As Consumers Revolt, a Rush to Block Pop-Up Online Ads

"AdvertisementBanners.com, which places pop-under ads on Web sites, has found that 20 percent to 25 percent of Web users have pop-up blocking enabled on their computers, double the rate of a year ago, said Chris Vanderhook, the company's chief operating officer. Some advertising companies say that a smaller percentage of people are using blockers, but there is agreement that use of pop-up blocking is increasing."

Does Usability Actually Sell Anything?

"Usability experts observe a few people in laboratories (not their normal environment) but turn their noses up at Web analytics that record what large, statistically valid samples actually do. Asking people what they will do is futile; they don't really know (e.g., they say that they want to eat healthy but 'supersize' their value meals). Observing people in a lab is less than optimal, since those are not true market conditions. Observing what people do under real market conditions where the real world distracts and interacts with them is a much more powerful method."

RSS meets BitTorrent meets TiVo

"The result: the TV distribution networks are completely end-run by an ad-hoc, decentralized, loosely-coupled network. And in the process, significant opportunities are afforded to independent content producers of audio and video to reach a mass audience with insignificant distribution costs."

Pew Internet Project: America's Online Pursuits (pdf)

"In all, we have asked Americans about more than 50 different types of Internet activities in our tracking surveys, everything from instant messaging to searching for a home online, between March 2000 and August 2003. Over the years we interviewed more than 64,000 American adults about their Internet use. The information contained in this report is intended to function as an overview of the demographic material we have gathered about Internet users through August 2003 and the 25 core activities we have tracked with some frequency through December 2002. Each section provides snapshots of how the prevalence of a particular activity has changed over time, pointers to our previous findings on the topic, and basic demographic trends. A full rundown of our latest findings about each activity can be found on our Web site."

Should a "Big 5" Firm Implement Your CMS?

"My first project as a Big 5 consultant placed me at one of the world's largest telecoms. We were designing an application architecture that included all the best and most expensive pieces of gear. I asked for a copy of the business case and, after spending a night going through it, I devised some simple ways to complete the project for much less money by using some open source options. Then I learned something very quickly: you will never see the Big 5 offer such a solution because major software vendors offer commissions or what the Big 5 calls "fees," for recommending that vendor's products. These fees frequently range from 25-35% of the software list prices, but are occasionally even higher."

75% of Net Users Connect Sans Browser

"Nielsen//NetRatings, reports that three out of every four home and work Internet users, or 76 percent of active Web surfers, access the Internet using a non-browser based Internet application. Media players, instant messengers and file sharing applications are the most popular Internet applications."

2003 Google Zeitgeist

"Google has published its 'Zeitgeist' for 2003 -- some interesting aggregated stats about what people searched for and how and when they searched for it through the year (there's a lame Yahoo version, too -- do people really still search there?). As Jason pointed out, it's amazing to think what Google could charge for access to this kind of info-porn"

The Super Bowl of Search: Super Keywords

"Super keywords are the one- or two-word generic terms ('travel,' 'cell phone') that represent an industry category. They typically deliver searchers who are early in the buying cycle. Someone searching 'furniture' or 'car' is in a different state of mind than one typing 'travel to China' or 'Toyota Tacoma price.' Super keywords tend to be volatile and expensive, particularly related to immediate conversion metrics."