The application form is an often neglected part of a website. Designed once when the site is first created, it is rarely touched again. But the process of filling out the form is the most crucial part of closing the sale; and is it is also the stage when you see the greatest exit numbers in conversion funnels. Unlike a face to face sale situation the user can click of your site at any moment.

Designing any form depends on the product, timing and place. Typically online people are trying to quickly fill out forms during work hours in their lunch break so the longer the form the less likely your potential customer is going to complete the sale. However recruitment sites that require lengthy answers always pre warn people how long it will take to complete.

So once you have created your form and have recorded an average conversion rate start testing to see how you can better your form. Every element of your form can be tested, the questions you ask

The way we present data inherently influences how it is consumed and interpreted. With the ability of data online to be generated in real time, the kind of animated graphs required are a far cry from the standard excel pie and line charts. But collaboration between software developers and designers have spawned new data visualizations that rival art.

DoodleBuzz is a great example of fusing interactive design with data collation. You simply type in your news theme or topic and draw a line, picture anything you like on the white canvas to begin the news feed. Whatever you draw then becomes the framework for the headlines, summaries and related topics. It is a new experimental interface and highlights how far you can push infographics on the online space. Check out more great data visualisations on infoaesthetics.

The internet has changed the distribution and marketing models of the music Industry dramatically and will continue to force artists and record companies to seek new ways to engage people and get them buying rather than downloading pirate copies.

Radiohead are a great example of artists adapting to the new landscape. They sent waves through the industry by putting their album online for download and effectively cut out the middle man and ended up making millions. For the song

This is a great eco initiative that I came across from Netherlands Design Company Spranq. Whilst people may be trying to reduce paper consumption by printing less and double sided, no one has really tried to do anything about ink consumption. So Spranq have developed the first Eco-font. It is a free san-serif typeface that used circular gaps through the letters to conserve ink without effecting the shape or form of the letters.

“After Dutch holey cheese, there is not a Dutch font with holes in it aswell.’ You can download and install the font here.

This talk by Jason Fried, founder and CEO of 37 Signals, at the Business Innovation Factory is great for all small business owners. Fried is well known for his strong belief in simple and user friendly interface design.

In his talk about marketing he looks to chefs as a great example of good advertising. Rather than spending millions of dollars on paid advertising, the famous chefs market themselves by sharing their knowledge and skills with the world through their cooking shows and books. As a result they can generate an audience of people who will voluntarily purchase their branded products and recommend them to their friends. Fried believes that teaching is the most valuable way of marketing a product. Hundreds of people who have never cooked before can watch a Jamie Oliver show and make something from a recipe found in one of his books, so Jamie has the ability to create customers by appealing to more people.

This doesn’t necessarily mean teaching someone how to write a book – although it could. By simply putting up a top ten book list or best picks for gifts you are sharing you specialized knowledge with new people. You being an expert in the field is one of the most valuable assets to your company and it should be leveraged to build and audience that will continue to return to you.

Teaching is a prolific way of growing you customers rather than continuing to target a small percentage of the population – showing people why and how to love using your product is probably the best conversion optimisation out.