What exactly does thinking outside the box mean? 

There is a tendancy to think humans have original thoughts when in fact we tend to gravitate to things we feel safe with.  With that said is the 'box' our comfort zone?  I have heard this statement from desperate business people who are at a loss to explain why their company is doing poorly.  As if thinking outside the box will solve the immediate problem and bring about some critical change.  Could it really be that thinking outside the box is really the road to destruction?  Is daydreaming any replacement for knowledge and skill?

Is modern business being run by guessing and 'brainstorming' with no qualification for ideas or execution?  If skill and years of knowledge don't count vs. out of the box thinkers (usually just out of college or MBA school) then no wonder the Unites States has such serious problems.   Thinking outside the box economically has meant taking shortcuts and exploitation of the system. 

First you must know what is in the box before you can think 'outside the box'.  It's astonishing how many do not even understand the problem and feel there is some strategic reason for being ignorant.  We are not born with a lifetime's worth of knowledge so it's important to learn about the foundation of the particular  issue. 

Nothing is an extreme.  It's great to be creative but like a painter it takes skill to be creative.   Practice, failure, success, these are the steps to learning and not a 10 minute meeting on paint or worse, all day, fixated on one or two superficial concepts and not digging into the causes.  If one is really thinking outside the box: think about  the effects.

We can look at the accident in the Gulf of Mexico as a true lesson in thinking outside the box.  No, not in how to solve it but how we got to the point where we created a problem we can not solve. 

That is truly where 'thinking outside the box" gets us.  Innovation and creativity are built on knowledge and skill, not blind luck.  I've always  thought of it in the view of given infinite time, a thousand monkeys with typewriters would eventually write the complete works of Shakespeare.

Don't be a monkey.

A Website Application Programmer designs database driven applications that store sales transactions, customer data, email address lists and other client management functions. Website programmers typically specialize in Microsoft based programming like .NET SQL  while other programmers use MySQL and PHP which are open source programming languages.  Open-source provides a community supported application whereas closed-source is owned and supported by a corporation.  By it's nature open-source projects are non-profit.  It's hard to determine which is better off hand as many closed source software applications started as a open source project. 

Many times a website application programmer is confused with a webmaster, web designer or a website developer.  The roles are largely different and deal with different issues.  An website application programmer's primary focus is the logic of the application and the accomplishment of various requirements.  As many things can be done different ways it becomes the interaction with the website designer, website developer and end users that helps guide the programmer build for the greatest usability.  Website developers can have programming skills but usually by the nature of project management and the multitude of roles required that programmers stick close to meeting the requirements specified the application

• Requirements specified in Scope of Work (SOW) by client
• Collaborate with website designer and developer
• Develop logic framework for application
• Design user interface (UI)
• Test and Release

There is a great deal of interest in a small scale eCommerce platform.  Let's break out a couple of scenarios in which a small business would require on-line payment services.  I will try to keep it simple and around a limited amount of products that do not require a full scale eCommerce shopping cart. Let's say no more then 10 products or services.   Before we dive into the various online services there are some merchant requirements to consider.

• A business account is required.
• Merchant Account
• Payment Gateway 

You can use an existing business account to open an merchant account and then open a payment gateway account or you can get the merchant account and payment combined as one like authorize.net, Google Checkout, PayPal and SimplePay.  Some of it is around brand and all lot is about functionality.   A merchant account allows you to accept credit card payments, that is process and deposit with a 'slight' charge for the trouble.  The payment gateway provide an connection between the Internet and the banks's secure network.  You need a account with both or a single provider of both services to transact sales. 

Authorize.net

Simple Checkout allows customers to purchase single items in any quantity using a hosted platform to provide 'Buy now' buttons or Donate.  Unlike PayPal or Google Checkout,  Authorize.net provides a lot more services and allows you to break out the gateway provider from the merchant account.  A business can do it ether way with Authorize.net.   Credit card payments can be processed on-line via a credit card terminal or via a Pay now button on the web site. Authorize.net is a scalable solution that can be expanded to a full eCommerce platform in the future.  This is not to say authorize.net is a virtual web store, it provides the payment processing and gateway services only. 

Google Checkout

Google Checkout provides gateway services and a merchant account.  Google also offers it's many shades of the old 'Froogle', Base, Merchant Center at any rate this provides a means of selling products 'virtually' without any real web site outside of Google.  It's far from simple for the average person although not totally out of the learning curve.  Google Checkout has the disadvantage of requiring a Google account and a Gcheckout account.  This is not so simple for someone not on the Google network.

PayPal

The ubiquitous PayPal provides a lot for so little.  That is a PayPal account is free. A business account is a little more work but offers some merchant tools for selling online.  The fees are higher then authorize.net but PayPal does not charge a monthly service charge for the gateway and merchant account like authorize.net.  

PayPal deposits payments directly into PayPal only.  Something else to be aware with on PayPal is indeed they do accept ‘out of network’ payments but that can put a hold on the funds or worse become a 'chargeback' because the user is not a verified PayPal account holder.  So we lose with PayPal because of this issue (I don’t want to play it up as serious: it works both ways as it is a convenience too).  I would recommend PayPal in cases were payment is required and no ‘conversion’ needs to take place.  Someone owes you $50 then PayPal is great.   If someone has $50 they want to spend and it’s a choice between authorize.net and PayPal they will go with Authorize.net 100% of the time and as a secondary payment method PayPal comes in at around 15%  These are actually industry eCommerce statistics that I have seen myself in eCommerce sales based on the findings of Internet Retailer various polls with merchants .

PaySimple

PaySimple is similar to Authorize.net as a on-line merchant account and provides some of the convieneces but not many of the integration functions of authorize.net.  PaySimple does offer the Pay now button option and is less expensive (currently a special on application fee being waived) although monthly fees are higher which reaches a break even in a year with Authorize.net and then you are saving $12.00 a month, $144 a year with Authorize.net

In most of my examples above the offerings do not include a 'web store'.  The only one is Google Checkout that can provide some kind of storefront.   There are some other solutions that enter into the higher end of the small business horizon.  I will describe some of these services in my next blog post.

A Website Developer plans, designs and manages a website development project.  To really get ahold of this concept one has to think of a website as a giant book that is not bound together by glue and thread, instead they are bound by hyperlinks.  A web site developer plans all the pages and how they connect. Menus, links, image rendering, all require a method a 'appearing' in a visitors browser.  A developer can build a web site from 'scratch' but usually some kind of Content Management System with a template is the typical solution.  The CMS, as Content Management Systems are called, provides the web pages in a database, or dynamically.  This creates a consistency in the website and continuity in menu link structure.  Linking is an extremely important function that on the surface may appear straight forward but has it's own complexities better managed by a CMS.  This avoids broken links and and lost visitors leaving the website.

What does one look for in a website developer?

• Background in Content Managment Systems is very helpful, especially if you have a CMS in mind
• website design skills. An eye for layout and execution.
• Broad knowledge of other server based applications to add services like RSS, podcasts, forums, shopping carts.
• Search Engine Marketing is very important

A favorite saying of mine from the classic golfing movie 'Caddy Shack' is 'Be The Ball'.  Now in other professions outside of golfing,  like snipers the saying is 'be The bullet' .  I prefer golf balls as they hurt less. So let's break it down on what this 'being The ball' means in everyday  life.

What is The 'ball'?    Metaphorically speaking, it's anything that we wish to achieve.  To be The Ball is to imagine ourselves as the object or accomplishment we wish to achieve.

How does a golf  ball succeed in reaching it's goal of the 'hole in one' which is how we generally like to do things, the first time?

1. A golf ball requires a quality core to start with.  That is the ball has to be well made. 
2. The ball requires a proper device to propel it to the hole
3. The ball requires a skilled operator of said tool of propulsion  (also known as a 'golf club' or driver)
4. The environmental conditions like wind and rain effect the success of the ball making it to the hole

So to be 'The ball' one must take all of the various conditions that will influence the outcome into consideration to achieve the goal.

To merely hope the ball will find the goal while wildly swinging at it is a path to frustration and failure. 

Amazing what one learns from golfing comedies.  And I do not play golf,   at least not the sport.

Although there is a movie about the real Baron, Munchausen Syndrome can be a serious physiological issue and can manifest itself beyond the single person.   Munchausen syndrome refers to factitious disorder with physical symptoms although I have seen this same syndrome in some web site developers who keep making their sites 'sick' in order to get attention.  There is no reason for the site to be ill and yet the developer keeps implementing more and more drastic measures in order to fix the newest malady.   As this is difficult to pull off on a stripped down version  (Keep it simple, stupid) they add more and more 'features' that no normal user would ever be able to find let alone use.  Like Munchausen it is difficult to diagnose and as a doctor might recommend some radical enema therapy the developer is changing out databases on a perfectly healthy 'child' with no thought to the absurdity of the action or recommendation.

The best course of action in a case of site poisoning is to bring in some other developers familiar with the web site management system and audit it for function and scope. I would suggest 2 from separate agencies as typically the real patient is in total denial about the harm they are inflicting on their 'child'.   A dead give away is more then one 'development' site or more databases than a gaggle of geese.   There should be one database with backups which are not part of the day to day operations, or, running a development site, a second database that is a sample not for production database. 

It's strongly recommended not to allow this illness to continue on one's web site as it will be a financial drain bringing ruin in the long run.

• Recognize the behavior
• Take action: Have your site audited
• Intervention: Make sure you have backed up your database and website files before discharging the developer.
• Legal action may be required to keep the developer away from one's website and for damages incurred. 

As always my favorite photo site:

How to sell anything online

The Internet has introduced a whole new world that defies some of the traditional elements of starting a business. Overhead can be much lower without the requirements of location, location, location.  A good Internet connection is of greater importance and a logistics plan on how the Internet business will get the product to the customer.  A traditional business relies on walk-in traffic to generate sales whereas a web based store can actively promote the product in a live fashion without the hassle of someone needing to walk into the store.   For the Internet merchant the advantage is the greater opportunity to drop ship items that may not be as heavy a mover but still compliment the product line.  There is a trade off in a tactile sense but the advantages of comparing greater numbers of similar items with user reviews really can  allow a customer to make a more informed decision.  We sites can offer a shopper a far larger selection of products without wearing the customer out walking hundreds of miles to find the right fit.

I was Looking over  Google Webmaster console and saw this recent addition to the interface.  It's intriguing because It shows a variable position.  Everyone, well most everyone has been assuming static positions in the SERPs and this clearly demonstrates that it's being moved depending on some unknown factors. Without a time factor is hard to determine what it all means but this does throw a new spin on Search Engine Optimization.

This is an intriguing tool if it stays 'on'.