PDQit Mailshot allows users to create an account, credit it via an integrated Paypal gateway, and then upload a word Mail-Merge document and excel spreadsheet of addresses. Once the user has connected the correct columns of the spreadsheet with the merge fields, the system communicates with Sureprint’s existing print software COM objects and creates a pdf example of a merged document to proof, and once approved their mailshot is printed and mailed.
The system was also built to allow white-labeling by third parties, and I assisted TNT in integrating the system into their TNTit product, creating a TNT branded template and authentication and billing gateways between the two systems user databases and billing software.

Visit the site…

http://www.pdqit.com

To support the Europe wide launch of Ambi Pur’s new scents inspired by National Geographic.

I was supplied the design files in Photoshop format and from this created an HTML site that could be easily translated and edited by the agencies that would be running the campaign in each region .
The site features Flash elements and jquery javascript optimisation throughout, along with a basic google maps implementation. I created all of the HTML and javascript, and the Flash introduction and slideshow elements.

Visit the site

http://www.world-scents.com

The agency I was working for wanted an improved way to track the time their staff and contractors were spending on projects. Time, affectionately known as Timmy, was created to fulfill the requirement.
Time contained a database of all clients, their projects and the associated tasks required to complete the job. Users can input time spent against any of these tasks, and management can build reports, on screen and in Excel format, on time expended and compare this against allocated budgets allowing for better scheduling, highlighting of problem areas and study of client profitability. Reporting can focus on a single member of staff, a department, project or client.

Private site, link unavailable

Clorox needed a microsite for a marketing campaign to promote their STP engine additive in the UK. The campaign heavily features their sponsorship of the Bloodhound SSC land speed record attempt and as such uses a horizontal scroll, instead of the usual vertical, representing the Bloodhounds dash across the Nevada salt flats.

Visitors to the site can play a flash game, based loosely on the sort of computer based training exercises used by fighter pilots, the only people who have the training required to try and take a car to 1000mph. Once users have played the game they can tweet out their score,

“I just scored xxx playing the #STP #BLOODHOUND reaction game. Can you do better than me or beat the #BLOODHOUND team? http://bit.ly/61xgIx”
or send an email with a similar message to their friends, inviting them to try their hand too.

The high score table watches for tweets sent by members of the bloodhound team, and updates the team scores section accordingly.

Visit the site

http://www.stpbloodhound.com/

It is essential for companies with a strong brand presence such as Nissan Europe to maintain guidelines as to how their brand should be used in all corporate communications, from letterheads and business cards through to signage and point of sale materials.

Nissan provided these to staff and agencies in print and pdf formats, and updates to existing guidelines would have to be redistributed at a high cost.

In order to reduce the preparation and production costs Clarity provides an on-line document management system, allowing for creation and editing of guideline documents, keyword search of the content and annotated example images. The layout is designed for easy on screen refernce and pages have additional CSS styling to allow for printing.

Users of the system can keyword search to find required guidelines and subscribe to regularly used documents to be alerted when they are updated. The system also incorporates training materials and and a glossary of terms to help users to apply guidelines correctly.

An additional module called Queries allows users of the system to create questions for staff managing the use of guidelines and creates a dialogue, aided by the ability to upload examples of usage, to clear up any problems and to approve work as guideline complaint. This module also allows management to highlight regular problem areas, and update the guidelines or FAQ section accordingly.

Nissan had already built an online archive of marketing materials, which has an extensive user base and authentication mechanism managed by another agency. Working with that agency Clarity has been built to leverage the existing user base by providing an authentication gateway with the existing archive, via SOAP, leaving a single sign-on point for all users.

Private site, link unavailable

Edible is an online retailer of exotic foodstuffs, including chocolate dipped ant, baked tarantula and reindeer pate.

I took their existing site, and following the clients requirement for a new magazine style section and increased search engine visibility worked I recreated the site in WordPress.

Working with a designer to update the layout I then created a wordpress theme with several custom page templates to add information pages and a recipe section. Use of custom tags allows for the product catalogue to be referenced from within articles and recipes.

The E-Commerce functionality comprising product browsing, shopping cart and Worldpay gateway was converted to a wordpress plugin, with all administration managed from within the standard wordpress administration interface.

Visit the site

http://www.edible.com

Gaggenau manufacture high end home appliances and cookware. The Gaggenau Designer scheme provided incentives to resellers of Gaggenau products, generally interior designers, hence the name.

Designers could register their sales which were converted to a point value and, once confirmed by Gaggenau, the points could be redeemed for vouchers for leading high street retailers or Gaggenau products. In addition to the incentive scheme the site provided news of changes to the product catalogue, and a calendar of events and product demonstrations for designers. A CMS was provided to allow the client to update these elements.

Gaggenau would provide an monthly Excel document of sales and this would be automatically validated against the sales that had been or will still to be registered by  the designers, previously a tedious manual process. The software could create on demand Excel reports of redemptions made and pending allowing for Gaggenau to track and forecast the costs of operating the scheme.

Private site, link unavailable

BBowden and Co are heating, plumbing and electrical engineering specialists, providing maintenance contracts to Social Housing Enterprises.
Backstage was developed in response to a need by BBowden and Co for a Management Information System to increase the viability of their business for existing clients and future tenders. Backstage tracks the complete work flow for site visits, ensuring compliance with the regulations of the industry, creates and collates electronic documentation and allows clients complete transparency regarding the status of individual jobs and reporting on service levels and cost estimations.
Other than the design I was responsible for all other elements of the software:

• Initial investigation and proposals
• Software and data architecture
• User interface design
• Programming and interface developement
• Consultation on and design of additional functionality

Private site, link unavailable

To add the functionality what I’ve done is created a bit.ly account for oliis, as they have an API for creating bit.ly links, and tracking for click throughs. The API is a nice simple REST implementation, perhaps a teensy bit under documented, but the comments on the API page, and a little googling will probably fill in all your blanks.

I’ve added another text input to the tweeting screen, with a ‘shorten’ and the following jquery function handles grabbing the url from the input, getting a bit.ly link and appending it into the tweet textarea.

<div><div id="twittermessage">Add a short URL?:</div></div>
<div><input name="url" id="url" value="http://"></div>
<div>
	<div style="float:left"><a href="javascript:void(0);" onclick="javascript:shorturl()"><img src="images/shorten.png" border="0"></a></div>
	<br clear="all"/>
</div>

function shorturl(){
	$('#loader').show();
	var rootURL = "http://api.bit.ly/shorten?version=2.0.1&login=YOUR_LOGIN&apiKey=YOUR_API_KEY&history=1";
	var oldURL = $('#url').val();

	$.getJSON(rootURL + "&longUrl=" + oldURL + "&callback=?",function(data){
		$.each(data.results, function(i, item) {
		  $('#url').val(item.shortUrl);
		  $('#tweet').val($('#tweet').val()+$('#url').val());
		  $('#url').val('')
		});
	});
	$('#loader').hide();
}

Collabtweet with url shortner

http://acidolatte.blogspot.com/

It’s a very minimal blog with a layout that serves only to highlight the featured sculpture and photography. A slightly NSFW warning, contains some naughty bits, but only in an artistic manner. I’m particularly taken by
Aganetha Dyck http://acidolatte.blogspot.com/2009/09/aganetha-dyck.html

and Hilary Berseth http://acidolatte.blogspot.com/2009/09/hilary-berseth.html

From the blog: ‘Aganetha Dyck is a Canadian artist who is interested in environmental issues, specifically the power of the small. She is interested in inter species communication. Her most recent research asks questions about the ramifications all living beings would experience should honeybees disappear from earth‘