Ashley Baxter

How (Not) To Win Clients

I’m surprised that 6 months into 2009, unsolicited email is still being used as a means of ‘marketing’ services by individuals or companies.

A few days ago I was contacted by a “branding and graphic identity agency” (let’s, for the sake of argument, call them Generic Web Agency), offering their service to overhaul the branding and graphic design of Rockers Delight. Obviously I’ve not long had Rockers Delight redesigned; a decision that was made by myself, not inspired by a spam email, therefore I’m not in the market for a fresh rebranding. Even if I was, I know that the last ‘type’ of company or individual I’d hire to do so would be those who send unsolicited email.

In the past I’ve received many of these types of emails, and I always brush them off. This one, however, was different in that it was personal and directed specifically towards me. I could tell it wasn’t bulk email sent to myself and other site owners; it was very much targeted towards Rockers Delight.

There are a few things wrong with how Generic Web Agency went about this. Firstly, what made them think I was in the market for a redesign? I hadn’t stated anywhere that this was the case, and my site certainly doesn’t look in dire need of a fresh coat of paint. Secondly, did they even visit my site? If so, I’m surprised they think - judging by their site and portfolio - they could do a better job than what Massive Blue achieved. I don’t want to criticise their site, especially as it isn’t awful, but I know that what I currently have is better than a flash intro that, once finished loading, is simply a splash page… Thirdly, telling me they are “big on experience and small on price” may appeal to the shoestring budget I currently have (setting up a business is expensive!), but I’m wise enough to know that, with web design, you get what you pay for.

So, I took it upon myself to politely reply to their email. The gist of my response was: “Look, mate, I don’t know where you’ve got the idea from that I’m looking for a new web site, but you’re only going to give your brand a bad name by contacting people via email which is unsolicited, therefore considered spam. Think about it.”

That was completely paraphrased.

Hopefully Generic Web Agency have taken on board what I said, as it’s a very valid point. You may think there’s a possibility you could get a bit of work out of this means of ‘marketing’, but in 2009 there isn’t! That isn’t the way to win clients! What impression have I conjured from being contacted in this way by Generic Web Agency? That they don’t know what the fuck they’re doing.

Major #fixreplies Confusion

So, Twitter. Yeah. It’s great. Been on it for two years now. Fab.

I know I’m unfashionably late to the party (so late that everyone else is no doubt at another party), but something I saw today reminded me of the confusion I experienced a month back in regards to the @replies timeline change.

If you weren’t following the person a reply was directed at, it would no longer appear in your timeline. Okay, that’s fine (well, apparently not as it caused major uproar), but that’s actually always been the case with me. And I just thought that was the standard until now.

The only time I was made to think otherwise was when I was having a very embarrassing and public argument with a friend. I thought “Ok, this is lame, but none of my followers are going to see it, so I’ll add in an extra STFU”. Someone responded with “Get a room”, which of course was perfectly justified. I thought it odd he could see the conversation when he wasn’t following my friend, but never thought any more of it.

Until a month back when Twitter was rife with complaints of this apparent change. So… I’m confused. Why have I never been able to see replies from my followers to people I’m not following, or have I missed what #fixreplies is about entirely?

A Little Bit Of Credit Would Be Nice

Credit where credit’s due, no? Apparently not so.

Today we got a hold of the book that published information about our business only to see that all other staff were credited, just not myself. Considering I do the brunt of the work, it would have been nice to be acknowledged.

I guess I’m in one of those “why bother?” moods in regards to work, sparked by something that happened yesterday. This has added fuel to the fire. The book isn’t a huge deal, but I guess it’s the principle of it. I’ve had a big journey with work, which all started 4 years ago, and it’s upset me to see other people with barely any involvement getting credited.

Story of my life. /emo /rant

Price Comparison Sales To Date

Yeah, so much for this being a weekly thing.

As of the end of May we have sold over 100 policies, which is a total commission of close to two and half grand. Not bad considering it’s over £2000 of business we otherwise wouldn’t have got. We are, however, still running at a loss. But, like I said before, this is okay and to be expected at this stage. We’re doing this for long term profit; renewals, referrals etc.

We’ve also been notified that as from the 1st of June, our position on the price comparison site has increased to a more visible spot. To begin with we bid for the lowest position just to test the water, and because it was safer from a financial perspective. Hopefully our improved visibility brings us in more business.

Future of Web Apps Conference - Edinburgh

“Hello, I’m Ashley, and I’m a FOWA impostor“.

When Ryan Carson asked me whether I was a designer or developer, I held my hand up and admitted I was, in fact, a FOWA impostor. Even though I can’t quite code a fully functioning web app just yet, I still took a lot away from the Future of Web Apps conference. More than I expected. In fact, I now have my moleskine full of invaluable advice offered from the likes of Roan Lavery, Stefan ‘MOO’ Magdalinski, and Ryan Carson himself.

I’ve been documenting my brief affair with Ruby on Rails on this very blog, and while I haven’t exactly been flagging in the motivation department, today’s conference has made me more enthusiastic about pursuing it than ever. Not to mention it’s given me food for thought in a much larger scale; marketing and general running of business.

I’m not going to go into details regarding each of the talks; I’m pretty sure videos will make their way online soon enough. I will say, however, that my two favourites were ‘Turning your big idea into a business’ by Roan Lavery, and ‘Lessons learned from selling Dropsend and other web app stories’ by Ryan Carson.

Ryan said something that stuck with me more so than anything else; “Start right now. Seriously”. I’m a sucker for procrastinating, as I’m sure many of you are, but, as from now, I’ll be applying that ethic to my work.

I can’t wait for other Carsonified conferences to make their way through to Scotland. I’ll see you there.

I’m Going To FOWA - Are You?

Tomorrow is the Edinburgh leg of the Future of Web Apps road trip. I toyed with the idea of going, and even though I’ll most definitely feel like an impostor (I’m an Internet Marketing Manager, not a developer… Yet), I ended up getting a ticket. I say ‘getting’ a ticket as opposed to ‘buying’ a ticket because I have the fortunate advantage of labeling it a business expense. Yaldi!

I’ll be giving the morning workshop a miss, so I’ll likely be turning up between one and half one for registration. I’ll also be avoiding the speed dating for geeks speed networking, but will definitely make it along for post conference drinks.

The line-up itself looks awesome, but I’m also excited about meeting people in the field of web apps, purely because I can pick their brains about the area I plan on steering my work into in the future, and also because they will likely be geeky. A bit like myself.

So, I think I’m just about sorted. I have some non-smudgy pens (a must have for a lefty like myself), a notepad (unfortunately my fancy Field Notes haven’t arrived), a fully charged iPhone, my Canon, and… No business cards. But what exactly would I have on my business card anyway? “Hey, I’m Ashley. Hire me to beat Mile High Club for you”.

I’ll definitely be taking some pictures, not to mention writing about my experience at FOWA, so check back soon.

I Get All My Business Ideas in Bed

Srsly. I’m not even kidding, and I wish it was as it means interrupted sleep or late nights. Like last night. Gah.

I’m thinking I may have to start keeping a notepad by my bedside, or maybe even my laptop. Then again, that will encourage interrupted sleep even more so. But yeah, the initial idea for Robot Panties came to me when I was in bed. The record label I set up when I was 16 came about when I was in bed. Countless ideas for my current business have been conceived in bed.

I want to use my office for ideas, and my bed for other stuff (if you know what I’m sayin’).

RoR Is Going Well. Kind Of.

The past couple of days has seen me making a(nother) serious attempt with Ruby on Rails. Like I mentioned before, a vast majority of tutorials are dated, meaning you can learn a little about what you’re doing here and there, but then get stumped half way through because a particular way of doing something has changed. Frustrating.

I signed up to Lynda.com, which is pretty well known for decent tutorials. I think I got through the first 4 chapters of training without any hiccups, even going so far as things finally clicking with me. Before that there hadn’t been much logic attached to why ‘that’ returns ‘this’ and so on, but that was changing, and I was getting really excited about finally getting somewhere.

Unfortunately even this tutorial is dated, which was made apparent when I got to the section on scaffolding, a method which has since changed. I fired off an email to Lynda, telling them (her?) they should seriously consider updating their tutorials considering it’s paid content. While it may not be so bad for someone who’s comfortable enough with the language to figure a way around it, it completely through me - a newbie - off track. They’re response, however, was that they have no current plans for new, up-to-date tutorials.

With all that said and done, why am I actually fixated upon learning Rails? A couple of reasons, both of which are work related. I’d love to revamp the quote system we use across all our sites for customers to obtain quotes and take out cover. Right now we’re using our agent’s effort, which obviously works well enough, but the look is tied into their brand, not ours. I also have an idea for a basic app we could offer with each new let property policy - or to sell individually - which is property related. Aside from that, developing has always intrigued me, and judging by how much fun I’m having getting hands on with Rails, I’d say I’ve definitely found something worth exploring.

Video Footage Woes

I had big aspirations for the video portion of Rockers Delight. Initially I’d start off posting short, 5 minute reviews of games, and then I’d branch out into something a little bigger. As with anything techy, I leave all the fine details to other people, so a very significant factor regarding the equipment I use to capture my 360 footage completely escaped me.

The capture card I use is only capable of capturing games running at Pal 50. Most games on the 360 run at Pal 60. I discovered this when attempting to record Resident Evil 5 while being left with a blank screen. I frantically Googled what it may be, and found a video on YouTube of a guy with the same problem. I was disappointed, but since I’d already recorded and uploaded a video of Skate 2, I thought the problem may only be restricted to a couple of games.

Not so! I had a look at each of the boxes of my 360 games, and I’d say that over 90% run at Pal 60. This leaves me with very limited footage. Off the top of my head, the games I can record right now are Left 4 Dead, Army of Two, Skate 2, and Lego Batman, which I’m only borrowing.

I had been itching to make a JRPG medley of sorts, simply because I love that genre and know how much of an acquired taste it is. I was hoping to pass on my love for this genre to those who are a little unsure. But not one of my 5 JRPGs are compatible. Gutted!

Obviously I’ve been hunting around for loopholes, or even brand new equipment, but so far I haven’t found a thing. If you know any way around this, or a guaranteed piece of equipment I can buy that would capture Pal 60, please let me know! If it helps, I’m using a MacBook and Elgato EyeTV Hybrid to do the work.

I Just Want To Hit Things

About 2 years ago I bit the bullet and bought an electronic kit. Not being able to play my acoustic kit on a regular basis sucked a bit (to say the very least), and with all the miserable complainers I constantly seem to reside next to, I figured an electronic kit was an apt purchase.

My Roland TD12K has served me well. I’ve used it pretty much every day since, hooking it up to a set of headphones and an iPod, never receiving any complaints regarding noise.

The kit is stored in my mum’s garage, so I’m often playing while she’s upstairs watching TV, or even in the office getting work done (which is on the same floor as the garage). I don’t know if it’s because she was so used to me playing on an acoustic set for a long time, but the electronic kit has been a god send for my mum. She says she can hear tapping, regardless of where she is in the house, but that it’s pretty faint and doesn’t bother her at all.

Today, just as I was leaving my mum’s house after a paltry 10 minutes on the kit, the next door neighbour asked if I had been drumming. I knew what was coming after that. She told me it was giving her a headache, to which I responded with “Well, that’s why I bought the electronic kit. So the only burden for neighbours is faint tapping”. She then asked if I could keep it down. It’s not even evening yet - something of that noise level shouldn’t be a problem.

To be honest, I didn’t disguise the fact I was pissed off. Drumming is something I get a huge amount of pleasure from, and I think it’s important to include hobbies in our daily lives seeing as so much time is spent working and stressing over other factors. I feel I’ve done my bit; compromising with sound levels by not only drumming on an electronic kit, but feeding it through headphones, not an amp.

I don’t play at ridiculous levels, nor do I play at unforgiving times. Truth is, I’m now forever going to be aware of this neighbour every time I sit at my kit, knowing I’m giving her a fucking headache from this amount of noise. It’s pissed me off, incase you can’t already tell.

Tonight I head to the local Yacht Club to hear a band play who are interested in having me drum for them. If all goes well, I’ll be practicing a lot more often. But now that’s tainted, because I know with every encounter of my 5A Vic Firths to my mesh heads, someone is sitting next door going “AAH! The noise!”. What do I do?