News

Hello all, it's a brand new year and it's time for a "brand new" business.  Mellon&Co had a rough year in 2009.  Like so many others, we faced hardships, downturns, and countless other struggles.  But I have come through on the other side the better for it.  The trials of 2009 has taught me that if you have faith and are determined to accomplish what you set out to do, you will survive and rise above.  This is exactly what I have done and I cannot begin to thank those of you that stuck with us and believed we could make the difference you were looking for in your technology services.

Most importantly, as you may already have gathered, that I am still in business operating as Jeff Mellon, and I'm looking forward to continuing helping you and your business with your technology needs.  Currently I am offering our computer repair services as well as our design, web, and marketing services out of our virtual office.  I feel that 2010 is the year for action so I am looking to expanding my business with exciting new offerings in order to be your personal and business technology concierge, taking care of all your technology, small business, and marketing needs, no task is too small.

As we move forward in 2010, I ask you to think of me as your partner in technology and business services.  I am here for you offering the same quality services that I have always offered now with an eye towards future.  So when your home or business needs help in technology or you would like to have your business improve in the online market, or you just need a new business card or letterhead, I hope you will think of Jeff Mellon.  As always you can contact me at 716-372-5996 or send me an email at jeff.mellon2@gmail.com.

Thank you again for your continuing support.  I hope you are having a great start to 2010 and I look forward to working with you.

Your technology partner,
Jeff Mellon

There is something for everyone! Visit Ellicottvilleny.com and find information on everything from Amish trails to area casinos and nightlife, exhibits and museums, and a variety of sports.

The Council on Addiction Recovery Education Services is reaching out to a local need—problem gambling. The CARE is a division of the Cattaraugus County Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, who recently approached Mellon & Co. to design a website to help people with gambling addictions. The website, “itsherenow.org,” is now live, and features a variety of statistics and resources for those in need of help, as well as others affected by the addiction. “Itsherenow.org” describes the various states of gambling addictions, including problem gambling, which the CCASA defines as gambling behavior that, “Causes disruptions in any major area of one’s life: psychological, physical, social or vocational.” The Council on Addiction Recovery Education Services seeks to help people with these behaviors by informing them on both the conditions they have, and how to get help. One of the site’s sections is a “Facts,” page, that links to various sub-pages, which include “Definitions,” “Signs,” “Effects,” “Youth Gambling,” and “How to Get Help,” pages. There is also a contact number listed on every main page of the site. Other site sections include pages dedicated to “Educators,” “Parents and Adults,” “Teens,” “Kids,” and a “Media Section.” These pages include lots of useful information for all ages. The page is designed and maintained by Mellon & Co. Working out of offices in Olean and Ellicottville, Mellon & Co. is a Marketing and Communications company that specializes in marketing, web-design, and technical services. Mellon & Co. is also a member of the Olean, Ellicottville, and Salamanca Chambers of Commerce.

Although many people often think of Holiday Valley for its skiing renown, this month the slopes will be used by the elite of another sport—Bowhunting. From August 20th through the 23rd, Ellicottville should be filled with thousands of extra people, as competitors come from around the world for the 2008 World Bowhunting Championships. The Championships are an International Bowhunting Organization event. Because of this, over 2,000 competitors will come to Ellicottville from the world over. Once here, they will compete on twenty man-made courses across the Holiday Valley grounds. On these courses, competitors will stand up to forty yards away from their targets, which will be 3D models of animals. The archer who can hit these targets the best will walk away with a World championship title. All those in the running must be qualified to enter, and additional qualifying rounds begin on the 21st. In addition to the World title, those who make rank face other, more lucrative chances: over $200,000.00 in cash and prizes will be disbursed to the winners. Archers who aren’t world-elite can also enjoy the weekend, thanks to Holiday Valley. The hosting resort will offer an Archery Festival during the competition dates. For forty dollars, pre-registered archers can try their hand at the same course as the World Championship competitors, but without the pressure. Additionally, a Future Bowhunters event will be run for the younger champions of tomorrow.

Hello, Everyone this is Jeff Mellon, the founder and owner of Mellon & Co. I would like to invite you come in a look around our new website. You will find that our creative professionals have been quite busy creating our new look and feel for the site. Our focus was to make our site easier to navigate, as well as to express who we have become in our journey to provide metropolitan style services in a our quaint community. Looking for a fresh approach? Give us a call. Thanks for stopping by our site!

Mellon & Co. announces the launch of a brand new Web site for Custom Creations Fine Jewelry. Based out of Olean, N.Y., Custom Creations takes your thoughts and designs your dreams, creating jewelry as unique as you.Custom Creations, a full-service jewelry store, sells jewelry for any occasion. The store’s owners Terry and Marianne Klein have more than three decades of experience in the industry. Terry holds certificates in diamonds and diamond grading from the Gemological Institute of America. Custom Creations currently employs three full- time bench jewelers, including Terry.The online store allows visitors to easily browse the shop’s unique collection of platinum bridal rings, wedding bands, Celtic jewelry, diamond fashions, birthstone jewelry, colored gemstone fashions and religious jewelry. For fun or some help making an important purchase, shoppers can click on the stone of the month feature, gift giving guide or jewelers’ tips.A secure shopping basket makes purchases safe and convenient. Shoppers can easily contact the store through an E-mail form or call the store directly for help.With Mellon EditPro, a content management system (CMS) from Mellon & Co., the Kleins have full access to the Web site. New items can be added and updated and orders can be processed with just a few clicks. An inventory system manages online purchases against in-store stock to help ensure all sales are filled and quality customer service is maintained. If you are shopping for that special someone or want to treat yourself, visit ccgem.net. For more information on how Mellon & Co. can help you, visit melonco.com. 

Mellon & Co. announces the launch of Daff Dry Good’s Web site at daffevl.com. Daff Dry Goods offers clothing, accessories and footwear from around the country, fitting for any cowgirl, cowboy or little buckaroo. Inspired by friendship and the Old West, mother-daughter duo and Daff’s owners Laura and Arlene Solly hoped to capture the American pioneer spirit and bring it to Ellicottville, N.Y. They invite you to visit the Web site or take a trip to Ellicottville, join their story and become inspired. As displayed on the user-friendly Web site, Daff’s offers quality goods from designer names. Women’s clothing and accessories feature Tasha Polizzi, Cripple Creek, Montana Leather, Patricia Wolfe and Scully. Collections of sportswear and outerwear include Icelandic Designs, Nomadic Traders, Patagonia, Royal Robins, Tianello Tencel and Wooly Bully Fleece. Men’s clothing and accessories feature Patagonia, Pendleton and Royal Robbins. Outdoor wear includes selections from Outback Trading Company, Scully and Cripple Creek. Children’s clothing showcases matching raincoats, backpacks, boots and umbrellas to keep little ones dry and looking stylish.Selected footwear styles for men, women and children feature Ariat, Blundstone, Born, Dansko, Earth, El Naturalista, J-41, Simple, Teva and UGG Australia. Visitors to the custom-designed Web site can shop with an easy-to-use shopping cart feature, purchase gift cards, follow Daff’s blog and register to join the mailing list. With a few clicks and simple E-mail form, visitors can contact the store with questions and comments. Mellon and Co. has equipped the Solly’s with Mellon EditPro, giving them easy access to all pages on the site with the content management system (CMS). Now, it’s easy to update content and feature new designers, items and events, like the March Midnight Madness Sale on March 7. Visit daffevl.com for more information or to see what Mellon & Co. can do for you visit melonco.com.  

It’s fair to say that here at Mellon & Co. we are jacks of all trades, so to speak. We’ve worked with banks, chambers of commerce, real estate agencies, manufacturers, retailers, restaurants and the list goes on. With each new industry we delve into, comes a new challenge. And each challenge brings with it a new opportunity to further expand our deep warehouse of unique and custom-built web tools and talents. The recent launch of the Cellofourte website highlights such an opportunity. A dynamic cello quartet based in Pittsburgh, PA, quickly on its way to the national scene, needed to upgrade its Wordpress-based website with a content management system-based web presence that they could easily manage on their own—a trend among many of our clients. The challenge? Media. As a band, it’s important for Cellofourte to tickle the senses of its fans. Highlighting its music was a must, of course, but showing off the unique style of Cellofourte was vital to capturing the true essence of a band that blurs the lines between rock and classical music. Video was also important. What band has made it big without being able to rock a live audience? And take it from us, Cellofourte does not disappoint a crowd. So we created a website at cellofourte.com that is truly a multi-media showcase of Cellofourte. A custom audio player can be launched from each page and travels with you so you never lose the music. A video page houses music videos and live performances and the photo gallery gives you a good look at the style of Cellofourte, allowing you to meet each one of the members. And the best part is that Cellofourte has complete control over each of the elements. Quick edits are a cinch, all thanks to the genius of our web developers in customizing our Mellon EditPro CMS to work with the band’s needs. Cellofourte blogs regularly and keeps fans up-to-date on where it will be rocking next, on both the website and in an email mailing list (that you can sign up for on the website, of course). We can’t forget to mention that Cellofourte has released its second album: Combustion. You’ll notice a striking resemblance between the album artwork and their new website. It’s a great example of integrated marketing, and the Mellon & Co. professional philosophy, at work.

The Ellicottville Wingate Inn approached Mellon & Co. with an interesting challenge. A top-rated business hotel in the bustling, ski resort laden community of Ellicottville, NY, the Wingate needed to preserve its online brand identity, while upgrading to a more user-friendly and functional layout. With this project, it’s what you don’t see that we are the most proud of. While we did add an animated flash banner that allows for crisper, rotating top-page images and tweaked some of the page layouts for ease of scanning, it’s the backend functionality that really makes the difference. We ported the site into our Mellon EditPro content management system, giving the Wingate the level of control it was looking for. With just an internet connection and a few clicks of the mouse, they can now showcase upcoming events and promotions, update outdated photographs, even in the flash banner, and easily add new features to keep up with ever-changing technology—without starting from scratch or breaking the bank. Other aspects of the Wingate Inn project included the integration of the Google Maps application and search engine optimization enhancements. All upgrades to the website position the Wingate to stay abreast of new technology, changing user needs and a dynamic online competitive landscape.

We’ve disappeared from the blogosphere for a little while, but boy have we been busy here at Mellon & Co.! We’ve gone live with a number of new client websites and over the next several entries we’ll be sharing some of those web design and web development projects with you. One of these web projects was for Cattaraugus County Bank (CCB). With 9 locations around Western New York – including Jamestown, Randolph and Salamanca – CCB has its roots in Little Valley, NY. While its history stems back over one hundred years, it needed a 21st century web presence. And that’s were we came in. A fresh, clean design, couples with solid, custom programming in CCB’s new site at www.ccblv.com. You’ll find our signature flash rotator at the top of the page, the beauty of which lies on the user end by allowing CCB’s webmaster to easily change out images without an ounce of flash programming knowledge. The bank can also easily change out the text on the website’s pages, without downloading or purchasing any additional software, using our proprietary Mellon & Co. EditPro content management system.    The Cattaraugus County Bank project also included our initial search engine optimization consultation and web hosting on our secure server. Of course, we kicked off the project with a thorough web assessment and web marketing plan to ensure a strategic focus and look forward to adding additional features to CCB’s website, including virtual tours of its branch locations.

The Council on Addiction Recovery Education Services is reaching out to a local need—problem gambling. The CARE is a division of the Cattaraugus County Council on Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, who recently approached Mellon & Co. to design a website to help people with gambling addictions. The website, “itsherenow.org,” is now live, and features a variety of statistics and resources for those in need of help, as well as others affected by the addiction. “Itsherenow.org” describes the various states of gambling addictions, including problem gambling, which the CCASA defines as gambling behavior that, “Causes disruptions in any major area of one’s life: psychological, physical, social or vocational.” The Council on Addiction Recovery Education Services seeks to help people with these behaviors by informing them on both the conditions they have, and how to get help. One of the site’s sections is a “Facts,” page, that links to various sub-pages, which include “Definitions,” “Signs,” “Effects,” “Youth Gambling,” and “How to Get Help,” pages. There is also a contact number listed on every main page of the site. Other site sections include pages dedicated to “Educators,” “Parents and Adults,” “Teens,” “Kids,” and a “Media Section.” These pages include lots of useful information for all ages. The page is designed and maintained by Mellon & Co. Working out of offices in Olean and Ellicottville, Mellon & Co. is a Marketing and Communications company that specializes in marketing, web-design, and technical services. Mellon & Co. is also a member of the Olean, Ellicottville, and Salamanca Chambers of Commerce.

Mellon & Co. is pleased to announce completion and launch of Cornell University Cooperative Extension’s new Web site. The site launched in early June, and may be viewed at http://counties.cce.cornell.edu/allegany_cattaraugus. The team at Mellon worked closely with key individuals from Cornell to build an online platform that offers improved access to diverse information about the organization and how it serves its communities. Highlights of the site are informational resources including Cattaraugus-Allegany 4-H, agriculture, environmental opportunities, consumer science, and healthy living and wellness in the Southern Tier. There are also unique resources that residents of Cattaruaugs and Allegany can learn about on the Web site. These include gardening and and environmental destinations, such as Nannen Arboretum, a non-profit, volunteered based organization dedicated to providing home garden and natural resource education, test plots for research, and an opportunity for nature appreciation and leisure. Another vital resource is the Southern Tier Wellness Partnership, which provides information, education, and services surrounding diabetes, heart disease, obesity, and cancer. The Partnership provides resources and support to change the environment and policies that have become barriers for its citizens to lead a healthy lifestyle. These items, and many others, make Cornell University Cooperative Extension a unique and valuable resource to residents of Cattaraugus and Allegany counties. Working on the planning, design, and development of the web project was enjoyable and rewarding. For more information, visit the new Web site at counties.cce.cornell.edu/allegany_cattaraugus.

Mellon & Co. Re-designs Ellicottville.com for new ERA Vacation Properties Century 21 Town and Country of Ellicottville has a new name, a new look and has added a few new friendly faces. And they’ve topped it off with a new website. Ellicottville.com has been redesigned by Mellon & Co. to represent the branding of the new ERA Vacation Properties, which includes the former Hunt ERA, Century 21 Town and Country and Ellicottville Concierge offices of Ellicottville, NY. Century 21 Town and Country acquired the other offices April 1 and will now operate under the name ERA Vacation Properties. ERA Vacation Properties is owned by Bill Soffel. Serving all of Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties, the newly expanded company has started the process of integrating the former Hunt agents and vacation rental properties into the Ellicottville operation. This integration can be seen on the new web site, which provides complete details and photographs of the agents’ vacation property listings along with a number of resources for both buyers and sellers. The site serves as a full-service real estate web site including property searches, mortgage information, and vacation rentals directory. “Our focus is to brand ERA Vacation Properties as the premier real estate, vacation rental and property management company for Cattaraugus and Chautauqua Counties. Mellon & Co. understands our vision and has been instrumental in facilitating this mission,” said Joanna Dahlbeck, director of owner and guest services for ERA Vacation Properties. The look of Ellicottville.com mirrors that of ERAvp.com, which represents the Chautauqua offices of ERA Vacation Properties. Both websites were designed by Mellon & Co. and top off a substantial list of websites developed by Mellon & Co. within the real estate industry.

Mellon & Co. has kicked off its Illustrate Your Story campaign by introducing new web sites for several organizations and individuals. Mellon & Co. donated an Illustrate Your Story web site to Nance Jackson, a local artist, preparing for Routes to Art, a Western New York open studio art tour. Additionally, the Gus Macker 3-on-3 basketball tournament, and the Olean Ancient Order of Hibernians, and Canticle Farm were approved to receive Illustrate Your Story web sites at no charge. The sites may be viewed at www.nljackson.com, www.oleanaoh.org, www.oleangusmacker.org, and www.canticlefarm.org. For more information about Illustrate Your Story web solutions, visit www.illustrateyourstory.com.

April 4, 2008 Mellon & Co. has launched a new service at IllustrateYourStory.com tailored to small businesses and others looking to get started on the Web with an affordable solution. IllustrateYourStory.com offers business builder Web sites that come with three to five prebuilt pages in one of several design themes. Essential Web design elements are placed in fixed locations to keep the sites affordable, but each is fully customized to the brand of the business or organization they promote with a custom-designed top banner. “We realize that not every business needs an elaborate, flashy Web site,” said Heidi Ofinowicz, director of marketing at Mellon & Co. “IllustrateYourStory.com is a service that allows even the smallest organization or business to take advantage of the unlimited marketing potential of the internet with a professional website that can grow with them.” Each Illustrate Your Story Web site, developed with the end-user in mind, is built with the Mellon EditPro Content Management System (CMS). A CMS is a tool designed to allow for the creation, modification, organization and removal of information from a Web site. The Mellon EditPro CMS was custom developed by Mellon & Co. to allow clients to easily make changes and edits to their websites. Changing around text and images is as easy as a click of the mouse. A browser-based application, Mellon EditPro allows Web site owners to make changes from any computer with an internet connection. No software downloads or purchases are required. “We use the Mellon EditPro as the foundation of our websites,” said Jeff Mellon, owner of Mellon & Co. “It not only allows our clients to easily maintain their own Web sites, but also allows for future growth. Creating new pages, adding features such as photo galleries and flash animation, even e-commerce, are all possible on a site built with our CMS.” IllustrateYourStory.com Web sites come with a number of available upgrades, including email contact forms, two varieties of photo galleries, Google directions and a catalog option. They also come with basic search engine optimization (SEO), which is one of the most important elements of web marketing, according to Mellon & Co. SEO involves a number of different tactics with the main goal of increasing ranking on search engines such as Google and Yahoo!. “SEO is a vital element in web marketing success. Every web site we develop has a marketing focus. We don’t develop a site without at least basic SEO, and the IllustrateYourStory.com Web sites are no exception,” said Ofinowicz. To learn more or purchase an Illustrate Your Story web site, visit IllustrateYourStory.com.

Electric Beach is a multi-faceted company in the tanning industry. With locations throughout Western New York, Mellon & Co. was selected to create an integrated front for six locations. The company consists of three major brands. Electric Beach and Advantage Tan are the tanning salon storefront locations. Open Sun is the retail division, specializing in state of the art tanning beds and equipment. Mellon & Co. was hired to craft a campaign that can communicate the service end of the tanning business, but leave room to later integrate the sales division. With a very clear vision of the image desired, Electric Beach had definitive involvement in the final look and feel of the site.  A very graphic interface, with flash integration, was the end result. The site may be viewed at www.oleantanning.com. The site also resides on location-specific domains: www.tonawandatanning.com, www.williamsvilletanning.com, www.ebtanningsalons.com, www.advantagetanning.com, www.amherstanning.com. The Electric Beach corporate office in Olean, NY does a great job of promoting the different services offered throughout the company. With their existing advertising ventures, the new Web sites serve as a way to leverage media usage already in place.  Mellon & Co. is confident that success will continue to follow Electric Beach.

Mellon & Co. is pleased to announce that they have launced a new Web site for M&M Enterprises of Salamanca, N.Y. (www.brookhaventownhomes.com), for its newest townhome development, Brookhaven, this week. The new Web site offers information for prospective buyers, including floorplans, directions, area information, photos, an online application, and more. Brookhaven is a brand new townhouse complex near the Seneca Allegany Casino. They offer 2 & 3 bedroom units that are spacious and well equipped. The properties come standard with lawn care, from the grass to tending to the flowers, and raking leaves and plowing snow. The complex is a great addition to our area. For more information, visit the site, or call Brookhaven at 716-945-6605.

August 16, 2007 – The Salamanca Area Chamber of Commerce has chosen Team Mellon to redesign its online identity.   The redesigned web site, www.salamancachamber.com, features a new logo and increased focus on the culture and history of the city.   “It was a delight to work with the fastest growing city in our area,” said Jeff Mellon, owner and operations director at Team Mellon. “It really was a complete makeover. The goal was to create a dynamic site that is able to evolve with Salamanca. Our team really pulled together to come up with an attractive design that highlights the features of the rising city.”   Team Mellon specializes in web development, design services, integrated marketing, and technology and computer management. More information about Team Mellon can be found at www.teammellon.com. The company will be unveiling a new look of its own in the fall.   The Salamanca Area Chamber of Commerce is a partnership of businesses and community leaders that works to enrich the quality of the economic and civic well being of its membership, business at large and the community as a whole.