When we talk about Web 2.0, it is not very often we get to see a site that started before this phase of the web and has gone on to take the best parts of it and continue to thrive. Suicide Girls (NSFW) is a great example of a site that started with basic community functionality and has latched on to the positives of this era of the web and has shown no sign of slowing down.
Started in September 2001, SG is based around the images of alternative women posing nude, which in itself should make it popular. Instead of simply leaving it as a gallery site that people would view and walk away from they began to add community functionality to the site to make it more sticky. You have message boards and groups which help people feel as though they are part of something. That along with looking at pictures of naked women would make almost any person happy to be part of the community, but they didn’t stop there.
With typical features like news and interviews, SG also gave each girl a blog so they could keep their fans updated. Now we have podcasts, radio shows, albums, videos and a traveling show. Yes part of their revenue scheme revolves around ads, but those are few and far between. The basics start with a simple $4/month membership which many people are happy to fork over.
Just because SG is able to add all of these features doesn’t mean that each of them is going to be successful. That solely depends on the execution and their branding. They understand the importance of quality design to your brand and have taken great measure in every part of their site to make sure they give the appearance that they want. This is something that our new Web 2.0 sites are solely lacking. Instead of creating their own brand, clients and investors believe that their sites should have a Web 2.0 feel about them and therefore a Web 2.0 brand. You don’t want to brand your site for the era, you want to brand it with your image.
All of the things that SG does are by no means innovative, but they are executed almost to perfection. If you want something successful you don’t have to build something new, but you do have to build something great. Most Web 2.0 sites have the first part of the equation down (*cough* copycats *cough*), it is the “great” part that they seem to forget.
If you already own a community site or are thinking of starting any type of site that has some community features I highly suggest you take a look at SG and learn a few things. Sex sells, but so does a great site.
Or so says Danny Boy who has put Wisdump on his list of Best Interaction Design Blogs for 2006. First off, thanks Danny, I appreciate it and have to wonder if you were really reading my site or were just so impressed by the name that you felt an obligation to include me on your list. Anyways, 2007 is going to be much better because I have no choice but to make it better. However, this entry isn’t about you Danny, I have given you enough attention already, this entry is about what you said about my site.
Wisdump tells it like it is, deflating the web-hype machine.
That’s cool and all, but how come we don’t see more people deflating the machine that they are creating? My theory is that because deep down we all want to be part of that next big thing. We hype up the abilities of the social web, spit on MySpace and then wish to create the next one. I hate on a lot of things and will readily admit to that. I used to be pretty tough on 37signals for a couple of reasons. One being that I had so much respect for them and basically grew up with them it was hard to see a small change and secondly I wanted their success (not their products and services mind you) and that usually leads to a bit of jealousy.
You ever read these stories of companies being bought out and think “man those punks just made $20 million for something I could create in 2 weeks”? Yeah, you probably thought that at one time or another and maybe you wrote about it, but when writing about it there was a good chance you wrote an entry filled with jealousy or one filled with nothing but praise. There just never seems to be a median.
Maybe we all feel the need to hype everything because we have to scream louder than the next person. However, what you create probably won’t change the world or make you famous. It might get you on TechCrunch for your 15 seconds (yeah, 15 seconds because that’s how long it takes to read a headline in your newsreader) of fame so why bother hyping anything up at all?
I’ll tell you why. Because you believe in it. And sometimes that’s all that matters.
I’m surrounded by independent designers and programmers so I get to hear a thing or two about client experiences and what is going on behind the scenes of independent design “firms”. One disturbing trend that I noticed this year is that deadlines no longer have any meaning. We set deadlines for our own tasks or clients might ask us of deadlines for their projects and we will provide them, but more and more I am seeing these deadlines not getting met. Whether it is the client’s fault or our own these deadlines come and go faster than startups.
Have we always lived in a world where deadlines have no meaning? Have we become so full of ourselves in this Web 2.0 world that we have created our own celebrity status and feel that we are above such things? I suck the most at meeting my own deadlines and instead of getting angry or frustrated at myself for missing them I simply make excuses. Do you do that with your client work?
Maybe you are at a job and the current client doesn’t fit with how you work because you don’t do deadlines. Deadlines are too restrictive and hinder the creative process right? Missing deadlines is an addicting thing. You miss one and make an excuse and realize it isn’t so bad to miss them so you miss another one and another. Soon you laugh internally at the thought of setting a date for the project to finish or maybe you still convince yourself that this one time you will actually get it done.
It never happens.
Designers and coders expect to get paid what they feel they are worth and when they do are they fulfilling the expectations of the clients that have paid them? We want money yet don’t want to help our clients make that money back by doing stuff when it should be done. If we lose these clients no worries because we have five more potentials sending us emails right? All we need to do is pump out one nice looking website every two months and a couple more clients will trickle in and the ones that were complaining about missed deadlines will disappear and our reputations will go untarnished.
I can’t say if doing bad work ever catches up to you in this new digital world, but if that day ever comes to pass a lot of us our fucked. Till then, fuck deadlines, it can wait till next week.
Yesterday I did a recap of the 2006 Sponsorship year on Wisdump and some of the things that I have learned and today I promised to offer the details for sponsoring this site throughout the year 2007. It’s quite simple.
- $2000 gets you placement for a full year. That breaks down to $166.67 a month and $5.47 a day.
- Monthly reports on how your ads are doing in comparison to others and suggestions on what can be improved.
- A minimum of 15 entries a month, excluding short blurb hits. If you know this site you know it is not known for five entries on a daily basis, that has never been my style and although I have attempted it, I feel the site just works better when I write something when it hits my mind. Nothing forced.
- Site will launch with a new design for 2007 and this design will change 2-3 during the year for both experimentation and freshness.
- Articles about your products and services. Depending on what your product is it might be a good article or it might be a constructive one, but you don’t have to go about asking for a charity writeup, just ask me what you want and I will have a look at it. Just keep in mind that I’m always fair with my opinions.
- The types of ads will change over the course of the year. Could be text or could be graphical, but changes will be made to keep things fresh along with the design.
- If you have more than one product you can take up two slots or you can simply rotate them out throughout the year. This is an active participation sponsorship.
What I ask of my sponsors is simple.
- Be active with your creatives. If I’m going to offer suggestions on how to improve it would be nice to see you take the time and care to try these things out so that you may benefit as well. I’m not looking for someone to slap an ad on my site and be done with it for the year.
- Throw suggestions my way, if you think something could be done better let me know. I will listen, but that doesn’t mean I will act on it ;-).
Shortly I will be writing on FastCompany and with 9rules constantly growing this site only seems to continue to progress. I will be limiting the ad slots to 10 sponsors so don’t assume this is everyone gets a chance type of thing. Maybe only two people will find it worth their time to participate or 22, I can’t guarantee anything.
If you are looking for the numbers (all sponsors usually are) then just shoot me an email if you have a genuine interest in this (scrivs{AT}9rules.com). Also if you are interested in advertising on 9rules or ScrivsTyme feel free to drop me an email.
