It seems like it was only yesterday that my friend called me and exclaimed, “Something’s wrong with my computer….my Internet isn’t optimized!”

I scratched my head for a bit, hopped in the car, and minutes later I was staring at an ad similar to this:

Gah! What kind of sleazy bastard would try and bait a helpless consumer with an ad like this? 10 years ago it was probably a guy wearing a button-down shirt with too many buttons down, however today’s advertisers have taken cue from their older, less hygienic counterparts.

We recently placed ads on Songza. At first, advertisements were contextually relevant, like ones promoting the Joy Division documentary. However, in the days since, we’ve gotten the likes of these beauties from AT&T (Note: I’ve done some Photoshop magickery to show you what the transition looks like. It ain’t good, but I don’t want to give these ads more attention than they deserve).

and this….

Oh no, my poor Internets! I must have done something wrong. A virus, corrupt registry…how bad did I break it? Oh, thank goodness, it’s AT&T….my hero!

What do all of these have in common? If you’d ask the ad designer, I’m sure they’d say they were trying to ‘grab the viewers attention’, but to me…it’s just scaring people.

I find that, in this way, advertising is trying to achieve the same goals as SEO: drive traffic to a site by any means necessary. “It doesn’t matter how you get ‘em, just get ‘em!”

But what does this do to the user experience? Is the customer appreciative that you’ve saved them from the fright that you created? Doubtful. How very Homeland Security-esque of you…

How then, do you attract users? How do you get heard through all the noise? Answer: If you make something good, people will like it.

To capture this idea, I’m reminded of a story that Harper once told:

He was at a conference and approached by some SEO fanatics. They asked him, “How do you optimize Threadless? Do you backlink, cloak….what?” Harper’s answer, “We make good products, and people like them.”

It’s simple, yet true. Viral marketing is not an art of trickery; it’s a thoughtful conversation that you have with your users. You listen. You create. You listen, again.

Make good products, build a good community, and you’ll succeed. It’s a practice that companies, both small and large, can learn from.

Yikes! Has it really been two and a half months since my last post? Even that, to call Weng, Weng a post is a stretch.

So what the hell have I been doing that’s so important to neglect this here blog?

I Quit My Job
Somewhere around May 1st, I left my cushy job as a real estate web developer and plunged head first into the abyss known as freelance work. The first couple of months were spent working out my home and coffee shops with my web pal, Sandy Weisz of Methodtree. Recently Sandy, myself, Andrew Huff of Gapers Block, and four of the most brilliants youngsters I know of (known to the world as Humanized) acquired an office space. Though we are all independent worker bees, we’ve quietly dubbed ourselves ASAJASA, deriving from the first letters of our names and our fondness for acronyms/palindromes. Want to know what it’s like to work with us? Check out the photos and video here.

Projects, projects, projects
In addition to filling my week with billable client work, I’ve attempted to carve out time for my personal, non-billable projects. These have included, but are not limited to: Tappity, Twitter Timer, Retweet, and Just Some, Inc. (my official company name).

Trying My Hand at Design
Lastly, and probably the most daunting of all these items is my attempt to become a better designer. Until now, I have always relied on the creative genius of my friends and colleagues (mostly Jeff Skinner), and have stuck with what I do best: programming. However, as I quickly learned with the start of my freelance work, most clients want the total package, soup-to-nuts, and so on and so forth — something which required me to come out of my design shell.

That said, I’m proud to announce the redesign of this site, srobbin.com. With that announcement also comes a pledge that I shall never let this lapse in content transpire as long as it has in the past few months.

On a lighter, and non-salesy note, should you know of anyone who is in need of a website or complex web application, I’m open for business. Please feel free to contact me at scott [at] justsome dot com.

Until next time….