Jealous of WDDG
Interactive advertiser World Domination Design Group in New York — although ignoring all sorts of accessibility standards — has created one amazing package of goods at its portfolio Web site.
I am an absolute sucker for throw-back, retro looks, and the WDDG spares no ounce of 1940s newsreel-inspired goodness to publicize itself. Normally promotional bits bore me, but I watched every part of the the firm’s several-minute long demonstration on how it took Mr. Rumchild’s Acme Products to financial success.
WDDG’s short films show creativity that no amount of marketing blah, blah could ever capture. Although I think the company loses quite a bit of exposure in search engine results due to its all-Flash-driven presentation, I do think its reputation and word-of-mouth probably carry it a lot farther than enhanced search results would. If you look in its portfolio, you’ll see companies such as Burger King, Volkswagen and LEGO. I don’t think WDDG has problems attracting high-paying, high-profile businesses … But the movies lack play/pause controls, some controls aren’t as obvious, etc. … Really, I’m just a little jealous. 
Yeah – love the site too man. It’s a nice showcase of what you can do with some good ol’ fashion creativity. I’m a huge fan of accessibility, web standards, and being search engine friendly… but in the end, what gets people to stay on your site – is your site.
This is where I feel you’ll see a big debate and honest conversation over what a site ought to be. Flash – or not to flash? What are you willing to trade-off to get a fun interface? What “should” the web community embrace?
And yes, I’m a big fan of flash sites too – Making the Moment is entirely flash based (besides our blog), and I’ve found it to be a great thing. I’ve been fortunate (and against the standard for SEO) I have a great amount of traffic coming in from google. Yeah, accessibility is lost, but being a photographer, my target market is a bit younger, tech-savvy, and not visually impaired.
December 10, 2008 at 7:23 amIt depends on your audience. Flash, at least now, is terrible for many cell phones, the visually impaired who use screen readers, and SEO for text-heavy sites.
However, there are great uses, like as a design portfolio for an online marketer. It’s also great for someone who has a reputation outside of the Web. Like I said, look at WDDG’s client list. Do you think that group has trouble attracting new clients?
December 12, 2008 at 10:29 am