00 Start Here
The web should empower, not frustrate
We design visual interfaces (what people see and how they use it) for web sites and applications. We focus on making sure these sites are both useful and easy to use.
How you fit in
We work with smart clients who understand that it's the customer, not org-charts or office politics, that matters most. These clients are hard to find, so when we get them we treat them well.
This site is a look into our minds
Inside you'll find our philosophy for simplicity in design, our influences, and ideas that drive us.
01 We See People
Users.
Sounds like a bunch of junkies or gigolos, doesn't it?
The people who visit web sites aren't "users," click-throughs, hits, numbers on a spreadsheet, or some other form of dehumanizing jargon. They're your husband, your mom, your friend, the guy who sits in the cube next to you. They're real PEOPLE, just like you and me.
That's why we think a successful site is one that makes real people's lives easier; One that makes them say, "This site worked for me." So we've made it our mission to ensure this kind of experience at the sites we build. At 37signals we don't see users, we see people.
02 Manager or external reporting?
| Us. A tight group of four dedicated to the craft of interface and customer experience design.  |
Associate Producer
Business Applications Analyst
CE Production Manager
Content Engineer
Desktop Support Specialist
Elite Application Specialist
European Sales Liaison
Front-End Technology Engineer
Knowledge Journalist
International/Consolidations Accountant
Managing Architect
Manager of External Reporting
Operations Architect
Site Builder
Special Projects Analyst
Traffic Coordinator
VP/Director of Pricing
03 <blink>12:00</blink>
How do i?
How do i?
Most people can't even figure out how to program their VCR. So how are they supposed to figure out the "cutting-edge" technology that so many major sites impose on people? A: They won't.
The web gives people an omnipresent exit door and they won't hesitate to use it. If your business depends on your site, you better be damn sure it's easy for people to use your site and find what they're looking for. We'll help you.
04 Not full service
We're designated hitters
We don't do your database integration. Or your search engine submissions. Or your online media buying. We do interfaces and the strategy behind them.
Why? Because we think companies that claim they can do everything actually excel at nothing. That's why we choose to do one thing and do it right.
05 Size does matter
Question:
Wouldn't you want your project to be 1 of 1 or 2 rather than 1 of 10 or 20?
We're small and we like it that way. It gives us the ability to turn on a dime, deliver projects quickly, and dedicate extraordinary attention to your assignment.
Our size allows us to work on projects we want to do rather than projects we have to do. Plus we can all fit in one cab if we squeeze.
06 $6,000,000,000
Source: "Holiday '99 E-Commerce: Bridging the $6 Billion Customer Experience Gap," a report by Creative Good
Don't become a statistic
"39% of shoppers in user tests failed in their buying attempts because sites were too difficult. This rate of failure could result in a loss of more than $6 billion for online retailers this holiday season."
07 Are they experienced?
The web gives people an omnipresent exit door and they won't hesitate to use it. If your business depends on your site, you better be damn sure it's easy for people to use your site and find what they're looking for. We'll help you.
04 Not full service
We're designated hitters
We don't do your database integration. Or your search engine submissions. Or your online media buying. We do interfaces and the strategy behind them.
Why? Because we think companies that claim they can do everything actually excel at nothing. That's why we choose to do one thing and do it right.
05 Size does matter
Question:
Wouldn't you want your project to be 1 of 1 or 2 rather than 1 of 10 or 20?
We're small and we like it that way. It gives us the ability to turn on a dime, deliver projects quickly, and dedicate extraordinary attention to your assignment.
Our size allows us to work on projects we want to do rather than projects we have to do. Plus we can all fit in one cab if we squeeze.
06 $6,000,000,000
Source: "Holiday '99 E-Commerce: Bridging the $6 Billion Customer Experience Gap," a report by Creative Good
Don't become a statistic
"39% of shoppers in user tests failed in their buying attempts because sites were too difficult. This rate of failure could result in a loss of more than $6 billion for online retailers this holiday season."
07 Are they experienced?
| We've been designing sites since the web's commercial inception back in 1994. That's back when most designers thought a <TD> was some sort of football statistic. Ever since, we've been pushing the boundaries of HTML and innovating techniques that are commonplace today. We've got big game experience and we're money in the red zone. 08 Experience The members of the 37signals team have performed work for a wide range of clients such as:
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09 And I quote
| In most agencies, account executives outnumber the copywriters two to one. If you were a dairy farmer, would you employ twice as many milkers as you had cows?David Ogilvy The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.Edmund Burke Simplicity does not mean want or poverty. It does not mean the absence of any decor, or absolute nudity. It only means that the decor should belong intimately to the design proper, and that anything foreign to it should be taken away.Paul Jacques Grillo 10 Refugees 37signals is a company of refugees. We've worked for the big guys (Agency.com, Disney Online, Organic Online, THINK New Ideas, Quokka Sports, among others) and left because we felt we could do better. Now it's our turn. 11 Copy Righting
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| We're not fond of salesmen. That's why we don't have any. Call us and you'll talk with someone who's an expert at building web sites, not at selling you something you don't need. Call "bigwebshop" and you'll get a new business development manager or someone else who knows little about the web. This may help increase their sales but what does it do for you? At 37signals, we keep it real. No used cars. No snake oil. No miracle cures or fad diets. Just an honest take on what your web site should be and what it will cost. Refreshing, isn't it? 20 Sloganeering 37signals Simple for sale We See People Enemies of Mediocrity Putting the Pixels in the Right Place Megahaard Web sites my mom could use We're Only Human Extraordinary web sites for ordinary people Simplicity By Design Signal vs. Noise Web sites for people who can't program their VCRs We Put the "Dig It" in Digital 21 A Not "Q"
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| "Usability is always secondary. It's never the most important thing about an experience. I will accept poor usability if I get what I need, if the total experience is great. I will reject perfect usability if I am not rewarded with a useful, engaging experience." -Donald Norman himself, author of "The Design of Everyday Things" | Usability isn't enough Usability this, usability that. With all the talk about usability people sometimes forget the other "u" word, usefulness. You can have the most usable site in the world but if it doesn't provide a useful, helpful service, you're just wasting your visitor's time. And, when your visitors are frustrated, your competitors are their best friends. So please, be usable and useful. |
27 Simplicity by design
| Lightbulb | Teapot |
| Pencil | Frisbee |
| Post-It Note | Paperclip |
| Brick | One-button Mouse |
| Paper | Airplane Wing |
| Magnet | Lego |
| Spring | Screw |
28 Tulipomania
| Goods received by a merchant for one (1) Viceroy tulip: Eight fat swine Twelve fat sheep 63 gallons of wine 60 kegs of beer 30 kegs of butter 1000 lbs. of cheese A silver drinking-cup | In the late 1500s, tulips were introduced to Holland. The flower was considered so rare that wealthy aristocrats and merchants tripped over themselves to buy them. Speculation ensued and the flower became wildly overvalued. In 1637 the tulip trade crashed. People who thought of themselves as extremely rich were reduced to poverty overnight. Trends are temporary. Don't just do something because everyone else is doing it – do something because it makes sense. |
29 Linkin' Logs
30 ASAP
We know, we know...you need it done yesterday. We're all living in web time now and it's redundant to even bother saying a project needs to be done ASAP.
At 37signals, we forgo the bloat and bureaucracy that plagues our industry. We don't have red tape or 5 layers of management. When you talk to us, you talk to us – not someone representing us.
We're sharp, efficient, and pay attention to the details. It's amazing what a difference this can make.
31 Referece
| Simplicity is the Secret The title says it all | Mud-Throwing & Usability Another from Nielsen |
| Reading on the Web Keep it short and narrow | Yahoo! Simple is still the best |
| Designing Visual Interfaces Required reading | Good Design, Better Sales $3,000,000,000 lost |
| Prioritize Everything can be nothing | Creative Company Inspiration for inspiration |
| Small and Big Advantages of being small |
32 Highest Common Denominator
Steve Jobs, Apple CEO and co-founder on building a tight team of very talented people:
"...I found that there were these incredibly great people at doing certain things, and you couldn't replace one of these people with 50 average people. They could just do stuff that no number of average people could do...small and medium-sized teams of these people could accomplish extraordinary things and run circles around large teams of normal people."
33 Whats in a name?
Mankind constantly analyzes radio waves from outer space in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Since this analysis started, almost all of the signal sources have been identified. 37 signals, however, remain unexplained.
34 Out Team
The Bio37signals, located in Chicago, designs interfaces for web sites and applications. Pioneers of minimalistic, user-friendly designs, we have worked on projects for Qwest, Tenzing, Performance Bike, FOX Sports, and Transportation.com. We have also garnered significant attention for internal projects like Signal vs. Noise, eNormicom and Kicksology.
Our work has been featured in the New York Times, Sports Illustrated, Chicago Tribune, and numerous other publications. We have also appeared as featured speakers at AIGA Risk/Reward, Activ8, South By Southwest, and other conferences. We also launched the AIGA Chicago Experience Design Group.
| The 37signals Team Ernest Kim Jason Fried Matt Linderman Scott Upton |
35 We come in peace
Be not afraid.
We're not racing to IPO; Big billings are not what drives us.
What drives us is the knowledge that the everyday person is seeing only the smallest glimpse, 1/100th at best, of the full potential of interactive media today. To most folks, the web is a scary place. Our mission is to change that perception.
36 Signal vs noise
Our soapbox
Signal vs. Noise is our weblog with ongoing dialogue and musings on the web world, design, entertainment, politics and whatever else we feel like talking about on that given day.
It's what's on our mind.
37 SETI
There's got to be more out there.
http://www.seti.org
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