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19/08/2004 12:42 PM - (SA) 'Mail has most popular website 200804
"The DistrictMail's website, www.helderberg.com, is generating the most page views of Media24's community newspaper websites," Cobus Heyl, publisher of News24 and Wheels24, confirmed last week. Barry Barnett, the DistrictMail's website consultant, says the growing popularity of helderberg.com indicates that more and more people are reading newspapers online. Barry is taking this growth further through a new project launched recently. With helderberg.com drawing visitors like a magnet, Barry is developing the website into becoming a true gateway into the Helderberg. The idea is that anyone anywhere in the world will be able to go to helder-berg.com for any kind of information they need on the Helderberg, whether it's information on local shopping centres, tourist attractions, accommodation providers, or just where to find a reputable plumber in the area. This new direction offers great opportunities for local businesses. They might have a website floating out there in cyberspace, but by hooking onto the DistrictMail's website, they can enjoy not only an established visibility on the web, but also draw benefit from the website's record number of visitors. Barry has developed a system of eight categories that local businesses can become a part of, whether they offer hairdressing services or financial advice. These eight categories appear on the front page of helder-berg.com and lead the visitor through to information on local businesses or onto their websites. The categories are: accommodation, tours and travel, real estate, professional services, garden and home services, sport and recreation, shopping, restaurants, and wine and tourism. Each category has a number of sub-categories. Accommodation, for instance, has the subcategories of B&Bs, hotels, and guest houses and lodges, while real estate has subcategories according to the areas of Gordon's Bay and Strand, and Somerset West. Barry says that a certain quality is attached to the name of the District-Mail and its website, and he will therefore not be linking just all and sundry up to the service. Each subcategory will carry a maximum of ten businesses, all reputable within their fields. "We are aiming to be a guide to quality and professional service providers in the Helderberg. The businesses that link up will also then derive maximum benefit because they won't just be one among thousands of names," he says. Barry stresses that having a website on the Internet is not sufficient in itself. The trick is to have that website visited by your target market. If your name is not strong enough to do this for you, the best solution is link up to a name that does have that strength. "And that's exactly what helder-berg.com is offering." The new links section is currently under development, so local businesses have a chance to get in first right now. Phone Barry on 852-2842 for more information.
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