Tag Archive - LinkedIn

1 column, 2 column or 3 column?

May 27, 2009 in General with 0 Comments

I came across an interesting question on Linked-In about web page layout design that gave me the opportunity to write down some thoughts on design strategy and the importance of testing.

Linked-In user, Harekrishna Patel, asked which web design layout give the best conversion rates– 1 column, 2 column or 3 column? Of course, as most usability and design professionals should know, best results are usually discovered through testing. There really isn’t a set “science” in this regards, though as with anything else, there are plenty of best-practices to use as starting points. Click here to read the full discussion and other user’s responses.

The best advice would be to create a few concepts and then use eye-tracking testing or other usability testing methodology to have a better idea of what works.

Having said that, here are some general thoughts that might help guide you:

The usual approach to page layout is to consider your customer-response priorities. So, if you have multiple “actions” you are going to offer, those should be laid out according to priority (the most important element should stand out, be above the fold, and preferably towards the left where the eye first tends to scan).

If you are going to have a lot of copy, this can be laid out on one column, with a second column providing Call To Action banner or button that summarizes what you are asking the customer to do (Sign up, subscribe, contact us, download, etc.).

Home pages tend to work well with 3 column because most of the times you are providing a menu-list of various topics, services, or product offerings — the customer would choose where to drill down.

Once you start looking at inside pages, a 2 column approach will probably provide you with the most useful real estate for your content, which you’ll want to test as far as what works best.

Overall, web design best-practices really isn’t as simple as “1 column, 2 column or 3 column” — You’ll want to take usability, navigation, layout, color, your customer’s demographic, and other unique factors related to your industry or/and products to develop an effective web site.

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Streaming radio station’s audio on an ad-driven website?

October 31, 2008 in Online Strategy, Web 2.0 with 0 Comments

LinkedIn member, Kelley Boster, Owner at Corporate Promotions & Incentives LLC. asked a compelling question through the LinkedIn Answers section.

Would Radio Stations allow their streaming to be accessed on other websites?

I have a Client who’s primary product is website advertising and we would like to see if we can add the “sound” dimension by partnering with a radio station with a matching demographic that offers “streaming” through their website? Would radio stations be open to this idea to allow streaming through another website that is not their own? What would the obstacles and/or objections be to this suggestion?

In dealing with potential radio content partnership, it is key to realize that a radio station’s revenue model is advertising as well. Radio ad sales have not been doing all that well, considering the current economy. Most radio stations build custom “player” interfaces that allow them to sell banner ad space to online listeners. So, I don’t see how any logical radio station would give up their revenue “inventory.” Also, while most radio stations are not making their bread & butter from online ad revenue, they do use online ad inventory to “sweeten” the deals for traditional radio advertising. I worked for a website property of a major radio conglomerate, and we would regularly have to display ads for “radio” customers (while not really seeing any revenue for it).

But, here are some thoughts to consider:

1. Independent or locally owned radio stations who might not yet have an online stream may be open to letting you make money of it, assuming you pay for the cost of the stream.

2. Stations already online may consider sharing revenue (50/50, 40/60, etc.) if you make it worth it. What can you offer the radio station that they don’t have already?

3. How about recording the radio shows, and offering them as “podcasts” or on-demand streaming, as opposed to “live.” The radio station gets a “secondary” market (through shared revenue) they probably would not have otherwise (most are not yet into podcasting as they see it as competition) while your website does not eat into their live radio audience. You could also arrange it so the radio station website can also provide the podcasts to their users directly.

The radio industry is an “old fashioned” industry, and from my experience, they are being slow to adapt and jump into the online world. When they do–and many radio/media companies are–they tend to have old fashioned radio industry mindset about how to do things, and revenue sharing and open-source are usually not included in there. Its a tough industry, so you’re going to have to be real creative in proving you can offer something of worth to their listeners and to their bottom line.

Below I provide a link to my previous employer’s web property. It is a very good model of the sharing of audience between radio and a website. Notice that several of Salem’s major radio hosts are bloggers who provide content on the website. They also regularly mention the website in their daily live radio shows. In exchange, the top 5 radio hosts get prime placement on the website, with direct links to the show websites and prime advertising of the radio host’s books. In this case, though, both the website property and the radio network are both owned by the same parent company, enabling the “innovation” leaders to “force” the change needed to make this work.

I’ve also posted below 2 links to an Economist set of articles on the convergence of old media with new media. Since you are in the web world, a lot will make sense to you, but you should read it from the point of view of what it communicates about the radio and traditional media industry. It is revealing of how far behind they have been and may be insightful into figuring out a model that will be tempting to your potential radio station partners. The first link is to the whole set of articles. The second Economist link is to the article on podcasting and radio.

Here are some articles and reference links that might be worth checking out in reference to the above:

Links:

* http://www.townhall.com
* http://www.economist.com/surveys/displaystory.cfm?story_id=6794156
* http://www.economist.com/surveys/displaystory.cfm?story_id=6794210

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Writing your LinkedIn Profile Summary

September 18, 2008 in General with 0 Comments

A close friend asked me for some thoughts on writing a LinkedIn profile.

I noticed on someone else’s profile that they had put their Summary in the third person. I had done that with mine, but now I am about to start a serious excursion on looking for a new job. Should I re-write my Summary into the first person and overall, do you have recommendations on what I should put in there?

Here are my thoughts.

I would write a LinkedIn profile summary in first person. Third person can have the effect of making you sound arrogant or full of yourself. In a competitive job market, being personable and nice to work with can make all the difference when hire-decision time comes. You want to create that positive first impression right of the bat. It’s probably fine to write in third person for a printed document like a bio, or brochure, but in the case of a “social network” it has a more personal connecting intent, so first-person is probably more effective. That’s just my intuition opinion, so if you disagree or know otherwise, I invite you to share in the comments section.

Here are some other tips:

Start your LinkedIn profile with the job you want in mind — that’s your vision. Look up a few ideal job descriptions in openings being posted on Monster.com or other job sites and analyze the key words and skill-requirements companies are asking for.

Based on these, while staying honest, craft your profile making sure to cover those key points. Make sure to not get to granular (ex. I know how to use photoshop) unless that granular skill set is very important to the role. Sometimes alluding to a skill without being specific will get you an interview, because now the person has to interview you to know more. Of course, you don’t want to be so vague that you don’t stand out among a pile of candidates — it has to be clear from your profile that you are qualified. But because its the web, keywords (search) are the key factor to an effective profile.

Basicly, your summary should be a “match” to your ideal job. I am assuming, of course, that you are qualified for your ideal job.

If the job description says, “Opportunity requires an experienced interactive marketing professional with proven results in developing small to large-scale consumer and B2B web sites and integrated email campaigns” you would write your profile to say, “I am an experienced interactive marketing leader with proven results in developing small to large-scale consumer and B2B web sites and integrated email campaigns.”

Now — if you know you’re interviewing with a specific company, don’t copy off their specific job description, or edit it enough and “make it yours” so its not “clearly” a copy/paste–the HR rep might not appreciate it and it will come off as being dishonest (…again, make sure to modify to ensure accuracy and honesty in regards to your abilities and experiences).

On a side note: An important thing to remember about job hunting is that even if you don’t have every specific experience or skill set asked for, you may have skills that compensate. For example, years ago I was hired as a web designer. The job posting required knowledge of JavaScript, and experience using Macromedia Dreamweaver. I had been doing some copy/pasting of JavaScript (though I don’t know how to program it much) and had been working with MS FrontPage. So, I indicated these things when I sent in my resume and cover letter, and also indicated that I had a strong ability in rapidly learning new software and a solid understanding of the key concepts behind JavaScript programing. I got the interview and I landed the job. I was using Dreamweaver to complete HTML code on the first day of the job — I walked in with 3 fat Dreamweaver books I picked up the Barns & Noble discount pile. My new manager thought it was funny, but was surprised when I completed a pile of Web Help Desk requests within hours of having them assigned.

So, in short, don’t fear not having every skill set required– just make sure to communicate other skills you do have that compensate for the one you are missing.

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