Two local news stations here in Nashville are on Twitter: WSMV (an NBC affiliate) and WKRN (an ABC affiliate). Even though both stations utilize Twitter, the differentiation between the two is huge.

Station 01: WSMV

This station has 5,770 tweets at the time of this post. However, despite the high frequency, EVERY SINGLE tweet is a link back to an article on their website. No replies. No personality. No face to this station. WSMV is using Twitter for the sole purpose of pushing people to their website. Lame.

This strategy misses the sweet spot of Twitter: to participate in the conversation. For WSMV, it is merely a one-way conversation with self-centered objectives.

Station 02: WKRN

WKRN, on the other hand, gets what Twitter is all about. Despite less activity on the account (only 26 updates), each tweet is engaging the users. In addition, they have experimented with using reply tweets in their nightly broadcasts - brilliant.

Instead of taking advantage of Twitter like their counterpart, they are utilizing it to connect to the audience. They are joining in the conversation and engaging users, which is what social media is all about.

Additionally, they actively follow 90 other Twitter users (compared to the 0 users that WSMV follows).

Unfortunately, for whatever reason, the most recent tweet from WKRN was over three weeks ago. I hope they have not dismissed Twitter as a viable communication outlet. If they stick with it, they will find it to be rewarding to their station and their audience. Come on, WKRN - keep it up.

Follow WSMV on Twitter
Follow WKRN on Twitter

Any readers see other news organizations that utilize Twitter effectively?

1. Think

Navigation should be thought through carefully. When considering the top level navigation, it is usually better to cut out options than add them. Sit down with a pen and paper and map out each section and page that needs to be in the navigation (notice I did not say “that you want to be in the navigation”).

2. Prioritize

This fits hand-in-hand with the first tip. Determine the options in which your user will be most interested. What are the sections most used on your site? How do users flow through your site? Do they check one section first, then another? How can you arrange the navigation and options to improve the user experience?

3. Group

Try to group items into logical contexts. If it does not fit in the group, then it needs to go somewhere else. Many links live perfectly fine in the footer. Don’t think that every single section/link/page needs to be in the main navigation cascade.

4. Optimize

More times than not, the first stab at a navigation is not the most effective. Analyze your traffic flows and adjust accordingly. If you find that your users are not clicking on the “About Us” page, then it may be better to link to this page in the footer. You goal is to create the best navigation interface possible for the user. Give them what they need to make browsing the site most effective.

In my day-to-day life, I try to optimize whenever possible - from lines of code in a long web app to simple things like how many loads of laundry I do in a given month. I always try to find the fastest way to get from point A to point B without affecting the quality of the end product.

Optimization is really key to progressing and evolving as an individual. As you optimize aspects in your life, you can begin to take on new things, bigger responsibilities, and explore different options.

Programmers always boast about optimization of code, but I think the principle can apply to all areas of our life - even design. Some of the best designs I have seen have been optimized for simplicity and communication. It is all about getting the core functionality of something and removing the clutter.

This morning, Apple featured the Election Countdown widget on the homepage of the widget directory. Awesome.

Download the widget:
http://www.apple.com/downloads/dashboard/justforfun/election2008countdown.html
http://helpmevote08.com/widgetry

10. Coca-Cola: Bird’s Nest

9. GM: I Was Made For You

8. Home Depot: Sweat

7. Visa GO WORLD Series: Michael Phelps 8 Gold Medals

6. GM: Gas Station/Chevy Volt

5. Coke: Olympics and Special Olympics

4. Visa GO WORLD Series: Kerri Strug

3. Nike: Courage (I’ve Got Soul)

2. Visa GO WORLD Series: Come Together

1. Visa GO WORLD Series: Derek Redmond

And a Bonus… the worst commercial of the 2008 Games.

McDonald’s “Golden” Sandwich Commercial

A secondary page was created to communicate the band’s “Opposite Way” movement - living the opposite way of the world. This page carried a more serious tone and allowed people to leave stories about how they were living the opposite way. The stories shared here were inspirational to other fans.

LeelandOnline.com
The Opposite Way Movement
Leeland on iTunes

Video Link

Now that more and more people are jumping on Facebook these days, it is becoming increasingly difficult for professionals to separate their online business life from their online personal life. As the video clip above proves, the convergence of these segments in social media are starting to cause problems for professionals.

Which brings up a good question: Should your business life and personal life really be segregated?

Whatever you do in your free time is a reflection on you, right? You are you. Your actions on the weekend reflect on your 9-to-5 life and vis versa.

If you like to go out and party on the weekends, be ready to take responsibility for images that may be posted of you on Facebook. Be ready to have friends write things like “you were totally wasted last night” on your wall. These are reflections of you. You should not feel that you need to hide that, and if you do try to hide that, you are not being true to yourself.

Facebook has allowed anyone that you befriend to journey with you in your personal life. They are able to see where you go, follow what you do, and monitor who you hang out with. You are not able to separate these and exist effectively in the social media world.

The only way to keep embarrassing content from showing up on Facebook is to realize that your business life and your personal life is one. And people will respect you if you act accordingly. If you do not place yourself in potentially embarassing situtations, you have nothing to worry about. A little integrity can go a long way.

Itegrity in your personal life = interity in your business life.

After reading about our horrible experience, my sister, Bethany, commented with links to a fantastic cabin her and her husband had rented:

Sorry you place wasn’t all you hoped for Next time, try Mountain Laurel Chalets. http://www.mtnlaurelchalets.com/chalet_index.html
We have used them more than once and have never been less than pleased. Here is the cabin we stayed at last Christmas.
http://secure.instantsoftwareonline.com/StayUSA/Property.aspx?coid=0210&propid=SCHONBLICK

Bethany

She had a great experience and it turned her into an evangelist. This is what every company should strive for - having the customer evangelize on your behalf. This penetrates through the influence layer since the marketing is coming from someone within their circle of influence, not outside it. Thanks for making my point, Bethany.

My wife, Rachael, and I took off for a weekend getaway to Gatlinburg, Tennessee this weekend. It was a last-minute trip and fortunately, we were able to book a cabin rental. Our excitement quickly drained to disgust when we arrived.

The driveway was eroded where it met the road, so we nearly ruined the car trying to accelerate quick enough to overcome the large ledge. We were then greeted by several species of bugs when we finally got inside - a insect killing spree was required. We discovered there was not even a battery in the smoke detector - which I assume is against the law in the rental business. There were holes in the walls in the bathroom. We even found writing on one of the walls. The shower knob kept falling off and the bathroom fixtures were not secured to the wall. Then, on our second day, we were infested with ants - hundreds of them - all over the kitchen.

Needless to say, our experience was less than perfect. The rental website painted this cabin as a perfect getaway location. In fact, the cabin was named “Hidden Heaven.” Ironic.

Because of our experience, it has affected our thoughts on not only this cabin but also the company that rented it. We will never use this company again. There is no telling how many other cabins they have that are in worse condition than a run-down motel.

How your customers experience your product or service is EVERYTHING. Strive to create the best experience for your customers in any way possible. A good experience will not only bring them back for more, but they will become evangelists on your behalf.

These days, many old-minded people still assign an unreasonable amount of value to “above the fold” on the web - or as it is now commonly referred to as… “above the scroll.” This is the portion of the page that a user will see without having to scroll down for more content.

1. The “Above the Scroll” area is important.

Don’t get me wrong. The top portion of the page is important. There is no doubt about that. However, the major problem is that the first reaction to the sense of “valuable real estate” is to try to cram as much information in the “above the scroll” area as possible. This is just wrong. Prioritize the information and have a keen editor’s eye.

2. User screen resolutions are different.

The days of 99% of users having a 800×600 screen resolution are over. Screen resolutions are so diverse now that it is difficult to tell exactly where the scroll line occurs. Because of this, the thought of defining the line becomes extremely vague.

3. Users know how to scroll.

For goodness sake, most mice now have scroll wheels. I think that many designers disregard the fact that users can scroll down for more content. In fact, most users scroll the entire page even if they do not read it… It is called skimming and users probably do it on your website more than you think. Learn to work with conventions, not against them.

When having a site designed for you, make sure the space at the top of your pages is used wisely, but do not overdo it. Define a list of the most important things on your site or page and use that as a guide to arrange the content effectively.