Firecracker. Digitally driven • Marketing led

A Simple Debate – Flash vs HTML

April 30th, 2010 by Sarah_am

There are a number of points to consider when designing a site, this is a summary of the key considerations:

User engagement

  • What are your site objectives?
  • How are you going to drive traffic to the site?
  • What do you want people to do when they get there?
  • Do you want users to return – if so, how will you achieve that?
  • Is the site easy to use?
  • Does it have the information you would expect to be there?
  • Is the information easy to find?
  • THE 3 CLICK RULE – the user should never be more than 3 clicks away from what they are looking for

Continuous Analysis

  • Every site should be supported with a stats package
  • This should monitor unique visitors, dwell time, length of visit, number of pages viewed and number of repeat visits
  • These stats should be monitored against core site objectives
  • You need to be ready to flag  any shortcomings, identify the cause and decide how these can be rectified
  • Google analytics offer a good solution. It is powerful, easy to use and free

Site Planning

  • Technology advances so much that a site has a maximum online life of 5 years
  • It is usually straightforward to add/delete sections to an existing site and to an extent change functionality
  • Conduct a content inventory, identify what needs to go on the site and build a site map from the information at hand. This will help focus on objectives and usability
  • THE CONTENT IS AS IMPORTANT AS THE APPEARANCE

One site does not fit all

  • ‘Repurposing’ a site from its original use to something totally different is likely to be a thankless and costly exercise. Many brand sites that were built 5 years ago have been adapted and extended to such a level that the user experience has been continually eroded until to even an inexperienced eye the site is clunky and difficult to navigate
  • To effectively repurpose a site you need to view the existing structure and functionality and make your new activity fit that, if it doesn’t then it is likely you will need a new site

HTML  v Flash

The HTML v Flash debate has been re-ignited with Apple’s refusal to support the Flash platform on the iPad. At the end of the day the industry collectively agrees there is a role for both platforms but they each have their own pros and cons:

HTML pros

  • SEO HTML is the simplest format to create SEO friendly sites
  • Widgets There are a lot of widgets that you can just plug into your website cost effectively gaining new features/functionality. (Google maps etc)
  • CMS There are a lot of off the shelf Content Management Systems which cost effectively allow the site owner to update site content
  • Good trouble shooting tools With off the shelf tools such as Firebug for Firefox, it is relatively easy to identify and fix any bugs
  • Accessility Any online user can view HTML
  • Loading Times Because HTML is fairly straightforward, viewing times are fairly quick
  • Multi-media support Previously HTML has been limited in its ability to facilitate a multi-media interface on websites but the advent of HTML5 has addressed this

HTML cons

  • HTML is static Its just not as flash as Flash
  • Fonts There is a limit on font usage so it isn’t as creatively flexible as Flash
  • Creative Integrity Consistent appearance across all browsers is difficult to achieve and creative integrity is compromised. Also as appearance and performance across browsers can vary so much it can be time consuming and costly to check site integrity and performance
  • Bugs Browsers create a lot of problems and bugs that are difficult to overcome

Flash Pros

  • Animation Flash animations are still industry standard – even if you have an HTML site you are likely to incorporate a flash banner as part of the design
  • Integration with other services Flash allows existing services to be embedded into its code eg YouTube video player
  • Engaging User experience Flash is the perfect platform to develop an interactive, engaging user experience full of movement
  • Multi-media Flash generally handles video upload/streaming and file upload much better than HTML
  • Creative Integrity You can design the website to look exactly like the creative with little to no trouble because it looks the same in all browsers
  • Fonts You have a font on your machine…you can use it
  • Games Online games lend themselves to be done in Flash

Flash cons

  • User Drop-off A common symptom of a very Flash-heavy site is the user drop-off while they wait for the page to downlaod – and once you lose your visitor it is unlikely that they will return. Equally, those patient enough to wait for the site may well be put off returning
  • Requires plug-in It does require a plug-in, but the majority of machines have this preinstalled (around 99%).
  • SEO One of the key concerns about Flash, this can be overcome by creating content rich XTML files which will appear in search engine crawls
  • Print Problems Flash is notoriously difficult for a user to print out
  • Bad testing tools Limited testing tools means that there is no cast-iron way to be absolutely sure that your site is perfect, without manually testing – which costs time and money
  • Updating Content amends to existing Flash files are more time consuming and thus more costly than amends to HTML sites
  • Loading times Generally speaking, Flash files take longer to load.
  • Memory Size Flash files take more memory, which also needs to be considered for Flash adverts, this is why they take longer to download – but also impedes the user experience

This doesn’t have to be a final ‘either/or’ decision. Flash and HTML can be used together to achieve an interactive, engaging site which is SEO compatible and easy to update.  It is important for creatives to understand the role of both formats and to use this knowledge when they are designing a website.

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Airlines Declare Facebook a No-Fly Zone

April 22nd, 2010 by Elizabeth Clifford-Marsh

If you’re stranded overseas, as hundreds of thousands were in the last week following the spread of the Icelandic ash cloud, the places you turn to for help are your airline, family, friends and the government. Without regular access to the internet, many relied on telephoning call centres at exorbitant rates, or sites easily navigated by mobile phone, such as Twitter and Facebook. In the first hours of the airport shut down, as the full extent of the problem became apparent, several Twitter hashtags appeared as users began to reach out for help getting home. On Facebook a number of groups sprang up, including When Volcanoes Erupt…, aiming to connect the displaced with offers of accommodation or transport, as well as the latest news from airlines, ferries and Eurostar.

But in the midst of generous offers of hospitality and cooperation, where were the airlines? In times of massive disruption, it is important for service providers to be where their customers are – in this case online.

In keeping with its reputation for poor customer service, Ryanair has not posted anything to its Facebook fan page since July last year, leaving ‘fan’ comments to dominate the space. The wall is now a collection or rants from frustrated customers. Aer Lingus has never posted anything to its wall, which is now a mish-mash of complaints and praise from those affected by the crisis. But budget airlines are not the only ones grounding customers’ attempts to gather information – British Airways has also remained silent, despite being one of the worst affected companies in terms of financial losses. Its wall is topped by a statement from July last year, stating that although this is the official British Airways page, it will not be posting or responding to comments. It directs users to its contact us area on ba.com. I mean really, what is the point of a Facebook presence if you’re never going to be present? It’s a bit like owning a second home and never spending the night there – perhaps BA has been following the example of MPs a little too closely?

On the flipside, easyJet and Swiss Air’s use of their fan pages has been exemplary. Both have made use of their walls to post regular updates on flight cancellations, advice on how to transfer flights and where to go for more news. They have also been answering customers’ questions within minutes, regardless of whether they are general queries or about the status of specific flights. Swiss Air apologised to customers experiencing delays getting through to customer services, while easyJet directed users to live webchats with customer service staff on its own website. Customer feedback for both airlines has been overwhelmingly positive, with many expressing thanks. This will be a lasting legacy for the companies, as customers will remember how they were treated and will recommend the airlines to friends in the future. Both easyJet and Swiss Air have managed to turn a devastating industry crisis to their advantage, simply by being there for their customers.

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Dog on a skateboard

April 22nd, 2010 by Firecracker

No list of YouTube vids is complete without this fella

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The secrets in the Old Masters

April 20th, 2010 by Firecracker

Samsung’s latest brilliant post for its HD TVs.

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A Simple Guide to Social Media Channels

April 19th, 2010 by Sarah_am

Blogs
These tend to be independent sites run by individuals who post a regular commentary or news on their favoured sectors. Bloggers can be incredibly influential and build a substantial following of people interested in what they have to say. Blogs can also be included in a company or brand websites – from a technical perspective they provide an easy platform for a company to upload views, news and research. The key to a successful brand or company blog is to maintain regular, relevant updates that will engage and entertain your readers.

Forums
Forums are created by communities of individuals with a shared interest who interact online to exchange ideas and tips. There are plenty of forums that have been created by independent individuals or groups – particularly of a technological leaning – who freely exchange coding and trouble shoot queries for each other. Administrators or moderators will proactively create threads. They are also responsible for moderating the content that is uploaded onto the forum to ensure that messages posted by participants are not inappropriate. When creating a forum on your own website there are a number of considerations – the most important is whether your audience will be engaged enough with your brand or issue to want to log in and interact with other consumers proactively. Many brands see healthy traffic to forums where people are interested in what others have to say but find it difficult to get the visitor to take the further step of posting their own contribution.
Another consideration is how it will be moderated – there are programmes that can automatically filter keywords so posts can be automatically rejected. A more costly but effective way of moderating forums to have a team member responsible for overseeing all entries.

Facebook
Commonly understood as a social networking tool for personal use, Facebook is increasingly used by brands to engage their target audience. Facebook allows individuals and companies to set up Fan Pages, Groups and Applications which can be used by members of the Facebook community to demonstrate their support of a project or ‘just for fun’. These options allow a brand to create a strong presence within the Facebook environment and encourages the generation of user content which can be used externally. A good example of this is the Cadbury’s Wispa campaign where they asked all of their Facebook fans what words they used to describe a Wispa. The most original responses were used in a national press campaign.

A Facebook Fan Page created by a brand can best be likened to a mini microsite which sits on the Facebook site. Users can join the conversation and the number of fans that brand has could be used as a measurable KPI. The ‘owner’ can regularly update the content easily disseminating news to fans and members.

A Facebook application is the more viral side to the Facebook fan page, brands can develop and use it to engage their audience and enable them to engage their friends.

Facebook has gone from strength to strength and once users are registered and active it has a relatively low drop off rate.

LinkedIn
LinkedIn is the most prominent business media network in an environment which also includes Plaxo. Like Facebook, a brand or company can create their own LinkedIn Group – although this currently does not include functionality such as the opportunity to create Linked-in applications. As a platform targeting professionals this is a great environment for a brand or service which is targeting companies, sectors or individuals in a professional capacity.

Twitter
Twitter is another social media tool which allows people to ‘follow’ the thoughts, opinions or even whereabouts of other people. Particularly relevant in our celebrity-obsessed culture, if you have a celebrity brand spokesperson, Twitter could work particularly well for you. Twitter has also proven a particularly successful channel for people/companies to communicate with each other in an emergency, an election or event. Tweets are restricted to 140 characters so Twitter provides a quick, immediate alternative to blogging. If your tweet is particularly relevant or engaging, Twitter allows other users to ‘Re-tweet’ your post, thus creating a viral element to this channel.

Twitter started off with an older demographic (25-54) but the end of 2009 saw a 20% YOY increase in under 25s.*

Social Bookmarking
A way to share information online. The only way a brand can leverage this is by having regular, relevant information regularly broadcast via various online channels. If a user reads something which they think is worth sharing they might bookmark it using one of many social bookmarking services. The benefit to a brand is that bookmarks will spread the dissemination of their message, ultimately driving users back to their site and maximising SEO.

Social bookmarking and social news sites include Digg, Reddit and Stumbleupon.

RSS Feeds
Simply put, these enable brands/companies to communicate news or information updates in a scrolling headline format. RSS subscribers register to receive feeds that let them know as soon as new information has been released. Fully automated, an RSS reader will scrape a site for new information, collate and disseminate updates to subscribers in a regular sweep.
Multi-media sharing

There are a number of sites which enable users to share media in different formats:
YouTube – YouTube is the main online channel that facilitates the sharing of videos online. A brand can create a channel which enables them to upload any number of videos to share. Users can view the videos at their leisure. Users can find interesting content using free word search which is ranked by popularity – eg number of views that video has had. The more engaging and humourous the content, the higher it will tend to rank.

Flickr – also enables video sharing but is predominantly used to share images and photos.

Slideshare – enables the sharing of documents such as company credentials or industry insights. Great if you are looking to establish yourself as a thought leader in a given sector.

Location Based Services
Simply put, users download an LBS app, switch on their GPS on their mobile device and can check-in their location whenever they choose. The leading players in this channel are Foursquare and Gowalla who have turned this into a game. The person who ‘checks-in’ most to an area will become the mayor of that location, granting them privileges including discounts or free coffees with participating retailers.

The services also link in to Facebook and Twitter so followers can let their friends know where they are, enabling face to face hook-up. The business opportunities for this are endless – some companies will have dabbled in Bluetooth but this is a much more mainstream offering, the latest thing in social media but already ‘so last year’ – Foursquare launched in 2009 and is already past the early adoption stage. All signs to date are positive.

*Source: Comscore

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