If you work in a shared office I’m sure at some stage you’ve come to a website where the music or narration started playing automatically and never gave you a choice?

If HP have put this level of thought into my online experience then I’m interested
in exploring their actual physical MediaSmart Server. Poor usability and design is the bain of my tech life so here’s a few free links for making such a thoughtful gesture.

HP MediaSmart Server
Use it to back up your files, remotely access your PC, share and stream digital media

There is huge scope to dramatically increase hosting companies conversion rates and vistor numbers based on the evidence and feedback I’ve been listening to over my several years as a web designer. Sure, there are some companies out there that are doing it well but as both a customer and a family-member/friend/aquaintance to many, many people who have tried to source hosting services, I find that they are failing on key areas of their web sites and that this is losing them business.

UPDATE…(the above was drafted last week)

Just today I was wondering why hosting companies often have such terrible websites when I received a great little promotion in my email from hosting company, RackSpace. In an industry where most companies are in a race to the bottom and all about the lowest price, these guys are selling to me with clever campaigns, great design and benefit-driven messaging.

While researching alternatives, I notice that CrazyEgg has just done a softlaunch and has started to take signups. One of the more interesting features that a lot of Web Analytics developers are pushing out are the use of ‘Heat Maps’ which display the ‘hot’ areas on your page by recording mouse movements and clicks etc.

Let me explain.

I was put on hold today and subjected to some really loud chart music that was about 5 times the volume of the person I was dealing with. A pleasant experience with a professional outift was quickly soured by a trashy blast that clearly didn’t fit with their corporate image. It physically hurt my ears. I wasn’t certain if this was the same company. I definitely wanted to hang up.
For a moment I wondered ‘How can they let this happen? It’s AWFUL’.

And then I realised that they probably don’t even know it is happening. It’s probably not very often the Marketing Dept dial their own main desk from outside. It’s absolute that they would change things if they were aware.

So when is the last time you called your own company, stood on the other side of the counter, filled in your own web site forms or asked the Sales dept for a quote?

Probably never. But you would be amazed at what the view is like from over here.

This email newsletter caught me eye this morning. I subscribe to a lot of newsletters and it’s great to see something come in that is pitched perfectly at their audience and has a creative theme applied to this message. I love the what they’ve done with the main banner (above). It’s creative, well executed, appeals to their audience and is refreshingly humorous.
But there’s one big problem…

1. I click on the email and it brings me to the rackspace web site (good!)
2. I have a look around their very infomative hosting services site (very informative)
3. Overall I get a good impression from them (becoming more interested)
4. I decide to look at SLAs and benefits of using Racksapce (very good!)
5. I decide I’m interested and look for pricing and order information. There’s none!

Or at least there appears to be none. Please have a look – am i missing something? I can’t see an ‘Order now’ button or any way of buying their products and services other than emailing them. Directly. Now this only takes two seconds but this is unecessary.

On a related note and to use a bricks and mortar example…

I took a trip to the supermarket last week to grab some ingredients. I was trying out a new Ainsley Harriott recipie ( i love that guy!) and since everyone had exceeded their yearly quota of his fish cakes or spaghetti bolognaise recipie it was time to do something different. While I was in the shops I saw at least three couples eye up the checkout ques, ditch their baskets and walk away with brass in pocket. I have to confess I did the same after i’d left everything back. I just didn’t have the patience. It was busy, everyone was rushing to do the Lottery and nobody was smiling. But at least next time I go down to the shops I know where the checkouts are are will probably actually hand over my money.

Now we all know how to buy groceries. We all know that the checkouts are usually at the end of the shop and they’ll even have big helpful arrows hanging from the cieling instructing us to ‘PAY HERE’. The groceries industry is an established one and these guys know their stuff. They know why we shop, when we shop, how we shop, what we want while they shop, how to get us to shop with them more often and how to get us to the checkout so they can make a sale.

If everyone in that shop were to fill their baskets, take out their wallets and then leave because they could not find the checkouts, I’d say the groceries industry would be in big trouble.

Fortunately for us the groceries industry solved this problem years ago. Just to emphasis the point, they now have even bigger arrows hanging from the celing and even more checkouts for bigger baskets. In fact even if i wanted to I don’t think I could leave their store without paying (and I do frequently want to!).

So my point is that your web site must make it easy for customers to purchase your products. Sounds simple? It is thankfully. Internet marketing is a very new discipline but fundamentals still apply. Think about how people use your web site, why they use it, what they are looking for while they use it and how to get them to come back more often. But unlimately, let them know HOW to buy something.

• easier to use
• meets user requirements more effectively
• increases the repeat visitors
  etc etc

If we fail to get a better understanding of the type of visitors the site has and the requirements these users have then redeveloping the site would simply be an ‘event’ – an exercise that has happened for no real purpose. The client might end of with a nicer site but not necessarily a better site.

If you’re interested in reading more, then the guys at iQ Content have added great article called
How personas and scenarios can change your website for the better.

Happy reading.

Flashes of inspiration give way to uncertainty and a desire to stick to known quantities replace innovation.
Last week while passing by Foxtons estate agents in Kensington I came across a brilliant example of innovative and brave marketing that inspired and amazed me.

Here was an estate agent which

• didn’t have the usual clusters of A4 sheets in the window jostling for attention
• Had none of the usual clusters of A4 sheets covering the walls INISDE the office either

but chose instead to make the focus of their interior

• several clusters of large comfy seats and coffee tables
• a large refreshments bar (which seemed to stock trendy Italian sparkling water).

So what do these cafe style estate agencies tell us about Foxtons?
Well, as someone who is interested in design and marketing it tells me that they are finely tuned into their customers needs and are willing to innovate* in their market.

But more importantly I believe the question should be
What do Foxton’s cafe-style offices communicate to their customers?

1. We know whats important to you
2. We know people purchasing property worth a few million pound don’t stand at shop windows perusing A4 sheets
3. We know you’re savvy enough to have used our (excellent) web site
4. We know when you’re ready to talk to us that you’ll appreciate a coffee or a trendy Italian sparkling water
5. We know whats important to you

……………………………………………………………………………………….
I have no doubt that Foxtons are reaping the awards of such a clever and important idea as outlined above.

As this blog progresses you’ll hear me talking about understanding your customers needs and demonstrating this understanding across all your business marketing (albeit primarily through your web site) for a successful relationship with your customers.
Ultimately I believe people are more likely to do business with companies whom they feel understand them. Nothing ground breaking there but it speaks volumes to your clientelle about how ‘tuned in’ you are to them.

If you’re an Entrepreneur and a business owner/manager and think you have a truly great idea that noone else is doing but goes against the grain of every traditional marketing and sales rule you know then think about Foxtons and what they are doing today.

……………………………………………………………………………………….
* Yes, cafes have been part of most US and Canadian bookstores for several years but it’s still the books that fill the windows.

Overhauling a companies web site for a Venture Capital audience is a common occurrence for hi-tech companies as they move from

• Stealth-mode (owner invested/managed)
  to
• Level 1 funding (employing first staff members, improving marketing collateral, establishing credibility etc)
  to
• Level 2 (ramping up product(s) offering, hiring key management, marketing to customers)

What isn’t so predictable during the lifecyle of a company web site is the scope of audience a site may need to cater for outside the usual sales/marketing customer net.

eg

• I’ve recently started design work for one of Ireland’s largest landscape architectural firms whose sole target audience are potential employees.
• A long term customer of EdenWeb in the UK had some great feedback on their web site from their Board at the end of the year. The Boards approval is vital.
• An Irish client secured Level 2 funding from their VCs last year. The VCs said the strength of the client’s web site was was a major factor in determining the level of funding provided.
• A US hi-tech company who rolled out a large marketing campaign for their Partners received a lot of praise for the professionalism of the landing page I designed and their email newsletter too.

I’ll be developing this post over the coming weeks so keep any eye on the blog for more updates.