It’s always interesting to see what ideas a web giant like Amazon is evaluating, particularly when the change is more than just a subtle adjustment. At present they’re trying out a very different home page. One thing Amazon does that is super-smart is split test. They don’t rely on the vague irrelevancies of what customers tell them in market research to decide whether a change is worth making: they send customers to the new look at random and check to see what the impact is on behaviour (and particularly on conversion). This means the evaluation isn’t done as an artificial conscious exercise, people don’t know they’re taking part in research: as a result the unconscious drivers of consumer actions are still ‘in-play’ and the artificial influence that comes from asking questions isn’t an issue. From this perspective it doesn’t really matter what I or anyone else thinks when they evaluate […]
Shuropody (August 2011)
“Yes!” That was my first thought as I watched my golf ball fly towards the 200 yard marker at the driving range; the first successful launch from new Taylormade R9 5 wood. My previous attempts had travelled the kind of distance better measured in inches. My second thought was “Ouch!” My foot was hurting with the constant pain that I imagine would be the consequence of getting whacked on the heel with a sledgehammer. The pain eased a little in the next few moments, and so with the mindlessness that would delight a regimental sergeant major but cause a physician untold despair, I carried on trying to get the long stick to propel the ball to the end of the driving range. Two days later I was forced to accept I’d done something hurty to my foot; the pain was still present and I needed to do something about it. […]
The Name’s Not Bond: Christopher Ward Watches
I’ve been having some trouble with a couple of Eastern Europeans. You know the types; a beautiful woman who, it turns out, is actually a spy, and a ruthless maniac who wants to take over the world. Being a secret agent myself (something I normally only mention when checking into hotels or introducing myself to villains) it’s beholden on me to step in if I get wind that there’s a move afoot to take over the world: it usually only takes a couple of hours to sort it out. Of course, there are various tools of the trade that help me in my endeavours. I’ve equipped my car with a few natty gadgets: a satellite navigation unit that doesn’t just tell me where I am and how to get where I’m going, it also falls off its mount as I drive along and, at night, if I leave the mount […]
Literary Criticism: Review of an Independent Book Retailer
If you have seen the Tom Hanks Meg Ryan movie, “You’ve Got Mail” you may remember the plot revolves around the email exchanges of the two characters. Hanks runs the large corporate book store – FoxBooks, and Ryan the small independent Shop Around the Corner. In the course of the movie the implication is that the small independent can offer so much more by way of knowledgeable care and product expertise. The suggestion is that it’s a sad indictment of our obsession with ‘value’ (for which read price) that we choose economies of scale over service… “… we’ll just put up a big sign: ‘Coming soon, a FoxBooks superstore and the end of civilization as you know it.’” So does the small book store have anything special to offer its customers – more to the point did Buy the Book in Nottingham have anything to differentiate it positively from its […]
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