Andrew's Weblog

Who Are These People?

Andrew — Sat, 14 Oct 2006 23:11:00 -0700

Being increasingly part of the action over at Homestars, a consumer review startup, I can't help but be more conscious of my own usage of these kinds of sites.

I know that before I arrived on the scene, Nancy and the team thought of TripAdvisor as a major source of inspiration. This site is indeed truly mind-boggling in comparison to what else might be out there. Carolyn and I are researching our winter holiday (we might do something in December, earlier than usual), and on this one resort in Jamaica we're looking at, they have 185 reviews! 185!

But man, I gotta tell you, from some of these reviews, you really don't know what to think. Some of them are very, very long... which helps you to get a sense of the people. There is that subset of "finicky travelers" who are never satisfied. If that's not you then you need to tune these people out. The family from London, UK, who didn't like how noisy the tree frogs were in paradise, for example.

Next up is my pals down the road in Sarnia (that happens to be my sister's birthplace, and one of my former homes). This family was so smitten by the beauty of the place that you had to shake yourself and go "wait, they're describing the reason we always go to the Caribbean - the water, the beach, the setting... beautiful, perfect." Also attainable in Cuba, St. Kitts, and so forth. Not to be jaded or anything but they swung to the other extreme - people who were heretofore unaware of the charms of Caribbean waters.

In the end, many of these online reviewers do not resemble people you'd take advice from. So much so, that our last holiday - on the strength of no reviews, but just based on the fact that the package was selected by G.A.P. Adventures (Isla Holbox, Mexico)... turned out that as expected it was a great experience and a well chosen venue... because that's what G.A.P. does. Reviews only take you so far.

So... to conclude. Online reviews have a long way to go. The constant struggle with these admittedly useful sites is: how can we get them closer to offline "like a friend" word of mouth. Sites have various devices like trusted reviewer ratings, or the simpler and easily gameable "x of x readers found this review helpful." These efforts to better replicate real-life word-of-mouth are essential, but are thus far thin gruel. Think about it: some person you don't respect might rant and rave about the horrible deal they got on a hardwood floor, just because they're cheap. Someone else might over-praise the guy just for showing up and talking it over with them - forgetting about the inflated profit margin on the overpriced job quote. By and large, though, even though the comments may be imperfect, as long as they're not fake, they mean a lot, because they shine a light on businesses, and clearly shoddy work will be met with lots of screams.

By way of moving along the continuum from "nice to have" to "really valuable word of mouth", I feel like I need to dedicate myself to cracking that code on an ongoing basis if I'm going to plunge into this field at Homestars.

Here's where it seems to be headed. Online word of mouth gets closer to real word of mouth when you feel you "know" the people making the comments. That is, you may read a review and feel like it's made up, or just not quite ringing right. One way to approach that is to build in various "controls" and "safeguards" against B.S. reviews. You can get goaded into that and blow a ton of cash on extra efforts forcing your editorial staff to track people down on the phone, etc.

But really, it needn't be that impersonal (just letting 'em sit there) or that complicated (having an extensive system of controls, or the old-media big-media naysayers are allowed to give themselves carte blanche to trash the whole concept of user empowerment online, and threaten you with imminent hoodwinking). If there is a way to turn this into rough-and-ready social networking, you just open that up. That way a combination of "posts" and "taking it offline into PM" etc. gives people the connection they seek. That isn't all that new, so this decade at least, let's not pour endless efforts into perfecting a "posting perfection" system, when a system of checks and balances that allows members of your community to "hook up" will give them the experience they want.

Failing that, editorial content continues to mean a great deal. Real experts and articles by pros are going to carry weight, no question. How do we balance the power and passion of the demos with the wisdom of experts? By making sure both kinds of expertise and input have a platform.

The need for communities of users to share information doesn't require you to build the next Friendster. (Homester?) At a minimum, basic message board, membership, forum type technology will get it done - I've seen it in action on sites dedicated to investing, fitness, etc - mission-critical conversations of people helping people - hopefully not the blind leading the blind! - but at least like-minded people willing to dig their own graves together because they're not getting the help they need anywhere else. Perhaps, on posts, it's a good idea to allow members to leave their google or yahoo instant messenger contact info to permit other users to contact them with questions as to the veracity of their review, identity, etc. - and the trust score goes up for members who do open themselves up in that way. But easier is having a common registration system with the standard "Private message" functionality available to those who want it. Imagine the possibilities. A home improvement site could become a dating site. That's what happened on the investing sites in the 1990's :) j/k.

Clearly, phase 1 of Homestars will be all about non-registered-user reviews. Phase 2 will allow for and encourage registration. That makes sense. Get a critical mass of users by demanding less of them, and then, ask for more, to strengthen the value of the resource.

It's an odyssey that... well I won't say it's just begun, though I'm just beginning on it formally as a member of one of these types of companies now... actually, the odyssey is a few years old, but we've got some way to go to get the word of mouth working the way it should. It's a great start. Even the relatively nascent Homestars.ca site is full of credible helpful reviews.

Loblaws Blues

Andrew — Mon, 25 Sep 2006 13:41:00 -0700

Popping into the old stomping grounds Loblaws at Dupont and Christie, I noticed what a change since its early "we're the new Yuppie Loblaws on the block" days. It seems business has fallen off, and demand has altered. Much less interesting produce in the produce section, etc. It looks like it's now the "Loblaws for regular people." Not that there's anything wrong with that. But if you wanted orange peppers, or those yellow zucchini squash type deals, you're out of luck. And it's a pretty big store, so it's not a space issue.

In an unrelated development, at this location they finally they stopped making you put a quarter in to get a shopping cart. Could it be that people fixing to steal a cart might actually pay a quarter? That the rest of us were quite annoyed by the quarter thing? That getting the quarter back was zero incentive to return the cart carefully to the cart depots in the parking lot?

An in a potentially unrelated development, the news on the street is that the Loblaws chain is doing poorly and that management is being shaken up. Professional managers, out, and family scion, into a more central role. No clear CEO role defined - instead, a multi-headed monster. Much criticism from analysts.

Something's ailing the company, that's obvious. Perhaps it's as simple as being squeezed from several directions. At the upper end, its higher-end stores are squeezing its other stores which are then forced to downsize. And the real yuppies are going to Whole Foods, ordering in more often, or (as I do sometimes!) subscribing to meal delivery services! And at the other end, ordinary average stores have improved. The direct competition, Dominion and Sobey's, now stock just as many quality private label products and have improved their produce.

And finally, Shopper's Drug Mart (who analysts claim are under threat because the grocery superstores sell cosmetics and drugs, but the problem could just as well be in the opposite direction, with Shopper's threatening grocery stores especially for smaller buys) has a growing number of superstores with grocery items, organic products, and everything but fresh produce and meat.

Sometimes your biggest enemy isn't yourself. It's those other guys who have caught up. Did I mention Costco sells food, too?

Persistent Blackhat Syndrome - PBS

Andrew — Mon, 18 Sep 2006 16:40:00 -0700

That's what the SEO industry seems to have caught a dose of.

Some of this stuff is blatant.
Add Link
Add link to our free categorized and human-edited link directory. Add URL today.

You almost think it might help a no-hoper blog like this to get involved in one of these silly farms.

Not that it makes sense for anyone sensible to use that as a real world tactic for a real business. Unfortunately it seems, many still do!

Provocative, or Provoking?

Andrew — Thu, 14 Sep 2006 16:20:00 -0700

Danny Ledonne, creator of Super Columbine Massacre, claims to be "saddened by the recent shooting at Dawson College." Is he really?

What If?

Andrew — Tue, 12 Sep 2006 16:16:00 -0700

Q. If Bob had a name, what would it be?

A. Bob

Q. And would you call it to his face, if you were faced with him in all his glory

A. You bet! "Hi Bob!"

Q. What would you ask if you had just one question?

A. What's Suzanne Pleshette really like? Or possibly, did you do Mary Frann?

Q. If Bob had a face, what would it look like

A. Just an ordinary, average, balding psychologist-slash-innkeeper

What's "Canadian"? Ernie Coombs, for sure...

Andrew — Mon, 04 Sep 2006 12:29:00 -0700

When I run across random threads like this, I get depressed. What's with that one guy saying the things that make him think of Canada are blackflys [sic], Laurentide beer, Export A's....? So we're still Bob and Doug?

Then I read on a bit and the thread was redeemed by this charmer:

what makes me think of canada---

pepper spray
pedophiles
mad cow disease
genocide followed by amnesia
corruption
politicians calmly describing racist war crimes as a measured response
and ---

Mr Dressup!

--

Other than the Mr. Dressup comment, the items above are purely the opinion of some other guy. To me... Canadian is Carlos Delgado and Bengie Molina, (at least as long as they stay here).

For me:

Fuddle-duddle
Tony Gabriel catching easy TD's in a 25-yard endzone
Michaelle Jean
My wife sawing a board in the backyard
The New Shortreed cottage - fingers crossed for Mom & Dad
My cousin Ian starting at U of T (Sir Dan's residence yet!) 21, yes 21 years after me!
The Ex (CNE), no matter how shitty it is and even though airshow planes fly over my house
Martin Short
Neil Young
"Pearsonian nostalgia" or "nostalgic Pearsonianism" or whatever that is
NOT Conrad Black
Tofino, before it got overrun by tourists (oh whoops, I was one once)
Greektown
Chinatown
Polynesiantown
....you get the idea-town
RIM, Banting & Best, and a few other scientific achievements we're proud of
Drinking Freshie as a kid
Playing hockey on outdoor rinks until no feeling in feet, as a kid
Curving your crappy plastic street hockey blade using heat, then going top shelf

Yes, all that good stuff.

K2 Update

Andrew — Sun, 16 Jul 2006 15:22:00 -0700

Several posts ago I posted about rollerblading more... specifically to work. Short answer is that I won't be doing much of that because I sweat like a hog when I blade, and it is work after all. Maybe a bicycle.

I have however been on the new k2's about 12-14 times now.

I'm really not impressed with these skates. For some reason the fit is poor and the much-vaunted "comfort" of this brand is now old news. Salomon seems to have surpassed them in engineering skill after initially falling behind, is my take. My previous Salomons are just much better. K2 had some advice from guys who invented a soft boot, but there is more to life than just a soft boot.

The k2's make up for their lack of good fit with a need to overtighten the top buckle, which is made of cheap plastic. This top fastener is thus secured so that uncomfortable plastic parts dig into my inner ankles, and after a good distance it feels like little hammers are hitting the ankle with every stride. The skate overall lacks stability, thus power. These are supposed to be a "power" model.

Also, after only about 12-14 skates, the "bigger, harder wheels" are worn down really far, so they seem to be crap too.

Moreover, unlike previous pairs, the bearings have not loosened over time, so the speed of the skates remains molasses-like, which gives you a workout I admit.

I'll put new wheels on my old worn Salomons and they'll be better than this new pair, I think. :(

Then again, maybe I'm just a wuss. Yesterday I ran into a woman whose van had just been robbed as she discovered upon returning from her blade. A brick was thrown thru the window, purse stolen, glass everywhere, and she was having quite a tough time. Before helping her get things straightened out, we chatted about her new blades, and she showed how her old ones gave her "blisters" which looked more like two-inch-deep gashes, which were still bleeding. They made my ankle bruises look pretty weak!

When I start thinking I'm a tough guy I need to remember people like Sandy, a single working mother of three who somehow makes a go of it, and rollerblades every bit as far as me, with two-inch-deep gashes in her foot, without complaining a bit. Now that's tough!

Something's burning

Andrew — Fri, 14 Jul 2006 12:05:00 -0700

The absurdity of the "and now, this..." culture of broadcast news is really brought home when you see a major global conflict brewing. And the online world is far from immune.

On the My Yahoo page (before logging in), the top news items flash from one to the next, interspersing a couple of lighter items. So you have a "choice" to click on the story showing Mr. T. flexing his muscle (yes really), or the Hezbollah leader's home getting blown to smithereens.

I'm not sure I want to see the data on how many people clicked on T.

Over the Counter

Andrew — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 17:37:00 -0700

"Overdoses of acetaminophen are the leading cause of acute liver failure." Yikes. This is what passes for public health in our society.

SES Toronto Post-Party Photos

Andrew — Sun, 11 Jun 2006 11:35:00 -0700

At Search Engine Strategies, Toronto... we (Page Zero), Metamend, and Siteposition co-hosted this post-show bash at the Boiler House in the Distillery District. Siteposition has posted four pages of shots on Flickr.

Thanks all, and especially to Brendan and Kim at Siteposition for these great photos shot by their professional photographer friend.

Unusual Suspects

Andrew — Sun, 11 Jun 2006 11:32:00 -0700

Photos from Jim Boykin, re: SES London. The first couple are from the fabulous Thai restaurant just a short walk from the hotel. (Hilton Islington).

The K2 Sweathog Challenge

Andrew — Sat, 10 Jun 2006 12:30:00 -0700

On my main blog, Traffick, I alluded to some silly comment I made to coworkers about rollerblading to work. Allow me to elaborate on the foolishness.

Now as I understand it, some of the smartest people in the world bicycle to work. Indeed one of my contacts at Tucows - the company that owns this blog software - mentioned that he cycles from the High Park area into the Tucows offices at King & Dufferin. Props to that.

As my coworkers scoffed at the very idea that I could make my way to Adelaide and Spadina from Bloor and Windermere area without collapsing, I am now obsessed with proving them wrong. Let me just point out, though, that blading is a little more tiring than cycling, and it will probably take awhile for me to adjust to the concept of bringing my sweat into the office, toweling off, and changing into dry clothes.

I'm expecting the trek would be 45 mins. in either direction. I won't do it more than once a week.

To give me added incentive I got a pair of nicer K2 inline skates this week.

Don't get me started on how Sport Chek should pay me the commission for selling myself the skates, instead of to the indifferent kid salesman. First off, he's bent on selling everyone the worst skates in the store. Amazingly, an extra $30 is not a deal-breaker for the upwardly mobile professional such as myself. His next stellar bit of salesmanship is to say they "don't have many sizes left." In fact, they did have my size in pretty much every model they sell, so that turned out to be redundant. Except there was a flaw in the buckle in the pair I was trying on, which we eventually fixed. His solution was to suggest I get a different pair, but the only one left was a size bigger!! Instead of a 9, he had it in his head that I'd be more than content to walk out of the store $200 lighter, carrying a size 10! Happy skating!

Need I point out that size 10 Paul Coffey used to play in the NHL with his feet crammed into size 7's, and he was one of the fastest skaters of all time? But I digress.

I'm pretty sure that at this salesman's age, I would have sucked at this job, too. But it does make you wonder about paying a "commission" - and enduring the bugger carrying the skates I sold myself up to the cash, like he made a sale or something.

If you're going to actively discourage people from buying, I'd think the minimum wage would be sufficient.

Colio Estates Pinot Grigio 2004

Andrew — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 17:16:00 -0800

I've had mixed feelings about Colio Estates.

On one hand, it's counterintuive for Ontario wine -- creating a little excitement for an area near Lake Erie that's been ignored. This also reminds me of the fact that there are a lot of wineries just on the other side of the lake, in Pennsylvania. It's a little known fact that there are wineries in every state in the US, and even more surprising is that PA ranks somewhere around fourth overall due to the favorable climate & soil around the shores of Lake Erie. As I recall, the order is something like: California, Oregon, New York, Pennsylvania. Pretty cool!

So, I like things that surprise me (and other people).

That being said, Colio Estates has exaggerated the virtues of some of its product, and has overpriced some of it relative to equally-good Ontario competitors. And they're showing up on too many shelves in the Vintages area of the liquor store if you ask me. Maybe we're getting ahead of ourselves.

To the bottle we go: 12.4% alcohol. A note on the label about an unusually cool summer and warm fall, or something like that. A late harvest offering interesting flavors.

This wine has a magnificent color & bouquet. It lives up to what it's supposed to do, providing a dry, light companion to food. Good with salmon, the experts say. I found the bite a little too bitey though. The complex fruit flavor (hints of caramel, apple) has a bit of a bitter acidic finish, making you respect this wine even more, however I'm not sure if I'm supposed to be enjoying that slightly metallic note. 8.5 and definitely a keeper. Sure to delight guests.

My First (but not last) Post about Wine

Andrew — Fri, 20 Jan 2006 10:37:00 -0800

I think I'll be launching a wine blog shortly, so I'm trying an inaugural post here in the obscurosphere.

A lot of my posts will take on the real life flavor of a semi-educated wine drinker who has consumed a mid-priced wine (usually one that's been recommended somewhere or featured in the liquor store), who is reflecting on his own real-life take on it, from his living room.

So first we have TerraMater Zinfandel Shiraz 2003, a Chilean. (If you're expecting me to post about fully aged wines you may be disappointed, unless the wine folks start sending me bottles, which would be great. I'm pretty much going to drink whatever I bring home.)

This claims to combine the "spicy, smoky oak of Shiraz with the ripe, sweet fruit of Zinfandel.... wonderfully well-balanced with a long rich finish." I stumbled on it as it was featured in my store of choice, the Kingsway LCBO.

Can't say as I disagree. The smokiness and overall dryness and heavy body is in line with what I like. There are some unusual elements (an interesting pruniness) that go with the generally balanced feel, so on my poor-man's scale, it rates a 9.

The label says "Contains Sulphites." More research clearly required.

I've found the Chileans to offer great value for the semi-expert cheapskate like me.

14% alcohol. I think it was around $13 Canadian.

These Are a Few of My Favourite Companies

Andrew — Tue, 20 Dec 2005 09:01:00 -0800

I use the "U" because some of them are Canadian! It's been a pleasant change to have more interaction with local companies this year.

All in all, a satisfying year in building a client base for Page Zero.

Some of the local companies we've helped this year:

Domain Direct
Royal Lepage
Homestars.ca - a startup focusing on Toronto contractor and home renovation reviews
Rotman School of Business at the U of Toronto
University of Toronto Press
HIFU.ca - High Intensity Focused Laser Ultrasound

A number that we hope to work for in the coming year, and there is some reasonable possibility it will happen:

RedTO.com
BMO Investorline
PC Financial
Four Seasons Hotels

Our international clients, large and small, still make up the bulk of our portfolio. Some of the larger accounts for '06 include Capital One Mortgage and Careerbuilder UK.

We love our clients. To a prosperous 2006 for all.

Does Anybody Really Know What Time it Is?

Andrew — Sun, 04 Sep 2005 20:35:00 -0700

I have this really cool watch. Moderately expensive, yet its second-hand doesn't move. There's one of those little separate spheres for the seconds, in the bottom part of the watch, and a tiny second-hand. But it doesn't work. And the minute hand doesn't move ahead gradually - it ticks ahead only at each minute. It's quite stylish.

Now I must admit: this only started happening after I dropped the watch hard on the floor. I like to think it came to its senses.

I believe the watch knows something many of us don't.

The moral of the story, if you please: know what time it is, but forget about the seconds.

Blogging Will Make Us All Rich Someday... or Interesting, At Least

Andrew — Mon, 11 Jul 2005 18:28:00 -0700

Go Om! Go Elliot!

The Vote Must Have Been Rigged, After All

Andrew — Fri, 01 Jul 2005 09:20:00 -0700

It's official. The Bush Administration has lost the faith of the faithful.

Holiday Inn Peterpatch Sucks

Andrew — Fri, 24 Jun 2005 14:50:00 -0700

If you're thinking about staying in Peterborough, Ontario, for the Head of the Trent, or just to enjoy the fine company of the locals, don't, repeat don't, stay at the Holiday Inn Peterborough. They suck.

My recent experience:

My good friends Steve and Andrea were having a post-wedding barbecue at their place, with many invited friends and family. Carolyn and I needed somewhere to stay, and the block of rooms Steve had reserved at the Otonabee Inn (Best Western) was already full.

Steve had reserved a second batch of rooms at the Holiday Inn overlooking the river-slash-lake-slash-floodplain, but the expiry date was May 15. In other words, if no one claimed them after that, they'd go back in the pool.

I called on May 24, assuming I'd have to reserve through the normal process. But I asked about the Bevan BBQ at first. I was told they didn't have anything like that available. Assuming the block was filled and/or that they were no longer honoring the special rate, I then went ahead and booked two nights (one more than we wanted, due to their two-night minimum), and patted myself on the back for helping the local economy so generously.

The reward? Well first off, we were paying for a "river view" room that overlooked a parking lot. Second, the joint was full of several hundred kids in town for a soccer tournament.

We survived somehow.

The point of this post, though, is that our generous and fine host Steve, who brought a couple of thousand bucks' worth of hotel revenues into fair Peterpatch that weekend, was billed a "no-show" fee of $150 because apparently his guests didn't all stay at the Holiday Inn.

However, had I stayed there, that would have been enough.

But wait a minute! I did stay there! For two bloody nights! Paying $15 more per night than expected, because they wouldn't honour the room rate Steve had negotiated.

When Steve complained about the no-show bill, they said they had no record of my visit being associated with his event. When he complained to three different people, backed up by me, the hotel guest, they all gave him the ugly news: you're on the hook, buddy.

This is how you get treated when you stimulate the local economy by generously throwing a big party, filling a bunch of hotel rooms, and/or staying quietly in said room, minding your business and paying a two-night minimum. Is somebody missing the big picture here?

Note to Holiday Inn Peterpatch. You're in the hospitality industry.

Note to anyone traveling to the 'Patch: book your room elsewhere.

Note to Steve: this is why you must vote Liberal. If you vote in Harper's crew, THESE SOCCER PEOPLE WOULD BE IN CHARGE OF EVERYTHING, ALL THE TIME. I'd have to pay a yuppie tax just for walking in the front door of the Holiday Inn without the requisite mullet.

Shut UP!

Andrew — Tue, 14 Jun 2005 10:51:00 -0700

Overheard in Kingsway LCBO:

"She registered for a Jack & Jill? SHUT UP!"

Could Be Worse

Andrew — Sat, 29 Jan 2005 10:51:00 -0800

I went on vacation to the Bahamas, and now I have a burning feeling.

It's not as bad as it sounds. Carolyn and I were walking down a street in Nassau on the warmest (80ish, felt hotter in the sun) day of the trip, and we made the mistake of walking side by side down a narrow sidewalk. Next to me were some crappy metal doors/walls/gates, all painted white, nicely camouflaging the nasty handle that was sticking out like a big metal hook. I walked straight into that thing and it dug into my shoulder. I didn't bounce off or anything. It just kept digging until it had put about the deepest bruise you can get right into the shoulder.

A week later, it's finally healing. I can tell because the aching has changed to burning and twitching. I actually have a faint hope that the army of white blood cells my body has sent to the area are healing old injuries in that shoulder.

Canadian Graffiti

Andrew — Mon, 27 Dec 2004 21:21:00 -0800

First post to the new Blogware blog, which I'm testing since my friends at Tucows told me "hey, this thing's better than Blogger."

It definitely does have a host of cool features.

Anyway, for now, this will be one of those inane "personal" blogs containing mostly unprofitable observations. I "serious-blog" elsewhere.

So for my first random observation...

While Christmas shopping at Sherway Gardens last week, I was in The Bay and happened upon some quirky graffiti in the rest room. "Long live Eatons and Simpsons -- down with overpriced Bay."

Notwithstanding the factual basis for the claim -- at The Bay, I constantly find I'm getting 40% off on socks that I would have paid full price for, which makes me wonder if profit is something they understand -- I hail this as a true example of Canadian graffiti. Nostalgic, practical, and focused, the writer -- likely a mild-mannered male in his late sixties -- declares his opinion, and gets not a lick of argument in return. After all, who doesn't miss Simpsons?