The digital age creates some very interesting dilemmas. One that I wrestle with is: should I get rid of most of my cookbooks? Like many people who like to cook, I have been collecting cookbooks for a long time, I even have smudged and dog-eared volumes from when I was in my teens (those I’ll keep for sentimental reasons). However, I have to confess I have many books gathering dust as well because Google just makes it so convenient to find something on the fly.

Then I had a conversation with one of my sisters last night who probably has double the number of books I have, which would be pushing 500 different and assorted sized cookbooks.  She in the middle of a big remodel and had to pack her books away for a few months, a tiresome chore. So I told her I was contemplating donating many of mine to the local library. “Don’t do that” she barked, “you’ll be sorry.” I think she’s right.

There is justification for both the cyber version of a recipe and the hard copy. The ease of finding something on the internet is phenomenal when you are rushing. But there is no substitute for sitting down with a freshly brewed cup of tea on a rainy Sunday afternoon and planning a week’s worth of menus with my trusty cookbooks. Just looking at the mouth watering food displays is a feast for the eyes.

That is what we try to do at DDA. We work hard to create websites, print sell sheets and brochures, shoot presentation and demonstration videos that delight, instruct, and last for all the clients who come to us for their promotional and marketing projects.

We have decade old samples on display in our lobby and two of the conference rooms that are as viable today as the day they were first created. Good work, like good wine is worth savoring. There are too many truly poor excuses for websites today. They literally make you cringe. DDA tries by example to prove that if you want your business to succeed, leave it to the experienced professionals like our staff.  It may cost more for our illustrations, photography, flash work, programming, webcasting but the results pay off impacting your bottom line positively and impressing your clients.

So as we count down the summer days and get ready for the big Fall push, make it a point to talk to our business development team, you’ll be glad you did.

Andrew and I have just returned from an on location video shoot in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Since the shoot was outdoors, we feared that summer rain would bring production to a halt, but the skies stayed clear. Too clear actually. As each day went on, the temperature rose, along with the humidity, and we began to sizzle. Regardless, I can’t complain about a sunny day and we managed to get a variety of footage including the installation of gutters, windows and doors.

Each installation has a very specific process and I was impressed with the skill of the professionals at work. They made each installation seem effortless.

Over the two days, we managed to shoot about 5 hours of footage including some crane shots that look pretty darn cool! Now our post production team will tackle the task of editing the footage into short 3 to 4 minute videos. Our team of copywriters is currently at work developing a script that will be used for a voice-over done by one of the actors in our network. When all is said and done, the client will have several sharp looking promotional videos for use on their website and in their showroom.

Well it’s that time of the month again… the final day of completing my website optimization for clients enrolled in our SureThing Optimization Program, and thankfully I am all caught up. This morning was full of tying up loose ends, a few emails here and there, a phone call regarding a website traffic report and of course, cake and ice cream! The sweet treats were a nice change of pace for my morning, but now its back to website optimization. Each month I implement optimization elements in an effort to increase each website’s rankings in the search engines. And with so many clients enrolled in our website optimization program, its no wonder that we are an award winning search engine marketing company.

This afternoon, I will be diving back into optimizing a website DDA designed for a replacement window manufacturer as well as our own medical website.  With all of this work ahead of me I better get a move on, only a couple hours left before our three day weekend!