Salt Blog

I love attending events at the Friendship Centre. We donated a website to this deserving not-for-profit in 2018 and we certainly didn’t expect anything in return. We were excited to receive an invitation and attend the Friendship Centre Volunteer Appreciation Banquet. I asked if our 2-year-old daughter could attend with us, and they said absolutely! That meant the world to me since being a new mom, a partner in two local tech businesses, and president of a large local not-for-profit keeps me busy. We were honored with a lovely presentation from a Friendship Centre board member, as well as this beautiful gift (pictured). The friendship center honored 7 sponsors altogether in alignment with the 7 sacred teachings. Our honor was for Truth represented by The Turtle. Being a Metis woman, this hit home for me. I want to give a special thanks to our talented designer and project manager Chris....

The advancements in mobile phone software have led to a lot of new challenges for businesses. And with those challenges, new opportunities have arisen too. There are so many avenues to explore, many new markets being accessible, and a great new number of customers to gain access to. These avenues, markets, and customers were previously inaccessible, or very expensive to access. But all of that has changed now. You can access these markets and customers through mobile apps and websites. The question arises when we have to decide between any one of them. An app can be pretty expensive to have designed. A moderate quality app can cost approximately $30,000 to have custom designed to your exact specifications. Another problem that can arise with apps is that they have to be made for multiple platforms or operating systems. You have to make sure that you have both an Android version...

Smartphones have defined and personified the advancements mankind has seen in the past decade or so. They have made our lives easy to the point that our use of laptops and desktops has minimalized. Apart from work, most of us only use our computers only for things that we cannot do on our mobile phones. These devices have literally brought the whole world in our hands. The increase in usage of mobile phones in the world and especially in Canada has made it a necessity to have a mobile design for your business website. Mobile design refers to having a website that is compatible with mobile phones. The user does not have to unnecessarily scroll around and zoom in or out. If you have a mobile compatible website. With almost 60% of Canada’s online traffic coming from mobile phones, the need to have a mobile design does not really need...

Like every year, Saltmedia decided to do a free giveaway in 2018 too. This year the winner was of the giveaway was the Grande Prairie Friendship Centre . Saltmedia presented the GP Friendship Centre a state-of-the-art website inclusive of all features that the organization might need to continue in its endeavors smoothly in the future. The Grand Prairie Friendship Centre has been working tirelessly for a noble cause. They have worked day in and day out to support the Indigenous people and look after their needs. They have been striving to bridge the cultural gap between the Indigenous and non-Indigenous community and have been successfully doing so for the past five decades. This giveaway is a way to reconnect with her roots for Angie Saltman, the President of Saltmedia. Having a Metis heritage herself, Angie has a deep connection with the work GP Friendship Centre has been doing. This website...

Regardless of your industry, chances are your customers are looking for your products or services online. Online marketing is the single most important form of advertising for businesses today. As a result, SEO (search engine optimization) is becoming more and more important for businesses who want to stand out from the crowd. SEO is the process of optimising your website so that it can easily be found in search engines. Let’s take a look at how customers are finding your business online, and how you can make sure your website is getting in front of them. Where are your customers? Chances are your customers are using Google to find your business. Sure, there are plenty of other search engines out there (like Bing and Yahoo), but Google takes up the largest market share with nearly 4.5 billion searches every single day. It’s important to remember, though, that not all Google...

Your website is your best employee. It works 24/7 and is always available to answer your customers’ questions, even when you’re not. And if your website isn’t on the first page of Google for important search terms, you have a lot of low hanging fruit you can harvest. The world of SEO (search engine optimization) is always changing, but there are plenty of things that you can do to ensure your website gets to the first page of Google. Here are just some examples of things you can do to reach that low-hanging fruit.   Have a good website This sounds pretty obvious, but you can’t underestimate the importance of a well-built website. While a basic DIY webpage might be enough to get your name out there, it likely won’t get you where you want to be. Investing in a professional website created by a reputable web design firm is...

Setting up a business is often complicated and costly, and it can be difficult to know where to spend your marketing dollars, especially when you’re just getting started. A strong online presence is crucial for just about any modern business. It’s no wonder, then, that the majority of business owners reach a point where they ask an important question: should I design my website myself, or should I hire a professional? If you have to DIY, do it right DIY website builders are a great option if you’re a startup on a very tight budget and need to set up a basic, quick online presence. If you choose to go the DIY route, make sure to keep things as simple as possible. We recommend building a basic website that clearly explains who you are and what you do. Of course, that’s not to say you shouldn’t spend any money at...

Humans have always tended to gravitate toward things that provide instant gratification. The fact that mobile usage has now surpassed desktop traffic is further proof that we know what we want, and we want it now. The number of people searching from mobile devices for the goods and services they wish to buy continues to increase every year. Consumers can access the Internet virtually everywhere across Alberta, which means there are no limits to when and where people can shop online from their mobile devices. For business owners of any shape and size, this is a huge opportunity - don't miss out! Responsive Websites are Key to Attracting New Business In the not-so-distant past, mobile web development was a lot less common or, at least, very different from what it is today. Whereas, before, mobile website design typically involved a separate, mobile version of the website or mobile apps, today's...

There's a lot of planning and preparation that goes into a successful online presence. Especially on the Internet, it's important for you to put your business' best foot forward and, at Saltmedia, we feel the smartest web solutions start with a consultation and a well designed strategy. Complimentary Consultation & Quote When you choose to work with our Grande Prairie web design team, you will discover that we are whole-heartedly committed to meeting your goals and vision for a smarter website structure. Whether it's your business' first website or you're in need of a refresh, we start with a complimentary website discovery meeting to learn about what you hope to do and achieve online so that we can design the best possible web solution. This gets us all on the same page, right off the hop, and we'll provide you with a custom quote once we've got a plan in...

If you spend much time on the Internet, you probably know that there are a lot of websites that look really cool but load at a glacial pace and just don't function well, and other sites that aren't aesthetically pleasing but perform like it's nobody's business. At Saltmedia, we believe the best sites are not only visually beautiful, but super robust and designed to provide a great user experience. To build these all encompassing websites, we take an approach that's equal parts creativity and strategy - something which comes naturally to the founders of Saltmedia, two people who have always lived and breathed technology and design. Creativity & Aesthetically Pleasing Design Websites that aren't aesthetically pleasing fail to impress, and when you own a business, you've only got one chance to convince site visitors that they should become your customers. Our team is comprised of highly creative graphic and web...

One of the things that sets our Grande Prairie web design company apart is that we're willing to take the time to teach our customers how to make updates to content and images, once their sites go live. Of course, for those who wish to take a more hands-off approach, we're happy to make updates on their behalf, but if our customers want to be able to add new blog articles and other content to their sites themselves, to update their photo galleries with new images and share information on special offers or products and services, we'll show them how. As your website designers, our job is to not only build you a super slick website that's going to perform exceptionally well, but to teach you how to use that website and update it regularly, if this is something you wish to do. In fact, we ask all of our...

You'd have to have been living under a rock for the last several years if you've never heard the term 'social media' or ventured onto the likes of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Pinterest, or Instagram yourself. People of all ages, everywhere are tweeting, liking, pinning and sharing content on social media platforms, around the clock and throughout the week. Social media has taken the world by storm, broken down barriers that once existed for technology, and is now a part of virtually every aspect of some people's everyday lives. Despite the fact that some people are now receiving their minister's sermons in bite-sized tweets or ordering dinner at their favourite restaurants via Facebook, many small business owners still aren't putting the power of social media marketing to work for their brands. If you're looking for new, cost-effective ways to drive quality leads and sales to your business, social media marketing is...

In today's world, where everyone from tweens to senior citizens use smartphones and other mobile devices to surf the web, it's vital for business owners to market their products and services effectively. This means that in addition to a mobile website design, businesses will benefit from adding mobile marketing to an online strategy that's tailored for bringing more leads and sales. Mobile Marketing at a Glance So what is mobile marketing and why should you care? Mobile marketing consists of placing ads on mobile devices. There are several mobile marketing platforms to choose from, each offering their own unique styles of advertising. Some of the channels include app-based marketing, ads that appear in games or text messages, and QR codes that users scan to be directed to a specific website. Google AdWords has also jumped on the mobile bandwagon, and offers mobile marketing options, as well. Adding Mobile Marketing to...

Business owners are often under the impression that the customers they need will magically find and flock to their website without having to do any form of digital marketing. If only it were that easy! Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of several forms of digital marketing that businesses can use to drive targeted traffic to their websites. SEO includes various tactics designed to bring 'organic' or 'natural' traffic to a website, versus SEM, where you pay a fee each time someone clicks one of your ads. But how do you attract the attention of the web surfers who are looking for the types of goods and services you sell? The goal is to move your website up the search engine rankings for major search engines like Google, Bing and Yahoo. When your business appears on the first page of the search results for carefully selected keyword terms, you're in...

In today's world, where people of all ages, worldwide, are online, a website is one of the best ways to advertise your business. As many people soon discover, however, the challenge is getting prospective customers to your site. One of the online marketing tactics businesses use to drive traffic to their websites is Pay-Per-Click or PPC Advertising. PPC Advertising at a Glance With PPC, you pay a fee each time a person clicks one of your ads that are positioned in places like search engine results pages, Facebook and many other channels. Google AdWords is the most popular platform for PPC, most likely because the ads are positioned in the Google search results, where people figure the largest number of prospective customers will see them. When a PPC campaign is executed well, the fee you pay for a click is small compared to the upside of delivering a paying customer...

Search Engine Marketing, or SEM, falls under the Search Marketing umbrella along with SEO. To put it simply, SEM is a way to buy traffic. You pay for ads that appear in the search engine's results, which puts your business in front of people who are searching for information, products and/or services that are in line with your ads' targeted terms. Sounds pretty great, doesn't it? Well, SEM can be awesome, if you know what you're doing. If you don't, it can be a pretty costly way to drive a whole lot of tire kickers - not paying customers - to your website. When it comes to digital marketing, whether you're doing SEM, SEO, email newsletters or any other type, the key to achieving the results you want and need is to either be an expert in the online marketing field, or to hire someone who is. But, first, here's...

Ah, yes, the age old question of how long it's going to take before you're the proud owner of an awesome Saltmedia website! Well, the amount of time it takes to create a website design that's perfectly tailored to a company and fully executed on the web depends on a few key factors, such as the complexity of the site and the customer. Laying the Foundation Like Rome, Saltmedia websites aren't built in a day, but lucky for you, they typically take about 45 to 90 days, on average. Whenever we build a site, our web developers start with an in-depth discovery meeting - we want to know everything there is to know about what it is that you do, what your goals are for the future and the challenges you face. Creating a Custom Website From here, we create a strategy for a website that will not only look...

Choosing who it is that will design and build your website is a pretty big decision. Pick the wrong website designers and you could wind up with a costly and largely ineffective web presence, but select the right team and your business will be armed with the most important marketing tool, today. In 2016, these are the questions you should be asking any company that you're thinking about hiring for web design services. Will my website be built in Canada, by your team, or will it be outsourced overseas? Believe it or not, many 'Canadian' web design companies outsource their work, making it much more difficult to follow up if you have issues or need to make changes to your site in the future. Do you have an actual web developer on staff? Sometimes, companies that sell web design services really only employ graphic designers or a couple of basement...

Business owners often ask us which types of digital marketing are most important if they want to succeed online. The truth is, there isn't a one-size-fits-all online marketing solution that will work for every business. In fact, your industry, your business goals and budget will all play a role in determining which forms of marketing will produce the best results. Give us a call to discover the custom online marketing strategy that will take your business to the top, but first, check out the following to gain a better understanding of what the various forms of marketing entail. A Website: The ultimate form of online marketing and the best way to advertise your business, today! Marketing Automation: Streamline your marketing operations with revolutionary software that automates tasks like sending email newsletters, social media activity, and other website tasks. Search Engine Marketing (SEM): Improve your website's visibility in search engines and...

You've just had an awesome website built and you can't wait to show it off to the world - not to mention have the phone start ringing off the hook with calls from new customers! The thing is, when you Google the keywords that are important to your business, your website appears so far down in the search results it's as good as invisible. It'd be an understatement to say that this is frustrating, but it's a challenge many business owners face. If the saying, 'if you build it, they will come' worked for anyone or anything but Kevin Costner, a baseball field and a bunch of dead baseball players, the search engine optimization (SEO) and internet marketing industries wouldn't exist. Making Your Website Visible Online Ranking on page two won't cut it because very few people actually venture that far down in the search results. Page one is where...