Web Development Live

The designation of the Goose Pond and Beehunter Marsh Fish and Wildlife Areaa as federal and state supported wetlands will drive new tourism traffic to the region, adding to the already strong attractions of equine sports and hunting-related activities, she said.

To help spur and sustain strategic growth, the economic development corporation retained The MEK Group in Indianapolis to develop a multi-use brand to help site selectors and visitors quickly grasp the opportunities inherent in the county.

“Given the fact that the Goose Pond is expected to become an international migration point and bird-watching has grown into a $2 billion industry, we wanted a distinctive mark and brand to define the superb attributes of the county to a large potential market,” Bethell said.

Funding social infrastructure and workforce development represents a critical component for sustained economic growth, so the Greene County Foundation joined with GCEDC in creating a new open presence both online and in the region to create higher awareness of the county’s new forward-looking vision.

Community direction and feedback largely governed the development of an all-new Web site for the Greene County Economic Development Corporation, now live at www.gcedc.us.

The Web site, which includes a section specially developed to attract site selectors, features the new mark and positioning for Greene County.

“This distinctive look is quite different from our neighbors in the region and highlights the attributes of the county in a strategic way,” said Bethell.

The logo can be easily adapted for use by other county entities.

The Greene County economic development site, designed and built by The MEK Group, includes a visitor’s section with an interactive map that easily and quickly illustrates major points of interest for visitors.

The tourism map is sponsored by the Greene County Foundation. The site will include an updated online calendar of events which is funded collaboratively between the Foundation and the GCEDC. The map and tourism calendar is under development and will be released shortly.

“Soon after coming to Greene County, I found that there was no central point of contact or reference for many positive aspects of

Greene County,” said Bethell. “The economic development site and the new foundation Web site will help correct this.”

Both Web sites feature a comprehensive editing tool that will enable staff to quickly make changes and update information. The county statistics site is fully automated with a direct link to STATS Indiana, run by Indiana University. “The automation of that section ensures that it will never be out-of-date, and will also not require extensive and expensive time to track and make changes,” Bethell said.

A final step in the GCEDC site development process was a review by nationally-recognized former site selector, Robert Ady. Indiana Municipal Power Association sponsored the professional site review by contracting with consultants, Ady International. The outcome was an eighteen page report on recommendations. They indicated that the site was well-designed and most of the recommendations are minor and simply smooth the research process for a site selector using the site to research for potential business relocations.

The Foundation, which has grown to more than $4 million in assets, has aggressively leveraged community foundation funds and support to create new leadership and workforce training opportunities, as well as help create economic development-related grassroots operations for county residents and businesses.

Bethell, who served in a senior economic development role in Arizona before coming to Indiana in 2006, assembled a development group from Greene County leadership to set in motion community outreach.

Direction and suggestions from the group was augmented by broad

community feedback across a wide spectrum, particularly regarding the construction and deployment of an all new economic development Web site for the county.

The Greene County Foundation retained Hirons in Bloomington to design a new Web presence for the foundation, which now features an expanded capacity for donors to make planned giving decisions.

In addition, the Web site features a searchable database that has a complete listing of donations made in memory and recognition of others.

“One of the best ways to introduce the foundation is to encourage small gifts in recognition of others. The foundation provides a service for donors of all capabilities those who can make small gifts as well as those who can make large gifts,” said Kerry Conway, executive director of the Greene County Foundation.

Both sites are considered to be works in progress.

“While we’re initially pleased and satisfied with the new online presence that both sites present for Greene County, we will always be considering and implementing new functionality and features to help better promote the county,” Conway said.

It did not take long before they recognized limitations in their existing Website. Allianz’s original site had to service clients from all sectors. Every effort was made to make all services available in one place, but things were just not working. Many customers were not able to find what they were looking for. Unfortunately, later attempts to organize the information only made matters worse: Every section of the Web site ended up with its own unique ‘look and feel’, and with inconsistent branding.

The key challenges, therefore, were not just to re-design & develop the website, but also to mirror Bajaj Allianz’s strong offline brand imagery on the Web along with all the ingredients of a Web 2.0 online Insurance Web presence for customers & sales channels alike. So that customers could renew their policies online along with paying their premiums, prospects could search, compare & find the best policy/plan for their families & agents could drive account management all under one interactive roof. eDynamic immediately identified these problems, proposing, designing and implementing a comprehensive solution.

Subir Singh, VP, Sales, eDynamic, credits the success of eDynamic’s efforts to the company’s established expertise in the Insurance industry. “Our deep understanding in insurance..and strategic approach to business help us maintain a strong and comfortable relationship….” eDynamic brought to the table additional experience in financial services, such as lending and loans, credit cards, real estate, and financial services.

By creating a generic, easily customizable template to provide a framework for the design, the information architecture is kept simple, easy to understand and navigate. Simplicity is also key to its versatility –remaining consistent when customized for each service segment. The design has proven so adaptable that, as the online services of Bajaj Allianz have continued to expand, the same recognizable branding and navigational controls have remained.

Says Vishal Karki, Head of Marketing for Bajaj Allianz Insurance, India, “It has been a pleasure to do business with eDynamic. The team at eDynamic holds its customer’s satisfaction as highest priority. They understood our business requirements and have delivered high-quality results on time.”

About eDynamic: eDynamic is a Global IT services, Interactive Marketing Services, Website Design & Development and Consulting Firm focused on delivering integrated business solutions. eDynamic is a rapidly growing, privately held company that delivers on the technology, creativity & marketing needs of enterprises. Through its offices in New York, Portland, Toronto, London, Dubai, and New Delhi, eDynamic is serving customers such as Suncor Energy, UPS, PepsiCo, New York Life, General Electric, Advance America, Preferred Commerce, Intercontinental Hotels, Jet Airways, Samsung, Sony, among many others.

BOSTON A combination of Microsoft and Yahoo could reshape the Internet landscape for millions of Web users: Would the two companies join their online portals? Could they rethink the desktop computer to integrate Web content more directly?The changes are potentially huge, but probably not in the short term.Microsoft executives did not indicate Friday exactly what they would do with Yahoo’s brand if their bid, now valued at $42 billion, is accepted. But analysts expect the combined companies to preserve many of their separate free services, like instant-messaging and e-mail programs.A more likely medium-term change is that some of Microsoft’s Web content could fade away or get added to Yahoo, which has a vast collection of news and features aggregated from other providers.Microsoft’s Web properties, including its Yahoo-like MSN portal, aren’t exactly slouches: They rank third, trailing only Yahoo and Google, in total visitors. But while Yahoo still is profitable, Microsoft’s online services are a consistent money loser. The MSN search engine is a laggard, even with recent efforts to soup it up under Microsoft’s online umbrella it calls “Live.”Having Yahoo in its tent could give Microsoft a rationalization for abandoning its unprofitable online elements.”I think MSN folds into Yahoo,” said Ian Campbell, CEO of Nucleus Research. “It would be foolish to keep that separate.”Perhaps the biggest change Microsoft and Yahoo could achieve together would be creating a better way to combine the Web and desktop computing - not to mention cell phones, TVs, cars and any other gadgets that might someday plug into the Internet.Consumers who access the Web on cell phones and handheld computers might be the first to find something new as a result of a Microsoft-Yahoo combination. Devices that run Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system could be better integrated with Yahoo content and possibly yield new services, like social networking functions.New ideas will be key to compete with Google’s Web presence. After all, people don’t “Microsoft” or “Yahoo” anything. Microsoft in particular tends to be tolerated more than loved. Google is also leading development of an alternative cell-phone operating system it calls Android.Eventually, a teamed-up Yahoo and Microsoft might be able to rethink the PC desktop - where Windows still runs 90 percent of the world’s PCs - so that Internet data such as stock prices, sports scores and weather are automatically baked in.”We all have our home page because we have a concept of a home page,” Campbell said. Before long, “we may not have a home page - it might just be the background of my desktop. There’s no reason why Microsoft can’t push this another level.”Microsoft might also use Yahoo’s online strengths to galvanize Web-based versions of some of its powerful desktop software applications, like Word and Excel.Open-source rivals and Google are threatening to bite into Microsoft’s lucrative Office software franchise with free versions of those kinds of “productivity” software. Microsoft is developing Web-based versions of its own, but slowly.Now Yahoo could be the face through which Microsoft offers those online applications. Perhaps one day a Microsoft-fueled package of “Yahoo Apps” will go up against “Google Apps.”Even with these possibilities, analyst David Mitchell Smith, a vice president at Gartner Inc., believes the biggest change from a Microsoft-Yahoo deal probably will be the one most Web surfers don’t notice. That will come as the companies try to broaden their ability to deliver ads all over the Internet, wherever it reaches.It’s necessary because being the most popular online destination - as Yahoo already is - is no longer enough. The explosion of blogs, video sites and other user-generated content has made our Internet travels more wide-ranging. As a result, the biggest Internet companies now need their ad networks to reach far beyond their home portals. Google has mastered that. Microsoft and Yahoo have not.”I think that’s really what it’s all about,” Smith said. “It’s about advertising. It’s about search.”(This version CORRECTS value of bid to billion sted million; CLARIFIES that deal is now worth 42, not 45, billion.)

BOSTON A combination of Microsoft and Yahoo could reshape the Internet landscape for millions of Web users: Would the two companies join their online portals? Could they rethink the desktop computer to integrate Web content more directly?The changes are potentially huge, but probably not in the short term.Microsoft executives did not indicate Friday exactly what they would do with Yahoo’s brand if their bid, now valued at $42 billion, is accepted. But analysts expect the combined companies to preserve many of their separate free services, like instant-messaging and e-mail programs.A more likely medium-term change is that some of Microsoft’s Web content could fade away or get added to Yahoo, which has a vast collection of news and features aggregated from other providers.Microsoft’s Web properties, including its Yahoo-like MSN portal, aren’t exactly slouches: They rank third, trailing only Yahoo and Google, in total visitors. But while Yahoo still is profitable, Microsoft’s online services are a consistent money loser. The MSN search engine is a laggard, even with recent efforts to soup it up under Microsoft’s online umbrella it calls “Live.”Having Yahoo in its tent could give Microsoft a rationalization for abandoning its unprofitable online elements.”I think MSN folds into Yahoo,” said Ian Campbell, CEO of Nucleus Research. “It would be foolish to keep that separate.”Perhaps the biggest change Microsoft and Yahoo could achieve together would be creating a better way to combine the Web and desktop computing - not to mention cell phones, TVs, cars and any other gadgets that might someday plug into the Internet.Consumers who access the Web on cell phones and handheld computers might be the first to find something new as a result of a Microsoft-Yahoo combination. Devices that run Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system could be better integrated with Yahoo content and possibly yield new services, like social networking functions.New ideas will be key to compete with Google’s Web presence. After all, people don’t “Microsoft” or “Yahoo” anything. Microsoft in particular tends to be tolerated more than loved. Google is also leading development of an alternative cell-phone operating system it calls Android.Eventually, a teamed-up Yahoo and Microsoft might be able to rethink the PC desktop - where Windows still runs 90 percent of the world’s PCs - so that Internet data such as stock prices, sports scores and weather are automatically baked in.”We all have our home page because we have a concept of a home page,” Campbell said. Before long, “we may not have a home page - it might just be the background of my desktop. There’s no reason why Microsoft can’t push this another level.”Microsoft might also use Yahoo’s online strengths to galvanize Web-based versions of some of its powerful desktop software applications, like Word and Excel.Open-source rivals and Google are threatening to bite into Microsoft’s lucrative Office software franchise with free versions of those kinds of “productivity” software. Microsoft is developing Web-based versions of its own, but slowly.Now Yahoo could be the face through which Microsoft offers those online applications. Perhaps one day a Microsoft-fueled package of “Yahoo Apps” will go up against “Google Apps.”Even with these possibilities, analyst David Mitchell Smith, a vice president at Gartner Inc., believes the biggest change from a Microsoft-Yahoo deal probably will be the one most Web surfers don’t notice. That will come as the companies try to broaden their ability to deliver ads all over the Internet, wherever it reaches.It’s necessary because being the most popular online destination - as Yahoo already is - is no longer enough. The explosion of blogs, video sites and other user-generated content has made our Internet travels more wide-ranging. As a result, the biggest Internet companies now need their ad networks to reach far beyond their home portals. Google has mastered that. Microsoft and Yahoo have not.”I think that’s really what it’s all about,” Smith said. “It’s about advertising. It’s about search.”(This version CORRECTS value of bid to billion sted million; CLARIFIES that deal is now worth 42, not 45, billion.)

BOSTON A combination of Microsoft and Yahoo could reshape the Internet landscape for millions of Web users: Would the two companies join their online portals? Could they rethink the desktop computer to integrate Web content more directly?The changes are potentially huge, but probably not in the short term.Microsoft executives did not indicate Friday exactly what they would do with Yahoo’s brand if their bid, now valued at $42 billion, is accepted. But analysts expect the combined companies to preserve many of their separate free services, like instant-messaging and e-mail programs.A more likely medium-term change is that some of Microsoft’s Web content could fade away or get added to Yahoo, which has a vast collection of news and features aggregated from other providers.Microsoft’s Web properties, including its Yahoo-like MSN portal, aren’t exactly slouches: They rank third, trailing only Yahoo and Google, in total visitors. But while Yahoo still is profitable, Microsoft’s online services are a consistent money loser. The MSN search engine is a laggard, even with recent efforts to soup it up under Microsoft’s online umbrella it calls “Live.”Having Yahoo in its tent could give Microsoft a rationalization for abandoning its unprofitable online elements.”I think MSN folds into Yahoo,” said Ian Campbell, CEO of Nucleus Research. “It would be foolish to keep that separate.”Perhaps the biggest change Microsoft and Yahoo could achieve together would be creating a better way to combine the Web and desktop computing - not to mention cell phones, TVs, cars and any other gadgets that might someday plug into the Internet.Consumers who access the Web on cell phones and handheld computers might be the first to find something new as a result of a Microsoft-Yahoo combination. Devices that run Microsoft’s Windows Mobile operating system could be better integrated with Yahoo content and possibly yield new services, like social networking functions.New ideas will be key to compete with Google’s Web presence. After all, people don’t “Microsoft” or “Yahoo” anything. Microsoft in particular tends to be tolerated more than loved. Google is also leading development of an alternative cell-phone operating system it calls Android.Eventually, a teamed-up Yahoo and Microsoft might be able to rethink the PC desktop - where Windows still runs 90 percent of the world’s PCs - so that Internet data such as stock prices, sports scores and weather are automatically baked in.”We all have our home page because we have a concept of a home page,” Campbell said. Before long, “we may not have a home page - it might just be the background of my desktop. There’s no reason why Microsoft can’t push this another level.”Microsoft might also use Yahoo’s online strengths to galvanize Web-based versions of some of its powerful desktop software applications, like Word and Excel.Open-source rivals and Google are threatening to bite into Microsoft’s lucrative Office software franchise with free versions of those kinds of “productivity” software. Microsoft is developing Web-based versions of its own, but slowly.Now Yahoo could be the face through which Microsoft offers those online applications. Perhaps one day a Microsoft-fueled package of “Yahoo Apps” will go up against “Google Apps.”Even with these possibilities, analyst David Mitchell Smith, a vice president at Gartner Inc., believes the biggest change from a Microsoft-Yahoo deal probably will be the one most Web surfers don’t notice. That will come as the companies try to broaden their ability to deliver ads all over the Internet, wherever it reaches.It’s necessary because being the most popular online destination - as Yahoo already is - is no longer enough. The explosion of blogs, video sites and other user-generated content has made our Internet travels more wide-ranging. As a result, the biggest Internet companies now need their ad networks to reach far beyond their home portals. Google has mastered that. Microsoft and Yahoo have not.”I think that’s really what it’s all about,” Smith said. “It’s about advertising. It’s about search.”(This version CORRECTS value of bid to billion sted million; CLARIFIES that deal is now worth 42, not 45, billion.)