Writings from Force 5 Basecamp

04/12/11

The use of smart phones to scan barcodes (1D, 2D, QR) is happening now with growth rates hitting over 800% from a year ago according to the latest report from ScanLife.  Some highlights I found interesting: The most popular 2D bar code campaign was for Film.  Codes were placed primarily outdoor and online. Beverages are amongs the items most scanned.  Books are

04/04/11

Mobile browsing is here and now.  With estimates that over 50% of all mobile phones sold this year will be smart, preparing your website to become an amazing internet experience on these devices can be challenging.   As mobile technology continues to evolve into tomorrow, keeping it simple today is a must.  How simple?  Think Cave Man simple. Here some things

03/28/11

Just like in the ole West, or at least as our Western movies tell us, Black hats are villains – and usually up to “no good”. The New York Times recently noticed something odd when performing Google searches on terms as diverse as bedding, skinny jeans, area rugs and grommet-top curtains. “You could imagine a dozen contenders for each of

02/08/11

I was listening to NPR last week, and they were discussing “fractured culture”. The premise is that today we live in a world of infinite choices. Most homes have the choice of hundreds of channels, and within those channels are documentaries, cartoons, drama, reality, and talent shows. On the computer you can surf millions of websites, video games, listen to

02/07/11

Super Bowl ads have become an event all in themselves over the years. Unexpected hilarity, moving stories, elaborate CG effects all are pieced together to make impressions on viewers. But does their strategy pay off? The digital water coolers are crowded the Monday morning after the Super Bowl with various reactions and impressions. These commercials that have people talking are

01/21/11

A few weeks ago I was reading the usual list of technology sites and came across an interesting debate on how Microsoft is planning to embed ad blocking technology into its browser, while Google and Mozilla will not. The items that were discussed got be thinking about what I use and how that relates to the Web as a whole.

01/11/11

My blog post last week on discoverforce5.com left you with this question:  “How much should a marketer promise about an experience?”  Probably better stated as : “How do I promise people enough to move them to action without setting them up for disappointment once they make the move?” I had several conversations about this last week.  It was clear this question hit home

01/05/11

Almost every modern website has a “search my site” module of some sort added to it. In this How-To I’m going to explain how to set up Karamasoft UltimateSearch to automatically rebuild its index on a repeating scheduled basis in a Microsoft Windows hosted environment. First, you will need to obtain the UltimateSearch software from the Karamasoft site, found at:

01/03/11

Marketers are promise –makers.  They use their promises to set expectations high enough to move consumers to action: to buy their stuff, read their books, to come to their show, etc.  PT Barnum made big promises.  He promised, “The Greatest Show on Earth” – the ultimate claim – not a better show anywhere on the planet.  I imagine his customers

12/09/10

Having duplicated content within search engines is a very common problem that is often overlooked. You would think having duplicated content will be good for your search rankings, although that is not the case as it may be not useful to the end-user. www-vs-non-www (Problem) Search engines recognize your www.your-domain.com and your-domain.com as two separate websites. You may not be

11/22/10

When I was a kid, I loved watching the The Road Runner Show cartoon on TV after school.  Yes, it was a little violent. Yes, it was a lot predictable. And no, it really wasn’t very funny.  But what I liked about the show was the Coyote’s creativity.  What imagination! I mean really, this dude had some creative chutzpah!  He came

10/14/10

Earlier this year, the University of Maryland researched social media efforts being made by small businesses. In early 2010, about 25% of small businesses said they were using social media. The most recent survey from Network Solutions and the Center for Excellence in Service at the University of Maryland points to a stall in the number of small businesses that