foursquare: Love love loving these "Meet the Mayor" interviews Zagat is doing

So after gallons of coffee and sacrifices to Elsbeth and my time together, BuyWithMe launches in New York. My favoite deal is the SPiN New York ping pong.  Half price with a free drink, I’m exhausted, but check it out: http://www.buywithme.com/sheckys/deals/365-spin-nyc-ping-pong

davidkaneda:

Luke Wroblewski wrote an article yesterday titled, “Mad Libs” Style Form Increases Conversion 25-40%. The post was about a team, led by Ron Kurti, redesigning a form for Vast.com. By no means do I intend to knock the success of the redesign, but part of me wonders if the conclusion was rushed. In addition to using a narrative user flow, he’s also:

• Lessened form inputs, added placeholder text, and made one optional
• Removed distracting links throughout
• Highlighting contextual information like the car being negotiated
• Made the submit button bigger
• Added icons
• Said “Thank you”

Luke mentions the possibility of other factors affecting the result in his review, but I think it may be an understatement. Sometimes conversion rates can be massively improved by a minor change to a design or user flow. While A/B testing can be very useful, keep in mind that it is still a science and comprehensively reviewing constants and variables is a big part of that science.

davidkaneda:

Wise men said, a fantastic Flickr set with quotes on creativity, entrepreneurship, and marketing from the industry’s leading professionals.

If you’re working backwards from a goal, can one ever reach it? If a tree falls in the—

fred-wilson:

Status THIS - Check-In, Please

I’ve an app for that.

What Tumblr is doing to support the earthquake in Haiti is pretty great. I’m glad to participate in a community that’s responds so quickly and creatively.

For people who might not use Tumblr, the Tumblr team created a special badge (in this case a blue and red ribbon) that can be overlaid on your avatar. Once you donate, the ribbon appears on your avatar, showing your support. So not only are you rewarded for donating, but more importantly, the badge helps to spread the message to people in your Tumblr network. I chose to give a few dollars to Doctors without Boarders.