Last week, Apple fans around the planet erupted into a frenzy as the technology behemoth released its newest iPhones, the iPhone 6 and the iPhone 6 Plus. Yes, I’ll admit, a good deal of the OpenPotion staff was glued to the live feed too, and we giddily exchanged messages back and forth about the latest features: a notably larger screen, Apple Pay, new imaging capabilities, and much more. While it was great fun to drool over the new devices and dream about getting our hands on one of the tech world’s hottest new toys, I had to ask myself, “How will the iPhone 6 change the world of web design?”

Sure, it might seem like a bit of a stretch, but remember, Apple was the company that brought smartphones to the masses, made Adobe Flash nearly obsolete, and was one of the loudest champions of HTML5. The impact of one little phone might not seem relevant, but with more than 500 million of these devices sold over the course of the past few years, savvy webmasters should certainly be asking themselves how their online destination could be impacted by the new release.

Responsive, Responsive, Responsive

For website owners who’ve opted to adopt a responsive design for their site, the good news is that the iPhone 6 should have little impact at all. That’s because responsive sites are specifically geared to “respond” to the browser of each unique visitor. How a site appears on an iPhone 6 Plus, iPad, or a desktop computer shouldn’t differ. Instead, responsive design allows the user experience to remain constant.  While this is encouraging news for some site owners, it’s undeniable that the new phones will make their mark in other ways.

Increased Local Searches

The Internet already marked a substantial milestone earlier this year, when mobile web usage officially surpassed traditional desktop browsing. For local business owners, this metric isn’t merely interesting to note—it’s essential. The majority of all local searches take place on smartphones like the iPhone 6, and research has shown that web users rely heavily on the reviews a site has amassed to determine its legitimacy and value. With faster LTE browsing and a longer battery life, Apple’s new phones will likely boost mobile browsing further than ever before.

If you’re still struggling to get over the impact of negative reviews on your Yelp, Google Plus, or Yahoo! Local account, consider investing in a solution like GatherKudos. This innovative tool makes it easy to filter bad reviews before they ever make it to your site—and best of all, you can easily funnel the right kind of reviews to the places that matter.

Developing Fully-Functional Websites

Earlier in this millennium, mobile websites were seen as an afterthought. Many sites didn’t offer the same dynamic features as their desktop counterparts, and some destinations weren’t accessible at all on the small screen. If the insatiable appetite for the new iPhone 6 Plus reveals anything, it’s that modern consumers are eager to purchase large devices that can take the place of their computer in many applications. For web designers and business owners, never has it been more important to create a site that caters to the users of such devices.

While the full impact of the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus remains yet to be seen, there’s little question Apple has another winner on its hands. If you’re a site owner wondering if your online destination can keep up with the influx of mobile users, get in touch with us today to learn more about our comprehensive design packages. We’re industry leaders in developing responsive, attractive sites that accomplish real results.

– Adam, Content Wizard

Chances are, if you’re a current client or you’ve called our number in the last three months, you’ve have the pleasure of hearing my adorable British accent. For those who haven’t, hello I’m Helen – Jason’s new assistant (and secondary brain), and I’m here to do a quick blog about why I truly believe in OpenPotion web design. OK, maybe it’s going to be less than quick, I apologize in advance for this…

All Over the World

We’re a virtual company, which is a strange concept to everyone, and sometimes even me. My morning commute is down the hallway, past the TV and couch, and into the sunroom that doubles as my office. My suit and tie is actually a raggedy old pair of pajama bottoms and comfy sweater. My in-house office mates are two domestic shorthair cats called Professor T. J. Snuggles and Melon. Yep, I work from home, and I love it. At OpenPotion Web Design, we all work from home, and it’s really effective. Despite being thousands of miles from each other, I’ve never felt closer to my co-workers. Take Esteban, our Project Manager – he lives in Bolivia, but it sometimes feels like he’s actually peeking over my shoulder, making sure I’m focusing on the right jobs for the day. And Starr – we have so many collaborative meetings about content that I sometimes almost invite her out for a drink ‘after work’. We have people who work in Pacific time, Eastern time, and even in time zones I have no hope of ever understanding. The fact is, it works for us, and it’s all down to who we work for. With Jason’s help making sure we have nothing but awesome clients, we’ve built OpenPotion into a company that you can’t help but love.

Website Design Full of Openness

We use this phrase a lot. Our name, OpenPotion, isn’t just a name – it’s who we are and what we do. We believe in openness, both in how we communicate (yes, I’ll tell Jason if my lateness is due to one too many glasses of wine) and also in how we build your site. We don’t do cookie-cutters, we won’t tell you “Sorry, that’s just how it is”, and we certainly won’t tell you something isn’t possible without checking every avenue first. We want you to love your site each time you visit it and we want it to be effective at its job, and we’ll be open with you so we can achieve it.

Why We’ve Sort of Become the Experts of Building Property Management Websites

Sometimes I don’t believe Jason could be as young as he says he is, because of the extensive list of things he has done already with his life. I’ll let you ask him about that, but one of the many things he knows a lot about is property management, and boy, does he know a lot! I’ll tell you a secret – I knew NOTHING about property management companies before starting work with OpenPotion. I knew how to pay my rent on time as a tenant, and I could write up a fairly decent maintenance complaint when I needed to, but the Real Property Management world was new to me. Then I got hired as Jason’s assistant, and within three months I was writing articles for clients on how to maximize their rate of return on rental properties, and advising clients on the advantages and disadvantages of Appfolio and Propertyware. This is all thanks to the knowledge held within Jason’s brain, and his unique and strangely effective training sessions with us. Seriously, test him out – he’d take first place at any Property Management trivia night (if such a thing existed).

My Performance Review

It’s been three months pretty much to the day since I logged in to the OpenPotion system for the first time and was introduced to my new co-workers, and every day is still a thrill ride. If this was any old office job, right about now I’d be in some cold meeting room discussing progress points, weaknesses, and objectives, and setting generic targets to appease the mighty paperwork gods… but I’m not. Instead I’m working for one of the most talented CEOs I’ve ever met, with some of the most focused colleagues and honestly, some of the most awesome clients you could hope for (some of you are downright hilarious), and I couldn’t be happier.

So, want to hear the accent? Go on, give me a call!

A Google business listing is a powerful tool… more useful than Yellow Page ads, and it is completely free. Read on to find out how to take control of your Google business listing and start getting more web traffic.

Many of us use online tools such as Google Maps to find local businesses. Have you looked up your business lately? For example, if you are a sign company in Orange County, what comes up when people search for “signs in Orange County” – is it you? How do you look compared to the competition? Do you even have a website?

Some people charge businesses to do this for them… which is silly since it is easy and free.

Here is how to create or update your listing for the first time…

1. Navigate to http://www.google.com/local/add to get to the Google Local Business Center. This is where you will manage your business listing
2. Register for a Google account if you do not have one (this is also free, and takes under a minute)
3. Sign in to the Google Local Business Center
4. Follow the prompts… Provide as much information as possible, including images and categories
5. Google will then verify your listing by phone or postcard, to make sure you are actually authorized to be making changes to that business
6. That’s it! Now that was pretty painless (if not, give me a call), and maybe even worth thousands of dollars to your business – not bad for a couple of minutes of your time!

Want to do more to improve the ranking of your new website? Check out our suggestions below for quick, simple, and free ways to boost your online presence and get in front of even more potential customers:
To really outshine your competition, your business listing needs a few things:

• A link to your website so they can find out more about your business.
• An image that strengthens your branding and helps them remember you, or that portrays a positive emotion.
• Positive testimonials – send the link of your business listing to your happy clients so they can add a review.
• A large list of categories that fit what you do.

And make sure you do these things:

• Remove any old listings with old addresses or phone numbers, or any outdated information
• Include your full business address and phone number as text at the bottom of your website
• If you have several locations add (or take control of) each location as a separate listing.
• If your major competitor has a site, but you do not, users will likely be drawn to their business, because we all want to find out more before calling – and that can translate into lost business. Your website is your 24 hour employee, brochure, salesperson, and online storefront/office. If built properly a website can easily save you over $20,000/year on employee costs if it is customized to alleviate some of your tedious business tasks. Not only that, but by including your website address in your other marketing efforts, it makes them increasingly powerful.

Are you STILL yearning for more tips on how to boost your website? Check out these resources:

Google’s user guide for Google Places

How to add a company page in LinkedIn

Setting up your business page on Google+

Schedule a time with us – OpenPotion knows how to grow your website!

Any other ideas on how to maximize your listing? Let us know in the comments.