Failure to plan is planning to fail.

We've all heard the old adage, but with software, failure should be part of any plan. This isn't because we want or even know that failure will occur. We certainly don't want the application to fail, but disaster happens. It could be a fire at the data center where the application is housed, infiltration by a malicious hacker, or any number of things that cause an application to fail. What's important, though, is that you have a plan in place to get back up.

When it comes to email marketing, people often tell me its a chore to produce quality content for both your Web site and an email newsletter. Which is true and also the reason you make sure that content is in sync. That said, you don't have to duplicate your efforts; you only have to produce the content for your Web site and automate sending the latest blog to your email marketing list. Keep reading to find out how surprisingly easy it is.

Over that past few years supporting applications, I've received multiple requests to not timeout (either at all or less frequently). From a user's perspective, it's frustrating. You get up for a cup of coffee between work and get distracted by a quick conversation or the ding of email. You come back to the application, click, and you're required to log in again. There's a number of standards for the length of login timeouts, but everyone has their own opinion and each industry has different specific requirements.

We wish you all the best time with your family and friends. Grab some BBQ, light some fireworks, and enjoy the long holiday weekend. For those of you that don't see this until the 5th, we hope it was relaxing and you spent quality time with friends and family. Our regularly scheduled blogs will be back next week with more great content. Cheers!

A great many projects are hatched by business owners everywhere, but they don't all become a reality. Just like not all businesses survive the first 5 years, not every project is executed in a way it can be successful. I recently gave a presentation to a group of small business owners about how Web apps are like houses. If you're scratching your head, then keep reading and I'll explain.

Marketing automation is a term being tossed around by digital marketers. While you certainly want to have a qualified professional supercharge your marketing, there are some things you can do to get things rolling and streamline the process to make it easier to hit the ground running.

If you didn't catch it last week, my editorial calendar is a bit out of order this month. I did that on purpose because I wanted to time this blog differently. Each summer, United Food Bank kicks off a food drive event called Christmas in July. Here's three reasons you should get involved.

Building a platform with security built-in from the beginning isn't a common occurrence. Many freelance developers or small development teams consider security late, if at all, which results in what we call "bolted-on" security (versus "built-in" security). Bolted on security, while still security, tends to poke a lot of holes in an application. Here are three things to discuss with your Web team about before you start the next project or enhancement.

This is one of those odd 5th Mondays where I don't need to follow a specific editorial calendar. Since this week (almost) marks halfway through the year, I decided to reflect a bit on how I've stuck with my plan to get one blog out every week so far this year and what you can do with your own site to help.

Everyone wants their Web site to reach their audience and provide a great experience for their customers and potential customers. Most people believe that the colors matching perfectly or the placement of your best-selling service front-and-center is most important. It is ... visually. What about people that are color blind? Visually-impaired people use the Internet with special software and browser plugins to consume content. Has your ideal design considered them as well?

Last month, I talked about advantages of search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising and how each may fit into your marketing plan. I'm going to focus a bit more this month on some things you can do yourself to help with SEO. We all have budgets and professional digital marketing agencies, while expensive, are well worth their fees.

Recently, a class-action lawsuit was filed against 21st Century Oncology. In it, the medical provider is accused of storing patient data in Joomla. Since we primarily use Joomla as a content management system, this story was interesting, particularly when you look at the lawsuit attorney's comments.

Thanks to Cox Business Solutions, I have been nominated as a Community Hero in the Phoenix Business Journal's Top Tech Exec Awards. I had the opportunity to connect with some of the other nominees last night at the Prado Restaurant in Scottsdale.

When it comes time to crafting a solution, clients always come with an idea and grandiose plans, but every project has to start somewhere. When potential clients approach me about mobile apps, they often start with "I need a mobile app." My immediate response is, "sure, why do you need a mobile app?" That tends to shock them a bit, but also starts a more important discussion.

When it comes to any kind of app or Web site, it just needs to work. I was recently approached by someone in my network checking to make sure a connection would be a good referral. The organization has a sizeable Web site which includes event calendars and ecommerce (primarily in the form of registration payments for events), but for a recently designed site I'm left feeling like I time warped back to the 90s.

This week, it's time for information about digital security and what you can do about it. When I previously discussed security, I mentioned that the tone when people talk about digital security, privacy, and recently hacked companies is dire, but I want to focus on what you can do about it. Recently, Entrepreneur published two great articles on the topic, one broadly covering the topic and the other specifically addressing the issue of employee theft.

The past few months have been hectic (the good kind), but, now that I'm able to breathe a bit, I get reminded that I need to do things besides just work. I've probably said it a few times in the past, but when you get down in your work it's easy to forget. Last month, I learned I was nominated and named a finalist in the Phoenix Business Journal's Top Tech Exec awards. With a project winding down and a free weekend, I decided it would be a good time to get out and reflect a bit.

When it comes to crafting a platform for a new business, concept, or digital product, it's easy to find developers that claim they can build you the best system. Hit up oDesk or any freelancing site, and you'll probably find plenty of people at bargain prices. When you do, however, ask yourself whether it's worth building your entire business on a bargain when your goal is to do more or "scale up".

I'm often asked about my opinion on search engine optimization (SEO) and paid online advertising (usually pay-per-click or PPC ad campaigns). The short answer is that it can certainly help, but ultimately you should make the decision based on what your business needs are.

Security was on everyone's mind last year, including mine. One of the things I was keenly aware of was that most people talk about it fearfully - including me. I wanted this article to be different. We all know there are people out there who want our information - that hasn't changed. As a web development company, however, we must do our part to make obtaining that information more difficult.