Dan Blows

Current

User Experience Consultant at blowski.com

Past

Web Developer at PriceRunner / ValueClick
Online Content Manager at Book Club Associates
Product Manager at Simply Computers / Misco / Systemax

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Education

Nielsen Norman Group
Revolution
Windsor TEFL

WHSB

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1 more...

Recommended

1 person has recommended Dan

Connections

85 connections

Industry

Online Media

Websites

Dan Blows’s Summary

Worked 6 years in user experience design, with sound knowledge in:
* Online marketing, within eCommerce and public sector organisations
* User-centred design, including usability research and focus groups
* Standards compliant accessible client-side coding (especially HTML, Javascript/AJAX and CSS)

Dan Blows’s Specialties:

Marketing skills: CRM, communities, forums, usability, user research, accessibility, information architecture, social search marketing, SEO, surveys
Standards-compliant, accessible, future-proof website coding: (XHTML, CSS, DOM Scripting, JavaScript, AJAX, DHTML, XML, XSLT, PHP.)

Dan Blows’s Experience

User Experience Consultant

blowski.com

(Internet industry)

August 2007 — Present (1 year 3 months)

User experience consultant building or upgrading websites, involving all parts of web marketing including usability, SEO, CRM, and conversion tactics.
Web Developer

PriceRunner / ValueClick

(Public Company; 51-200 employees; Internet industry)

September 2005 — August 2007 (2 years)

PriceRunner: price comparison site; 5 million+ unique users internationally
ValueClick: parent company, operating affiliate marketing, banner advertising and CPC solutions

Building static and dynamic content on site to assist users in shopping process, thereby helping to increase user conversion and satisfaction. Role also includes:
* Conducting user research to understand multi-channel shopping process (including internet, email, mobile, and offline)
* Building standards-compliant code (XHTML, CSS, javascript, XML, XSLT)
* Using analytics solutions and user research (surveys, usability studies, focus groups) to study user behaviour in order to improve conversion at touchpoints (website, mobile, email)
* Writing recommendations and functional specifications to effect user research
* Encouraging user generated content in forum
Online Content Manager

Book Club Associates

(Privately Held; 501-1000 employees; Marketing and Advertising industry)

June 2004 — September 2005 (1 year 4 months)

BCA: large mail order and internet books retailer based in London

Using product marketing knowledge to update content on site, including products such as books, DVDs and CDs. Also included working with external usability agency to develop site, and improve conversion on product and basket pages.
* Working with in-house design team to implement usability agency's recommendations, by coding front-end HTML/CSS and connecting with the back-end product database
* Working with eCRM team to build, track and deploy emails, and improve open / click-through / purchase rates
Product Manager

Simply Computers / Misco / Systemax

(Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Marketing and Advertising industry)

January 2001 — June 2004 (3 years 6 months)

Large international IT retailer, using mail order and internet channels. Used knowledge of products and marketing principles to develop catalogues, email and internet. Role included:
* Maintaining product database in proprietary system
* Updating website with prices and product information
* Working with marketing team to develop CPC strategy (through paid search and price comparison sites)
* Working with search engine optimisation (SEO) team to optimise site, and develop link-building strategy
* Using in-house analytics tool to optimise placement of products across different channels
* Working with clients, including HP, Sony and Microsoft, to develop business plans for increasing sales

Dan Blows’s Education

Nielsen Norman Group

Usability 2007 — 2007

3-day seminar with Jakob Nielsen, including topics such as:
* Recruiting usability test participants
* How to run usability tests internally on a low budget
* Usability techniques, including paper-prototyping, quantitative research, card-sorting
* Implementing recommendations by working with other teams

Activities and Societies:

How to plan, conduct and follow-up user research to increase conversion
Revolution

Brand Advocacy 2006 — 2006

Activities and Societies:

Brand advocacy: getting users to engage with your product, and recommend it to friends
Windsor TEFL

TESOL 2005 — 2005

6 month part-time course on communicative method. Required good knowledge of English grammar, and provided teacher training and experience.
WHSB

1992 — 2000