Facebook IPO: What Could You Buy With $100 Billion?

elijah.vieau — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 17:21:57 -0500

Any moment now, the once beloved idea that started in a college dorm room is about to unleash it's public offering - with a valuation of $100 billion. Yes, we're talking about Facebook. While we're on the topic of $100 billion (which is really hard to imagine) how much money is that exactly?

Blackout: Top Internet Sites Protesting Against SOPA

elijah.vieau — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 12:36:16 -0500

For those of you who haven't heard, the American government is trying to pass bills (SOPA and PIP) that will allow them to have unprecedented power to block - and take down - any website they feel is in violation of copyright.

So what does this mean?

Top 10 Entrepreneurs of 2011 [Infographic]

elijah.vieau — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 11:46:46 -0500

2011 came and went with a raging fury of digital awesomeness and unforgettable techno-fails i.e. remember when the Playstation network was hacked? Well we've decided that rather than showcasing the halarious and unfortunate of this past year, we'd celebrate the unsung entrepreneurial heroes who followed their dreams, persisted and came out on top with some groundbreaking products/services.

Top 3 Web Apps Worth Checking Out in 2012

elijah.vieau — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 16:32:33 -0500

Anyone who works in the web development, design or marketing industry knows that web-based tools and apps are a critical piece of the efficiency puzzle. At Climax Media, we rely heavily on tools like Harvest and BaseCamp to manage time, client communication and resources - but what about all those other cool tools that are relatively unknown and have awesome potential?

It's time to give these developers the shine they deserve!

5 Reasons to Justify a Website Redesign

elijah.vieau — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 12:35:29 -0500

As a budding web design agency, we often encounter companies who've invested serious dollars into a new website, only to realize that their online objectives, business model and content have outgrown them - often in as little as 2 or 3 years. It's unfortunate, but the truth is we run into this scenario multiple times on a monthly basis.

Mobile for B2B: How Businesses are Using Mobile

elijah.vieau — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 15:15:09 -0500

Back in May we blogged about the importance of mobile user experience and how people are increasingly relying on mobile devices to access the web - this is especially true on the local level.

Creating a Solid Case Study Template For Your Website

elijah.vieau — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 14:32:56 -0400

It's becoming quite common when perusing "digital agency" style websites to see the recent work displayed in a case study format, rather than the standard portfolio layout. As a web design agency, we've been toying with the idea of scrapping the typical design portfolio page for something that presents prospective clients with more concrete, results-based content.

Case Study vs. Client Portfolio

Why You Should Care About Responsive Web Design

elijah.vieau — Tue, 11 Oct 2011 14:10:55 -0400

As a CEO or National Sales Director, the term responsive web design might not mean anything to you. But in the design and development world, we are drastically shifting the way we approach each project because of it.

The Anatomy of a Good Backlink

elijah.vieau — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 12:49:52 -0400

One of the most asked questions regarding search engine optimization and link building is: what makes a link good? Unfortunately with SEO there's no single answer to that question. There are so many variables involved with building quality links to your website and as of recently, it was becoming hard to find up to date information pertaining to what makes a link worth your time and money.

Developing a Conversion Optimization Strategy

elijah.vieau — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 13:37:03 -0400

There is a general opinion among professionals that most websites perform poorly when it comes to meeting the needs of its visitors. Factors such as high bounce rates, low opt-in rates and high abandonment rates contribute to less than profitable conversion rates; often resulting in a much higher cost-per-sale.

Video Marketing Tips for Your Business

elijah.vieau — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 12:16:45 -0400

It's a shame to start off a blog post like this, but the truth is people don't read as much as they used to. With information being thrown at us from 6 million directions, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, the last thing anyone wants to do is read. Since the evolution of digital video streaming and the introduction of YouTube in 2005, video has become a crucial component to digital marketing and advertising firms world wide.

Enhancing User Experience Design With A/B Testing

elijah.vieau — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 16:08:57 -0400

When it comes to designing the ultimate web-based user experience, data is probably one of the most crucial and underused tools in a designers box of tricks. Rather than assuming their design will work, many creatives are now turning to A/B tests (aka split tests) in order to measure the effectiveness of their design, content and overall site functionality.

What's A/B Testing?

When A/B testing, one would compare two different versions of a web page element over a specific time period to determine which version performed better; based on the amount of completed actions.

HTML5: An Introduction

elijah.vieau — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 14:08:50 -0400

For the last couple of years there has been a lot of hype around the introduction and usage of HTML5 and how it is changing the web development industry for desktop and mobile programmers alike.

Considering that the specification of this technology isn’t quite complete, we thought it would be appropriate to give you a brief overview of some of the more stable elements and how developers have been using them in real world (digital) applications.

HTML5 Semantics

Climax Office Expansion [VIDEO]

elijah.vieau — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 12:04:19 -0400

Here's a video we put together to showcase the before and after process of our Toronto office expansion, renovation and redesign. Thanks to our friends at Lux Design for their hard work and creative expertise, as well as our Creative Director Luciano Castillo for putting together this awesome video!

For more about our renovation adventures

Effectively Managing Your Online Reputation

elijah.vieau — Tue, 09 Aug 2011 16:52:14 -0400

In today's digitally-immersed society, the consumer has more power than ever before. If John Doe has a bad experience at the local "big box" retail chain, he can voice his frustration and opinion (freely) to the world, often within minutes of the occurrence. And depending on who Mr. Doe is and how far his online network reaches, his complaint could echo online for weeks to come - potentially causing a chain reaction of bad-mouth replies towards the big box brand.

Looking Ahead: Using Google+ For Your Business

elijah.vieau — Thu, 04 Aug 2011 12:08:37 -0400

If you haven't heard (or gotten an invitation), Google launched their very own social network on June 28th called Google+. Though reactions were initially mixed, its user base has grown significantly in the last month to well over 25 million users and counting.

User Experience Basics: Usability, Readability and Design

elijah.vieau — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 12:01:31 -0400

When the topic of user experience is brought up - whether it’s in a Monday morning meeting or a Friday night out with colleagues - the understanding of its purpose is usually vague at best.

Social Media Strategy Part 3: Your Dashboard

elijah.vieau — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 16:55:02 -0400

It's time to finish off our blog series on the ever-growing topic of social media strategy. In the first two parts, we discussed various ways to define your voice and generate content ideas to ensure you're always broadcasting relevant, quality information. In this third and final installment, we will discuss automation and management using a social media dashboard.

What's a social media dashboard?

Social Media Strategy Part 2: What to Say?

elijah.vieau — Tue, 28 Jun 2011 12:36:20 -0400

In part 1 of our social media strategy series, we talked about the importance of defining your voice across the various social media platforms. In the next few blog posts, we're going to dive into the world of content delivery, timing, tools and automation to make the most of your brand and it's social efforts.

Say What?

Social Media Strategy Part 1: Defining Your Voice

elijah.vieau — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 14:00:46 -0400

The amount of businesses that are jumping on Facebook and Twitter every day is growing at an astonishing rate. From “mom and pop” organic bakeries to fortune 500 corporations, they’re all trying to get a piece of the action while it’s hot - and sadly most efforts are ending in complete failure.

Here’s the problem…

3 Website Launches, 2 New Employees and a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

elijah.vieau — Fri, 03 Jun 2011 12:25:30 -0400

May was absolutely crazy here at the Climax Media headquarters. On top of finishing our office renovations, we've expanded our team and continue to develop new and exciting projects for some of the most innovative brands in Canada.

We started off the month of June in true Climax style and launched 3 new projects in the first week:

Honda Power Equipment

Every Web Design Company Should Look This Good!

elijah.vieau — Mon, 16 May 2011 16:02:15 -0400

Since our last office renovation update so much has happened! We've completely expanded the office, now occupying two full commercial units. We've added a completely revamped boardroom, company lounge, and hired more talented designers, developers, marketers and strategists to keep up with our growing list of world-class clientele.

Social Media Monitoring: What the Tweet?

elijah.vieau — Tue, 10 May 2011 10:42:31 -0400

With so much “buzz” happening on the social web every second of every day, how does an individual (let alone a fortune 500 company) keep up with and manage all of the conversations, questions and comments without their brain turning into pink pudding?

Social media monitoring is the answer.

Creating the Ultimate Mobile User Experience

elijah.vieau — Thu, 05 May 2011 10:07:53 -0400

With over 70% of the global population packing a personal mobile device, it’s no secret that the mobile web is the fastest growing segment online. Mobile apps, mobile websites and smart phone technologies have skyrocketed into the forefront of every major corporation’s agenda – regardless of industry or company size.

Office Construction and Expansion

admin — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 10:54:06 -0400

After a very busy 2010, Climax is preparing for another industrious year with many exciting new projects already underway! As our customers continue to grow, so must we in order to continue to provide the same high-quality, leading edge service. To accommodate these needs we have taken over the office next door and hired many new team members, nearly doubling our space and staff.

New Honda Website Launches!

admin — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 16:43:23 -0400

At 11:30pm on Thursday September 29 after 10 months of project planning and development, the brand new http://www.honda.ca/automotive went live. We want to thank our production partners Navantis & Grip Limited for a job well done.
Congratulations to Honda Canada on a successful site launch !

Ideas Wall

admin — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 12:58:04 -0400

When you get a great idea, where do you write it? Post-It notes or a napkin? Here at Climax Media the team is great at coming up with endless ideas for new projects and approaches. We were writing things down everywhere, but we knew we’d have to have a brainstorm to draw all our ideas into one place.

When we read about the Ideas Wall (http://www.ideapaint.com), we knew we had found our answer. Ideas Wall is a special paint and applicator that will transform any wall into a giant whiteboard.

Facebook “LIKES” the Web

admin — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 11:31:16 -0400

Facebook is transforming the Web and how we interact with it. One of the great new features of this social networking service is the Like button, which you’ll be seeing throughout more and more sites in the future.

Like an article you have read? Click the Like button and a link to that article will automatically appear as a post in your Facebook news feed. There’s no need to leave the site and load up Facebook first.

Google Search Appliance

admin — Sun, 16 May 2010 11:17:19 -0400

We are in the process of installing the Google Search Appliance for a couple of our enterprise clients. The Google Search Appliance (GSA) is a hardware box that brings Google’s search technology to your mid-sized to large organization.

NGI Designer Glass Hires Climax Media

admin — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 14:47:22 -0500

We are proud to announce that NGI Designer Glass has retained us as their Agency of Record. NGI is an industry leader in custom commercial glass fabrication. NGI works with most major Interior Design and Architectural firms throughout the world. Most recently NGI worked on a large installation for the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts. Stay tuned... in the coming weeks and months Climax Media will be featuring the brand resurrection; complete with logo, stationary, interactive website, trade show booth and much more.

Demo Reel

admin — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 13:24:31 -0500

We had a blast putting our demo reel together.
Looking back at every project we've done made us think of the good times we had, the crazy deadlines, and the killer creative we pushed out on time and on budget.

Our demo reel is just a teaser for us. If you want to see more on any company, or if you want to see more of one kind of creative, click over to the Work section, where you can read all about our client work in detail.
Send our reel on to your buddies if you like what you see? We're proud of what we've done, and we want to spread the word.

New Website Launch!

admin — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:21:36 -0500

Along with our new digs, we've gone and updated our Web site for 2010. Since our last site update, we've landed many major new clients, and we've expanded our portfolio of services. This site design is crisp and clear, and gives us a chance to show you all the great things we've done and all the great things we can do for you.

New Office

admin — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 12:58:18 -0500

We’ve Moved!
2010 is a great new year for us! A whole new look for our Web site, new clients, new directions, and to match it all, a new location.

In the past few years, we've been expanding so we can give you more options when it comes to Web, interactive, and video work. Last year we finally hit the limit in the space we were in, so we loaded up the computers, bits, and bytes, and hit the road.

Social Media Marketing

admin — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 17:20:25 -0400

For marketers with products and services to build awareness around, social media is the newest and most efficient way to effectively reach targeted niche audiences. What we recommend to all our clients looking to start marketing in social media is that we work together and put a solid strategy in place. Below I have broken down the process from pre-strategy through to execution.

Pre-Strategy

Before strategizing, there are some questions a client should be asking: