Foxwood Online Marketing

My Take on QR Codes

I've seen several articles on QR codes and decided to give you my 2 cents worth.  QR stands for Quick Response which is a matrix or 2 dimensional barcode which can hold almost 4,300 alphanumeric characters as well as can embed links to websites, videos, maps, etc.  These got started in Japan by Toyota to help them track parts in manufacturing and their use is much broader there than in the U.S.  To be able to read QR codes you must have a bar code scanner OR mobile phone with camera and reader software which is becoming more available.  So what do they look like?  Below is a QR code I generated that links to my website:

How are they being used today?  The 3 most popular applications appear to be (1) Information targeted at mobile phone users, (2) Business cards, and, (3) As art.  Here are some examples:

• Exercise equipment to show proper use
• University classrooms or office conference rooms to show schedules/availability
• Electronic equipment to show model number, serial number, and a link to user instructions
• Restaurants to feature menus and links to an application that shows waiting time
• Details on small products like wine bottles
• Product details on trade show swag
• Artwork on the side of a building that points to the website or the latest event
• Appearance dates for performers, speakers, etc.
• Paypal payment on a tip jar
• Coupons or daily specials outside a retail location
• On any object to show history (think Antique Roadshow)
• Assembly instructions on each item
• Paypal contribution at a charitable event
• Paypal payment at an auction
• Petition signatures
• Giveaways or discounts on products
• Drive traffic to your social media applications or blog
• Drive traffic to a video
• Incorporate them as art on t-shirts, tote bags, etc.
• Highway billboards for directions
• Marketing materials for links to further information, testimonials, etc.
• A link for up-to-the-minute information
• Trail signs in national parks
• Sticker on fruit and vegatibles for origin and date
• Medicine bottles for interactions, contra-indicators, etc.
• Marketing teaser campaigns
• Name tags at conventions
• Articles and books to add video or footnote type information
• For sale signs for example real estate for details or video inside the home
• Luggage tags
• Hints or easter eggs for games
• Scavenger hunts
• Language translation
• Maps
• Grocery shopping cart for specials
• Taxi stand (to call a taxi)
• On uniforms to be able to provide feedback on good or bad service for that employee

Had enough?  Check out this blog for more examples and related links.  Finally, how about a few pictures:

       

 

Here's a video on how to use your cellphone to read QR codes:

Finally what's the real world opportunity?  If you have any situation where incremental information can help your business PLUS your customers will have cellphones, then that's where you can use this tool.  It's easy to create the codes, they will show you as leading edge, and they can also serve as artwork.  Best of all since this is a relatively new development a small or medium business can beat the big guys if you act quickly.  And if you have a cellphone, start looking for them and just try it...

 

Google Announces Realtime Search Ability

I saw a couple of blog posts about Google's realtime search ability and decided to check it out.  This week they released a 2:21 video announcing a website for realtime search and some tips on how to use it.  The video features a Product Manager and Software Engineer, the folks who know the application best.  The problem with the video though is it goes so fast it is difficult to catch all the instructions on how to use the features.  I think this is by design.  While it is another important step in realtime search, it was not quite ready for primetime in my opinion when I reviewed it.  For example, when I went to the YouTube location for the video or copied the link for the new website location:  http://google.com/realtime, I got an error, the hateful 404 Not Found message.  A couple of days later, it worked.  I was able to find a landing page with a call-to-action button that revealed the following location: http://www.google.com/realtime?esrch=RealtimeLaunch::Experiment.  Note the term "Experiment" which explains much.    More review later; for now watch the video which can be found by clicking here.

After stopping, rewinding, and starting again I was able to take some notes to try it.  First if you do a regular Google search, on the left and at the top you can expand your search to media outside of websites which is the generic search criterion.  Clicking on "News", "Images", or "Videos" can increase your options for a search.  What I hadn't noticed before [or it wasn't there] is the option for "More".  This reveals "Books", "Blogs", "Updates", and "Discussions".  According to the video, the what's new part is "Updates".  For my test I entered the search term "Nashville Flood".  Up popped a page of results from Twitter and Facebook from as recent as 28 minutes ago.  The neat part of this is the option for time and locations.  Since the flood occurred in May I clicked on the "2010" link at the top of the search results and low-and-behold you can see when the most content was created; cool.  However when I tried the location feature, I could not get any search results until I went back to the "Now" option and then only when I inserted "Nashville, TN" did I get any success.  It did not return any results for "Nearby" or for my city of "Franklin, TN". The last thing new is the option at the bottom of the search results to set up an alert for a search term.  While I have established alerts for my brand and those of some clients, this is really easy.

I entered a new search term, "Ground Zero Mosque" and not surprising, there were lots of entries.  But if I were really interested in this topic I could have been emailed results: as-it-happens, daily, or once-per-week using the alerts feature.  I can think of several good applications for this feature.  Bringing up results from social media you get access to content created not only by the professionals but by the public as well.  So I can monitor what people say after the Tennessee Titans play a game, the latest on the Little League World Series, any political issue, the latest musings of any political personality (I tried Ann Coulter and Mayor Karl Dean), and even Nashville Weather when thunderstorms and tornados occur.  So in spite of the bugs in this offering, I am glad I checked it out and am confident that the geeks at Google will continue to refine this capability going forward.  Oh, and I will absolutely use it...

So try this out the next time you are doing a search and website results are not delivering what you had hoped for.  And stay tuned to Google as they continue to create new ways to provide you information with a few letters typed and a couple of mouse clicks.

Update on Facebook Security Concerns

On July 10 I wrote a post titled, Nashville Area Parents Create Safe Social Media Site for Their Kids and Yours.  There have been some new developments to this story.  There have been a couple of interviews regarding NeighborDog.com on Mix 92.9 and WKRN Channel 2.  There was an article in the Tennessean about a young couple's concerns with security on Facebook, and a Mashable article about security concerns with Facebook's new location feature. Mashable also released an article explaining the Facebook security concerns.  The threat that comes to mind about this feature is for stalking.  Most of us have Facebook friends that are common to our friends, we went to school with, or are just acquainted with but not really close.  If this person is a stalker, Facebook now makes it easier for him or her to know where you are.  A little scary, huh?  And could there be a Law & Order episode where an ex-boyfriend uses this feature through an accomplice to establish an alibi while he murders his ex-girlfriend?  Reasonable doubt might be created by marching his friends through the witness box all testifying that he is never without his iPhone.

I also heard about a new website called MouseMail.com with backing from Bill Bennett, former Secretary of Education & Drug Czar and Frank Luntz the pollster.  MouseMail is targeted to parents of first time cell phone users.  It creates controls on cell phone usage and monitors texting to prevent sexting and cyber bullying.  Mr. Bennett has appearances on TV and radio explaining the issue which you can find on the MouseMail homepage.

Will MouseMail stop texting during school and cyber bullying?  Certainly not all.  Will NeighborDog steal enough Facebook users that they modify their security settings?  Probably not.  But what's nice is that the marketplace has responded and we as consumers can vote with our clicks.

 

 

 

3 Things You Should Know About Islam

I'm sure you heard about the aid workers who were slain in Afghanistan.  One of the accounts on TV reported that the Taliban backed up their accusation that the workers were trying to spread Christianity with the fact that some had Bibles in their possession.  But how can it be that a religion that has 1.57 billion people and 23% of the world's population and prays 5 times a day can condone such an act?  Check out this video and note the references and comments at the end:

For those reading this post in email format click here to view the video.

So what are we to think about this?  How can this be true?  First let's take a historical perspective. Christianity, Islam and Judaism are known as Abrahamic religions because of their common origin through Abraham.  They are also in the category of monotheistic religions meaning belief in one God. Muslims consider Ishmael, the firstborn son of Abraham, to be the "Father of the Arabs" and Abraham's second son, Isaac, is called "Father of the Hebrews". The story of Abraham and his sons is told in the Book of Genesis.  Ishmael is considered to be the ancestor of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. In the first century Christianity and Judaism separated.

The Prophet Muhammad knew Christians in his lifetime and respected them along with Jews as "People of the Book." Because of their monotheism and roots in the revealed Jewish Bible, Muhammad and his successors extended conquered Christians (and Jews) more freedoms than conquered pagans.

In the approximately 1,300 years of history since the life of Muhammad, the relationship between Christianity and Islam has rarely been harmonious. The Christian Crusades of the 11th through 13th centuries, waged in large part against Muslims, served only to widen the divide between the two faiths. The previous 2 paragraphs came from here.

The history is important because it puts the conflict in perspective.  I worked in a factory as a departmental supervisor.  Supporting my department were 2 young engineers.  One was Israeli and the other one an Arab.  One day they got into a fist fight over the most trivial thing.  This resulted in both being fired.  When we did the debrief, they said they didn't understand what happened but couldn't control it.  Our conclusion was 2,000 years of conflict were too much to overcome.

Here's another example closer to home.  Growing up in the south you can still sense the animosity with the north even though the Civil War was 150 years ago.  And in spite of the U.S. having its first African-American President, racial tensions are still alive in the land of E Pluribus Unum ('Out of Many, One').

Finally consider perspective.  We can't understand how a religious based group can use tactics like suicide bombing and they can't understand how a Christian nation can bomb civilian homes [they are not told there were Taliban or Al-Qaeda fighters in the building].  So the tensions build.

So what's my point and how are we to deal with these historic tensions?  Here are some suggestions:

1. Don't be naive about efforts like the building of a Mosque at ground zero; converesly don't expect the Muslims of Afghanistan to view us as anything but an occupying force even though they are not happy with the Taliban.
2. Don't be a bigot.  I went through airport security with a friend who is an electrical engineer who grew up in India, moved to Canada, and is now a U.S. citizen living in Boston.  He is a Sikh (pronounced seek) and wears a turban.  Let me tell you I was given a great deal more scrutiny traveling with him than by myself or even the white tech who had at least 15 electronic devices any of which could have harbored a bomb.
3. Don't let political correctness reduce security or common sense.  My friend the Sikh understands the situation and he remains polite and calm.  But given that he is a Middle Eastern appearing young man who is obviously strongly religious, it makes sense to check him out more than an elderly woman or child.  And as I was obviously his traveling companion I needed to be checked out closely as well.
4. Learn.  How do we know the video from above is true?  Why have we not heard this on CNN or Fox News?  The group that did the video is The White Roses.  They say they are a European group and claim no religious affiliation.  The name comes from a non-violent/intellectual resistance group during Nazi Germany.  But is this true?
5. Question.  How can we trust the video as legitimate?  What if it is true?  If you know any Muslims ask them about the 3 points:  Is it true that the Qur'an states that if there is a conflict you should take the latter written, more violent version?  Is it true that striving to institute Shari'a law is a religious duty of Islam?  Is it true that Muslims are permitted to lie to non-Muslims if it helps Islam, called Taqiyya?  Or ask them if they know what Taqiyya is.

Does this mean I think all is lost and we are doomed to further escalation toward another Crusades type global conflict between Christians and Muslims?  No.  Humans are competitive in nature.  We pick sides in any competition and can have extreme feelings.  But as humans we are able to manage the competitive feelings against higher sensibilities such as right vs wrong.  Keep in mind that our Bible says things like "an eye for an eye" and "women submit to your husbands".  And how about Exodus 31, verse 14: "Ye shall keep the Sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defileth it shall surely be put to death" [King James version]; and by the way this is the section when the 10 Commandments were created.  If we take this literally it would look pretty bad.  There are other passages if put into a book or video we could be viewed as a pretty violence driven group.  And there have been many awful things done in the name of God.  So be careful about judging too harshly a religion that is hundreds of years old and has been embraced by billions over the years without significant violence.  Having said that there is no doubt that a radical fringe of Muslim zealots live only to kill us.  But my opinion is that other than ground zero, why should we object to having a Mosque built in our community?

So what does this have to do with online marketing and business in general?  If it weren't for YouTube and this video I would not been made aware of the 3 issues.  I find I can learn and retain much more in an 8 minute video than reading an entire book.  My discovery of this video came through an email.  And you are learning about this through this blog.  So through the awareness of the video and my research for this post, I have come to the following conclusions:

1. Not all Muslims are bad and there have been cases of radical Christians using Bible verses to justify horrible acts.
2. Having said that the United States was founded by Christians and we should not allow Shari'a law to infiltrate our legal system.
3. I would not have a problem with a Mosque being built in my neighborhood but I think it is wrong to build one close to ground zero.  I also cannot come to a conclusion about the people who are resisting a Mosque being built in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.  I am not sure if their motivations are primarily hate and distrust or based on traffic and property value declines as they say.
4. I would like to have a Muslim as a coworker or neighbor so I could become close enough to ask questions raised by the video.  However if I see one or more young Middle Eastern men, I will watch them closely and even take action if I think they are about to commit a terrorist act.
5. I will continue to research the Muslim faith and be open to modifying my current positions based on what I learn.
6. I will pray for the wisdom to balance Christian love with appropriate security.

My apologies for this post being off subject but I think it is OK to occasionally drift to personal experiences and even political issues like this.

 

Mashable is 5 Years Old

I saw an article in the Mashable blog that their site is now 5 years old.  I wrote a post in February about my favorite blogs and while I mentioned them they were not my favorite; now they are.  I find their site the most informative source for internet technology, the most interesting, and in a format (blog) that enables me to get as little or as much depth on a particular story as I like.

If you look at the Top 10 blogs as per Technorati, Mashable comes in at #2.  The categories listed in parenthesis are Top 100 for these blogs:
1. The Huffington Post (Politics)
2. Mashable (Business, Technology, InfoTech)
3. Gizmodo (Technology, Gadgets)
4. TechCrunch (Business, Technology, Gadgets)
5. Engadget (Technology, Gadgets)
6. Gawker (Entertainment, Celebrity)
7. The Daily Beast (Entertainment, Politics)
8. ReadWriteWeb (Business, Technology, InfoTech)
9. TMZ.com (Celebrity)
10. Boing Boing (No Top 100.  Tied with TMZ for 9th)

I prefer to get my political news and opinions from cable TV and talk radio.  I like business and InfoTech over gadgets plus there are a lot of stories in Mashable on gadgets anyway.  And I really don’t care for celebrity news or gossip.  I like their ‘best of’ categories like Funniest Cat Videos for example.  I like that they keep me up-to-date on news such as Android is outselling iPhone as a mobile platform [in spite of all the publicity on iPhone.]  I like that they inform me on all the latest technology metrics, and post articles about the latest InfoGraphics.  I like that they let me know in the title if a post includes a video.  I like that they send their updates in email format (my favorite) as well as RSS.  I must admit that it does take some time to read through their 20+ posts per day, 7 days per week but I can also ignore them if I am busy.  But I usually don’t because I learn from them and I like learning.

I also like the blog format in general.  If the post involves a study, the site where the study was conducted is highlighted.  I can go there and find more graphs and charts and more details including links to other sites or posts for further depth should I wish it.  You can’t go off on tangents with TV or talk radio where you can control how fast or slow the learning takes place.  I like embedded video.  Nothing gives impact like video and if you view the video on YouTube or Mimeo you can often see similar videos if you wish.

In 2005 when Mashable started there were 14 million blogs.  Now there are 133 million and growing.  And if you like statistics, check out this post from Phil Bradley who compiled a long list of statistics from Technorati.

So happy 5th birthday Mashable, keep up the good work.

 

Top 25 Most Viewed Videos On YouTube as of July 31, 2010

Frankly I couldn't think of a subject for my weekly blog.  I was thinking of showing off my favorite moon walking videos from YouTube when it hit me.  Why not list the most watched videos and see if there are any conclusions I can make from the list.

First, finding the most viewed videos wasn't that easy.  When you do a search on YouTube for 'most watched' or 'most viewed' the results are not the videos but the 'best' match which are summary or comment videos (like what I'm doing here but not in video format).  By the way did you know YouTube is the 2nd most used search engine?  I had seen in a blog post that Justin Bieber has the most watched video so I searched for that.  I discovered if you click on the downward double arrow next to the number of views, You get a good breakdown of the views.  For example on the Bieber video it is most popular with females 13-17.  It is not only the #1 Most Viewed of All Time, it is also #1 Most Viewed-Music, #1 Most Discussed-Music, and #3 Most Discussed All Time.  There have been 912,021 comments and 746 Video Responses.  By the way the Most Discussed video is 10 Questions that Every Christain Must Answer which is #69 on the Most Viewed and not surprisingly its top audience is Males 45-54.  Back to the Bieber statistics.  There were 242K Likes, 155K Dislikes, 912K Comments, and 7K Favorites.  It went online February  18, 2010 as compared to 'Charlie Bit My Finger Again' which went online May 21, 2007.  Now for the Top 25 Most Viewed YouTube videos as of July 31, 2010:

1. Justin Bieber-Baby - 267,295,666

2. Lada Gaga-Bad Romance - 254,520,378

3. Charlie Bit My Finger, Again - 214,817,675

4. Evolution of Dance by Justin Laippply - 148,442,064

5. Miley Cyrus-Party in the USA - 142,854,615

6. Pitbull-I Know You Want Me - 134,496,469

7. HaHaHa - 130,854,614

8. Shakira-Waka Waka - 132,124,478

9. Miley Cyrus-7 Things - 126,908,824

10. Lady Gaga-Just Dance - 118,168,095

11. Jeff Dunham-Achmed the Dead - 116,413,942

12. Miley Cyrus-The Climb - 102,271,007

13. Lo que tu Quieras Oir - 101,997,077

14. An Experiment - 92,856,227

15. Vanessa Hudgins-Say OK - 89,913,850

16. Timbaland-Apologize - 87,803,509

17. Jizz in my Pants - 86,929,512

18. Rihanna-Rude Boy - 85,427,560

19. Potter Puppet Pals - 84,168,898

20. Tootin Bathtub Baby Cousins - 83,866,171

21. Katy Perry-Hot N Cold - 82,988,110

22. Barack Obama Hillary Clinton - 82,957,339

23. Jonas Brothers-Burnin Up - 82,812,107

24. Jonas Brothers-SOS - 81,310,568

25. Britains Got Talent - 80,726,900

It's not surprising that what I would call teen music videos (Justin Bieber, Lady Gaga, Miley Cyrus, and the Jonas Brothers have the most views.  This is I believe not only because these artists are popular in music sales but because these videos are high is production value.  One of my favorite videos is Lady Gaga's Telephone where in 2 spots [she is in prison] she has burning cigarette glasses and soda cans built into her hair.  Understand I'm a country music fan but the tune is catchy, there are some really good dance scenes, and the effects I mentioned are I think incredibly creative.  I must say I was uplifted that the little girl from Britain's Got Talent made it and not Susan Boyle.  Finally there are some in the list that I don't understand why they have had so many views.  These are Evolution of Dance, An Experiment, and the Barack Obama/Hillary Clinton videos.

To make it easy, here is a link to the 100 most viewed videos.  And now someone's Top 100 Videos in 3:20:

So if you're interested you can check out any or all of these videos and now you know how to find data and what data is available.  It will be interesting to recheck these after some time to see what's changed.  Personally I keep hoping for some Kitteh videos to make it...

So what do you think of the list or what is your favorite viral video on YouTube?

 

 

Facebook Celebrates 500 Million Users

You've probably heard that Facebook announced that they had reached the 500 million user mark.  I found this fascinating for a variety of reasons.  First, check out the interview Diane Sawyer did on ABC:

If you are reading this in email format click here to view the 9:27 video. 

Actually what really got me interested in this story was a segment on Book TV on C-SPAN.  David Kirkpatrick, who has been covering technology for Fortune Magazine for 20 years, wrote a book based on extensive interviews with Mark Zuckerberg.  It is entitled The Facebook Effect.  I did not want to embed the huge video file but you may watch the 1:22:00 session on C-SPAN by clicking here.  Following are some takeaways:

• Facebook is adding 1 million users a day.  It could have 1billion users by the end of next year.
• Facebook is unique in that it is based on genuine identity, not anonymity.  This is a key to their decisions on security, in spite of complaints, and their success.
• While the US has the most users (130M) this 35% usage rate is much smaller than in most countries like the UK at 43%, and Iceland at 52%.
• Facebook has become the default means of communications in more restrictive countries, especially among highly educated.
• People under 25 use more privacy controls than people over 50.  Kirkpatrick said his 18 year old daughter has not 'friended' her dad though he shares all his information, even his cell phone number with his friends.
• Facebook went from English to 75 languages in 14 months.  They translated Facebook pages and basically made it a contest among the people who spoke each language to vote on any discrepancies of interpretations.
• In 2006 Facebook endured up to 10% of users actively protesting the launch of newsfeeds which prompted Zuckerberg to stay up all night and write an apology.  You may read it by clicking here.
• Recently another uproar was created when Facebook changed the security default to allow sharing of much of a person's information.  The uproar was more concentrated in the media than with users including 2 US Senators writing a letter to Zuckerberg asking him to change the default.  He did not.  While 30,000 people quit Facebook they are still adding 1 million per day.
• Kirkpatrick's view is that Zuckerberg and Facebook take 4 steps forward and 1/2 back.  Zuckerberg knows that if he doesn't continue to improve Facebook they will be overtaken by the next great idea.
• Zuckerberg is more interested in changing the world than making money.  In 2007 Microsoft offered him $15B for Facebook and he turned them down.  Kirkpatrick said he believes if Google offered him $30B now he would refuse it.
• Facebook has the opportunity to be one of the largest advertisers, if not the largest business, in history.  Because of all the knowledge they have on users, companies could target precisely making the return on investment staggering.  However Zuckerberg wants to proceed cautiously based in part on what happened to MySpace which is in a downward spiral in part due to their excessive advertising.  
• Facebook's alliance with Microsoft could help them fight off Google for the lucrative search business.  This might be the only thing that could keep Google from taking over Microsoft.
• In spite of their cautious position on advertising they do have 200 ad salespeople and had revenue of $1.4B this year.  That's $875K per their 1,600 employees.

I really like Book TV.  It not only gives you the main points about the book but you discover what led the author to write this book, other publications from the author, and the real insights that the author got from writing the book.  Actually I have more retention and get more value out of a book in this format than reading it, and it takes a lot less time.

You have to admit this is an incredibly interesting story that has just begun.  And as a closing I will simply add that this could only happen in America.

 

 

Apple's iPhone 4 Problems

What are we to make of the reception problems Apple has with its iPhone 4?  What about how Apple handled the issue?  And how will their response affect their brand and customer loyalty?  First an overview.  Complaints started coming immediately following the release of the product.  The phone has steel bands around the outside which serve as an antenna.  When you cover up a gap between 2 of the bands on the lower right corner of the phone you experience dramatic signal loss and sometimes a lost call.  Apple's initial response by Steve Jobs was to tell consumers "not to hold the phone that way" and to release a website that explains how all Smartphones have this issue.  That response was not received very well from the loyal Apple customers who have come to expect high quality from this brand.  To make matters worse, Consumer Reports said because of the antenna problem that they cannot recommend the iPhone 4.  Here's the video including their duct tape solution:

If you are reading this post in an email, click here to go to the Consumer Report page to view the video.

Having spent 20+ years in technology I have lived through quality problems.  There was a case with a Wireless LAN product in a hospital where a patient fell on the floor and yet the wireless device designed to bring help for this specific type of situation failed due to a lack of signal.  When the engineers examined the case, it seems that they had tested almost every place in the hospital except on the floor.  This was actually not a design flaw but a poor testing plan/installation.  Another case was software releases for central office telephone switches.  These are massive computers with 25 million lines of code.  My company had a team of 100 patch writers to fix bugs post release.  The explanation was that it was impossible to predict interactions and permutations of the code plus it was easy to write and download the patches which averaged 600 per release.  But these problems were not critical and was a business decision explained to customers up front.  Apple's case is a bit different.

The latest episode finds Apple offering the following 4 solutions:

• They released a software upgrade (patch) to better report signal strength.  It doesn't actually fix the problem, just indicates signal strength more accurately.
• All iPhone 4 customers get a free bumper (case) or a refund if you previously purchased one.  The case prevents the problem from occurring.
• Unsatisfied customers can get a full refund.
• They showed this video at the press conference:

If you are reading this in an email, click here to view the video.

So what will be the long term effects?  I suspect very little.  For those lovers of all things Apple, their heroes have proven to have feet of clay, but, they have built their loyalty over the years and I believe this will pass.  For those who buy based on comparisons and market share, considering how Apple did address the issue [finally], I don't think this episode will affect them as developers are continuing to write significantly more applications than for the other mobile platforms.  The carrier can also help with increased network coverage for the G4 segment.  And don't forget that Apple's brand differentiation in the marketplace is ease of use, not technical superiority.  So unless they have another problem in the short run, they should be OK.  But they do need to remember what Scotty said on the original Star Trek TV show, "Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me."

        

 

Nashville Area Parents Create Safe Social Media Site for Their Kids and Yours

I saw an article in my local newspaper about a couple in Brentwood who launched a "safe" social media site for their kids called NeighborDog.com.  It's similar to Facebook and YouTube with more privacy settings and helpful editors.  It has safety features built in like avatars, tips for young users, neighborhood administrators, links to safety sites, and tips for parents.  It pitches a kid-friendly user interface including some tips and examples from [I assume] the family dog Floyd Goodneighbor.  

 

So here's my take.  I think this is an excellent idea.  The built-in security features and education in security is very good.  The FAQs are well written and provide much better instructions than Facebook or YouTube.  The logic is sound.  Since kids are naturally drawn to social media sites, why not create one that is focused on kids that includes good security?  Will it be successful?  Who knows?  I suspect even if it catches on there will be peer pressure to 'graduate' to the real world of Facebook and YouTube.  Do Facebook and YouTube not offer security?  They do.  You can use privacy in a similar manner.  However the focus here is on security and YouTube for example suggests you mark your videos 'public' even though you can make them private.  I like the idea of user-friendly editors for photo and video making the site better than Facebook, YouTube, or Flickr.  This should increase the likelihood that the kids will use the site.  The site is paid for through ads like the other social media sites.

So what don't I like?  I noticed a footer ad that reads, "Watch Kristin Cavallari's Best Moments on Laguna Beach".  Since it pictured a pretty young girl, I did some research.  Laguna Beach is a popular reality show on MTV focusing on wealthy teens.  Here's what Wikipedia had to say in its Criticism section: "The Parents Television Council argued that the sexually explicit and profane content in the series makes the show inappropriate for its intended audience".  Here's what CommonSenseMedia had to say:  "Parents need to know that this show offers plenty of mild profanity, sexuality, and other possibly objectionable content."  It could be that this is the best of the junk on MTV and since kids are drawn to this channel anyway it makes sense to use an ad.  But my view is that not only should this site not have used the ad, it should seek to take great care to not take on an ad that in any way is provocative and make this part of their charter.  I know they need ads to fund the site, but this is the kind of ad that will turn off parents. Note:  I commented to the newspaper article about this and the site owner replied that they do plan to ensure the ads are appropriate and that this is just a space filler. 

All in all I like this concept and except for the one ad it appears to me that they have nailed it.  My suggestion for the future is to keep working on the security piece.  You might consider a monitoring application [which you could sell] to parents that would enable them to have access to their kids' activities covertly.  You might consider a blog written by the family dog that addresses security without being preachy.  You could even get guest articles written by other animals which could be the alter-ego of security experts.  An extreme example might be a story of a kid who was hurt through a social media communication written by one of the law enforcement experts who pretends to be a kid as told by Mr. Boots his cat.  You might consider making the abuse link more obvious, i.e., a call to action button that reads 'Report Abuse'.  My final advice is to not stray from your niche; safety.  Don't go after location based features like Foursquare or Gowalla due to the potential abuse.  Be careful where you advertise.  As an example I would say it would be OK to advertise on Hanna Montanna, but not on Miley Cyrus.  Develop a parents' site or blog that is more direct with regard to security to bolster your credibility in the arena.  This way you can reference existing and new articles without having to create all the content.  You might contact every organization or publication that promotes child safety to help get the word out about your site.  Finally manage your growth so you are not pressured to take inappropriate ads and your network has the capacity to survive a viral event without crashing.

Good luck to the McCurrys.  I hope your site goes viral.  Here's a family photo:

 

 

Study Shows Reading Slower on iPad & Kindle but Satisfaction Higher

A study was recently conducted by Jakob Nielson, the "guru of web page usability" as per the NY Times among other lofty titles. The method was to have a group of readers to read the same source, a short story by Ernest Hemingway on 4 devices:  book, iPad, PC, and Kindle.  Reading speed was won by the book followed in order by the iPad, Kindle, and PC.  When asked about reading satisfaction the order was iPad, Kindle, book, and then the PC (significantly behind the other three).

So what are we to make of these findings?  Here are my thoughts based on involvement in several usability projects throughout my corporate career:

• Did familiarity affect results?  They did sort for people who consider themselves readers but the results did not indicate how many were regular users of the non-book media.  Were the satisfaction results skewed by people who were excited by reading on the new media and conversely slower based on unfamiliarity?
• What about the correlation between non-book devices and short attention spans?  How many people watch TV, carry on a conversation, or read email as an example while reading books where this is common for folks who use electronic mobile devices?
• In a laboratory trial, how much of the value of mobility and multiple uses influence the subjects?  What would have been the results of a test if they picked people in airports, with half visably using mobile devices versus reading books? 
• How much were the results affected by the magnitude of familiarity?  That is, were the subjects balanced by age (long-time readers) versus long-time users (a relative scale) of mobile devices?

My point is usability research is very complex.  However do I think the results of this study are rational?  Yes I do.  Just be a bit wary of these studies.  One experience I had was the development of a new telephone handset.  The Design Interpretive experts delivered a product well tested.  However when we put it into the marketplace the customers hated it.  I experienced another case where allegations of not being able to be heard on a telephone were difficult to corroborate because the subjects worked for a testing company and there were afraid they we were using a placebo.   It could have been what's been termed the Law of the Soggy Potato Chip:  Psychologist Fitzhugh Dodson once wrote about this in his book, How to Discipline With Love. He discusses using the analogy that children would rather have a soggy potato chip than no potato chip at all. Similarly, they would rather have negative attention than no attention at all.

Having said that it does seem that people will get used to the electronic versions of books and over time I suspect satisfaction will improve as well as reading speed.  And it sure beats hauling hardcovers through airports and struggling with their bulk.

      VS