ORM principle: If you create an information vaccuum, Google will fill it!
A couple of weeks ago I attempted to install the e-commerce plugin for Wordpress, developed by Instinct Entertainment.
I found it hard to understand, let alone implement it and got stuck. Like a lot of current software development and social media sites, there was a distinct shortage of simple ‘how-to’ documentation. It’s as if you’re supposed to just use Google and piece it together from the shards of information you find there.
So, I went to Google.
The first thing I learned was that there was no guide to installing and using this plugin. The plugin had loads of mentions but they fell into one of the following three camps:
1) Highly specific, technical discussions (useless to a beginner like me)
2) Requests from beginners for some kind of guidance!
3) Angry people complaining about the lack of support for the product!
Of course, none of this information solved my problem and I ended up as one of the 3rd category, blowing off steam on somebody else’s blog out of frustration. I posted in a thread where several people had made comments about the lack of support for this plugin – and in which Dan Milward, the plugin’s developer, had commented also.
The blog’s owner gave me a telling off for using her blog as a sounding board (understandably!). On the plus side, Dan came back to me as result of that posting and offered some help which, it turns out, was the solution to the problem.
But the real issue is the fact that I ended up there in the first place.
The point of this case study isn’t to be critical of Instinct. They’ve made a great plugin which I finally got working and which I recommend to anyone. However, by not documenting it they created an information vacuum that Google was only too happy to fill with stuff that was never likely to do them any favours.
I’ve been reading along for a while now. I just wanted to drop you a comment to say keep up the good work.
If you’ve been reading along for a while, Sue, then you’ll understand the spirit in which I offer you the following feedback:
Your comment and your site appear just like spam.
For the benefit of real readers, a few of the clues are:
• Generic, complimentary but completely unspecific comment
• Paid links in the copy (double-underlined words in the text)
• Google Ad at the very top of the site
• Nothing credible about the site owner
• A blogroll that goes from ‘casino’ to ‘medical’ to ‘endowment’
• No categories (can’t be bothered, no point)
One other point. If you leave this kind of spam undealt with in your blogs, forums and so on, your reputation will be adversely affected. One of the first things that web-savvy people base their judgment of your online credibility on is whether your blog / forum is cluttered with spam & scams or not.
If they are, it says one of two things about you: either you’re not present enough to remove it or you’re too inexperienced to spot it. Both damage my confidence in your site and your proposition.