Week 4A Set 2 Yellow Deli/Chilis

     Studying these websites can make you hungry. The food looks very appetizing on the Chili's website but I did not see an 'About Us' section for Chili's except for the frozen food tab. Their call to action is a rewards program where you can rack up points just for signing up and enjoy free menu items or dessert on your birthday. The Yellow Deli on the other hand, had a very interesting history connecting the importance of the food to their mission. The only call to action I could find was a small link at the top for a newsletter sign up.
     Chili's has a very corporate feel to the website and is aggressive with their call to action. The Yellow Deli has a very homemade feel to it because of the font used and the menu that looks handwritten. Chili's website is definitely trying hard to entice you with their food items while the Yellow Deli website has a lot more background information and they seem more interested in spreading their message of love and working together as a co-operative and raising families together, rather than selling you on their menu items. The message of a higher purpose comes across very clearly and they invite you to think about your own purpose.
     I think anyone who enjoys good food would be drawn to both places, however, some might feel put off by the strong religious undertones of the Yellow Deli. They might jump to conclusions about it being a cult or worry that someone might try to convert them to the "Twelve Tribes". If you are open-minded about different points of view, I believe you would be intrigued by the history and operation of the Yellow Deli and would want to check them out. Or perhaps you just want some fresh organic food. The audience for Chili's would be less interested in history or religion, or even the origin of their food and more so looking for a good meal to enjoy. I would choose the Yellow Deli any day over Chili's because I care about where my food comes from and I know that food made with love always tastes better.

Week 3 B My Favorites

     One of my favorite websites is Amazon. I love how easy they make it to shop online. I also appreciate their system of keeping all your past purchases on file so it easy to return merchandise. They also include reviews from previous customers, both favorable and not, so you can make an informed decision. The only part I would change is the check out part. Once you get to the cart and are ready to place an order, there is no clear way to still go back to shopping.
     The other website I frequent is the San Diego Humane Society. They provide pictures and information on all the adoptable animals. You can see all the upcoming events and ways to participate and support the Humane Society. It is easy to navigate and fun to look at. The one thing that might make it even more attractive would be videos of the animals. We have yoga events at my studio that include adorable adoptable cats to help them find a forever home.

I commented on the blogs of Pepper Dare and Antonio.

Week 3A Website Designs

     The first website I looked at was Tectorch. At first glance the website looks very busy and overwhelming with details. It seems hard to navigate because there are no tabs, just products to click on and then you have to use the back arrow to get around. It would be easy to give up because of the navigation issues, unless you were intent on purchasing from this company. The website is visually unappealing because it looks like they put all the information and every part they sell on the first page in multi colors so it looks like a newspaper ad. They could improve the look of the website as well as the navigation by splitting up some of the information and adding links at the top.
     My second website was Exmouth View Hotel. They have several links that are not connected such as the map page, detailed weather and sporting attractions. Quite a few of the pictures do not open at all and there is quite a lot of empty space on the home page before you get to the bottom. It loses some professionalism with the broken links and missing pictures. It would me make think they are not paying attention to details which might carry over to the way they run the hotel. They do supply plenty of information about the hotel and the area as well as several beautiful pictures to help you get a feel for the place.
     I chose Toyota for my third website. What a striking difference to the last two websites. It is quite obvious they hired a professional to design the website. It immediately grabs your attention with a shiny new car and doesn't let go as another car slides by. It is very easy to navigate and all the links and tabs work. The excellent quality of the website promotes the feeling that the products Toyota sells are also of a high quality. I also like how they help you find the closest dealer by inputting your zip code. 
My last website is Headhunter Hairstyling, which has beautiful pictures displaying hairstyles, nails and tanning. This website is very easy to navigate, the prices and services are very clear and they have many blogs that you can search thru with tags. The last link under 'More' said 'Book Online' but then there was nothing to book so perhaps they should remove that tab because it is a waste of time for the consumer. Overall, it is a beautiful website and I would want to go there to get my hair and nails done based on the beautiful pictures. 

For the last assignment I commented on the blogs of Antonio, Sherrie and Derek but I forgot to add it to the end of the blog.

Week 2 Part 2 Who's on First? What's on Second?

   I started with my own business Shanti Kitti Yoga. I have links to several social media sites. My last tweet was on September 16, my Facebook post was on September 18 and the same for Instagram. We are also connected to Google Plus (where I posted an article yesterday) and Linked In but the most used media outlet is Facebook and Twitter. I sometimes feel overwhelmed  by all the different sites but I do have a business partner that also posts for me. I believe we could be more effective in building connections and followers which is why I am taking this course. I know some of the basics but I would like to be proficient.
   The second business I looked into was Soul Of Yoga. Their website is http://soulofyoga.com/
They posted on Twitter 4 hours ago and Facebook 14 hours ago. They have links for YouTube, Google Plus and Instagram as well. The last video upload was 2 months ago on August 14th. It appears that the Instagram account was recently opened or they just don't use it because there are no posts at all. They posted on Google Plus on August 21, 2016. They seem to favor Twitter and Facebook based on the posts.
   The third business I checked out was The Yoga Body Oceanside, http://theyogabodyoceanside.com/
Surprisingly, they do not have any social media links on the website. I went on Facebook to find them and they do have an official page. The last post was on January of 2015. They also have a Twitter account but the last post was February 11, 2013. I could not find them on Instagram or YouTube.
It seems they do not use social media often.
   Black Sheep http://www.blacksheepyogastudio.com/ posted on Facebook and Instagram 12 hours ago. On You Tube, it was a year ago and the last tweet was on Oct, 31, 2015.
My last business is Yoga Oceanside, http://yogaoceanside.com/  They only seem to use Facebook and Instagram. Last post on Facebook was Sept 16, 2016 and the last Instagram post was yesterday Sept.19, 2016.  What I learned from this exercise is that it's better to limit the number of media outlets and post regularly rather than have several outlets and post occasionally. When the last post you have is over a year ago, I think it gives the impression that perhaps the business is not very busy, or you don't have much of a following, so then perhaps you are not inspired to go there.

Week 2 Anyone Listening?

Social media is a great way to get the attention of a business. When I get great reviews for my yoga studio on Google or Yelp, I am always grateful for the feedback. I have not received any negative comments but I know if that ever happens, it is still useful information that can help me improve my business. I would respond to a negative comment because I care about the experience of everyone that visits the studio and I would try to find a way to address whatever happened to create that negative perception.
In fairness to any business, I would give them a chance to address any issue before I posted a negative comment. I am currently having an issue communicating with a business so I will try to work it out with them but if that doesn't work, I will try posting on their social media and see if I get a better response. Social media is a great tool for allowing the consumer to be heard as well as helping a business grow. People will believe their friend's opinion of a business before they believe an advertisement so it really gives the consumer a great way to make themselves heard.

I commented on the blogs of Sherrie Moore, Kylee Grice and Dominz.

Media for Business Week 1B

     Facebook seems to be have started out geared towards personal use but has morphed into a great tool for businesses as well. I have tried some of the advertising options for my business and I like that it gives you the ability to focus on a very specific area as well as specific age and income groups.
     I find Twitter is easier to use because of the limits on content. It helps you to keep it short, sweet and to the point. I think its a great platform for business as well because its so easy to retweet and share relevant or interesting information.
     I also use Instagram for my business occasionally but I am not proficient at all. I think this platform is great for businesses with artistic niches such as yoga so I hope to get better at it.
I am not familiar with Tumblr but my impression is that it is geared more for personal use and seems to be used by a younger age group. Pinterest seems to be geared toward niche markets such as fashion, photography and exercise so I think it would be a great tool for businesses like that.
     With all these choices it's easy to get overwhelmed so I tend to stick with 2 or 3 platforms versus trying to maintain an online presence with all of them.

Week 1A

I chose this template because I was attracted to the soft color of the template and the meaning of ethereal. One of the definitions of ethereal on Google is "extremely delicate and light in a way that seems too perfect for this world".

That definition seems to align with my philosophy on life on this planet earth. We can be so fragile and delicate like a butterfly living in a sometimes dangerous world where unforeseen tragedies happen daily, yet our spirit and will can be so strong, that it feels like we are connected to and supported by another world or energy from the beyond.

The synonyms for ethereal are delicate, exquisite, dainty, elegant, graceful, fragile and unearthly. These synonyms remind me of  the yoga principle to be here now, to stay aware and present to all the beautiful, elegant and exquisite moments in our life because they are fragile and pass quickly.