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Category: Technology
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Seven steps to learning a new technology
Have you ever had a client say something like, “I love that idea, but can you write it in Ruby?” Your gut drops, and your blood pressure rises. Outside of hearing the Ruby referenced all the time, you know little about it. And you’re supposed to be the tech expert in the room! At the same time, […]
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Getting personal: how personalization improves business and customer experience
Audiences across industries have come to expect that when they interact with a brand, the experience will get increasingly personalized to their specific wants and needs. For companies to keep their edge and grow margins, they have to deliver content and functionality tailored to customer segments, and ideally to each customer. The task might seem […]
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Launches: Minnesota Lottery, The Schulze Family Foundation, Just a Bunch of Roadies
In the last couple of weeks, we’ve launched three websites that each — in different ways — show the results of collaboration, focus, and strategic thinking. One project puts a premium on performance, another showcases a re-focused organization’s future, and the last project brings a fresh look and feel to a commitment to international relief. The Minnesota Lottery […]
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Assessing a Company’s Commitment to Security
Security matters If you’re reading this close to its publication date, security breaches and vulnerabilities are everywhere in the news. From Heartbleed to the massive Target credit card breach, digital security has never been more important to the average person. Nancy, our CEO, recently wrote about how you must take responsibility for protection of your personal […]
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Learning to Talk Tech
In college I took a Computer Science 101 class. For the first assignment, the professor asked us to write step-by-step instructions on how to tie a shoelace. (Stick with me here.) I thought, “No problem. Just make the bunny and run around and go through the hole. Boom.” The next day he asked for volunteers. He […]
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Why Contextual Observation Is So Valuable
Understanding user needs is critical to the success of any product, and usability testing is one important tool that helps us build websites, programs, and apps that users love. But not all usability tests are created equal. I recently had the opportunity to conduct a contextual usability test with Wits, a Minnesota Public Radio show, and […]
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Building Loyalty in a Card-free World
Recent articles in Inc.com and Slate have made the case against card-based loyalty programs, arguing that they are bad for business and that companies should focus their energy on creating a superior experience. They’re right that following a cookie-cutter or “me too” approach to loyalty will likely not pay off, but that doesn’t mean loyalty is dead. It just […]
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What is Direct Traffic?
So you’ve got a website and you’ve installed Google Analytics. That’s a great start, but don’t stop there! With a bit of time and attention, Google Analytics (GA) can provide valuable information regarding conversions. Conversions are those key moments when visitors do something interactional or transactional on your site, e.g. complete a sale or donation, sign up for […]
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When Powerball Attacks
Clockwork websites live on a cluster of redundant, load-balanced servers. On any given day, this cluster handles hundreds of requests per second, or millions per day. This is boring; it’s what we do all day, every day. I want to talk about a different kind of day. What Happens One of our clients is the Minnesota […]
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The real solution to the “Work From Home” debate
Sparking the debate Yahoo’s CEO, Marissa Mayer, caused a pretty significant wave across corporate America yesterday with her sweeping mandate requiring all employees to report back to the office for active duty. In other words – Mayer is eliminating a work from home policy – the kind of policy that Internet companies made famous in […]