The year was 1995.
A cease-fire was announced in Bosnia and Croatia. O.J. Simpson was found not guilty. And Forrest Gump won the Best Picture Oscar.
1995 was also the year I launched my very first Website. In fact, it was exactly ten years ago this month.
A decade later, my little ‘pet project’ is still around, more popular than ever, and is now (gasp) generating revenue, despite the fact it’s been badly neglected by yours truly for the last few years.
Truth be told, I came close to shutting down the Website several years ago because I didn’t have enough time to devote to it. (I still don’t!) Not long after that, an organization offered to buy the Website from me. I agonized over their offer but finally decided to turn them down. I sensed that the industry was turning around (I was right) and figured I’d stick it out and see what would happen. I’m glad I did.
Month: October 2005
_Barry Martin (pictured at top) is Creative Director of “Hypenotic”:http://www.hypenotic.com where they help clients get noticed, liked, and passed on. As Barry says, “sometimes it’s through conventional or traditional means likes ads and web sites, and sometimes it’s things that don’t occur to you, but can be glaringly obvious to us. It can be softer toilet paper, nicer parking attendants, forms that are easier – even inviting to use, you name it. Like the tagline says – “Persuasion by Design”._
_Since 1998, Hypenotic has worked with a ridiculous gamut of industries, organizations, and individuals. They range from multinationals to bars, and from non-profits like Rethink Breast Cancer to financial firms like AIM and Spectrum. They’ve worked with established Canadian brands like Tilley Endurables, Efston Science and Camp Arowhon, and helped bring emerging ones like Wee Welcome, Midtown Honda, and Selenium Creative along.”_
*One Degree: How does brand manifest itself online?*
The same way it does in other customer touch-points – through experience and identification. In other words, how a person is treated and whether they can relate to you. To influence people through experience, try quick loading pages, ultra usability, and verbiage that doesn’t pander. Influencing people through identification happens via aesthetics and attitude. It’s about helping people sell themselves on you.
*One Degree: What’s the biggest mistake you see companies making when it comes to branding and the Internet?*
The proliferation of online video ads makes me wonder how consumers (and, of course, marketers) ever lived without them. According to the results of “ComScore Media Metrix’s Online Video Ratings”:http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=630, more than 94 million people in the US alone watched a streaming video online in June. That represents over half of the total US online population.
Apparently, the average consumer watches an astounding 73 minutes of streaming video content per month. “This research confirms that streaming video is now part of the Web experience for a broad base of consumers,” said comScore Media Metrix president Peter Daboll. “This technology is changing advertising on the Web, by allowing richer, more emotive connections between brands and consumers.”