User Experience
Poor Internal UX Design Causes Zappos $1.6 Million
A great case study which proves why you should invest in the user experience of your internally facing applications, not simply the customer facing ones.
Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh
We have a pricing engine that runs and sets prices according to the rules it is given by business owners. Unfortunately, the way to input new rules into the current version of our pricing engine requires near-programmer skills to manipulate, and a few symbols were missed in the coding of a new rule, which resulted in items that were sold exclusively on 6pm.com to have a maximum price of $49.95.
This isn’t the first time this kind of thing has happened. Remember the 52″ flat-screen TV on sale at BestBuy.com for $9.99?
Forgiveness
By Joshua Brewer at 52 Weeks of UX
Humans are inherently prone to make mistakes. We do it all the time. Misreading some copy and clicking on the wrong link. Searching for something that doesn’t exist. Entering in a URL that we mistyped. Attempting to engage with an interface in a way it was not designed for. All of these examples (and thousands more) happen all the time with our products.
It is this moment in which we have a unique opportunity to engage our users in a genuinely human manner. We have just interrupted their workflow and they may or may not be able to accomplish the task that the software is supposed to help them perform. So often, when an error occurs users will often blame themselves and, unfortunately, because we give little to no help, they continue feeling like they have made the mistake.
[...]
We failed, not the user. After all, they are using our product. We are responsible for the experience and by admitting there was a problem and attempting to fix it as quickly as possible, we will engender the goodwill and hopefully, the return business of the user.
All the cool cats are “#UX Designers”
Designing the user experience is not a new idea. There have been people thinking about it since the invention of the wheel. The problem is that now it’s hip to be a “UX designer.” It’s marketable.
People ask me how to sell UX to their customers. You shouldn’t have to. People don’t come to you and say “design me something that’s hard to use.” Their request for design implies usability, just as your service implies usability work.
Now “UX” is exploited as a way to make more money. It’s another line item on an invoice. Deplorable.
Satisfy the Cat, a.k.a. User-Centered Design
As a designer of websites, I have to make jolly-well sure that I satisfy the cat first, remember that I’m not a cat, and find ways to play on the cat’s own motivations. Only then does everybody win.
By: John Boykin
Design For People
When brainstorming and researching ideas for your app, step back and consider the context in which the device will be used by real live people. How does the iPad fit into our lives? In what situations would we prefer this device to a laptop or iPod Touch?
Complexity and Simplicity are Perceptions
User interfaces should present the information needed to accomplish the task at hand. Nothing more, nothing less. Complexity and simplicity are our ways of perceiving how difficult or strenuous a task is going to be.
Compare this IRS form, to a similar TurboTax form:
Tumblr Checkout UX pattern causing security confusion
Tumblr.com’s new Premium Theme checkout process is clever. A traditional checkout process would feel a bit clunky in their environment. They should be applauded for taking steps to break that mold. However, I have one major problem with it’s implementation.
Ecommerce is plagued by one UX hurdle that most other sites do not deal with in nearly as much detail: security. Since Tumblr’s checkout takes place completely inline, you’ll never see “https” in your browser. The browser never shows the standard lock icon, indicating that the site was confirmed secure. Rather, they do everything through asyncronous calls which mask the security from the user.
Security is an asset and shouldn’t be masked from people willing to enter their credit card information.
iPad Application Design
The iPad is not just “a big iPhone.”
Technologically speaking, it is very similar. The way you interact with it, however, is different. The applications don’t feel like mobile apps. They are robust, full featured and intuitive.
Make Your User Interface Intuitive By Encouraging Experimentation
The design industry is plagued with the misconception that product manuals are evil. These designers believe that your product should be intuitive enough to use without a manual.
While there is a certain truth to this, there are many viable reasons for product manuals to be used. There needs to be a certain level of competency that can be achieved without the manual.
A manual is never an excuse for poor design.
Your product should be designed to encourage people to experiment. That’s how people learn how your product works, and it is also how they discover advanced functionality.
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