Chris Gilligan » new media» Content Management Systems

Social Media — Facebook, Twitter, Blogging and Sharing

Chris Gilligan — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 19:19:42 +0000

Social media, including sites like Facebook and MySpace, micro-blogging platforms like Twitter, and sharing/bookmarking tools like Digg, Del.icio.us and Stumble Upon are all very important to your outreach to customers, not to mention the incoming links they provide, and the potential of exponential viral traffic.

Add to this the need for regular blogging (on your site and other platforms) and email updates, and the management of all this online communication becomes daunting. What if there were a way to integrate all of your modes of online presence, so you’d only have to post once to update all of the different platforms? Well, the short answer is: there is.

I’ve been working with a local organic farm to update their online presence, and we’ve come up with a very simple implementation of WordPress that cross-posts to Facebook Pages and Twitter. Every blog post automatically creates an entry with linkback on Facebook Pages, and an accompanying Tweet with linkback. It has been a great way to keep the farm’s audience informed and engaged.

Additionally, we’ve added bookmarking links for all of the major social media platforms and favorites keepers, thus adding to the potential for viral sharing.

I’m also working on a mailing list that further integrates with WordPress, and it’s looking very promising. There is a new WordPress mailing list plugin that allows opt-in or manually entered mailing list clients to manage automated subscriptions to blog and page updates, and allows administrators to manage multiple mailing lists, and send newsletters and alerts. It integrates with the website seamlessly and also has WYSIWYG editing.

Organic Farm Website with Slideshows and Content Management

Chris Gilligan — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 23:09:28 +0000

Sequatchie Cove Farm website

This site was produced in tandem with Widgets & Stone, a Chattanooga design firm. We’re members of Sequatchie Cove Farm’s Community Shared Agriculture program, so we are very familiar with the quality of the eggs, dairy, meat and produce coming out of the clean and fertile Sequatchie Valley.

(Will Work for Food!)

WordPress Content Management System allows the farmers to easily add their opinions, information and images
Automated updates to Facebook Pages, with linkback
Automatic Twitter tweets for new posts, with linkback
Social Media bookmarking
SlideShowPro gives the site a slick Flash-based Image Management System so the site can feature seasonal images.
MailMan manages a plethora of mailing lists for the weekly emails that keep the farmers connected to the communities and individuals they serve

Rafting and Adventure Travel Site with Reservation Form

Chris Gilligan — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 00:20:28 +0000

Southeastern Expeditions website

This site, for an adventure travel company that runs rafting and eco-tourism trips in North and Central America, features a clean interactive design and extensive search engine optimization, including tailored metatags, hyperlinks, and a backlink referral network.

The site also features a simple reservation form that collects all information needed by booking specialists to bill for trip deposit and contact the customer to seal the deal, and saves the info in a secure database for retrieval.

Joomla Content Management System allows owners to update information, add new pages and modules to highlight season specials
TLS/SSH: secure encryption of confidential customer information

Nature Center Website with Slideshows and Video

Chris Gilligan — Wed, 13 May 2009 18:46:21 +0000

Chattanooga Nature Center website

Here’s a new site for Chattanooga Nature Center, our award-winning regional environmental education and animal rehabilitation facility.

News, newsletter are updated frequently by Nature Center staff, using the WordPress Content Management System
SlideShowPro with videos, audio backgrounds and frequently updated rotating slideshows
Google Analytics to track page views, form submissions, pdf and file downloads
Online donations and membership signup form, with payments handled by PayPal

Regional Visioning Plan

Chris Gilligan — Sun, 03 May 2009 21:04:53 +0000

Chattanooga STAND website

This site, completed for Chattanooga’s Create Here, in tandem with design firm Widgets & Stone, is for a regional visioning process being conducted around Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Tell-a-friend and Volunteer forms
Semantic, search engine and handheld browser friendly design
Google Analytics to track page views, form submissions, pdf and file downloads
Expression Engine multi-site manager
- custom fields: staffers can frequently and easily update the content and sidebars

Content Management Consulting

Chris Gilligan — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 03:38:59 +0000

AJC Media Solutions website

I was contracted to develop the content management system for the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s AJC Media Solutions site.

I took a great design from IQ Interactive, created Joomla 1.5 templates, and structured the site so IQ and AJC staffers could easily add content, including an extensive collection of Flash movies and PDF whitepapers.

Working from home and traveling to Atlanta for a few days, with follow up documentation and consultation, I got the project done on time and well within the budget.