Technology / Information Management

Practical Guide to Developing and Managing Websites
By Roger Tomlinson
Pub ACE 2004 ISBN 0728710234 £10 Click here to download
The introduction starts  "This is designed to be a practical guide to developing and maintaining a website that focuses on: setting the objectives, planning the design and content, tackling the key issues in its development, monitoring and evaluating the results.  It is as much about concepts, attitudes and approaches as it is about possible practical solutions".  It goes on to give a guide to which sections to read in what circumstances and poses key questions to consider in each section.  Very practical, very readable. Review

The Internet for Artists: A guide to exhibiting and selling your work on the web
By Karen Taylor
Pub: Eyelevel books 2002 ISBN 1902528158

A well-written and nicely produced little guide to showing artwork on the internet. It weighs up the pros and cons of the web and explains internet galleries. There’s information on contracts and copyright, checklists to help you get the most from the Net and interviews with experts. There’s a useful glossary of all those “technoterms and weblish.”

Don’t Make Me Think
By Steve Krug
Pub New Riders 2000 ISBN 0789723107

"Don't Make Me Think" is Krug's First Law of Usability for Websites. The design and layout should be so good that the user knows where they are, what they can find there, and where to click. The book is useful for those designing websites and for those commissioning others to do so. Much of it is common sense, but it is common sense well-presented and explained clearly. Sections cover conventions, visual hierarchies, navigation bars, what's clickable, omitting needless words, designing home pages, and visibility testing. Review

Information Management for voluntary and community organisations
by Paul Ticher and Mike Powell
Pub Directory of Social Change 2000 £12.50 ISBN 1900360489
A very practical guide that allows you to use the information in your organisation as a resource that you can manage to your advantage. It has an impressive range of contents, including essential principles and loads of practical points on deciding what information you need, where to keep it, sharing it, staying legal and getting help. Noticeboards, computers, meetings, filing cabinets all feature here - and people. Recommended.
Click here to buy from the publisher

Web M@rketing In A Week
By J. Jonathan Gabay
Pub Hodder & Stoughton 2002 ISBN 0340849649 £6.99 [£9.59 inc p&p]
A big subject broken down into simple steps that can be learnt in just one week – whether you feel quite new to it or need to brush up your existing knowledge. Sunday: A wider web market, Monday: the web marketing.com mix, Tuesday: web business tactics, Wednesday: your web home, Thursday: web research, Friday: web copy, Saturday: climbing higher. It also covers how web marketing adapts to your brand, how to promote a web brand, the synergy between traditional marketing and web marketing and how to produce creative web copy.
Sold here at SAMs Books

Designing Web Usability: The Practice of Simplicity
By Jakob Nielson
Pub New Riders 1999 ISBN 156205810X

Review

Homepage Usability: 50 Websites Deconstructed
By Jakob Nielson & Marie Tahir
Pub New Riders 2002 ISBN 0 7357 1102 X £30.99 [£37.33 inc p&p]
This examines the effectiveness of 50 homepages, chosen because of the popularity of or prominence of the company, government agency or non-profit institution they represent.  It has a chapter per site with an illustration of the home page, a breakdown on percentage use of space and then a detailed critique and strategies for improving its effectiveness.  Some of the criticisms are great – “this page suffers from vapid homepage chic, including vacuous whitespace, gratuitous stock art graphics, and trendy all-lowercase titles.  It would be better off trying to look less hip and being more informative”.  A very useful resource. Review
Available here at SAMs Books

Writing at Work: How to create successful business documents
By Alan Barker
Pub Spiro Press 2003 ISBN 1844390039

Covering everything from formal letters, reports and minutes to brief emails and memos this considerate book will encourage us all to abandon jargon and write clearly and effectively.  It is effectively laid out and accessible with quick  ‘At a Glance’ reference boxes and checklists in every section.  So, now there is no excuse for dull prose or to use anything but Plain English.  A great book to share amongst colleagues!

Boxing Clever: getting the most out of the Box Office
by Roger Tomlinson
Pub: Arts Council of England 1993 out of print ISBN 0 7287 0672 5
This describes itself as a manual on how to develop the Box Office beyond ticketing and use Box Office data for marketing. Twenty possible uses are given for Box Office data - from evaluating responses to marketing to seeking sponsorship contacts. Designed to be dipped into as needed, the book covers the place of the Box Office at the heart of marketing, managing the Box Office to make friends not enemies, the relationship between customer and staff, the data it is possible to compile in customer records, data protection, handling the data and analysing its contents, profiling the catchment area and the audience, direct marketing and managing sales. It is very thorough, and was based on research into real examples. Recommended.

Box Office Marketing Guides
by Roger Tomlinson
Pub: Arts Council of England 1998 out of print
Hands on /how to instructions for techniques described in Boxing Clever. A set of 10 guides providing a step by step approach to capturing information from ticket buyers, managing and extracting data recorded in computerised box office systems, and making the key calculations and analyses necessary for understanding and interpreting this for marketing purposes.

It's For You: Telemarketing for arts organisations
By David Dixon
Pub: Arts Marketing Association 2001 ISBN 1903315042 £10
Aimed at those selling tickets and anyone else in marketing or fund-raising that needs to make effective use of the telephone to communicate with the public – for information gathering and research as well as recruitment and sales. It covers why use the phone; the place of the telephone in customer relationship management; planning, budgeting and managing telemarketing; mobile phones, text messaging etc; legal and ethical matters; and case studies of a wide range of types of campaigns within the arts. Very useful guidance.
Click here to buy from the publisher

Data Protection: A Guide to the Data Protection Acts and Their Implications for managers in the arts and entertainment industry
by Roger Tomlinson
Pub: AMA 2000 £12.50, ISBN 190331500X
Essential guidance for managers, ticket sales, marketing and fundraising staff in how to handle customer data and stay legal. It covers the principles of the new legislation, defines terms, and then provides excellent notes on practical matters such as what to say to customers on the telephone. Review
Click here to buy from the publisher

Data Protection for Voluntary Organisations
By Paul Ticher
Pub DSC 2004 2nd Edition ISBN 1903991196 £14.95
This book guides you through the Data Protection principles; who and what the Act applies to; the rights of individuals as ‘Data Subjects’ – the responsibilities of voluntary organisations; incorporating Data Protection into your policies and procedures; promoting and maintaining good Data Protections practice.  Updated based on experience gained since the Act came into force, this edition has new decision-making flowcharts, authoritative answers to key questions and model policies and statements.
Click here to buy from the publisher

See also Marketing section for internet and e-marketing texts.
See also The Employment Records Handbook under People Management.

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