To all of the supporters of The Caera Kirsch Collection,

For the past two years, creating and managing The Caera Kirsch Collection brand has been a real rockin’ and rollin’ ride! And despite the sometimes bizarre challenges, it certainly was a thrilling opportunity to push open farther my own creative boundaries while helping friends and family present themselves to the Internet community with their best feet forward…and their eyes wide open. Unfortunately, I also was unable to convert these skills into a career that I could rely upon for a steady and stable income, which is why I have chosen to close up The Caera Kirsch Collection.

Although I will not necessarily miss the responsibility associated with maintaining a web design portfolio (a 24/7 lifestyle can be quite taxing! LOL!), what I definitely will miss is the creative interactions with people from around the world with that twinge of competitiveness to be “one of the best.” I may not have been a top-of-the-line designer, but I’d like to think that I left behind a legacy of being a solid partner and knowledgeable tour guide, along with being a decent ghost writer for at least some of the members of my portfolio.

To those of who entrusted me to “speak” on your behalf, I thank you for such an honor and am grateful for your faith in my abilities and your belief that I was the right person for your particular project.

To the individuals who helped make me look good by freely sharing your own intellectual capital, I remain in awe of the knowledge each of you possess and will remain committed to passing forward some of these lessons I was fortunate enough to learn.

And although this particular creative effort may be coming to a close, I am fired up about my outlook for 2008. In fact, I have already dug out a few original songs that were incomplete and am working on resolving them. I have also started a few brand new ones as well and I’m hoping to drag a few of my musician friends into the studio some time during the summer.Also, there are a few books already in a skeleton format that have been pulled from my archive box and are currently being reviewed for viability (e.g. I have no idea which storyline I can actually write about from Page 1 all the way to that Final Page where I write, “The End” and that the content of the book doesn’t directly contribute to a landfill somewhere…LOL!)

Lastly, an Internet radio show is in its development stage and it will be nice to return to a broadcasting format that doesn’t solely rely on how fast I can type (although the danger is that I frequently talk faster than I type!).

Bob Seger immortalized the idea that anyone can “come back baby ’cause rock and roll never forgets.” Here’s to hoping he’s right!

Thank you again and may we all have an inspired and imaginative 2008!

For the last time in 2007…and beyond

Valerie Serendipity Anderson
Creator of The Caera Kirsch Collection

P.S. After careful contemplation, I am going to leave this container “as-is” and will remain hopeful that the information here continues to be helpful to all those who visit even if the time stamps on these entries aren’t considered “recent.” After all, time is relative…right? ;&gt

What is “search engine optimization” (SEO) and why should I care?

Update March 27, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

If you have zero desire to attract customers via the search engines, then you don’t need to care about how the various search engines operate. However, even if you are a local pizza place hoping to capture a few new customers, ensuring your web site is read properly by the search engines is an essential fundamental of web design.

The algorithms for each search engine are different and each have their own set of rules and guidelines, however the basics still remain the same. Attaching an XML or ROR sitemap to your site makes it easier for the spiders to crawl your. Although there is debate that the use of meta-tags is on the way out, they still serve a purpose if they are not abused. Alternative text assists with the word count game involved with page rankings. Internal search engines such as the one we use on our site relies on the art of search engine optimization techniques.

The bottom line is that if a search engine spider cannot explore your web site, you will never gain the benefits involved with the Internet community relying upon search engines to find the information they are looking for.

Overview of the Content Developer role

“What does a ‘content developer’ do?”

A Content Developer is responsible for delivering your visitors content of value to them while generating a higher word count/higher content to code ratio. They are able to contribute quality articles of interest that can be used in viral marketing campaigns.

A quality Content Developer can contribute to generating advertising revenues for your web site due to the number of visitors that are consistently drawn to your web site.

Some terms used to describe a Content Developer are copywriter, author, and even composer, depending on the scope of their chosen topic(s) that write about.

Major Benefits

“There is value in uniqueness”

The Internet is saturated with individuals dreaming of generating a liveable income from doing only original content development. This is a major benefit, especially for those who are trying to keep their costs under control.

Certainly you can go with a tried-and-true writer if you can convert your visitors however you can also explore the pool of new and upcoming talent and possibly negotiate more flexible terms for the work performed.  In addition, there might be a few that will offer materials for free, do not be surprised when the writer expects some type of compensation for work performed.  As long as your Return On Investment (ROI) is reasonable, the right Content Developer can really sky-rocket your popularity on the Internet over a short period of time.

Minor Side-Affects

“There is value in Keeping It Simple, Silly!”

Mathemtaically, “content is King on the Internet” makes sense.  Yet there is also value in lacking content…I hereby coronate White Space as Queen on the Internet!  LOL!

All joking aside, too much text can frighten away even the most emboldened of explorers.  Even with an internal search engine, if a visitor doesn’t know how to describe what they are interested in discovering on your site, they won’t care about the quantity of information on your site because they failed to find the one nugget of information they were hoping to find in the first place!

And now back to the Content is King show…

Augmented Benefits

“A steady supply of quality content can raise the street credibility of a web address and generate major buzz”

The Internet has so many shining stars uniquely a part of its own stratosphere…think of it this way.  If you take out a classified ad looking for a Content Developer, you may stumble upon someone who has dreamed about becoming a writer for years and they decided to “give it a shot” when they responded to your ad.  Over the years, this writer generates a medium-sized and loyal following for your site and has even branched off on their own.  It’s a win-win for both you and the artist.

Diminished Benefits

“I can’t afford a Content Developer!”

There are not many drawbacks to hiring a Content Developer, except for the potential price tag attached to each piece of content you are purchasing.  Yes, content is certainly king on the Internet, but if your visitor conversation rate cannot cover the expense of a Content Developer, you may not be able to afford this type of specialist.

The upside to this theoretically diminished capacity is that a majority of web sites are not fueled by daily additions of content (excluding blogging, media outlets and other sites that promise such a service).  In fact, many web sites can generate relatively high conversation rates using only a handful of pages posted to the site.

Do you provide Content Developer services?

From time to time, I have had projects that were brand-spanking new, such as the musical acts I have designed for.  Neither had a ready-made and complete collection of content needing to go onto the site.  With these two instances, I remembered from my own experiences as a working musician that a musicians website should include the same materials that would be found in the traditional “promo packs” especially since sound bytes can be quite persuasive.

Yet there was also a limit on the content I could develop for them without becoming a full-time content specialist because that is not what I specialize in.  As a work-around to this issue, one of the sites has a blog attached to capture the writings of the band members, so they are ready and able to perform as their own content developers.  The other web site was designed to be fairly self-sufficient with updates to the schedule once a month.  Both sites are displayed in the top 10 results if someone is searching via band name and both are receiving a small, but steady stream of loyal visitors which is important for musical acts.

In fact, with this new update, I decided to primarily focus on growing the content on this site rather than experimenting with how to generate buzz using but a handful of pages and animated graphics to promote and entertain.

Overview of the Web Designers role

“What does a ‘web designer’ do?”

A Web Designer weaves together the role of structural architect (skill-sets will vary in degrees between Web Developer and Web Programmer depending on the needs of the client) with a strong focus on the originality of the graphical interface.

A good Web Designer is skilled at using various image-branding techniques that help create a clear statement about the product or service being offered.

In addition, they typically possess strong Graphic Designer skills that further enhance a client’s opportunity to sculpt their entire corporate image, both online and in print.

If someone has a good idea of what they want their graphics to look like and their site does not need a complex internal structure, a Web Designer is probably the best partner to join together with.

Major Benefits

“There is value in uniqueness”

Choosing to use a Web Designer virtually guarantees a unique-looking web site will be displayed on the Internet.  Props are frequently given to those daring to be unique on the Internet with their published materials.  Unique logos can create “familiarity” value regardless of the printed medium.  If you truly connect with your Web Designer, you will enjoy the virtual image designed especially for you.

Minor Side-Affects

“There is value in similarity”

A good Web Designer is very conscious of traditional visitor “habits” such as expecting hyper-links to be in hyper-link blue, menu bars being consistent on all pages, internal search abilities, etc. while remembering “rules” such as people tend to scan web pages from left to right and in a Z pattern, never use dark text.on a dark background and vice versa, and other visual rules and guidelines.

Therefore, if you have a Web Designer attempting to persuade you to re-consider your desire for bright red text on a black background, they aren’t doing it to be mean or tempermental…you just need to be prepared for possible negative backlash such a choice can generate.

If you want to gamble with the odds, visitors tend to intereact more positively when a site feels “familiar.”  This means possibly preventing your Web Designer from talking you into a design/ layout that doesn’t make sense to the average Jack or Jessica.

Augmented Benefits

“Additional uses for website materials!”

Once the web site is finished, you should be given a CD containing all of the materials on the web site.  Unless it was stated otherwise in your contract, you are the sole owner of said work-for-hire and those graphics can be put to good use!

At the beginning of the project, you might want to ask if black and white versions of the graphics can be made at no or little cost, especially if you have to keep your printing costs low.  Black printers do not always properly convert the image and will make your newly polished image look blurry and fuzzy.

Begin integrating the new graphics into your printed materials.  Use the logo on your next set of business cards or stationary.  Use one of the photographs in a brochure.  This will help augment the on-line branding effort.

Diminished Benefits

“Why can’t I win the Search Engine popularity game?”

A Web Designer frequently does not intimately understand how programming, layout and content affects the search engines.  If someone is hoping to seriously compete in the search engines using some of the more popular keywords, this is a completely different industry, which is why there are Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialists, Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Specialists and Viral Marketing Specialists.

If a site isn’t designed properly and to certain standards, it can significantly impact how effective an SEO or SEM Specialist will be with the materials presented to them.  It isn’t necessarily their job to write the quality content either and if the code/content ratio is too code-heavy, the search engines will promote the site that has seemingly heavy content…even if the information you display is of more “value” than the higher ranked site.

Do you provide Web Designer services?

Although I have some skills with graphics, if a client is looking to significantly alter their existing logos/graphic art or has a very specific image in mind, I tend to recommend hiring a Graphic Designer.

Other than the above exception, I include Web Designer services as a part of my Web Developer packages. I certainly concentrate on how a web site “looks,” however I tend to place a higher priority on visitor conversion, which means asthetics are frequently negotiated with the projects I work on.

For example, I have had people request flash home pages, however I also know that including such an element on the home page can really scramble how the search engines score/rank a web site.  The search engine results for the few people I persuaded away from having a flash home page are continuing to display higher content quality in the summaries, which has significantly contributed to visitors entering the site using other paths than typing in the actual address.  Also, many browsers have add-ons designed to block flash elements and may it not be forgotten there are people who still access the Internet using dial-up.

Disclaimer for Materials Posted On This Page

February 19, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

All materials posted upon this page are not reflective of any of my clients points of view, nor are they anything more than putting aside a page upon my website to talk about an issue as a unique individual existing along with my professional identity and should be reviewed as a contribution to the Valerie “Serendipity” Anderson Soapbox.  There are additional materials posted on the blog and are designated as such.

Higher Standards For Publicly Funded Science Fairs

June 14, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

I was recently invited to attend a science fair held at a local school with the requirement of rendering some form of an opinion at the end of the viewing period as to whether or not the Fair was, well…fair in its judging procedures.  When we were finished walking around, I had to agree with her that it was more like an art fair than a science fair and after further discussion, we both agreed that the rubric used to grade the projects was too subjective.

Through multiple conversations with a variety of groups and individuals, we were both reassured next year’s science fair would be graded on a more objective grading scale. which has triggered a greater concern about other schools throughout the nation that might not be performing their Science Fair’s up to the highest standards reasonably possible.

Therefore, my request is a simple one with significant impact.  Take a look at this rubrick (or grading scale) and then compare it with the one being used in your school system.  If there is significantly less criteria listed in your school’s grading scale, or even if there is no formal grading scale, consider printing out a copy and modifying it to fit your school’s circumstances.

So Much Reading, So Little Time - The Vitamin You Can’t Always See Traveling Through  the Internet

May 7, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

Each day I scan headlines from no less than 30 different media outlets, review the subject header of multiple email newsletters, and glance around the Internet for 30 minutes or so as a part of my first thing in the morning routine.  I also am lucky enough to have built a career that benefits from my enjoyment of reading as a way to stave off a sense of boredom, so there are always moments of time to read a variety of more traditionally-formatted documents, such as local newspapers in paper format and even a romance novel every now and again.

With so much text-based entertainment available at the click of a mouse button, I sometimes wonder if I am reading the “right” materials, although the word “best” could also be tossed into the mix. But more often than not, I am instead wondering if I am offering up what it is I seek from the publications I consume.  Will these words entertain?  Am I wasting my readers time?  Can I motivate someone to make a change, such as the point of this particular entry?  Should I write a little more preface to this issue or should I begin making my point at this particular point of my scribbles?  These seem to be fairly common concerns amongst authors, so I will move on to the point of this entry.

You may or may not be familiar with what a computer “virus” is and I won’t bore you with the tech that goes into it, but let’s goes back to scanning headlines for a moment.  Whenever you hear about some type of denial-of-service or other computer “attack” including spam, most of these attacks are actually fairly preventable and you don’t have to understand the news articles any further than recognizing the importance of having a  variety of defenses installed on your machine.

These types of programs, such as anti-virus software, spam filters, spy-ware and eraser software are not perfect and even they can suffer from an attack.  But you can definitely give your computer a couple of doses of Vitamin See to reduce the chances of your resources being hijacked and then refocused without your knowledge or consent to harm/infect other computers.

I could have listed a variety of personal recommendations as to which company to go with, but the point of writing this was to encourage everyone to install/have installed/update these types of programs on their computers immediately and then keep it a part of your normal computing habits.  Ask your friends if they have cleaned their machines lately and help them get the task done if they don’t know how to do it.  Google terms such as “bot-nets” and “viruses” and stay aware of the changes happening within this industry.

If you haven’t seen the movie “Independence Day,” the script sets out a scenario in which alien spacecraft were using our satellites to transmit their signals to coordinate a world-wide strike using an insanely destructive weapon.  So the next time you hear headlines talking about an attack via the Internet, ask yourself if you or one of your friends were a part of the event and if it was possible, read, read, read about how you can remove your computer terminal from this equation.

Update to “So Much Reading, So Little Time…”

June 13, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

I saw this headline today and thought it was a good example of what is happening on an instant to instant basis:

Information Week - Fed’s ‘Operation Bot Roast’ Reveals 1 Million Victims

Valerie Anderson - Musician

Mini-biography

It is but a rare soul that can derive enjoyment and creative satisfaction using only a computer as their creative instrument, and I am definitely not one of those rare individuals.  Instead, I tend to use my passion for music to provide balance and perspective to my existence, ranging from song writing activities to attending jam sessions throughout Illinois or simply resting underneath an oak tree with an acoustic guitar and the squirrels and birds for audience members.

Although there are a few handfuls of people who have watched me play keyboards on stage, it is the bass guitar that tends to generate the greatest sense of contentment and accomplishment for the musician in me. I like the responsibilities that are associated with the instrument.  Meld with the drums.  Lock into the rhythmatic fabric.  Create a melodic squeak every now and again.

I have been lucky to have noticed many of the opportunities that have presented themselves over the past few years and do not regret the ones I did not see until hindsight pointed them out.  Most of my musical “moments” are fond memories of successfully maintaining a sense of quality musicianship while frequently sharing a stage with a wide variety of musical characters from all walks of life.

And somewhere woven into all of these musical moments lies remnants of the truest musician I believed I could ever be, both on and off the stage, and with or without at least a computer keyboard in front of me for composition purposes…

Bass Repertoire for Valerie Anderson

Updated March 20, 2007

Click here to review a list of songs I am familiar with performing on bass.

Note to musicians:  Although at first glance this may seem a little overly ego-centric, I posted it to perform more as an easily accessible “crutch” to keep the live music flowing.  There are a few songs I can partially sing my way through and I don’t have much time to practice on my own, so I attached links to the lyrics of all the songs listed.  This way if I am out jamming a friends house and we need the words to one of the songs, its just a few clicks away! It’s a neat technique I believe other musicians can benefit from as well (how many times have ya argued about a specific lyric? LOL!)

Working Title = Affection Connection

March 19, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

I’m putting the final touches on the bass line for this tune, but I think the lyrics are kinda neat the way they are.  “Affection Connection” is a blues tune which starts in the key of A minor, switches to an A major scale and then back to the A minor pattern.

I’ve got a confession
I’ve made you my obsession
I just took those few times
You looked at me
Smiled at me
Can’t you see
I made you fall in love with me
I know you’ve been hurt
And you might be scared
But this affection connection is ours if you dare

I’ve told my confession
I’ve made you my obsession
It’s you that I miss
It’s you that I kiss
Each night in my dreams
When sometimes it just seems
I should just kneel down
Like your third wheel clown
But this affection connection is ours to keep real

Valerie Anderson - Web Developer

Every person who authors something for the Internet is a developer.  And if you are the owner of a piece of Internet real estate - your domain name - you probably own the space because you want to display something for any visitor to your web address.

There are many free hosting services that provide templates for the novice and even free developing software for those wanting to have more instantaneous control over what is - or is not - being displayed on your site.

However, not everyone has the time nor the resources to quickly pull together a web presence people are attracted to.  There are many quirks out there that can render a website useless in certain browsers and although there are work-arounds, unless you are aware of the many quick ways to review - and sometimes correct - your website, the piece of Internet real estate you own, will be ignored by both people and the search engines.

As a web developer, I bring to the development process a large set of tools, ranging from graphic design to programming, all the way to quality original content, a knowledge of viral marketing and even some search engine optimization techniques.  From time to time, I will even perform fair use data mining techniques for a variety of purposes.

All in all, I am adept at bringing someone’s vision together in a timely manner relative to what they are seeking out of owning a piece of the Internet.  Some sites need only 3 pages while others need possibly hundreds.  Even if someone does need a hundred page need, my personal internal process allows for quick build-outs of a web site.

I first set up a flat site hosted on my server for us to then develop together.  This flat site allows me to ensure my client is satisfied with the overall visual impression the site displays while giving me time to tweak the code, ensure it validates, tag the links, set the meta tags, alt-tag the graphics and any other SEO technique the search engines find acceptable practices.

Once this flat site is approved by my client, now its my turn to grow the site and create the pages needed for the site.  Many of my customers have content they knew they wanted included in the web site, such as menus, brochures, CD covers, etc. but more often than not, I’ll offer up a few suggestions to improve the quality content volume of their site.  I’ve written biographies and set up blogs to act as simple photo galleries virtually anyone can upload to.

When my client approves what I consider to be a “final” version, that is typically when we will purchase their hosting, unless they already have a domain name and hosting service.  Once the hosting is active, it immediately becomes a “close to final” version because of various elements that cannot be attached until after the site has been uploaded.

Internal search engines need domain names, templates, and other tweaks.  Testing needs to happen in Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, sometimes PDA’s (when available to test on, I personally do not own one), laptops, etc.  Sometimes graphics don’t want to display properly or a style sheet isn’t being read because some change inside the page superceeded the global instructions.  I can now submit the address to the search engines (I’ve had sites picked up through Google in a matter of days, but that is not necessarily the norm).

As a web developer, my role closely resembles the job of promoter of a local artist.  My job is to design a site that helps my clients become noticed by their target market and subsequently persuade them to hang out at the site for a while.  Although I do maintain websites for a few musical groups, the development principle is still the same.  Anyone can hit big at any time as long as it is seen by others.

Therefore, within 48 hours of going live, it is relatively “safe” to begin promoting the site as strongly and as actively as the client chooses to.  Think of this point as your last chance to play around with your image before people begin the judging process.  And if you market your quality content-filled site, the Internet is filled with “you never know what can happen and when” success stories and legends.  There are people living out their dreams because they were noticed via their web presence.

Archived Materials

Last Updated March 19, 2007

Caera Kirsch Designs Client News From 2006 - 3/19/2007

Previous site template design - 3/19/2007

Rough draft of a web-based business plan - 3/19/2007

The CaeraKirsch Philosophy

Updated March 21, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

I derive my enjoyment of web development from having the regular opportunity to explore words such as lex, lexicons, primers, legends, esoteric, composition, arrangement.  The twists I have had thrown at me being a bass player and having people initially believe me to be some type of fisherman is forever fascinating to me and typically entertaining for all those involved with the definition glitch that occurs when using only text to deliver a message.

Therefore, each time I begin to develop a site, I try to borrow my client’s “voice” and personality and weave together a web site that not only has some semblance of attractiveness, but more importantly is useable by the visitors.

I will test these web sites using various browsers and computers in an effort to contribute to the Internet Accessibility initiatives and constantly educate myself on these types of global effects.

I limit how much java script I include in the design, because users are beginning to attach script blockers to their sites which can render a site virtually useless.

I will not put a flash page on the front page of a site.  Not only are many people still using dial-up, it is a missed opportunity to display more information to both the visitor and the algorithms busy counting and re-counting the number of words on each page.

The word count game run by the various algorithms out there is important to me because it is something that should be important to my client…except in extra-ordinary circumstances.  Typos happen.  Not everyone knows the difference between the search bar and the address bar in a browser.  This can be addressed during the development process.  Some of my clients have highly unique names while others are competing against some very popular keywords.

I always do my best to give each site a healthy send-off into the search engines and then monitoring the results of the efforts.  I know my designs may not be as user-friendly as originally believed, which is why I am a developer rather than a designer or content developer.

Most of all, I make sure my clients have an enjoyable experience while we develop their website.  It can happen where we have to communicate 3 times in a 2 hour time period, but I also try to leave the speed of the development in the hands of my client as well.  There are perhaps thousands of small decisions that must be made and as long as we smile through the process, then combined with the final approval to go live, I take a moment to think to myself “Job done well, Anderson!”

I realize this is a text-heavy philosophy*, however each of these points are very influential on how I approach developing a web site for hire and believe this can be discovered while reviewing my portfolio.  Although I tend to work with templates, I do not typically use the same one over and over again and simply swapping out the graphics and text.  Each one has its own identity…its own image…its owner’s message…

So I leave you with this question to ponder.

Since there’s always room for growth, both individual and professionally, how will you live life differently today?

Always United the Terica Way,

Valerie Serendipity Anderson
on behalf of Caera Kirsch Designs

* There I go breaking my own K-I-S-S rule, but that’s the artist in me!

Questions and Answers

Update March 27, 2007 by Valerie Anderson

How long does it take to complete a web site?

Why should I use your services when I found a great open source template available for free?

What is “search engine optimization” (or SEO) and why should I care?

What is your privacy policy?

What is your copyright policy?

What does it mean to “validate” a site?

What are your hours of operation?

What makes you different from other Internet developers?

How do you calculate the price of a website?

Can I pay for your services on-line?