About Colin GrayHi folks, Colin here – Welcome to Wild Trails, Edinburgh.

I suppose if you’re thinking about working with Wild Trails Media, or little Scotland based agency, then you’ll want to find out a bit more about me.

I am, first and foremost, a web geek, with a big side helping of online education and internet marketing. I do web design, front end development, elearning and marketing, and love every minute of it.

Unlike a lot of web geeks, I like people, and I know that people are far more important than the technology itself.

There’s little point in having an amazing looking, technically perfect website if it doesn’t help your users get where they want to be.

It’s about making your customers happy, meeting your targets and creating a website that actually works for your business. All of which relies on what the people involved want, not how your site works. You figure out what they want, and we’ll make it work.

That goes for my teaching as well – I love using technology to help me teach more effectively. Importantly, though, my technology’s always used in a way that enhances teaching, collaboration or sharing. Not just for technology’s sake.

What I Do

At Wild Trails Media, it’s my job to help you find a solution for your online needs. Every website is different. And that’s because everyone’s needs are different. You have something you want to achieve, a problem to solve, and I’ll help you to do that.

So, why the heck would you trust me with something like that? It’s a pretty important job after all. My background is in three areas:

Edinburgh, Scotland - The Home of Wild Trails Media

Edinburgh, Scotland – The home of Wild Trails Media. CleftClips, Flickr

Web Design and Development

I have been making websites since I was 15 years old, and still get a kick out of making great looking, effective sites for myself and other people. I tend to project manage sites these days, using my experience to figure out the best solution to a problem. Then I work with my designers and programmers, some based in Edinburgh with me, some further afield, and together we make it happen.

Blended and Online Education

I have been working in education since 2006, and particularly in creating online and distance learning courses. I have a ton of experience in teaching online, how to do it well and how not to do it badly. And there’s a lot of bad ways to teach online. I currently lecture on a Masters level course at Edinburgh Napier University called Blended and Online Education. This course helps academics around the world to teach better online. Feel free to read a bit more about my online education research if you’re interested.

Online and Digital Marketing

It’s hard to work in web development and not get involved in SEO and digital marketing. In fact, if you’re running a web based business, as I do, then it’s impossible. I’ve been a student of online marketing techniques for a number of years now, and I jointly run a number of ecommerce based online businesses. I also have clients that contract me to run their digital marketing campaigns. I have experience in getting people noticed, driving sites up the search rankings, and bringing customers and, importantly, sales to your business.

So, that’s me and that’s what I do with Wild Trails. If you’re interested in my other personal projects, feel free to have a look.

If you have a web problem to solve, whether it’s in business, ecommerce, learning or marketing, get in touch. I’d love to hear from you. Leave a comment below, try the contact pageGoogle+ me, or find me on twitter through Wild Trails.

Colin Gray - the Virtual Room