A comment from Wilson Ng of Reflections of a Business-Driven Life, about using a PDA to save ideas for blog posts, had me considering how other tools could be used around the office.
The word "Wiki" came up in a discussion today, and the thought of using a Wiki to share ideas across the office got some positive responses. If you aren't familiar with the word, and with the tool, then you've missed an interesting looking application.
The online Wikipedia has been in the news recently, citing as a useful tool for research. It's also been receiving some criticism as a questionable source of information.
It's not the tool itself that is at the heart of the controversy, but rather the open nature of its use in that wiki-based encyclopedia. Anyone can come along and edit an entry - and even bad information can make its way into the site.
An LLRX.com article from this past summer highlights some of the potential uses of the application. See: Enter the World of the "Wiki"
A wiki is fairly easy to use, and could allow people in a small or medium sized office to share information in a meaningful manner. I think it could effectively provide an opportunity to reduce interoffice emails, memos, and meetings to share knowledge.
I visited a site that allows folks to try out demo versions of different open source software (opensourceCMS.com), and tried out a wiki. The one I tested tonight was Media Wiki. There are a few others there, and I'm going to try those out, too.
Once I find a wiki that I like, I think that an inter-office blog might be the next step.
Thank you, Wilson. Your suggestion provided a catalyst, pulling together some other ideas in my mind for how to better manage some office communications.
Thursday, October 21, 2004
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Inspirational Writing about Writing
It's not always easy for me to write something here everyday. I had a nice post for last night most of the way written - in my head. Getting it on a page is another matter.
I should try harder. Sometimes life interrupts.
Regular updates are one of the things that Mark Bernstein points to in the excellent 10 Tips on Writing the Living Web. He notes that even fifteen minutes a day can add up to quite a few words over the course of a year.
His article has been around for a couple of years now, and I've seen it fuel more than one argument. Some of the points made seem to rub some people the wrong way.
But, I find it inspirational. The same is true of Rebecca Blood's essay weblogs: a history and perspective. Rebecca's words were one of the forces that started me blogging.
So I'm going to try to add some shorter posts on a daily basis, to go with some of the longer ones that I seem to be fond of lately.
And I'm going to try to write something everyday, even if I only have 15 minutes to do it.
I should try harder. Sometimes life interrupts.
Regular updates are one of the things that Mark Bernstein points to in the excellent 10 Tips on Writing the Living Web. He notes that even fifteen minutes a day can add up to quite a few words over the course of a year.
His article has been around for a couple of years now, and I've seen it fuel more than one argument. Some of the points made seem to rub some people the wrong way.
But, I find it inspirational. The same is true of Rebecca Blood's essay weblogs: a history and perspective. Rebecca's words were one of the forces that started me blogging.
So I'm going to try to add some shorter posts on a daily basis, to go with some of the longer ones that I seem to be fond of lately.
And I'm going to try to write something everyday, even if I only have 15 minutes to do it.
Sunday, October 17, 2004
The Misunderstood Lure of Page Rank
Google PageRank is one of the very classic credibility and authority indicators on the Web and also one of the most trusted and reliable ones.
Robin Good, from PACmeter - Popularity, Authority, Credibility Online: How To Measure Them
There are some very nice links in Robin Good's article, but he makes a mistake when he starts attributing credibility to page rank. I understand how people would possibly misunderstand, but I want to seriously caution anyone who thinks that they should use the measure of page rank on a Google toolbar as a measure of expertise or trustworthiness.
Page Rank, named after its inventor, Larry Page, is a method of calculating a value based upon the number of links to a URL, and the "popularity" of the pages linked from. It's a mathematical formula, and a patented method used to help the search engine determine which pages to return when someone performs a search for a site.
Here's how Google describes Page Rank:
PageRank relies on the uniquely democratic nature of the web by using its vast link structure as an indicator of an individual page's value. In essence, Google interprets a link from page A to page B as a vote, by page A, for page B. But, Google looks at more than the sheer volume of votes, or links a page receives; it also analyzes the page that casts the vote. Votes cast by pages that are themselves "important" weigh more heavily and help to make other pages "important."
Rage Rank is one of around 100 or so different attributes that Google uses when it determines the order of listings that it returns when someone tries to find information using the search engines.
It is based upon the number of links to a site, but the intentions behind the links aren't considered. Those links could be purchased text advertisements. They could be from comment spam in blogs, and guest books, and wikis. They could be criticism, and their popularity is actually infamy.
Unfortunately, one of the failings of page rank is that the best page on a specific subject may exist on the web with few or no links to it, and because of that, the page won't come up on Google's search results for that subject.
A recent and excellent paper that looks at this problem with page rank is worth reading: Filthy Linking Rich And Getting Richer!, by Mike Grehan. The problem with page rank, according to Mike Grehan:
But this is also the creator of a very worrisome problem which affects new web pages with low linkage data, regardless of the quality of those pages. Quality and relevance are sometimes at odds with each other. And the ecology of the web may be suffering because of the way search engines are biased towards a page's popularity more than its quality. In short, "currently popular" pages are repeatedly being returned at the top of the results at the major search engines.
Page rank is a measure of popularity, and the amount of page rank that shows on the Google toolbar is an indication of that popularity. But it's not a measure of credibility, and never has been. And sites with lower page ranks may be of better quality, and of higher credibility than pages with higher page ranks.
To use page rank as a substitute for much better ways of determining credibility is a mistake. It's alluring to think that such a shortcut exists, but it doesn't.
Robin Good also points towards the Alexa toolbar as another measure of credibility. Again, it's a questionable assumption. The Alexa results are like an unscientific poll where the people being polled select themselves. The numbers Alexa uses are supposed to indicate the amount of traffic to web sites based upon the travels of people with Alexa toolbars installed on their browsers. I understand that a number of web sites in South Korea are pretty popular according to Alexa. I also understand that a lot of people in South Korea use the Alexa toolbar.
I think that my analogy of Alexa being like an internet poll where the participants aren't selected by the polling body is accurate. There's a nice set of questions, from the National Council on Public Polls, that you should ask and that a journalist should be aware of before trusting the credibility of a poll. These are 20 Questions A Journalist Should Ask About Poll Results. Here's a snippet from the analysis under the question that asks, "How were these people chosen":
The key reason that some polls reflect public opinion accurately and other polls are unscientific junk is how people were chosen to be interviewed. In scientific polls, the pollster uses a specific statistical method for picking respondents. In unscientific polls, the person picks himself to participate.
It's tempting to try to find a shortcut to determine the credibility of a web site. A toolbar is no substitute for an intelligent and informed decision.
Tuesday, October 12, 2004
Attitude in the Making
When I was in Boston a few weeks back, I couldn't resist the temptation to stop in at least one used books store.
I entered into Commonwealth Books on Boylston Street, which overlooks Boston Commons. They had a tremendous selection of dusty old volumes. If you're a book lover, it's a great place to stop.
I ended up getting a rather new book - Abstracting Craft; The Practiced Digital Hand - about the transformation of computers from tools to help create artwork to a medium for art itself. What I found fascinating about it was the concepts it describes on how people interact with computers.
My reading list is shrinking, and it's moving its way towards the top. So, I can't provide any type of review of the book right now. But, I wanted to share the introductory quote from the book, which I thought was a good one:
A friend, on writing advice to another, on the difficulties of starting out in business noted that attitude was one of the most important elements of success. The type of attitude that Morris writes about above. A confidence, a faith in yourself that no matter what obstacles, or what shortcomings may face you, that you continue to move forward.
When I wrote about the value of mistakes a couple of days ago, one of the things I took for granted in the writing was that most people get up from a fall, brush themselves off, and begin again. But a lot of people don't.
The attitude to fashion something better than you've made before is related to the attitude to rise above problems, and your own mistakes.
How do you develop that attitude? Like most things. One step at a time.
I entered into Commonwealth Books on Boylston Street, which overlooks Boston Commons. They had a tremendous selection of dusty old volumes. If you're a book lover, it's a great place to stop.
I ended up getting a rather new book - Abstracting Craft; The Practiced Digital Hand - about the transformation of computers from tools to help create artwork to a medium for art itself. What I found fascinating about it was the concepts it describes on how people interact with computers.
My reading list is shrinking, and it's moving its way towards the top. So, I can't provide any type of review of the book right now. But, I wanted to share the introductory quote from the book, which I thought was a good one:
The true workman must put his individualized intelligence and enthusiasm into the goods which he fashions. He must have a natural attitude for his work so strong that no education can force him away from his special bent. He must be allowed to think of what he is doing, and to vary his work as the circumstances of it vary, and his own moods. He must forever be stirring to make the piece at which he is at work better than the last. He must refuse at anybody's bidding to turn out -- I won't say a bad -- but even an indifferent piece of work, whatever the public wants, or thinks it wants.
-- William Morris
A friend, on writing advice to another, on the difficulties of starting out in business noted that attitude was one of the most important elements of success. The type of attitude that Morris writes about above. A confidence, a faith in yourself that no matter what obstacles, or what shortcomings may face you, that you continue to move forward.
When I wrote about the value of mistakes a couple of days ago, one of the things I took for granted in the writing was that most people get up from a fall, brush themselves off, and begin again. But a lot of people don't.
The attitude to fashion something better than you've made before is related to the attitude to rise above problems, and your own mistakes.
How do you develop that attitude? Like most things. One step at a time.
Sunday, October 10, 2004
The Value of Making Mistakes
Chances are, as a business owner, you're going to make a mistake or two.
It happens, and you may not even know that you've committed some type of blunder. But, upon reflection, you may realize that you could have done something differently.
It pays to review upon your business activities on a regular basis - to set aside some time to refine processes, or consider how you interact with clients. Learning from your mistakes, and learning how to not make the same mistake again is part of a successful business strategy.
I was looking through some old books at a neighborhood antique shop and found an old volume on Benjamin Franklin. I've been working on putting together some pages on my personal site about Dr. Franklin, so I purchased it. As I was leafing through the book, I came across a story by the good doctor that I thought might be worth sharing here. It's a story that he wrote for his nephew, titled The Whistle
The cost of that whistle was much higher than it should have been, but the value in understanding the mistake made was priceless.
I'm also a believer that it's possible to learn from the mistakes of others, and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the words of Benjamin Franklin. His words to his nephew provide a lesson to all of us if we want to take it.
There is value in understanding when you make a mistake, or in considering the mistakes of others, when you learn from them, and can take steps to avoid them.
How do you do that?
The value of making a mistake is in what you do after you realize you've made one, and in learning to take proactive steps to avoid making more.
It happens, and you may not even know that you've committed some type of blunder. But, upon reflection, you may realize that you could have done something differently.
It pays to review upon your business activities on a regular basis - to set aside some time to refine processes, or consider how you interact with clients. Learning from your mistakes, and learning how to not make the same mistake again is part of a successful business strategy.
I was looking through some old books at a neighborhood antique shop and found an old volume on Benjamin Franklin. I've been working on putting together some pages on my personal site about Dr. Franklin, so I purchased it. As I was leafing through the book, I came across a story by the good doctor that I thought might be worth sharing here. It's a story that he wrote for his nephew, titled The Whistle
When I was a child of seven years old, my friends, on a holiday, filled my pocket with coppers. I went directly to a shop where they sold toys for children; and being charmed with the sound of a whistle, that I met by the way in the hands of another boy, I voluntarily offered and gave all my money for one.
I then came home, and went whistling all over the house, much pleased with my whistle, but disturbing all the family. My brothers, and sisters, and cousins, understanding the bargain I had made, told me I had given four times as much for it as it was worth; put me in mind what good things I might have bought with the rest of the money; and laughed at me so much for my folly, that I cried with vexation; and the reflection gave me more chagrin than the whistle gave me pleasure.
This, however, was afterwards of use to me, the impression continuing on my mind; so that often, when I was tempted to buy some unnecessary thing, I said to myself, Don't give too much for the whistle; and I saved my money.
As I grew up, came into the world, and observed the actions of men, I thought I met with many, very many, who gave too much for the whistle.
When I saw any one too ambitious of court favor, sacrificing his time in attendance on levees, his repose, his liberty, his virtue, and perhaps his friends, to attain it, I have said to myself, This man gives too much for his whistle.
When I saw another fond of popularity, constantly employing himself in political bustles, neglecting his own affairs, and ruining them by that neglect, He pays, indeed, said I, too much for his whistle.
If I knew a miser, who gave up every kind of comfortable living, all the pleasure of doing good to others, all the esteem of his fellow-citizens, and the joys of benevolent friendship, for the sake of accumulating wealth, Poor man, said I, you do indeed pay too much for your whistle.
When I met with a man of pleasure, sacrificing every laudable improvement of the mind, or of his fortune, to mere corporeal sensations, and ruining his health in their pursuit, Mistaken man, said I, you are providing pain for yourself, instead of pleasure; you give too much for your whistle.
If I see one fond of of fine clothes, fine furniture, fine equipages, all above his fortune, for which he contracts debts, and ends his career in a prison, Alas! says I, he has paid dear, very dear, for his whistle.
When I see a beautiful sweet-tempered girl married to an illnatured brute of a husband, What a pity it is, say I, that she should pay so much for a whistle!
In short, I conceive that great part of the miseries of mankind are brought upon them by the false estimates they have made of the value of things, and by their giving too much for their whistles.
The cost of that whistle was much higher than it should have been, but the value in understanding the mistake made was priceless.
I'm also a believer that it's possible to learn from the mistakes of others, and I'm looking forward to reading the rest of the words of Benjamin Franklin. His words to his nephew provide a lesson to all of us if we want to take it.
There is value in understanding when you make a mistake, or in considering the mistakes of others, when you learn from them, and can take steps to avoid them.
How do you do that?
- Understand that the potential exists for making a mistake, and consider setting up processes in your undertakings that help you avoid mistakes.
- Take notes when you make business decisions, explaining the reasons for those decisions, and review them on a regular basis.
- Write those notes in a manner that is easy for you to do, and in a way that is easy to review.
- Make sure that your communications with your customers includes noting whatever criticisms they might have, and solicit their feedback to see what they liked and disliked about your services or products.
- When you finish a project, make a list of lessons learned - understand the reasons for your successes and your failures, and figure out how to build upon the successes, and how to avoid the failures.
- If you work as part of a team, work together to come up with that list of reasons for success or failure, and enable each other to build a future of more effective cooperation.
The value of making a mistake is in what you do after you realize you've made one, and in learning to take proactive steps to avoid making more.
Of Search Engines and Usability
Friend, mentor, co-conspirator Kim Krause has a new article out on web site usability that describes the impact of designing a site with your visitors in mind.
It's called Do Not Drop Your Web Site Off the Search Engine Cliff. If you own a commercial web site, it's a good introduction on how to look through a usability perspective to help your efforts to get your site noticed.
It's called Do Not Drop Your Web Site Off the Search Engine Cliff. If you own a commercial web site, it's a good introduction on how to look through a usability perspective to help your efforts to get your site noticed.
Friday, October 08, 2004
How Much Information Should You Provide to Your Web Site's Customers?
When someone arrives at your web site, how much information do they see about your business, your industry, and your services?
If you provide marketing or consulting services, how much do you share of the "why to do something" instead of just the "how?"
One of the topics covered in the interview I recently participated in involved the topics of expertise and trustworthiness.
I'm of the opinion that sharing information can not only help customers make reasonable decisions based upon being fully informed, but also allows enables them to gauge how trustworthy you are, and how much expertise you possess.
My friend and Co-moderator at Cre8asite Forums, Barry Welford, has a post in response to the interview, and to the notion of sharing information on a services based web site.
I especially agree with him on this point:
Of course, when they are faced with a similar situation in the future, they aren't going to need your services to help them solve it. They now understand how and why they should on their own. But when something new comes along, there's a good chance that your phone number or email address is the first one they will pick out when deciding that they need help.
If you enable your clients to make informed decisions, they will come back to you when they need to make more.
**********
I also want to add a shoutout and thanks to the folks at Cre8site Forums who gave me such a positive response to the interview. Thank you all.
If you provide marketing or consulting services, how much do you share of the "why to do something" instead of just the "how?"
One of the topics covered in the interview I recently participated in involved the topics of expertise and trustworthiness.
I'm of the opinion that sharing information can not only help customers make reasonable decisions based upon being fully informed, but also allows enables them to gauge how trustworthy you are, and how much expertise you possess.
My friend and Co-moderator at Cre8asite Forums, Barry Welford, has a post in response to the interview, and to the notion of sharing information on a services based web site.
I especially agree with him on this point:
If an Internet marketing consultant is good, he or she will tell you the tough stuff that your own employees may not have the guts to comment on.
Of course, when they are faced with a similar situation in the future, they aren't going to need your services to help them solve it. They now understand how and why they should on their own. But when something new comes along, there's a good chance that your phone number or email address is the first one they will pick out when deciding that they need help.
If you enable your clients to make informed decisions, they will come back to you when they need to make more.
**********
I also want to add a shoutout and thanks to the folks at Cre8site Forums who gave me such a positive response to the interview. Thank you all.
Thursday, October 07, 2004
Questions and Answers with Lip-Sticking's Yvonne Divita
I recently had the honor and pleasure of being interviewed by Yvonne Divita as part of her Smart Man Online series. The exchange was published today.
She asked some pretty insightful questions, and made me work hard to come up with some answers that would live up to the standards of her daily posts. The topics included online credibility, usability, blogging tools, online shopping, taglines, and privacy policies.
I really enjoy the perspective she brings to topics, and spending some time at her Lip Sticking makes me think about business, and marketing, in ways that I otherwise might not have.
As Yvonne often says at the end of her posts, "What's not to like about that?"
She asked some pretty insightful questions, and made me work hard to come up with some answers that would live up to the standards of her daily posts. The topics included online credibility, usability, blogging tools, online shopping, taglines, and privacy policies.
I really enjoy the perspective she brings to topics, and spending some time at her Lip Sticking makes me think about business, and marketing, in ways that I otherwise might not have.
As Yvonne often says at the end of her posts, "What's not to like about that?"
The Blog in the China Shop?
Somehow I missed the long, four part paper Blogging the Market, published last January on Internet Changes Everything.
I've only had a chance to skim through the four pages of the article, but it seemed filled with some interesting ideas, and worth sharing. And so I have.
Here's a small peek at the abstract that kicks the whole thing off:
It's long. I saw pieces of prose that I think I agree with, and parts of arguments that I wasn't so sure about. But it looks like it might be worth scribbing some notes on as I work through. Maybe more on this one when I have a couple of hours to spend on it.
I've only had a chance to skim through the four pages of the article, but it seemed filled with some interesting ideas, and worth sharing. And so I have.
Here's a small peek at the abstract that kicks the whole thing off:
Within the boundaries of the firm though, the implementation of weblogs takes a whole new dimension to realising that weblogs are more than the sum of its parts: more than vibrant public forums and frequently updated streams-of-consciousness, alternative forms of publishing and online outbursts of gonzo journalism, and personal diaries. They are the embodiment of online self-organising social systems, are essentially characterised by management decentralisation and ultimately threaten to destabilise current organisational structures and re-invent the scope of management.
It's long. I saw pieces of prose that I think I agree with, and parts of arguments that I wasn't so sure about. But it looks like it might be worth scribbing some notes on as I work through. Maybe more on this one when I have a couple of hours to spend on it.
Monday, October 04, 2004
Establishing Credibility on the Web
How do you know which sources to trust online?
How confident do you feel about purchasing from a web site?
When people tell me that they get a lot of visitors to their web sites, but not many purchasers of their goods or services, there are often at least four potential sets of issues that I raise:
I want to discuss the third item on that list a little in this post.
One place I often point people towards, when this is a problem are the pages from Stanford University on The Web Credibility Project. They have a pretty good set of guidelines linked to from that page on how to make a site appear more credible.
It includes such items as verifiable testimonials, contact information on every page, listed membership in industry and consumer organizations, and many others.
There's also a number of great reports on the site that describe how the visual design of a site can help establish credibility. How credible a site can appear does depend upon correct spelling, well-written text, professional looking graphics, the presence of links to privacy policies, copyright notices, and many more things that we often take for granted when they are done right, but notice immediately when done wrong.
Lately, I've been getting a number of emails from scam artists on what have become known as phishing expeditions.
Here's an example of one I received recently:
The URL that appeared in the email seemed to go to a citibank address online, but really didn't. I have a citibank account, but I've never given them an email address, and haven't set up online access with them. If I had, this might seem somewhat reasonable. But, even citibank wouldn't ask for my PIN number.
I've received similar emails that appeared to come from Suntrust Bank and from Paypal. They didn't. But they seemed realistic.
Scams like these make credibility and trust things that are even more difficult for a web site owner to earn from potential customers.
While I've been suggesting that people look over the Stanford Reports, I decided that it wasn't a bad idea to look at see what some others are doing to earn confidence and credibility online.
Well, one is the use of real names. As Simon Willison noted a couple of months back in a post titled Improving online credibility, the use of a real name by a member in a forum or online message board can boost the credibility of that person. He notes that Amazon.com is encouraging people to use their real names in product reviews, and posting badges next to the names of people who do, so that they might be perceived as more credible by people who read those reviews.
One of the best ways to build confidence as a web site owner providing goods or services is to encourage people to contact you. I like putting contact information on every page of a business site. A good place for it is at the bottom of pages.
That's not only an email address, but also a phone number and a mailing address. On the front page of a site, it oftn makes sense to put that contact information above the fold - in a place where people will see it as they scan the page for the first time. Some other good suggestions are in this Site Point article - The Lost Art of Conversation - Encouraging Contact Online
I mentioned in the last paragraph that a quick scan of a homepage is an important time for someone to see information like an address. Well, it helps for people to see even more there:
There are other ways to display your credibility online. I'll explore some of those later this week. If anyone has any other suggestions about credibility, I'd love to hear them.
How confident do you feel about purchasing from a web site?
When people tell me that they get a lot of visitors to their web sites, but not many purchasers of their goods or services, there are often at least four potential sets of issues that I raise:
- Are the people finding your site the audience that you intended to target?
- Are the products being presented in a way that entices people to purchase?
- How comfortable are people in conducting business with your site?
- How easy or difficult is it for people to complete a transaction? Are there roadblocks to sales based upon the way the purchasing transaction is presented?
I want to discuss the third item on that list a little in this post.
One place I often point people towards, when this is a problem are the pages from Stanford University on The Web Credibility Project. They have a pretty good set of guidelines linked to from that page on how to make a site appear more credible.
It includes such items as verifiable testimonials, contact information on every page, listed membership in industry and consumer organizations, and many others.
There's also a number of great reports on the site that describe how the visual design of a site can help establish credibility. How credible a site can appear does depend upon correct spelling, well-written text, professional looking graphics, the presence of links to privacy policies, copyright notices, and many more things that we often take for granted when they are done right, but notice immediately when done wrong.
Lately, I've been getting a number of emails from scam artists on what have become known as phishing expeditions.
Here's an example of one I received recently:
Dear Customer,
This email was sent by the Citibank server to verify your E-mail
address. You must complete this process by clicking on the link
below and entering in the small window your Citibank Debit
Card number and PIN that you use on ATM.
This is done for your protection - because some of our members
no longer have access to their email addresses and we must
verify it.
To verify your E-mail address and access your bank account,
click on the link below:
[url removed]
---------------------------------------
Thank you for being our customer
---------------------------------------
The URL that appeared in the email seemed to go to a citibank address online, but really didn't. I have a citibank account, but I've never given them an email address, and haven't set up online access with them. If I had, this might seem somewhat reasonable. But, even citibank wouldn't ask for my PIN number.
I've received similar emails that appeared to come from Suntrust Bank and from Paypal. They didn't. But they seemed realistic.
Scams like these make credibility and trust things that are even more difficult for a web site owner to earn from potential customers.
While I've been suggesting that people look over the Stanford Reports, I decided that it wasn't a bad idea to look at see what some others are doing to earn confidence and credibility online.
Well, one is the use of real names. As Simon Willison noted a couple of months back in a post titled Improving online credibility, the use of a real name by a member in a forum or online message board can boost the credibility of that person. He notes that Amazon.com is encouraging people to use their real names in product reviews, and posting badges next to the names of people who do, so that they might be perceived as more credible by people who read those reviews.
One of the best ways to build confidence as a web site owner providing goods or services is to encourage people to contact you. I like putting contact information on every page of a business site. A good place for it is at the bottom of pages.
That's not only an email address, but also a phone number and a mailing address. On the front page of a site, it oftn makes sense to put that contact information above the fold - in a place where people will see it as they scan the page for the first time. Some other good suggestions are in this Site Point article - The Lost Art of Conversation - Encouraging Contact Online
I mentioned in the last paragraph that a quick scan of a homepage is an important time for someone to see information like an address. Well, it helps for people to see even more there:
- A link to a privacy policy is essential. It tells people what you will do with their contact information if they do contact you.
- Information about the business needs to be front and center. It doesn't need to be as detailed as an "About us" page would be, but it needs to be enough so that people might be interested in reading that "About us" page.
- People need to know other information about your goods or services, such as shipping policies, or return policies. If you don't include information about those, it's probably much more reasonable for people to shop for the same products or services offline. At least that way they can get in the face of people who sold them something that didn't work as advertised.
- I like to know that there's a human being behind a web site. A statement that appears to be written by that person, and a photograph can increase my confidence in a site. An email address for that person, presented in a way that makes me feel comfortable in contacting them boosts my confidence even more.
- If the business is a member of a consumer organization, like the Better Business Bureau, or a member of an industry association, and I can check with those organizations, it's another means of improving my trust in the honesty of their site's promises to me.
- Promises? Yes, a company online makes promises to its customers. And it keeps those promises. When Dell tells me that they will ship a computer I've ordered within ten days, it better arrive within ten days. The last few we ordered from them arrived in three or four days. They made a reasonable promise, and they overdelivered. It's a practice that had us going back for more.
- More promises? When you make a statement involving the price, quality, uniqueness, or other aspect of your goods or services, I'll probably check around to see if there have been any complaints. Usenet, through Google Groups, is a great place to find information about a business - especially if there are complaints. The point though, is not to avoid making promises. The point is to keep the promises that you do make.
There are other ways to display your credibility online. I'll explore some of those later this week. If anyone has any other suggestions about credibility, I'd love to hear them.
Sunday, September 26, 2004
There's Always Room for Good News (Blog)
I'm adding the Good News Blog to the links at the right.
Not because I know the author, though I do.
Not because he's bright, articulate, and cheerful; even though he is all of those things.
But rather because we come across so much news everyday filled with sadness, strife, and loss. It's good to know that there's at least one place to get good news.
Not because I know the author, though I do.
Not because he's bright, articulate, and cheerful; even though he is all of those things.
But rather because we come across so much news everyday filled with sadness, strife, and loss. It's good to know that there's at least one place to get good news.
Thursday, September 09, 2004
When Do You Teach Your Childen About Money?
I remember the look on my father's face the first time I pulled out a credit card.
I guess it was a rite of passage for him. He asked me if he had "signed for it." I was probably about twenty or so, and he shouldn't have been that surprised. In many ways, he had prepared me for the world of credit, taxes, financing agreements, loans, and so on.
But I could tell that it surprised him.
My brother and sister and I had savings accounts as long as I can remember. I think my parents put some seed money in our accounts to make us feel good about collecting, but we were expected to deposit some of our allowance into our bank accounts on a regular basis. It was a way of investing in ourselves and giving us something to plan ahead for.
There's a memory of my father sitting down with me, and having me carefully read the instructions for my first income tax payment. He showed me where to enter what, and how to look up how much I owed, or how much I would get back. After that first time, I was on my own. I've done my taxes for myself ever since.
I believe that in there somewhere we even worked out a budget. I don't recall how old I was, but it made a lot of sense when we did it, and the exercise has helped me ever since.
But I don't remember really talking about finances in school, except maybe when it came to counting out lunch money.
A Wharton article, Teaching Kids about Money: Why It's Not Just Fun and Games takes a look at making financial literacy something taught in classes. It opens with this quote:
But that type of practical application seems to be something schools often leave to parents. A couple of pages I found on teaching children about money are these two:
Teaching children about money
A snippet:
Another one that does a nice job of explaining the advantages and disadvantages of the dole system and the allowance system: Teaching Your Children About Money
I guess it was a rite of passage for him. He asked me if he had "signed for it." I was probably about twenty or so, and he shouldn't have been that surprised. In many ways, he had prepared me for the world of credit, taxes, financing agreements, loans, and so on.
But I could tell that it surprised him.
My brother and sister and I had savings accounts as long as I can remember. I think my parents put some seed money in our accounts to make us feel good about collecting, but we were expected to deposit some of our allowance into our bank accounts on a regular basis. It was a way of investing in ourselves and giving us something to plan ahead for.
There's a memory of my father sitting down with me, and having me carefully read the instructions for my first income tax payment. He showed me where to enter what, and how to look up how much I owed, or how much I would get back. After that first time, I was on my own. I've done my taxes for myself ever since.
I believe that in there somewhere we even worked out a budget. I don't recall how old I was, but it made a lot of sense when we did it, and the exercise has helped me ever since.
But I don't remember really talking about finances in school, except maybe when it came to counting out lunch money.
A Wharton article, Teaching Kids about Money: Why It's Not Just Fun and Games takes a look at making financial literacy something taught in classes. It opens with this quote:
"Improving basic financial education at the elementary and secondary school level is essential to providing a foundation for financial literacy that can prevent younger people from making poor financial decisions that can take years to overcome." Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve Board, 2001
But that type of practical application seems to be something schools often leave to parents. A couple of pages I found on teaching children about money are these two:
Teaching children about money
A snippet:
Tips for teaching children about money. Younger children may believe that parents have an unlimited supply of money, unaware that checks and credit cards are not the same as cash and that bills must be paid.
Another one that does a nice job of explaining the advantages and disadvantages of the dole system and the allowance system: Teaching Your Children About Money
A good time to consider giving your child money is when he or she is between the ages of five and eight. Most parents use the Dole System or the Allowance System, and both have advantages and disadvantages. Research shows that in some instances an allowance may cost less than simply giving or doling money out for specific needs and wants.
A Good Reason for Headlines
A study from the Poynter Institute had some interesting observations when they studied what people look on web pages while wearing eyetracking equipment.
The project, Eyetrack III, may or may not have implications for your web site.
One quote I thought was very interesting:
My favorite page in the study was one that compared the styles of five different web sites.
The project, Eyetrack III, may or may not have implications for your web site.
One quote I thought was very interesting:
Smaller type encourages focused viewing behavior (that is, reading the words), while larger type promotes lighter scanning. In general, our testing found that people spent more time focused on small type than large type. Larger type resulted in more scanning of the page -- fewer words overall were fixated on -- as people looked around for words or phrases that captured their attention
My favorite page in the study was one that compared the styles of five different web sites.
Wednesday, September 08, 2004
So you Want to Volunteer With a NonProfit
There are a lot of reasons to get involved with a nonprofit organization.
One reason may be because you have some free time, and want to find a way to spend it in a productive manner. There are many organizations that could use a hand, and many opportunities looking for people to fill them. A group like Volunteer Match can help you find an internship, or post as an educator, mentor, or other position.
The range of choices may surprise you. A search in my area revealed a need for a person to help with Special Olympics, a music/choral group leader, a court appointed special advocate, a database application developer for a museum, a museum guide, a humane cat trapper, a dog walker, a literacy volunteer teaching adults, a park ranger intern, a member of a historic sewing group, and many more.
Another reason may be because you have nothing else to do. I remember when a friend had left his job, and was wandering directionless. I saw a sign for a group that was rescuing and rehabilitating wild birds nearby, and convinced him that it might be something fun to do, and that I would join with him. He got involved with them, and spent some serious time helping to do construction jobs around their facilities, care for sick and injured birds, and travel to places near and far to help rescue birds from oil spills. He met his future wife while volunteering there. It seemed in some ways that the opportunity helped rescue him.
A different reason might be that you have no choice. Well, you do have a choice, but helping others may just be the thing that helps you. An ex-neighbor knocked on my door a couple of months back. He asked me for some advice with the legal system. He had been caught driving without a license -- for the third time. His court date was in about a month. It's a charge that often carries with it some prison time. He asked me what he should do. I told him that the best thing he could do was to go to some place like the Boys club, or somewhere else, and volunteer. Find something that a judge could look at and say to him or herself that "here is someone who is trying to do something for someone else. Someone who just might have seen the errors of his ways." I didn't want to get all preachy, and I could tell by the incredulous look on his face that it wasn't the advice that he expected.
I don't know if he took my advice. I hope that he did.
If you do consider volunteering, there are some things that you should keep in mind. I came across an excellent online resource that's worth a good look if you're inclined to get involved. The Volunteer Legal Handbook - 7th Edition looks at some of the possible problems and risks you might take as a volunteer. Here are a couple of examples that they describe :
One reason may be because you have some free time, and want to find a way to spend it in a productive manner. There are many organizations that could use a hand, and many opportunities looking for people to fill them. A group like Volunteer Match can help you find an internship, or post as an educator, mentor, or other position.
The range of choices may surprise you. A search in my area revealed a need for a person to help with Special Olympics, a music/choral group leader, a court appointed special advocate, a database application developer for a museum, a museum guide, a humane cat trapper, a dog walker, a literacy volunteer teaching adults, a park ranger intern, a member of a historic sewing group, and many more.
Another reason may be because you have nothing else to do. I remember when a friend had left his job, and was wandering directionless. I saw a sign for a group that was rescuing and rehabilitating wild birds nearby, and convinced him that it might be something fun to do, and that I would join with him. He got involved with them, and spent some serious time helping to do construction jobs around their facilities, care for sick and injured birds, and travel to places near and far to help rescue birds from oil spills. He met his future wife while volunteering there. It seemed in some ways that the opportunity helped rescue him.
A different reason might be that you have no choice. Well, you do have a choice, but helping others may just be the thing that helps you. An ex-neighbor knocked on my door a couple of months back. He asked me for some advice with the legal system. He had been caught driving without a license -- for the third time. His court date was in about a month. It's a charge that often carries with it some prison time. He asked me what he should do. I told him that the best thing he could do was to go to some place like the Boys club, or somewhere else, and volunteer. Find something that a judge could look at and say to him or herself that "here is someone who is trying to do something for someone else. Someone who just might have seen the errors of his ways." I didn't want to get all preachy, and I could tell by the incredulous look on his face that it wasn't the advice that he expected.
I don't know if he took my advice. I hope that he did.
If you do consider volunteering, there are some things that you should keep in mind. I came across an excellent online resource that's worth a good look if you're inclined to get involved. The Volunteer Legal Handbook - 7th Edition looks at some of the possible problems and risks you might take as a volunteer. Here are a couple of examples that they describe :
- The auto accident. You volunteer to drive a group of little league baseball players to a baseball game. You are involved in an auto accident and some of your little league passengers are hurt. Are you liable for their injuries? If so, will your insurance cover the claim?
- The fired volunteer. You are an unpaid supervisor of a group of volunteers. One of the volunteers has failed to perform adequately, and you have terminated his volunteer status with the organization. Now the former volunteer has sued you and the organization for slander, libel and wrongful dismissal. Are you liable?
Monday, September 06, 2004
blogging businesses
Why should your business have a blog?
I was hard pressed to come up with any better reasons than the ones listed in Lip-Sticking: 5 Reasons Jane Thinks Every Small Business Should Blog. If you have a business, and you don't have a blog, I'd recommend that you pay her site a visit.
As Yvonne Divita states, it's about improving communication with your customers. A blog can be very easy to set up, and if you like writing, can be a great way to get online quickly and easily.
I'll add to her other points that it can be fairly inexpensive to set up a blog.
I was hard pressed to come up with any better reasons than the ones listed in Lip-Sticking: 5 Reasons Jane Thinks Every Small Business Should Blog. If you have a business, and you don't have a blog, I'd recommend that you pay her site a visit.
As Yvonne Divita states, it's about improving communication with your customers. A blog can be very easy to set up, and if you like writing, can be a great way to get online quickly and easily.
I'll add to her other points that it can be fairly inexpensive to set up a blog.
Thursday, September 02, 2004
Learn While You Surf
I'm often amazed at how much I learn while I'm online.
An article in today's local paper noted that the City of Philadelphia is considering taking on the costs of setting up the whole City for wireless connections to the web, at low or no cost for residents and visitors to the city.
One of the justifications for the move is that it would be much cheaper to do that than it would be to build a small library, and many more people would benefit from the access.
I think it's a great idea.
But how beneficial is web access? How much of a difference will it make to peoples' lives if they can just surf the web where ever they will? When ever they want?
A post over at DonnaM's blog looks at going online and 'Wasting' time looking for information. I've come to the same conclusion as Donna.
When I go online looking for the answer to a specific question, I don't always find the answer. But most of the time, I do learn something useful.
An article in today's local paper noted that the City of Philadelphia is considering taking on the costs of setting up the whole City for wireless connections to the web, at low or no cost for residents and visitors to the city.
One of the justifications for the move is that it would be much cheaper to do that than it would be to build a small library, and many more people would benefit from the access.
I think it's a great idea.
But how beneficial is web access? How much of a difference will it make to peoples' lives if they can just surf the web where ever they will? When ever they want?
A post over at DonnaM's blog looks at going online and 'Wasting' time looking for information. I've come to the same conclusion as Donna.
When I go online looking for the answer to a specific question, I don't always find the answer. But most of the time, I do learn something useful.
Apologies to Google and Blogger
I owe Google and Blogger an apology.
Last week, I applied to participate in Google's AdSense, after reading an article on the Blogger webpage titled There's an AdSense in my Blog.
To my surprise, I was turned down. I didn't expect that after reading Biz Stone's AdSense article. I sent Biz Stone an email, and I sent another to the AdSense team expressing my confusion and my dissatisfaction. I even made a blog post here: Google Hate Me
A DNS propagation problem kept me from getting emails at the beginning of this week, and I went through 72 hours or so without any emails. (Serious withdrawal there!) As I was sorting through my accumulated mails yesterday afternoon, there were a couple from the AdSense team.
One of them was a note informing me that I had submitted the wrong URL (".net" instead of ".com") and that they visited my blog, and figured out what had happened. The other was an email accepting me into the AdSense program.
It's my fault. I wish they had included the URL I submitted when they sent me the rejection. But regardless, I should have given them the right address.
It does appear that someone other that Google and Blogger own blogspot.net, and it's for sale. It does have a redirect going on to another site. I can understand why they would have sent a rejection notice.
Thanks AdSense team, for following up.
Last week, I applied to participate in Google's AdSense, after reading an article on the Blogger webpage titled There's an AdSense in my Blog.
To my surprise, I was turned down. I didn't expect that after reading Biz Stone's AdSense article. I sent Biz Stone an email, and I sent another to the AdSense team expressing my confusion and my dissatisfaction. I even made a blog post here: Google Hate Me
A DNS propagation problem kept me from getting emails at the beginning of this week, and I went through 72 hours or so without any emails. (Serious withdrawal there!) As I was sorting through my accumulated mails yesterday afternoon, there were a couple from the AdSense team.
One of them was a note informing me that I had submitted the wrong URL (".net" instead of ".com") and that they visited my blog, and figured out what had happened. The other was an email accepting me into the AdSense program.
It's my fault. I wish they had included the URL I submitted when they sent me the rejection. But regardless, I should have given them the right address.
It does appear that someone other that Google and Blogger own blogspot.net, and it's for sale. It does have a redirect going on to another site. I can understand why they would have sent a rejection notice.
Thanks AdSense team, for following up.
Monday, August 30, 2004
Inline Ads at Forbes
Since I've been paying a fair amount of attention lately to advertisements on web sites, a Whitespace article discussing Forbes' use of Ad Links In Content sort of stood out for me.
A good question, too. Should this type of ad be linked to differently than other ads in an online article.
I hope that this practice is abandoned. And quickly.
A good question, too. Should this type of ad be linked to differently than other ads in an online article.
I hope that this practice is abandoned. And quickly.
Two-Year Anniversary of Cre8asite Forums
It gives me a lot of pleasure to announce that we are celebrating the second anniversary of Cre8asite Forums. See: Cre8asiteForums Breaks Out the Champagne for its Two-Year Anniversary
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