The Habits of Highly Effective Web 2.0 Sites

The next Web 2.0 Conference will be upon us in early November and things are busier than ever in the Web 2.0 world.  Along the way, I’ve managed to miss the one year anniversary of this blog, which I began back in late September of last year.  There have been over 2.5 million direct hits on this site since inception, a large percentage of it due to my Web 2.0 lists such as last year’s Best Web 2.0 Software List , but I also get e-mail frequently from die-hard readers as well.  Most importantly however, from all my conversations with people all over the world, it’s clear that Web 2.0 remains more than ever a topic of major popular interest and industry fascination.

While the general understanding of Web 2.0 is improving all the time, we have a ways to go before we have a concise, generally accepted definition.  My favorite is still networked applications that explicitly leverage network effects. But while most of what we ascribe to the Web 2.0 name falls out of these definition, it’s fairly hard for most of us to extrapolate meaningful ramifications from this.

People that read this blog know that I’m in the camp of folks that try to look beyond Ajax and the visual site design aspect of Web 2.0, and try to capture the deeper design patterns and business models that seem to be powering the most successful Web sites and online companies today.  Though concepts such as harnessing collective intelligence and Data as the Next Intel Inside, as described by Tim O’Reilly , most directly capture the spirit of the Web 2.0 era, it does seem to me that there are a few other elements that we haven’t nailed down yet.

At the AjaxWorld Conference and Expo earlier this month, I gave my usual talk about how to formally leverage Web 2.0, with plenty of examples coming from things happening out on the Web.  If you accept that it’s the power and size of the Web today , particularly the number of highly interactive network nodes (who are mostly people), give them extremely low-barrier tools, and we should be able to find plenty examples of emergent behavior; significant events happening suddenly and unexpectedly.  Tipping points are getting easier and easier to reach as site designers learn how to create better network effect triggers, draw large audiences suddenly, and as those same audiences increasingly self-organize spontaneously, such as in the KatrinaList project (suddenly) or Wikipedia (slower but bigger).

And it’s the arrival of Web 2.0 “supersites” like YouTube , which appear suddenly, often riding the coattails of other major Web 2.0 site’s ecosystems, and apply aggressive, viral network effects that show us the true, full scale of the possibilities.  Building a Web site worth over one billion dollars in 18 months is a very impressive result, but it’s really only a single axis upon which Web 2.0 can be applied successfully.  Another axis upon which to apply Web 2.0 focuses less on pulling in every single user possible with a horizontal network effect, but on building a difficult to reproduce but highly valuable data source, such as the Navteq mapping database, or Zillow’s real estate database.  One might argue that these are still very horizontal but these are merely just well known examples.

The variety and depth of the Web is such that not every Web 2.0 site will have tens of millions of users, nor should it.  An effective Web 2.0 site is largely powered by its users, whose feedback and contributions, direct and indirect, make the site a living ecosystem that evolves from day to day, a mosaic as rich and varied as a sites users would like it to be.  In other words, creating a high quality architectures of participation is becoming a strategic competitive advantage in many areas.

I’m often asked, particularly after one of my presentations on Web 2.0, to articulate the most important and effective actions a site designer can take to realize the benefits of Web 2.0.  As a result, I’ve created the list below in a attempt to catpure a good, general purpose overview of what these steps are.  My plan in the near future, is to dive into each one of these as much as time permits and explain how they make highly effective Web 2.0 sites not only effective, but often possible at all.  In the meantime, please take them for what they’re worth, I believe however that they are instrumental in making a Web site or application the most successful possible.

The Essentials of Leveraging Web 2.0

• Ease of Use is the most important feature of any Web site, Web application, or program.
• Open up your data as much possible. There is no future in hoarding data, only controlling it.
• Aggressively add feedback loops to everything.  Pull out the loops that don’t seem to matter and emphasize the ones that give results.
• Continuous release cycles.  The bigger the release, the more unwieldy it becomes (more dependencies, more planning, more disruption.)  Organic growth is the most powerful, adaptive, and resilient.
• Make your users part of your software.  They are your most valuable source of content, feedback, and passion.  Start understanding social architecture.  Give up non-essential control.  Or your users will likely go elsewhere.
• Turn your applications into platforms. An application usually has a single predetermined use while a platform is designed to be the foundation of something much bigger.  Instead of getting a single type of use from your software and data, you might get hundreds or even thousands of additional uses.
• Don’t create social communities just to have them. They aren’t a checklist item.  But do empower inspired users to create them.

Of course, there a lot of work in the details and these are just some of the important, general essentials.  Unfortunately, a lot of careful thinking, planning, and engineering goes into any effective Web 2.0 site and it’s having these ideas at the core of it, which can help you get the best results.

Final Note:  I’ll be on the road the next two weeks and will be at the Web 2.0 Conference in San Francisco from Nov. 7th-9th.  I’ll be there writing coverage for the Web 2.0 Journal and here as much as possible.  If you’re going to be there, please drop me a line if you’d like to meet.

Avoiding the 5 Most Common SEO Mistakes

Mozilla/Firefox leader speaks at Web 2.0 conference

Brendan Eich (see bio below), who works on the Mozilla project, is speaking at Web2.0 conference (http://web20.weblogsinc.com) right now. I’ll have an Mp3 file up in 15 minutes… so reload this page if you like.

Brendan Eich Eich is responsible for architecture and the technical direction of Mozilla. He is charged with authorizing module owners, owning architectural issues of the source base and writing the “roadmap” that outlines the direction of the Mozilla project. Eich created JavaScript, did the work through Navigator 4.0, and helped carry it through international standardization. Before Netscape, he wrote operating system and network code for SGI; and at MicroUnity, wrote micro-kernel and DSP code, and did the first MIPS R4K port of gcc, the GNU C compiler.

Britney Spears “uncoverage” coverage: Day 2

The boom keeps on rolling.

The Internet is HOT for Britney Spears crotch information (and anything from the Britney-Paris Hilton-Lindsay Lohan “axis of evil” troika).

So let’s dive in with a quick roundup of what’s been written lately:

WE KNEW AND DID NOTHING!: KeepMedia published a story from Chuck Klosterman back on Nov. 1 about Britney and her nakedness in Esquire magazine.

Ironic how this story sets up Britney’s latest four-time flash-fest, and how the writer completely sees the coming Britney re-invention efforts:

This is a hard detail to ignore because the men who have seen a pantless Britney belong to a highly select fraternity: It’s Justin Timberlake, her gynecologist, the photographer who’s doing this particular photo shoot, and (maybe) the frontman for a third-rate rap-metal band from Jacksonville, Florida. That’s more or less everybody.

And—perhaps stupidly—I actually thought I was about to rush this semipathetic frat; I honestly believed the reason I was invited to this photo shoot was to glimpse Britney’s secret garden and write about its cultural significance. Somehow, that seemed like the only logical explanation as to why her naked ass was being unleashed on the cover of this magazine; this whole affair must be an aggressive, self-conscious reinvention.

I mean, why else would they have invited the writer to the shoot? Why else would Spears have just released the “news” that she lost her virginity at the age of eighteen (a story that surfaced only twenty-four hours before this very photo session)? Isn’t this how the modern media operates? Isn’t everything wholly overt?

OBJECTION!: Fox News talked to some divorce lawyers, who say that Britney’s latest flaunting of private parts could come back to haunt her in a custody battle with her ex-husband Kevin Federline (or K-Fed, as he’s know in the ‘hood).

I don’t know what will hurt Britney most, the nudie pics, or the sex tell-all book that K-Fed is suspected to be shopping around?

PARTY LIKE IT’S 2007: Britney’s allegedly booked the Pure Nightclub at Caesars Palace hotel and casino in Las Vegas for a private New Years’ Eve gala (pants optional?). This according to the entertainment giant news source, China Daily.

CLEAN FUN?: The Toronto Star is running a Canadian Press hard-hitting report on Britney’s pelvic area, examining the … no, not kidding … the health risks associated with going pantless, including … again, not kidding … second-hand (or, ummm…second crotch?) health risks!

Britney’s Crotch Takes Web by Storm

I almost feel like I need a shower after writing about this, but now that the Associated Press has covered the story, I feel it has new legitimacy.

When I started this blog earlier this month, some of the copy desk editors at the New Era chided me a bit for my fascination with the Britney Spears-Kevin Federline divorce saga.

They asked, “Why is this news?” and “If you’re doing an “Internet life” blog, why are you covering celebrity gossip?”

Granted, those copy editors that question my logic are in the over-40 crowd, and filter through “real news” everyday about war, politics, crime and other serious issues. Celebrity “news” is pretty much drivel to them, and I respect that. It’s cool. I get it.

But, if you look at my blogs’ traffic, most of my site’s visitors have come looking for three celebrity stories: My postings on Michael Richards and his infamous n-word rant at a L.A. comedy club and his subsequent apology, the Paris Hilton-Spears-Lindsay Lohan “axis of evil” in Vegas and my posts about Spears and K-Fed’s divorce.

Or is that now Fed-ex?

So now that the AP is on this story, I feel I can tackle the topic that the Internet and bloggers are abuzz about…

What is Spears thinking flashing her naked crotch around to photographers??!?!?

I mean, seriously!! And FOUR TIMES no less!!

Pink is the New Blog, a very good celeb-watching blog, has been keeping the flash count, and has a very good analysis of the … umm … well, “the situation.”

This whole trend of Brit “forgetting” to wear her undies is starting to be a tad damaging, in their view. Especially since “pelvis flash No. 4″ came while at a gas station. That further enforces her negative “trailer trash” stereotype. (Just watch an episode of the train wreck reality show she did with K-Fed, and you’ll see what I mean.)

Million Dollar Homepage Becomes Multi-Million Dollar Homepage

Alex Tew, the mastermind behind The Million Dollar Homepage is most certainly pressing his luck. Tew sold one million pixels worth of advertisement for $1 per pixel and made $1 million. It worked so well that he thinks he can do it again, this time for twice the price.Tew is reportedly on the verge of launching a second site called Pixelotto. Instead of selling each pixel for $1, he plans to sell each pixel for $2, plus hold some kind of lottery where the winner who clicks the right advertisement will win $1 million.

I will gladly eat my words if Tew can pull this off but I just don’t think that lightning strikes twice. It was a good idea…once! Second time around, it’s not, as Michael Arrington calls it, “another stupid, brilliant idea.” It’s just a stupid idea.

Gizmo Project Will Make Web Calling Easy

One of the biggest challenges of being a mobile worker is that it is almost impossible to make VoIP calls, either over EV-DO networks, or commercial wifi services, like the T-Mobile network, often found in Starbucks. Port blocking, and lack of bandwidth makes it difficult to make phone calls when you most need them, forcing you to spend the expensive premium mobile wireless minutes.Well, there is some good news coming. Earlier this morning I had a chance to chat with Jason Droege, CEO of San Diego-based VoIP services provider, SIPphone, and he showed off a new version of his service that is ideally suited for Web Workers.

SIPphone makes a soft client which runs on Windows, Linux and Mac computers, and allows you to either IM your friends, or chat with those on your buddy list. What makes it as useful as Skype is its ability to make and receive regular phone calls, from either landlines or mobile phones. Outgoing calls cost a penny a minute anywhere in the US, so it is fairly inexpensive.

The company has now developed a new flash-based browser plugin based version of their service that is very simple to use. The new offering will be launched sometime in the near future. later this month. Go to the website, plug in the number, and hit call. The call is initiated and that’s it. If you have a pair of headphones (all iPod owners do), just plug them in and have a conversation. You don’t even need to have any Gizmo software installed on your computer. You could make phone calls from Internet Cafe’s if you are traveling around the globe.

I suggested to Jason, that they should also add a feature where you can plug in your mobile phone number and the system connects both phones. This would reduce the reliance on choppy wifi networks, or bandwidth constrained EVDO networks.

It is not impossible, and Jajah, another low cost VoIP service provider, offers similar connection service, and is becoming very popular. These kind of simple browser based VoIP applications are going to become more valuable as more of us cut the cord, and work outside the “box.” What do you think folks? Are you likely users of this web-based calling service.

Howto: Maximize AdSense Earnings

Recently I wrote about how you can monetize your blog, and one of those ways was through Google AdSense. So to continue on with that train of thought I decided to give out a few tips to help you maximize your AdSense earnings.

Just one point though to start with. This is not intended for a webmaster about to setup a new site. I am writing this for those of you who already own a blog or website but have yet to see AdSense perform for you.

1. On Topic Content
   If you have a blog about the iPod, then stick to writing about iPod news, iPod accessories, iTunes etc. There is no point writing about iPod and then starting to talk about your day at work within the same page. AdSense works through a contextual assessment of your page, so try and make it as easy as possible for the Mediabot to ascertain exactly what you are writing about.
2. Optimize Tags
   Making Mediabot’s job as easy as possible also means optimizing your HTML tags, from your meta tags to your header tags. Place your target keywords in the page title, meta description and keywords tag, as well as in your header tags. Don’t forget to bold or italicize your target keywords throughout the content.
3. Ad Placement
   Consult the AdSense heatmap and apply it to your layout. You’ll find that CTR will increase when you place your ads above the fold. Placing ads down the left (where users are used to seeing navigation) and in central locations will also increase CTR. Don’t forget to place ads at the bottom of a page for readers who have scrolled down to the bottom of a long article. I would not advise placing your ads down the left hand of a page as CTR in this location is normally quite low. So keep them above the fold and smack bang in front of their eyes.
4. Colours
   The basic premise with regards colours is to match your ad colouring as closely to the colour scheme employed through out your site. I recommend using the same colours for text and links for optimum CTR.
5. Borders or No Borders?
   Answer, no borders! Keep reminding yourself that your ads need to slot in with your existing layout and appear to be part of the page. A border immediately separates the ads and decreases CTR.
6. Images
   There has been a lot of talk on the boards for quite some time about using images alongside ads to improve CTR. Overall, images placed beside your ads will increase CTR. Here’s a handy tool to generate the code you’ll need, courtesy of Shoemoney.
7. Section Targeting
   Use the section targeting tags, they make it easy to specify what content Mediabot should spider and what to ignore.
8. Use Alternate Ads
   On occasion AdSense will not be able to display any ads in an ad block on a particular page. Unless specified AdSense will display Public Service Ads (PSAs) that do not earn you anything. So when you are creating your code, specify an affiliate link or image linked to an affiliate product. Therefore you can rest assured that no matter what happens, you’re earning!
9. Use Channels
   Track your performance by channel, a technique that is especially important when you have place multiple ad blocks per page. Assign each ad block a unique channel so that you can see what performs best over time, allowing you to further refine ad placement and increase revenue.
10. Noscript
    Statistics remarkably show that approximately 10% of browsers do not have JavaScript enabled. Unfortunately for AdSense publishers, a browser with JavaScript disabled will not even show an ad block. The solution? Ad the <noscript> tag immediately after your AdSense code.So your code would look something like this:

    <noscript>
    <a xhref="http://www.affiliate.com/"><img xsrc="affiliate-image.jpg"></a>
    </noscript>