Atlanta, Asheville Web Site Design - Jaymunda Blog

Asheville-based marketing and Web technology company Jaymunda (www.Jaymunda.com) is helping other local businesses thrive and grow through small business education following their own recent expansion, opening a new office in the Atlanta area in the Fall of 2007.
Asheville, NC – May 7, 2008 – Local web development and Internet marketing company, Jaymunda (www.Jaymunda.com), is nearing its four-year anniversary while actively promoting economic development in Asheville through a focus on entrepreneurs. After the company’s own recent growth and expansion with a second office opened in the Atlanta area, Jaymunda is working to help other small and medium-sized businesses succeed through new technology education.
Jaymunda has been involved in small business education in Asheville by teaching classes through an affiliation with A-B Tech’s Small Business Center / Incubator, as well as their past event “So You Have a Website… Now What?” which was attended by over 60 community members and small business owners.
Jaymunda’s contributions to the community haven’t gone unnoticed. “We appreciate Jaymunda’s participation in our Professional Services office to provide pro bono time for clients of our center,” says Russ Yelton, Executive Director of Entrepreneurial Ventures and Business Incubation for A-B Tech. “It is professionals such as them who give of their time back to the community that makes the Asheville business market a special place to be.”
Nearly every small business has the potential to grow if they can harness the power of a truly effective Web presence. “Websites have come a long way over the last several years,” says Jason Syzdek, President of Jaymunda.  “Websites offer tools and capabilities many small business owners aren’t even aware of, such as the ability to more directly interact with their customers. It doesn’t matter if you’re an artist, an online business, or even a consultant - having a website should be looked at as a necessity and not just an option at this point in time. Websites are just as effective in building more local business as they are in expanding to new markets nationally or even internationally.”
While small towns can feel “invaded” by large corporations setting up chain stores or offices, Jaymunda serves as an example of small business biting back. They expanded from Asheville to Atlanta while still staying true to their local roots, focused on helping other Asheville entrepreneurs do the same.
“At Jaymunda, we believe we have a duty to help educate local business owners in a way that they can better understand how technology, design, and Internet marketing combine to lead to growth, both on an individual basis as well as economic growth in the community,” says Syzdek. “Small businesses shouldn’t fear corporate growth into their towns. We have the ability to help them reach local customers by using technology in ways that can help to level the playing field.”
In addition to classes and events in the community, Jaymunda offers free marketing tips, tools, and downloads for entrepreneurs at www.Jaymunda.com.
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About Jaymunda
Jaymunda: Graphic & Web Design, Inc. is a respected Web technology company focused on providing advertising, design, programming, search engine optimization, and marketing services to small and medium-sized businesses. Based in Asheville, NC, the company expanded in 2007 to open a second office in Marietta, GA. Jaymunda was founded by President Jason Syzdek.
For more information about Jaymunda, or what the company is doing to help Asheville’s small and medium-sized businesses, please visit www.Jaymunda.com.

Asheville’s small businesses, such as marketing and Web technology company Jaymunda (www.Jaymunda.com,) help to maintain the city’s character and atmosphere by working together to build a strong business community. Strong small businesses are ones that will stick around, supporting the local economy for years to come.
Asheville, NC – May 16, 2008 – While other cities and towns across the country are feeling overrun by development and major corporations moving in, Asheville’s small businesses are thriving and helping to keep the charm and community feel of the city by working together. Local Web development and Internet marketing company, Jaymunda (www.Jaymunda.com), is a prime example – helping other area small businesses make the most of new technologies through education and Web-based services.
“Asheville’s small businesses all have something to offer the community or to each other,” says Jaymunda’s Co-owner and Vice President, Heather Syzdek. “These entrepreneurs are real members of the community themselves, and they’re a part of the local culture. By working together towards growth, Asheville’s business owners help to support the local economy while ensuring their own stability. Jaymunda tries to do its part by educating area entrepreneurs about technologies that can help them succeed in the local market or expand beyond it, as our company did last year by expanding to a second office in the Atlanta area. Strong small businesses are good for Asheville as well as good for the owners.”
Jaymunda and the company’s clients serve as an example of the power of word-of-mouth – referrals and cross-promotional opportunities are always available, and they can help any type of small business succeed. “When small businesses thrive, it builds confidence within the members of the community who can build bonds with local entrepreneurs in ways that corporate chain stores can’t compete with,” says Syzdek. “Our tight-knit community feel isn’t of concern to large corporations opening stores and offices anywhere they can make a buck, but small business owners are residents, neighbors, and friends.”
In addition to helping local small businesses build a Web presence and market themselves online, Jaymunda has actively worked to educate members of the Asheville community about small business technology issues by teaching classes through A-B Tech’s Small Business Center.
In addition to classes for local entrepreneurs, Jaymunda offers free marketing tips, tools, and downloads at www.Jaymunda.com to help small business owners make better use of Web-based technologies.
About Jaymunda
Jaymunda: Graphic & Web Design, Inc. is a respected Web technology company focused on providing advertising, design, programming, search engine optimization, and marketing services to small and medium-sized businesses. Based in Asheville, NC, the company expanded in 2007 to open a second office in Marietta, GA. Jaymunda was founded by President Jason Syzdek.
For more information about Jaymunda, or what the company is doing to help Asheville’s small and medium-sized businesses, please visit www.Jaymunda.com or contact Jason Syzdek at 828-254-0892.

I thought I’d take this week’s Jaymunda Java to give you all a cost-saving tip: We print a LOT in our office. Every time we make a revision or need to show a client a new design, we have to print it out to be sure it looks right and that’s expensive!

One way we reduce our printing costs is to buy our laser toner cartridges directly from the manufacturer. After much searching, we finally found a reliable company to facilitate this: Superior Imaging Products, an Asheville-based company that’s been around since 1984. Since we’ve started working with them, we have saved a whopping 30% on our ink and toner! They even deliver straight to our door.

For more information about Superior Imaging, visit their website at www.sipwnc.com or call (828) 891-7400. Ask for Randy and let him know that Jaymunda said you should call.

Don’t use email.  Email is a great technology. It’s used for everything from setting up appointments to e-cards these days, and that seems to be the problem.  Hallmark had the right idea.  Thank you cards, Birthday greetings and invitations still need that personal touch.  So next time you think it’s easier to just send an e-card, think again.  Take the extra effort to send those thank you cards to clients via ‘snail mail’ and be sure to hand write the address on the envelope (in blue ink), it makes all the difference.

by Lynne M. BaabJonathan, 28, believes Web sites functions like a “front page” for organizations. He notes that his generation surfs the Internet continuously, both during the work day and during leisure hours, and that they would almost never visit a church or other organization without first checking out its Web site. Whether or not Jonathan can speak for an entire generation, organizational Web sites are certainly proliferating. More congregations are establishing Web sites and more congregational leaders are realizing how helpful, even strategic, Web sites can be. 

Reaching All Audiences Congregational Web sites have three audiences, two of them primary and one of them less prominent. One audience is congregation members. Often they come to the Web site for information. What time is that missionary speaking tonight, and where? They also visit the Web site to download the sermon in audio, video, or written form. Keeping the Web site updated with factual information and recent sermons is key for this audience. 

A second audience is potential visitors. Is the time of the worship service posted on the homepage? Is there a link to directions to the church? Is basic information about the congregation presented—both verbally and visually—so that a visitor would have some sense of this congregation’s priorities? Are there links to information specifically for newcomers, or general information about the church that newcomers would value? A third audience congregational Web sites might consider addressing is people from other congregations who are looking for resources. Perhaps someone visits a congregation on vacation, enjoys the sermon, and comes back to the congregation’s Web site each week to read or listen to the pastor’s sermon. Or perhaps a children’s ministry leader is looking for new ideas, so scans other churches’ Web sites to see how they are serving children. A worldwide network of connections is facilitated by the existence of congregational Web sites, a fascinating new manifestation of the body of Christ and of Jewish solidarity. 

The Rise of the Visual Communication scholars have noted a significant shift in communication patterns in recent decades. The written word is giving way to images. Web sites are an assemblage of words and images, and most experts on Web sites affirm that viewers tend to notice the visual aspects first. 

Most of the Web site producers I interviewed affirmed that the pastors and leaders of their congregations are largely word-oriented. I suspect this is true of rabbis and leaders of synagogues as well. My interviewees told me that their pastors and other congregational leaders generate announcements of events and descriptions of the church that are usually designed for newsletters, brochures, and printed bulletins. Web designers edit these texts, usually shortening them significantly, and pair them with photos and other images to create a pleasing whole. Note the disconnect here. Congregational leaders are charged with leading the congregation and communicating its vision, yet the aspect of the Web site that carries the greatest impact—the visual components, such as photos and graphics, as well as the overall visual structure—is usually determined by one person, the Web designer. This person is usually a member of the congregation who volunteers to create the site, a paid employee, or a paid independent contractor. In very few cases is it a leader of the congregation. 

Many congregational Web sites are quite effective and interesting, but are they communicating the values of the congregation in ways that mesh with the vision for the congregation established intentionally by its leaders? Unless leaders of congregations take their Web sites seriously, these sites will continue to be the work of one person, or a very small number of people, who may or may not be closely connected to the leaders and their vision. Help from “Critical Friends” 

When the Internet started to become a significant force in society about a decade ago, religious leaders were divided in their opinions about this new technology. Some were extremely negative, viewing the Internet as a dehumanizing force, a threat to community and communication. Others saw it as a place of opportunity for religious organizations, a place where proclamation and explanation could take place and a place where community and connections could be nurtured. One of the premier researchers on online religious community, Heidi Campbell, argues for a middle ground. She uses the term “critical friends” ¹ to describe what she would like to see: religious leaders who affirm the opportunities provided by the Internet while also being cautious and careful about the possible negative repercussions. 

In my study of congregational Web sites, I found that this critical friend role was often absent in congregations. Many Web site producers work quite independently because of lack of interest by congregational leaders. Critical friends among the congregation’s leaders would bring an additional set of eyes and an understanding of the congregation’s priorities, enabling Web sites to represent congregations as accurately as possible. In addition, critical friends are urgently needed in congregations to minimize the growing tendency toward a consumerist model of faith and congregational life. Because Web sites use visual communication in ways similar to those of the advertising industry, congregational leaders need to think carefully about how their Web sites tap into consumerist practices. 

The Web site producers I interviewed were uniformly positive about the opportunity afforded by the medium. Most of them saw no potential conflicts in wholesale adoption of secular marketing strategies to promote their congregation and to describe its uniqueness. Critical friends, with an awareness of the risks inherent in the consumer model and perhaps with theological training, need to be in dialogue with Web site producers as choices are made regarding Web site content. Web sites provide amazing opportunities for congregations to reach out and to provide information and resources for members. Careful and effective use of congregational Web sites will involve attention to the visual as well as the verbal and will reflect the congregation’s values in photos, graphics, art, and links. Web site producers will not work in isolation but with the help of critical friends among the congregation’s leaders, who will help them make decisions about this strategic communication tool. 

Excerpted from “Our New Front Door: How Congregational Web Sites Communicate Church Vision” from the Spring 2008 issue of Congregations magazine. Lynne M. Baab’s book Reaching out in a Networked World: Expressing Your Congregation’s Heart and Soul will be published this fall.
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¹ Heidi Campbell, “Approaches to Religious Research in Computer-mediated Communication,” in J. Mitchell & S. Marriage, eds., Mediating Religion: Conversations in Media, Culture and Religion (New York: T & T Clark, 2003), 216. 

Jaymunda recently launched two websites with a very simple, yet effective feature: A button that changes the size of the text for those who need larger text!