A relatively new friend of mine, a smart guy named David, whom I met through Sigma Chi fraternity connections, recently asked me what I thought of human hosted sites, such as http://www.burdford.com,  http://www.phaneuf.net/ and http://www.csnh.com/. 

My initial reaction was to say that I think that the human host functionality is kind of cool the first time you visit the site that has it, but after that it gets kind of annoying.  David’s reply was that “for a [site] a user would visit routinely, perhaps the human host would be frustrating as it would get in the way of a frequent user.  I could also [imagine] it being annoying to a skilled web browser that just wants to find their own way to the information they are seeking.  But, for the new customer (you know the ones with money to spend and we are all working to attract), a well presented, informative approach by a human host can be an extremely effective way to deliver the message by ensuring the correct tone and completeness of the information presented.  For the frequent user, an easy "opt out" button would minimize frustration.” 

After more reflection, I think that my answer was influenced because most of my career in the technology field has been involved in business-to-business solutions.  However, for more “one-off” transactional Web sites that are consumer-oriented, then the human host solution may very well be a good fit, because it takes some of the benefits of video and personalizes the presentation.  However, at the time I replied to David that I would give the visitor the choice of whether they would want the “human host” to run and present the product/service.  Then, I would be more inclined to leverage a Website design that incorporates “live-chat” instant messaging with an option to opt out of the live chat and go to a call back by the firm to the visitor who was interested in talking to someone at that point.  I understand that not everyone can staff live chat all the time, but the “human host” option can “fill-in” in the interim.

David offered this interesting observation – “I continue to be blown away by the number of people that are starved for attention/human interaction/entertainment (i.e.: lots of lonely people)....somewhere in there is an opportunity….”    David is right. We are all just people looking to make meaningful connections with other people.  That’s why Facebook and other social media offerings have taken off in such a big way. 

That begs the question, if we were created to be social creatures and make connections with others, then how can we each do it personally with our co-workers? Our customers?  And, how can we make a better connection through a solid Web site design strategy?

Thanks to David for the dialogue.  I appreciate his thoughts and for those of you reading I’d appreciate your thoughts and insights around making better connections both online and off.

I heard an awesome speaker on Tuesday – Clayton Christensen of Harvard Business School (see: www.claytonchristensen.com).  Clayton is the author of several books (Disrupting Class, Innovator’s Dilemma, etc.).  Clayton described a very interesting lens through which we can look at and address business problems.  He challenged us to consider just how small, startup type companies can ultimately eat the lunch of more established and “up market” firms. 

For example, it would be easy for an experienced and time-tested Web development firm such as BitWise to rest on its laurels, leveraging our experience and reputation in the marketplace and continually service the crème-de-la-crème clients.  We are blessed, multifold, by having a large stable of really terrific companies and wonderful people with whom we work on a daily basis in our client’s firms.  Please, don’t take me wrong, we are VERY grateful and thankful for our loyal and trusting clients… but we must never consider ourselves cemented into those relationships.  Those relationships must be nurtured and earned daily. 

Clayton’s perspective is that many firms grow to a comfortable level, continue to make money year after year serving the increasingly larger customers.  In doing so, they begin to walk away from the smaller, lower margin opportunities to do business with new customers because of, perhaps, greater profitability.  Nothing wrong with this approach, right?  In a real-world analogy, most adults find it inconceivable to bend down and pick up a dime, nickel or penny.  But would you stoop to pick up a quarter?  Businesses need to be cautious as to think that picking up the pennies and nickels is simply beneath them to do so.  I submit, as does Mr. Christensen, with such a mindset comes hubris, arrogance, and ultimately failure.  Do you know companies who fit this profile? 

So, as I write this blog post, a select group of thought leaders within our firm is meeting to craft strategies which will enable us to be mindful of those nickels and dimes.  In Clayton’s model, firms who cease being mindful of those nickels and dimes are soon eaten by those firms who will do whatever it takes to pick them up.  BitWise is mindful of the propensity to “be comfortable in our up-market saddle” as a seasoned firm, but make no mistake, we are equally determined to not drink so much of our own Kool-Aid and forget how to successfully take on those smaller engagements.   

I am thankful for the fine group of folks on our staff who are continually seeking to ensure we remain nimble as a firm.  In doing so, they are helping us to continue to be the best business partner possible for our clients.  Leaving such intricate and forward-thinking work to just one or two individuals within a firm is asking to be blind-sided.  Does your business have a strategy and an executable model to pick up the dimes or are you simply trolling looking for a lost silver dollar?

BitWise Solutions is proud to announce that one of our top employees, Nicole Nonte, is a finalist in this years Indy’s Best and Brightest Awards. View all finalists at http://www.indysbestandbrightest.com/. 

Nicole been with our company for 3 years and has developed into one of our brightest business development managers.  Nicole’s clients often say the thing they value the most about the business relationship that they have with Nicole is the personalized attention that she provides each client. When Nicole is consulting with a client on their web application or their Website development, she is first and foremost concerned with helping the client meet the individual needs of their organization. This makes Nicole and BitWise the best possible business partner for your business. 

Indy’s Best and Brightest Awards will be celebrating their third anniversary this year. The event is sponsored by Junior Achievement of Central Indiana. The Best and Brightest initiative was created by Junior Achievement to recognize the next generation of leaders in our community. Finalists in each category are judged on professional accomplishments and leadership qualities. 

From the rest of the staff here at BitWise, we wish you the best of luck Nicole!