Articles

Take your standard fitness centre treadmill. Add water. Lots and lots of water. In unimaginative hands, the result would be a sloshy, slippery mess that only a bucket and mop could cure. But in the hands of the folk at HydroCo, based at Seaford in Victoria, wetness plus walking-in-place equals the Physio 1611, a compact aquatic centre that can go where an Olympic-size pool couldn't hope to fit.

Take your standard fitness centre treadmill. Add water. Lots and lots of water. In unimaginative hands, the result would be a sloshy, slippery mess that only a bucket and mop could cure. But in the hands of the folk at HydroCo, based at Seaford in Victoria, wetness plus walking-in-place equals the Physio 1611, a compact aquatic centre that can go where an Olympic-size pool couldn't hope to fit.

The four-part Power of Design series wraps up with a case study, showing how smart principles were applied to the creation of an award-winning Bluetooth headset.

A solid majority of Australian SMEs don't use email, a web site or any other aspect of the Internet, a recent research report has found. Talk about missed opportunities -- that same report notes that the average Australian now spends nearly 18 hours a week online.

A solid majority of Australian SMEs don't use email, a web site or any other aspect of the Internet, a recent research report has found. Talk about missed opportunities -- that same report notes that the average Australian now spends nearly 18 hours a week online.

Strong, well-thought-out product design can increase your profitability in two ways: increasing sales and decreasing costs.

The internet can be a bully. It can be your best friend one day and your mortal enemy the next. Anything from a high school school achievement to a business complaint, your footy team photo to a survey you took years ago – can all be found in a single Google search. A little scary isn’t it?

The internet can be a bully. It can be your best friend one day and your mortal enemy the next. Anything from a high school school achievement to a business complaint, your footy team photo to a survey you took years ago – can all be found in a single Google search. A little scary isn’t it?

The term empowerment within the context of a business organisation is one that is much misunderstood and misdirected. What does it mean to ‘empower' your staff? What does an empowered team look like and how will it help the business achieve?

The term empowerment within the context of a business organisation is one that is much misunderstood and misdirected. What does it mean to ‘empower' your staff? What does an empowered team look like and how will it help the business achieve?

Loyalty schemes on the most part are old-fashioned, generic and with little incentive for the consumer. Chintan Bharwada outlines how a business can rejuvenate how they reward consumers in a way that retains consumer interest.

User rage over Facebook's revised privacy settings may have settled down for now but that's no reason to get complacent. According to AVG's Lloyd Borrett, managing your Facebook privacy is as simple as one, two, three.

Now here's an idea that raises the phrase 'investment opportunity' by a couple octaves -- purchase a stake in the career of an indie music artist. In exchange for your largess, you'll gain a say in marketing and producing the singer. You can even pitch them a song.

It's right to think that if your organisation is not being innovative it will not be able to retain its position and will soon be overtaken by smarter competitors. But, unfortunately, the other side of this reality is that if the innovation initiative is not delivering quantifiable value then clearly it should not be funded and, therefore, should not exist.

It's right to think that if your organisation is not being innovative it will not be able to retain its position and will soon be overtaken by smarter competitors. But, unfortunately, the other side of this reality is that if the innovation initiative is not delivering quantifiable value then clearly it should not be funded and, therefore, should not exist.

For the first article in this series, I asked 'Why are you bothering with online marketing?' My purpose, of course, was to emphasise the importance of creating measurable goals. But, be warned, even the most splashy, expensive, creative, courageous marketing initiative will fail if it is not built on a suitable foundation. To generate any interest in the online space, you must first develop a compelling reason for your target market to actually want to engage with you.

Developing a successful product requires a firm grasp of several issues, followed by careful planning and implementation. In this second article in his four-part series, Sergei Plishka shares his '10 Commandments of Product Design'.

Strong design is an essential part of new product development. In the first of this four-part series, Sergei Plishka explains how good design aligns with the needs and expectations of your customer -- at every stage of the customer experience.

Once upon a time, a week wouldn't pass without at least one phone call or email from an aspiring print magazine publisher. These days, if there is one subject I'm asked my opinion on more than any other it's the strangely daunting topic of online marketing. For that reason, this article aspires to be the first in a series: The Anthill Guide to Online Marketing for Small Business Owners and Startups.

What makes your business stand out above your competitors? What makes individuals select your products and services over theirs? What makes them stare at your website, brochures or you, desiring what you have to offer, and yet, at the end of the day, they fail to make a purchase and then move on to one of your competitors? The ‘inconvenient’ truth is that your business simply isn’t remarkable.