News Release- New Simcoe Artists Member Features

Helping shape the Simcoe County Arts Community really excites us. The development of Simcoe County’s hub has reached another milestone and we want to share it with you. Before we get into the new arts hub upgrades let me tell you about our goals

Simcoe County Arts Hub Goals

1. Develop a free arts hub for Simcoe County- http://simcoeartists.com/
2. Programmed on a social community platform- http://simcoeartists.com/activity/
3. Custom designed on a multi user platform- http://simcoeartists.com/blogs/
4. Attract a targeted audience for sign ups- http://simcoeartists.com/members/
5. Provide an overview of Simcoe’s art events- http://simcoeartists.com/events/
6. Allow people to form groups- http://simcoeartists.com/groups/promote-simcoe-arts/
7. Present to funding groups & councils- Meet art councils and funding organizations to help fund the growth of a Simcoe-wide arts hub. http://jillpricestudios.simcoeartists.com/paintings/simcoe-county-portal-website-for-arts-and-culture-is-in-the-works/
8. Connect with media groups- http://simcoeartists.com/news/simcoe-art-marketing-news/
9. Create a strong social presence- http://twitter.com/#!/simcoeartists

SimcoeArtists.com Programming and Design Features

Members can create groups- Create your own group and invite others. Groups can be public or private. http://simcoeartists.com/groups

Group members can build event calendars- http://simcoeartists.com/groups/promote-simcoe-arts/calendar/2011/

User Dashboards- User interface for managing your own website and login to front end where you meet other members, talk, send private messages and manage your social persona. E.g. http://simcoeartists.com/members/robkennedy/

Features Include

• Activity
• Profile
• Blogs (1)
• Messages
• Friends (5)
• Groups (1)
• Settings
• Personal
• Friends
• Groups
• Favorites
• @admin Mentions
• Avatar Image

Publishing Dashboard

Social Dashboard

Host real-time chat sessions- Shows at the bottom of every web page in the hub in blue. Users need to be members of your hub or Twitter to chat.

User Communities- Each user can have their own members, e.g. http://robkennedy.simcoeartists.com/wp-login.php. Once members are added to your hub they are part of your community. Now you can chat and stay in touch with your members.

Widgets- You can drag and drop functions into your header, sidebar and footer

Contact Forms- Drag and drop a contact form onto your sidebar- e.g. http://ramarachronicle.simcoeartists.com/

Google Analytics Tracking- We track the entire hub and each member separately. Reports are sent to members once a month.

Ecommerce (Special Request)- Module for secure transactions online. Some artists may want to sell their stuff. E.g. http://robkennedy.simcoeartists.com/store/products/

Facebook & Twitter integration- Each member can add their Twitter and Facebook profile to their hub. E.g. http://pattiagapi.simcoeartists.com/

Photo Gallery Software- Plug and play software allows you to easily and quickly create your own online photo slideshow. E.g. http://evelynpollock.simcoeartists.com/galleries/oils-watercolor-acrylics-abstracts-watercolour/

There are plenty of additional modules available. I can assure you there is ample room to scale up. We will not be adding any more modules until our members are acquainted with the new community.

If you have any questions or feedback, please contact us