Name of your website?Helping Friends Career Network
Your name?
Dawn Mular
Your Location (city, etc)
Akron, OH
When did you start your website and why?
Started in 2001 as a good will career network during a time of rampant outsourcing of Fortune 500 jobs. Today we are a global employment service openly sharing the secrets of Linked In Networking for business and career success.
Please give us a short summary of your website, business model, etc
We are a career advantage value added employment service. We provide contingency, direct, outsourcing/outplacement, and partnership employment services. Our business model is to create profound opportunity, through a community of caring, sharing and helping.
What has been the most difficult part of creating and running your website?
Portability/Consistency across all platforms and browsers-- Mozilla, Opera, Netscape, Internet Explorer.
What has been the easist part of operating your website?
Integrating the Applicant Tracking, Social Networking, and Blog works into a full Web 2.0 type solution with great and portable widgetry!
What was your biggest mistake?
Trying to create full design without good plan for functional execution. Better to create clarity and content, and then enhance..
Who maintains your website and why?
I do, with a bit of help from my LinkedIn Helping Friends Business Community. I had planned to hire a few webmasters for the implementation and update projects, but in the time I was spending interviewing webmasters, I found I could create much of the detail myself and optimize later-- and be more concise.
Tell us how your business has benefitted from your website?
We started as an email distribution list, but after we grew beyond 3,000 people worldwide, a website and applicant tracking system were essential to represent us, and to allow us to serve more people, better and faster with jobs and quality job seekers.
What are your views on ecommerce and the future of the internet?
Futures so bright we've gotta wear shades!! We are entering the collaboration era, and ecommerce is a big part of that future.
What are your views on Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
It is a necessary mystery to unravel. I learned much from my SEO Network, but that is a continuous area of advancement, and it's based upon technical functionality-- so there is always something new to integrate.
What are your views on Search Engines? Have they helped or hindered your website?
They have helped more than hindered. Search Engines are a way of life, a real enabler. Not finding you on the web is a significant barrier to a global employment/HR service.
What method has been most successful for promoting your website?
Using Linked In and the other social networks has created most successful referrals. MyBlogLog.com, Ryze, MySpace, Merchantcircle.com are a few of my favorites.
What method has been least successful for promoting your website?
WebRings.. They brought a small group of people, did not represent my base, nor was it a practical match.
What would you like to see change with respect to the internet?
Continued evolution in the space of collaborative functional partnerships. Evolve the RSS Feed design and networking capabilities for easier syndication with networking and graphical content features.
You can enter a question of your choice and the answer here:
How can I get more involved in Helping Friends Business and Social Networking?
Answer: http://hfcareernetwork.com/Network2.htm
What is your website address?
Helping Friends Career Network