Sustainable Marketing Solutions

Web usability: Dismissed in bubbles, embraced during trouble

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It seems just like yesterday when “design usability” was all the rage. I recall it was right around the time of the dot-com crash, with ecommerce sites folding like a bad poker hand, that “usability” became royalty. Companies that were eagerly rolling out the red carpet during those tough times were often the same ones that wouldn’t acknowledge usability during the good times.

With a proven reputation in retail circles, the principles of web usability ultimately pervaded the corporate world – where guru Jakob Nielsen became a household name. The web world was getting it. Design and usability were very important.

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It’s been about 6 months since I joined Twitter. For a multitude of reasons, I’ve valued every minute of it. To give you a taste of My Twitter, I am sharing a list of my favorite “tweets” – most of which are the flavor of “fun.” This post was inspired in part by a Tweetversation with Rodney Rumford on 17 December 2008, the day I gave him a Yellow Star (the icon for a Favorite Tweet).

My Favorite Tweets

	Rumford if a twitter nudge is like a facebook poke, then i want a bitch slap function on twitter. 33 minutes ago from web
	craignewmark Back home in SF, all observed ice is in glasses, as God intended. 3:44 PM Dec 10th from iTweet
	kwbridge Should I feel honored or creeped out if someone is following 2 people – me and CNN – LOL 12:51 PM Dec 9th from TweetDeck
	meangrape Note to self: do not use that brand of wife’s conditioner on my beard again — instant floral perfume is not what I’m going for. 11:28 PM Dec 7th from mobile web
	lizstrauss People forget what you said. They get foggy about what you did. But they remember how you made them feel. 9:01 PM Dec 7th from TweetDeck
	howardlindzon Caveman prehistoric sounds from mens room at newark. I just ran out. 1:35 PM Dec 7th from txt
	jowyang Weve created a new term for people who tweet at parties: anti social social or ASS #time4wine 9:08 PM Dec 6th from txt
	MarketingProfs Really happy that my 11 y o tried out for her middle school’s play. It’s an awesome thing to watch your kids face their fears… and win. 2:29 PM Nov 20th from web
	howardlindzon This market looks like a toilet in Tijuana at the end of a night 12:42 PM Nov 20th from TweetDeck
	howardlindzon Just blamed the market problems on financial terrorists. 20 9 year olds crying. My work is done here. 8:47 AM Nov 20th from txt
	howardlindzon I just told a class of 9 year olds that Paulson is a jackass asshat. They love me $$ 8:34 AM Nov 20th from txt
	Armano The truth about “social media” is that it’s powered by human beings, and so instantly flawed. Which is why it’s both wonderful and terrible 8:06 AM Nov 20th from TweetDeck
	Armano social media is nirvana when we like it and a mob when we don’t 8:01 AM Nov 20th from TweetDeck
	howardlindzon Max, rachel and I are at Dairy Queen doing all we can to bailout warren buffett. 5:49 PM Nov 19th from txt
	jowyang Nearly everything gets monetized, I noticed this from my youth passing the coffer down the pew at church. 4:07 PM Nov 19th from web
	JonBurg btw – best analogy I’ve heard today – Twitter is the Digital Water Cooler. 3:09 PM Nov 19th from web
	MackCollier Social media success will never be based on attempting to monetize personal interactions. $$$ comes as byproduct of interactions not from 12:15 PM Nov 19th from TweetDeck
	guykawasaki @TechCrunch How can you tell me what is more important to me? If I had to pick between Twitter and cell phone, I would pick Twitter. 9:12 AM Nov 19th from TweetDeck in reply to TechCrunch
	chrisbrogan Wow… lots of speakers “throat clearing” here. It’s like writing a 260 page preface to a 270 page book. 7:41 AM Nov 19th from TweetDeck
	pearsonified F*k, I need a ride 2 miles away, but that’s like asking someone to cut off an arm in Hollywood 1:25 PM Nov 18th* from web

	kevinokeefe Sitting back and looking at TweetDeck and the info exchanged by lawyers and the comradery among you is flat out amazing. 9:15 PM Nov 17th from TweetDeck
	briansolis Please stop feeding the very thing that unravels the essence of the Twitter community by measuring and publicizing your place within it. 8:59 PM Nov 14th from web
	pattyinboothbay Heading to the tub to read my Kindle in a zip loc bag. 8:11 PM Nov 10th from web
	cspenn “There are four boxes to be used in the defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury and ammo. Please use in that order.” -Ed Howdershelt 12:24 PM Nov 3rd from TweetDeck
	kamichat Chris Baggott adds that money used to be the only driver on who succeeded in a market, now passion and expertise also count #solutionsstars 10:26 AM Oct 29th from web
	worleygirl Unintentionally, but Paco showed great analogy for how companies should approach customers in soc media. Hip to hip vs. face to face. #fcf08 10:24 AM Oct 29th from TweetDeck
	kamichat According to Tony Hsieh,@zappos went from no sales to $1B in gross sales for 2008, the number one driver for this is repeat sales and WOM 10:18 AM Oct 29th from web
	bethevans Latest China food crisis rumors are that meat, seafood, eggs and dairy are all unsafe. So basically the whole country should become vegan. 2:19 AM Oct 29th from web
	Scobleizer More followers? What does that prove? I judge myself by who I follow. 8:00 PM Oct 28th from web
	jspepper Biggest problem in PR and social media: the belief it’s cookie cutter. Very little original thought or understanding of tactics/strategy. 7:46 PM Oct 27th from twhirl
	giovanni Now that oil is less than $65 a barrel, WHY am I still paying an additional $15 to check a bag? 6:18 PM Oct 27th from Ping.fm
	kdpaine Just gave the waitress my room number in Wichita and realize i have no clue what my room number is here in Detroit. def of road warrior 7:57 AM Oct 26th from mobile web
	kdpaine @kamichat which is why we monitor conversations, but we measure relationships! 4:15 PM Oct 24th from web in reply to kamichat
	howardowens Maybe now we can have a serious discussion in this country about what to do rather than hastily follow Bush off another cliff? 4:32 AM Sep 30th from web
	jowyang I know one brand who want to blog as they saw their competitors do it. I asked “whats your goal” they said “thought leadership” #paradox 6:33 PM Sep 28th from web
	jowyang It’s entertaining how the tourists in SF always ask ME for directions to China town. 8:48 PM Sep 27th from web
	prprof_mv under-eye wrinkles. My face is beginning to look lived-in. I actually like that. 8:25 AM Sep 27th from TweetDeck
	dcarli Social Visualization & Re-Cognition: Using social media visualization tools to develop a new and better shared understanding of an issue. 7:24 AM Sep 27th from web
	howardowens Caller id: Unrecognized phone number; caller ID says “RAINMAKER” … let that one go to voice mail. 7:46 AM Sep 26th from web
	chrisbrogan Oh my belly. It appears that I liked the Mexican lunch more than it loved me. 🙁 7:14 AM Sep 25th from twitterrific

	MarketerBlog Kahlow: B2B marketing & social media – SM is price of doing business, keep it simple, helps foster long-term relationships. #et08 12:23 PM Sep 24th from web
	dcarli The key to economic recovery is to make markets transparent & the businesses in them energy efficient, energy independent & carbon neutral. 7:38 AM Sep 20th from web
	dcarli At the end of the day the economy is all about and ultimately runs on energy. Follow the Energy. 7:32 AM Sep 20th from web
	skydiver New HARO rule: if you email me and ask “what’s the website for helpareporter.com?” you don’t get added on principle. 🙂 1:19 PM Sep 16th from TwitterBerry
	dcarli I really like the idea of government back energy conservation bonds! Anyone else! Amory Lovins would call them “Negawatt Bonds” 11:42 AM Sep 16th from web
	jowyang I just slipped up, (I’m so tired) “how do you keep track of all the Virgins of your Software?” (I meant versions) 1:30 PM Sep 12th from web
	TDefren “I never did give them hell. I just told the truth, and they thought it was hell.” – Harry Truman 7:30 AM Sep 11th from TwitKit
	howardowens I want my leaders to have done something. Having spent a career in politics is to have done nothing. 5:41 PM Sep 5th from web
	jowyang Oh dear, imagine if an alien found @kevinrose and @scobleizer‘s DNA and created a hybrid. It would be a beer drinking tweeting machine 6:50 AM Sep 5th from web
	joshdmorg play like you’re in first, train like you’re in second. I think this is the strategy the Reps are using. 12:29 AM Sep 5th from web
	chrisbrogan The difference between persuasion and influence is the same as blasting holes through mountains vs going around 10:29 PM Sep 4th from txt
	jljohansen @jyarmis @swhitley Now I have a sarcastic post stuck in my head titled: “Social Media Uncovers New Revenue Stream for Business – Customers!” 1:51 PM Sep 4th from twhirl in reply to jyarmis
	chrisbrogan 1 evening showing of Peter Pan, 2 bottles of art supply glitter found, 2 sleeping-in-late parents= pixie dust everywhere 6:41 AM Aug 30th from txt
	whatsnext jeez, i wonder what they do in rehab for sex addiction? http://tinyurl.com/5r922y 9:56 AM Aug 29th from web
	TDefren “There are only two ways of telling the complete truth–anonymously and posthumously.” – Thomas Sowell 7:01 AM Aug 27th from TwitKit
	jowyang I visited a social networking company here’s how the receptionist titled me http://tinyurl.com/686aoo 11:00 AM Aug 26th from web
	whatsnext debt elimination is the new penis enlargement in spam mails. 3:25 PM Aug 18th from web
	TobyDiva lazy, sunny sunday drinking coffee reading the nyt – ink on my fingers. rather like that. 8:42 AM Aug 17th from web
	TDefren Best part about visiting the dentist is walking out, knowing you won’t be back for at least 6 months. 7:05 AM Aug 6th from web
	ConversationAge @uncommon_sense one story- in winter, when getting into local stores, her eyeglasses would fog up she’d smile and say, one sec as I find you 11:36 AM Aug 5th from web in reply to uncommon_sense

	jowyang With an ER doctor friend hes seen beans above the frank, yuck 12:25 AM Aug 3rd from txt
	howardowens IM’ing with my wife sitting on the other side of the room. 10:56 AM Aug 2nd from web
	jowyang Overheard during vendor briefing: “Opinions are like ssholes, everyone has one and they all stink” I lol’d 1:12 PM Jul 30th* from web
	MarketerBlog Was Twitter down a lot in November? There are a lot of social media types having babies recently 10:03 AM Jul 23rd from Netvibes
	jowyang Is it bad that I notice that email resolves itself if you ignore it? 😉 5:44 PM Jul 18th from web
	briansolis The Social Revolution is Our Industrial Revolution, http://tinyurl.com/5eunaw 8:34 AM Jul 14th from web
	ConversationAge If you encounter a lot of opposition you’re onto to something… gotta remember that 😉 5:57 AM Jul 9th from web
	bethevans learned the hard way that electricity in China is prepaid. 7:30 PM Jul 3rd from web
	TDefren If you’re getting kicked in the butt, at least it means you’re in the front. http://tinyurl.com/5u53d4 5:48 AM Jul 3rd from TweetBar
	ConversationAge Twittervana is when the people adding you equal the people leaving or fleeing your stream 😉 5:55 PM Jun 30th from web
	briansolis The Conversation Chasm – the division between the desire to comment and the time and effort actually required to do so. 8:42 AM Jun 24th from web
	TDefren How often do you find yourself writing something clever in an email to someone … and then deciding to “blog it instead?” 6:54 AM Jun 24th from web
	TDefren The future of Public Relations will be anchored in the simple goal of humanizing the organization. 6:42 AM Jun 24th from web
	bethevans Poll: is it too shameless of a pun to name my blog Beijing Duck? 3:45 AM Jun 17th from web (relevance note: Beth is a University of Oregon graduate)
	toniasarah Chocolate melted on your pants doesn’t translate to “chocolate melted on your pants” 4:34 PM May 13th from txt

And, last but not least: My favorite Direct Message response (which came in after I commented about the reasons people “Unfollow” you on Twitter)…

Me: all I can say is: don’t ever mention the Dixie chicks! 🙂

mark_hayward I am laughing because that is probably the last thing I would ever mention! Did you have Dixie fallout? 6:36 PM Oct 13th

If you’re currently on Twitter, feel free to leave your handle/address here in the comments. For those of you who are not (yet) on Twitter, please feel free to join us!

See you on the Tweetside,
Jaculynn
http://twitter.com/diablogue_chat

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LinkedIn’s soon-to-be-missed opportunity

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Last month, over half a million jobs were lost in the USA alone. In the upcoming months, the number is expected to increase — globally.

With hordes of people looking for work and networking opportunities, why is LinkedIn creating upgrades and improvements for its business clients and recruiters?

I understand that LinkedIn needs to make money…just like we all do. But doesn’t the carrot (in this case, the users – the folks who are in, about to enter or out of the job market) have to come before the donkey (businesses seeking consumer feedback and recruiters seeking talent)?

And wouldn’t a massive influx of new users – rushing to network and connect – create a carrot of epic proportions? Imagine doubling or tripling the size of LinkedIn’s user base. How appealing would that be for LinkedIn’s premium users, recruiter clients, and advertisers? The market research value *alone* is mind boggling.

LinkedIn has had plenty of time to prepare for this opportunity. It’s not as if we just started to get clued in about the unemployment numbers, which have been on a steady increase since the beginning of the year. And not just here in the USA either.

I know recently laid-off people who’ve gone to LinkedIn – either as new users or existing users looking to change their status. And it was a challenge. It’s a challenge because the system is not designed for the unemployed. It’s not designed for the self-employed either. It’s not designed for students or those who recently graduated. And it is definitely not designed for mothers who make side money working on the Internet from home. I could go on.

FOR EXAMPLE: Yesterday, I went over to LinkedIn to update my profile. Soon I was “wrestling” with the application to try to get it to do what I wanted and needed. I am a sole proprietor. I am my company. My company is me. I do not have a company name. Yet I had to supply a company name in order to continue updating my profile.

So who is LinkedIn really designed for?

Is it for young adults? Or veteran professionals (as described in the 4 Types of LinkedIn Users)? If yes, then why aren’t there more options for posting references and recommendations? Users should be able to include references / recommendations / kudos from past colleagues, employers, letters, emails, graduate school applications, etc. Even with an enhanced search function, sometimes it is still not easy to locate a reference from 20 years ago – who may or may not be alive today and able to join LinkedIn.

Another example: LinkedIn’s mandatory choices for “How Do You Know So and So?” are narrow and limiting (e.g. Why can’t we have an option for “Other” under Groups and Associations?) as well. The choices do not fully represent real-life situations.

So, to the folks who are designing and “improving” LinkedIn…

Who is your primary community?
What does your primary community need?
What circumstances might lead the members of your primary community to either sign up for the first time or update their profile?
How does your primary community use LinkedIn?
Have you asked your primary community members what they want from LinkedIn?

Like anything, the ability to grow depends first on the ability to survive. So, basic needs must be met before indulgent wants. If I don’t fit into LinkedIn’s advertising demographics and LinkedIn doesn’t fulfill my basic needs (to update a profile or change geographic location), does that mean I should look elsewhere for a different business networking platform?

I’ve been a member of LinkedIn for about three years. I’ve always considered it to be a valuable resource. But lately, it feels like LinkedIn and I are starting to grow apart. This was most recently validated when I tried to contact Customer Service “as a user” a number of times with no response. Shortly thereafter I gave LinkedIn another ping “as a business upgrade prospect” and received an immediate reply. So maybe LinkedIn is going through some growing pains of its own. Maybe it’s time for LinkedIn to further refine and hone its business focus so that it matches its own projection of the ideal advertising demographic profile.

In the world of Web 2.0, there’s no such thing as a “lock” on the market or a “defacto standard” product. If LinkedIn won’t meet the needs of the people in this rapidly growing segment – the unemployed – they will go elsewhere. Or more likely – create their own version of LinkedIn.

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The “State” of programs and policies in support of sustainability

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“Since the 1970s, states have rapidly outpaced the federal government in both spending commitments to energy efficiency and adopting landmark efficiency policies, including appliance and equipment efficiency standards, building energy codes, and energy efficiency resource standards.”

– 2008 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard, ACEEE, October 2008

Although America’s states have been independently embracing energy efficiency for the last 30+ years, the last decade in particular has been a healthy incubator period for the growth of vital programs and progressive policies in support of the 3Es of sustainability: Environment, Economy, Equity/Social Benefit.

One of the reasons it’s been healthy is because the “quantity of Executive Orders have declined while municipal and state requirements have increased,” according to the National Sustainable Building Advisor Program. In essence, the lack of Executive Orders is giving states and local municipalities the opportunity to creatively explore and courageously blaze trails for our future.

With over a decade of such activity now under our belt, we are in a better position to kick up these initiatives to the next level, just in time for some helpful Federal budget commitments and oversight. The reason the timing is right is because we now have baselines, standards, discoveries, methodologies and best practices that can feed into, shape, and insure the success of any future core missions and policies mandated by our Federal government.

By creating, learning, shaping, analyzing, documenting, and improving green building initiatives at the local level, we are forming a strong national foundation for the future of sustainability.

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Two great eBooks available from Triiibes

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For your personal and professional enlightenment about leadership, there’s two FREE eBooks available now from Seth Godin’s Triiibes community:

1. Tribes Casebook – A compilation of hundreds of tribe-building case studies that were written, edited and critiqued by thousands of members in Triiibes. (A submission from yours truly is on page 212.)

2. Tribes Q & A Book – A fabulous resource for building and leading tribes, developed by a core group of brilliant Triiibsters. Download it for yourself today.

SPECIAL NOTE: Both of these eBooks complement the recent release of Seth Godin‘s best-selling hardcover book, Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us, which I highly recommend. ENJOY!

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