Razorfish's Website

I was recently looking over the state of technology firms in New England and decided to check out what's going on over at Razorfish. Their mission goal, as stated in a Yahoo! search for "Razorfish", was "Helping companies build great brands and engaging experiences for consumers anywhere in the digital world."

Opening the Razorfish website was an experience to engage in... not. I was first treated to flashing dots and a huge word - "WORKING" - sliced through with fleeting swaths of blackness as if I were still watching analog TV with poor reception. (Why?) Eventually, some other words like "company" and "careers" and "news" started showing up and flashing. I wasn't sure if clicking on any of them would bring up any useful information. Eventually - and I'm guessing this won't be the last time I use the word "eventually" in this post - a mini-panel quietly did an excruciatingly slow flip, a common routine in overblown Flash presentations, and showed something about employment. My computer seemed to have trouble keeping up with my cursor, which leads me to believe that, yes, this website really is an overblown Flash presentation, masterminded by someone with a souped-up PC that most people realistically could not afford without a three-year loan. It was painful, like watching a frightened pufferfish trying to survive while crammed into a shot glass.

Eventually (see?), I determined that the company is still hiring everywhere else but the Boston area, which is a shame, 'cause I could've showed them some things about building great brands and engaging experiences for companies anywhere in the digital world, especially those companies that want to look at their website.

I didn't stay with their website longer than one minute, because I really wanted to conserve the aspirin. I don't feel compelled to return to it in the near future. Good luck to them in their future endeavors.

However, I did allow myself some time to chuckle at some verbiage from their "Ideas" section.

"What does it mean to be a leader in the Web 2.0 world?..." Well, I don't know about being a leader in this virtual world of Web 2.0, but don't leaders lead without having to dress up in one hundred pounds of sequins?

"... It means inventing our own technology breakthroughs,..." Yeah, you really broke through for me today. God... The Segway... that was a technology breakthrough!

"... rethinking consumer insight,..." May be time for you to rethink from the bottom up after reading this post.

"... making radical leaps into the future of design..." If what I've just seen is the future of design, I'm cancelling my internet access.

"... and challenging the definition of 'impossible'." As in, "impossible to read"?

"... Then, share it with the world. Come and get it..." I'm sharing with the world right now, and I'm not using Flash to do it. And my share is easier to come and get than your share. So there.

OK, so that's my opinion. I had to post it because I just couldn't believe the mess that just hit my eyes and from where it came.