Hive.net.au - our thoughts about IT, marketing and

Jonathan Zittrain: The Web as random acts of kindness

Sat, 23 Jan 2010 13:10:00 +1100

This is an interesting and entertaining talk by Jonathan Zittrain a renowned Social Theorist, on the web and the human condition. How the Internet can bring people together and solved problems in a democratic way without the ask of money or recognition. "The Thin Geeky Line"

Google Phone Nearly Here

Tue, 15 Dec 2009 10:35:00 +1100

Dubbed the iPhone Killer by many who have seen and used it. Personally, I love my iPhone so it must be awesome! The new phone from Google will be called the Nexus One. TechCrunch website have released photos from some Googlers whom are having trouble keeping quiet. Check out the Google Nexus One phone.

Hive.net.au & SilverStripe Announce Strategic Partnership

Thu, 26 Nov 2009 17:13:00 +1100

Hive.net.au last month became only the 10th company in the world to join the SilverStripe Partner Program.

Recognised as one of the fastest-growing technology companies in the Asia-Pacific region, SilverStripe is a New Zealand-based web consultancy and creator of the SilverStripe CMS and Sapphire application network.

The SilverStripe Content Management System (CMS) is a modern platform used to construct and manage websites, web applications and intranets.

Since removing their proprietary licensing two years ago, the now open source (no associated licensing or ongoing costs) SilverStripe CMS has been downloaded over 200,000 times.

The CMS has a solid reputation around the world and last year powered the US Democratic Party's National Convention website, streaming live speeches by Barack Obama, and serving 3.2 billion hits over 96 hours.

General Manager of SilverStripe Australia, Shane Weddell, contacted Hive.net.au after noticing their corporate website and showcase of recent SilverStripe projects.

"Normally we do not actively approach developers with the intention of partnering, however Hive.net.au has done some brilliant work and their corporate culture fits perfectly with SilverStripe's" Mr Weddell said.

Hive.net.au has been providing business solutions to clients for the last ten years and has evolved their services to include customised packages of web design and SilverStripe CMS integration, web hosting, digital marketing and offline promotional applications.

Hive.net.au has produced a dozen SilverStripe projects and is the first Queensland company (and only the second in Australia) to team up with the CMS developer.

The strategic alliance means that Hive.net.au can broaden the value offer for their clients through the accreditation and development support from SilverStripe HQ in Australia and New Zealand.

Technical Leader of Hive.net.au, Adam Stead, said that it was a great pat on the back for his company to be recognised by such a prominent player in the industry.

"Our team is dedicated to providing measurable solutions, not just websites, and the SilverStripe CMS has enabled us to provide more innovative and simple business solutions to our clients," Mr Stead said.

Qld Government ICT Factor - Putting IT into Tourism

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 18:06:00 +1100

The Queensland Government held a conference earlier this month in Brisbane to provide insights into the future directions of tourism in southeast Queensland. Hive.net.au was one of four featured exhibitors promoting the uptake of ICT in the tourism industry (to enhance productivity and competitiveness).

The Department of Employment, Economic Development & Innovation (DEEDI) has a focus on employment growth through key economic drivers (including mining and energy, primary industries, tourism etc) and will be holding further ICT Factor conferences in early 2010.

The program included a number of key speakers (including Sean Sutherland from Flight Centre and Tim Lovitt from GC Tourism Corporation) and was a great networking event (80 delegates in total from a range of private and government organisations).

Hive.net.au is hoping to exhibit at the upcoming seminars and we will let you know the focus of each in case your organisation may be interested in attending!

Google History According To Google

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:27:00 +1100

A brief insight into the history of Google by Google. Some interesting facts like Adwords only launched to 350 members now it is one of the biggest ad networks in the world.

GLIMPSE 09 - 16 Designers You Should Know

Mon, 12 Oct 2009 11:22:00 +1100

Hive.net.au has recently been working with The DesignWorks College of Design to help their graphic design students gain practical experience in the industry through in-house work placement. The Designworks College integrates industry-based training with a real-life design and print environment, preparing their students for a career in the challenging design industry.

16 of their graduating students have collaborated to present GLIMPSE 09 - a portfolio of their exceptional Illustration, Typography, Branding, Digital Design, Multimedia and Packaging Design work. It is the third annual GLIMPSE graduate exhbition and will host an array of work from future industry leaders.

The exhibition is on show from 21 October until 3 November 2009 at the Robina Art Gallery (Robina Community Centre complex, Robina Town Centre Drive). 9am - 6pm (Monday to Friday) | 9am - 3pm (Saturday) | 12noon - 4pm (Sunday).

For further information please visit GLIMPSE 09.

Support and nurture local talent.

Effective and Practical Web Development

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:39:00 +1000

It is becoming commonplace for people to initially search online for answers to their problems and without a web presence your business is already one step behind your competitors. A website is an affordable component of your marketing solution that establishes your online presence and allows you to leverage other digital marketing formats. If you want to generate leads and traffic for your business, a website is an excellent step in the right direction!

We believe stongly in creating effective and practical solutions for our clients and as such try to encourage the following:

Customised Graphic Design
We try to avoid working from templates as they are not exclusive or unique, can be limited in terms of customisation and can be difficult to optimise in search engine results. To best maximise the effects of your marketing endeavours, you need to focus around a core promotional message and brand - and customised design work enables this. We couldn't imagine anything worse than your competitor having the exact same web presence as you!
Content Management System (CMS)
We try to build all of our websites on a Content Management System platform allowing admin to edit, change and update content ad hoc without the need to consult your development team (although we are always here to help if need be!).
Search Engine Optimisation
Just because you have a website, doesn't automatically mean that you will be found. Your website needs to be designed to be search engine friendly. SEO is an ongoing process to improve and maintain rankings within search engines to enhance your brand awareness and generate traffic to your website. Your business is your livelihood and to make sales you need to not be in front of your target market. If your site is not optimised within search engines you are practically handing your potential clients over to your competition. Now that's being community minded isn't it?

We customise our Standard Web Development Package to provide clients with the ideal solution to meet and exceed their marketing and business objectives.

Do you know what you sell?

Tue, 29 Sep 2009 12:19:00 +1000

Now at the outset, you may think that this is a stupid question. Of course you know what you sell. But have you ever actually written down the features, benefits and value that you provide your clients? And then taken the next step of identifying exactly who is buying your products and why?

About.com details a number of key questions to help you get to the bottom of what you actually sell. It is amazing how seeing things in black and white in front of you can bring to your attention whether there is a match between your brand's self-image and actual image. This will also assist in distinguishing whether there is a match between your perceived and actual clients.

Market research is a great tool to better understand your clients and analyse their buying behaviour. SurveyMonkey is a customisable online survey web application that allows you to get inside the minds of those visiting your website. By creating a survey with clear and easy to understand questions directed towards a specific objective (what it is you want to know the answer to) you can better focus your value position. Online market research costs can come at up 30-50%¹ less than traditional mail survey costs, can be precisely tracked and obtain approximately 35%¹ response rate.

Every successful business has clear objectives and goals, and a clearly defined means to that end. Knowing what you sell and who is buying from you, allow you to effectively target your promotions, image and brand to provide the most value to those individuals.

Information cited from the following sources:

Survey.com.au

The Growing Phenomena of the Internet

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 15:17:00 +1000

Below is a news article from CBC in Canada from the early 1990's when the Internet had around 15 million users. Back then people were shocked at the rapid take-up however this figure pales in comparison to the 360 million¹ people that were using the Internet in 2000 and 1.6 billion¹today. This 362% increase over the last 9 years brings the total number of Internet users to only 25% of the worldwide population. So if you have not been taking the Internet seriously for your business then maybe its about time because there is plenty of room for rapid growth for the Internet and your business.

Interesting fact about social networking: Currently facebook.com has in excess of 300 million² active users (which is 20 times the amount of users that were on the entire Internet in the early 90's!) all on one website. Therefore part of any good Internet marketing plan should also include a strategy for social networking.

If you need help to reach some of the 1.6 billion people on the Internet through a new website or a complete Internet marketing strategy then you should contact hive.net.au today.

Now for the news article, it is worth a watch just to see how far we have come in the last 17 years.

Statistical information cited from the following sources

History of the Internet

Sun, 27 Sep 2009 15:13:00 +1000

This is a great explaination of how the Internet has become what it is today with billions of users. It explains the founding networks that gave birth to the Internet.

Google Maps Innovation Speech

Mon, 07 Sep 2009 23:11:00 +1000

Earlier this year we were lucky enough to attend the 2009 Warren Centre Innovation Lecture with guest speaker Dr Lars Rasmussen, the co-developer of Google Maps which was developed right here in Australia.

It is worth watching if you are a budding entrepreneur, you will recognise the highs and lows that Lars went through to arrive at his huge success. Lars also talks about his latest upcoming venture with Google - Google Wave. You can view the full speech below... might be worth getting a coffee it's a long one.