I sometimes wonder if we should be spending more time posting the stuff you sometimes see on mainstream digital marketing blogs – things like 39 new social media resources you may have missed or Spreading holiday cheer and regional cuisine through AdWords. I always come to the same conclusion – why try and rinse and repeat the stuff that others are already doing so well when we can signpost the good stuff? We already follow some of the mainstream blogs and you probably are too. So, what other blogs do we follow? We are just in the process of moving this site to an upgraded platform and new hosting environment. When we do these ten are likely to feature on the blogroll. Five from me and five from Beth – you can probably guess which ones come from who!
www.mediafuturist.com
I saw Gerd Leonhard talk about the future of advertising (What future he might say?!) a couple of years ago and have been avidly following him ever since. Love his manner and what he talks about, not to mention the crazy graphics he uses in his slides. Openness is now definitely a survival strategy and data is definitely the new oil!
www.seomoz.org/blog
Search is a really important part of our business. It’s one of the cornerstones that supports a lot of what we do. We work with some really smart SEOs and they have all pointed me to SEOmoz over the years. In an ongoing effort to keep up with everything SEO and a bit more I follow it too.
www.eatbigfish.com/theblog
Endless difference, that’s what this blog is all about. Just when you think all the new angles on a product have been exhausted a clever little fish gets an idea with the ‘cut through’ of a blue whale. Great resource for refreshing thinking on how to make a product stand-out in category.
www.econsultancy.com/uk/blog
With loads of contributors posting on a wide range of topics from technology, strategy and planning, e-commerce, social media, user experience, mobile internet, e-mail, online PR and much more. This is a great blog for keeping on top of the multi-channel, multi-skilled world of digital marketing.
www.chrisbrogan.com
I have people like Chris Brogan and Seth Godin tagged ‘Digerati’ in my RSS reader. Chris Brogan is huge and his blog hugely followed. The thing I like about him is his endless enthusiasm for doing things right and doing things well. Plus the straight talking and practical actionable advice.
www.52weeksofux.com
I love it. If design and ‘User experience’ is your thing then this blog is too. It is pure indulgence in every sense. Get a cuppa and lose yourself. The 52 weeks idea is genius and the ‘old school’ styling gives this modern subject a clever twist. The writing is spot on too.
http://analytics.blogspot.com/
Every session I spend on Google analytics I discover something new. The learning is endless and the opportunities to turn web analytics into demonstrable ROI for a business huge. I love analytics and just about anything measurement or evaluation so of course I am going to follow this blog!
www.aboutourism.wordpress.com
Essentially this blog covers destination branding and travel and trends in global tourism. It’s a great ‘one stop shop’ for an overview on destination brand strategies and marketing campaigns.
www.180360720.no
Helge Tenno is a Norwegian planner. He produces lovely looking slideshows and has a knack of cutting through waffle and phrasing things to be simple common sense. I like this intro line “In my work I help companies and organizations discover why they are valuable in customer’s lives”.
http://connect.icrossing.co.uk
iCrossing are a pretty big search and social agency. UK head office in Brighton. As far as agency blogs go I have always thought this is a pretty balanced one. Just the right amount of nerdyness! It’s a good one to point out to people that are managing digital and integrated campaigns. The personality of the place and individuals comes through nicely too.
Tags: blogs, digital marketing, sharing
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We’re going to be working on some pretty hefty web redevelopment projects over the next six months so I thought I’d swot up on current thinking and future gazing on where the web is going next in terms of design and usability. Here are some of the trends that are coming our way. Thanks to the smart team at Net magazine for a great article in issue 198 called Tips and Trends for 2010. Here are my jotted out revision notes. I’ve chosen a neat top ten, there were lots more, but I like neat.
1) Improving what you’ve got. The return to analytics.
Throwing money at gimmicky one-off micorsites and games will be replaced with a serious assessment of core site usability to increase customer conversions and retention. Analytics will shift from active pages to examining user activity. Google AB testing.
2) Multi-channel design briefs.
Companies will move to using the web as a primary source for spreading the message. This won’t lead to mega agencies, but to more creative collaborations with small teams. Designers will take a more holistic approach. Be content aware, user and usability focused.
3) Less choice and more single minded content.
Sites will become more purposeful and single minded, minimising self hosted content to the strictly relevant and using third party services where necessary.
4) It’s still about speed. Find , do , share things – Quickly!
The trend of enabling people to rapidly access information is here to stay. We’ll see a continued rise in the grid system, influenced strongly by print with plenty of white space to enhance visuals.
5) Apps will lead the way in design.
Apps provide quick, usable solutions for people on the go. Many sites will take their design and user experience from their mobile apps rather than the other way round. Designers will simplify and streamline websites for mobile platforms, resulting in sites with better usability and apps that give users greater control over their personal experience.
6) It will move for a reason.
2010 will see a move away from meaningless moving content and towards beautiful interactive style that looks great and adds something to the ease and pleasure of using a site. Flash is not dead, Flash CS5 looks promising.
7) It’s all about web fonts.
2010 will be the year of web fonts. Web designers can now use a wider pool of fonts without resorting to images or flash. Web fonts it will change the look of the web forever.
8) Designing for social engagement and the three universal challenges*
Designers will be optimising sites for things that can be commented on and shared. Designers must optimise for engagement and encourage participation. The three key design and usability challenges for social engagement look like this. 1) Help people understand how the site works. Quickly! 2) Get people to sign up. 3) Turn them into active returning users.
*I honestly have no idea why my number eight is a smiley face. I’ve looked at the HTML but I’m none the wiser. See point 10. Will email Pete on Monday.
9) Mobile and location awareness.
Location awarness will become integral on desktops. Without relying on user input it will be possible to set a geographical context, enhancing the user experience with services such as localised search.
10) We’ll all need to broaden our skill set.
With the iphone it’s all about software so if you’re a designer who doesn’t know code you should learn. If you’re web page creator who doesn’t know basic HTML you should learn.
All this sounds pretty exciting to me. If you know of any more me drop me a line. Thanks again to Net magazine.
Tags: design, trends, usability, user experience
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