Bill Bumgarner highlights a shining example of the difference between ‘information architecture’ and ‘user experience’:

How can Dell, a company that built its fortune on direct sales, justify focusing so much energy on impeding the online purchase process?

Via Daring Fireball.

Amazon got it right when it launched its customer review strategy in the 90s. I could tell the world of online shoppers (which was much smaller at that time) why I loved my new Hoover vacuum and why it’s so great to clean. Or I could warn fellow shoppers about how the battery on my hand vac is only good for about a year and how my favorite cleaning device suddenly became my nemesis. It seems to be human nature that we all want to know what other people think before trying a new product/service. I’m famous for asking the server at a new restaurant, “What’s the most popular item on the menu?” I assume if other people are ordering the pickled ham and cheese sammy, then it must be good. However, that doesn’t always mean that I order it. I just want to know. It usually says something about the house specialty or the community.

Sites like digg.com, del.icio.us, tailrank.com, and a lesser-known site — winelog.net (one of my more recent favorites) are all based on the concept of sharing information and engaging in content based on someone else’s opinion. If no one else is diggin’ it, then why should I read that story about Minnesota’s new state fruit? The fact is, I probably wouldn’t see the story since it would be buried amongst the duds.

Here’s why we love these sites:

1. These people are smart and I value what they think
2. I’m clueless and I need some direction
3. It’s fun

I’ve been in the Northwest for the past few days now and very impressed that I have had Internet access in many places I did not expect. Port Townsend, WA and Orcas Island (part of the San Juans off the coast of Washington) both provided me my fix. Or did they?

Yes – it’s wireless, and it’s secure but it’s also SLOW. Broadband does not inherently mean fast. I’d rather have a 56k modem at the moment. So the next time you read an article with a headline ike US Broadband Penetration Nears 70% Among Active Internet Users, take it with a grain of salt.

My current bandwidth is 418 kbps download and a screaming 26 kbps upload (it took me three days to post this)…

There’s this running argument I’m having with a colleague. Well, not really an argument, I guess. More like a debate. My colleague’s position is it’s OK to continue to send permission email to someone months or even years after they’ve stopped interacting with it in any way because, hey, it’s an impression, isn’t it? Even if all they’re doing is deleting it as soon as it arrives, at least there’s a split second where they’ve read and recognized the brand name. Doesn’t that have value, my colleague asks.

Short answer: no. Why continue to interject your brand into their lives when they obviously have no interest in it anymore? Most likely, the aforementioned inactive consumer has either relegated you to their spam filter ages ago, abandoned their email address, or died. However, when you’re talking about a database with millions of names in it, you don’t need a very large percentage of those to be real people hitting the dreaded X icon every time before you realize you’re probably pissing a lot of them off. Best case, you condition them to associate your brand with insignificance or irrelevance or whatever other emotion they feel in that short window between recognition and eradication. Worst case, you get lumped together with those sending free Viagra pitches and pleas for help from Nigerian widows.

Here’s a real-world example of what I’m talking about. The other day I was passing through the MSP airport on my way to LA. While passing through the TSA’s security cattle chute, with all the stress and inconvenience that goes along with it, I noticed that some marketing genius has adopted the ‘any impression is a good impression’ approach and sold advertising inside the x-ray trays. Really. So now, next time I’m wondering if I have all my belongings while simultaneously trying to put my shoes and belt back on and my laptop into its bag without blocking the way of my fellow cattle as they meander though, I will be able to enjoy the brand message of some consulting firm or pharmaceutical company.

Is the very moment your customer is annoyed, flummoxed, and/or otherwise peeved at the world the best time to be selling something to them?