IA and Marketing Sneezers (was Re: [Sigia-l] Site registration

[Listera]

Donna Timara:
 
> The mantra is if-I-can-measure-I-can-manage.

And the mantra is dead wrong: what exactly are you measuring?

> That said, asking people to register is one awesome way of
> demonstrating and measuring what you have.

It's a misleading indicator out of context. For example, how many visitor
*could* you have if you didn't have the brain-dead register-or-get-lost
policy? What's the size of the opportunity cost missed here ? How many of
the subbers that you "have" are bogus? How much effort will it take to weed
out the bogus info, if possible at all? What's the cost of making a
strategic blunder based on the bogus info carried in by the enforced
registration? 

> Why did they do it without registration? That's what I want us to
> think about. There is no obvious answer to it.

You're right there is none because it is and must be contextual. As opposed
to the simple policy of so many print-based pubs having a
register-or-get-lost policy recommended likely by an outside consultant or
service provider.

> Many a time focusing on short-term measures is the only options for those
> clueless managers.

Yes, but what I don't understand is why are *you* whitewashing it?

> Probably they are planning to exit the market... Or they are thinking
> that they will sell out to somebody based of subscription-based
> valuationŠ 

These are all shady business objectives. Any smart buyer would of course
know to check these.
 
> They are not answerable to wallstreet analysts. They are not measured on
> quarterly results.

Are you making the argument that register-or-get-lost policy is necessary
for for-profit organizations? Let's establish one fact: register-or-get-lost
policy is neither the same as charging for service nor necessary to attract
advertising. 
 
> But we don't know that they don't have foresight to implement what we all have
> been discussed so far.

Lack of foresight or, really, incompetence is not an excuse. Neither should
it be a "best practice" advocated in general.
 
> So far, I am not convinced if we described it as a design problem.

If this isn't a Design problem I don't know what is. The first thing I say
when go in as a consultant is "I am a Designer, I Solve Problems." This is
certainly one of the "problems" I solve, in context, in majority of projects
I deal with. Who else will solve it, accounting?

Ziya
Nullius in Verba