I am reading an interesting book which is about technology and machinery in general but actually has a relevance when it comes to marketing and specifically the development of web applications and web sites.

The book is called: “Better Off: Flipping the Switch on Technology” by a brilliant guy named Eric Brende. After spending much of his life living in the “plugged in” world, Eric then spent years theorizing and developing his position on the impact of technology on our culture. The book is about his journey into the unplugged world – literally living for a lengthy period of time – completely and utterly “off the grid”. While there are myriad lessons in barnraising and community gardening, the interesting part is that his position is not to get rid of technology all together, but simply to develop smarter – building to complement human capabilities, not replace or replicate them en masse.

My own take away is that there is a difference between building, say a can opener and an automatic can opener. A can opener is a useful thing. Runs on human power but really makes it much easier than banging at a can with a hammer and nail. The automated version, now runs on the power grid, reduces my need to do anything physical (which cumulatively will have an affect on me at some point) and is wholely unnecessary because it doesn’t save any time at all, just a little exertion, which is theoretically good for me.

Interesting position but what does it have to do with the Internet? Everything.

I build websites for a living. Well, my team does. Been doing it since the early nineties when most everyone discovered they needed a web presence. During that time, I’ve seen lots of agencies go above and beyond to develop the next biggest idea in Web delivery. Some of that was akin to the can opener – really improving things at a reasonable trade off. Much of it, however, falls into the automatic can opener category for me. Extra junk that clutters up the counter and doesn’t improve the final outcome.

I could literally write a book about all of the ways I have seen this happen but the most frustrating part is that companies buy into it. They want that automated can opener. They want to know that website is plugged in, they want to hear the tell-tale hum of automation and they want their friends to see the latest gadget proudly displayed on their counter. I want to scream to them and say – WHY? How many phone calls did you get today from customers because of that automated thing-a-ma-bob? How many people did you lose because their quaint little computers didn’t have the fortitude to handle your big and colorful home page fireworks display?

But Eric Brende gives me hope that some day, we’ll realize that less is more. The Internet already seems to be weeding out the junk and it seems that much of the current thought leadership is returning to the simpler, more focused user interface. We’ll continue to move our clients in that direction and we’ll be here when the bells and whistles are all quieted down.

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