In an effort to collect some data for one of our newer clients, I began doing some competitor analysis utilizing the domain link check for the “Big 3.” Google and Yahoo both came back as expected, but I got nothing a blank screen from MSN. A little research showed that Microsoft has removed this feature and gives no date as when to expect it back; great job guys now Ask.com’s my new #3.

iTunes officially dipped their foot into DRM free market today offering a subset of iTunes called iTunes Plus. iTunes Plus will offer 256kbps quality audio files that can be transferred and played back unrestricted. The cost for these Plus tracks will be $1.29, slightly higher than the current restricted pricing at $.99; however, the price per album will remain the same. As well, you’ll need to download the latest version of iTunes 7.2 to have access to all the new features.

Unfortunately, according to AppleInsider the iTunes Plus catalog currently only contains EMI recordings, but rest assured that every effort is being given to garnering the inclusion of Sony, Warner and Universal. Apple CEO Steve Jobs is optimistic that iTunes Plus will have over 50% of the songs available on iTunes by the end of 2007.

Online mainstream personals sites such as Match.com and True.com are taking a trick of the trade from the pornography marketer’s toolbox and showing interactive, obviously bored and available to chat, “web cam girls” in their ads.

Although these ads have four equal sides, they are anything but square. Commonly found alongside back end Myspace control panels, these flash-driven (no pun intended) video ads, appeal to the more superficial senses of male Myspacers, and act as direct response vehicles of users already in a social “make friends” mode.

**Warning: Large screen shot of corresponding ad example inside.**

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Energy conservation clearly has most people talking at the moment, especially with gas prices climbing every day. But have you ever considered how much energy your computer screen uses day to day? Surely computers are one of the business world’s highest necessities, so what would you be willing to do to cut down on your daily computer energy usage?

Researchers at the University of California Berkeley, originally introduced the theory in 2002, that a predominately black computer screen uses less energy than a predominately white screen. The UC Berkeley Energy Analysis Department wrote an extensive white paper explaining their argument. (That’s right, it is a white paper, so much for that energy conservation.) This same idea of a black versus a white screen has more recently been brought to our attention by a new take on Google called Blackle.
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Boy, this seems familiar. Everyone seems to think that having a copy of Microsoft PowerPoint makes them Steven Spielberg or George Lucas. They feel they need to use a host of dramatic colors, forty different fonts, every animated transition available, and they are compelled to bury us in charts and graphs that no one can really decipher. I’m sure you’ll recognize some of these techniques.

Ever wonder what a team of young creative talent does with too much time on their hands? Connected Ventures created Vimeo, a great looking website for video uploads that is visually superior to rivals YouTube and Google Video. Simple lines, bright colors and an overall clean looking design style have helped to reduce clutter and ultimately deliver a nice overall user experience. The site is built around delivering the video with far less distractions from competing videos and advertisements; personally I think it’s the best choice for sharing your personal videos with friends and family.

Oh, they’ve also been known to shoot some video of their own around the office; looks like this one got out of hand.

While we’re all looking forward to a long Memorial Day weekend and backyard cookouts, we definately want to remember all of those who have served and are currently serving in our nations armed forces. We’re grateful for the sacrifices they make in duty to our country. Join the LevelTen crew and take a few minutes from your day to send a short note to our troops online. If you have the time, you can actually send them a card with a note of encouragement too.

Happy Memorial Day to your family from ours. Now, go enjoy that barbecue.

Saatchi & Saatchi of London were recently relieved of their duties with Airwair Ltd., producers of Dr. Martens famous footwear. The controversy started about 10 days ago when ads depicting dead rock stars such as Kurt Cobain, Sid Vicious, Joey Ramone and Joe Strummer surfaced as part of a print campaign. Apparently there has been both support and opposition to the ads, but Airwair Ltd. made it very apparent that they wanted nothing to do with the campaign, releasing the following statement.
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My personal favorite request is when potential client’s claim their site needs to have “The WOW Factor.” Immediately, I ask them to elaborate on what exactly defines “The WOW Factor.” More often than not I receive the same varied reply, “Well, it needs a flashy intro and some really cool effects and something that is memorable and keeps them coming back; something like 2advanced or Nike, but without the black and maybe more video or sound. I’m not 100% sure what I want, but I’ll know it when I see it.” At this point the communication has seriously broken down and I encourage the designer to create a mockup page loading and upon completion a Unicorn magically appears on their screen only to leap from the screen into their office. Okay, that was a little sarcastic, but I guarantee it screams “The WOW Factor.”

All kidding aside, the problem with “The WOW Factor” statement is that it is broad and undefined. As my ridiculous remarks earlier indicate, “The WOW Factor” means different things to different people, and more importantly WOW doesn’t guarantee results. Mark Hurst has a great article entitled Customer experience and the ‘wow’ factor, and in it he points out that Google and Craigslist have no ‘wow’ factor but are still extremely effective. Instead of asking for “The WOW Factor,” ask for the best user experience possible, ask for content that engages the reader and ask for a site that will properly convey your message. The results you get will have you saying “WOW!”

I have been enlightened. On my semi-daily run-through of the Lifehacker blog, I came across the perfect fix to my frustration of virtual folders (constantly scrolling and clicking). The FREE software is called QTTabBar and it allows you to have multiple tabs open in Windows Explorer. The best part is, you can have a default set of folders that come up when you open Windows Explorer. I’m in heaven.