In it, they discuss how Jeff Bezos discusses there are two types of company:

There are two types of companies: those that work hard to charge customers more, and those that work hard to charge customers less. Both approaches can work. We are firmly in the second camp. -Jeff Bezos

The problem is, there are three types (well, there are much more, but for the purposes of this post, let’s stick to three), and Apple is the third type, not the first. The third type is simple: give customer’s great products they will love and use. Charge appropriately.

The problem, to my mind, for Amazon, is wafer-thin margin’s simply don’t equate to customer satisfaction, this is particularly true if, as the press are reporting, Amazon are actually losing money on the Kindle Fire. While loss-leading is nothing new, this works less well if you require an ecosystem to make the product complete (Apple does this well, Amazon have a long way to go), but all ultra-low margin’s bring you is pain.

Amazon and industry commentators are adamant that the Kindle line, including the new Fire, doesn’t actually compete with Apple. I’d agree. However, I would also agree that I’m unlikely to want both products to cart around with me, so in a sense they do compete, because few people will own both.

At the end of the day, it is nothing to do with how much margin is in each product, it’s down to how much users love and use the product. If you can keep reasonable margins on that too, you’re in a stronger position. Apple wins so far, but it’s too early to say who’s going to win this race.

It also true that, end users don’t much care at all about how much margin you make; what they want is a product that meets their needs. Right now, Apple is pretty much doing that, and Amazon are having a pretty good crack at delivering too. Amazon’s product is lacking, though: Google’s App Store is blocked, for one big missing piece of the jigsaw. It’s understandable, Amazon are loss-leading to give it a platform to sell content on, where margins can be juicy, but that missing piece might just be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. The race is on.

There are no rules here, though, only results. One thing I hope we all can agree on: the race is starting to get interesting.

Image credit: Kindle vs Ipad by kodomut on flickr. Creative commons with attribution license usage.

I know handy-sized easy to remember internet domain names are running out, and we all want the valuable .com or country top level domain, if you’re not going internal (and why the hell wouldn’t you?), but it’s starting to get ridiculous.

It started with, for me, flickr, I guess continued with twitter, until I got it, and just carries on with mocavo and on it goes: on and on… Now, I know we all know flickr now, and just about everyone and their dog knows what flickr is FOR, but, but, if you’re starting out now, what about making it a bit more obvious?

I’m so less inclined to click on your domain name if I seriously can’t work out what the hell you’re offering.

Am I a philistine? Probably, but in this age of scams, malware and other online threats, I’m seriously getting paranoid about clicking links and, frankly, if I don’t know what your company offering or service is about from your URL, and I’ve never heard of you: I’m not clicking.

The conundrum is not going to get any easier, as, frankly, nearly all decent .com domains are gone. Meantime, I can only recommend start-ups get creative. If they want me as a customer, anyway.

Image Credit: Domain Names by ivanpw on Flickr. Used under creative commons with attribution license.

Things like web stats, particularly number of visitors; uniques, downloads (if downloads are your thing) and, if like the business I work in, things don’t measure up, then you take corrective action and try to make them do so.

If you’ve been around a bit longer than two years, you probably also measure things on your blog, like trackbacks, tweets, and slavishly look at your bit.ly link stats and on it goes: measure, measure and measure some more.

Some of you are probably more familiar with Google Analytics that you are with your own web site.

Which brings me to the point of this article: measurement should not be the primary focus of what you do, if for no other reason than you can’t measure everything, and some measures are more important than others.

Let’s delve deeper.

So, your goal is to get more traffic to your website. What are you measuring here? If you are in the content business, then perhaps number of visitors is important to you; but if you’re not, then you’re measuring the wrong goal. If, like me, you’re in the software business, then the number of people who visit the site is much less important than the number of people who download the software. So perhaps that should be the measure? Well, maybe, but to me, the number of people who download is far, far, far less important than the number of people who actually pay for the software. That’s the real measure I care about.

What I’m really talking about above is conversion. I care, passionately, about the number of people who end up buying software, and no other metric, except to help determine if I attracting people who don’t download, is actually pretty unimportant. I am sure in your business it is the same.

Yet, we all, slavishly, pore over the analytics data, do “goal” calculations, work out conversions, and plan our campaigns as appropriate.

But what about the things you can’t measure?

How about how fuzzy and good your product makes your customers feel?

The feel-good factor of interacting with your business (and you as a person) on twitter, or Facebook or your on-site forums?

The smile you generate on someone’s face because you did good by them?

These are all things you can’t actually measure, and yet they are the things that will, ultimately, if you also have a good product, make you a success.

And speaking of product: every hour spent going over the analytics, the review, the changes, the bit.ly link stats; these are hours you are not working on making your product the best it can be.

I wonder, therefore, if we all put as much effort into delivering content (be it articles or new software updates) as we do into measuring the things we don’t actually care that much about, if sales would actually be better?

The take-a-way here is: analytics and measurement are important. But they are nowhere near as important as making sure you are delivering what your customers want, which ultimately gets you what you want: more sales. Plan the appropriate time on each activity proportionally. My gut feeling is we spend a little too much time on analytics, and nowhere near enough time on delighting our customers.

Disagree? Tell me in the comments.

Picture Credit: Measuring Time, by Aussiegall (Louise Docker) on Flickr, under Creative Commons with attribution license

• A price for what I want to buy (links to resellers don’t count)
• More information about your products, that’s information, not a PDF brochure where you try to sell me the product (I already want it, see the introduction).
• Some form of social media activity.

Let’s take them one by one, and I’ll explain why.

• Price. This one should be easy: I want to buy it, to do that, I need to know how much it is. If you don’t tell me, I’ll buy an equivalent from your competitor. Contact Sales links don’t count, I don’t want to. Making me “sign in” to your website won’t work either, I’m not willing to. Just tell me how much the damn product is. Trust me, your competitors already know.
• More Information. I need to know all about your product, not be sold it. I’m already there looking for it, so I don’t need a sales pitch. If you only have a brochure, you’ve already failed my needs. I don’t need to read more brochures in my life, I actually feel, in the last ten years, I’ve read enough for my entire life. What I want is no-BS honest to goodness information about the product. Can’t do that? I’ll be buying elsewhere.
• Social Media. This is a tenuous one, I’ll be the first to admit. Not all companies immediately grab hold of social media, and very few indeed get it right. So why is it important? Simple, social media activity shows you are at least trying to care about me, your user. At least if you’re doing it right. It shows you’re willing to interact with me, not just thinking of me as a customer number in your database. If you’re doing right, I know you’ve got it, and that we can do business. If you’re doing it wrong, I can make a judgement call as to if you’re clueless and maybe have a chance of getting it right. If you’re not doing it at all, I already know you’re clueless.

The take-a-way here is: your website is not your brochure and you don’t dictate the terms of the interaction – your customers do, and if you don’t meet them in their needs, they won’t be your customers but your competitors. Create a buzz around what you do, and then raise the game on your customer experience every single day you’re in business.

Based on the above, would I buy from you? Let’s discuss in the comments.

Image Credit: Money 2 by Daniel Boorman on Flickr – used under creative commons with attribution license.

Did you do it? Did you take the conversation from “Wouldn’t it be ace if…” to actually doing what you thought would be ace?

I’m going to take a pretty big guess that, for most of you reading this, the answer was no.

Why not?

Not enough cash? Not enough time? Ah, it wouldn’t have worked? Big ideas are for other people?

You disappoint me. I often disappoint myself for having the same conversations.

But why? No, honestly, why?

All of the above suggested answers are bull, and we both know it. You can change the world, so stop talking about it and start doing it.

You think you’re less able than a bunch of university drop outs? Well, that’s who created Facebook. And Apple. And Microsoft.

The core difference between an entrepreneur and you? They do it. You don’t.

Unless you’re thing is hardware, it costs less than $100 to get a website going, and you can program in your spare time.

Can’t program? Buy a book. Copy and paste it from examples on the hundreds of websites that are just dying to teach you. For free!

Don’t want to do a website, but a REAL application? Learn Basic to get a prototype up and running, Microsoft will even give you the tools for free. Hell, learn REALbasic and go multi-platform from the outset.

Don’t want to do a REAL application, but want to write a book? You have Word or Pages, right? No? You know each platform comes with a free text editor?

The excuses are endless, but the dirty little secret is: it doesn’t take money to get started, it takes a little courage and the ability to believe in yourself, now mix in your free time (you didn’t really want to sit on your sofa watching television anyway, did you?) and you’re set. If you start it, you’ll already be well ahead of the rest of 95% of the world that will never do it. After that, luck and skill kick in.

Whatever it is you want to do, don’t be put off by excuses that you make yourself. You don’t need permission. You don’t need money. You just need an idea that you believe in and the ability to get off your butt and do it.

Go do it, we need you to help make our world a better place.

Image Credit: Find The Idea by khalid Albaih flickr, used under creative commons with attribution license.

I’ve had some interesting conversations lately about blogging (in particular) and what is to be a blogger (in general).

Depending on why you blog, it might be that you your blog is an extension of you. More of an open diary, where others can share your life, your ups and downs, where you can share some jokes, some neat things you’ve found, and wax lyrical about whatever is on your mind.

I’ve tended not to do so, primarily because what’s on my mind half the time will be of very little interest to others. Well, I think so, anyway.

Which brings me to my point for this post. Why do you blog?

• Is it to help promote the brand of YOU?
• Is it to help sell your business?
• Do you blog for pleasure or for a living?
• Have you even considered this question?

I have, and the answer helps me. I blog to share experience and to try to promote ideas that might be useful to others. It’s part of the reason I blog infrequently: I only truly want to share what I think will be helpful.

In order for your blogging activities to be successful, you’ll need to focus on the reasons you are doing it, but remember those reasons are up to you. Some things to consider:

• Have a reason, and try to stick to that as the core theme and idea behind your blog.
• However, don’t be slavish to that reasoning, blogs, like businesses, evolve.
• If, like me, you blog elsewhere as well, evaluate if it is even useful to continue a personal blog.
• Maybe there are other outlets for your creativity in writing, such as twitter, facebook, quora and others.
• If it’s not working for you, on any level, unless you are paid for blogging, then reconsidering either the reasons you blog, or find a different outlet.
• I’d also recommend that you have different outlets for different things. For instance, if you primarily blog about business, perhaps when you want to go “off topic”, you might want to either do that elsewhere (facebook?), or even consider running another blog to meet different needs entirely.
• Finally, to get the best of a blog, both for you and your readers, only blog about what you enjoy and are passionate about, and if it ever seems too much like being a chore, you’re probably not blogging about something you enjoy enough.

Happy blogging, and tell me your thoughts in the comments.

Image credit: I’m Blogging This by antigone78 on flickr, used under creative commons with attribution license.

Okay, let’s be honest with one another, I love tech, I love to buy new things. If they come from Apple, even better, but I’m not a total snob about it, I’m willing to buy my gadget fix from just about anyone. Well, maybe not Microsoft, but just about anyone else (sorry MS, but, well, I have one word for you: Zune!)

I have far too many Apple computers (at the last count 9, if we include iPhones and iPads), and don’t get me started on “magic” touch pads and other add-ons that I just can’t live without.

I just had a quick in-my-head count, and I currently have more computers at once than I have ever owned in my life (and yes, smart-phones, they are computers) in total before the current crop.

Now, I’m not just having a boast session, far from it: I am currently about as happy as one can get with tech; rather I’d like to discuss a little bit about why I have such a selection of tech, and then a discussion about what you can learn from this. I’ll be brief, I promise.

Firstly, I’m a guy, so shiny wins. It’s right up there, even ahead of breasts (yes, I’m a geek).

Second, each new release from Apple (and from other vendors) tends to REALLY out-perform and just generally out-sex the last crop of devices I own. Add-in shiny, and what we’re really talking about is a total change from the last ten years, where most stuff has been incremental, and therefore a little too beige and a little too “oh, like the last one, but faster.”

What we’re really seeing has gone beyond innovation, what we’re talking is game changing.

iPhone not a game changer? Why is everyone so desperate to get in on the market then?

iPad not a game change? Why is every computer company and their OEM partners trying to get in on the act, then?

Mobile just for those who can’t afford desktops? Maybe, actually, but there are more mobile telephones on the planet than people, and, unlike my desktop and even my laptop, I always have a phone with me.

Where am I going with this?

Glad you asked, my question for you is: are you producing something I MUST have?

Are you? Or are you just wondering how to emulate someone else who’s having some success? Well, here’s some news for you: if I’ve got one of whatever your making, if yours doesn’t have a wow-factor attached, then I have a simple message for you: I’m not buying it.

The options available to me as a consumer are huge, my tech options to make my life better, sexier, faster, happier (okay, the marketing is working) are almost endless; but my wallet is not. So, if you want my hard-earned bucks, you’d better have something better, faster, sexier, damn it and shinier than the competition, or at least convince me you have, or you’re dead before you even start.

Where’s the take-a-way here? Simple: marketing and design are a huge part of the equation of making money, how high a priority are they on your list, and are you making sure they are on the table before you design your product? If they are not, you may as well save your effort and time.

And on that note, happy holidays and all the best for 2011. I think 2011 will be a great year for those that are thinking game changing and not me too.

Image Credit: Gear – Small Gadget Details by nateOne on Flickr. Used under creative commons with attribution license.

Most of that has been ignored by the music industry.

We often sit back and tut about how the music industry has got it wrong, and should try and change its business model. But I wonder how many of us could adapt well in the face of a complete melt-down of our normal way of working?

Of course, we have the benefit of being hip-and-trendy social media types, don’t we? Well, maybe, but what would you do if, in your nice cushy number where you sit now, the tables were turned and suddenly it looked like you and your friends might go the way of Raphus cucullatus?

Be honest with yourself for a couple of minutes. What would you do?

Would you hunker down and try to “ride out the wave”?

Or would you survive, because, you know, you’re indispensable?

You know that’s what the music industry is doing, right?

What I’d hope you’d do is never let yourself get into that position in the first place. The music industry have certainly had plenty of potential opportunities to put their house in order, and I am sure they’ll be given a few more yet; if they last that long.

The first thing you can do to avoid obsolescence is be adaptable. Keep your skills sharp, try new things, learn new things. You keep up on your industry trade papers, right? Not got time? How will you know what you competitors are doing, then? How will you work out who’s just around the corner about to upset your world?

How about reading about closely related trades, too? How about just keeping up with tech / woodworking / what-ever-it-is-you-do in general?

“Know thy enemy”, but just remember that your biggest enemy can often be you.

Of course, what I’m really saying to you is keep innovative. Keep evolving. Keep on your toes.

It doesn’t matter if you work for a big multi-national, or for yourself. This affects all of us.

If you’re working for yourself, keep trying to change the world. You are trying to change the world, right?

No, you don’t have to invent the newest and greatest medical procedure, or help world-peace to change the world; I’d be happy if you just made the best damn service or software or widget (you get the idea) that you can in your specific niche. If you already have that, why not be the best damn customer focused organisation in the world? Either way, you’re innovating if you get it right (you’re also innovating if you get it wrong, provided that you know you’ve got it wrong), and be willing to go wherever to do the best by your customers.

So, as I said at the start, I love music, but I don’t buy records or CDs any more; the cost-benefit ratio doesn’t work for me any more (are you listening music companies?) I don’t download illegally either. I just listen to radio. Online, and buy the occasional track I might want. Again, online. I’d like to invite the recording industry to have some of my cash, I’d like to spend, I really would. But now it’s got to be on my terms.

That’s innovation.

Image Credit: Dodo by arminflickr on flickr. Used under creative commons with attribution license.

I don’t know if that’s a good thing sometimes; in fact sometimes I KNOW it to be a good thing, other times I KNOW it to be a bad thing.

What I’ve not been doing a lot of recently, however, is writing.

It’s not because I have nothing to say: I do.

It’s not because I don’t want to write: I do.

It’s also not because I can’t be bothered: I can.

I can’t really pretend it’s because I don’t have time: I kind of do.

I just lost my ability to wax lyrical on things for a while. Let’s call it writers block. It wasn’t, but let’s call it that.

If it wasn’t, why give it a name it isn’t? Well, primarily, I WAS a bit embarrassed about it. Note the “was”.

What I’ve learned over the past month or two, though, is I’m not any more. Sometimes less is more. If you read what I write much, then you’ll know I usually advocate that ALWAYS less is more.

And sometimes, I need to just sit back and think and then contribute when I have something I really want to say.

I needed to say this. I’ll be quiet again now.

Image Credit: The Legion Of Shhhhh! by AndYaDontStop on Flickr, used under creative commons with attribution license.

Let me explain.

New products are usually the result of someone deciding that whatever is currently available (if something is) to solve a problem isn’t good enough, so they make a new way of doing things, a better way (sometimes).

I’m not sad about that bit.

What makes me mostly sad is that often times very good ideas are poorly executed, because the designer (if there was one) didn’t step back at any point and ask this question: “what’s the simplest way to make this work.”

Note that: the simplest. Not the most cutting edge way. Not the latest and greatest technology way. Not the coolest way. The simplest might actually be the coolest, the most cutting edge and may even involve the latest technology; but, it’s always the simplest.

Why?

Simple really (pun intended), the simplest makes your product easy, and most times intuitive to use.

Let’s take an example: twitter. The website, in my humble opinion, is not the best in the world, and makes managing a large follower base pretty hard. However, if all you want to do is knock out a couple of quick tweets, it doesn’t get much simpler that loading up twitter.com, and off you go, type, press “tweet” and you’re done.

Keeping in mind simple, the designers of twitter also understood something else: Not only do they know that they’re not the best people to sort out the easiest way to use the service, they encourage others to offer something better, by providing their own API, so someone, anyone (almost) can write a client that makes it easy to not only tweet, but to manage your followers, and manage how you consume the tweets of the people you follow.

How easy is it to use your service or offering? If you don’t do tech, how easy is it to buy from you? Can you make it easier? How about letting people have access to your offering, so they can offer it in new and perhaps better ways?

You’re already thinking of five great reasons why that’s just not how your service or offering should be consumed, or you’re convincing yourself that there’s just no way you can give up that kind of control, aren’t you? If you are, then I’m aiming this post at you.

You’re an ecommerce shop, so you have to have control? Look at Amazon.

You’re a social media site, it couldn’t possibly work? Look at Facebook.

It’s probably true, there are a thousand reasons not to let people have access and control. But it only takes one killer reason to let them, and your business could easily go from small to world-class.

No matter how many good things you can do, the crowd can do it better. As a small operation, or even as a large one, you’ll have fixed ideas about things, and you’ll never be the best at all things; you’re like me, only human, which means sometimes we focus on form not function. Opening up and letting go can only help you get better, not get worse.

Finally, remember, some one out there can always do it better. Why not have them working with you, rather than being your next competitor? Not being bound by just your own skills and not letting convention or fixed ideas rule your business sets you apart, and that’s what lets businesses grow and prosper.

Image Credit: Sensible Fix for a Stupid Design, by Brendan Adkins on Flickr, used under creative commons with attribution license.