let us know what you think of the new design by commenting below!

Great Pricing for your New Website!

Posted on by Posted in Danipa, Portfolio, Small Business, Web Development
Our Small Business Starter Package has been so popular that we’ve decided to keep it going!Developed for Small Businesses who want a professional online presence that stands out from the competition; this Value Packed Starter Package is the best choice for New Businesses who want a competitive online presence or for those who want to polish their existing website!

With millions of people now using the Internet to find products and services, it has become essential for any organization or business to have a website that effectively promotes the business and their products and services!

Your website will introduce and sell your products, reach out to new and existing customers and enhance your customer service by providing easy to access information regarding your address, hours of operation, detailed product descriptions, pricing and special events!

DANIPA designed websites have a dynamic and appealing look with well-designed navigation and content structure which will catch the interest of your customers!

Get noticed with our Small Business Starter Package!

Your $999 Website Package includes:

  • A personal consultation with your dedicated Account Manager
  • 5 CUSTOM designed Web Pages
  • Integration of your Corporate Logo & Colours into the design
  • FREE 1 year domain name registration of your choice (.com .ca .net .org)
  • FREE 1 year Personal Plan web hosting package
  • 10 Personalized email addresses (e.g info@yourbiz.com)
  • FREE Setup of Google Analytics
  • FREE $100 Google AdWords Coupon to advertise your new site!
  • FREE Sitemap creation and submission to Google!

We NEVER use templates!  DANIPA designs are custom made just for you!

These businesses took advantage of our great pricing…Why don’t you!

www.rjuniversal.com
www.royalafricantravel.ca

Contact us at info@danipa.com to get started today!

Getting Started with Facebook for Business

Posted on by Posted in Business, Facebook, Marketing, Small Business, Social Media

Many businesses struggle with the overwhelming choices available in social media. Deciding what is the best use of their already overbooked time vs. the potential ROI can be a difficult decision, but it should not be one that you put off!

For businesses starting out in social media I generally recommend focusing on 1-2 to get started. The choice of platforms will vary depending on what type of business you are running but most businesses can make good use of Facebook, Twitter and/or a Blog.

In this article I will focus on the benefits of using Facebook for business and show you how to get your Facebook page up and running.

Who is Using Facebook?

According to the most recent studies, Facebook currently has 845 Million active users, with over 174,586,680 users based in North America…that’s just over 50.3% of the total population!  Facebook also accounts for 1 out of every 5 page views on the internet worldwide.

Given these amazing numbers, it becomes obvious that Facebook can offer your business a unique way to interact with customers!

So, if your business does not have a Facebook page yet – let’s get started!

Creating your Facebook Page

To start a Business page you must first have a personal account.  Don’t worry, none of your personal information is linked to the business page, it is just needed so that the page has an admin account.  If you have a personal account, sign in and then visit https://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php to set up your account! Once you have the page setup you can create multiple admin users to help manage your page.

Click on Local Business or Place

 Enter your Information


Choose a Profile Picture
It’s all about consistent branding! Use your logo and make sure that you have scaled it to the proper size so that it doesn’t come out blurry! Dimensions are 50px × 50px (scaled to 32px × 32px)

Describe your Business
Use this space to highlight the products/services that you offer.  Keep it relatively brief and mind your grammar! You can also provide a link to your website in the space provided.

Choose your Facebook Address
Facebook makes a suggestion for your URL, but you can choose your own name if it’s available.  Keep it easy to remember as you want to be able to use it in your marketing materials and business cards only have so much room!  Choose wisely as once this is set, it can’t be changed!

Once you click Set Address, you are taken to your new Facebook page and are guided through a user friendly tour.  Make sure that you set up a cover photo that is attractive and eye-catching.

OK, we’ve got a Facebook Page, now what?

Your first goal in managing your Facebook Page should be to build up your “Likes.” The Like button is key to your Facebook success.  When people “Like” your business they are giving you the opportunity to not only market to them, but also to their friends as your information will show up on their timeline.  Ask your friends, family members and employees to “Like” your business and become a fan.

You can also build up your fan base by:

Using your Facebook Address on Promotional Material
Add your new address to your business cards and brochures!  Tell your customers what they will get on your page and make it worth their while!  Facebook only discounts, updates, and contests are great draws.

Facebook Ads
Visit facebook.com/advertising and create an ad that will show up on User Timelines.  You may not always get the best quality “Likes,” but it will help you create an impression for future “Likes!.”

Make sure that you keep your page active and interesting.  You have to keep in mind that you are only going to get out of it, what you put in!  This means time and effort on your part!  Use the page to interact and connect with your customers. By offering specials, promotions and contests that are only available on your Facebook page, your fans will be more likely to want to share it with their friends.  This opens up new opportunities to increase your customer base, develop new relationships and most importantly…increase your sales!

Now that you are pumped about Facebook, hop on over to Danipa’s fan page and show us some Facebook love! We would “LIKE” to connect!

About the Author

Danielle Reynolds is the VP of Sales & Marketing at Danipa.  She loves technology, learning, travelling and connecting with people via Social Media!  Danielle is a Mother of three and when not at work can usually be found on various sports fields cheering on her children!

Make sure you connect with Danielle on Twitter @dee90909

The Failure of UK Universities to Provide Adequate SSL Security

Posted on by Posted in Guest Post Articles, Internet, Internet Security, SSL Certificate, Tech
Some Universities in England have poor SSL Security

Many of the top universities in the UK were found to have very weak SSL security on their websites. The websites running HTTPS were tested, and 17 were discovered to have very poor SSL. A few of these are top 10 universities including UCL, Bath, Lancaster and Oxford.  SSL security should not be taken lightly. The weak security leaves lecturers, students and anyone else with an account vulnerable to attacks from hackers. With poor SSL security, hackers can easily hijack a session on the university network and steal passwords. These passwords may make it possible for a hacker to access other accounts belonging to the user.

Hackers access the information in a number of ways when weak connections are present. They could use one of the many tools available and force to get access to sensitive user information. They could also use man-in-the-middle attacks to interfere with the connection between the server and client.
The ranking system used to determine how secure the security on university networks is based on the strength of the key exchanges and ciphers, validity of the certificate and the protocols the site supports. This includes both Transport Layer Security (TLS) and SSL. Many sites that need security support both types, but a user isn’t protected if the browser doesn’t support the technology.
SSL is not completely secure and weaknesses have been discovered in the past. A flaw discovered in 2009 that allowed data to be injected between users into encrypted traffic. This gave hackers a chance to give false commands in the lines of communication. A different attack, known as the BEAST attack, enabled hackers to decrypt data. The primary problem that the university websites had with SSL is incorrectly configured servers. Many websites, not just the ones belonging to well-known universities, have failed to implement the latest SSL security and have left themselves open for attack.

Implementing the latest SSL security is not a time consuming process. Many of the universities that were contacted quickly fixed the problem. The universities, which included UCL, the University of Nottingham, the University of Glasgow, Lancaster University and the University of Manchester, currently score an A as opposed to a C or D when rated on SSL security after the changes were made.
Some universities, which are not identified due to security concerns, did not respond at all to the inquiries sent by TechWeekEurope. Others addressed that an issue was present but did not make any immediate changes to fix the problem or stated that the problem will be addressed in the future. Even though the configurations for the newer and safer versions of SSL are available and not difficult to implement, many websites are still left vulnerable due to unsafe security practices.

Guest Post Author – Oliver Macpherson

Oliver Macpherson has worked for an ssl certificates provider for the past 10 years and believes in the importance of protecting confidential data where possible. He currently works for SSL247.

Top 10 Must Have Gadgets!

Posted on by Posted in Apple, Business, Gadgets, Guest Post Articles, Kodak, Tech, Top Ten Lists
This Blog post details the 10 must-have gadgets that are worth knowing about if you want to keep yourself updated with the most advanced, high quality devices.  The ranking reveals not only the most popular offers, but also those with the best functions.  This could also be a guide for individuals who are just about to make a purchase!
Apple iPad 3
This is the latest generation of iPad from Apple.  It functions as a platform for audio and visual media, which includes books, periodicals, movies, music games, web content and presentations.  The Apple iPad 3 features a striking new screen that is balanced with a quad-core processor.  It also has a 5 mega-pixel rear camera with a recording quality of 1080.
Apple iPhone 4s
 
This is a smartphone designed and developed by Apple Inc.  It’s currently in its 5th generation.  It merges high speed internet communicator, mobile phone and a 3.5″ touch screen.  Apple’s iPhone 4s features a lot of improved software updates and hardware enhancements compared to previous models.  Highlights in the overall functions of this gadget include voice talking, augmented camera system, PC independence and voice recognizing Siri.Highlights in the overall functions of this gadget include voice talking, augmented camerasystem, PC indesigned and developed by Apple Inc. It’s currently in its 5thgeneration. It merges high speed internet communicator, mobile phone and 3.5 touch screen iPod. Apple iPhone 4S features a lot of improved software updates and hardware enhancements compared to the previous model. Highlights in the overall functions of this gadget include voice talking, augmented camera system, PC independence and recognizing Siri.
Apple MacBook Air

This is one of the fastest portable laptops today.  It features Thunderbolt I/O por4t, back lit keyboard, 1.6 Hz Intel Core i5-2467M processor, 64GB drive, 2GB 1333MHz DDR3 RAM, OS x 10.7 Lion operating system and Intel HD 3000 graphics card.  It has a multi-touch track pad, which also recognizes handwritten Chinese characters.

Barnes & Noble Nook

This is a lightweight and small sized e-book reader that features rapid page turns, responsive touchscreen display, built-in Wi-Fi, expansion lot, 800 MHz Texas Instruments OMAP 3 processor and a battery charge that will last up to two months.  Furthermore, this device runs on the modified version of Android 2.1  it supports PDF, EPUB, and Adobe DRM and can also read PNG, JPEG, GIF and BMP files. 
HTC Sensation 4G
The HTC Sensation 4G runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread operating system.  It features 1.2GHz dual core processore, 4.3″ high definition display and a 8-megapixel rear facing camera.  In addition, this gadget supports multimedia, conference calling, voice dialing, and text messaging.  Also included are Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS.  Hence this could be a very good alternative for users looking for a mobile that supports high speed internet with no problems.

Kodak Playsport

When it comes to mini-camcorders one of the best is the Kodak Playsport.  It has an excellent sharing software, storage media for SD/SDHC memory cards, 2.0-inch LCD display, H.264 file format and is waterproof up to 10 feet!  Kodak Playsport also features a digital image stabilizer and can record up to 80 minutes for every 4GB data. 

The other four devices that belong in the top 10 must-have gadgets today are Logitech Harmony 650, Motorola Droid Razr, Roku 2 XS and Sonos Play 3.  All display high quality specifications and reliable functions.  Software programs installed are also spectactular.  To learn more about these eye-catching products, check out related data sources online or ask actual users, who can offer you practical ideas!

Guest Post Author – Daphne Jaymla:

Daphne writes on technology and enjoys spending time learning the latest information about high speed internet at Broadband Expert. If it has anything to do with high speed internet, Daphne is right there in the middle of it.

Danipa Receives Level 1 Eco Certificate

Posted on by Posted in Community, Danipa

On Monday, June 25th, Danipa was presented with our Level 1 Eco Business certificate. This is a Eco-Friendly program that is run through the Ajax Pickering Board of Trade (APBOT).

Danipa Business Development Executive Elsie Boakye-Yiadom was on hand to receive the certificate at the APBOT office in Ajax!

L to R: EBAC member Judy Gaw of Eco Environment Plus, Elsie Boakye-Yiadom of Danipa Business Systems and EBAC Chair Peter Forint of Wardell Professional Development.

For more information regarding the Eco Business Program please visit the APBOT website:

Almost 60% of businesses now use Social Media for Customer Service

Posted on by Posted in Business, Small Business, Social Media, Technology News

Sword Ciboodle, a global provider of customer solutions, and customer experience advisory thinkJar, has released the results of a research survey targeting US and UK companies with medium- to large-sized contact centers on their use of social media specifically for customer service. With nearly 400 responses from around the globe, and representation from more than 10 industry verticals, the research helped to reveal insights into how organizations are leveraging social channels for customer service. The analysis covers topics such as the longevity and maturity of the social customer service practice, the integration of social channels with traditional channels, and the decision and selection criteria used to determine social customer service programs.

Survey results indicated that social channels have been strongly embraced, with 59% of organizations having adopted Twitter and 60% adopting Facebook, and almost 85% of those who have adopted one, have adopted both together. However, while social channels are widely used, participants showed that justification and validation of social customer service is proving to be a challenge. There are a variety of differences in how social channels are used, and factors such as an organization’s size, industry and geography also play an important role. Integration of data, as well as finding the right balance between social customer service and more “traditional” channels, is an important part of what companies are wrestling with.

The size of the company is an additional factor in the maturity of its social customer program. For example, 40% of respondents in companies with 1000 or more contact center agents say that their social customer service initiatives have been in place for at least two years. In contrast, 53% of companies with smaller contact centers say that current programs were implemented within the past year to two years. The reasons behind the move of all companies, regardless of size, to social customer service is customer driven, with 56% of respondents implementing social customer service due to customer request, compared with 40% that put the programs in place to keep up with competitors.

“The direction social channels is headed when it comes to customer service is fascinating and a true ‘game-changer’ for businesses,” said Esteban Kolsky, principal and founder of thinkJar. “The trick is to truly understand how to navigate this hyped-up, yet semi-mysterious ‘customer service frontier.’ This research report is a must-have for all organizations who want to really know where to go with social in customer service.”

“What’s important for every organization to realize is, while social channels are constantly evolving, they are not new anymore,” said Mitch Lieberman, Vice President of Market Strategy at Sword Ciboodle. “The most successful customer service program will happen for businesses who incorporate social into their overall customer engagement practices, and really keep pace with the way their customers are communicating with them in all areas.”

As published in ConnectIT News

By: Mark Cox

Need assistance setting up or maintaining your Social Media accounts? Danipa can help!  Please contact us directly to learn more about our Social Media Packages!

http://www.danipa.com/request-a-quote

U.S, Canada becoming Hotbeds for Phishing Sites

Posted on by Posted in Internet Security, Technology News
As the association of Eastern European and Chinese IP addresses with cybercriminals has led to blacklisting of addresses from those countries, the crooks are moving their sites to North America – in droves.
A new report from security firm Websense finds strong evidence of this alarming new trend.
“Things are getting worse, not better,” said Patrik Runald, director, security research, Websense Labs.
In Canada, we found an 170% increase from last year in phishing sites being hosted on Canadian servers, making Canada number two in the world for hosted phishing sites.”  But that pales in comparison to the U.S., which saw a 300% increase and is now the top country in the world for these sites, by far.  “A lot more malicious content is now based in western, first world countries today,” Runald said. “Typical suspects 2-5 years ago were in eastern Europe which is dropping off because they developed a shady reputation. So traffic to and from servers in say Ukraine, were simply blocked by some admins, and vendor security products took location into account, making traffic from these countries much more likely to be blocked. So the operators of these sites moved to countries where traffic goes commonly, like the U.S. and Canada, where it is much harder to block for security reasons.”The same trend is also showing up with Bot networks, and with malicious URLs.
Canada saw a 39% increase in Bot networks this year, which Runald said was pretty average, especially when compared to the U.S. jump of 450% in the same category.
“This stat doesn’t mention the scale of the Botnet being used, and we are finding that 8-12 servers is now about average,” Runald said.
Malicious website increase was also high this year — about 300% in the U.S. and 239% in Canada.
“This was an amazing jump across the board,” Runald said. “And it s the most dangerous catagory because you don t have to click on anything to get infected. This is also a moving target, as are Bot networks, while phishing is more static in the way it works.”
Runald said the security vendors are generally able to cope because they do have massive amounts of data to work with. Websense alone has 3.5 billion pieces of data they scan every day.
“But the fact the numbers are going up quite dramatically is a worrying trend because there s more to deal with,” he said. “This is new. In 2010 and 2011 we did not see this kind of jump.”
Runald suggested that increasing criminal penalties for these kinds of crimes could have a significant impact.

As published in ConnectIT News

By: Mark Cox

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Notice to our .CA Customers…

Posted on by Posted in Danipa, Domains

Please note that CIRA (Canadian Internet Registration Authority) will be performing a system upgrade with the .CA registry system starting at 9:00am on June 12th (ET) through to 9:00am June 13th.

Your .CA domain name(s) will continue to function normally throughout the service upgrade. 

There will only be a service interruption for Registrant Administrative transactions in the following areas:

  • Registrants will not be able to submit new .CA domain registrations during the service outage
  • Registrants will not be able to approve their CIRA Registrant Agreement  during the service outage
  • Registrants will not be able to update or renew existing .CA domain names during the service outage
  • WHOIS will not be available during the service outage
  • CIRA’s Election website will be offline during the service interruption.

This basically means that you should not plan to do any administrative work on your .CA domain name during this time! You can still login and view your information but do not plan to make any changes to your account information.

If you want to read more regarding this announcement please visit the CIRA website at:

http://cira.ca/news/announcements/ca-registry-upgrade

Do It Yourself SEO Tips

Posted on by Posted in Business, Marketing, SEO, Small Business

So you’ve invested in a great website but it’s not showing up in Search Engine Results?  This article will focus on the benefits of Website Linking, the tips are easy to do and only require a little time and effort from you!

Having links from other websites to yours is a critical part of search engine optimization. As well as the obvious bonus of having people follow these links to your site (Traffic!), inbound links provide the following benefits:

  • Search engine robots follow links between websites. The more inbound (Links to your site) links you have, the more often robots will visit your site!
  • Search engines tend to count links to your site as “votes” for you. They assume that if lots of websites link to your site it must be high quality. Page Rank is Google’s system of counting links. The general rule of thumb is that the more inbound links you can get, the better.

If you are looking to generate more traffic and to increase your page ranking, getting quality links should be at the top of your to do list!

The best way to get inbound links is simply to create web pages which people will want to link to. Your website should offer potential visitors a reason to visit. Consider adding a blog to highlight company news, Industry best tips or Special events.  Make sure that you regularly update your site as Search Engines (and visitors!) prefer fresh content. These types of links are known as natural links — the type of link which is created to increase the usefulness of the internet.

Natural links have many advantages:

  • They are free and you don’t have to reciprocate the link
  • After creating the content you don’t have to work to acquire them!
  • The links will be diverse, coming from differently ranked sites that have different anchor text

With a little luck and hard work you will attract enough natural links to give your site a boost.  Most websites however need to make more of an effort to acquire inbound links. Here are a couple of acceptable methods that are easy to do.

  1. List your website in online directories. There are many, many directories that provide you with the opportunity to link your website.  Most of them offer this FREE of charge while some require a small fee to maintain the listing.  If you are part of an organization (i.e Chamber of Commerce, Industry Organization) make sure that you are listed on their website
  2. Contact other websites that are in the same industry or genre as yours.  Ask them for a reciprocal link
  3. Comment in discussion forums and newsgroups using your website address.  Make sure that are genuinely contributing to the conversation and that you do not overdo this or spam forums.  Spamming forums is a quick way to give your site a really bad name!  Plus it’s annoying!
  4. Use Social media to connect with potential clients. Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are just a few of the possible outlets.  This is a great way to share your Blog posts, company news or Special events with your followers.

For some great tips click here to read our Blog post “Seven Tips for Using Twitter for Business.”

Once you get listed on these sites, make sure that you visit and click on the link and follow it through to your site.  Many times I have seen companies listed on a site, click on their website link and find myself taken to a dead link or an incorrect site. What a waste!

What NOT to do!

While there are no official rules about linking, there are several methods that are known to be a very bad idea and will damage your online ranking instead of helping it. If you use the wrong methods, search engines may detect this and penalize you severely. (I.E Blacklist you – You will not show on the search lists!)

  • Post on Link Farms – These sites have been set up to allow you to post your URL without being part of a directory.  These sites are not liked by search engines and linking your site on one may decrease your ranking or even cause you to not show up at all on certain search engines
  • Buy links. Some websites sell links from pages with a high Page rank value. These can be very effective but they are frowned upon and search engines such as Google have been known to identify and blacklist the websites involved. The potential benefit is not worth the risk!
  • Spam comment forums – Don’t do this! It’s annoying, it wrecks your websites online (and offline!) reputation and did I mention it’s annoying?

Ok, so you have done all of the above and now want to see the fruits of your labour!  Here are a couple of different ways to check out how many inbound links your website has.

  • Visit www.alexa.com and type the URL of any site into the Alexa search box and click the search button and voila! This offers lots of information about the site including, related links, statistics and more
  • Use search engines to find out how many inbound links you have
  • With Google, enter the word link: followed by your URL to see a list of all websites which contain a link to your site.

Keep in mind that Google only returns a selection of inbound links — it doesn’t show all links to your site. Other search engines have the same feature and may provide more comprehensive results. Each one works a bit differently — visit any search engine and look for “Advanced Search Options” for more information. Also, it can take awhile for your hard work to pay off.

Your search engine results will not change overnight, it might take months for your results to change.  Consider this a project that will reap long term benefits!  Don’t think you have enough time to get your site in shape?  Take advantage of our Hassle Free Maintenance packages.

Looking for more information on how to make your website “Search Engine Friendly?”  Check out some of our other blog posts:

Understanding Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
$100 Free Google AdWords Coupon – Get Listed on Google!
Seven Tips for using Twitter for Business
Seven Critical Questions to ask before Developing a Social Media Policy

Please consider sharing any tips that you might use for your website in the comment section below!

Seven critical questions to ask before developing a social media policy

Posted on by Posted in Business, Marketing, Social Media, Technology News, Top Ten Lists
As published in ConnectIT NewsBy: Mark CoxSocial media disrupts the long-standing rules of business in many ways, but crafting a social media policy is premature unless the designers of the policy answer seven critical questions first, according to analyst firm Gartner. “Social media offers tempting opportunities to interact with employees, business partners, customers, prospects and a whole host of anonymous participants on the social Web,” said Carol Rozwell, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. “However, those who participate in social media need guidance from their employer about the rules, responsibilities, ‘norms’ and behaviors expected of them, and these topics are commonly covered in the social media policy.”
To help define those norms, Gartner has identified seven critical questions that designers of social media policy must ask themselves:

What Is Our Organization’s Strategy for Social Media?
There are many possible purposes for social media. It can be used for five levels of increasingly involved interaction (ranging from monitoring to co-creation) and across four different constituencies (employees, business partners, customers and prospects, and the social Web). It is critical that social media leaders determine the purpose of their initiatives before they deploy them and that those responsible for social media initiatives articulate how the organization’s mission, strategy, values and desired outcomes inform and impact on these initiatives. A social media strategy plan is one means of conveying this information.

Who Will Write and Revise the Policy?
Some organizations assign policy writing to the CIO, others have decided it’s the general counsel’s job, while in other cases, a self-appointed committee decides to craft a policy. It’s useful to gain agreement about who is responsible, accountable, consulted and involved before beginning work on the policy and, where possible, a cross-section of the company’s population should be involved in the policy creation process. It’s important to remember that there is a difference between policy — which states do’s and don’ts at a high level — and operational processes, such as recruitment or customer support — which may use social media. These operational processes need to be flexible and changeable and adhere to the policy, but each department/activity will need to work out specific governance and process guidelines.

How Will We Vet the Policy?
Getting broad feedback on the policy serves two purposes. First, it ensures that multiple disparate interests such as legal, security, privacy and corporate branding, have been adequately addressed and that the policy is balanced. Second, it increases the amount of buy-in when a diverse group of people is asked to review and comment on the policy draft. This means that the process by which the policy will be reviewed and discussed, along with the feedback, will be incorporated into the final copy. A vetting process that includes social media makes it more likely that this will occur.

How Will We Inform Employees About Their Responsibilities?
Some organizations confuse policy creation with policy communication. A policy should be well-written and comprehensive, but it is unlikely that the policy alone will be all that is needed to instruct employees about their responsibilities for social media. A well-designed communication plan, backed up by a training program, helps to make the policy come to life so that employees understand not just what the policy says, but how it impacts on them. It also explains what the organization expects to gain from its participation in social media, which should influence employees in their social media interactions.

Who Will Be Responsible for Monitoring Social Media Employee Activities?
Once the strategy has been set, the rules have been established and the rationale for them explained, who will ensure that they are followed? Who will watch to make sure the organization is getting the desired benefit from social media? A well-designed training and awareness program will help with this, but managers and the organization’s leader for social media also need to pay attention. Managers need to understand policy and assumptions and how to spot inappropriate activity, but their role is to be more of a guide to support team self-moderation, rather than employ a top-down, monitor-and-control approach.

How Will We Train Managers to Coach Employees on Social Media Use?
Some managers will have no problem supporting their employees as they navigate a myriad of social media sites. Others may have more trouble helping employees figure out the best approach for blogs, microblogs and social networking. There needs to be a plan for how the organization will give managers the skills needed to confront and counsel employees on this sensitive subject.

How Will We Use Missteps to Refine Our Policy and Training?
As with any new communications medium, some initiatives go exceptionally well, while others run adrift or even sink. Organizations that approach social media using an organized and planned approach, consistent with the organization’s mission, strategy and values, will be able to review how well these initiatives meet their objectives and use that insight to improve existing efforts or plan future projects better.

Five Cloud computing trends that will impact Cloud Strategy

Posted on by Posted in Cloud Computing, Technology News
As published in ConnectIT News
By: Mark CoxContinual monitoring of cloud computing trends, with regular updates to the enterprise’s cloud strategy, will be essential to avoid costly mistakes or miss market opportunities over the next few years, according to analyst firm Gartner. Although the potential for cloud computing is significant, the breadth and depth of the impact, as well as the level of adoption over time, are uncertain and will require frequent review. “Cloud computing is a major technology trend that has permeated the market over the last two years. It sets the stage for a new approach to IT that enables individuals and businesses to choose how they’ll acquire or deliver IT services, with reduced emphasis on the constraints of traditional software and hardware licensing models,” said David Cearley, vice president and Gartner Fellow. “Cloud computing has a significant potential impact on every aspect of IT and how users access applications, information and business services.”
“The trend and related technologies continue to evolve and change rapidly, and there is continuing confusion and misunderstanding as vendors increasingly hype ‘cloud’ as a marketing term,” said David Mitchell Smith, vice president and Gartner Fellow. “This level of impact, confusion, uncertainty and change make cloud computing one of Gartner’s top 10 strategic technology trends to address.”
Gartner has identified five cloud computing subtrends that will be accelerating, shifting or reaching a tipping point over the next three years and that users must factor into their planning processes:

Formal Decision Frameworks Facilitate Cloud Investment Optimization
The cloud promises to deliver a range of benefits, including a shift from capital-intensive to operational cost models, lower overall cost, greater agility and reduced complexity. It can also be used to shift the focus of IT resources to higher-value-added activities for the business, or to support business innovation and, potentially, lower risks. However, these prospective benefits need to be examined carefully and mapped against a number of challenges, including security, lack of transparency, concerns about performance and availability, the potential for vendor lock-in, licensing constraints and integration needs. These issues create a complex environment in which to evaluate individual cloud offerings.

Hybrid Cloud Computing Is an Imperative
Hybrid computing refers to the coordination and combination of external cloud computing services (public or private) and internal infrastructure or application services. Over time, hybrid cloud computing could lead to a unified model in which there is a single “cloud” made up of multiple cloud platforms (internal or external) that can be used, as needed, based on changing business requirements. Gartner recommends that enterprises focus near-term efforts on application and data integration, linking fixed internal and external applications with a hybrid solution. Where public cloud application services or custom applications running on public cloud infrastructures are used, guidelines and standards should be established for how these elements will combine with internal systems to form a hybrid environment.

Cloud Brokerage Will Facilitate Cloud Consumption
As cloud computing adoption proliferates, so does the need for consumption assistance. A cloud services brokerage (CSB) is a service provider that plays an intermediary role in cloud computing. Interest in the CSB concept increased last year, and Gartner expects this trend to accelerate over the next three years as more individuals, whether they are in IT or a line-of-business unit, consume cloud services without involving IT.
To address this challenge, Gartner believes that IT departments should explore how they can position themselves as CSBs to the enterprise by establishing a purchasing process that accommodates cloud adoption and encourages business units to come to the IT organization for advice and support. The enterprise CSB approach can be implemented by modifying existing processes and tools such as internal portals and service catalogs.

Cloud-Centric Design Becomes a Necessity
Many organizations look first for opportunities to migrate existing enterprise workloads to a cloud system and/or an application infrastructure. This approach may provide benefits where the workload has a highly variable resource requirement, or where the application naturally lends itself to horizontal scalability. However, to fully exploit the potential of a cloud model, applications need to be designed with the unique characteristics, limitations and opportunities of a cloud model in mind. Gartner advises enterprises to look beyond the migration of enterprise workloads to the creation of cloud-optimized applications that fully exploit the potential of the cloud to deliver global-class applications.

Cloud Computing Influences Future Data Center and Operational Models
In public cloud computing, an enterprise is acting as a consumer of services, with the cloud services provider handling the implementation details, including the data center and related operational models. However, to the extent that the enterprise continues to build its own data centers, they will be influenced by the implementation models used by cloud services providers. Gartner recommends that enterprises apply the concepts of cloud computing to future data center and infrastructure investments to increase agility and efficiency.

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Guest Post Opportunities!

Posted on by Posted in Danipa, Guest Post Articles

Interested in contributing to Danipa’s blog? We love publishing guest posts, but we must ensure that our content remains on target and as useful as possible for our readers too!

At Danipa, we have a focus on all things relating to Technology, Marketing, and Internet Security! Articles should be of use for Small Business owners, Marketers and Corporations.

We will only post articles that relate to these fields:

  • Social Media tips, news and best practices
  • Web Design and Development news
  • Latest news about corporate IT, Tech and Security
  • Online or print marketing tips, news and best practices
  • Graphic Design & Branding news & best practices
  • eCommerce news and best practices

Please note we generally will not post product reviews.  

To make it easy for future guest authors, we have these guidelines that you should follow:

  •  Content must be your own original work
  • Cite your sources! Plagiarism is not permitted
  • Submissions should be kept between 500 – 1,000 words
  • Language should be clear and easy to understand
  • Articles that require substantial editing will not  be accepted.
  • You Title should be actionable so that readers will know what they will learn by reading the article
  • “About the author” section is listed at the end of the article. This can be a maximum of one paragraph with a limit of two links
  • You are allowed to link within your article only when it is relevant to what you are writing about
  • Excessive linking is not allowed
  • The language should be in the first person. I.E “In this article I will”
  • Your article should include at least one photo
  • The photo (s) must be topic relevant and should add to your content
  • You must ensure that you have permission to use the photos and should provide proper reference if you are borrowing an image from another site

Danipa Business Systems, Inc reserves the right to edit the article where necessary to ensure that the post is consistent with the overall feel and content of our Blog. We will never edit without notifying you and will inform you of any minor edits prior to publishing.  If a guest post is inappropriate or needs major editing, we’ll let you know and offer suggestions so that we can publish it in the future!

We also reserve the right to refuse publication, remove blog content and change these guidelines as we see fit.

We hope that you take advantage of this opportunity!  Please note we do not make any payments for guest articles. This is an opportunity for you to post your article on our website.

If you are interested or would like more information on this opportunity please contact:

VP of Sales & Marketing
Danielle Reynolds

danielle@danipa.com.