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Company > Press Releases >Sonoma County: Web Design Mecca Press Contact: For Immediate Release Sonoma County: Web Design Mecca Sophisticated Businesses Looks To Sonoma County Web Designers To Reach The World March 13, 2000, Santa Rosa, CA In 1996, when Alyson Dutch, owner of Brown & Dutch Public Relations in Malibu, CA, turned to her old friend Jenifer Levini, President of Web Presence, to have a website designed, she had no idea that she was starting a nationwide trend. However since that first foray, seeking a website designer in Sonoma County, many large companies, government entities, and small businesses from around the nation have turned to the lush wine country to find the right combination of artistic talent and techno-savvy. These website seekers include Los Angeles Unified School District, Silicon Graphics, Knowledge Universe, Wine Spectrum, Netscape, KRCB Television and Radio stations, and Nielsen NetRatings, to name a few. These businesses have found that Web Presence, Raspberry Media and similar companies tucked quietly between vineyards and redwood trees are producing artistically stunning and technologically magnificent e-commerce solutions and intranets that rival those produced in the big cities at a fraction of the cost. "Because we do not have to pay Manhattan priced rent or Silicon Valley wages, we are able to significantly undercut our completion in New York and San Francisco, while still maintaining cutting-edge quality," Jenifer Levini said. She goes on to say, "this area is so beautiful, many artists and programming wizards, who can live anywhere, choose Sonoma County as their home. As the owner of a website design company I just have to find and focus these people." Josh Beggs, President of Raspberry Media concurs. "Most of our clients are coming from Silicon Valley, we successfully compete with the biggest design firms for the most prestigious contracts in the nation. Companies come to Sonoma County expecting the same quality they find in Multimedia gulch." Josh says while reclining in his office, formerly a barn, surrounded by giant redwood trees. "Another thing that makes this area special is the collaboration between professional website design companies," Josh says, "We share resources and find that we have a lot in common. Our clients benefit because I can bring the resources of many companies to the table, including PR, marketing, identity sculpting and complex data warehousing technology." Gary Gannon, Managing partner of Virtual Warehouse, points out that his company goes even further in the partnering process. That is, they help their clients coordinate resources related to intellectual property, capital, and "end game" planning, such as mergers, acquisitions or an IPO. Jenifer adds another insight into the relationship with Sonoma County web designers, "maybe because we are not as harried, we are more creative and become involved, partner, with all of our clients. This sort of relationship greatly contributes to their website which needs to convey both the feeling and the content of the company." As proof of their assertions, the phone rings as I sit in Jenifer's office. It's Bob Goodman, founder of 1-800-DENTIST, consulting with Web Presence for online marketing and promotion, to drive more traffic to their website. Jenifer explains the search protocols used by each search engine and special features that should be built into each page of a website to optimize it for greater visibility. By the end of the conversation he seems to be convinced that this probably isn't as simple as he had hoped. It was through the Santa Rosa Junior College that the many website design firms in Sonoma County began their dialogue. They came together to help the Junior College put together a web certificate program. After meeting and hearing each other voice the same frustrations and triumphs, the sense of camaraderie was born. "Everyone wants a website" Jenifer admits, "so we really are not competing with each other at all. In fact, the more prestige my fellow website designers bring to this region the more my company benefits," she adds. Jenifer Levini and Josh Beggs will be speakers at the fourth annual Women's Business Conference, April 1st, at the Luther Burbank Center, in Santa Rosa, California. The conference's focus is "harnessing the wealth of the internet for your company." SCORE counselors will be available at the conference to counsel aspiring dot coms. Information about the conference and trade show is available from Mary Aldrich (707) 544-5441 or mahs@aol.com. More information about companies mentioned above can be obtained from their websites: Web Presence www.wwwpresence.com, Raspberry Media www.raspberrymedia.com, Virtual Warehouse www.virtual-warehouse.com, Santa Rosa Junior College Web Developers Program http://gracie.santarosa.edu/web_training, Brown & Dutch Public Relations www.bdpr.com, 1-800-DENTIST www.1800dentist.com. ### |
