Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
Juan and others, I am not so sure Social Bookmarking is always the extension of the 'email a friend' idiom. For ecommerce, I suspect the Wishlist. There is a strong difference in user sharing behavior for products vs. articles or web pages. For the dozens of online retailers I have worked with, 'email a friend' was an expected item page feature, with wishlist and reviews following close behind. A quick survey of a few of the Online Retailer 500 reveals this trend. Note: none of the below online retailers have the 'Social Media Bar'. Zappos is the only site to exhibit hope in social sharing by posting tiny urls and badges. *Ace Harware*: email a friend, wishlist *Action Envelope*: email a friend *Amazon*: email a friend, wishlist *Fossil*: email a friend, wishlist *Gap*: nothing *Patagonia*: nothing *Tiffany*: email a friend, wishlist *Zappos*: tiny urls, html friendly badges I am an avid Delicious user, constantly taging articles for myself and folks in my network. However, when it comes to products or shopping, I rarely use Delicious to tag or share a product. I will either use a private Wishlist or as Evan said, email the link to myself or to a friend. kindly, Jennifer Brook http://delicious.com/jenniferbrook Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
On Dec 3, 2008, at 7:48 PM, Juan Ruiz wrote: I've been seeing the popularity of the Email to a friend, Email Article, Email page (and many other names) feature on the internet. Personally, I never use this feature because I think that the company behind the website will store my email and my friend's email address, plus the email will contain advertising elements as well, so instead, I personally email the URL to my friend. But of course, I'm talking here on my own experience. Does anybody have statistics that validate the inclusion of this feature? Do people really use this feature? If so, do they use it a lot? I basically never use it from a given website, because (a) I don't know what they are going to do with the address I send to, and (b) I prefer to craft the message being sent with the link such that it reflects me, not their template. I do use the iPhone Safari version of the feature, though, to send myself copies of website links for later reading on other systems. -- Jim Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... disc...@ixda.org Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
On Wed, Dec 3, 2008 at 8:48 PM, Juan Ruiz [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Does anybody have statistics that validate the inclusion of this feature? Do people really use this feature? If so, do they use it a lot? I don't have stats, but just a few days ago I was wondering about the same - and decided to make a pool. Here are results: http://interaktywnosc.pl/temp/wyniki.png Translation: 1. Do you sometimes send (using any method) you friends a link to interesting articles and other stuff? 1) Yes, every day. 2) Yes, not often. 3) No, afair never. 4) One time... Maybe five... 2. Did you send a link/message using email to friend feature this year? 1) No 2) Yes 3) Don't know, can't remember. 3. Did you get a link/message sent via email to friend feature this year? 1) No 2) Yes 3) Don't know, can't remember. Pool is of course very primitive method - and the responders were specific (over 100 people working in the webportal), but over 5% answers Yes on both 2nd and 3rd question is some indicator. I was going to recommend abandon this feature, now I am not, the more so as cost od implementing is very low. Greetings, KPK Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
A lot of corporate firewalls block access to public email sites such as gmail or yahoo mail. In such a scenario, if I were to come across an interesting article (not relevant to work) , I would prefer to forward it using 'email to a friend' link rather than use my work email. I would be interested in knowing if people on this list would make a similar choice. On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 3:13 PM, Kordian Piotr Klecha [EMAIL PROTECTED]wrote: On Wed, Dec 3, 2008 at 8:48 PM, Juan Ruiz [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Does anybody have statistics that validate the inclusion of this feature? Do people really use this feature? If so, do they use it a lot? I don't have stats, but just a few days ago I was wondering about the same - and decided to make a pool. Here are results: http://interaktywnosc.pl/temp/wyniki.png Translation: 1. Do you sometimes send (using any method) you friends a link to interesting articles and other stuff? 1) Yes, every day. 2) Yes, not often. 3) No, afair never. 4) One time... Maybe five... 2. Did you send a link/message using email to friend feature this year? 1) No 2) Yes 3) Don't know, can't remember. 3. Did you get a link/message sent via email to friend feature this year? 1) No 2) Yes 3) Don't know, can't remember. Pool is of course very primitive method - and the responders were specific (over 100 people working in the webportal), but over 5% answers Yes on both 2nd and 3rd question is some indicator. I was going to recommend abandon this feature, now I am not, the more so as cost od implementing is very low. Greetings, KPK Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help -- Cheers, Prachi Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
I think it's become an expected feature, Juan, and is used quite a bit by novice and intermediate users. I'm like you -- I NEVER use this feature because I don't trust the sites to use my friend's email addresses responsibly. Just put a line of small-sized text close to the button explaining that the site won't ever use the email addresses for anything other than the emailing feature (maybe include a link to the privacy policy, too). That should appeal to expert web users like yourself. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=36156 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
There are times when I actually wished this feature would be there - especially when looking at products for the home that I'd like to send to my wife for consultation. Of course, I'd use the public-access email instead of ones from corporate. Then at least the spam filters can still be modified when or if they come. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=36156 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
I use this feature A LOT, both to mail interesting articles, videos, etc. to others, and also to send things I'd like archived to myself at a gmail account. Marilyn Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
I use this feature A LOT, both to mail interesting articles, videos, etc. to others, and also to send things I'd like archived to myself at a gmail account. I use the feature fairly often, but almost exclusively for the latter case mentioned by Marilyn: that of emailing items of interest to *myself.* I rarely use the feature to email items to other people, since I can usually just as easily send a url with a real email message or use an instant messenger, instead of relying on the system's canned email message. The one primary exception is when it's a flash-based application (or similar ilk), in which case I'm generally forced to use the site's email to a friend function (e.g. beatport.com online music shop). hope this helps! //eks. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
At Yahoo we're working on a universal sharing pattern (for our own sites) that treats this is as just one possible mode of sharing (fwiw). -x- On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 1:42 PM, Evan K. Stone [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I use this feature A LOT, both to mail interesting articles, videos, etc. to others, and also to send things I'd like archived to myself at a gmail account. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
For some additional reference, here's part of a Nielsen Alertbox article on transactional e-mail that says that these types of e-mail messages tend to be very well received: Websites often let people send an email message through their site to a friend or colleague %u2014 they might, for example, forward an article or inform a friend about a recommended (or wished-for) product. Participants valued receiving these messages mostly because they were a personal recommendation from a friend or trusted party. To strengthen this effect, it's important that such messages feature the friend's name prominently in the sender information and that the friend be able to customize the email with a personal message. (http://www.useit.com/alertbox/confirmation-email.html) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=36156 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
Once the site has a relationship with you (i.e.NYTimes registratin, or facebook) this becomes frictionless, and adds value, not only for the sender and recipient, but also in agregate-- this of how facinating most emailed is on NYtimes compared to any other measures of popularity. It's a much stronger measure of redcommendation. On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 5:08 PM, Christian Crumlish [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: At Yahoo we're working on a universal sharing pattern (for our own sites) that treats this is as just one possible mode of sharing (fwiw). -x- On Thu, Dec 4, 2008 at 1:42 PM, Evan K. Stone [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I use this feature A LOT, both to mail interesting articles, videos, etc. to others, and also to send things I'd like archived to myself at a gmail account. Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
Thanks all for your responses. You guys have helped me answered the Email to a friend dilema. This is what I've gathered from this: - Email to a friend might not be used in a great deal, but it is a expected feature. - Email to a friend is used as a bookmarking mechanism to store important content and urls on the user's email application (could we find an alternative method?) - Email to a friend adds more value once the site has a relationship with the user - Email to a friend is more relevant for article pages, product description pages, or search results pages rather than generic landing pages. KPK, even though you ran a short survey, i think the results were great. Christian, I'm looking forward on Yahoo! creating a pattern description for the Email to a friend feature. Let me know if I can help on anything Regards, -Juan Ruiz . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Posted from the new ixda.org http://www.ixda.org/discuss?post=36156 Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
[IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
I've been seeing the popularity of the Email to a friend, Email Article, Email page (and many other names) feature on the internet. Personally, I never use this feature because I think that the company behind the website will store my email and my friend's email address, plus the email will contain advertising elements as well, so instead, I personally email the URL to my friend. But of course, I'm talking here on my own experience. Does anybody have statistics that validate the inclusion of this feature? Do people really use this feature? If so, do they use it a lot? Looking forward for your input. Thanks, Juan Ruiz Senior User Experience Architect - Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
People use it a ton on UIE.com (and we don't store the email addresses anywhere, nor does it contain any advertising). Jared On Dec 3, 2008, at 10:48 PM, Juan Ruiz wrote: I've been seeing the popularity of the Email to a friend, Email Article, Email page (and many other names) feature on the internet. Personally, I never use this feature because I think that the company behind the website will store my email and my friend's email address, plus the email will contain advertising elements as well, so instead, I personally email the URL to my friend. But of course, I'm talking here on my own experience. Does anybody have statistics that validate the inclusion of this feature? Do people really use this feature? If so, do they use it a lot? Looking forward for your input. Thanks, Juan Ruiz Senior User Experience Architect - Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
Re: [IxDA Discuss] Email to friend a valid feature?
While I do not have any statistics on the usage of email to a friend, I imagine it is high. I use this and other sharing methods often. I've also included email to friend features on websites without storing the addresses or including advertising. Tonia M. Bartz [EMAIL PROTECTED] On Wed, Dec 3, 2008 at 8:48 PM, Juan Ruiz [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I've been seeing the popularity of the Email to a friend, Email Article, Email page (and many other names) feature on the internet. Personally, I never use this feature because I think that the company behind the website will store my email and my friend's email address, plus the email will contain advertising elements as well, so instead, I personally email the URL to my friend. But of course, I'm talking here on my own experience. Does anybody have statistics that validate the inclusion of this feature? Do people really use this feature? If so, do they use it a lot? Looking forward for your input. Thanks, Juan Ruiz Senior User Experience Architect - Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .. http://www.ixda.org/help
