Archive October 2009
How to make a good online offer
It’s a damning indictment of my sleep patterns, but this blog post idea came to me as I was falling asleep last night after a rather good Thai curry. Perhaps the peanut-flavoured curry sauce warped my mind.
Now, bear with me, because this sounds dull as batshit:
The basic mechanics of making a compelling online offer – looking at what makes a good one, and how to promote it.
Why this subject?
It’s clearly important to shout about your products. An offer is a great place to start; an online-only offer is even better: it can help convert visitors into customers, and then gives you the option to engage with them further and keep them coming back.
I’ll make it interesting, I promise. Read on!
1Has Technorati fallen off?
Is it just me, or has Technorati fallen off?
“Fallen off what?”, you cry.
“Fallen off the ‘websites that work’ wagon!”, I reply!
Didn’t it used to be THE tech blog authority? I can’t seem to update anything: it ignores the keywords I enter to associate with this blog, it refuses to accept the RSS feed I submit, and – perhaps mercifully – it won’t let me upload a picture of myself for my profile. And where’s the ‘Ping Blog’ option gone?
Sort your shit out, Technofarti.
0Twitter: the new paid-for link service?
We’ve all heard recently about how Google & Microsoft are now indexing the Twitter-feed. Does this mean Twitter will become the future of paid-for links?
eConsultancy have raised an interesting point about this, and conclude that it’s gonna be hard to distinguish between valuable links tweeted vs those that are paid for.
Quite frankly, I predict at least one outcome – a surge in Twitter-spam: a huge influx of those ridiculous accounts called ‘Maryjane410′ (or whatever) who simply Tweet bot-driven spammy bollocks. Hurrah.
0Site review: Adrianflux.co.uk
After a fairly heavy night out, my brain appears to be dissolving in alcohol. Before it completely disappears, however, I thought I’d do a quick review of the Adrian Flux (www.adrianflux.co.uk) site. It was relaunched relatively recently (within the last 6-9 months or so). I’m going to take a look at a few pages of their brochureware and also the quote process.
As a specialist insurer, they’re meant to be ideal for car enthusiasts and the like. Now, I’m not a hardcore car geek – but the 4-wheeled ponies do pique my interest. So have Adrian Flux accounted for not only the car enthusiasts but also web best-practice? Are they the Internet equivalent of a Mini Metro? Read on and find out!
Hey…I just realised that reads like Anne Robinson on ‘The Weakest Link’… 
Recommendation: Trendsmap.com
Just a quick post today to recommend www.trendsmap.com, a realtime Twitter trend map mashup. Go have a play: I think it’s epically good.
0This month’s Web Designer Magazine
It’s self-indulgent, but here you go: I’m in this month’s Web Designer Magazine (issue 163), delivering 100 words of carefully-crafted guff about my favourite worst website.
Web Designer Mag, Issue 163
Can you guess who’s it was?
0Similarities? clothingattesco.com vs schuh.co.uk
A short blog post for you this evening because I’m about to enjoy a cubic foot of brioche and custard.
Sites do occasionally end up looking like each other out of chance: this I accept. However, is it just me, or can anyone else see a similarity between the homepage designs of www.clothingattesco.com & www.schuh.co.uk ? Bar the colours, they look…familiar:
- The header is virtually identical in terms of logo placement and spacing
- Baskets & associated tools in the same place
- Top nav disturbingly similar in layout
- Right navs identical in size
- Email address signup in bottom right
Here’s some helpful comparison graphics for those of you who’re still unsure.
I dunno: call me cynical – or maybe my judgement is clouded with thoughts of brioche. What do you think?
2SEO: keeping PPC costs down
It’s Friday lunchtime, and I’ve apparently had a Redbull enema – so here’s my latest re-entry into the blogosphere. I think it’s fair to say my ceramic tiles have come loose, because I’m on fire…and not in a good way. Want to find out how your website is actually a pub? Need to see how I’ve compared Google’s PPC ads to a hooker? Read on, and all will be revealed!
4Riverisland.com review: an SEO failure.
After reading the rather good eConsultancy review of the recently relaunched M&S site, it got me in the mood for taking a look at what else was around in terms of online clothing retailers. I spotted an opportunity to review the website of high-street brand name River Island.
Now, I’m no fashionista (updating my blog as often as I do generally precludes me from that particular gang), so this could work one of two ways:
- I’ll have no preconceived ideas about what works as a fashion site and therefore be open to persuasion, or
- I’ll be even more rigorous in my critique and will show absolutely no mercy or hesitation in being mean about their online offering
Which will it be? Do you even have to ask? Read on!
5Ryanair.com review
Having just been sent a great link to Ryanair’s response to the recent Panorama documentary, I thought I’d not only share it with you all (since it is inflammatory, funny and has a nice tongue-in-cheek approach to the whole thing), but also take a close – more critical – look at the Ryanair site. Panorama drew on the opinions of a web usability expert who, as far as I can see, has missed an opportunity.
So, predictably…
A review of www.ryanair.com
Ryanair are proud of the fact that they’re supposedly more popular than British Airways, and that their MD is “a kind and gentle, caring and thoughtful, sensitive and saintly human being widely beloved by all Ryanair’s 6,500 people and its 66m passengers”
Given that they’re so proud, how do you think their website will fare? Do you really have to ask? Read on!
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