Tuesday, September 07, 2010
Features
On the iPad
Okay, we've spent the last several months exploring and developing things on the iPad tablet platform. While we don't want to sound like an Apple commercial, and we don't want to add needless volume to the noisy hype surrounding this new technology, and we don't want to sound like we've totally gone off our rocker, we do want to express our opinion...
izotz!prototype : Prototyping Large Websites
Very often the things that take the longest in any website project are creating pages, filling them with content, and organizing (then reorganizing over and over) the website architecture. Prototype is a tool designed to make that part of the process much quicker and easier, and enable non technical users to work together.
izotz!click - Building Online Marketing Campaigns
Online tools to help you build landing pages and marketing websites, split-test page performance, and create powerful online marketing campaigns.
Building Flash Websites
The Flash Website Builder module lets you create an instant flash website out of the static webpages in your izotz universe.
Wizard Module - Create Multi-step Pages to Display Info or Collect Data
Wizards have long been a powerful tool in guiding viewers through pages of information. If you are collecting info, a wizard can break a long form into user friendly steps. The Wizard Module lets you do all this.
Web Tracker Tools - Get More Out of Your Websites
Let your users tell you how you need to make your website better. The Web Tracker tool gives you real time feedback on how your visitors are using your websites. Use this information to fine tune your pages.
Want To Earn Commissions Selling Websites?
If you want to provide website building services from within your website, add this module and enable people to sign up with izotz, and collect a commission for every sign up.
Making Landing Pages
An important part of having your website work harder for you is making stand alone webpages that support your online marketing efforts. The Stand Alone Static Webpage Module can really help you do this.
Integrating Other Web Stuff Into Your izotz Universe
Most people have some kind of web presence. Some already have online stores, photo galleries, or other online things. It's not hard to integrate other websites into your izotz universe.
Why Would You Need More Than One Website?
It's hard enough to build and maintain one website, who in there right mind wants two? Or three? Or a dozen? If you really want to make the web work hard for you...
Are You Looking For the Competitive Edge in Your Business
The izotz tools are powered by a backend technology called the izotz!IMS Internet Management System. This powerful system can drive a lot of different business models, with the izotz web building tools being just one.
Are You Into Online Games?
There are lots and lots of people out there publishing online games, many of them in the Flash format. This module lets you create pages for those games, and allows you to build your own gaming website.
Make Your Own Online Email Forms
Email forms are a staple of nearly all websites. The Email Forms module lets you easily create custom email forms, collect information from users or send information out to people, and store that information in data files.
Using the Mailing List Module
Combine the Mailing List module with the Broadcast Email tool and you have a very easy way to communicate with people who sign up for one of your mailing lists.
The ISP Webmaster Module
This module will allow you to create multiple independent izotz websites. Whether you are a web designer, and ISP, or someone like the IT guy at a school district, if you need to make a lot of websites, all for different people, this module is for you. Make a BUSINESS doing izotz websites.
Using Stand Alone Webpages
All izotz modules can run as stand alone webpages. Learn how this feature can really help you use your content in ways you might not have thought about.
Create Your Own Social Network
Social networks are a fun and useful way for a varied group of people to connect, share, and interact. The new izotz Social Network module allows you to create your own private social network quickly and easily.
Getting izotz onto Facebook
The izotz app on Facebook allows you to add izotz websites and web projects to your Facebook page.
The Tao of iZotz
At first glance iZotz probably looks like one of the zillion website building tools that flood the internet highways. And on the surface it certainly is. Here's a little bit of the iZotz philosophy.
iZotz as Add-on
You can use iZotz to build a big website. But you can also use it to build add-ons to your current website. You don't need to abandon everything you already have to leverage iZotz modules into your web presence.
Using the Photo Gallery Module for Breaking News
One of the best things about the internet is how it can be so immediate. Say it, see it, post it, and everyone gets to share in it. And the Photo Gallery module can help you do that.
Building Projects Offline
When building a new project, new pages for a website, or performing a major website overhaul, use these strategies to help you make the transition from stage to live.
iZotz For Beginners
Putting things on the web using iZotz can be really easy. As your needs evolve, it can get more complicated. This introduction will give you a foundation which will make things easier for you.
The Disposable Website
Thinking about the web differently. Maybe it doesn't have to be so permanent.
Project Management Website Template
A disposable website that enables a team of people to collaborate on projects. Perfect for contractors, software developers, event planners, lawyers, or any other group of people who might need to communicate while working on a project.
iZotz Mobile iPhone
iZotz Mobile gives you complete access to your iZotz administrator through your iPhone.
WIKI
WIKI is that cool little thing you see at the bottom of many webpages that allows you to post comments about the content on a webpage. You can enable WIKI in many iZotz modules.
When to Get Another iZotz Account
You can build as many websites and pages as you want under your iZotz membership, so why would you need more than one account?
Messaging
The Messaging module allows you to create messaging applications that allow website members to send non-email messages to website adminstrators, a select list of people, or each other.
Quick Prototypes
Whether or not you are building an iZotz project, iZotz can help you shorten development time on any website project. Use iZotz to prototype your projects.
eStore
Designed to be easy to run, the eStore template lets you create online stores to sell either electronic products or hard goods, and includes a shopping cart, online payment processing, order manager, and a "specials" page.
Schedules and Calendars
The new schedule templates let you build personal and shared calendars, work schedulers, appointment managers, and all kinds of other date related projects.
Create an Online Newspaper
The Newspaper template makes it a snap to create and maintain online newspapers, magazines, newsletters, and when used with a little creative thought...highly adaptible standalone websites.
Creating a Custom Administration Page
Use custom administration pages to limit administration options, reduce training, and make administrating projects painless.
Using Friendly URL Names
When you create a new iZotz project, it gets assigned a randomly generated ID number. This ID number is then used in a URL to reach your project on the web. Using the Friendly URL Name tool you can create user friendly URL names and replace those random ID's, making it much easier to remember your project URL's.
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Wizard Module - Create Multi-step Pages to Display Info or Collect Data
Break Up Long Forms, or Guide Users Through a Series of Steps

izards are used a lot in software to guide users through a carefully planned series of steps. Sometimes the purpose is to collect data from the user, and by breaking the form into smaller steps you make it more user friendly. Sometimes you just want to display information to a user in a series of screens without overwhelming them with info overload. Sometimes you want to combine those two purposes.

The Wizard Module lets you create a series of steps that you can use to display data or collect info from users. Think of it as kind of the Email Form Module on steroids. It works about the same, except you can break it all up into wizard steps.

If you collect information from users, you can store that info in a data file and/or email it to someone.  You can have as many wizards on a website as you want. And each can be configured to handle collected data differently. Like all modules, the wizard can run as a stand alone webpage, which makes it a perfect tool for creating specialized landing pages or data forms that need to exist outside your website.

The "incoming" or "outgoing" feature gives you some extremely flexible and powerful ways to use wizards data collection forms in your projects.

For example, using the "Outgoing" mode, you could create a form that your employees use to fill out and send invoices to clients, and have that invoice data also saved to the data table at the same time. Maybe a salesman on the road could use something like that.  All you need to do is password protect that form, put it somewhere on your website or company intranet, and you've got a decent online invoicing system. Or you could create an form for giving people email quotes for services, or a whole lot of other things.

The "Incoming" mode is more common. It allows you to create custom forms and collect information from your website visitors. You can password protect the forms to limit who can use them. And the data collected can be saved to the data file.

In both modes, you can also use the form to collect data, but NOT send it out via email. Just leave the Sender or Recipient inputs empty and the form data will be saved to the data file, but not emailed to anyone.

And if all you want to do is display information in a series of wizard steps, just don't put any form elements on the page. Use the Page Text element to create text and graphics for each wizard step.

Using the Wizard Module

If you want to add a wizard to your website, all you have to do is add the Wizard module to your module library, design the steps using the WYSIWYG editor, then place the wizard on a website navigation menu using the Navigation Menu wizard. You can also run wizards as stand alone webpages, which is a really nice way sometimes of adding temporary forms to your website to collect information for a short period of time without having to redesign your website to accomodate the form.

Designing Your Form

The administration side of the Wizard module includes a nifty tool that lets you create your form. All you do is select which type of form element you want, give it a label, then position it in the sequence of form fields already on the form. You can create page text, simple text boxes, multiple choice questions, true/false question, pulldown menus, date boxes, states, countries, and multiple line text boxes. You can mark some or all fields as being required. And a simple drag and drop feature allows you to reorder your form fields anytime you want.

The Settings option allows you to enter the email address for one or more recipients for the emailed information, and you can also have the collected information saved to an XML file, which can be viewed and downloaded as an Excel file. You can select a form style from several options, and you can create some text which will be displayed at the top and bottom of your form, and on the thank you page after the form is submitted.

The Wizard module lets you create some pretty powerful tools to help you communicate with your website visitors. The ability to create email forms on the fly, integrate them instantly into your website or run them as stand alone pages, should inspire some ideas about how you could better interact with those you need to interact with.

For more ways to create interactivity on your website, check out the Survey Module. The Survey Module is similar to the Email Forms module in capabilities...you create online surveys filled with questions...but adds the ability to collect and report on the data, tabulate survey results, and query your visitors about anything you want. 

Conversion Tracking

A Conversion happens when a website visitor does something you want them to do. For example, you want to collect email addresses from your viewers, so you make a data collection form using this module. When a user submits the form and sends you their email address, a conversion has occured. If you use your website to do things like this, knowing how well your pages accomplish the goal is extremely useful information.

Each time a user clicks the CONTINUE button, their action is saved to your website log file. This information can be used to help you track how users move through your wizard and how far they go towards the final step. If you are keeping track of conversion rates, this information can be useful in helping you improve your pages to increase conversions.

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