YouSendIt

Redesigning The YouSendIt Homepage

2008-12-17T15:06:57-08:00

Before I became a YouSendIt employee, I was a YouSendIt user and as long as I could remember the homepage needed some work (see it archived on Flickr). It featured a large interactive Flash area that wasn’t very useful and also large in file size. Not to mention, it was using up all of the prime real estate when viewing the site at 1024x768.

It wasn’t very user friendly at all and it didn’t clearly explain what it is we do. It had also become cluttered from years of new features and promotions being added. The result was a slow loading homepage that was overloaded with content.

When the time came to redesign I first sat down with users (one-by-one) and I conducted user test after user test to try to find out what was working and what wasn’t. I found that users typically gravitated toward the send form and didn’t pay any attention to our paragraph of text that we called our “mission statement” – this was expected. Second, we needed to find out what our users typically did once they arrived at our homepage. For this we reviewed our analytical data and monitored users as they used the website (this was separate from my test).

Once we figured out what it was that our users wanted to do; we started to work on our messaging. YouSendIt has the bittersweet problem of being valuable to just about everyone so writing copy can be a challenge. The result of all of our usability testing, designing and redesigning is what’s live on yousendit.com right now. It went live last night and while we don’t have the analytical data right now to prove it – I believe it’s a success. We hope you do too.

Our user opinion’s and feedback are really important to us and impact everything we do. If you have a chance, tell what you think. Email us at feedback@yousendit.com.

Jon Victorino
UI Designer

Exchange Connections Conference

2008-11-25T15:15:29-08:00

The YouSendIt crew touched down in Las Vegas earlier this month to attend the Exchange Connections show, a gathering of IT professionals looking to make their systems more efficient and secure.

Our popular Outlook Plug-in (261,209 downloads this year since launching in March 2008) turned heads as Microsoft Exchange email administrators quickly put two and two together:

1. Seamless integration into Outlook with centralized administration capabilities.
2. No change in behavior or process for end-users. No more email bounce-backs.

The combination of easy deployment, instant adoption (more than 50% of YouSendIt enterprise users are sending from inside Outlook), and reducing strain on email servers proved to be a hit. We'll be coming out with even more products for email administrators and users over the coming months, stay tuned.

If you haven't already, click here to try the plug-in. We'd love to hear what you think.

Ranjith
Founder and CTO

YouSendIt and New Media Expo

2008-10-14T17:49:54-07:00

The 2008 New Media Expo in Las Vegas was a great experience for our YouSendIt team. In addition to gaining new customer insight and sharing our latest product releases, we had the opportunity to meet some really interesting bloggers and podcasters from around the world.

Thanks to those who stopped by our booth to chat about large file delivery solutions and pick up one of our increasingly popular YouSendIt balsa wood airplanes. (We gained a new fan in Lisa Bettany- check out her blog!)

A couple of us, including our Founder and CTO Ranjith Kumaran, managed to squeeze in some rides at the Stratosphere. (Click here for embarrassing photo.)

We love hearing feedback from our users. Ideas, comments and of course, verbal high-5's are always welcome. Check out what these YouSendIt customers had to say.

Heading to Microsoft Tech Ed...

2008-06-06T15:32:21-07:00

Microsoft Tech Ed, IT Professionals week kicks off this Tuesday in Orlando, Florida with an expected 10,000 attendees and we'll be there at booth 1449.

(Stop by to pick up your very own YouSendIt balsa wood airplane! If there was an award for best tchotchkes, we'd have it in the bag.)

In addition to great swag, we've got great news... keep an eye out for our latest product release to be announced at the event.

So... any other "can't miss" events this year? Is your company attending a convention or conference? We'd love to hear about it!

Cheers,
Robyn

Marketing Communications

You Did It- YSI is a WebWare 100 Winner!

2008-05-06T17:29:16-07:00

Thank you for making YSI a WebWare 100 Winner… again! We’ve got some loyal fans!

Hey, we’re the first to admit we’ve come a LONG way since our conception 4 years ago. If you’ve ever hopped on the Way Back Machine... Well, you know.

But, here we are in 2008… plug-ins for Microsoft Outlook, Adobe Photoshop, Apple's Aperture... We've even added a desktop application, an enterprise product (A fast favorite of IT administrators everywhere!) and yes, of course, we continue to offer our free "Lite" account.

Your feedback, your needs, your workflow- it’s all we think about! It’s WHY we’re here- winning awards and growing up.

So. Thanks! We REALLY appreciate our users- your feedback, your ideas, and of course, your votes! Keep it coming and, as always, we’ll keep delivering.

Many Thanks,
Robyn
Marketing Communications

Woo-Hoo! YouSendIt: A Webware 100 Finalist!

2008-02-25T20:37:05-08:00

We are so excited to announce that the editors of CNET’s Webware.com have again selected YSI as a finalist in the 2008 Webware 100 Awards!

300 very cool finalists were selected from more than 4,600 qualifying Web 2.0 services nominated by Webware readers and company representatives- and we’re proud to be one of them.

But.

We’re not done yet…

You now decide which services are the Webware 100 winners by voting on Webware.com- and the voting began today…

So. Let your voice be heard! To vote for YouSendIt click here: http://www.webware.com/html/ww/100/2008/vote_utility.html?compid=103542

Once you’ve finished voting for YouSendIt in the “Data and Security” category, check out some of the other finalists. You might discover your second new favorite web 2.0 service!

Personally I'm a big fan of the "Productivity" category. There are some fantastic time-savers and organizational tools like Wasabe and Remember the Milk. (I just discovered these thanks to Webware 100!)

The "social" section has the expected standards (Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, etc.)...But! A newbie for some: Yelp! A phenomenal place for real-people reviews and recommendations on everything from doctors to restaurants... (And- It happens to be a frequently-used-bookmarked-spot in my little world of internet advice!)

Next step: Spread the word and help make YouSendIt a Webware winner 2 years in a row!

Cheers,
Robyn
Marketing Communications

Post MacWorld: Just A Few of our Favorite Things…

2008-01-29T11:23:30-08:00

From Ground Zero....

Yes. The MacBook Air.
3 little pounds of Brilliant.

It’s too bad those marketing gurus at Apple already used Giselle in the “I’m a Mac home movie” commercial. She’d be a perfect Air.

Sleek, beautiful, smart- all things Apple...
(And. It can be yours for the price of a used Civic.)

Now. Done with the Air and moving on- because there was much to rave about at this year’s event.

The Axiotron Modbook™ is a slate-style tablet Mac that allows users to draw and write directly on the screen. One part MacBook, one part Wacom tablet- this fully-loaded power pad became the “Must Have” obsession for our in-house designer.

Greg, our Mac loyal QA Engineer, was a big fan of the iTV demo and called the Microsoft Office 2008 product line, “Good News!”

Our Web Application Product Manager, Alexis, met with some folks from a company called McDera. They do a variety of things including custom evaluations to tell businesses what they can do to improve website accessibility for everyone – as they said, “Who wants to prevent anyone from being able to use a website?” We’re excited to learn more about how to ensure that people who may have a vision or hearing impairment can utilize our site.

The ibank 3 demo was a big hit with Aaron, our soon-to-be-engaged IT Superstar. Financial tracking and management with the ibank software- "2 was great but 3 will be even better!". (She’ll appreciate it, Aaron!)

I had a few favorites of my own…

A sassy solution for professional women who want to stay as well accessorized, as we are organized- FINALLY- laptop bags that are beautiful and functional from Urban Junket. They’re not cheap. But they are amazing. I even saw comedian and MacWorld-regular, Sinbad, pick one up for his wife. (Lucky girl!)

On a more impassioned note, Solio™ was hands-down one of the BEST offerings we saw. Their Universal "Hybrid" Charger can be powered up from either the wall socket or the sun (Yes- Solar Powered cell phone charger!) storing this energy within Solio's internal rechargeable battery. It has multiple adaptor tips for all of your handheld devices and can hold its charge for 1year!

Besides having a great product, they’re a great company. I ripped this right off their website:

“Because of our intent to create a new business model where the environment and the consumer are respected, we have analyzed and affected design decisions based upon what we know to be positive actions towards a more sustainable future. “

Basically, they are both “green” and giving. (And I'm an ardent fan!)

Check out their poignant YouTube video. Solio is empowering those who cannot pay, without expectation or concern for ROI. -A great example of building business and hope.

They've Nicely done, guys! ...And, thanks.

AND! Thanks to all of you who stopped by our booth. We enjoyed the feedback and getting to meet some of our users face-to-face. Stay tuned to find out where we’re heading next.

…And download our free plug-ins already!
YouSendIt Express and our Photoshop plug-in were both warmly welcomed solutions this year. (Thank you for being excited with us!)

Go get ‘em! http://www.yousendit.com/cms/applications

-Robyn, Marketing Communications

We’re headed to MacWorld…. And we’re excited!

2008-01-15T09:54:17-08:00

Let’s be honest. MacWorld is just cool.

New toys, progressive tools, elegant products, savvy services…. New Toys!

Last year, YouSendIt made our first tradeshow appearance at an event of this scale. One year later and, we’re proud to say, we’ve come quite far- adding a whole host of services and products like Corporate Suite- our multi-user solution, and Express- the YouSendIt desktop application. It’s our mission to continue to grow our product portfolio- making trusted, convenient file delivery available to everyone.

Most recently we’ve added to our Mac suite of products- how time appropriate, huh?

This latest Mac plug-in for Photoshop uses the Express technology, allowing users benefit from the same features of Express- including resumable upload and multiple file sending. Also available is the YouSendIt Apple® ApertureTM plug-in, allowing photographers to send photos to clients, partners and service bureaus directly from within the application.

And, as with all of our plug-in and applications, these products are available for free download at http://www.yousendit.com/cms/applications

So, stop by booth 4617 in the west hall. We’ve got YouSendIt pens and some cool rubber-band-powered airplanes. Be one of the first to mention that you read our blog and you just might score a YouSendIt hat!

And remember… After you’ve taken all your pictures, recorded your podcasts, and edited your show-site videos, just YouSend them back home to jealous friends and colleagues who were not quite as lucky as you to attend one of this year’s coolest shows!

YouSendIt Celebrating the Holidays

2007-12-18T14:22:27-08:00

We’ve had this Christmas tree in our office for the last few weeks….

It’s just a little one- nothing grandiose- standing a bit taller than our cubicles- covered in white lights and small gift tags… the Christmas wishes of kids from around the San Francisco Bay Area.

A very cool charity organization called the Family Giving Tree, http://www.familygivingtree.org/ , works with more than 250 social service agencies to make the holidays a bit more joyful for kids in difficult situations. They produce gift tags printed with a child’s wish, and distribute them to more than 900 participating schools, banks, and businesses- like ours- where donors can select a tag and return it- taped to the unwrapped gift.

The tags on our little tree disappeared one by one, and were slowly replaced with Cabbage Patch Kids, Toy Trucks, Games, and WWF figures….

Last Friday I had the privilege of driving the YouSendIt contributions over to the GIANT Family Giving Tree warehouse which was bustling with efficient volunteers, ready to get those gifts into the tiny hands of their intended recipients. Everyone involved felt like Santa himself!

There were SO MANY toys in that building, and a line of cars patiently waiting to contribute to the growing collection….

And as I drove away, I couldn’t help but think- that the quantity I was seeing, was really representative of a deficit. Because, for every toy I saw unloaded and piled up- there was a need… somewhere.

I felt so proud to be a part of this YouSendIt team who, in the midst of building a business and turning out products, takes the time to pull small gift tags from a little tree and make the holiday’s brighter for kids we’ll never meet.

We encourage those who can, to do the same. Check out the Family Giving Tree…. Or find a local community organization… a gift, an hour, or even a couple clicks for an online donation.

The best-kept Christmas secret is that giving back is really the best gift you’ll get.

Happy Holidays from your YouSendIt team.

Just a little Holiday Hello from YouSendIt!

2007-11-21T17:34:37-08:00

The holiday season has arrived!

Here at our YouSendIt headquarters in Campbell, California we celebrated with a fantastic Thanksgiving potluck and enjoyed some home cooked foods from around the world. It was a great time to stop and appreciate each other and acknowledge just how thankful we are for each member of our YouSendIt team.

And, though it may seem a bit cliché, we are genuinely thankful for every one of our subscribers. We work hard to make file sending a convenient, resource saving experience for you- and it seems to be working. Thank you for choosing us for your digital deliveries.

Happy Thanksgiving from your friends at YouSendIt. We hope you enjoy a long relaxing weekend with lots of food and laughter!

…And remember when you need to send those pictures and holiday home videos, just YouSendIt!