webgarden.ca

Our most recent project completion is for Sumas Gro Media – a state of the art media and soil production facility located in Sumas, BC. Webgarden was hired to create a brand new corporate image, including logo, business card and website. Check out the screen shots below:

The colour (or color) green is grossly overused in the Horticulture Industry. You may be thinking:
“green is the color of plants – and that’s what we specialize in!”

You’re right – green is a great colour for our industry, however, does it always have to be the SAME green? Time and again, I run into greenhouse and garden center owners who give me their business card and it is always the same green : a combination of forest green and/or emerald green.

Consider stepping away from these boring and over used greens and embrace one of the THOUSANDS of other greens available! Here are just a few examples:

Using a different green allows you to stand out from your competition, and helps you build a distinct brand for your company.

Many people consider October the first month of the holiday season. In Canada we celebrate Thanksgiving in October, as well as Halloween. November is American Thanksgiving and many people begin gearing up for Christmas. By December, the Christmas season is in full swing and most of us have our New Year’s Evening planned out. January has nothing except for a lot of rain, but February holds Valentine’s Day, and shortly after we celebrate Easter and the arrival of Spring!

Changing up your website header to reflect holidays and seasons is a great way to keep website fresh and interesting, and encourages your customers to come back to your site!

If you are interested in having your website changed to reflect the seasons or holidays, please contact us at Webgarden and we will customize a monthly or quarterly seasonal package for your corporate website.

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Office Telephone: 778-858-7037

Paying for a spot as an exhibitor at a trade show is only the first step. In order to be successful at a trade show your booth needs to make an impact. If you are a small business, you probably don’t have a big budget, but it is crucial that you come across as both professional and prepared. Here are some helpful pointers as to how to prepare for a trade show.

• Prepare Business Cards-  They should be professionally designed and professionally printed – DO NOT USE YOUR HOME PRINTER – this is so tacky and screams “I have no idea if I am going to be in business longer than one month”

• Prepare a Flyer or Brochure – Most of the visitors to your booth will want information about you and your company – and many people want “something they can take away”. Don’t be disillusioned, 90% of those people WILL NOT read more than 1/4 of your brochure – however it’s the satisfaction of having something tangible for them to refer to later. For this reason, keep your flyer down to one page – this cuts costs and saves the environment.

• Prepare Signage, Banner or Booth – This is crucial. If you are an exhibitor in a trade show you are playing with the “big boys” now. Don’t let you and your company look as though you operate out of your garage. Maintain a professional image by getting banners or a pop-up booth professionally designed and printed.

• Dress the Part – Dress Up. Even if nobody else does. You are a professional – wear pressed slacks and a collared shirt, blouse or jacket. Invest in comfortable shoes to save your back and knees.

• Give Aways - Many exhibitors feel it is necessary to give away some promotional item such as a key chain or a water bottle. They feel that this brings lots of traffic to their booth. Sure,  giving away a key chain or a water bottle gets your booth a lot of visitors, but I am looking for quality prospects not quantity. I am exhibiting to generate business, not to win a popularity contest. I would suggest you spend your money elsewhere.

• Contest – Ask visitors to participate in a contest, where one lucky winner can win a free service or prize.

These are just a few pointers as to how to prepare for a trade show. Some of these points may seem basic – but trust me, they are often overlooked! Exhibiting in a trade show is not cheap, it takes a lot of time and money, but if you are going to do it – DO IT RIGHT!

Google is celebrating it’s 10th birthday this year, and to commemorate, it has put together Search 2001, a full scale version of Google as it was 7 years ago! (Apparently 7 years was as far back as they could easily go) Google’s Search 2001 includes the old google logo, and 1.3 billion URLS (instead of the trillion it is now!)

We have had fun searching the old index where facebook points to Facebook Havard, where Firefox is a personal home page and where iPhone was… well, I am not sure exactly what it was!

Check out some of the more notable changes:

• Facebook
• Windows
• iPhone
• Can West Hort Show
• Mac

What are some of the fun searches you have found? Share your comments below.

We have just launched our new website which we created to show off our new line of products. Not only does Webgarden create websites, but we now offer the following:

• E-Newsletters:Sending a monthly or bi-monthly newsletter to your clients is a great way to keep in contact with them – why not give them a list of monthly specials or keep them up-to-date with industry news… you can personalize each email to suit the particular interest of that customer and it is a great way to keep you and your company on the forefront of your customers mind. At Webgarden we design custom html newsletters with your logo and corporate colours, we embed an email sign up form on your website, and we set up an online email tracking system that you can log into and see who has opened your email, who has subscribed and unsubscribed and keep track of emails that bounce. To view the E-Newsletters we have already created check out our portfolio

• Website Maintenance: There is nothing worse than going to a website and seeing events or products whose last update was in 2005! If your website is not current, it is useless.At Webgarden we can customize a maintenance package for you – whether it be updating text, or adding seasonal headers, for a few extra dollars a year, you can maintain a professional and up to date website.

We still offer our main products: website design and blog development but due to high demand we have added maintenance and newsletters to our product line