State of Innovation (Web Design) in Georgia

SHERPA! was recently in attendance at the Technology Association of Georgia's (TAG) flagship event — the Georgia Technology Summit. Described as "bringing together C-level executives, entrepreneurs, technology professionals and academia to celebrate and recognize Georgia’s technology community" the event is a public awareness campaign to promote Georgia's technology industry.

The event featured two notable key speakers:

• Ray Kurzweil - author, inventor, futurist and now director of engineering at Google
• Bob Metcalfe - Internet Pioneer (ever hear of Metcalfe's Law?), professor of innovation @ University of Texas at Austin

A key part of the event is the annual presentation of the Top 40 Innovative Technology Companies in Georgia, which is awarded based on subjective criteria such as degree of innovation, scope and financial impact of innovation, likelihood of success, and promotion of Georgia's innovative efforts nationally and internationally. From that grouping, the Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Georgia are selected.

So what does Georgia have to offer national and international markets in terms of innovation?

Review: The 10 Most Innovative Companies in Georgia

This year's Top 40 Innovative Technology Companies in Georgia list looks vaguely similar to last year's Top 40 Innovative Technology Companies in Georgia list — 5 companies, or 12.5% of the list, are "repeat innovators". Reviewing their websites, it doesn't appear that any of them have introduced a new innovation, however.

Speaking of websites, as one of Atlanta's top award-winning web design agencies we are compelled to toss in our unsolicited two cents on the matter. How did the innovative companies fair with their online presences?

Below is a list of the Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Georgia with links to their respective corporate websites. Can you pick out the fledgling start-ups from the global innovators?

• AirWatch - Mobile device application and content management
• Bright Light Systems - Energy efficient lighting systems
• Buzzy4Shots.com - Reusable electronic pain relief devices
• Catavolt - Enterprise Mobility Services
• Egos Ventures - Innovation Lab
• Merlin Mobility - Augmented Reality Solutions
• NanoLumens- Flexible and fixed large-format LED display solutions
• NextInput - Force sensitive touch technology
• PGi - Audio/Video Web Conferencing Solutions
• SoloHealth - Interactive digital health and wellness kiosks

If you are like most website visitors, you probably wondered about the following things:

1. What is my immediate impression of the website? Website visitors will form an impression within a few seconds based solely on what loads (and doesn't load) on the screen, and how fast this happens. Does the website instill trust with their product or service offering?
2. How easy is the site to navigate? Website visitors usually arrive at a website on a mission, and that mission isn't to flip through gratuitous imagery on the homepage (unless perhaps the innovation is visual in nature). Does the site get you to where you want to go without much effort from you?
3. Does the content effectively tell their story? Website visitors don't look forward to reading a book online, more so as mobile devices with smaller displays like tablets and smartphones become the norm. Is the content concise and informative, or are you more confused than when you started? Are you even able to read the content with your preferred device?
4. Are online tools provided to help explain their innovative products and ideas? Website visitors don't come to a website to download a brochure. How is the online medium being leveraged best to help tell their story in ways print can not?
5. How does this product effect me? In order for someone to be interested in your product, they need to understand why it matters to them. And once they do, they might want to tell their friends and colleagues about your amazing product — are there social sharing features that make content sharing effortless?
6. What did you think about the corporate web designs of this year's Top 10 Most Innovative Companies in Georgia?