I wanted show what an evolutionary step between today and that imminent future.
I decided to show this in what might a business card look like. So here is my business card, in a evolutionary stutter between now and ubiquitous technology.
HTML Code that is simple enough to work as advertisement, but still readable by a computer and not only readable but semantically tagged in such a way that would come up faster on a search than most sites we cruise daily, complete with a QR Code to bridge the physical to the virtual, and above all to bookmark it.
(screen print on Canvas tote, graffiti on non-permenant surface, sticker)
It took me a a bit of effort to make this example and quite a bit of analog tech like stencils, and silk screen, and is a bit crude but you get the point. And possibly the first of it's kind. Topics: Internet, leadership, strategy, web_design0 CommentsRead Full Post
Posted by Jesse Poe on May 25 at 10:10 AM
This post discusses:
Experience Design & User Experience
The Golden Circle
Inspiring people to use
Today I took the F train to work instead of my typical route and got off at the first stop in Manhattan, East Broadway. As I wandered my way to work through Chinatown I was reminded of how quickly you can find yourself in unfamiliar territory. I had to keep checking the horizon to orient myself through what was once the famed Five Points.
There was information everywhere, but none of it was information I could understand. I was looking for points of reference among this cloud of info and I was thinking about how much it was like the types of systems I help clients through and how quickly they can lose themselves in a maze of backend, CMS, servers and Ftps, and formats, all to achieve the same goal: to get their work done.
This maze of tech can be confusing and no matter how well crafted a system or even your guidance through it, if the User is not the focus of the design, it is bound to end in frustration for all, and that User should be the people who will be using it it not the people building and critiquing it.
Is your user experience meant for only a select few or for a greater audience? In world wide web, it should be the greatest audience as that anyone could find their way to your site, company, program.
Take this ad for tea, I know it's for tea without even understanding the print, I understand most of the add and the call to action without even reading a word, and the scan leads you to purchase. Very effective and simple, yet the technology doesn't get in the way of the ad nor destroy the image and emotional feeling of the ad. And the end result is that this company went from a print add to actually connecting with me via my iPhone and one step away from the point of purchase. The contrast of the two above images says a lot about what we call experience design. Why is that some companies are able to communicate their product or idea so much better than others who are "selling" the same thing? It is the property of the Golden Circle, the positioning of what you believe first inspiring others to believe in you, as described in Simon Sinek's TED talk: How Great leaders Inspire Action.
Geekdom has been drooling over the coming of the Apple Tablet. Why?
The simple hope that it will be a game changer, like the iPod was a decade ago, or the iPhone was just a few years ago.
The important question is what will your website, blog, magazine look like on a tablet and more importantly are you ready for it?
With the late adoption of the iPhone/mobile platform and still complete failure of major magazines such Playboy to respond in a current and creative manner, you can be sure this might be your chance to get a leg up.
Many have already cued up, have you?
Here is an example of what Sports Illustrated is planning:
Posted by Jesse Poe on December 11 at 12:37 PM
So you have built a site, written a blog and even got people to read it. Now what about the comments?
People use the comment sections to dialogue with other commenters and of course you the writter/brand. If you are lucky enough to get some one to engage with you why would you cut them short?
Imagine you finally get a business call and you limit it to 99 words. Come on.
Here is a lesson from GOOD.is who I usually adore, on how not to run your site.
They had a great post, I chimed in with a researched response adding to the post and encouraging conversation. My comment was 535 words of support and added value. GOOD truncates at 99 words, my other 436 words lost.
So I wrote a letter to them explaining how truncated comments don't exactly encourage conversation.
A week later still no response. Strike 2.
Here are the two take aways:
1. GOOD.is lost a passionate follower and turned a Zealot to a detractor over an HTLM code that could say 10,000 instead of 99, and by not caring enough to respond to their email. Why even have a "contact us" if you don't respond? Not a good situation.
2. Cut me off in the comments and I will just post a sidewiki which will immediately get picked up by Google. Lucky for good, the passion behind my 535 words, including the 436 they cut off was positive. Imagine had I been upset about what they wrote..... their word count limit would have made me even angrier.
What would be the draw back, well, that you might get a spambot that hacks in and leaves 30000 links on a comment, who cares, take it out, much better to be troubled once in a while by something everyone must face, than to limit interaction when interaction is what you are after and turn a brand zealot to a detractor.
GOOD work guys you lost a fan.
picture of the sidewiki:
Letter to GOOD.is which they never responded to:
Dear GOOD-
I preach your gospel, book mark you and always link to you in my own blogs, I think your doing a great job & have turned on many friends to your site.
Today I have to say that I am more than displeased with your site.
You posted a great article and I wrote a passionate response of 535 words.
You cut me off at 50 or so.... not a "good" practice, be glad that you have people who follow your site who care enough to write that much.
Adjust your word count to allow for as long as people want, that would be not only good but right.
It's hard to find people who are passionate to help and support, it's easy to loose people over stupid things like this, I just spent an hour of my time helping your site and now what?
Bad practice, GOOD.
I hope you fix this, before people just take the conversation elsewhere.
Posted by Rowland Hobbs on December 8 at 1:13 PM
All my life, I have never struggled for perfection. For one, I believe it's unattainable. For two, I believe it's a moving target. Nothing is ever perfect. If you ever think something is perfect, you're either lazy or misinformed.
On the web this is even moreso the case. The glory of the web is that we can change things on the fly. Files can be put up, and taken down. Images can be uploaded, downloaded, and deleted. We can create multiple versions of the same page just to test which setup works the best.
Today, WebMonkey (which sounds a lot less serious than it actually is) posted a blog much to this point, except regarding applications.
And it's true! We need to break free of the unending and deadly cycle of reviews and approvals. It is better to get something up and then work on it continually. Once it's in the real world, you can quickly see what works, and what fails.
If all we do is stare at PDF files of designs that have not been put to the real test of hard code programming, we set ourselves up for disaster when the browsers and connection speeds of the world show us what our actual project will look like.
Of course, this is a bitter pill to swallow. How do you tell a client "let's get it out there, and then fix it?" What's funny is you really can't, it's the worst cacophony to their ears. However, also funny, is that this is how it always is. You launch a site and then begin to notice things.
On the web we so strive for organization. For an easy template to pop our projects into. We want things quick, easy, and clean of the blood of the innocent. This doesn't produce good websites, but it does create award winning ulcers and nights of restless slumber.
So we all need to take a deep breath. Grab our clients by the hand, and tell them it's all right. It's okay. We can fix that. It'll take just a few hours.
Why will this work? Because a website is never done any way. Even books print numerous editions. We can do the same on the web, in a fraction of the time and at a fraction of the cost.
As the Creative Director of a web, mobile marketing, and social media agency - I would love to talk about us and our brilliance all the time. And hopefully, as we land more and more projects and launch more and more things, I will be able to do that.
But at other times, I just have to give the bigger dogs their due. These days, so many clients are pining for more! more! more! We want MORE functionality! MORE options! MORE lolcats! But Ogilvy took a page from the upcoming holiday season, and its biblical battle cry for simplicity - and channeled that simple wish into an iPhone Christmas app.
It's pretty fantastic... but it also could do with just a BIT more.
You take a photo, you press a button, and snow is superimposed over the photo you took. Why is this awesome? Because it's an immediate strategic headslap for me (why didn't I think of that??). Because it is not at all expensive. And it is simple, simple, simple. Add to that the fact that it's free and that the web is already talking about it and I can tell you that this will be a successful idea from the company. They sell mobile, marketing, and web. And that's exactly what their app does.
But far be it from me to just lay back and say "good job, other company that isn't mine." Of course I need to step in and offer some "wouldn't it be better ifs".
So please, indulge me:
I'd love to have an option to add falling snow to any VIDEO. With iPhone's ability to edit and upload direct to YouTube, that could be fun, as well.
What if I want to turn this into a mobile holiday card? Can I type a quick message that is superimposed over the image, and sign my name using the touch pad? Another personal touch that increases viral potential.
What about a drawer of stick-on imagery? I'd love to drag an Ogilvy snowman onto my photo, and shrink or grow him appropriately to add to my faux-snowy scene.
Now... you may say... but then it's no longer simple! I disagree. A few SIMPLE additions I mentioned here, streamlined with a slick UI, could certainly keep this snowy and simplistic... while adding more value.
Because, while simplicity is key, too much of it isn't a good thing, either. You need to give something a bit more flair to give it that extra push from one user to that user's friends and family. Topics: Mobile_Marketing, tools, web_design0 CommentsRead Full Post
Posted by Rowland Hobbs on November 30 at 6:00 PM
As I was getting set to post my blog today, I had a whole concept in mind: admitting (with shame) that over the weekend while I was with my boyfriend and my family on Long Island, I barely went online. My Twitter lay fallow. My Facebook practically untouched. My LinkedIn LinkedOut.
And I was going to say "what kind of an Internet wonderman am I if the second I am off from work, I don't go into my Google Reader and tweet my face off?"
But then I stopped for a second and thought: I DID use the Internet this past weekend. I used it plenty. Just not as a professional. Nor as a social media maven.
No, my relationship with the Internet changed this weekend in that I transformed from an Internet Strategist to a consumer. And now I'm reflecting back on it.
I spent time on YouTube with friends. I surfed Amazon to buy Christmas presents. I Googled for churches so I could check out a mass on Sunday morning. I was what all of our target audience usually is: rushing around, not paying much attention, and clicking to get my hands on information that I needed in the moment.
I was using the sorry mobile Google Maps app on my Verizon enV to find the closest Barnes and Noble to the Roosevelt Field Mall.
And you know what? I think it's good for this to happen to us on occasion. So long as we remain conscious of what we are doing. So often, we get caught up in web strategy and design. We make sure that every last pixel is perfect, that there are tons of words on every page and that there is much complexity and connectivity on our sites. This is good.
But one thing Mastermind Nielsen always tells us is that this is not how Joe Blow (and Georgina Blow) American Two-Pants view the Web. No, they are not pouring over every page like it is an ancient tomb they unearthed. They don't care about the cropping of the photo we put on top of our site. They just want to know when "The Real Housewives of Monmouth County" is on. Or when the next train to Podunksville leaves. Or how many eggs go in a chicken fried steak batter.
So let's all make an early New Year's Resolution to put on our Consumer Goggles in the coming months. To make sure that everything works as best it can... but then to look at other sites with rushed eyes and hurried needs, so that we can see what works, and what does not.
Posted by Jesse Poe on November 24 at 11:24 AM
From Leon Kadoch to Ben Parr, everybody is talking about the recent changes to LinkedIn.
It has been 2 years coming and I am happy for the changes however minimal they are, but much more excited about the possibilities that might arise as a result.
The most obvious would be an integration of services such as Plocky or the like, where I could easily connect my Linked In to my social networks that I have built via Twitter, or reconnected with on Facebook, or even found through forums for change like GOOD.is.
Asking people to add you in one place and then come join you in another is tedious, and although everyone wants to have the stamp on the town square they should realize that if they were to simply make the town square centralized and easy to get to, more people would congregate there instead of staying at home.
There was a question, getting passed around twitter the other day:
LinkedIn to what?
I don't agree, but it begs the question, how has LinkedIn failed if people aren't easily seeing the benefit of their service?
I have found LinkedIn useful realizing from the begining that it is what you put into it, as any platform is. I have found it very useful for those close enough to me that they are willing to then go to another platform to friend me, however it can often be a rather bottom up feed source.
I run an engaging and organic twitter account, which although small consists of people I have engaged and built a dialogue with. If I put their twitter name into a tweet, I am sure that I will get not only a response, but a "threaded" conversation.
Britney does not follow me, but quite a few CEOs of cool companies do.
So think about this LinkedIn and those thinking of building another platform for yet another social community, someone who is looking for a leg up, and is intrigued by the information I give out on twitter, they are going to do the click work to find me and Link in with me, maybe, and I am glad to help. However, a CEO or other possible future client, who finds the material I tweet interesting, is probably going to keep following my links when they see them, but it is going to be a long slow reeling in process to "linking in" with them. During that process, they could have had me consulting them on the functionality of their site and its flow, or perhaps redesigning it from the ground up.
I might have lost that chance to some kid in their mail room who says he knows a guy who knows html, thinking he is doing his company a service. While I am slowly reeling them in from twitter to LinkedIn, they have lost the chance of having an effective site and outreach and way to use that site right now as a tool.
The operative word is "right now".
We want to put 2 & 2 together right now, because we might need 4 to get us through a choppy quarter, or for the launch of our most innovative product or service to date.
LinkedIn and others should think about this and less about the popularity of their own site and brand and they should do so fast before Google decides to push their Google Profiles, If a brand doesn't serve me, then I am going to remember its name, I am going to remember it as something that didn't work and not return. However, the first person to connect us conveniently and across platforms will win my loyalty and surely that of every other person in business, they won't even need a brand name, they'll just sell the service and retire in the Caribbeans.
Posted by Jesse Poe on November 19 at 3:19 PM
When I used to work for Apple the most common question I heard was:
"What's the most important thing to look for in a computer? I mean do I need bigger or faster? I don't want to buy a computer and then three years later it's obsolete."
My response was an aside, I got a watch to sell ya whisper, saying, "hey soon, Google will make an OS of their own and then that question won't matter, in essence you'll just need a machine that runs well."
The rummor I was spreading has come true here is Google video launched today to prove it:
And if an online operating system to revolutionize the way we use computers wasn't enough in one day, they have beat Microsoft at it own "humanity" game. It's new Search Stories are so captivating, clever and moving that I got a little choked up.
Posted by Jesse Poe on November 19 at 1:04 PM
No, not the song from Spamalot, nor the quotable phrase from The Holy Grail, but the rally cry of the Blog, and pretty much everything else of late.
What's up with our current Victorian era style obsession with the premature burial?
Is that what they teach in Journalism classes these days? Call it Dead before the next guy and you’re a journalist?
Or is it that 24 hour news forgot that the intent was to accomidate all possible viewers, not provide breaking news 24 hours a day, to the point they are willing to kill something just to declare it dead.
Whatever it is, it's a bit silly and immature.
As is the case with Smashing Magazine's (who I typically enjoy) outrageous declarartion of death of the Blog. Guess they don't read Technorati or have the grace to name something as it is like, “hey this is cool how these designers are blogging” instead of the Fox-esque “The Death of the Blog Post.”
(You can still get milk and coke in bottles, and Lps are cooler than they ever were).
The Blog is NOT dead, nor will it be. The reasons are legion but I just want to highlight two in regards to Smashing's post:
1. I presently have open about 30 tabs open, yep, I’m taxing my machine, but I read a lot on the web & I have articles lined up for every spare second I have at work. This is common among most web readers, that is the nature and beauty of the web and hyperlinks, which is why even the “cool” design of your post was frustrating, because my computer kept stalling. In the meantime I clicked over to other tabs to read pages that were meant for reading on the web. The only reason I overcame my frustration & tabbed back, was because it was Smashing and they have gained my trust and interest. Had I stumbled on one of the very talented folks you highlighted and encountered the same problem, I wouldn’t have gone back, just not going to fight to read something, if I am not sure it is going to be worth the fight. Seems fair.
2. Good content, I read articles for Good content and I think Gregory Wood, who you featured in your article said it best himself:
I’m not a great writer, and I probably write a lot of bullshit, but because it’s all nicely designed, readers are drawn in and end up reading more than one post. It’s also very fun to create and helps me grow as a designer.
So I would gladly go to his art opening, or even an online gallery of art as that he seems a competent designer, but I have a mountain of books I want to read, a pile of work on my desk, and friends to talk/share with, if I’m reading on the internet, it’s not to make my eyes whiter, it’s for good informative content. I think it’s great that he is growing as a designer, but if I am to also read his work, then I hope he would grow as writer as well.
I know I'm not the first Poe to write about the fear of prematural burial, but come on....
Their argument? CSS and HTML have paved the way for boring and unattractive blogs. They prove this by designing their blog like a magazine, and profiling other web folks who do the same. It's very pretty, but it's also a very, very bad idea.
Here is a problem with a lot of designers today: they are too busy trying to break the rules of the Web, instead of finding ways to create good design within them.
I understand a blog post is boring and un-magazine like. But here are some reasons why that's more than okay:
1. RSS Readers - if you're writing it, people are reading it with the HTML and design stripped straight out.
2. Mobile - They may be reading your post on a Pre, iPhone, or DROID. You think they'll appreciate your fancy-pants design when they can't even load the post?
3. Netbooks - The newest comer to the web scene, these mini-monsters will barely show a line of text in the way Smashing Magazine has it designed.
No, I'm afraid I must call foul on Smashing Magazine and writer Paddy Donnelly. Which saddens me, because we have a wiki full of their design tips for web.
What's more? These are blog posts, we are not meant to treat them as evergreen. Part of the beauty of blogging is that it is near-instantaneous (not as quick as Twitter, I'll grant you) but we shouldn't be wasting our design resources on blog posts. Blog posts are about ideas and opinions. Save the high design for the blog surrounding those words and thoughts.
Designers need to stop fighting wars against usability. If you read the comment in the bottom of the post, you will see that already two people have complained that the post isn't usable.
And forgive me if I say this, but:
IF YOUR DESIGN ISN'T USABLE, THEN IT ISN'T GOOD DESIGN.
Ya dig? I don't care how pretty the font is or how everything lines up or if you spent all day working on getting the rags and widows out. If a user comes to the page, does nothing, bounces, or complains, your design has failed failed failed.
Dear Designers: the web works in a certain way for a certain reason. Millions of people are accessing its content via different browsers, different operating systems, differnt content providers, and different connection speeds.
The web is not a magazine, and that's the point. Look at which one keeps folding publications and begging for ad revenue.
Posted by Rowland Hobbs on November 18 at 3:02 PM
These days, people are constantly trying to be the first to pimp and spread a tool or application. I can count on no certain number of hands and feet the amount of times someone has forwarded to me a tool that they clearly never tried or used, and then wanted to spread anyway.
"Hey, check this out, it's SO awesome!"
But then the tool sucks.
If I get one more slap-dash wireframing tool, I might scream. They're all the same, and none of them are ever any good. In fact, most apps, tools and programs give me a big headache. They don't make my life easier, they make it more complicated. I need to stop my tasks to update notes on those tasks, tally those tasks, and document those tasks, before uploading and tweeting those tasks... which stops me from actually doing the tasks.
Suddenly I'm too busy talking about what I plan on doing, that I never have the time to actually do any of it.
But, every once in a while, I come across an app that is actually useful. And by useful I mean totally amazing. In that it makes my job easier.
That tool I am talking about is Skitch. I discovered it today and plan to use it every day for the rest of my Internet life.
Simply put, Skitch is a screen grabbing application that allows you to easily snap a shot of something, and then write and draw all over it, cropping and resizing as you go.
Oh and it's free.
Where is this useful? Everywhere if you work on the Web. If something isn't working on a site I am QCing, I fire up Skitch (which hides sweetly in the background until I summon it), take a screen grab, and start going to town.
With Apple-like UI, I can flip the photo, edit the photo, and then "tear" a JPEG out of it and to my desktop. I can also upload it to the Skitch web site if I want to post the photo on a blog or website. This isn't useful to me, but it'll probably make Perez Hilton's job a lot easier.
Posted by Rowland Hobbs on November 17 at 4:32 PM
Last time I gave some advice, it was to Gamestop for their flawed mobile marketing campaign that sent me to a closed store in pursuit of a game. I haven't received another mobile alert from them, despite my pre-ordering Assassin's Creed II last night for PS3. So clearly my advice is being considered valuable.
Today's down-and-dirty trick is something everyone can use. And it's simple, too. As I said in the headline, and will explain here, you should put no roadblocks between your audience and your content.
None.
I don't care if you depend on advertising. I don't care how important your site metrics are. If you read any sort of strategic texts these days, there is a prevailing call to arms for all of us web folk. That is: bring the content to your audience, don't drag them kicking and screaming to you.
I am bringing this up now because I am angry at one of the RSS feeds in my Google Reader. They think they're cute. They send out a headline, and then a tiny bit of lead-in text, and then try to drive me to their site to get the pay-off.
Maybe for other users this works. It doesn't for me. Any sneaky feed that tries to stick-and-carrot me away from my precious Google Reader home base faces the wrath of my "Mark All As Read" button. I will not be lured. I am a busy business man with busy business things to do. Like write blog posts mocking you.
So here's a tip. If you're going to RSS your blog or site (which, God almighty, you had better) do not give a summary. Do not give a link. Give the post. You will earn the hearts and minds of Google Reader junkies like me everywhere. For example, if we really like one of your posts, we'll click to it so we can link to it in our Twitters or blogs.
The blogs that play games with my heart do not earn this privilege, only my seething rage and hardcore profanity.
This works everywhere else, too.
1. Allow your YouTube videos to be embedded, like this brave Universal artist Chamillionaire who may be in trouble with his bosses, but just earned himself a space in social media's fleeting spotlight. (PS: see how I linked to Mashable there? That is because they give me full posts in my RSS reader. If this post was not in my reader, I would not have linked it).
2. Do not ask users forty questions to download a "white paper" that is basically a long and flowing advertisement for your services. (Here at the DMD Network, we give those away for a click of a link.)
3. And, for God sakes, please please please do not send me on a wild goose chase to find a deal or a bit of information that you have advertised prominently in your email communications. Oh that gets my goat.com something fierce.
So again, the key takeaway? It's give away. Your content for free, and as simply and quickly as possible, that is. You want to give your audience every reason to read and engage and share what you're creating... not scare them away and fill them with fury. Topics: Internet, social_networking, strategy, web_design5 CommentsRead Full Post
Posted by Jesse Poe on October 2 at 10:42 AM
Have you ever started down a street and then got a strange feeling, turned around, walked back to the corner and went down another street for no other reason than, the street felt wrong?
I make a point to always follow my intuition even if means I might look a bit silly, or have to go out of my way sometimes. The thing is though, there are no metrics on these things.
I never know if a piano didn't fall on my head because I don't go back to check, and then if I did go back to check how would I keep from getting into some sort of Schrödinger's cat paradox.
The good thing is that there are metrics on the T-Pain App I wrote about on 9/4 and 9/9.
300,000 + downloads in 3 weeks
14,000 + downloads a day
66 mins the average time spent on the app
12.5 the average times each have opened the app
4. 1 MILLION user-generated songs made by the users of the app
Now they have branched out with the release of I'm on a Boat by Lonely Island featuring T-Pain, lowering the price creating an engaging and fun youtube contest.
Amazing how simple success can be, and that it can actually be monitored, measured and maintained. The key is the simplicity, in contrast look at the failure of Ralph Lauren's recent QR code 10 step fiasco.
Reminds me of my first lesson on composition in high school art class: KISS keep it simple stupid.
Kudos to Smule for keeping it simple and on their success!
Now, we have a new paradigm for film makers to actually create for this new platform. Brilliant! Instead of retro-fitting film to the phone, art house director Sally Potter has filmed for the phone. The right size, length, and even screen composition.
This will be the future of film and a new wave of directors and content in general. Not because it is a new idea, there are new ideas every second. But because this is truly embracing a device that so many own and keep by their side at all times, and thinking what you can do for the device and the people who use it, as opposed to the stagnant business model of what can the device do for us.
Topics: Internet, leadership, media, Mobile_Marketing, web_design0 CommentsRead Full Post
Posted by Rowland Hobbs on June 1 at 6:30 AM
Today Microsoft made an earth-shattering announcement called Natal, and dropped an unfortunate bomb named Bing... Topics: tools, web_design1 CommentRead Full Post
Posted by Nadia Ries Shen on February 7 at 7:41 AM
The Microsoft Surface was on display at the sponsors forum at the IxDA '09 conference. It seemed to grab a lot of peoples attention as there was a big group standing around playing with its fun functions. The screen is 30" which enabled people to sit around the table-like screen and interact with it and those around it.
Topics: , , , , social_networking, tools, web_design3 CommentsRead Full Post
Posted by Nadia Ries Shen on February 6 at 8:48 AM
First day at the IXDA conference I attended a workshop: Mock-up Web Application Design with Adobe Fireworks CS4 with speakers David Hogue and Adam Musselman. Topics: tools, web_design3 CommentsRead Full Post
