It’s a conundrum. To be a successful company, you need customers. To get customers, you must build something great. Most people say, “Go to market quick, then learn and iterate.” I think people are missing a key factor about what it means to have customers. I saw this first hand at several different companies. Many…
As a designer, I often and working on something and wondering how it will be received by the decision-makers. I know how the intended audience will receive it. (That’s my job). However, how the non-intended audience will react is more complicated. Many designers get depressed with this issue and just try to make the internal…
A friend of my family is looking to re-enter the workforce after raising three kids. She is over 40 and hasn’t worked in a dozen years. Probably, it comes as no surprise that she is having trouble finding the right job. Putting my UX hat, I started thinking about her plight. There was a period…
In the course of your life, you will outsource a bunch of things. Mechanics, accountants, programmers, copy writers, lawyers, handymen and more. You try to get a referral, but often you are on your own, trying to guess whom to grant your business. There is one common experience though, that we all share. When we…
Justinmind Prototyper 3.0 is released and they state on their blog that a UX review of the product gets you a free license. I was contacted by someone at their company as well. A positive review is not required, so I feel free to be completely open and objective. No conflict of interest, I think.…
Woodward and Bernstein and their series on Watergate set the modern lexicon of scandal and how people deal with them. Here is the formula: A problem or suspicious of a problem arises. People look to the source and say, “What is going on?” If the source says, “Nothing, nope, no problem here. Everything is great.”…
Three things to have UX greatness. Last one. Good enough isn’t good enough. Eat bad babies. Invest in your future. Invest in your future. It is so rare that anyone does this. Seriously, everyone talks about it and no one ever does it. At a previous company (which shall remain nameless), there was a project…
Three things to have UX greatness. Here is #2. Good enough isn’t good enough. Eat bad babies. Invest in your future. Eat bad babies. Every group I have ever witnessed has reached this point sooner or later. They have something that used to be a good idea. However, right now, it has become a bad…
Three things to have UX greatness. Covering just one today. Good enough isn’t good enough. Eat bad babies. Invest in your future. Good enough isn’t good enough Most products, services and expectations are pathetic. Flying on a plane is a horrible experience, even when it’s good. Most cars look exactly like 20 others. Innovation is…
I think alot of people confuse these two concepts. Not knowing how to do something may not be surmountable. Either you learn how or you get lucky or you just do it wrong. I’ve made a handy chart to help understand. If you don’t know how to do something, it doesn’t matter how much time…
Who is Andrew Garcia? He is a contestant on American Idol. What can he tell us about UX? I’ll jump to the answer and then backtrack. Great UX comes from making a segment of the audience love you with fanaticism, not from trying to please everyone. Critics are the sign you are on the right…
I made a little sticky note for someone I manage, but I don’t have a scanner here. So I recreated it for you. It’s amazing to me how often people break this rule. Everyone thinks the other person knows what they are talking about. People are happy to pass the buck and add features or…
Previously I posted on how the little things are the ones that make/break your product/service. Here is an illustrated example. Don’t be fooled. This doesn’t mean you can just build the details and forget the big features. Obviously a cup holder without a car isn’t much good. Table stakes are the big features. Your product…
I stumbled on this music site called Grooveshark accidentally via Smashing Magazine, but I am glad I did. It has a rich user interface with alot to like. The obviousness of what to do first is the best part. I typed in a song. Ting Ting: That’s Not My Name. It was there right in…