The meaning of silence in an online context
I’ve been pondering a few of the discussions I’ve seen on online versus offline research approaches: Zebrabites’ thoughts on the need to understand users in person as well as hypertext; Matt Rhodes of Freshnetworks’ recommendation that we understand people in natural online communities as well as specially-constructed research communities. People share themselves and their opinions differently in different contexts. We tend to treat an online conversation (on a message board, a blog reply, a social network) as an honest record, right there on the screen, of...
Read MoreThe business of making communities
On Tuesday I went to Freshnetworks’ session on online communities in retail. Incredibly interesting morning, with 3 different speakers talking about the use of social media from different perspectives: Helen Trim from Freshnetworks giving her top tips on what to do (and what not to do) in terms of social media; Joanne Jacobs on measuring return on investment; and James Hart from online fashion site ASOS, talking about the (internal) route to launching the ASOS Life community (apparently launch was this Wednesday so I hope he has recovered now). For a long while, I used to feel that...
Read MoreParadigms in research; or, how your worldview shapes your methodology
In the introductory lectures for my master’s in organisational behaviour, we heard a great deal about paradigms. Indeed, we heard so much about paradigms that several of my classmates were quite keen to go back and get a refund on the course. We – researchers, embryonic management consultants, careers counsellors and human resources managers – wished to get on with the simple business of learning all about human behaviour so that we could manipulate it for profit. But first, we had to pass this module. So. Paradigms are, roughly speaking, coherent belief structures. Some people...
Read MoreMarket research opinion: a contradiction in terms?
About 4 years ago, I did a master’s degree in organisational psychology. I started off with the intention of changing career quite radically; I ended up (in the manner of many career changers) by making a more gentle change, to focus on science, new technology and (where possible) applying all that newly-updated knowledge of psychological theory to real-life projects. Last year, I mostly worked with non-research organisations: usability agencies, user experience consultants, management consultants and learned societies. Different working practices, different worldviews, different...
Read MoreTwitter; and women in technology, for Ada Lovelace Day
I started using Twitter properly a couple of days ago, prompted by some of my friends taking it on, and so far I’m enjoying it way more than I expected. It’s also thrown me into contact with various market researchers working in new media. It is brilliant to uncover some kind of community in this area. Research often seems so quiet and underground – some of the voices I’m coming across are anything but, and that’s encouraging. Anyway. Ada Lovelace Day was yesterday, the brainchild of Suw Charman, as a device for discussing and celebrating women in...
Read MoreSnow Queen
I love snow. It has been wet and slushy today, but very early on Monday, with snow falling softly under sodium streetlights, it was quite magical. Once a decade we get enough snow to build a proper snowman. Some of our neighbours went all out – if you look closely, you’ll see that this lady had snowbosoms. I’m trying to think of some spurious link to the economy/market research/the world of business; but actually I think the only moral is that sometimes the exact right thing to do is to build a great big snowman. And then have a snowball...
Read MoreManifesto
Some of us find it quite simple to put our real organisations and authentic selves online.
Others - well, let's just say that some of us can't bear to look at our own websites.
My mission is to help you transform your online presence so that other people understand and appreciate what you really have to offer. So that you can achieve what you want - whether that's better engagement, more readers, or more sales.