Home » Archives for February 2010
Different types of blogs
With millions of people around the world of different ages and backgrounds blogging about whatever they feel like, it is about as easy to generalise about ‘bloggers’ as it is to make sweeping statements about ‘human beings’. Here are some of the main kinds of blogs you will come across:
Personal blogs
Many millions of people keep blogs about their everyday lives, much like public diaries. These sometimes become very popular indeed, especially those anonymous, slightly risqué ones. You know the sort: they get written about in the Sunday Times and become best-selling novels. One of the best-known personal blogs is Dooce.
Political blogs
Especially in the US, but increasingly in the UK, blogs are being written about politics. Often perceived as a response to media bias (across the political spectrum) they tend to comment on the news, giving closer analysis of issues they feel have been misrepresented or glossed over by mainstream media. In America most if not all of the contenders for the presidency in 2008 already have bloggers on staff to advise on reaching political bloggers and their readers. We are not quite at that stage in the UK, but blogging has been playing a part in the resurgence of grassroots Conservative politics, and right-of-centre bloggers such as Iain Dale and Guido Fawkes have been making their presence in the UK mainstream media. Influential examples from the political left include MediaLens and Harry’s Place.
Business blogs
Many professionals and businesses now have blogs. They can allow companies to communicate in a less formal style than has been traditional in newsletters, brochures and press releases, which can help to give a human face and voice to the organisation. For individuals in business a blog can become a very effective way of building a network of like-minded individuals and raising their own profiles. Blog Maverick is a good example.
‘Almost media’ blogs
Some blogs are unashamedly media businesses in their own right, taking advertising and employing a blogger or a group of bloggers full-time. Effectively, they are startups that are taking advantage of the new blogging technologies and opportunities to build communities of readers in new or niche subject areas. These are generally to be found covering news and opinion in the technology and media industries. Try
Businesspundit.com or Hecklerspray.
Mainstream media blogs
Most national newspapers in the UK – not to mention the BBC – now have blogs for some of their reporters and editors. These can provide useful insights into the news gathering and reporting process, but will also give vent to personal views that the journalist may otherwise have kept to themselves. For example, see BBC business editor Robert Peston’s blog. It’s worth noting that while many journalist blogs are hosted on newspaper sites themselves, a large number are independent, personal blogs with a major focus on their professional interests.
Reading blogs
The easiest way to read blogs is to subscribe to ones you find interesting using the Bloglines, Google Reader or Newsgator newsreader services. A newsreader is a website or piece of software where you can go to read a newsfeed that you are subscribed to via RSS. All blogs and most news websites have RSS feeds attached to them.
You can find blogs on topics that you’re interested in by using search engines like Technorati or Google Blog Search. If you find a blog which is particularly interesting or relevant to you, have a look for its ‘blogroll’ (list of recommended blogs) – it’s a great way of exploring the networks of blogs.
Read more…
Personal blogs
Many millions of people keep blogs about their everyday lives, much like public diaries. These sometimes become very popular indeed, especially those anonymous, slightly risqué ones. You know the sort: they get written about in the Sunday Times and become best-selling novels. One of the best-known personal blogs is Dooce.
Political blogs
Especially in the US, but increasingly in the UK, blogs are being written about politics. Often perceived as a response to media bias (across the political spectrum) they tend to comment on the news, giving closer analysis of issues they feel have been misrepresented or glossed over by mainstream media. In America most if not all of the contenders for the presidency in 2008 already have bloggers on staff to advise on reaching political bloggers and their readers. We are not quite at that stage in the UK, but blogging has been playing a part in the resurgence of grassroots Conservative politics, and right-of-centre bloggers such as Iain Dale and Guido Fawkes have been making their presence in the UK mainstream media. Influential examples from the political left include MediaLens and Harry’s Place.
Business blogs
Many professionals and businesses now have blogs. They can allow companies to communicate in a less formal style than has been traditional in newsletters, brochures and press releases, which can help to give a human face and voice to the organisation. For individuals in business a blog can become a very effective way of building a network of like-minded individuals and raising their own profiles. Blog Maverick is a good example.
‘Almost media’ blogs
Some blogs are unashamedly media businesses in their own right, taking advertising and employing a blogger or a group of bloggers full-time. Effectively, they are startups that are taking advantage of the new blogging technologies and opportunities to build communities of readers in new or niche subject areas. These are generally to be found covering news and opinion in the technology and media industries. Try
Businesspundit.com or Hecklerspray.
Mainstream media blogs
Most national newspapers in the UK – not to mention the BBC – now have blogs for some of their reporters and editors. These can provide useful insights into the news gathering and reporting process, but will also give vent to personal views that the journalist may otherwise have kept to themselves. For example, see BBC business editor Robert Peston’s blog. It’s worth noting that while many journalist blogs are hosted on newspaper sites themselves, a large number are independent, personal blogs with a major focus on their professional interests.
Reading blogs
The easiest way to read blogs is to subscribe to ones you find interesting using the Bloglines, Google Reader or Newsgator newsreader services. A newsreader is a website or piece of software where you can go to read a newsfeed that you are subscribed to via RSS. All blogs and most news websites have RSS feeds attached to them.
You can find blogs on topics that you’re interested in by using search engines like Technorati or Google Blog Search. If you find a blog which is particularly interesting or relevant to you, have a look for its ‘blogroll’ (list of recommended blogs) – it’s a great way of exploring the networks of blogs.
Folksonomies : power to the people
In recent times, an unprecedented amount of Web content has begun to be generated through web logs, wikis and other social tools thanks to lower technology and cost barriers. A new host of content creators is emerging, often individuals with the will to participate in discussions and share their ideas with like-minded people. This is to say that this increasing amount of varied, valuable content is generated by non-trained, non-expert information professionals: they are at the same time users and producers of information.
We have gone past a critical mass of connectivity between people that has introduced a new revolutionary ability to communicate, collaborate and share goods online.
To respond to these increased informational and exchange needs, new communication models are emerging and producing an incredible amount of distributed information that information management professionals, information architects, librarians and knowledge workers at large need to link, aggregate, and organize in order to extract knowledge.
The issue is whether the traditional organizational schemes used so far are suitable to address the classification needs of fast-proliferating, new information sources or if, to achieve this goal, better aggregation and concept matching tools are required.
Folksonomies attempt to provide a solution to this issue, by introducing an innovative distributed approach based on social classification.
Content communities often display characteristics of what are known as folksonomies.
The term folksonomy refers to the way that information is organised – it is a play on the word taxonomy, a classification system. In a folksonomy the information or content is “tagged” with one-word descriptors. Anyone can add a tag to a piece of content and see what other people have tagged, too. For instance, del.icio.us, a bookmark-sharing service that replaces the favourites folder on your web browser, is a prime example of a folksonomy. Content communities such as Flickr, YouTube and blogs generally make use of the folksonomy approach of tagging content to make it more easily found. Music folksonomies have proved particularly popular. Services such as last.fm let you tag tracks as you listen to them, and search and link to music based on other people’s tags.
Top 10 social media questions marketers want answered
We simply asked, "What question about marketing with social media do you most want answered?" A significant 685 people provided their open-ended responses. We clustered them into groups and ranked them below. These are the top questions marketing professionals want answered regarding social media marketing:
#1: What are the best tactics to use?
The top question marketers want answered is related to best practices and tactics. A sampling of some of those questions include:
• Which social media method has been the most successful overall and how have you used that method?
• How do I stand out while creating strategic partnerships with those in the same field?
• How can social media help to build our brand and reinforce our credibility among consumers?
• Can using blogs, short videos, tweets and status updates help us market our core products, or do they just get in the way of our message?
• Is it true that social media marketing is better suited for branding than direct response?
#2: How do I measure the effectiveness of social media?
The next biggest question on people's minds can be summarized as, "How can I know if campaigns are working and what will the return be?" A sampling of questions in this category include:
• How do you measure success?
• What is the return on investment? Silly thing, but management needs it.
• What metrics are translatable in real terms that we can use as proof points or milestones?
• How do I assess return on investment and measure the impact on brand valuation?
#3: Where do I start?
A large percentage of marketers want to know where to begin with social media marketing. Some common questions include:
• Is there a system or a plan that can be reproduced? Such as, "start here, go here, then here and then here..."
• I want to better incorporate social media into my marketing efforts, but there are so many options that I don't know where to begin. Where are the best places to start?
• How do newbies like me get started?
#4: How do I manage the social balance?
Understanding the balance between behaving properly and marketing is a common question people want answered. Here are a few related questions:
• How do I respect the medium and maintain proper etiquette for each social media outlet?
• How carefully should we proceed with social media, so what's meant to be "social" doesn't turn out to be "business" only?
• Are there online protocols for beginners so we don't break the "unspoken rules" that experienced marketers know about already?
#5: What are the best sites and tools out there?
Given the endless array of social media options, it's no surprise that marketers want to fast-track their experience by focusing on the sites and tools that will bring the greatest return. Here are a few sample questions from this cluster group:
• Which social media sites should I concentrate my efforts on?
• What are the top three most effective and easiest to implement social media tools?
• What social media platforms are customers going to be looking at in three months and three years from now?
• Which elements are persistent and long-term versus those that are fads?
• What sites are best to use for my market?
#6: How do I make the most of my available time?
Many who have already begun marketing with social media recognize the enormous amount of time that can be directed to such efforts. Managing the time sink is a common question. Here are a few samples from this category:
• How do I keep up without getting consumed?
• How can I aggregate and automate social media marketing so that it's less timeconsuming?
• How do people cope with thousands of followers?
#7: How do I find and focus my efforts on my target audience?
Because of the broad nature of many social media sites, it's no surprise that marketers want to know how to narrow their efforts to an audience that matches their desired demographics. Here are a few questions from this grouping:
• How do I reach my "target" customers/business partners and drive traffic to my site or blog?
• What are the practical ways to use social media for more of a niche market?
• How can I target social media marketing tools to my target market?
• How can I best find people who are interested in the same things I am?
#8: How do I convert my social media marketing efforts into tangible results?
Moving from effort to actual income is a question many marketers want answered. What follows are a few questions from this category:
• How do I convert lookers to prospects?
• How do we create cash flow?
• How do I move from Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook activities to a sale?
• What generates sales and what generates business?
• How do I monetize social media marketing?
#9: How do I cohesively tie different social media efforts together?
Can social media and traditional media work together? Is there a way to manage all the social media campaigns in one central location? These are the types of questions marketers are seeking answers to in this category. Here's a few more:
• How do I tie all the pieces together into one cohesive strategy?
• Are there any apps that will let me use several social media tools at once for my marketing campaigns?
• How can we aggregate various social media channels into a single view so we reduce the amount of time required to visit numerous sites and see a holistic view of the social spheres we're part of?
• How do we integrate social media into our traditional media?
#10: Does social media marketing work, and if so, how effective is it?
Surprisingly, this is question number 10. Marketers want to know if social media marketing really works.
Here are some related questions in this category:
• Where are the documented real success stories?
• Does it really work, or is it just a great idea that doesn't return real value?
• Does anybody know how it really works?
• Where's the money?
5 Bonus Questions: Here are a few more questions that did not make our top 10 list. Each of these questions was asked by between 12 and 19 different people.
• How do I get others to see the value and get involved?
• What does the future look like?
• How do I manage the complexity?
• How do I attract traffic to my efforts?
• Is it cost-effective?
#1: What are the best tactics to use?
The top question marketers want answered is related to best practices and tactics. A sampling of some of those questions include:
• Which social media method has been the most successful overall and how have you used that method?
• How do I stand out while creating strategic partnerships with those in the same field?
• How can social media help to build our brand and reinforce our credibility among consumers?
• Can using blogs, short videos, tweets and status updates help us market our core products, or do they just get in the way of our message?
• Is it true that social media marketing is better suited for branding than direct response?
#2: How do I measure the effectiveness of social media?
The next biggest question on people's minds can be summarized as, "How can I know if campaigns are working and what will the return be?" A sampling of questions in this category include:
• How do you measure success?
• What is the return on investment? Silly thing, but management needs it.
• What metrics are translatable in real terms that we can use as proof points or milestones?
• How do I assess return on investment and measure the impact on brand valuation?
#3: Where do I start?
A large percentage of marketers want to know where to begin with social media marketing. Some common questions include:
• Is there a system or a plan that can be reproduced? Such as, "start here, go here, then here and then here..."
• I want to better incorporate social media into my marketing efforts, but there are so many options that I don't know where to begin. Where are the best places to start?
• How do newbies like me get started?
#4: How do I manage the social balance?
Understanding the balance between behaving properly and marketing is a common question people want answered. Here are a few related questions:
• How do I respect the medium and maintain proper etiquette for each social media outlet?
• How carefully should we proceed with social media, so what's meant to be "social" doesn't turn out to be "business" only?
• Are there online protocols for beginners so we don't break the "unspoken rules" that experienced marketers know about already?
#5: What are the best sites and tools out there?
Given the endless array of social media options, it's no surprise that marketers want to fast-track their experience by focusing on the sites and tools that will bring the greatest return. Here are a few sample questions from this cluster group:
• Which social media sites should I concentrate my efforts on?
• What are the top three most effective and easiest to implement social media tools?
• What social media platforms are customers going to be looking at in three months and three years from now?
• Which elements are persistent and long-term versus those that are fads?
• What sites are best to use for my market?
#6: How do I make the most of my available time?
Many who have already begun marketing with social media recognize the enormous amount of time that can be directed to such efforts. Managing the time sink is a common question. Here are a few samples from this category:
• How do I keep up without getting consumed?
• How can I aggregate and automate social media marketing so that it's less timeconsuming?
• How do people cope with thousands of followers?
#7: How do I find and focus my efforts on my target audience?
Because of the broad nature of many social media sites, it's no surprise that marketers want to know how to narrow their efforts to an audience that matches their desired demographics. Here are a few questions from this grouping:
• How do I reach my "target" customers/business partners and drive traffic to my site or blog?
• What are the practical ways to use social media for more of a niche market?
• How can I target social media marketing tools to my target market?
• How can I best find people who are interested in the same things I am?
#8: How do I convert my social media marketing efforts into tangible results?
Moving from effort to actual income is a question many marketers want answered. What follows are a few questions from this category:
• How do I convert lookers to prospects?
• How do we create cash flow?
• How do I move from Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook activities to a sale?
• What generates sales and what generates business?
• How do I monetize social media marketing?
#9: How do I cohesively tie different social media efforts together?
Can social media and traditional media work together? Is there a way to manage all the social media campaigns in one central location? These are the types of questions marketers are seeking answers to in this category. Here's a few more:
• How do I tie all the pieces together into one cohesive strategy?
• Are there any apps that will let me use several social media tools at once for my marketing campaigns?
• How can we aggregate various social media channels into a single view so we reduce the amount of time required to visit numerous sites and see a holistic view of the social spheres we're part of?
• How do we integrate social media into our traditional media?
#10: Does social media marketing work, and if so, how effective is it?
Surprisingly, this is question number 10. Marketers want to know if social media marketing really works.
Here are some related questions in this category:
• Where are the documented real success stories?
• Does it really work, or is it just a great idea that doesn't return real value?
• Does anybody know how it really works?
• Where's the money?
5 Bonus Questions: Here are a few more questions that did not make our top 10 list. Each of these questions was asked by between 12 and 19 different people.
• How do I get others to see the value and get involved?
• What does the future look like?
• How do I manage the complexity?
• How do I attract traffic to my efforts?
• Is it cost-effective?
A Showcase of Beautiful Typography in Web Design A Showcase of Beautiful Typography in Web Design
We all know how important typography is. Choosing the right typeface(s), colors and, if necessary, applying the right type treatment can help tremendously in conveying your message to your audience. Most of the websites showcased today use large typography mostly in their headers, but also in other places such as sub-headings and other elements to draw attention to areas of importance. Let’s take a look at some of the best examples.
Stackoverflow Dev Days
Get Finch
Carsonified Events
PolarGold
We Are Academy
Joao Andrade
Project 365
Digital Mash
Gummisig
Electric Pulp
Kyle Steed
Agencia De Publicidade De Brasilia
Josh Hemsley
Sundance 2010
Benny Roth
Pulchry
Design Wise
Denise Chandler
DIBI Conference
Dreamerlines
FL2’s Blog
The Less Is More Tour
Sourhaze EP
David Jonsson
Carsonispace
Dustin Curtis – Sleep
Huge Inc.
Elysium Burns
Made By Giant
For A Beautiful Web
Alpha Multimedia
Design Woop
Soda Virtual
Find Me By IP
Lorem Ipsum
25 Beautiful Examples of “Coming Soon” Pages
"Coming soon" pages are a great way to tide over your visitors until you finish your new website. They can be used as a teaser for your future website, or places to simply put your information where people can get to it while you are under digital construction. We are going to look at a collection of how websites are successfully using "coming soon" pages.
1. SquidChef
SquidChef has a cute under-the-sea theme and an illustrated squid character to go with their name "SquidChef". Having a character illustration like this almost ensures that the site is going to have a friendly feel. (Check out some more illustrated character designs). I also like the idea of putting all the information into the talk bubble.
2. Accentuate
I like the color scheme of this "coming soon site". It’s a simple theme that uses pink to highlight the important areas. The colors go well with the simple layout of the website and the image of the chairs makes the website more interesting than just having text.
3. Flowdock
Having an illustrated look to a website usually gives it more of a fun and laidback feel. It has a bright and welcoming color palette, and I like how the headings in the three sections in the footer are different colors. It makes the color flow throughout.
4. Rumble Labs
Usually when you say "hello" right off the bat, it gives off a friendly vibe, and despite the dark background, this page gives that endearing feeling. The bright highlight colors help emphasize that point, as well as the arrow and dotted lines.
5. Irava Stefan
I like the hovering logo – it creates a sort of 3D look, which gives the page a little more dimension. Also, what makes this site interesting is that when you hover over the logo and Twitter icon with your mouse, it displays more information. (Learn how to create 3D text via this tutorial).
6. chocolatepool
The brightly colored quirky illustration gives a good sense of what the style of work could be, or at the very least, gives fun laidback feel. The sign that says, "summer" integrated into the illustration gives a hint as to when the website will launch.
7. Berengere Monin
This website has a very nice clean and simple look. I like the Asian-inspired style, with the tree/plant on the right and the black, white and red color scheme. It gives the "coming soon" page a nice sense of simplicity.
8. Birdboxx
This is a successful illustrated "coming soon" web page. This site pours out a peaceful and calming character with the green colors and the white dove.
9. Creative Joomla! Design Book
I like the sketchy-style of this soon-to-launch page. Not only is it a fun layout, but it is also useful, with the "be updated" web form mixed in to the design. This "coming soon" page gives you ways of keeping in touch, by including Twitter and email options into the composition.
10. Lilly’s Table
The color palette is what really draws me to this website. The colors have a slight retro feel (learn how to create a retro color scheme), but it still gives off a bright, clean, vibrant feel. In addition, I like how the last post from their blog is displayed on the left.
11. ChkChkBoom
I like the paint splatter effect, which they use to draw attention to the important parts of the layout. They also use some bright colors to emphasize certain areas like the headline, and the green play button which is used for the RSS email feed.
12. Mogulista
This website gives off a glamorous countenance, and that is probably because the business is geared towards women, who typically find these sorts of theme appealing. What really struck me about this "coming soon" site was the navigation. They use a nice animation that keeps you on the same page but rolls in and out new text below the logo.
13. Dialed Tone
I like the usage of the 3D dial, as well as the shadows on the "coming soon" box and the sign up button, which give the site a lot more dimension.
14. Evert Slagter
The icons are a nice touch considering they work with mobile user experience. I also like the simplicity and the subtle light glow in the background that gives it a little more depth that just having a black background.
15. Chuck Barrett
I think when I look at this, I immediately get an idea for what kind of style of fashion will be on the future website with the black and white photo. I also like the idea of having the icons in grayscale, which goes with the photo, and how, when you hover over them, they change to colored.
16. Jon Ward
At first glance, this is your run-of-the-mill name, logo, and title "coming soon" page, but if you stay on it for a second or two, you’ll notice that where the job title is, is actually an animation that rotates the title, email and phone number. It’s a great way to present that little bit more information, and at the same time keep the page as simple, but engaging, as possible.
17. FILTERED.LANGUAGE
The logo has a techno look to it, which was why it drew me to the site in the first place. It turns out that it’s for a poetry publication. Regardless, the logo, which gives this "coming soon" page a nice dose of color, is spectacular.
18. Johnny Walker Plumbing
I love how simple the look is, but you can still get the impression that he is a plumber at someone’s house fixing their flooded toilet or sink. It is simple but effective.
19. DesignSvn
I always love good Photoshop lighting work, and this website has it working really well with the web 2.0ish Twitter and subscribe icons.
20. Upstate Design Collective
Other than the 3D effects, I really like how the bright fresh colors make the website stand out.
21. Handsome and Gorgeous Clothing
I think that it is important to showcase your merchandise, even if your website isn’t finished yet. I also like the use of the jagged edge, giving it a layered fabric feel, which is appropriate for what they are selling.
22. The Republic
I like the white design with the subtle cityscape at the bottom; it gives it an interesting look. I also like how they use gray colors instead of the typical black on white, which gives it a less harsh look and helps to make the logo mark stand out more.
23. Gimmr
Not only does this "coming soon" page have a color scheme that I really like, it also has a unique feature. You can upload a photo of yourself and add glasses to your portrait so you can look like the character/mascot to the left (which you can then use as your avatar).
24. myNiteLife
This is another website that uses some nice lighting effects, and the purple colors give it a night feel that goes perfectly with their name (myNightlife).
25. FavMovie!
It seems like they are using their "coming soon" page as more of a teaser, not really saying what they’re all about. All I can gather is that it has something to do with about movies (probably). If you want to find out, you can sign up for email updates.
