've move house since my original purchase. Changing the contact information in the system was easy. It's important to do this especially for your 911 settings. In my house, the MJ is now our primary phone line, hooked into a laptop with a 2-handset base station. I actually purchased a second that I carry with me to use on wifi connections on my laptop, though on some of the public networks in places like coffee shops, the way that the wireless connections are managed can mean dropped calls, so it's not necessarily the best solution all the time, but it's a good backup if the cellphone reception isn't great.

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The term "social media" has become so widely used (and abused) that the meaning behind it has become rather generic. But remember that the "social" in "social media" should be just that. It suggests interaction and communication...TWO way. There are many many many people out there standing on their little platform shouting out their message and never listening. While this might work for celebrities, in my opinion it's probably a dubious marketing strategy. If you're going to use social media, then use it the way it was intended.

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When I first speak to a potential client, I offer some advice, including a piece that might sound counterproductive. I tell them to speak to at least two more designers. When they ask why I tell them “because when you come back to me, I need you to know you've made the right decision”. Perhaps a little self-assured, but you'd be surprised. Here are some of the things I discuss with prospects.

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In January 2009 I wrote an article titled "1.5 Billion Internet Users…and Growing", exploring the incredible development of the use of the web in recent years. I just happened to be (web) surfing this morning when I decided to visit the authority on Internet statistics, Internet World Stats...Almost 2 BILLION! We'll perhaps a slight exaggeration. The numbers at the end of 2009, a mere 11 months after I wrote my last were 1,802,330,457. That's an increase of 400,000,000 users, or 26% of the world's population.

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The Internet has become an even greater melting pot. Online and offline lives are blurred. Many people seem to live their lives online and communicate with a world of people they may never have met. Every detail of their lives is shared in Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Twitter, Wordpress, Digg, Reddit...and of course email. There are some very positive benefits to this incredible online world, I'm the first to admit it. I have clients around the US with whom I've developed relationships using purely online methods that I wouldn't have dreamed of a few years ago. I can share information so easily, click-click-done. But the ease of communication has blurred the lines between business and personal for many people. I've written about this subject a couple of times in the past (links below), but for the uninitiated, here goes...

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Especially in the current economic climate not everyone can afford to dramatically update their website every year or two. This is true especially for those of us who are self-employed or small business owners. Several of my most recent clients have been very honest. "We just don't have the money to do what we'd like," said one," what can you do to help?"

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In a world of instant gratification, instant messaging and instant coffee, some things take time; a day is still 24 hours long, the seasons (at least for now) come and go in rotation, and building a good reputation doesn't happened overnight...though destroying it can, but that's another post.

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The best part of my job is the launching of a new website. For March 2010, I'm delighted to announce three new JDE sites on the web.

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Now we need to determine what resources (time, money etc) that need to be applied in order to achieve the objective for each target.

I call this “reverse engineering”. We know ultimately what we want and who we want it from, but in order to get from here to there, what's it going to take?

Now is the time to put down what you realistically are going to have to spend to get from here to there. I used the term ”spend” a little loosely. A resource is anything that has to be used in order to achieve a goal. This does not have to be money. It could be time and effort. It could be another person or company.

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I'm going to use WIDGET INC as my imaginary clients. WIDGET INC makes...you guessed it! They've decided they're going to market to (1)factories, (2)construction companies and (3)janitorial companies. My first question would relate to number 1 - "factories". That is a potentially vague market segment. After all, there must be thousands of different types of factories. It may very well be that WIDGET INC has a product or service that spans every conceivable industry, but they don't, so I'm going to ask them to narrow the first item down. The second and third are just fine. So instead of "factories", they're going with "Factories that make plastic dinosaurs".

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