13. October 2008 by admin.

KIJIJIJIJIJIJIIIIJJIIIII……….who the hell came up with that name?! wow, that was really creative! I guess they just couldn’t find a free domain in the .com area…

This is one hell of a project, I tell ya… did they got any investment? I have no idea, but I don’t know for how long they will be around…

Ok, lets start with the front page that you get to when you type in www.kijiji.com, you get a map and a list of locations… or a choice to switch to Canadian site… OK, that was somewhat smart, not the most important part, looks good, but that’s about it…

Now, I got to the site, wondered around, and guess what, I couldn’t even read about the company, who they are, what was the idea, what they do, etc. no Privacy Policy, no Terms of Use, so what they collect personal data, and do with it whatever the  hell they want? where did my privacy promise go to? what happened with the Terms of Use? I can do on this site everything? no responsibility needed? hmm… ok, I guess they didn’t think that one through yet… but I guess its all good, untill they get a court order to do so, just like Google got before they posted the Privacy Policy on their initial search page.

Let’s get in, shell we?

Oh! here we go… my choice, New York! good choice  I say :o) and here I found what I was looking for, About Kijiji, Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy… at least they were smart enough to post it there… good, forgiven!

About Kijiji “The word “Kijiji” (pronounced key-gee-gee) means “village” in Swahili. This word captures the essence of what we are creating—a community where members can connect with one another to exchange goods, ideas, and services.”

Interesting concept… but the problem is… I havent seen any community, or exchange… let’s move on…

The core business/service of this site is just like Craigslist, classified Ads… which is great! amazing! I Love It!!!! But, BIG but…

As you may know, I’m a designer, well known, but yet… still hunt for projects here and there, very selective, but still hunt for them… you know, with all the recognition and awards, projects still don’t come to you on daily basis as you’d like them to be.

So, I have a guy working for me part time from his home, his duty is to surf the internet for about 3,4 hours a day and go through this widely known Classifieds web sites and hunt for projects, meaning go into the section of people/companies looking for professional services, and need my type of services. And he simply send a standard format of an e-mail that in short tells about me, my achievements, experience, knowledge, my portfolio and contact details.

Simple? Yes! Working? Yes!

Craigslist is one of the best such sites on the internet to date! It is clear, always relevant search results, and easy to find anything… I must say this… 500 stars to Gragslist!!!

If it helps other freelancers, I use such sites like; GetAFreelancer, iFreelance, LinkedIn, and many more…

Anyway, one of those days, I call my part timer and tell him to try one week on this new site that I’ve found, called Kijiji.com, and he normally keeps me updated on daily basis of what he found how many e-mails he sent, etc. a day goes by, two days go by… I don’t hear from the guy… I’m confused, did he quit without even letting me kniw? he’s not that type of guy… I call him and ask what is going on? why didn’t you call?

Hes answer “Mr. Grin, listen, I’ve been going crazy on this site, I’ve been searching for the past two days and can’t find anything…” What do you mean you can’t find anything? this site should be very similar to craigslist! “well, I’m going through the section of te Jobs and can’t find any requests…” I get really confused… and tell him, ok, drop the subject and go to craigslist…

This is getting really out of the normal… so I get on to Kijiji, and start looking myself… and what do you know… my guy was right! Ok, lets do this step by step together… type in the address bar www.kijiji.com, got it, cool, choose lets say New York (soory, i love this city :o)), ok, got that one as well, now we see 3 columns titles; For Sale, Community, Cars & Vehicles, Housing, Jobs, Pets, Services, Personals, Events, Want Ads, Free Stuff. We are interested in Jobs, ok, under that title we find Graphic, Web Design, ok so far so good… click on Graphic, Web Design… and what do you know… pages upon pages of people OFFERING such services, and nothing, and let me say this again, NOTHING, about people/companies looking for such services… WOW!

This is really stupid! this is really aggravating! You get into a section where your healthy logic tells you that there are people/companies who are postings adds, in hope to find such services that you offer, but no, it is not the case… all you see is other designers hunting for the same as you are… where is the logic? what is the point posting an ad in a place you know people are looking for project/jobs offerings? I don’t get it!

There must be something screwed-up here, either the users of this site is so stupid that don’t understand where to post, either the users of this site are again too desperate and are posting just anywhere just to get any job/project, either the site is screwed-up that it has no filtering system to understand which posting should go where…

Well, in either case, I took the initiative, and wrote a message to Kijiji team explaining to them that this is bad, like really bad and they should consider fixing it somehow or improving the sites logical syste. Do you think I got an e-mail back from them? NO! no notification that they got my message no Thank you e-mail, nothing!

That’s a really wrong thing to do, this is really “responsible” attitude to business operations.

No words anymore, I don’t know anymore how to deal with such horrible sites, claim to be what they are not! and far from being!

Go backto school, learn a thing or two about how to keep your customers happy and coming backto you, online business is not just uploading a site, and think that you’d become a millionaire from that… it is hard work, lots of hours, customers happy feedbacks, and much more…

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28. September 2008 by admin.

I recently decided to look at some bank websites; you would think a serious financial institution with marketing, brand awareness and advertising budgets, large budgets! Unfortunately there are some countries that have very little or no talent and professionals at all, especially in the creative industry and technological aspect of the web design and construction.

Well, so I thought and had very little experience in my industry within such country as Israel, come on… Israel? The widely known Silicon Valley #2? With all the high-tech giants sitting in this tiny area and benefiting from low-cost employment, developing most advanced and leading technologies in the world.

Wow! All the big guys are here… I was amazed!

But hold on a second, how is it possible that with this entire technology savvy people, advanced development knowledge and experience, and the booming online industry, they still have no idea how to make websites…

That is a hit, a big hit… an epidemic of garbage online, and I get it, people will use it, just because they have nothing better to use.

Back to our horses!

One of the largest and leading banks in Israel, Bank Leumi (http://www.leumi.co.il)

Not a bad structure, a bit cluttered, but I guess works for them, color choice, well, I understand the point of blue, hell I’m coming from color & human psychology field, and I know these are the most used colors in the financial industry and also I get the point that blue is a trusting color… but come on people, the entire site is blue! It’s like entering the blue fiesta party, did you people happen to see that there are more colors on the web safe color spectrum? Hmm… I guess not!

Ok, so they’ve added a slight touch of grey on the site, ok, that color works, but let try and analyze this for a minute here, 90% blue and 10% grey, I wonder how people understand what is going on this site at all, or maybe that was the idea, DO NOT ALLOW USERS UNDERSTAND! Maybe, maybe I just missed something about this interesting culture, oh well…

Ok, colors are an issue but not the worst thing, I guess if people here like it, good for them! But my major concern with this web site kicked in when I entered the log-in to your account area… oh, my, god!

I forgot about all of the issues this site has…

There is a large background visual, again, completely blue shades and lots of contrast, and it is not being supported by Firefox, the most standard these days cross browsers development to accommodate the most used browsers, IE 6.0 or higher, Firefox 3.0 or higher, and Apple’s Safari any latest version…

The entire page was a scrambled egg… the input fields shifted up, overlapping the some text that is an image, and you just cant understand what it says, the help links overlapping the logo which now you cant even find these help links, and the right navigation, simply ran away to the left side which you completely miss and don’t even pay any attention to it…

Did the budget of development finished on that specific part? Go figure…

So there I am, trying VERY hard to find my way around, thinking to myself, are these billionaire people even think about their customers? Did they sit down and mapped the entire sites navigation, user behavior and interaction with the site? This is not a kids web site where you can do a complete mass, screw it up and it would still work, simply because these are kids and they will find their way around one way or another.

Guys (Bank Leumi), few things I must say to you, a. grown-up people have a very structural thinking and perception of what they see on daily basis, they have no time to figure things out, especially online, they have to come, log-in, check their account, make some operations, and log-out, simple, fast and strait to the point… and you my friends, are just made 10 times harder for your end-user do these simple daily operations.

Hope this will be fixed in a near future, even though I have very little faith in this happening.

My grade to you: ONE STAR!

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3. January 2008 by admin.

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3. January 2008 by admin.

Internet users can take just one-twentieth of a second to decide whether they like the look of a website, new research has found.

“Visual appeal can be assessed within 50 milliseconds, suggesting that web designers have about 50 milliseconds to make a good impression,” the Canadian researchers report in the March/April issue of the journal Behaviour & Information Technology.

Dr Gitte Lindgaard and colleagues from Carleton University in Ottawa confirm that internet users are a fickle lot.

The team did this by flashing up websites for 50 milliseconds and asking participants to rate them for visual appeal.

When they repeated the exercise after a longer viewing period the ratings were consistent.

The medium is the message
The finding comes as bad news to anyone hoping to convey information, says Sue Burgess, an Australian researcher who evaluates website usability and senior lecturer in information management at the University of Technology Sydney.

“There’s no doubt that people do respond very quickly to websites and decide very quickly whether to stay on them,” she says.

The appeal of a website is usually tied to color, movement and interactivity, she says, with the way the information is structured coming second.

Burgess says it’s unclear whether the internet is changing our ability to concentrate for long periods our if we are adapting to the medium.

“There’s so much information and … there’s always going to be a lot of clicking around just to see what’s there,” she says.

The halo effect
Australian associate professor of psychology Bill von Hippel, from the University of New South Wales, says it takes about 50 milliseconds to read one word, making this a “stunningly remarkable” timeframe in which to process the complex stimuli on a website.

“It’s quite remarkable that people do it that fast and that it holds up in their later judgment,” he says.

“This may be because we have an affective or emotional system that [works] independently of our cognitive system.”

In evolutionary terms, this ability helped us respond rapidly to dangerous situations, he says.

The study also reflects the so-called halo effect, von Hippel says, where an initial bias towards something drives subsequent judgments.

“This suggests that we make very quick judgments based on some sort of emotional reaction and our more considered judgments still reflect that first impression.”

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3. January 2008 by admin.

It’s imperative for a company to have a quality web site today - but many firms are still throwing up web sites that are just poorly designed or overly complex. Poor navigation (menus and overall site structure) when coupled with low quality graphics is really problematical (!) - Online visitors think less of your company as a result which will hurt revenue in the long run. Many think just doing a minimal job is sufficient but they aren’t factoring in how close your competition is! On the web any potential customer is only one click away from seeing a high quality web site that is well designed and conveys a quality image.

A good rule of thumb when budgeting for a web site is to assume you will pay approximately $250-300 USD per page - this should include your graphics design, setting up registration forms, etc. This may sound too expensive for many companies but for better or worse perception is reality in the online world! So, don’t short change yourself, put some resources into your web site and be prepared to continue to do so - it’s now a vital component of any company’s ongoing marketing processes that needs constant upgrading (PR, print, etc.) materials.

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24. September 2007 by admin.

A professional website is, above all else, professional. What constitutes professional though? This question has been asked by many, and the answers are varied as those asking the question. There are at least a hundred or more possible aspects to consider, some consisting of parts of others, such as demographics and content. Each factor has its own effect on how customers perceive a website.

Being professional is an attitude portrayed by you, the business owner, your business and your website. You don’t have the luxury of smiling real big, wearing your best suit, and shaking hands with the customer. Your website has to do that for you. This brief list of what to do and what not to do when creating a professional website is only the beginning, one small step towards success.

DO’S
1. Know your visitors.
Your site should be designed to fit their needs and wants. If you’re selling, know the demographics of the people you’re selling to. If you’re just providing information, know who you are targeting. Rule of thumb: know more about your audience than they know about you.

2. Know your product.
As strong as that may sound, people know when a site offers products or services that they themselves know little about. If you are letting someone else write the content for your site and that someone doesn’t know the product, then, your customers won’t know it either. Anticipate questions from customers and answer them before they are asked.

3. Have your site visually pleasing.
Just because bright red and bright blue are your favorite colors doesn’t mean that they should be the dominant colors on your site. Red and blue are at different ends of the spectrum and will give viewers a headache if viewed too long. You want to make viewers feel welcome, comfortable, and that they are able to trust you.

4. Outline the concept of the site before created.
Know the answers to those golden questions: who, what, when, where, why and how. While these questions apply to your demographics they are also helpful in deciding what information is truly important and what isn’t. Pinning down your tacit knowledge is often a challenge, and not all tacit knowledge is valuable. What do you want the customers to know and what do the customers want to know?

5. Make your prices readily available.
Hide your prices and customers will wonder what else you are hiding. Don’t wait until after you ask for their credit card information to tell them how much it costs. You don’t make sales that way; what you do make is frustrated customers who tell other potential customers to stay away from your site.

6. Keep your site credible.
Back up what you say with statistics or links to articles that support your claim. If you have experts in your company, highlight them. Show the customers that there are REAL people running the business. Update the content as often as possible – if updating the content isn’t possible, add links to news articles and update those links. It is time consuming, but in the end it is worth the time and effort.

7. Ask for input from people who know nothing about your product/service/business.
This is the best way to get true feedback. People who know nothing about what you are doing can find the smallest mistake and ask the best questions. They can give you fresh perspective on your site and sometimes your business. They don’t know what you know, and they often see what you don’t.

8. Use images that portray confidence.
You want the customers to trust you right? Then show them that you believe enough in yourself and your product that there is no doubt that you are trustworthy. Dress for success. You wouldn’t wear snow boots on a hot summer’s day, would you? Then don’t let your site wear images that could make you look cheap and untrustworthy.

9. Keep your site translator-friendly.
This can sometimes be challenged as we tend to use different terminology than other countries. What we would consider ‘normal phrasing’ may be considered ‘odd’ of offensive to someone else. Avoid slang and test your site with a translator. See which words are translated and which ones aren’t, then try to figure out why.

10. Be consistent throughout the site.
Making each page of your site different can be entertaining to teenagers and new internet users, but most of your potential customers aren’t new to the internet. If a viewer feels as though they’re on a different site each time they click a link on your site, they are likely to go to another site. Consistency counts in site design as professionalism, and your customers will expect it.

DON’TS
1. Don’t guess who you’re trying to reach with your site.
‘Guesstimation’ is for horse shoes and card games. If you don’t know your demographic, then you might as well have thrown your site together.

2. Don’t get too technical.
Your customers are the ones reading your site, so it should be written for them. Sure, your competition might read your site as well, but they already know the business jargon. Besides, you aren’t trying to sell to them anyway. Remember; other business owners may browse, but your customers are your buyers.

3. Don’t give your customers a headache.
There are 256 colors available for site design. 216 of those are browser ‘safe’. Just because there are an abundance of colors does not mean that they all should be used at once. Warm colors shouldn’t be used with cool colors because of the conflicting hues. Meanwhile, bright colors make the eyes work harder to focus and after a few minutes will likely give your viewers a headache.

4. Don’t keep content that isn’t being read.
Keeping track of what your customers are actually reading is very helpful. You want a customer to peruse your site as completely as possible. The more they know, the better your chances are that they will purchase or sign-up. If a page isn’t being read then try something else. Rewrite it. Add psychological triggers. Rephrase. Find a way to make the page valuable.

5. Don’t repeat the same information on every page.
The viewer doesn’t want to read the same material over and over. Give them new, fresh information on each page. If they want to go back and read the previous page, give them that option.

6. Don’t hide contact information.
You’ll find conflicting information on this topic. Some designers will tell you to put your contact information on every page, but customers tend to find that redundant. One page with multiple ways to contact you is more effective even if the customer never visits the page. Just having the page there tells them that you can be reached and that you really are there for their convenience.

7. Don’t use animations.
Some would say use animations to draw attention to your ad, product, ‘new’ idea/newsletter/etc. but by following that suggestion you frustrate the customer. Flashing, moving objects distract the eyes. A customer is there looking for information, if their eyes are distracted while reading, their comprehension decreases while their frustration rises. The use of colors such as yellow and orange become helpful in this area. Bolding or italicizing words is another way to emphasize phrases or items you want the customer to notice.

8. Don’t use multiple fonts.
It only takes the eye seconds to adjust to a new font, but those seconds are distracting to the mind. Different sizes, styles, and colors are confusing. Choose one font and stick with it. Consistency is more important than creativity when it comes to text.

9. Don’t take control away from the viewer.
Creative cursors, full screen browsers, and other ‘entertaining’ aspects of site design are great, if your target audience is teenagers or new internet users, but for a professional website they give the appearance of being cheap, second rate, amateurish.

10. Don’t ‘bunch up’ the text.
Add spaces between paragraphs so customers don’t feel overwhelmed with information. Placing a small picture pertaining to the content gives the eye time to relax before reading further.

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