Embrace Advertising as a Component of User Experience Design

Incorporating advertising elegantly into a digital design is a major challenge for Information Architects, Interaction Designers, and Visual Designers. Traditional advertising banners eat up valuable real-estate on key pages. Additionally, banner advertisements usually generate negative feedback from usability test participants. The manner in which an Information Architect typically plans for advertisements on client web sites is via a set of requirements from a client stakeholder or someone representing the advertising sales team. The User Interface Designer receives a set of standard advertising banner unit specifications that he/she must "design around." The project team accepts the advertising requirements as law. Why wouldn't they? The advertisements are part of the client's revenue model.

The problem lies in an oversimplified advertising model and a lack of courage to transform it into something more engaging and relevant to customers. Here are some ideas to challenge your clients and fellow team members from Design and Strategy:

1. Utilize account preferences or behavior-based data to improve the relevancy of advertisements - Business web sites usually collect and store data about users via their volunteered marketing, communication, and profile preferences as well as their on-site behavior. Depending on what success means to an advertiser on the web site, this valuable user data can help to improve the relevancy of the advertisements shown to each user. Relevant advertisements are less likely to be the cause of user frustration.

2. Enable users to improve the relevancy of advertisements themselves - One way to engage users is to have them rate the relevancy of advertisements themselves. The data collected via a simple "thumb's up" or "thumb's down" rating system, over time, has the potential to provide a rich set of user preferences. If content promotion can be influenced by user preferences, so can advertisements.

3. Change the format of advertisements - Banners have endured because they are part of an established digital revenue model. It is less effort to change this method of delivering advertisements than trying something new and innovative. Additionally, many advertising sales teams are really good at selling IAB standard advertising units. That being said, there are different methods of placing advertisements on digital experiences that could increase the level of engagement on these experiences. Work with advertisers to weave the most popular elements of advertising (the humor, the iconic characters, the products that people want, and the ideals that some consumer brands stand for) into the very fabric of the content that is being delivered on the experience. The digital medium presents opportunities for advertisers to create brand experiences (contests, games, and interactive experiences) that generate a higher level of engagement than static banners.

4. Turn advertisements into user generated content opportunities - Brand recognition and recall is increased when users spend time creating content for advertisements. Increase engagement with advertiser brands by allowing consumers to create their own video commercials, banners, and artwork. This idea can easily be made into a contest that could create a high-degree of interaction with the web site and the advertiser.

5. Make the advertising sales team a key stakeholder in the creative process - The Design team should try to include the advertising sales team in the creative process early on in the project life-cycle. The earlier ad-sales is involved, the more likely they will be open to new ideas for advertising opportunities. Treat these stakeholders with the same amount of respect as anyone else from the client's marketing or creative team. It is likely that an entrepreneurial member of the advertising sales team has been trying to get more creative with how advertisements are delivered on the web site, and is looking for the opportunity to innovate.

5 negative perceptions about Information Architects and how to defeat them

Information Architects often struggle to stay relevant to business clients and internal project teams due to their academic approach to achieving business objectives. Way too often, Information Architecture presentations fail to resonate with internal and external stakeholders due to how methods, findings, and solutions are presented. The following represent criticisms and challenges that Information Architects encounter on a daily basis:

1. Too academic - "User Centered Design (UCD)" is a methodology that results in intuitive and usable interfaces for information retrieval and functional applications. When too much emphasis is placed on the process, however, a presentation may fail to resonate with business stakeholders. For real impact to clients, focus on connecting the dots between UCD services and the business value generated by the service. Don't over-emphasize the methodology. Keep it simple. The focus should be on the business and the end-user, not on the discipline of Information Architecture.

2. Too much focus on end-user benefits - While the goal of User Experience Architecture is to understand and service the needs of end-users, IA practitioners for business clients achieve this goal in order to successfully accomplish business objectives. This point needs to be emphasized in every presentation made to business stakeholders, or the presentation will likely fail to resonate. Make explicit the connection between satisfying end-users and achieving business objectives

3. Too rigid with methodology - Fortunately for the discipline of Information Architecture, there are many ways to put the methodology into practice. If it was an inflexible science, it would rely on a ladder of dependencies in order to be implementable. Essentially, the discipline would become more ideological than practical. Creativity is needed, when applying the User Centered Design methodology to a business initiative, to develop an affordable and valuable set of services to clients. My previous blog post describes ways to indirectly gain intelligence about clients' end-users when upfront, primary research is out of the question. There are many alternatives to expensive services that can be utilized in the name of maintaining a healthy client relationship and project timeline, without putting the end-users' needs at risk. Understand that if upfront research is not in scope, low fidelity design validation should be proposed. And if design validation gets cut, functional prototype testing should be proposed. If any flavor of usability testing gets cut, make a proposal to the client to deploy the product to a select segment or beta population to get some feedback prior to wider distribution. Most importantly, don't be inflexible. Listen to other proposals for approaching the project strategically. In fact, don't rely on your own methods. Ask for alternatives in order to better understand the realm of possibilities that exist to better inform Design.

4. Micro-managing - Information Architects get accused of micro-managing Strategy and Design simply because of the sheer amount of work that they are asked to do. IAs are responsible for informing end-user and content requirements through research, developing use cases, producing a Design concept and interaction model, as well as validating the execution of Design. Ultimately, the perception that IAs micro-manage Design is only a reflection of the visibility and authority on a project that the Information Architect's role entails. Therefore, Information Architects have a responsibility to cultivate a culture of openness and collaboration to combat this perception and to not give in to "the power trip." The simple truth of the matter is that no one individual has all of the answers. Ideas and Design improve when a group of talented Design professionals weigh-in and provide input. Struggle ceaselessly to make sure input is regularly solicited, and watch the perception of micro-management vanish. More importantly, watch the quality of the work steadily improve.

5. Constraining Visual Design - Interaction Design is held in high-regard by certain Information Architects and treated dismissively by others. I've actually heard IAs tell me that they aren't interested in doing wireframes because the "real thinking" comes from the research and conceptual user experience strategy that results from the research analysis. The problem with that sentiment is that clients want design and interaction models sooner in the lifecycle than most Visual Designers are introduced (which is, admittedly, unfortunate). IAs, therefore, need to illustrate the conceptual framework of the user experience and begin pushing the interface elements into the Design phase. Here is where good Information Architects seek the input of Visual Designers. However, that pairing isn't always possible. When collaboration is out of scope, Information Architects should be pushing the interaction design and UI patterns of the User Experience as far as they can. Designers should not feel constrained by detailed UI documentation. Detailed interaction models are possible because of the rich insights that Information Architects gain as a result of primary research. Visual Designers should appreciate the framework and information hierarchy expressed by the Interaction Designer or Information Architect, but also challenged to improve upon these ideas. It is a sign of weakness when a Visual Designer claims that he/she can't think out of the boundaries of a wireframe. Design is, by nature, constrained by business and user requirements that the wireframe illustrates. If Design was without boundaries, it would be Art.

Jonathan Lupo
@userexperience (Twitter)

5 Ways to Inform Your Design When End-User Research Isn't in the Budget

Information Architects follow a rigorous user-centered-design methodology that, ideally, begins with upfront, end-user, behavioral research. It is our job to make a business case for this type of research by clearly illustrating its ability to achieve real business benefits. Sometimes, however, clients will not pay for this upfront research. Some projects begin with trust in the expertise of the IA and Design team.

As an Information Architect, I cannot rely on my own assumptions of what is the best taxonomy and content prioritization for clients' end-users. When upfront research is out-of-the-question, I must look for other ways to make more informed assumptions. Here are 5 ways to informally gather information about end-users:

1. Analyze the most popular keywords related to the topic of your design - Thanks to Google, businesses are eager to understand how to optimize their digital content to be findable by search engines. Because Google has a paid advertisement service that is based on top keyword searches related to various businesses, they offer a free keyword tool to help businesses identify the top keyword queries related to their business. Assume that these top queries represent the highest priority information sought, and facilitate access to relevant content through your design and taxonomy.

2. Look at competitor experiences - Your client's competitors may not have "best-of-breed" digital experiences in terms of how these experiences service customers, however, major trends in taxonomy and information design represent industry conventions and design patterns that customers will be used to. General adherance to common design patterns in a given industry will provide a foundation for best practices for that industry.

3. Develop provisional personas based on previously conducted research - Prior to beginning any project, an information architect must synthesize all existing knowledge about a client's end-user. Often, this knowledge comes from previously conducted market research. The best way to absorb this knowledge, is to develop provisional personas which take existing market research and extrapolate behaviors from the research findings. These behaviors need to be accommodated by the design and taxonomy of the experience.

4. Lurk on social networks, groups, and discussion forums related to the topic of your design - A good way to conduct research is to passively observe the conversations that take place on social networks and communities that are relevant to the topic of your Design. The most vocal participants in these conversations will be individuals that have strong opinions. Designing to meet their needs will ensure that they become vocal supporters of your client's tactics.

5. Plan for design validation as part of a "test-and-learn" plan - If upfront end-user research isn't being planned for, make a strong proposal to conduct usability or design validation testing early and often in the project lifecycle. Paper and low fidelity prototyping can be tested quickly and cheaply with small groups of target end-user segments. Once design moves into development, functional prototype testing should be considered.

How to prepare an effective end-user research study analysis in 10 easy steps

Analyzing an end-user research study can be a daunting task. There is a mountain of data collected and the researcher may not know how to begin organizing his/her findings. The following is a solid presentation framework that should help bring order to the chaos:

1. Restate project objectives - Every project-specific deliverable which builds upon a body of knowledge to support strategic and tactical recommendations should restate core project objectives. Deliverables generated as a result of project activities should clearly and continuously illustrate how project objectives are being met.

2. Define research objectives - Project objectives are business-focused. Research objectives are typically aimed at understanding behaviors, trends, and information-seeking agendas of end-users relevant to stated project objectives. Research objectives should not be generic. They should be aimed at identifying ideal end-user behaviors that would likely achieve project objectives.

3. Summarize key findings from previous research studies - Prior to spending a client's money engaging in additional research, the researcher should seek to understand and summarize relevant research studies that have already been conducted. Identify gaps in existing knowledge about the end-user segments, and illustrate how the current research completes the total portrait of the end-user.

4. Describe research methodology - It is best to assume that the client or audience for the research presentation is not an expert in behavioral research methods. Describe, in detail, how end-user segments were recruited, ways in which behavioral research differ from market research (emphasis on sample size), and the manner in which the interviews or contextual inquiry was conducted.

5. Elevate high-level research findings and trends - Trends will likely emerge from the research that cut across all end-user segments. It is best to elevate these important trends early on in the discussion. Additionally, it is best to introduce early recommendations to set the expectation that each finding in the research presentation will be accompanied by actionable recommendations. EVERY finding should be actionable. Clients need to understand the value of end-user research and IA researchers are responsible for emphasizing the business value that is an outcome of this type of research study.

6. Introduce behavioral personas that emerged as a result of the research - After high-level findings are discussed, the researcher can introduce the personas that were formed based on the major differences in behavioral trends observed. Discuss the behaviors that divided the personas first, then introduce each persona. When introducing each persona, be sure to include a fictitious name, photo, description, motivations, relevant key tasks, and barriers to completing key tasks. Support major persona traits with actual video clips, photographs, and end-user quotes from the research. Key tasks are better presented visually, as task flows, rather than as a list of bullets.

7. Aggregate key tasks from personas into an end-user mental model - A mental model is an important first step in designing an intuitive information architecture that facilitates the completion of key, end-user tasks. The researcher has already identified the key tasks from each persona. It is a simple matter to group these together and assess gaps in existing content needed to support each key task.

8. Develop a list of recommendations to fill gaps in content - Begin to tackle each gap illustrated in the mental model by suggesting a tactic or recommendation for content that would satisfy key end-user tasks.

9. Assign level of effort (L.O.E.), value to the business, and value to the end-user to each tactical recommendation - Documenting recommendations gives the client a vision of the overall solution. Assessing level of effort and value of each tactic helps the client prioritize each component of the solution and put tactics on a road map for implementation.

10. Define next steps - This presentation is a component of a larger set of activities that is meant to accomplish specific project objectives. Conclude the research presentation by connecting the research to its impact on project objectives as well as introducing the next activity in the project plan.

A quick look at 5 end-user research techniques

1. Contextual Inquiry

Summary - Contextual inquiry is an ethnographic research technique that involves the facilitator observing and interviewing participants in a setting where the participant naturally performs relevant behaviors to the subject of the research. Contextual inquiry is best utilized to uncover behaviors and information seeking agendas prior to designing a system, application, or interface.

Pros - Participants feel more at ease when performing relevant tasks. Task recall is easier in the context of the surroundings where relevant tasks naturally occur. The researcher is able to observe environmental factors, constraints, and technologies used. The researcher is also able to observe actual documents and information that is kept close at-hand, when actions and behaviors are performed.

Cons - Travel is sometimes required to interview locations, and this may be expensive. Additionally, unexpected environmental issues may prevent the optimal recording of audio or video. Contextual inquiry can also be dangerous, especially when participants are recruited from Craigslist. There is some risk associated with this type of field research. Don't perform this research by yourself. Always travel in pairs!

2. Lab-Based Usability Testing

Summary - Usability testing is an analysis or validation of a design in which success or failure is measured according to how easy it is for participants to perform key tasks using the design. Designs can be low fidelity (e.g. - a wireframe) or high-fidelity (a visual design comp) and testing can be performed on paper, on electronic files, or on functional prototypes.

Pros - The laboratory provides a measure of control in which unexpected changes in the environment and the testing equipment can be eliminated or minimized.

Cons -If the usability test includes a computer, there will always be differences in the set-up of the lab-based computer and the user's own computer. Additionally, the laboratory may be an unsettling environment for the participant. In general, participants feel more at ease in their own homes or places of work, as well as using their own computers.

3. Focus Groups

Summary - Focus groups are interviews with a group of participants in a laboratory-based setting (or a conference room). In a focus group, attitudes and perceptions of a group of people can be collected during the course of a moderated discussion.

Pros - A focus group allows a larger number of opinions to be collected at one time vs. 1-on-1 interviews with participants. This type of research may be more convenient for clients to observe. Focus groups are great for brainstorming ideas because individuals within the group tend to feed off of the ideas of other individuals in the group.

Cons - Focus groups are not great for understanding end-user behavior. Group dynamics play a role in the responses of each individual in the focus group. There will generally be one or more vocal participants who will influence the responses of the other participants in the room. The reverse may also be true. Some participants may rarely speak at all. Therefore, it is difficult to obtain the same level of unbiased information from each individual in the group.

4. Surveys

Summary - Surveys are used to collect feedback from a large number of respondents. Surveys may consist of closed or open-ended questions, or they may be a mixture of both.

Pros - Surveys are an ideal research tactic when a statistically significant number of responses to specific questions are needed. They can be deployed via email or from a 3rd party, hosted platform. Survey tools are generally inexpensive and generally include reporting and charting capabilities from collected responses.

Cons - Survey research is not moderated, so a researcher has no opportunity to probe responses to questions with follow-up questions. Additionally, although closed-ended responses are easier to generate reports from, they are limited in the richness of data that open-ended responses provide. A researcher learns only what the limitation of the tool allows him or her to learn.

5. Card Sorting

Summary - Card sorting exercises are typically, but not always, conducted as a 1-on-1 activity. The goal of a card sorting exercise is to understand end-user information organizational models. These models typically inform end-user taxonomies and information categorization schemes.

Pros - Tools exist to allow researchers to conduct a larger number of card sorting exercises online, similar to deploying a survey. The benefit of using an online card sorting tool is the ability to generate reports and quickly assess the most ideal taxonomy from analysis of all of the card sorts conducted.

Cons - Card sorting is difficult to explain to end-users. Therefore, deploying card sorting exercises without a face-to-face explanation of how to take the test properly, may result in a high-rate of abandonment. Finally, taxonomy development is a professional discipline. Taxonomists and information architects should not rely solely on untrained, end-users when constructing a logical categorization scheme for a system.

5 Steps to delivering an effective presentation

There's a client presentation scheduled for next week and your PowerPoint deck feels a little loose. Additionally, there's a 150 page wireframe deck that has to be reviewed as part of the agenda. By the way, there is no formal agenda. Is this a problem waiting to happen? Most definitely. Here are 5 steps to course-correcting this situation:

1. Identify goals for the presentation - Goals and objectives should be the starting point for any presentation. Being able to identify the most beneficial outcome of any situation is vital to understanding the road to get there. Delivering an effective and persuasive presentation absolutely requires this important first step. A good presentation is born from an understanding of its purpose. Visualize the desired outcome of the presentation, document this vision, and proceed to step number 2.

2. Identify the barriers to achieving the stated objectives - Identification and documentation of the presentation objectives will force the presenter to think about the barriers in the path to achieving these objectives.

3. Develop a narrative outline with the construct of: "objectives > challenges > solutions > measurement of solutions" for the presentation - All effective presentations do exactly the same thing. They tell an organized story that illustrates the impact of recommendations to what matters most to the business. If you've completed steps 1 and 2, you already know what story it is that you are going to tell (and have the chapters documented as well). A good narrative could begin like this:

I. Introduction - Achieve measurable business objectives by improving the User Experience on platform X.

A. Opportunity 1 - Achieve Business Objective X
1. Summary of Current Challenges
2. Strategic and Tactical Recommendations
3. Analyze the Success of Recommendations

B. Opportunity 2 - Achieve Business Objective Y
1. Summary of Current Challenges
2. Strategic and Tactical Recommendations
3. Analyze the Success of Recommendations

C. Opportunity 3 - Achieve Business Objective Z
1. Summary of Current Challenges
2. Strategic and Tactical Recommendations
3. Analyze the Success of Recommendations

D. A Prioritized Road Map to Implement Recommendations

E. Next Steps

4. Complete the presentation by not veering off of the course of the outline - Now that the narrative outline has been constructed for the presentation, create the rest of the slides that support each chapter of the outline. Use stakeholder notes and data to define business objectives and current challenges. Use internal team and user research data to define strategic and tactical recommendations. Use business defined key performance indicators and a measurement framework to define how you will measure the success of proposed recommendations.

5. Show don't tell - Each slide of the presentation should be an illustration of a concept or recommendation. Objectives, barriers, and strategic recommendations can be summarized and visualized as information graphics. Tactical recommendations related to the user experience can be visualized through personas and interaction design. Visuals have more impact and emotional appeal than text.

5 Trends in media consumption

Within the last five years, many industries have had to evolve due to advances in technology as well as increased social connectedness. Here are 10 examples of how these changes have affected media consumption:

1. Media is increasingly less physical - Music is a perfect example of an industry where technology is constantly morphing the format and delivery of the media. Analog records gave way to cassette tapes. Cassettes moved aside for Compact Discs. Within the last five years or so, MP3 files erased the need for Compact Discs. The gaming industry is also undergoing the same changes. Physical games will slowly be replaced by digital downloads of video games from digital stores.

2. Media has become portable - Continuing with the music industry example, the reason for the constant change in the format of the media is likely due to the consumer demand for portability. The Sony Walkman introduced the concept of taking music with you. That trend has continued to evolve with mp3 players, iPods, and now, smart phones. The demand for portability has forced technology to shrink the size of media formats so that the consumer can travel with his/her media.

3. Devices are connected to the cloud - Portability underwent a dramatic shift when media playing devices were able to wirelessly connect to the cloud. Not only did physical formats become digital files (eg - CD to mp3), but digital files are now becoming obsolete as well! There is no longer a need for storage of digital files when digital media can be stored in the cloud. Streaming media has been around for years, but the prevalence of wireless access will surely bring this method of media delivery into its maturity.

4. Consumers are hyper-social - MySpace, Facebook, and Twitter have connected people and ignited conversations in unprecedented ways. With this "hyper-connectedness" comes sharing of information, recommendations, and multimedia. New applications such as Pandora, Miso, Tunerfish and GetGlue, all enable end-users to broadcast and recommend multimedia content to peers of their social graph. As devices are increasingly connected to the cloud, it is easy to see how social discovery of content will affect multimedia content consumption overall. Entertainment industries such as Music, TV, and Video Gaming are beginning to understand the importance of connecting to existing social networks to generate content recommendations to consumers.

5. Fidelity and portability are no longer mutually exclusive - A few years ago, the world was introduced to High Definition Television. Back then, HDTV existed in a world of 42 to 60 inch flat panel televisions that were anchored onto the walls of media enthusiasts' living rooms. Again, the demand for portability of media has made HD and near-HD quality viewing experiences possible on hand-held monitors. Personal viewers in the form of eyewear monitors can now deliver HD and even 3D video content while immersing the viewer in a theater-like environment, even when he/she is on an airplane.

10 Tips for Conducting Better User Research

When considering enhancements, optimizations, or planning new content development, a business should aim to better understand the informational needs, tasks, and behaviors of its consumers across all digital channels. Here are 10 tips to keep in mind when designing a behavioral research study:

1. Recruit active information-seekers - Market research panels have databases of willing test participants that match demographic profiles, however, these participants are likely "professional test takers." When conducting research on a given subject, it is better to recruit subjects in the act of actively seeking information related to a relevant topic to the research study. This type of recruitment can be accomplished by launching a Google cost-per-click advertisement that solicits participation and is triggered when relevant keywords queries to the research topic are used. A list of customers who have opted into receiving email communications is also a great platform for recruiting participants to a research study.

2. Analyze existing consumer research - Nothing is worse than spending money on research that yields little to no useful results. Look to the marketing or the customer service department of a business to understand what is already known about target consumer segments. Identify gaps in knowledge about consumers, or seek to update outdated research.

3. Formulate hypotheses - Business stakeholders will volunteer hypotheses about their target customer segments. Secondary research may also suggest certain motivations, tasks, and behaviors. Designing a study with some informed hypotheses may help make lines of questioning more relevant from the get-go.

4. Develop a comprehensive list of questions - It is always a good policy to be over-prepared when conducting an interview. A research study is often commissioned by a client paying for the time the researcher is spending with the end-user. Think through and document every possible line-of-questioning and probing follow-up question. The study guide isn't a script but it should assist the research facilitator in case a line of questioning reaches a dead-end. The idea is to keep the subject talking about the subject and maintaining a calm and natural atmosphere.

5. Ask open-ended questions - Questions that naturally result in a "yes" or "no" response do not lend themselves to a dialogue. Ask questions that require subjects to be descriptive and engage in a conversation.

6. Do not ask participants to speculate - The goal of behavioral research is to understand and observe behavior. Asking a participant what they might do in a given situation or what they think they might want on a web site leads them to speculate on their behavior. Speculation leads to false and biased data.

7. Perform research in context - Behavior is best observed in the context of where it naturally occurs. Bring participants into a conference room only as a last resort. It is better to observe participants' natural behavior wherever they come into contact with relevant brands or perform actions relevant to brands. Empathy Lab believes better data is gathered when interviews with participants are conducted in homes, stores, and offices. Performing a study in the context of which a task is normally performed aids end-user recall of the task in question.

8. Videotape, record audio, and/or photograph participants as well as their environment - It may feel awkward for participants at first, but nothing proves a point like a video clip of participants performing relevant tasks. Use an external microphone or a video camera with great audio capture so that the audio is clear when making clips for a highlight reel. Additionally, researchers must obtain participants' consent prior to videotaping them.

9. Bring a research assistant - Facilitating a research study requires concentration and focus. The interviewer must make sure that all important lines-of-questioning are brought up in the interview, the conversation is natural, and questions are not "leading" the participant to a biased result. Therefore, the facilitator should not be the one taking notes or handling the technical equipment (such as a video camera or audio recording device).

10. Have a designer, copywriter, or strategist assist with the research - True collaboration in Design requires the Information Architect and Visual Designer to both understand and empathize with end-user needs. Rather than relay this information via presentation of findings, it is advantageous to have the collaborating partner accompany the researcher when the research is conducted. Similarly, a project may benefit from having a strategist or copywriter accompany the Information Architect in the research study. The right research partner depends on the type of project for which the research is being conducted.

How to measure the success of digital design

Art may be subjective, but there are definite objective measures for digital design. As is the case with any type of success criteria for digital tactics, goals must be set prior to measurement. Defining benchmarks and projections are paramount to evaluating success.

Success Metrics - Defining key performance indicators for a business is a most important first step in projecting the growth of the business. Success means different things to different types of businesses and across various industries. Of course, most businesses set out to make money; however, the pathway to profit isn't always a straight line. That means there are other measures to consider other than direct revenue from a digital platform. A fledgling business may consider traffic growth, repeat visits, or membership over time to be key performance indicators of success. Success may mean duration of visit or engagement with interactive content.

Video platforms - Advertising-based revenue on a broadband video platform requires video ad views. In general, on an advertising-supported digital experience, the longer users stay engaged, the more likely they are to be exposed to advertisements.

Ecommerce - Even on an ecommerce experience, not all success can be directly measured from sales. Conversion percentage from the shopping cart is an extremely important metric, and one that can be optimized through design enhancements to increase the likelihood that end-users can easily checkout their purchases. Additional measurements include average order value (the total average value of all items in the cart prior to checkout). Similar to an advertising-supported platform, however, engagement with an ecommerce platform often translates into increased sales because the longer the end-user stays engaged, the greater the likelihood that the user will make a purchase.

Qualitative Measures of Design- The success measurements above are quantitative analyses of data collected over time. Some of the most important measurements, however, are qualitative. While quantitative data can reveal what is happening on a digital platform, qualitative data can reveal why its happening. Collecting qualitative measurements of a digital design is a matter of interacting and asking questions with end-users as they experience the design itself. Moderated interviews enable facilitators to probe end-users after they make decisions and engage in specific behaviors.

Design Enhancements- The key to optimizing design for success requires an in-depth understanding of what success means, and measuring from baseline to projections over time. As outlined above, these measures should be both quantitative and qualitative to reveal the complete picture of the impact of the design to the end-user. Evaluation should be the starting point to understanding how to increase the effectiveness of design.

How to develop a social media strategy that makes sense

There are many valid reasons for a business to integrate social media into its' digital strategy. It does not make sense to do so, however, if the reason is "everyone is doing it." As with any content planned for a digital platform, research should be conducted to understand the likely and relevant social behaviors of target end-users. Additionally, the business should identify how social media advances it’s' objectives. The following describes some appropriate motivations for a business to plan for social media integration:

1. Increase Engagement on a Digital Platform with a "Hyper Social" End-User Community - If behavioral research uncovers highly social behavior in target end-user segments, it may be appropriate to incorporate tactics that enable interaction, discussion and sharing of digital content. Providing these "calls-to-action," for this type of audience, facilitate natural behaviors and tasks of a highly "socially connected" user base.

2. Provide Relevant Content Recommendations - Content recommendations are relevant on digital shopping experiences, broadband video experiences, as well as any digital experience where exploration of content is encouraged. Much effort is generally put into developing relevancy algorithms to understand what type of content is relevant for specific end-users based on their previous shopping and/or viewing patterns on the experience. In general, and there are exceptions, people get recommendations for "what to buy" and "what to watch" from their friends. Therefore, it may be easier to understand how to elevate "friends' recommendations" for these types of digital experiences rather than developing a complex, behavior-based, logic for content recommendations.

3. Reduce Friction in End-User Registration and Authentication - Digital consumers have likely created profiles with popular social networks such as Facebook. Rather than have them re-create their profiles, which could be a barrier to adoption, businesses may decide to enable end-users to link their existing profiles for the explicit purpose of making it easier for them to register or sign-in to their digital experience. Additionally, services which enable these connections sometimes provide access to stored preference data as well as the end-users' friends. The additional information about end-users, gleaned from linked social networks, may help to fill gaps in existing customer profiles.

4. Enable Viral Promotion of Digital Content - Making content portable, via RSS/XML feeds, and shareable, via email, add to Facebook, like, and tweet buttons, is the first step to increasing the likelihood that content will be promoted by "word of mouth." These tools are relatively easy to integrate into an existing digital experience, and provide a highly social end-user segment a logical "next step" after consuming digital content.

There are many other "community-oriented" tactics to explore include facilitating connections amongst end-users and providing a platform for "taste-makers" to review and recommend content, but the point is to understand what the business and end-user goals are prior to defining the right social media strategy for a specific business.

How to design for success

Too many digital initiatives are started in an effort to "stay relevant" or "keep up with what competitors are doing." While these may be goals unto themselves, there is a more stringent framework that a business should use to green-light digital initiatives, resulting in better business results. Whether the goal is to improve conversion on an eCommerce experience or to drive engagement, there should be business-driven or end-user-driven goals for any digital experience. That being said, simply having goals isn't enough. Goals should be measureable. Fortunately, given the nature of the medium, digital design can be measured.

The following is a framework to use when developing an approach to any digital initiative:

Step 1 - Define and document goals and objectives for the business. Understanding how and why an experience can be improved is essential to developing a measurement plan for any additional design or enhancements to an experience. What are the current goals for the business (online or offline)? How will enhancing the digital platform assist in achieving these business goals? Interview key business stakeholders to understand where the business is going and how the interactive medium will play a role in its future.

Step 2 - Define and document goals and objectives for customers. Customers, whether they are consumers or business users, should be at the core of any business. Understanding their needs, behavior, and frustrations is paramount in designing digital interfaces and enhancements to the digital platforms for any business. Conduct qualitative behavioral research interviews with actual end-users to get a better perspective on their needs.

Step 3 - Develop and document a methodology to measure success by understanding how the above business and customer goals translate into measurable performance indicators and optimal behaviors.

Step 4 - Plan for a successful design by "wireframing" an experience before spending time and effort in Photoshop. There are many prototyping tools such as Visio, Axure, and InDesign that enable the designer to focus on meeting business and end-user goals with their design prior to "decorating" an experience.

Step 5 - Measure first, develop and deploy, then measure again! Prior to launching an enhanced or new digital experience, conduct usability and acceptance testing on a planned design to see if it will likely meet customer needs. Revise the design if it seems like there are major usability issues. If and when major issues are solved, deploy the experience and measure it again. Post-deployment issues that are identified should be put on a road map for later enhancements.

Once a road map is constructed, it will become easier to identify WHAT to enhance. Additionally, it will become clearer that the measurement of digital initiatives against business and customer goals should be the primary driver for any future enhancements.