As a busy las vegas company or business owner, there are only so many things you could do in a day, especially things where some element of skills is required. Designing your own website is one such activity, one which should really be designed by a professional Las Vegas website design company (we like to keep business local). If you are not a professional designer and developer, you should leave it in a professional’s hands, and a professional web design firm (like my company Perkolate.com) will work closely with you to ensure it meets your marketing goals and is properly and professionally designed.

Here are the key reasons you should hire a local Las Vegas website design company:

It’s Technical – Leave it to the Experts

Designing websites is definitely not something that just anyone can do. Sure, there are do-it-yourself websites out on the internet, but they have a lot of limitations. You neeed a professional company that can help you shape the design and flow of your website. You need a company that is experienced in specific coding languages like PHP, ASP, HTML and professional softwares like Dreamweaver, Photoshop, and Flash. If you are not familiar with these languages and softwares, you may well have to learn them, because without them, you cannot even think of starting to design a website.

Time is of Essence – Don’t Waste Yours

If you’re the average business owner or run a company, do you really have the time to be trying to build and launch your own web site? Rushing through things at this stage, even if it is assumed that you have the appropriate skills for web designing could mean you making a complete mess of your website. That is why I recommend that you hire a professional web design company right here in Las Vegas who will get everything done quickly and effectively.

More Cost-Effective In the Long Run – Don’t Do It Yourself

If you hired someone in house, you would have to cover all of the costs associated with hiring an employee. That employee most likely will not have all of the marketing, strategy, programming and development skills you might need for your corporate web site. Or if you are trying to build the website yourself, I ask you, wouldn’t your time be more wisely spent doing what you do best in running and growing your business and leaving a professional web design company to do what they do best and in your best interested? In most cases, working with a professional web company works out to be the most cost-effective option.

For more information on professional website design and development solutions, visit my company’s website at www.perkolate.com. (We are located in Summerlin)

Cheers!

This post is just for fun.  I love the Vintner Grill in Summerlin. True, it’s close to my office, but even if it were far away, I’d try to make it there periodically for the excellent food and outstanding cocktails. It’s also a great place to meet other Summerlin Business professionals.

About Vintner Grill

Vintner Grill is a lively American Bistro nestled in West Las Vegas in the neighborhood of Summerlin. The bistro’s compelling architecture combined with the simplicity of the modern decor gives the dining experience a casual elegance. The focal point for the dynamic outdoor patio is two large canopies in an illuminated setting with custom-made couches and drapery. Created by Executive Chef Matthew Silverman, the menu features American dishes with Mediterranean influences from Spain, France, and Italy. Signature dishes include the lamb osso bucco, white bean hummus, and veal London broil. Decadent dessert selections are provided exclusively by chocolatier Vosges Haut-Chocolat, a luxury chocolate experience not to be missed. Visit their website at www.vglasvegas.com.

Some of my favorite menu items:

• white bean hummus with olive relish and spicy pita chips10 pan seared crab cakes with taragon cream, roasted peppers and mache
• sweet butter lettuce salad with warm brie, wild herbs and orange-balsamic vinagrette
• heirloom tomato salad with fresh mozarella, aged balsamic and micro-arugula10
• any of the wood-fired flatbreads

Does your marketing strategy include targeting the Summerlin, NV area of Las Vegas?  There are plenty of key target markets residing in Summerlin. If this is indeed one of your strategies, here are some resources to try to help you reach this lucrative market:

Summerlin Newspapers

• Summerlin View – A Neighborhood Newspaper
• Summerlin News – Las Vegas Sun

Summerlin Websites

• Summerlin Las Vegas
• Summerlin South Community & Social Services on Citysearch
• Summerlin Community & Social Services on Citysearch
• TPC Summerlin
• SummerLink
• Summerlin Las Vegas Lawyer Directory – Attorneys, Lawyers, Law Firms
• Summerlin Casinos

Summerlin Organizations

• Las Vegas, NV Meetup Groups – Meetup.com
• Women’s Club of Summerlin
• Nevada Ballet Theater in Summerlin

Summerlin News

• Summerlin South News – Topix
• Summerlin, Las Vegas, NV News – Yourstreet.com
• Summerlin, Las Vegas, NV – outside.in

If you are a company that is focused on doing business in our fine city of Las Vegas, then there are great benefits to understanding your target market when marketing your business here.

A dog grooming business, for example, would not be trying to sell their services to people who own birds; they need to find effective ways to reach people who own dogs in town. Furthermore, they may find that their target market of dog owners is narrowed down to a few zip codes near their place of business.  By identifying who your target market is, you’re not just taking a “shot in the dark” with your marketing efforts.

The official definition of a “target market” is the specific group of customers that you market your products and services to. They are the customers that are most likely to be interested in your products and services. Unseasoned marketers or business owners might attempt to market to “everybody” which is a very unwise strategy to take.  Aim for your target and you will have a far more successful shot at a “bulls eye” with your marketing efforts.

Las Vegas is a metropolitan area of great extremes. There is everything from the underbelly of Sin City to conservative business people, entertainers, blue collar workers, people of many different types of religions, families, young and old.

Here are some points to consider in helping you identify and understand your target market:

• Is your target customer a man or a woman (or both)?
• What is the age range of your target customer?
• What geographic area/s do your target customers live?
• What is their income and what do they do for work?
• How does your target market thing and feel?
• What messaging and what offers will appeal to your target market?
• Create an email or written survey to find out more about your target market.
• Talk to customers, ask questions, what they like, what they don’t like?
• Keep tabs on your competitors to see how they are communicating with your target market.

For more information, visit:

• Wikipedia.org – Definition of a Target Market
• AllBusiness.com – Understanding Your Target Market
• ezinearticles.com – Copywriting Tips – Understanding Your Target Market

Sometimes business owners and marketing professionals get so caught up in launching websites, developing marketing collateral, running ads, creating direct mail campaigns, and managing the various expenses of a business that we can forget that there are common sense and fool proof methods to marketing your company that are completely free.

With a looming recession, rocky stock market and budget cut backs, there are always completely free marketing tactics we can take to promote our business, so I thought I’d list them out to remind everybody, especially with turbulent economy:

• Hand out your business cards. Keep them not only in your office, but your home, your car, in your purse, in your wallet. Such a simple tactic that we sometimes forget.
• Always keep brochures handy.  You never know where and when you will run into someone interested in your products or services, again, keep your brochures everywhere you are.
• Talk to people you meet everyday.  Not a hard-sell sorta person here myself, however, hard-sell or not, talking to people and simply asking them what they do for a living, where they live, etc. can open the door for other people to ask the same questions about you.
• Network at parties. You have friends (I hope), you go to parties, dinners with friends (I hope) and this is an excellent opportunity to remind your good friends what you do.  I always make a casual mention that if they know of anyone who is in need of a marketing consultant, a website or graphic design services, that my company handles all of that and more (see www.perkolate.com)
• Volunteer for pro bono work within your community (my hood is Summerlin/Las Vegas).  It’s always nice to give back to the community and help a worthy cause by donating some of your time to a charitable cause once in awhile.  Makes you feel good (it does me) and you can meet some great people in your community that will keep your company’s products and services in mind down the line.
• Utilize social networking websites.  Websites like linkedin.com, facebook.com and myspace.com are powerful networking and community building websites.  You can find friends, add them to your contacts and remind them of what your company does.  You can also add photos, blog feeds and links to your company’s website.