A hair-razing experience

Hi there!

Skipping the boring introduction ...

First up a bit of fun. How can you hear 3-dimensional sound with only two ears?  A very careful separation of left and right channels and, I guess, a bit of brain-wave trickery, but here it is. Put on your headphones (it won't work without them), close your eyes and listen to this fabulous virtual barbershop  recording: we'll guarantee it won't harm you physically ... psychologically, however ... well, that's a different story. Yes, this one has been doing the rounds, but if you haven't heard it yet, it's certainly worth listening to.  Perhaps just as interesting are the audio tools to do this sort of thing.

Innovation – where is yours?

We've certainly noticed that people are a little more keen to invest this year. Still careful, yes -- but willing to spend. If you've got a budding product idea that needs to be developed, we've still got space for you. It might be remote control or web monitoring. Maybe a simulator or movement tracker. This year we continue to be involved in an ever-promising medical 3D lung simulator , and a remote milk vat monitor. If you have an idea, we've probably done something like it before, and there may even be partial funding available for a new products, so do ask. Our particular strength is being able to fit the whole product puzzle together from electronics to software through to web presentation.

We love hearing about new product ideas.  Call us about your idea on +64 3 359 2101 for a free chat or for design work.  We're also happy to form a partnership.

Tired of long surveys?

This one is short.  We'd like to know more about how people feel about their websites, typical causes of frustration, and how we can provide you with better options.

You could do us a big favour by filling in our simple 1-page survey here.

We'll be surveying both customers & non-customers, so whichever camp you fall in, we'd love to hear your opinions!

Is your website building your business?

Don't take your website for granted -- it's not a given that it will automatically boost sales, increase brand awareness, or make happy customers.

Here are some helpful thoughts to point your website in the right direction:

• Keep your content up-to-date: your website is never "done". This is easy to say, but how does it work in practice? Make a content plan for your website -- a timeline of what to update when & by whom. Use your company calendar to make sure everyone's on board. More about how to plan great content here.
• Find out what problems people really have using your website by doing a budget-friendly usability test. You'll be amazed at what you find that you never knew! You can use usertesting.com, or better yet, read Steve Krug's Rocket Surgery Made Easy.
• Make sure your "analytics" or "web stats" aren't just there to give yourself a pat on the back -- if you're not getting actionable insights from your website statistics, you need to be measuring different things. Try doing some A/B testing or read Web Analytics 2.0 by Avinash Kaushik. Don't guess about what causes your customers to buy.
• Don't be tempted to do a site redesign every 6 months. Unless your site really is in the dark ages, you're better off making measurable, progressive enhancements.
• Try a "thumbs-up / thumbs-down" button with a comments box -- find out the "why" behind your customers' browsing patterns.

Yes, it can be a lot of work to keep your website relevant & engaging. But it's worth dollars to get it right. Conveniently, Brush Technology provides services in all these areas, taking the pain away! Just hit reply for more info.

Staff profile: secret agent Ben

Spotlight on Ben Hoyt this time, Brush director and secret agent. Even the 'director' part is more interesting than you'd think. For Ben, it means making several cool little web startups like DecentURL and Gifty, giving away programmer tools (see the Projects heading), and blogging about intensely interesting software topics -- well, interesting for engineers, anyway. Besides that, he has edited a small-scale magazine called Prism, and lives in Christchurch with his wife Franci and two lovely wee girls. There more over on Ben's celebrity page.

Of course, the 'secret agent' part is what you've been hanging out to read. This is about Ben's mission to take over the world of hotels and make it a better place. Mid this year, he's heading off for a stint in the Big Apple to help get top-quality hotel reviews out to the masses -- and you. So next time you want to stay in a hotel, check to see whether our secret agent has completed his mission. Ben also reads G. K. Chesterton and rides a unicycle -- that probably has something to do with his cover. Come to think of it: all four Brush staff ride a unicycle ...

Thanks for reading.  See you in a couple of months.

- Berwyn