Posted: Wednesday, February 24, 2010 in Technology
This will be a tough mystery to solve, since the list of suspects includes every single web developer who’s had to alter his or her design in order to accommodate this outdated (but inexplicably popular) web browser. Despite this deep and nearly universal hatred, everyone has been afraid to pull the trigger and end required universal compliance with this relic since 20% of the world refuses to join us in the twenty first century… until now.
In March, Google will begin to phase out support of this dusty, old platform. They had previously announced the cessation of support for Google Docs and Google Sites… and now you can add YouTube to the list. On March 13, if you want to watch skateboarding dogs and guys getting hit in the nuts with a variety of projectiles, you’re going to have to upgrade to a browser from this century.
Of course, this news is more than welcome to developers who’ve been cursing this seemingly unkillable bit of software for years now, but even though its complete and total death is far from guaranteed at this point, Aten Design Group of Colorado has announced a funeral for IE6. Premature though it may be, Google’s plan to cease support seems to portend the timely (perhaps not timely enough) demise of the much-despised browser.
We were just thinking earlier today that there just aren’t enough ways to alert our friends and family to all of the truly exciting goings-on in our lives, and like magic, Google introduces Buzz. Yet another avenue for our ceaseless, self-aggrandizing blatherings intended to completely break down centuries of spoken interpersonal communication until we all become nothing more than walking magazines focused on our own day to day lives. We can’t wait until the day that we never actually have to engage in direct communication with another human being and neither can Google. Enjoy!
We loooove our iPhones. We’re aware of the stereotypes. We’ve heard the haters and the trolls. We don’t care. Our love is pure and magical and could never be diminished by the nattering nabobs of negativism (we so rarely get to quote Spiro Agnew).
The above-mentioned deep love was a big part of the reason that we introduced iVoloo – the first iPhone friendly Volusion store, back in July of 2008. Back in those days (it seems so long ago), iVoloo was a novelty. We developed it for a client who sells iPhone accessories, then (drunk with iPhone affection) decided to offer it to the Volusion community at large. In all honesty, back then, the need for iVoloo was debatable. There were absolutely excellent reasons to have a mobile-friendly store, but it wasn’t a critical need. Those times have changed.
Do you remember back when the internet was still in its infancy? It wasn’t that uncommon to search for a huge brand name, only to find that they had no web presence at all. You’d just shrug and grab the phone book (remember those?), look up the store and call them to get your questions answered. However, as time went by, an insufficient web presence became harder and harder to tolerate until finally it seemed like a personal affront to go searching for a store online and come up empty. We’ve now reached the point where even the humblest of mom & pop operations are virtually required to have a website, lest they risk the wrath of their constantly-connected consumers. That’s the future of mobile commerce. You can go ahead and ignore it… for now. You can ignore all of the research (here, here and here) that shows that consumers are quickly (very quickly) becoming comfortable with mCommerce. You can frustrate your mobile customers by failing to offer them what they are rapidly coming to expect from their online experience. You can put all of your eggs in your standard site and hope that your customers are tenacious enough to navigate your teeny-weeny little site in search of what they need.
… or, you could get ahead of the curve (and your competition) for less than a thousand bucks. Give us a call. It’ll be easier than you can imagine.
We admit it. We have unnaturally strong feelings for our iPhones. We are rarely without them. If you were to attend a meeting at Brand Labs, you would likely see ten people gathered around a conference table and on that table would be ten iPhones… or nine iPhones and one sad-looking person with a Razr in their pocket. So, it’s official: we’re dorks. With that being said, we’ll take it one step further and admit our deep and abiding love for RedLaser – the app that’s likely to change the way the world shops.
RedLaser is a beautifully simple little app. For the ridiculously low price of two bucks, it will turn your iPhone into a mobile comparison shopping machine. Let’s say, for example, that you’re at your local Target store and you see a shiny, new toaster that’s just what you’ve been looking for, but you think you might be able to get a better deal elsewhere. Well, just whip out your iPhone, launch the app and point the phone’s camera at the toaster’s barcode. In mere seconds, not only will you see a listing of local brick and mortar competitors who also carry that exact toaster (along with what they’re charging) but you’ll also see results from both Google and The Find’s comparison shopping engines… effectively allowing you to search the entire world for the best deal on that perfect, little toaster! What does this mean for you, the online retailer? Well, it means you’d better include Comparison Shopping Engines in your marketing efforts or you’ll be missing out on the opportunity to get new customers who might otherwise have never even heard of you.
The world is changing pretty damn quickly these days. We can help you keep up.
According to this article on Mint.com, in the near future, there will be no paper checks in use in the United Kingdom. The banks have gathered together and decided to suspend the processes by which paper checks are verified by the year 2018.
Not only is this an acknowledgment of the archaic nature of many of our existing banking procedures, but it’s also a tacit endorsement of electronic banking in general… and by extension, eCommerce. After all, if electronic banking is secure enough to entirely replace the paper-based system, then the industries that rely heavily on eBanking (online commerce, for instance) should certainly become less frightening to those who have their doubts about their cyber security. These people are more commonly known as “Grandma” and “Grandpa”.
Posted: Thursday, December 10, 2009 in International
So, apparently, a mountain in Norway started emitting a blue, spiral-y light, which then created a whitish-green-y spiral-y cloud thing. Now we’re not science doctors or anything, but we strongly recommend panicking and stockpiling food.
… also, we should probably just start shooting any laser weapons we may have, randomly, into the sky, in the hope of hitting the space aliens that are clearly in the last stages of their pre-invasion plot.
So, a good number of people in our office just spent far too much time playing with Google Wave.
… well, “playing” may not be the right word. What’s that word that means, “inviting each other to participate in a new technology of which we have yet to determine the usefulness”?
Anyhoo, Google’s new tool, which is intended to improve productivity and communication on a mass scale, has yet to prove itself within the walls of this office. I will personally give five dollars to the first person who can explain to me (in any sort of compelling way) why I should be using this darn thing. Fo’ reals.
… and I refuse to incorporate “blip” into my vocabulary. Suck on that, Google.
One of Twitter’s co-founders, Jack Dorsey, is on the cusp of changing how we all do business with his latest contribution to the world of mobile commerce: Square.
This tiny device is something previously unknown. Now, anyone, anywhere, anytime, can accept a credit card payment for anything. Plugging into any phone with an audio jack, Square will allow you to accept payment, provide receipts, offer rewards to your consumers and donate to charity without a contract. Square promises to change the way we all do business and if even half of what it promises to deliver proves to be true, it most certainly will.
UPDATE: According to this article in the LA Times, Jack Dorsey now says that it’s likely that when the Square is properly introduced, it will be offered for free! Woo-hoo! Thanks to our own Kyle Allkins for the link, which apparently he found by Twitter-stalking Alyssa Milano.
The 800 pound gorilla of online auctions, eBay, has been reaching out to its mobile consumers for some time with their shopping app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Based on the success of their initial foray into mobile commerce, they’ve just introduced a new app: Deals.
The move makes perfect sense for the eCommerce juggernaught as they’re currently on track to earn a half billion bucks strictly through mobile sales. If only there were some way to put your Volusion store on the iPhone. Wouldn’t that be great?
This will be a tough mystery to solve, since the list of suspects includes every single web developer who’s had to alter his or her design in order to accommodate this outdated (but inexplicably popular) web browser. Despite this deep and nearly universal hatred, everyone has been afraid to pull the trigger and end required universal compliance with this relic since 20% of the world refuses to join us in the twenty first century… until now.
We loooove our iPhones. We’re aware of the stereotypes. We’ve heard the haters and the trolls. We don’t care. Our love is pure and magical and could never be diminished by the nattering nabobs of negativism (we so rarely get to quote Spiro Agnew).
We admit it. We have unnaturally strong feelings for our iPhones. We are rarely without them. If you were to attend a meeting at Brand Labs, you would likely see ten people gathered around a conference table and on that table would be ten iPhones… or nine iPhones and one sad-looking person with a Razr in their pocket. So, it’s official: we’re dorks. With that being said, we’ll take it one step further and admit our deep and abiding love for 
According to 
So, apparently, a mountain in Norway started emitting a blue, spiral-y light, which then created a whitish-green-y spiral-y cloud thing. Now we’re not science doctors or anything, but we strongly recommend panicking and stockpiling food.
So, a good number of people in our office just spent far too much time playing with Google Wave.
One of Twitter’s co-founders, Jack Dorsey, is on the cusp of changing how we all do business with his latest contribution to the world of mobile commerce: 
The 800 pound gorilla of online auctions, eBay, has been reaching out to its mobile consumers for some time with their shopping app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. Based on the success of their initial foray into mobile commerce, they’ve just introduced a new app: Deals.
