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Recipe for a good SEO strategy: content worth linking to
The beauty of Google’s search algorithm is that it lets you find what you’re looking for, and it gets better all the time. Because Google is one of the most important ways to ‘get found’ on the web, a whole industry has arisen around how to “beat” the Google search algorithm: Search Engine Optimisation (SEO).…
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Teamwork: The product manager and UX designer
A discussion came up today on one of Nokia’s internal social discussion forums about how Product Managers should interact with User Experience designers. I was shocked to read that quite often not only do the Product Manager and UX Designer not really work together, but they don’t get along well at all. This is, to…
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5 product management lessons from the MacBook Air
5 product management lessons from the MacBook Air: push the boundaries, release early, take risks, learn from usage, and fail early and often.
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Chasing rabbits
If you chase two rabbits, both will escape. You can’t run in two directions at once, and you have no way of controlling where the rabbits are going to run next. You can maybe influence the rabbits by setting up boundaries; you can maybe predict the rabbits by knowing the terrain, but you can never…
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The Lexus Response
In 1989 Toyota launched a brand new series of luxury cars designed to compete with the likes of Mercedes Benz and BMW. After 9 years and over a billion dollars in investment, the first Lexus vehicle, the LS 400, was launched. Three months later, two owners contacted Lexus to complain about an overheated brake light.…
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Quality is boring
I’ve had an iPad for a few months now, but only recently I started using it to read eBooks. Although for me an electronic device will never replace the texture of paper and the smell of the freshly pressed ink, using the iPad to read books is a delightful experience. I enjoyed it from the…
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The focus manifesto
Do you ever feel like you’re rushing from one thing to the next, without really doing any one thing properly? Are you running from one social appointment to the next without taking the time and attention to enjoy each one? Is your desk like a constant fireworks show of new emails, instant messages, phone calls,…
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Personalisation is not overrated
I came across this very old article about personalisation of websites from 1998: http://www.useit.com/alertbox/981004.html The article discusses the fad of website personalisation that was sweeping the web back in the late 90’s. Back then, many websites were making the first efforts to personalise the web by giving complex personalisation options to users, through which the website…
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The right to satisfaction
If you’re not happy at work, I think you have two choices. You can either: take an active role in making things better, or leave. Everyone has the right to improve their own situation. If you see problems or difficulties at work, you can raise your voice and help find constructive solutions. But if you’re…
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A half product is better than a half-arsed product
Most software projects have a deadline of some kind, and only the very lucky few don’t have a budget. In this landscape that leaves two things you can compromise on: features, or quality. The temptation is always there to try for as many features as you can. Rush to cram them in. Squeeze, push. Race…