Matrix Group International

Month: January 2009

  • Oh Where, Oh Where Can My Bookmarks Be? Magnolia Suffers Huge Outage!

    Oh Where, Oh Where Can My Bookmarks Be? Magnolia Suffers Huge Outage!

    Magnolia logoEvery morning, when I boot up my computer and open a browser, I have 4 tabs open to the Matrix Group intranet, Twitter, Facebook and Magnolia. Magnolia is a popular social bookmarking site that I have come to rely on to store and organize my bookmarks.

    Imagine my horror when I clicked on the Magnolia home page this morning and found this message:

    Dear Ma.gnolia Community Members or Visitor,

    Early on the West-coast morning of Friday, January 30th, Ma.gnolia experienced every web service’s worst nightmare: data corruption and loss. For Ma.gnolia, this means that the service is offline and members’ bookmarks are unavailable, both through the website itself and the API. As I evaluate recovery options, I can’t provide a certain timeline or prognosis as to to when or to what degree Ma.gnolia or your bookmarks will return; only that this process will take days, not hours.

    Magnolia has been down for most of the day and I’m devastated.  It’s not unusual for me to add one or more bookmarks each day to my Magnolia account.  And I refer to my bookmarks constantly.  For example, while preparing for my presentation on tech trends and their impact on small associations, I scoured my bookmarks under the tags of statistics and tech trends. (more…)

  • Conversation and the Zen Tech Warrior

    Conversation and the Zen Tech Warrior

    ASAE Technology ConferenceI had the pleasure of speaking at the ASAE Technology Conference, taking place until tomorrow at the DC Convention Center.  My topic? Dealing With Big Trends in a Small Staff Organization. Here are the 5 big trends I discussed:

    1. Your Browser as the New Operating System. The Web browser is increasingly the platform for mission critical applications, like association management systems, intranets, document management systems and e-mail.
    2. Conversation is King. We used to talk about creating a communications strategy.  Today, we need to create a conversation strategy because customers are interested in engagement, in two-way conversations.
    3. Unified, Integrated Data. I call this the Amazon Effect.  Our customers expect us to know who they are, communicate with them in a personalized way, and give them personalized offerings.  We can’t do this unless we have a unified view of their activities and interactions.
    4. Zen Tech Warrior. These warriors want information on specific topics, when they want it, on the device(s) of their choice.  Take me, for example.  I might want my magazine in print, news via e-mail, and alerts via text.  Can your database handle these preferences and can you execute on this information?
    5. Green Computing. We all know that we need to do our part to reduce energy consumption and save the planet.  Data centers represent 1.5% of the electricity demand in the US.  Think green when you buy computers and peripherals.

      6. (more…)

  • Now You Can Attend Church Online!

    Now You Can Attend Church Online!

    Pastor giving a sermonI was trying to schedule a time for my new biz team to come to the office on Sunday to finish a proposal. We were trying to work around church services when Jeniece said, “don’t worry about me, I go online. My favorite church is in Atlanta.”  Online? She attends church online?

    It turns out that even churches have adopted new media, and in a big way (why am I surprised by this?). After doing a bunch of Google searches, I realized that not only have many churches created extensive Web sites, many now have sermons and readings online, and yes, many now stream services live. (more…)

  • What Customer Experiences Are Core To Your Business?

    What Customer Experiences Are Core To Your Business?

    Customer Service SurveyDuring the last couple of weeks, I made presentations to a couple of clients. The first client thinks we’re good but they’re not raving fans. The second client thinks Matrix Group is fantastic, we are a solid partner and we have contributed greatly to their success. I asked my Client Services Directors: why is there a difference in how these two clients perceive us, our work and our value to them?

    The ensuing discussion was an interesting one. We decided that all talk of what we actually do aside (Web design, integration, content management, hosting, yada, yada), what ultimately makes a client a raving fan is whether or not they have certain experiences with us. Regardless of how much money they spend or the type of work they ask us to do, there are core customer experiences that are critical to a client’s happiness.

    Over the past few weeks, I have been thinking non-stop about what constitutes an organization’s core customer experiences.  I analyzed my membership in the CEO organization Vistage.  Vistage offers members a number of services and benefits but the core experiences are: one on one coaching, world class speakers and issue processing with peers.  Ultimately, if I don’t feel satisfied that I am getting my money’s worth in all three areas, I’m probably not going to keep my membership.  In other words, no matter how good the Web site or the social events, if I am not supremely satisfied with my core experiences, I am going to bail.

    I’ve been huddling with my team and working to define our core customer experiences.  (We must assume that clients want a fair price for our work, excellent work, and on time results.)  So far, we’ve come up with: (more…)

  • Sony Cybershot DSC-T777

    Sony Cybershot DSC-T777

    After taking over 15,000 shots I retired my old Sony digital camera and got this green little number. Love the high res images, long battery life, video mode, and smile detection.

  • Obama Inauguration: Warm and Intimate on the Web, Totally Locked Out in the Cold in VA

    Obama Inauguration: Warm and Intimate on the Web, Totally Locked Out in the Cold in VA

    US Capitol BuildingI’m excited and fascinated by next week’s Inauguration. And I’m relying on the Web to keep me up to date with the festivities.

    • I’m following the Presidential Inaugural Committee (PIC) (@obamainaugural) and loving the YouTube contest, the news about the inaugural activities, and the updates about various balls.
    • I’m following the DC Government on Twitter (@Inauguration_DC) and appreciating the news about road closures, tips from the National Park Service, etc.
    • I’m impressed with the Web site of the Presidential Inaugural Committee, especially the blog.    I have enjoyed reading about the rehearsal and the stand-ins, the concert at Lincoln Memorial is going to be fabulous, and the videos from Barack and Michelle Obama were a nice touch.
    • The PIC’s Flickr account is full of beautiful photos of DC and the preparations for next week’s events.
    • I plan to be part of the Facebook crowd watching the inauguration live and updating my status when the new President is sworn in.

    For the first time ever, I feel like I’m getting an insider’s view of what goes into an inauguration and know about a lot of the activities.  The blog and photos especially are creating an intimacy to the event that I did not think possible, considering that hundreds of thousands (millions?) are going to be here next week. (more…)

  • What Business Are You In?

    What Business Are You In?

    blueskyAt a meeting of my Vistage CEO group, I sat through a captivating presentation by Max Carey, CEO of CRD, a marketing and sales consulting firm. He asked each of us to describe what our companies do, which we did. Then he asked us a question that shook me: What business do your clients and prospects think you are in?

    Max days that it doesn’t matter what business you think you’re in, what matters is what business your prospects and clients think you’re in.  So I got to thinking.  I say that the Matrix Group’s mission is to use the latest Web technologies to help our clients “be better.” When I pitch clients and prospects, I sell them a solution and an outcome.  I want clients to tell us their goals and then we’ll work collaboratively with them to figure out what mix of products and services will let them achieve those goals in the fastest and least expensive way.

    But what would my top 10 clients say if I asked them what Matrix Group does? I hope that on a good day, my best clients would say that we helped them:  reach more members, sell more products, run a better organization, educate more people about their issues, save time, save money, yada, yada.  But I bet a bunch would say that we are a Web design shop, some would say we’re a Web development firm, and still others probably see us a membership database company.  Is this is the brand identity that I want?  No, so what can I do about it? (more…)

  • El Cheapo Ways to Announce Your Web Site Launch

    El Cheapo Ways to Announce Your Web Site Launch

    Announce Your Web Site LaunchMatrix Group recently launched a new Web site for the International Association of Chiefs of Police.  Prior to the launch, Chuck and David, our esteemed clients, asked for some suggestions on ways to promote the new launch.  Here were some of my suggestions, including some easy and inexpensive tips:

    • Send out a special e-blast to your membership or customers. Be sure to highlight new features, new functionality, tips for navigation, links to popular pages, etc.
    • Include an article in your newsletter or magazine. Consider a series of articles in the next few issues of your publication.  In each issue, focus on something different about the new site, e.g., the navigation, how to use the site search, how to manage their profile, etc.
    • If you have a printed magazine or newsletter, put in a house ad that promotes the new site. Include a screen shot and list of new features and benefits.
    • Ask your staff to update their e-mail signatures with a message and URL, e.g.,Visit the redesigned Matrix Group Web site – https://matrixgroup-wp-new.matrixdev.net

      • (more…)

  • A Washing Machine That Tweets When the Wash Is Done?

    Engadget posted a story about a guy who hacked his washing machine and got it to tweet (send a message via Twitter) when a load of wash is done.   Here’s the Twitter account for PiMPY3WASH, which I’m now following.

    I guess it’s possible this is a true story.  I’m married to a guy who can install Linux (I mean NetBSD) on practically anything.  But I’m suspicious about this story for one reason: there’s too much laundry being done.  There were 3 loads done on December 30 and two loads on December 29.  That’s too much laundry, especially for a guy (no offense, guys!).

    However, I’m excited about the idea of appliances and gadgets communicating with humans.  If I had the engineering chops, I would design the following:

    • A refrigerator with a special slot(s) for milk.  When the fridge detects that we are low on milk (based on weight?), a text message would be sent to my phone. I don’t want e-mail or a tweet, I get too much data on those devices.  But a text message, preferably scheduled for around the time I’m driving home, would be perfect.
    • A shopping cart that has an inventory of products that I can access with a touch screen. If I’m looking for pesto, I touch pasta sauce and the cart tells me which aisle to visit.

      • (more…)

  • Girl Scouts, Please Make it Easy to Find Information About the Cookies!

    Girl Scouts, Please Make it Easy to Find Information About the Cookies!

    girlsellingcookiesIt’s that time of year again: Girl Scout cookie time! My niece is a Girl Scout and I of course want to support her by ordering lots of cookies and selling lots of cookies. I wanted to send an e-mail to friends and co-workers with some helpful links, but found the Girl Scouts and Girl Scout Cookie Web sites not at all helpful. Once again, I had to turn to Google to find information about the cookies!

    So here’s the deal.  I wanted to send an e-mail and include a link to a page describing the cookies — that’s it, just the cookies.  Here is what I found (or didn’t find):

    • The Girl Scouts site has a page on Girl Scout cookies.  The page makes a nice pitch for the program, but there wasn’t any information on the cookies!  I just wanted to know if there were any new cookies this year and make sure my favorites are still being made! At the bottom of the page is a link that simply says Cookies.  Turns out that this link goes to an FAQ page but the link doesn’t tell you that.  The FAQ page is full of helpful information, almost too much information, but still nothing about this year’s cookies!
    • The Girl Scout Cookie site, as far as I can tell, only lets you enter your contact information so that it can be passed to a council in your area.
    • God bless Google for leading me to Meet the Cookies, which describes the 2009 cookies — finally!  After visiting the Girl Scout Cookies site several times, I finally figure out that there is a link to Meet the Cookies in teeny text in the top left corner.  The page opens in a pop-up window so I can’t print the info; yeah, I can get around that, but a less Web-savvy person might not know how.
    • Tell a Friend on the Girl Scout Cookies site doesn’t let me add a personal message.

    (more…)