However, there are many more social media options out there than just these three.  So, if you’re getting bored of tweeting, liking and connecting, then why not check out these alternatives:

1. SlideShare
Upload, manage and share your powerpoint presentations online.

2. If this then that
Create and manage an almost limitless set of rules to automate your social media presence.

3. Google Plus
Group friends, colleagues, clients etc into different social circles, and share web articles, photos and more.

4. Pinterest
Create and share an online pin-board, pin up photos of things that make your day, and comment on yours and others.

5. Path
Keep your very own digital journal including photos, music and even when you go to sleep!

6. Instagram
Make your simple photos look stunning using this photo sharing and filtering iPhone app.

7. Foursquare
The original location based sharing app, tag yourself at various locations to become mayor and earn rewards.

8. Paper.li
Turn all those links your followers tweet, into eye catching easy to read e-newspapers.

Apple

We’re fairly sure the world’s second most valuable company has a few tricks up it’s sleeve for 2012, as it always has.  Expect to see a 3rd iteration of its iPad, with a crazy high resolution screen, maybe even 2 versions, one being smaller in size.  This will be the year of the iPhone 5, which is almost guaranteed to be different in design to the iPhone 4 models, and will most likely have an NFP chip to let you buy stuff without your purse or wallet.  One final questions remains, is an Apple television on the cards?

RIM

Things aren’t looking too rosy for Research in Motion, the maker of Blackberry, with sliding sales both for their phones and playbook tablets.  Although it is worth pointing out that they’re still popular amongst teenagers, as we’ve been informed by our college clients.  We won’t be too shocked if they’re split into hardware and software divisions, then sold off (most likely primarily for the patents they hold).

Google

Google has recently bought out the hardware arm of Motorla, so expect to see a more integrated approach when it comes to the latest Motorola Android devices.  Also, keep an eye on how your search results are being affected by Google’s social media platform Google plus.   If you’re logged in, and carry out a search, there’s a high chance that what your circles have been searching for and viewing will skew your search results.

Microsoft

Microsoft should make some inroads with it’s funky mobile os offering, and is likely to announce the next version of it’s Xbox gaming hardware, probably launching early 2013.  We’re expecting to see Windows 8 officially released towards the end of the year too.

Nokia

This will be the year that Nokia either wins back the hearts of the masses with its new Lumia handset using Windows mobile, or slides even further behind the competition.  Its new handsets aren’t bad, but they’re probably too little, too late.

Facebook

Expect to see Facebook’s new “timeline” profile structure become the norm this year.  Also, we shouldn’t be too surprised if they make changes to the way pages work, allowing companies to do more to market their brand within the Facebook domain.  Lastly, Facebook is almost certain to go public, with analysts expecting it to raise $10 billion, valuing the company at a whopping $100 billion.

That’s about it for now folks!  Check our blog throughout the year for updates, or at the end of the year to see how our predictions have turned out.  Saying that, we may not be around that long, if the Mayan’s “end of the world” prediction is anything to go by…

The Pixl8 team have worked hard to create a brilliantly designed user friendly site based on our content management system and rapid development platform WebConnect. The site has been created to serve the needs of the distinct audiences who visit the site and incorporates features such as Course Search, Search engine and social media integration. We will be adding rich mobile template support early in the new year.

Have a look at the new college website design here: http://www.leyton.ac.uk

More college websites are on their way, check back here early in 2012...

Some of the most influential men in history had moustaches - Albert Einstein, Hulk Hogan and Salvador Dali.  Perhaps this was part of the reason why a group the Pixl8 boys decided to take on the challenge of growing a moustache over the course of November.  Whether the mo's helped them in either their influence or looks is questionable, however it did definitely prove a great charity success, raising over £500 for prostate cancer causes!

Visit the team page here to see further updates from the growers and details of the charities.

At Pixl8 we've been building intranets for many years and have always advocated single-sign-on or ensuring that once a user logs into their machine they don't have to login to the intranet as well, it knows who they are from their machine login and personalises their experience accordingly.

Traditionally our intranet product worked with Windows Active directory and Microsoft exchange shared calendars however we can't take that for granted any more and have recently started a project to work with Novell LDAP and now we're seeing clients increasingly embrace technologies like Google Apps, hence we're pleased to announce that Intranet Connect 1.5 supports authentication against the Google Apps suite, so thats login, docs and calendars. Of course our solution can be either hosted on-premise or in the cloud too.

For more information about Intranet connect check out our Intranet connect products page

Pixlr
Pixlr is used by Jonathan quite frequently, to edit images for our newsletters and news articles.  It’s pretty much Photoshop Elements all wrapped up as a free to use online application.  Use it to create and edit images on the fly, there’s even smartphone apps available too!

Down for everyone or just me?
This is one Aaron uses, for those rare occasions when our clients are having problems with their websites.  Its function is to test whether or not a website is unavailable to everyone, or just to a specific user’s computer or IP address.

Join me
Want to host a quick screen share, without the hassle of setting up a session via go to meeting?  Then why not use Tarek’s most used website: Join.me, to share your screen over a unique URL.

Random.org
If you’re struggling to come up with a unique password that meets specific security measures, give Jenny’s current favourite website a go.  It generates a list of alternative passwords based on your chosen criteria.

Dribbble
This website is a show and tell of what other designers around the world are working on. Dribbble helps Luke and the rest of our design team keep up to date with design trends and good UI practices while getting feedback on our projects.

Please feel free to comment on the above or suggest other useful websites you’ve come across!
 

Yes it seems we're approaching that time of year where projects are either being planned to a delivery before the Christmas period or the client and the Pixl8 team are starting to think about that brief break before enthusiastically re-commencing after the holiday period.

Presently we're finishing off amongst other things

1. A large online membership retention project

2. A Microsoft dynamics integrated membership website

3. Two higher education college websites which have some lovely creative pieces to them

4. A mobile website project

5. A site for a London property developer

6. A video portal using brightcove.com

Pixl8 has had a fantastic 2011 and we've got some really exciting projects to work on next year plus our largest contract to date.

It needs to be a one-stop-shop information source. When new visitors click onto your website you only have about three seconds in which to capture their attention. So taking the right approach to development is crucial.
 

1) Create a winning strategy
Increase revenue through event bookings, selling training materials and publications. Increase membership with a fast renewals process and lower admin costs.
 

2) Understand the market
What do your members want? Conduct member surveys and workshops and monitor member enquiries and comments. Study web analytics to understand how the site is currently being used and whether there’s a requirement for mobile access.
 

3) Focus on the user
Your goals to increase revenue and membership should drive the design and the way information is displayed on the website. Users should be able to find relevant content quickly and easily. Consider mobile access for convenience.
 

4) Design to cross-sell
The way people navigate on websites is changing. Users select links and stories to gain information on areas of interest. Tag all content to category or topic lists relevant to all audiences in order to cross sell events, training materials and publications.
 

5) Integrate your website and membership database
All membership data should be stored in one place to provide members with a personalised, comprehensive service whether they are on the website or using email.
 

6) Personalise pages
Use category or topic lists to create specialist interest groups and web pages relevant to individual roles and areas of interest.
 

7) My Association
This interactive members’ area should deliver personalised content to specific members and promote a sense of belonging. It’s a hub for advice, ideas, news and profiles and should include a members’ search facility, supplier directory and history of member activity and purchases.
 

8) Provide a public platform
Encourage interaction from supporters and the general public as well as members. Provide a platform for them to share expertise and experience. Include comment boxes for feedback, forums and group collaboration features.
 

9) Put admin and services online
Membership renewals, new member applications, event management and bookings and purchases – get the admin online, integrate it with the member database and save money. Make training courses and CPD (Continuing Professional Development) available online too through podcasts and videos.

10) Create a social media strategy
Use Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn to raise the profile of your association and its business goals and drive more potential members to your website.

1) Not recognising the benefits of a fully integrated website and membership database.

2) Underestimating the time it takes to create and tag all content prior to go live.

3) Not dedicating someone with the right skills and experience to manage the website.

4) Underestimating the cost and resource savings of moving services like renewals online.

5) Not budgeting for on-going investment to ensure the website evolves with the organisation and changing requirements of its members.

It’s also important that associations brief their web development partner fully on their background, philosophy, audiences and aims and business objectives.  “As web developers we need to know as much about the association as possible,” explains Gavin Thorne.

“It’s this knowledge that enables us to suggest new ideas for site design and functions that not only meet the organisational goals but will deliver the right benefits to members and other users.  “In addition to technical expertise and a flare for design and creativity the best web development partners will provide proactive advice and support on your online marketing strategies, search engine optimisation and e-mail campaigns to maximise effectiveness and revenue generation for the business.”

To ensure you provide your web developer with a comprehensive brief, contacts us to grab a copy of Pixl8’s handy checklist.