Content, death and taxes
Do you know your client?
The internet is probably the most interesting place on planet earth. The internet, and the inside of a KFC restaurant. But let's stick to the internet for the purposes of this article. Being in the web industry, serving content, communicating with humans and bots, can be a daunting task. It is not easy. It is a challenge, since, with every website built, you basically become part of the client's company. At least a little bit of you, in any case. No point in building a site for a client, if you don't at least have some sort of idea what his/her/it's business is about. So in a sense, you become a Jack of all trades, and master of serving content.
What quality is your meat?
The Big Fish likes to keep a bird's eye on all that's happening in the internet world. Have our fingers on the pulse, so to speak. This way, we know what the latest buzz and craze is. But what do you do in such an ever changing game, to stay current? We know how to spit out the bones, and eat the meat. But how do you know the meat you're chewing isn't only ground bone?
Stick to certainty
This is why, good people of planet earth, it is good to always revert back to the good ol' 'death and taxes' way of thinking. Nothing is really certain when it comes to what Google, Yahoo, MSN and the other search engines want served for their daily meal. Nothing, except content. Nothing is certain but death and taxes in real world. Nothing is certain but good, relevant content, served in the right manner, in the virtual world.
Keep it human
The first step in serving content, is to realise that your first audience is of the human kind. Let the bots stand in line. Let them take second place. They can wait. A bot doesn't need sustenance to keep it going. A human, on the other hand, needs to be cared for, nurtured, and often spoiled, to keep it happy. This, I dare say, is the golden rule of any business. Because if you remember that you're working with humans not much different than yourself, you SHOULD remember that they want to be treated the same way you would like humans to treat you. And that means not lying to them, not wishing their worst, but their best. Not trying to milk them for all they're worth, but giving them your best. Because, after all, that's what you expect from others, not so?
