Given all the attention paid to viral and word-of-mouth marketing, lots of websites are including features to let you tell a friend about their product or service. But after completing a transaction with a popular online application, I started to wonder: which group of customers is most likely to actually refer their friends to the […]

My building has an online bulletin board where people can post ads for various types of items, including apartments they’re trying to sell or rent. It’s rather basic: just a text listing plus some contact info. But there’s one aspect to the real estate listings that I rarely see elsewhere: every listing includes the floor […]

This month, the Chicago Transit Authority is rolling out their latest series of service cuts. Unlike previous changes, these are far-reaching: every train line will have fewer cars, adding another 2-5 minutes between most trains. Obviously, this means more waiting and additional crowding, especially for those who take the train back and forth to work […]

Want to get more people to buy groceries online? One of the major obstacles is translating the mental or written shopping list from your local store into a list of products that the online grocer carries. How can the website make this easier? Simple: hire personal concierges to kickstart the process. The approach is actually […]

After reading a few articles that covered the latest cell phone products, I started thinking about the many questions that arise when you’re faced with naming a product or a series of products. For instance: – If your current model numbers go something like 8000, 8500, 9000 and so on, do you move on to […]

When I walked into the gym on Saturday night, it was surprisingly busy. There was only a single treadmill available, so I quickly stepped onto it before anyone else could beat me there. But when I turned it on, I realized why that particular treadmill was unused. The belt was making a rather awful noise. […]

Several years ago, I bought a periodic table poster to hang on the wall. It was advertised as being high-quality, with a laminated coating. Well, the poster arrived in good shape, but there was one problem: they shipped it rolled up in a tube. And no matter how many days I let it sit flat […]

Let’s say that you’re an airline, and you notice that more and more customers are booking one-way tickets. Are all these people moving to a new state or country, and leaving their old lives behind? Doubtful. The more likely explanation is that the other half of your flights suck. And since many airlines have cut […]

Buying unpopped popcorn is great. You purchase a container or bag of the kernels, stick it in the closet, and throw it in the air popper when you’re ready. Like magic, a little scoop of kernels turns into a giant bowl of popcorn. In terms of space efficiency, it’s hard to beat. Oatmeal and dry […]

Most e-commerce websites make it a point to prominently display the logos of the credit cards they accept, along with alternate payment options, throughout their site. The rationale is obvious: there’s no point in convincing customers to add items to their cart and go through checkout if you don’t accept the payment methods they want […]