The New BBC Homepage
Filed under: Agency, Customer Engagement, Design/Creative, Useability
A little creative thought for a Monday morning.
As per my usual routine of coffee and a quick update on the weekends events, my chrome address bar is pointed at the BBC homepage. As ever, it knows who I am and why I have returned. I can browse the results from the rugby while skipping across the latest Science and Nature discoveries, all because like an old friend it knows what I like to talk about… but whats this… “Explore the new BBC homepage”. Oh dear, I have seen this all before, just when you are happy they want to change it.
“Try out our new homepage design”
Navigating through to the new design, I am immediately hit with the volume of content, everything from CBB’ies to the latest Eastender catchup. The page is headed by a large horizontally scrolling wealth of content, you will find all that the BBC has to offer with a quick left to right. Different size images give different weight to different content articles. It definitely looks clean and crisp but where is all the content that I know and love? It tells me I am in London, and that the weather that I can already see outside my window is slightly overcast, but other than that I could be anyone.
In short it would seem the BBC are following their own strategic ambitions of what content I find… not my ambitions. The BBC Homepage currently enjoys the accolade of “Most referenced site” when anyone wants to build their own company site. I fear they will loose this altogether if the beta site becomes a reality.
Any customer facing interaction point should be striving more and more to the utopian “one-to-one” conversation theory, you know who they are, and they know exactly who you are. It would seem the BBC are stepping in quite the oposite direction, as will I… iGoogle here I come.
Check out the BBC beta homepage at http://beta.bbc.co.uk/
Consumer Writes…
Filed under: Customer Relationship Management, Marketing Strategy, Uncategorized
It was 60 years ago that Bill Haley & ‘rock ‘n’ roll’ music created a generation gap between young people and their parents. Today, the use of digital media is creating a new generation gap – the digital “divide” – not just in accessibility but in how the generations use those technologies. The willingness to connect, and share, and ‘like’ enables brands to connect with consumers like never before – engaging in a true conversation. In this new world , there are very few physical or psychological barriers to trying new ways to do things, the Digital Generation epitomize the new mindset of the decade: digital media means everything is interconnected, anything goes, everything is available, and little is private. They are savvy, skilled shoppers, who place a high level of importance on individualism and personal involvement in the creation process. Helpfully, they are willing to share information and Brands must respond by providing members of the Digital Generation with the tools they need create or re-create content & products to suit themselves.
As the world continues to globalise and technology continues to evolve, the world for consumers will become more convenient than ever before in the history of retail. Technology will advance rapidly, customer service will be more convenient than instant coffee, personalisation will be instantaneous, and mobile marketing & commerce will find consumers wherever and whenever they desire. With social media marketing platforms marketers will capitalize on public information sprawled across Facebook, Twitter, other, as yet unknown platforms; brands will take consumer psychographics to the next level, knowing what we “like”, who our friends are, what we are thinking about, who we follow, where we go, and our daily consuming patterns. Utilising new tricks and combining it with traditional marketing promotion tactics such as: added value, cross sale, all inclusive promotions, ‘green’, health and lifestyle, convenience shopping, and now mobile location based services. Consumers no longer shop for products; brands will go shopping for consumers.
The iPad has landed…but is it actually any good?
I’ve been in possession of an iPad for approximately 51 hours. My impressions so far are good, in fact, very good. Granted, you’ll not get that same clouds parting, ray of sunshine beaming, angels singing moment as when you first held and used an iPhone but it’s still pretty darned special. In fact I get the feeling the iPad is a grower.
When Apple first announced the launch of the iPad I was sceptical as to what its use could be other than simple gadget eye candy. I kept an eye on the press and what people were blogging about with regards to its use and functionality. It didn’t seem anyone could really put their finger on a definitive use for it, it exists in a technology limbo somewhere between the laptop and the smart phone. As a result I dismissed the purchasing of one as ‘gadgetary decadence’ – a disorder I’ve suffered from in the past… but not this time hey? Well, actually…
On the weekend it launched I happened to be in PC World and there happened to be a series of iPads on demonstration, so I happened to queue up in order to satisfy my curiosity. It’s at this stage that things changed. The screen resolution was astounding, the crispness of the interface, the fluid nature of the interaction with the screen… pure poetry. After 2 minutes of use I now didn’t care if it had a real purpose and reason to exist in my world, it simply had to be in it.
I’ve just re-read this post so far and I sound like an absolute raving, Apple mad, gadget fiend and nerd of the highest order. This maybe true and I maybe in denial but I’d challenge most people to not be impressed once they’ve spent some time with an iPad. The user experience from an aesthetic and interface perspective speaks for itself but it’s the purpose built iPad apps that bring it into its own…
Some of the apps deliver the website experience you’ve always craved. Highly intuitive, immersive, rapid, visual, slick, sexy and ultimately rewarding. I found myself last night literally pawing through an interactive cook book app, the culinary world isn’t usually my bag but this app brought the food and recipe off the page (so to speak) in such an engaging way that I started to entertain the idea of holding a dinner party (something I’ve not done for a long time).
This is where I think the iPad and what it delivers becomes really, really interesting. It can truly engage with a user in a way a standard PC, online experience will struggle to emulate. After a couple of days usage my mind has already started to fill with numerous ideas for ‘apps’ that would enhance the brands and businesses of our clients. B2B or B2C there will be ‘engagement points’ within your business that would undoubtedly benefit from having a rich and highly engaging tool to interact and work through. This could of course be delivered through more traditional online methods such as Flash based applications using Adobe Air or Microsoft’s Silverlight with a dollop of J-Query. The important point is that user expectations are on the rise through devices such as the iPad and businesses need to ensure they keep this in mind as they try to engage with customers online.
Is the iPad and its apps the future of digital experiences? No, I don’t think so but they’ll certainly have a part to play in the coming years and will definitely shape the future growth of the online customer engagement experience.
JS.