Black hat copywriting

A skilled black hat copywriter can create a page of content that says one thing when read at-speed (i.e. by normal web users) but says another thing entirely when carefully read word-for-word (e.g. from a legal perspective). Small print and

Hooray for crappy stationery

As an industry that claims to embrace early-stage, low-fidelity design, it’s somewhat ironic that we all feel pressured into using Moleskines that cost 20 cents per page, and pens intended for high value artwork and technical drawings. The process of

A Titanic Design Blunder

If this is true, it has to be the most famous, most catastrophic UI design blunder ever: “The error on the ship’s maiden voyage between Southampton and New York in 1912 happened because at the time seagoing was undergoing enormous

Trains, Planes and Dead Time

The UK government is currently working on plans for a new rail line, called HS2, intended to connect London to Birmingham, Edinburgh, Liverpool and Glasgow. The overall cost for the lines and rolling stock is estimated at a staggering £20.5

Clearlefting

So, a few people have been asking where I’m going next, and finally I’m able to say – I’m joining Clearleft in February! This means I’ll be leaving a UX Lead shaped-gap behind at Madgex. Care to fill it?

Will everyone please stop saying neuro!

Neuromarketing. Neurodesign. Neurocinema… The prefix “neuro” being treated like the new “2.0” and it bothers me. “Neuro” is not a fashionable synonym for the unconscious mind or the brain. It does not refer to an assorted collection of interesting pop

David Ogilvy: “We Sell or Else”

Here’s a wonderfully dated video of David Ogilvy giving what looks like a keynote address to a Direct Response Advertising conference (by video, which must have been breathtakingly modern back in the 1960s). Ogilvy came from a background in research,