Ryan Doom

Lansing Day of .NET - LDODN - DODN

Ryan Doom — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 01:16:00 GMT

On Saturday June 21st the Greater Lansing User Group for Microsoft .NET (GLUGnet) organized its first major educational conference. GLUGnet was...

Why use Twitter?

Ryan Doom — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 01:00:00 GMT

I have only been on Twitter for about 6 months and have only updated my profile a handful of times but I think I finally ‘get it.’ I understand why...

A few usability items you may consider with your cart

Ryan Doom — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 21:22:00 GMT

Outlined are some things you might now have considered when building your last e-commerce system.

A fresh start feels good - formatted my tablet

Ryan Doom — Fri, 02 May 2008 02:15:00 GMT

I just reformatted my Fujitsu Lifebook T Series 4215 Tablet PC. I upgraded it from XP to Vista about 14 months ago and recently messed up some licensing files for some products I use daily and figured it wouldn’t hurt to just wipe it clean. I did the following...

Is the evolution of a web designer always the same?

Ryan Doom — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 01:37:00 GMT

I had the privilege of being a website design judge at the Capital Area Career Council web design showcase today. The students were Junior and Senior high school students who are taking classes at the career center to supplement their normal high school education. They are learning things like: Photoshop, Game design, Programming and web design. It is a great program and gives the students a taste for lots of different areas in the creative side of IT.

What was really odd to me is how much these websites looked like the websites from 1995. Did they have ...

Symfony PHP MVC Framework

Ryan Doom — Sun, 13 Apr 2008 16:48:00 GMT

Wow, I just finished reading The definitive Guide to Symfony, and it is definitely one of the better web development books I have read. They review everything you would need to build about 95% of web development applications. They review the model, view control concepts, the...

Ryan's radio discussion with Walter Sorg

Ryan Doom — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 14:28:00 GMT

Ryan talks with Walter Sorg of WILS1320 this morning about internet social media websites such as Facebook and YouTube.

Some topics reviewed during this radio spot.

Why are some online videos popular
How politicans are using social media
How social media might be used by a local business
Does the internet make sense for all companies?
How is selling online affecting brick and mortar shops, how can they transition

Listen to the Radio Spot (8MB MP3)

This was recorded live at 6:37am and will rebroadcast at 8:07am as well as a Memorial Day 'best of' WILS 1320 interviews.

Top Website Usability Tips

Ryan Doom — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 02:57:00 GMT

Usability is a measurement on how easy a website or user interface is to use. This term is also used to refer to how to improve the overall ease-of-use when designing an interface.
The core components of usability are:

Learnability: Can users accomplish basic tasks on their very first visit? Is it intuitive?
Efficiency: Once the user has learned the system can they do the tasks quickly?
Memorability: How easy is the system to use after not using it for a period of time?
Errors: How many issues did the user run into, how severe were they, and how easily can they recover from them?
Satisfaction: Is it fun and easy to use?
Utility: Does it do what the user needs?

General Website Tips

Use a descriptive tagline of what your website does

Have you ever been frustrated by a website after searching high and low and still cannot find out what they do? Consider starting a practice of having a one line descriptive slogan of what the business does on the homepage or every page. Not some lame marketing jargon but plain easy to understand English of what the site is for; if your parents could read it and get it you should be all set.

Using the Window <TITLE>

The number one factor to how your page is indexed in search engines is the description used in the pages title. Start getting away from the old “Company Name > About” style and move to “KEYWORD PHRASES RELEVANT TO THIS PAGE | Company Name” and excluded the company name if you feel it is not necessary.

Search Box Tips

You do not need to add the text “Search” in front of a textbox if there is a button that reads “Search” to the right that the user is supposed to click on. People have caught on, this is now intuitive behavior and it’s ok to remove that redundancy.
General rule of thumb, make your search box 27 characters wide.
Definitely include search on your site if it has over 100 pages

Having a Home link on the homepage

If you are on the homepage you don’t need to have the Home button in the navigation. If you have a consistent navigation on all pages that includes the Home page that at least make sure that the navigation element is highlighted differently when they are on that page.

Name and Logo

Include the name of your site and the logo on every page; link the logo to the homepage.

Links go to new pages, Buttons perform actions

As a general rule of thumb text links should take you to a new page when you click on them and buttons should submit some type of information or take you to the next step in a process.

Using PDF’s on your website

As a general rule of thumb you should try to avoid using PDF’s on your website when possible. They break the natural flow of website browsing. Often users will click on a link and not know it was a PDF link, it then opens up and they have to wait for it to download and for acrobat to start running within the browser and then often times they close it immediately and end up closing their entire web browser. Plus a PDF is just a mass of content that is very difficult to navigate through. Use PDFs if you are distributing large documents that the user needs to print, or documents that must be formatted in a very specific way.

Avoiding Banner Blindness

Studies show that users now understand what banners and advertisements look like on websites and often look right past them. This means it is very important to ensure your content and images do not look like banners. Avoid creating images the size that banners usually are, avoid blinking or animated images, and definitely avoid using traditional pop-ups when at all possible. Text only ads are now proving to be the most successful banner ads because users are still reading them.

Don’t open new browser windows

When you think about building websites you must always be thinking what is intuitive and what is consistent. You don’t want to break many of the normal browsing norms because you want users to feel at home on your site and have little to learn. If you program your site to start opening windows up in a new browsers as users clicks you open up a world of issues. The first and most important is that the back button does not work on the new window; and this button is extremely popular and critical when navigating the web. The second is that different web browsers handle new windows differently. In one it may be a new window or perhaps a new tab, and if it’s a new tab and then moves the user to that page they have to scan their tabs to get back to where they were. Remember, the user always has the option to make the decision themselves if they want the link to open up in a new window by right clicking or CTRL clicking on a link on your site.

Restrictive Form Behavior

Rethink your website forms. Remember that each field that the user has to fill out is some burden to them, so if you don’t need or use the salutation don’t ask for it, and ask yourself that question for each form field. When asking for phone numbers don’t split it into three separate boxes when one will do. Don’t require the user to type the phone number in a specific format or their credit card in a specific format if it doesn’t really matter. Is that field REALLY required or do you just feel it would be nice to have? Think about your forms a bit more, make them easier for your users, not just easier for you.

Splash Screens and all Flash Sites

Don’t do it, they give the impression that the website is more concerned with its own image then that of the users actual needs and their time.

Think about your Typography

You can achieve more with choosing the right fonts, sizes, colors and placement then you can achieve with large graphics and bloated designs.

Website Supplements

Email Newsletters

Your viewer is engaged in your information while they are on your website, but once they are done you have lost that connection. They might not ever come back. Enticing users to sign up for an email newsletter can help you maintain...

Getting Things Done Email Technique

Ryan Doom — Sun, 13 Jan 2008 23:57:00 GMT

I have revamped my email strategy this weekend because it was getting a bit overwhelming and my previous strategies have been failing miserably. When 50 to 100 valid emails come in every day how do you handle that? My previous technique was to read it once or twice a day, reply to what I could then mark anything I had to spend some time on I would mark them as Unread and flag them.

As I type this out I realize once again how ridiculous this ‘system’ was.

So… the new goal is to keep the inbox completely empty. I am taking some of the techniques from Getting Things Done (GTD) to create Ryan’s own Getting Things Done email technique. To start you must make 5 directories...

ASP .NET MVC vs Monorail Castle Project

Ryan Doom — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 03:52:00 GMT

Microsoft is releasing their own ASP .NET MVC platform that will create a development environment similar to Ruby on Rails and the ASP .NET Castle Project Monorail.

I have tried to start a list of some thoughts I have comparing the two at this point, but I feel Microsoft’s ASP.NET MVC will be a better choice over the Castle Projects Monorail.

How can Business Networking improve your business?

Ryan Doom — Sun, 09 Dec 2007 03:10:00 GMT

Many entrepreneurs and salesmen know that networking with other people is an important factor in creating a successful business. However, I fear that many people overlook this simple and effective way for growing your business, increasing your income and meeting great people. I attribute much of Web Ascender’s success to the "soft skills" of building relationships and working towards lasting friendships with everyone we meet...

GoDaddy has great customer service

Ryan Doom — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 21:37:00 GMT

How awesome is Go Daddy? Well let me tell you, that their prices for domain names are virtually unbeatable, their prices for secure certificates untouchable, and their customer service is ...

What is Kindle? Kindle is a eBook reader

Ryan and Kevin — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 17:25:00 GMT

Amazon’s Kindle looks pretty cool. I am one of those people who love’s the mobility and the feel of a true book. I cannot stand reading a long PDF on my laptop because it’s difficult to read in bed, to throw in the car, a book bag a brief case and quickly pull out to read when I want to, plus it tires my eyes faster than reading some dead trees. But, I think the Kindle might actually be a device worth having. For $399 you get:

A pleasant to read screen and easy to look at formatting
EVDO network to browse and buy Amazon books anywhere you can get cell. Plus access to Wikipedia
It’s smaller than most paperback books
Looks like an easy to use screen, nice large side buttons to move forward and backward
Search your books
Full qwerty keyboard
You can take digital notes while reading your book
Long battery life – without the cell on you can read for a week before recharging – and recharge is only 2 hours.
Plus the books are pretty cheap - $9.99

And long term savings:

Buying books uses paper – killing trees, and has high production costs – machines, ink…
You have to lug books around from house to house or office to office – they take up a lot of physical space when you are not reading them
They cost a ton to transport to and from warehouses and bookstores – Gas etc.
Hopefully more profits can go to the author than to all the middle men

eBooks and book readers have been tried before and have not caught on. Maybe with some like Amazon behind it we can get a great device and a large selection of books this time!

Where does the users eye go on a webpage?

Ryan Doom — Sun, 25 Nov 2007 14:57:00 GMT

Eye tracking studies involve using cameras and pattern recognition to track where the user's eye travels on a web page. They can then take this camera data and create heat map overlays of the web page and get an accurate measurement of what really draws the users attention.

Here are 20+ lessons learned from a recent study.

Ads in the top and left portions of a page will receive the most eye fixation.
Ads placed next to the best content are seen more often.
Bigger images get more attention.
Clean, clear faces in images attract more eye fixation.
Fancy formatting and fonts are ignored.
Formatting can draw attention.
Headings draw the eye.
Initial eye movement focuses on the upper left corner of the page.
Large blocks of text are avoided.
Lists hold reader attention longer.
Navigation tools work better when placed at the top of the page.
One-column formats perform better in eye-fixation than multi-column formats.
People generally scan lower portions of the page.
Readers ignore banners.
Shorter paragraphs perform better than long ones.
Show numbers as numerals.
Text ads were viewed mostly intently of all types tested.
Text attracts attention before graphics.
Type size influences viewing behavior.
Users initially look at the top left and upper portion of the page before moving down and to the right.
Users only look at a sub headline if it interests them.
Users spend a lot of time looking at buttons and menus.
White space is good.

Found from Seth Godin based on Tim's study

How to measure website sales?

Ryan Doom — Sun, 11 Nov 2007 17:34:00 GMT

How do you measure the success of a website? Success is measured the same regardless of whether you are measuring your website, your business, the success of an event or a grade on a test. You have to have an actual goal in order to measure it. If you have no goals, you cannot define success.
What are some goals you may strive for with your website...

Do I need a computer server?

Ryan Doom — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 16:17:00 GMT

Many small businesses start off with buying a couple of computers, connecting them to the Internet and then they operate completely independent of one another. That means that the computers are connected to a network but nothing is shared between them. A common next step is to do some simple file sharing between the computers so user A can access files and data on user B’s computer and vice versa...

What's new in Adobe Fireworks CS3

Ryan Doom — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 03:04:00 GMT

The new Adobe CS3 Suite is pretty awesome. As many of my designer and programming associates know I am a diehard Fireworks fan. The first art application I started using was Photofinish on Windows 3.1. This tool really had a lot to offer, nothing vector but you could get just about everything done with this tool. It had excellent gradients, smudge tool, cloning, it was packed full of goodies. I eventually converted to Photoshop around version 3 ...

What is long tail marketing?

Ryan Doom — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 02:34:00 GMT

“The Long Tail” as you hear it used today is a term coined by Chris Anderson editor of Wired magazine based on the statistics curve called “long-tailed distributions.” Chris Anderson has brought to light how the technological era and Ecommerce is changing today’s Marketing and Economics strategy. Imagine you own a brick and mortar record ...

Write More Effectively in Just 10 Minutes

Ryan Doom — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 20:48:00 GMT

If you’re responsible for sending out important emails, writing online articles, or crafting important documents for your employer then we have some very useful tips for you to consider. These tips are tailored primarily for writing web articles, but will be just as useful for traditional print publications. The ten minutes you spend reading this will help you to create documents and online content that will have a positive impact on your readers.

Software is easy. Marketing is hard.

Ryan Doom — Sun, 10 Jun 2007 02:05:00 GMT

It may not be the case for some but for me the idea of a great software product has come pretty easy. There are many times a day that a developer, or a manager due tasks that appear to be mundane, and would love for improvements. The opportunities for software ideas are all around you every day. After you spend a few years developing software or managing software projects these opportunities become a bit more obvious. You may see opportunities for code generation tools, ORMs, load testing technologies, deployment process improvements – there are many areas right in your industry that have ways to ease pain with a software product. When you look past what you are up to you head in all day (development) you can then see many areas for general business improvements or areas where a niche piece of software could dominate a vertical. There are tons of opportunities and ideas out there, I stress that that is not the hardest part of having a successful ...

5 Easy ways to improve your business with the web

Ryan and Kevin — Sat, 09 Jun 2007 17:07:00 GMT

There are 5 easy things you can do to make sure your business embraces the Internet as a sales and marketing tool in 2007:

Purchase your own .com Domain Name for your company
Use your .com Domain Name for all email communication
Create a professional website and make it part of your sales team
Internet marketing with Google, Yahoo and MSN
Start an e-newsletter to communicate with customers

You may not realize it, but if you’re still using an email address from Yahoo, Hotmail, SBC, Comcast, or some other free email service to communicate with customers, you’re losing some “professionalism points.” If your website is not portraying your company effectively and generating business for you, then it’s time to take action! Following these five steps is a good start to making your website function as an extension of your sales team.

Purchase a ‘.com’ Domain Name for your company

You have to buy “yourcompanyname.com” as soon as possible, or someone else will. Buying an internet Domain Name (.com, .net, .org) is extremely affordable and is the first step in getting your own email

Response to the use of logins

Ryan Doom — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 02:16:00 GMT

In response to an article on CodingHorror

Although I am extremely turned off by many sites that require logins to see what appears to be ‘trivial’ information I would not use API documentation as a way to degrade them on how ‘brilliant’ they are...

Your Personal Marketing Strategy

Ryan and Kevin — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 01:14:00 GMT

Every salesperson should develop a marketing strategy specific to how they do business. It should be a plan that you personally create or possibly design alongside a professional to outline how you can satisfy your customers and achieve your goals. I define marketing as “identifying the needs and wants of a target customer and then appealing to and satisfying those needs.” Creating a complete marketing plan may consist of such items as: research on customers, defining their needs, product design, pricing and promotion. Here are a few ideas that might not be part of a corporate marketing plan but can immediately become part of your personal marketing plan.

Review your Business Card – It should be informative and be memorable

Your business card is important. When you meet a prospective buyer this is what they will have in their hand after you have introduced yourself and parted from one another.

8 Ways to Boost Your Performance

Ryan Doom — Sun, 03 Jun 2007 14:26:00 GMT

Don’t have enough time in the day? Have the feeling of not accomplishing what you set out to do that day? Feeling overwhelmed by what is still yet to do? Here are some tips that will help you make the most of your day. If you would like to adopt any of these performance boosting secrets I wouldn’t recommend taking on too many of them at once. It is important to slowly adapt to change, consider taking 1 or 2 of the items and telling yourself you will stick with it 100% for 30 days. A short term commitment is a lot easier then long term; mentally you can see yourself sticking it out for 30 days, and even use a calendar to mark the days off. Once you are done with your 30 days reflect back on the success of the new habit. At that point quit, extend it for another 30, 60 or 90 days, or let it be a permanent habit.

Web Tracking - A Real World Example

Ryan Doom — Tue, 01 May 2007 02:10:00 GMT

Read about why we overhauled the Web Ascender website...