FriendFeed is becoming less useful to me and it's my fault. As i've written previously, people often ruin their own experiences and it's up to good product design to help solve this challenge.
FriendFeed, like many new communication channels, was originally very high signal:noise -- i tracked just a few of my friends and thus was always interested in checking out what they had posted, shared or favorited. Then i started adding more friends as people joined the service, in reciprocation to those subscribing to my thread and because FriendFeed released a "find your friends" tool. Whoom - much noise introduced. And FriendFeed exacerbated this by adding Friend of a Friend posts to my default view.
So as much as i love FF, i've already seen my usage patterns change. Now i've primarily turned it into EgoFeed where i check just my own feed to see if anyone has liked or commented on my items. My rate of looking at my friends has dropped dramatically.
What do i want? Better filters on my combined feed view. For example:
> allow me to only see Friend's posts that were liked or commented by others or allow me to sort by this
> let me mute one of my friend's services or a service in general - maybe i really don't care about Picasa web albums for Friend X or Picasa web albums in general
> let me friend but not follow someone - i know this is totally counter to the whole purpose of FF, but it will allow me to remember that an acquaintance uses the service without adding them to my combined feed view
> let me turn off Friends of a Friend postings
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Geeking out at Wondercon
Just back from an annual comics convention here in SF. While I'm not too into the comic scene i do love the art and the costumes. People are really passionate about these fantasy worlds and that can't help but fire you up.
I got to see two of my favorite local artists - Lark Pien and Debbie Huey - we've got very small pieces by them in our house. Also picked up this fun print - the devil made me do it.
And the crowing glory - shot some videos at the costume contest.
I got to see two of my favorite local artists - Lark Pien and Debbie Huey - we've got very small pieces by them in our house. Also picked up this fun print - the devil made me do it.
And the crowing glory - shot some videos at the costume contest.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Awesome Moments in Metal, Part 666
Could have been a deleted scene from Spinal Tap:
It was at this time that Jizzy performed his legendary publicity stunt to try and help album sales. This involved Jizzy, with the help of a few others, successfully erecting a cross on the letter 'Y' of the Hollywood Sign and performing a mock crucification on it, with a camera crew in a helicopter to film it. The band had assumed the authorities would quickly notice the stunt, but Jizzy was stuck on the cross, 60ft in the air, for several hours. Eventually a TV news helicopter spotted him and the police and fire dept were called to bring him down. [from Wikipedia's entry on the 1990s band Love/Hate]
It was at this time that Jizzy performed his legendary publicity stunt to try and help album sales. This involved Jizzy, with the help of a few others, successfully erecting a cross on the letter 'Y' of the Hollywood Sign and performing a mock crucification on it, with a camera crew in a helicopter to film it. The band had assumed the authorities would quickly notice the stunt, but Jizzy was stuck on the cross, 60ft in the air, for several hours. Eventually a TV news helicopter spotted him and the police and fire dept were called to bring him down. [from Wikipedia's entry on the 1990s band Love/Hate]
The Psychology of the Salad Bar
Sometimes you need to protect humans from themselves. Although my passion is creating platforms that bet on the creative abilities of the average person (Second Life, Google AdSense, YouTube being the last eight years of my life), I also believe the best products need to occasionally guide people away from their own bad habits or hard-wired inclinations.
Example? The latest, greatest communication method - let's take Twitter for example - is beloved by early adopters because there's such a high signal:noise ratio. Well, that's because you start out connecting to just a handful of friends. But then as you add more and more ties because the platform becomes popular, because the desire to collect friends (especially when this number is visible), because you feel weird turning down connection requests, etc, ends up adding more noise until the system becomes less valuable. Unless the product itself helps you with features such as "mute," hiding friend counts to remove social pressure, etc.
One of my favorite experiences with this phenomena came outside the world of technology and instead in the restaurant business. When studying for my MBA i used class projects as a way to explore industries where i was curious but unlikely to pursue post-graduation. I've always avoided knowing too much about the mechanics of food service on the belief that a first hand look at the workings of a restaurant kitchen might cause me to think twice about eating out. However it was time to conquer my fear and Fresh Choice, the california-based buffet chain, was my opportunity.
Growing up out east I was intimately familiar with Sizzler as the pinnacle of gorge-yourself eating. Fresh Choice seemed to bring a healthier take to the "all you can eat" model and for reasons that escape me, I ended up talking with their VP of Marketing about an independent project. We settled on examining the question of customer loyalty - they were having trouble attracting new customers without discounting, and when they did coupon (which was often), discovered that most of the customers were value-oriented shoppers who failed to bring other guests with them. Quite a conundrum.
A classmate and I set about surveying several hundred customers at three different Fresh Choice locations to better understand their visitation habits. Ultimately we delivered some valuable information on discounting and evangelism strategies to Fresh Choice management, including converting some of our most enthusiastic interviews into a "Kitchen Cupboard" group who could be tapped for ideas ongoing. But the learnings which lived on beyond the research had more to do with human nature than an approach to couponing.
1) The Paradox of Choice
Many people are familiar with the research that shows people can get overwhlemed by too many choices. At Fresh Choice I witnessed a variation on this reaction based on the fact customers had already paid for a meal and wouldn't abandon completely. Instead they retreated to the familiar, and in doing so, short circuited FC's attempts to increase visitation. It went something like this:
In order to attract more eaters, FC mgmt added even more ingredients to the salad bar, hoping to make it a better value and more diverse (now with baby corn!). Already confronted by too many choices, customers would shrink back to the meal they knew how to make (usually a standard salad with just a few common ingredients). The end result was a customer who self-reinforced their notion that FC was only about a single dish -- whatever they ate the most.
To encourage experimentation we suggested they print rotating paper placements which showed customers how to become a "salad architect," putting together different ingredients to make, say, a Cobb Salad or Chinese Chicken Salad.
2) We're All Pigs
You can't escape the fact we're hardwired to be gluttons. It comes from the days when meals were fewer and further between. So despite the fact that Fresh Choice was all you could eat, people would feel the need to stack everything they wanted on their plate the first time through, as if there wasn't any chocolate pudding left after their initial pass.
The result? A heaping mass of food that quickly became unappetizing as marinara sauce mixed with your brownie and caesar dressing saturated the blueberry muffin.
Rather than try to convince people to not behave this way we suggested they offer sectioned plates or tv tray style dishes. This way at least people could keep their food separate, if not properly portioned.
I don't think FC took either of these suggestions but this project sticks out in my mind as one of the most interesting hands-on research from my classes at Stanford. FC couldn't compensate me since i was a student so instead i took a bunch of free meal coupons and promptly displayed the behaviors I'd been observing.
[thanks to Auren for motivating me to write this down as part of a discussion at his place a few weeks back]
Example? The latest, greatest communication method - let's take Twitter for example - is beloved by early adopters because there's such a high signal:noise ratio. Well, that's because you start out connecting to just a handful of friends. But then as you add more and more ties because the platform becomes popular, because the desire to collect friends (especially when this number is visible), because you feel weird turning down connection requests, etc, ends up adding more noise until the system becomes less valuable. Unless the product itself helps you with features such as "mute," hiding friend counts to remove social pressure, etc.
One of my favorite experiences with this phenomena came outside the world of technology and instead in the restaurant business. When studying for my MBA i used class projects as a way to explore industries where i was curious but unlikely to pursue post-graduation. I've always avoided knowing too much about the mechanics of food service on the belief that a first hand look at the workings of a restaurant kitchen might cause me to think twice about eating out. However it was time to conquer my fear and Fresh Choice, the california-based buffet chain, was my opportunity.
Growing up out east I was intimately familiar with Sizzler as the pinnacle of gorge-yourself eating. Fresh Choice seemed to bring a healthier take to the "all you can eat" model and for reasons that escape me, I ended up talking with their VP of Marketing about an independent project. We settled on examining the question of customer loyalty - they were having trouble attracting new customers without discounting, and when they did coupon (which was often), discovered that most of the customers were value-oriented shoppers who failed to bring other guests with them. Quite a conundrum.
A classmate and I set about surveying several hundred customers at three different Fresh Choice locations to better understand their visitation habits. Ultimately we delivered some valuable information on discounting and evangelism strategies to Fresh Choice management, including converting some of our most enthusiastic interviews into a "Kitchen Cupboard" group who could be tapped for ideas ongoing. But the learnings which lived on beyond the research had more to do with human nature than an approach to couponing.
1) The Paradox of Choice
Many people are familiar with the research that shows people can get overwhlemed by too many choices. At Fresh Choice I witnessed a variation on this reaction based on the fact customers had already paid for a meal and wouldn't abandon completely. Instead they retreated to the familiar, and in doing so, short circuited FC's attempts to increase visitation. It went something like this:
In order to attract more eaters, FC mgmt added even more ingredients to the salad bar, hoping to make it a better value and more diverse (now with baby corn!). Already confronted by too many choices, customers would shrink back to the meal they knew how to make (usually a standard salad with just a few common ingredients). The end result was a customer who self-reinforced their notion that FC was only about a single dish -- whatever they ate the most.
To encourage experimentation we suggested they print rotating paper placements which showed customers how to become a "salad architect," putting together different ingredients to make, say, a Cobb Salad or Chinese Chicken Salad.
2) We're All Pigs
You can't escape the fact we're hardwired to be gluttons. It comes from the days when meals were fewer and further between. So despite the fact that Fresh Choice was all you could eat, people would feel the need to stack everything they wanted on their plate the first time through, as if there wasn't any chocolate pudding left after their initial pass.
The result? A heaping mass of food that quickly became unappetizing as marinara sauce mixed with your brownie and caesar dressing saturated the blueberry muffin.
Rather than try to convince people to not behave this way we suggested they offer sectioned plates or tv tray style dishes. This way at least people could keep their food separate, if not properly portioned.
I don't think FC took either of these suggestions but this project sticks out in my mind as one of the most interesting hands-on research from my classes at Stanford. FC couldn't compensate me since i was a student so instead i took a bunch of free meal coupons and promptly displayed the behaviors I'd been observing.
[thanks to Auren for motivating me to write this down as part of a discussion at his place a few weeks back]
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Clinton is MSFT, Obama is Google
Clinton is MSFT, Obama is Google
Clinton is an OS - request a feature and it will be considered, then prioritized for a four-year release cycle. Obama is an API - if you want something, build it.
Clinton is the familiar new IBM CEO, appointed by the Board of Directors because they all sit together on Pepsico's board. Obama is the start-up CEO - you'll quit your job to be employee #6 because you get to be part of the solution.
Clinton is a permission required mailing list. Obama is a wiki.
Clinton is an OS - request a feature and it will be considered, then prioritized for a four-year release cycle. Obama is an API - if you want something, build it.
Clinton is the familiar new IBM CEO, appointed by the Board of Directors because they all sit together on Pepsico's board. Obama is the start-up CEO - you'll quit your job to be employee #6 because you get to be part of the solution.
Clinton is a permission required mailing list. Obama is a wiki.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
More stars than Dazed and Confused
Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused is often noted for prescient casting given its large number of future stars or at least recognizable character actors (Parker Posey, Matthew McConaughey, Milla Jovovich, Joey Adams, Ben Affleck, Adam Goldberg). However another mid-90's flick actually has a more interesting young cast, although it too is spotted by lots of recognizable but eventually went nowhere actors: Higher Learning.
The movie itself is a trite confused look at the non-melting pot of college campuses but director John Singleton did one heck of a casting job: Omar Epps, Kristy Swanson, Tyra Banks, Michael Rapaport, Jennifer Connelly, Ice Cube, Busta Rhymes, the aforementioned Adam Goldberg, Laurence Fishburne, Regina King, Bridgette Wilson and even Gwyenth Paltrow as an uncredited extra.
The movie itself is a trite confused look at the non-melting pot of college campuses but director John Singleton did one heck of a casting job: Omar Epps, Kristy Swanson, Tyra Banks, Michael Rapaport, Jennifer Connelly, Ice Cube, Busta Rhymes, the aforementioned Adam Goldberg, Laurence Fishburne, Regina King, Bridgette Wilson and even Gwyenth Paltrow as an uncredited extra.
Thursday, February 14, 2008
iTunes Movie Rentals: Sort by Battery
Used iTunes movie rentals this week for a NYC trip. Worked well. I think they need "sort by time" so i can select films that won't outlast my laptop battery.
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Randoms
1. Incredibly happy that Bradley Horowitz is joining us here at Google. While it's sad to see some of my old friends leaving the Plex after their years of service, we've added folks like Dick Costolo, Jeff Veen, Joe Kraus and Bradley. I absolutely love these peeps, having gotten to know them to various degrees over the last year.
2. Tonight i witnessed the magic of cup stacking - need a competition set at the office.
3. Saw the cup stackers among other wonders at the YouTube Videocracy event where I spoke about YouTube's product vision.
4. Earlier this week got to hang out with one of my favorite NYTimes reporters, Virginia Heffernan. Virginia is so plugged in to online video that it's a great conversation - like two fans just trading "have you seen this video or that video" tales.
2. Tonight i witnessed the magic of cup stacking - need a competition set at the office.
3. Saw the cup stackers among other wonders at the YouTube Videocracy event where I spoke about YouTube's product vision.
4. Earlier this week got to hang out with one of my favorite NYTimes reporters, Virginia Heffernan. Virginia is so plugged in to online video that it's a great conversation - like two fans just trading "have you seen this video or that video" tales.
Saturday, February 09, 2008
Soap Glad to See You
Fortune has a good article about Four Seasons' ability to retain, motivate and grow employees in an industry with historically high turnover.
Most interesting fact? Four Seasons was the first to provide toiletries in your room (their Toronto hotel in 1961). Prior you needed to bring your own from home.
Most interesting fact? Four Seasons was the first to provide toiletries in your room (their Toronto hotel in 1961). Prior you needed to bring your own from home.
Field of Dreams
Giants ballpark - muddy today before they start laying grass. Hopefully not an indication of 2008 season...
Thursday, February 07, 2008
eBay: No negative ratings? -1,000,000!!!! Bad eBayer!!!!
So eBay has removed the ability to leave negative feedback, finding themselves unable to manage abuse of this feature. IMHO really bad idea. I've already written about how not opening up their reputation system to the web was a huge missed opportunity. Now they are further kneecapping one of their largest assets.
How will negative transactions be dealt with? By direct conversation with customer service reps, meaning this data is now walled within a customer management system and not part of the internet ecosystem. They are shrinking back to a core business of onsite transactions (return to fundamentals?) but the larger play - reputation and transaction system for all web-based peer-to-peer transactions - remains the more interesting growth engine to me.
How will negative transactions be dealt with? By direct conversation with customer service reps, meaning this data is now walled within a customer management system and not part of the internet ecosystem. They are shrinking back to a core business of onsite transactions (return to fundamentals?) but the larger play - reputation and transaction system for all web-based peer-to-peer transactions - remains the more interesting growth engine to me.
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Go Fast Howcast and Yay for Flowplay
Two friends' companies announced funding today:
FlowPlay: Raised $3.7m in a first round for their casual games company. Christian Oestlien is a co-founder and colleague of mine at Google.
Howcast: How-to video site raised $8m -- congrats to Jason, Daniel and Sanjay - all former colleagues. While it might seem an overfunded space, i really like the vertical. It's highly monetizable, evergreen and more likely to be the answer to a search query which means increased natural traffic from search.
FlowPlay: Raised $3.7m in a first round for their casual games company. Christian Oestlien is a co-founder and colleague of mine at Google.
Howcast: How-to video site raised $8m -- congrats to Jason, Daniel and Sanjay - all former colleagues. While it might seem an overfunded space, i really like the vertical. It's highly monetizable, evergreen and more likely to be the answer to a search query which means increased natural traffic from search.
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Sunday, February 03, 2008
Me no likey likey salesgenie
uh SalesGenie, I see an apology in your future.
Note to marketers -- "funny" foreign accents are not really the way to spend your $2.7m Super Bowl ad dollars.
Note to marketers -- "funny" foreign accents are not really the way to spend your $2.7m Super Bowl ad dollars.
Vacation as Fraud Detection
The coverage of Jerome Kerviel has revealed a number of low tech precautions which financial institutions employ, most of the time with success, but none so novel as the "forced vacation."
Via WSJ:
Many big Western banks have a rule of thumb that traders be required to take holidays for at least five workdays in a row, and often 10. This isn't an effort to undercut the work ethic. It is just hard to keep a fraud going when the day-to-day management of an order book is being handled by someone else.
Via WSJ:
Many big Western banks have a rule of thumb that traders be required to take holidays for at least five workdays in a row, and often 10. This isn't an effort to undercut the work ethic. It is just hard to keep a fraud going when the day-to-day management of an order book is being handled by someone else.
Saturday, February 02, 2008
Sway Sway Sway
Just received an advanced galley of Sway, Ori Brafman's new book due out later this year. I met Ori as he was releasing The Starfish and the Spider, and gave him a wrist guard and sharpie marker for all the autographs he was going to give once it hit the best-seller lists. Ori tells me that the brace came in handy during this book and I'm excited to take a read.
Friday, February 01, 2008
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