Online Security & Website Optimization

Joint Webinar: Online Security & Website Optimization

Presented by: Reid Johnston, Tim Karlberg, Bryant Crock & your host - Aleksandr Yershov

Today’s Agenda•Introduction•Online Security- presented by Reid Johnston, president/founder of TechGen Consulting Inc.•Q & A session with Reid•Website Optimization & 10 Characteristics of Super-Achieving Sites- presented by Tim Karlberg & Bryant Crock, internet marketing team at August Ash Incorporated.•Q & A session with Tim and Bryant

Online Security

TechGen| Quick Background

•Located in Minneapolis, MN

•10 full-time employees; providing IT support since 2000

Core Services:

•Unlimited Remote/Help-Desk Support•Cloud Services Management•Data Security Solution•Disaster Recovery Solution•Mobile Device Management•Anti-Spam & Antivirus Mgmt.

Core Solutions: Unlimited StressFree IT™ & Customized StresssFree IT™

Protect Yourself Online – Use Strong Passwords

Examples of Recent Breaches where passwords were exposed:

•Yahoo! – July, 2012

•Formspring – July, 2012

•Nvidia – July, 2012

•LinkedIn – June, 2012

•Last.fm – June, 2012

•eHarmony.com – June, 2012

•Twitter – May, 2012

Protect Yourself Online – Use Strong Passwords

Commonly used passwords:

•123456

•password

•Welcome

•abc123

•123456789

•12345678

•Ninja

•Sunshine

•Princess

•qwerty

Protect Yourself Online – Use Strong Passwords

What Makes a Strong Password?

A combination of uppercase, lowercase, numbers & symbols: !@#$%^&*()

NOT: “password”, your name, your birth date, or other easily guessable information (including common words): jessica1 or summer2012

Consider At Least 8 Characters

Consider using a passphrase “1Fish2FishredFishblueFish2012!”

Protect Yourself Online – Use Strong Passwords

Important Password Recommendations:

•Change your passwords periodically

•Never use the same password for multiple online services

How Do I Keep Track of Everything?

Roboform.com - $20/year. (1st year $9.99)

Lastpass.com - $12/year.

Protect Yourself Online – Use Strong Passwords

What does a Password Manager Do?

•Automatically enters passwords into sites you visit

•Encrypt all of your passwords – protected by a strong “master” password

•Synchronize passwords between multiple computers (mobile devices too)

•Store other types of data in encrypted format (account #’s, etc.)

Protect Yourself Online – Keep an eye out for Phishing Sites

What is Phishing?

•Fake emails designed to look legitimate

•Fake sites that look legitimate (Bank, Insurance, etc.)

•Harvesting confidential information

Protect Yourself Online – Keep an eye out for Phishing Sites

Ways to Protect Yourself:•Legitimate companies will never ask for your personal information via email: Username/Password/Bank Information

•Never click a link on an email and sign in to a website, instead open your browser and visit the site directly

•Report phishing emails to your email provider

•Keep your browser up to date

•Using Firefox, Safari, and Chrome will leverage Google’s Safe Browsing Service

- Google locates hundreds of thousands of phishing pages annually and blocks them

Protect Yourself Online – Keep an eye out for Phishing Sites

Example:

Protect Yourself Online – Keep an eye out for Phishing Sites

Example:

Protect Yourself Online – Personal Mobile Devices in the Workplace

BYOD (Bring Your Own Device)

Employees are using their own tablets and phones to access company information

The Pros:

•Lower up-front cost than providing mobile devices to everyone

•Many tasks are completed sooner / more efficiently

•More attention is paid to metrics – easier access

•Employees use the devices they like - Android vs. Apple

•Equipment is often more “current” than company issued equipment

Protect Yourself Online – Personal Mobile Devices in the Workplace

BYOD (Bring Your Own Device)

The Cons:

•Difficulty in applying acceptable use policies to personal devices

•Protecting company data can be difficult

•Regaining access & protecting data stored on devices during employee termination

Questions & Answers

Reid Johnston612.279.2400

[email protected]

Poll Question: Do you use your personal mobile device to access company systems? (Email, files, etc.)

10 Characteristics of Super-Achieving Sites

August Ash | Quick Background

•Located in Bloomington, MN

•25 full-time employees; now in our 14th year of business

•Top 25 Web Development & Design Firms of Minneapolis-St. Paul (MPLS-StP Business Journal)

Core Services:

•Web design•Ecommerce•Search engine optimization (SEO)•Pay-Per-Click (PPC) management•Email marketing•Social media guidance

1. Modern and Functioning

•First impression

•Does it feel dated?

•Does it work?

•These build trust

2. Understanding Target Keywords

•Which bring in the most traffic?

•Which bring in the most sales?

•Where do these keywords rank?

•On which pages are these keywords targeted?

3. Built on a Capable CMS

•Reduces dependence on your developer

•Allows for easier optimization of site

•Saves you money

4. Know your competitor’s SEO

•As important as understanding your own

•Target Keywords

•Content & Navigation Strategy

•Identify the “Low Hanging Fruit”

5. Effective Content

•Original

•Optimized for humans

•Optimized for Google

6. A Link Worthy Website

•Great content

•Great promotion

•Make it easy for visitors to link & share content

7. Frequently Updated

•The role of frequent updates

•Why blogging works

•What it says to new visitors

8. Analyze Every Detail

•Optimization - to take full advantage of

•Visitor patterns

•Search Engine Index

•Broken URLs – 404 Errors

9. Clear Calls to Action

•Even in 2012, web users still need guidance

•Don’t overlook the obvious

•Converting from the perspective of a new visitor

•Always include a next step

10. Gain Visitors and Keep Them

•Balance between usability and SEO

•Keep them coming back for more

Question & Answer

Tim Karlberg & Bryant Crock952.851.9400

[email protected]

Poll Question: Have you ever reviewed (in detail) the stats for your website’s performance?