Wright Strategies grew by one on February 6 when our technical director Aaron Pederson's first child was born.

Already a compliant child, Dabria Vega Pederson arrived on her actual due date at 4:21 am, was 8 lbs. 9.5 oz. and 20" long. 

Welcome to the team, Dabria! 

We love building ecommerce websites. They make ROI so measurable and marketing analysis so clear.

But there is another secondary benefit - online sales are a big driver of offline sales in a multi-channel retail market. According to an eMarketer report released today, for every $1 in online sales, the Internet influences $3.45 in store sales.

In fact, eMarketer says online product research drives more in-store sales than online sales. Customers tend to not only research and buy products online, but also research where they can get them locally.

This is yet another great reason to both provide enticing product information and allow online purchases.

View the article.

A recent report by eMarketer Daily shows that online buying in the US has more than doubled in the last seven years. In 2000, only 22% of US consumers had made an online purchase compared to 49% in 2007, which equates to two-thirds of Americans with Internet access. The most common characteristic between online shoppers was the use of a broadband connection. 

Click here to read the full article.

This week, we kicked off a print project with Cielo Wind Power. Cielo builds wind projects that maximize the value of renewable energy while minimizing the environmental impact of site development. We are excited to add Cielo to our list of environmentally-friendly clients.

Inspired by Cielo and our ongoing client KEEN, we in the Austin office have decided to investigate some ways to reduce our own "carbon footprint." We have eliminated individually bottled waters and replaced them with a water cooler, and added paper recycling. If you have a favorite green tip for us, leave a comment below. We'll keep you posted on our efforts.

In my dream world (you know, the same one where I get to play golf every day with Tiger and am a world-renowned guitarist) every project would start by receiving a library of professional, dynamic and colorful photography supporting the project goal.

Well, in the real world (where I settle for the occasional round of hack golf with my friends and can barely beat a song on the “Hard” level in Guitar Hero), our creative department rarely begins a project with a stockpile of great photography from the client. Enter the Internet, and its endless resource!

iStock Photo is a great site that exemplifies everything the web is and should be. It’s a collection of stock photography submitted by photographers belonging to the iStock community: a never-ending library with photo styles to fit any need. The best part is the price: the photos are insanely affordable at an average of only $1 - $2 for web-friendly sizes.

We can’t overstate the importance and impact of a great photo for your homepage, ad, brochure, email blast, etc. If you’re in need of a few affordable bright, dynamic, professional-quality images, you’ll find amazing options at www.istockphoto.com.  

Looking for a good laugh? JibJab Starring You e-cards are sure to do the trick (think Elf Yourself with year round appeal). You can create custom e-cards starring yourself and your friends doing everything from breakdancing in a subway station to performing a choreographed can-can routine.

Check out the Portland office's entertaining number and then create your own Sendables e-card!