Know Your Digital Media Consumer [INFOGRAPHIC]

With businesses rushing to extend their digital distribution of media to connected consumer devices, and Cable television threatened by the onslaught of "OTT" (Over the Top) services, it is more important than ever to truly understand the "Digital Media Consumer". Who are they? What are their likely behaviors? What tasks will they need to accomplish, when accessing broadband user experiences across devices? Empathy Lab has collaborated with media companies to answer these questions, in an effort to help them extend their distribution of digital media products and services. The following personas have distinct needs, as it relates to digital media entertainment, and digital media service providers should focus their service design efforts around satisfying these needs.

"THE VALUE HUNTER" "The Value Hunter" is a consumer who is "shopping" for a digital media entertainment service. She is likely examining the value proposition of services in her consideration set, and comparing features, in an "apples-to-apples" manner. To satisfy the needs of "The Value Hunter", entertainment companies should make it easy to discover the value proposition for their service offering, and enable consumers to compare service features with competing services.

"THE SPORTS FAN" "The Sports Fan" is an individual who needs to stay connected with his favorite teams as well as the rivals of his favorite teams. Give him the ability to receive notifications to alert him to watch his team's games, before they are played. Provide him with scores and stats, to increase his knowledge about the sports that he loves!

"MS. CATCH-UP" "Ms. Catch-up" is a busy professional who cannot be tied down to a network timetable, to watch episodes of her favorite shows (like "Dexter"). She likely owns a DVR, and is a "time-shift" viewer of programs. Satisfying her needs requires enabling her to quickly find, watch, and receive notifications about the latest episodes of her favorite TV shows.

"THE MOVIE BUFF" "The Movie Buff" is a collector, and someone who prides himself on owning a high-end, home theater system...so the content quality better live up to his standards! Offer him high-definition, full-screen video, and hig-quality, stereo audio, to play on his surround-sound speakers. "The Movie Buff" typically looks for movies within a specific genre, so he needs the ability to filter content that way, as well as "by Director", and "by Actor". "The Movie Buff" craves user and expert reviews and ratings, so that he doesn't waste his precious time on terrible flicks!

"THE CORD CUTTER" "The Cord Cutter" probably doesn't own a TV, and, perhaps, never has owned a TV. He spends most of his day working, and consuming content, on his desktop computer. "The Cord Cutter" doesn't understand why he can't watch his favorite TV Shows and Movies on any of his connected devices (smartphone tablet). And, why should he pay for networks and content that he'll never watch? The key is, not to force him to..and to provide him with flexible service and payment options.

"THE FAMILY" "The Family" is a group persona, and each member of the household has a distinct set of needs. In order to deliver relevant programming to each member of the family, it is important to offer a unique set of recommendations and customization options, tailored to each sub-account. When considering the needs of children, in the household, it is important to offer parents more control over programming that they have access to. Parental controls, and the ability to block "mature" content, is extremely important to satisfy the needs of this persona.

The Complete INFOGRAPHIC -

I've grouped each persona into a consolidated infographic, below:

Browse more infographics.

Applications Are For Humans

Empathy Lab believes that intuitive and engaging interfaces are designed with an in-depth understanding of your end-users’ needs, behaviors, and motivations. Here is an overview of our behavioral research practice.

Apps are for Humans

View more PowerPoint from Jonathan Lupo

Trends in Mobile Commerce [INFOGRAPHIC]

Businesses that wish to adopt mobile commerce tactics as part of their overall, digital strategy, must first understand how consumers shop, and what tasks they perform with their mobile devices and tablets, while shopping.

When we think of "mcommerce", there is a tendency to think about it as driving sales through an application or mobile-optimized website. When mobile use cases are carefully considered, however, it becomes clear, that mobile commerce is as much about driving sales "in brick and mortar stores" , as it is, electronically (eCommerce).

I've created an infographic that highlights some recent "facts about mobile commerce." I find these quick stats useful, as a starting point, to developing an overall mobile strategy for clients, based on how their consumers are likely to use their mobile devices at key points within the shopping life-cycle.

You Conducted UX Research. So What?

In business, research means nothing until it leads to conclusions that are actionable. Unless your firm gets paid to publish studies, the research that you conduct is probably intended to "green light" a project, plan an information architecture, or validate a design direction. That means that the planning, execution, and analysis of the study needs to be focused on specific objectives. Good research is costly, and any appearance of financial waste, not only jeapordizes the potential for further researh, but may put a client relationship at risk.

Beware of the "Open-Enders" -
Qualitative behavioral research should be open-ended, in that the line of questioning should not lead participants to a closed-ended response, like a "Yes" or "No" question would. Additionally, questions should not lead to a specific response that betrays the researcher's point of view (facilitator bias). Although the types of questions asked should be "open-ended," the agenda for the research interview should not be left "open-ended." Actionable research requires preparation and a solid line-of-questioning. There are those who believe that it is not important to plan out the interview framework and line-of-questioning. Some feel it is ok to leave the planning and interview strategy "open-ended." I say, beware these "Open-Enders," because their research may not be focused on specific objectives. Unfocused research can waste a client's money and ruin an agency's credibility.

Planning for UX Research -
There are many ways to planning for UX research. Here are a few:

1. Identify application or system design objectives - in order to plan a taxonomy and information architecture for an application, a UX Designer must document the key tasks that end-users are likely to perform. From a research perspective, this means developing a line-of-questioning intended to aid a participant's recall of similar tasks performed recently. The goal, then, should be to have the participant walk the researcher through these tasks, so that the researcher may observe the participant's "task flow." Thus, the application design can be modeled to intuitively facilitate task completion.

2. Aim to focus the research on what the client does not know about their end-users - My previous blog entries emphasize the importance of understanding what a client already knows about their end-users, based on any research they may have conducted in the recent past. Find the gaps, and develop a study that aims to fill the gaps with knowledge about the end-user segment's behavior.

3. Plan the interview carefully - There are many behavioral research interview techniques available, to gain a better understanding of end-user behavior.

First and foremost, I always recommend contextual inquiry, because it provides the necessary context (environment) to aid a user's recall of daily tasks.

Plan a portion of the research to be an interview, and a portion to be behavioral observation. In order to do so, be ready with a line of questioning that prompts the participant to go online to complete a task.

A diary study is a good technique to learn about a participant's behavior over a period of time. In order to plan for a diary study, however, you must be prepared to recruit and contact the participant weeks in advance of the interview, so that the diary can be reviewed with the participant at the interview. So, it really all boils down to preparation and planning. Maximize your time with end-users to elicit actionable feedback that will inform your Design, Digital Strategy, and build upon your clients' existing body of knowledge.

The Collaboration Trap

Interactive agencies all promote the fact that they work "collaboratively" among disciplines. Sometimes, however, this claim tranaslates to informal methods, such as seating employees in an open floor plan, or merely putting interdisciplinary project teams together, in a "war room." Don't get me wrong, I think these are all great ways to start a dialogue between employees with different sets of skills, however, a formal "collaboration plan" is a more efficient and predictable way to get value from this conversation.

Don't fall into the trap. Set goals. 
Informal collaboration can be costly and inefficient. A well-intentioned meeting of the minds, with no agenda, can result in wasted time, angry employees, and, more importantly, bad decisions. When timelines and budgetary parameters are tight, goals need to be set, for collaboration. For example, make sure that collaborating teams know when actual decisions need to be made, for key screens of an application. Goal-setting should be done upfront, and put into a project plan, prior to "brainstorming."

Establish ground rules.
I'll get back to this point later, but there are delegates from each discipline present in a successful, cross-discipline collaboration. Make each delegate "the authority" for their respective discipline. Establish rules for collaboration and brainstorming, like:

1. Solutions must be accompanied with a rationale, based on meeting the needs of the business, end-user, or brand

2. Solutions must be visualized, or clearly articulated, to be considered.

3. x number of hours are allotted for each decision.

"Socialize" concepts.
Imagine a scenario, where an Art Director and a User Experience Designer (and the gap is narrowing between the two roles, by the way) debate the layout of an a screen for an application. The UX claims that her layout achieves likely use cases, as validated by client research. The Art Director presents her argument about proper layout, balance, and focus. Each employee has valid points. So, how long does this "stalemate" last? Who decides the next move?

Since the User Experience Designer and the Art Director are both adept at visualizing their conceptual directions, they should do so, applying medium fidelity to the illustrations of their respective solutions. After returning, quickly, with sketches in hand (using a napkin, Visio, InDesign, Illustrator, Photoshop, whatever), the two need to broaden their conversation to include a Business Analyst (or an Account Manager) and a Technologist (who is encouraged to be brought into the dialogue as soon as possible). These two roles bring other factors, such as business objectives and technical feasibility, to bear on the decision.

Make an informed decision.
Bringing others into the mix, gradually, with differing perspectives, may help the team make decisions and move forward. "Design by committee," however, isn't an efficient process. Ultimately, after input has been solicted from the group, one discipline lead needs to "cast the final vote." If decisions are, ultimately, UX-related, it should be the lead UXD, to make the decision. If it is a Visual Design/Brand issue, then, the Art Director should make the final decision.

Decisions can be more-informed by the group's input, but final decisions need to be made by individuals.

The War for Your Living Room

The home video entertainment war between monolithic cable companies and new, cloud-based, "over-the-top" services, has just begun. Until just recently, cable companies owned your living room, and their "pipes and boxes" were the only conduits delivering TV and Movie entertainment to your television set. Those who didn't want to pay cable service premium fees opted to rent physical DVDs from physical DVD retail stores. Cable fought back with On Demand rentals through the television set-top-box. At that moment, the dominant "pipe" carrying the entertainment signal was the one connected to the box that sits atop your TV.

Today, the new entertainment pipe is the one connected to your computer. Via the cloud, it is wirelessly transmitting entertainment to all your connected devices. Technology has enabled a wide array of cloud-based entertainment options to consumers. In this new world, some are opting to "cut the cord" to their set-top-boxes, and choosing to pay for exactly what they want to watch.

Well, not exactly...

The reality of the situation, is that most over-the-top entertainment services lack the content deals that cable companies have garnered through years of relationship-building with networks and studios. So, cable companies are utilizing these relationships to maintain their viability with consumers. A new threat is emerging, however. Some consumers still do not wish to pay premium fees to access hundreds of channels, when all they really want is two or three. Recognizing this, studios are beginning to offer their content directly to consumers, bypassing the cable "middle-man." Studios and networks have begun to go "over-the-top," delivering cloud-based entertainment services via the web, and through mobile device applications.

In order to survive in this new video entertainment landscape, cable companies have few options:

1. Provide more flexible packages and pricing - the main reason why consumers abandon cable TV is because it is expensive. Additionally, you pay for lots of channels you may never watch. If cable companies could figure out how to remain profitable and provide more flexible and relevant service options, they may be more successful in reducing the number of customers who "cut the cord."

2. Re-brand themselves as "entertainment passports" - "Cable TV" is antiquated branding. It reeks of old technology, and places emphasis on the pipe, NOT the entertainment. What is a cable company, then, without the "cable?" It is a set of credentials that enables customers to access the most robust video entertainment, leveraging the relationships that the company has with networks and studios.

3. Unchain themselves from the "set-top-box" - the biggest threat to the cable box isn't a connected iPad or iPhone, it is a connected TV. Yes, consumers are watching video, via over-the-top services on their mobile devices. However, the majority are still watching movies and TV shows on their TV. Cord cutters are using IP enabled boxes to access over-the-top entertainment services directly on their TVs, but that won't be necessary in the near future, when most TVs will access the Internet directly. In that scenario, cable companies must be prepared to offer "over-the-top" service, that can be accessed without a set-top-box.

4. Create brand loyalty with the next generation of "bill payers" - Cable companies need to build a brand with a younger demographic, because it is this demographic who is adopting "over-the-top" services for video entertainment. Many of these consumers do not even have TVs, and are only watching video on their laptops or other mobile screens. Most are on Facebook, and even consuming video entertainment on social network platforms. Cable companies have to integrate with the platforms that are widely adopted by this young demographic.

5. Monitor usage and deliver personalized services - The thing about cable, is that it is mostly "unidirectional." It is difficult to analyze usage patterns for the purpose of service optimization, customization, and personalization. Cloud-based services are increasingly leveraging usage data, via the Internet, to deliver personalized recommendations to consumers. Cable companies must figure out how to deliver "custom entertainment channels" that provide more relevant entertainment to their customers.

Jonathan Lupo - http://www.twitter.com/userexperience

The Importance of Storytelling to UX Design

As web sites and web applications become increasingly modular in their construction, Designers run the risk of creating applications that consist of an endless, near random, stack of modules. This situation is common to many ecommerce experiences. Because it is widely accepted that users "will scroll," there seems to be a willingness to stack modules on top of modules, endlessly, with no sense of hierarchy, or logical narrative.

Take a Step Back to Plan
A key theme to many of my blog entries is the need to plan. Planning is fundamental to Design. When designing the UX of an application, planning needs to happen at many levels. Core user experience planning happens after an assessment of end-user needs, as a result of qualitative behavioral research. In addition to that, however, there needs to be planning from business stakeholders, which should result in a marketing and content strategy. It is a combination of the user needs assessment and the business' content strategy, that results in the framework, or user experience strategy, of a web site or application.

What's the Overall Story?
I've used some jargon to describe the building blocks of the user experience of a web site or application. Really, it boils down to this:

1. What do users expect from the experience?
2. What story does the business want to convey to its users?

A business can enjoy great freedom in storytelling, as long as users can intuitively get what they expect or need from the user experience. The sad fact is, not many businesses are great at telling stories online.

Each Page Tells a Story
The underlying information architecture of an application is the outline of a novel, but each page or screen of the experience tells it's own story. It is important to map these narratives, at the page-level, before engaging in interaction design. Block out regions of each key screen, using low-fidelity wireframes. That will help you define the story that you are telling on each page.

Simplify and Engage
Ernest Hemingway was straightforward and understated. Anne Rice is ornate and rich with detail. When designing for the web, you'll want to lean more towards Ernest. Excessive visual design and content can quickly obscure your story. Make sure that doesn't happen, by creating pages that have real structure, modules that are introduced with bold headers, and copy that is brief and infused with the personality of the brand.

Your web site or application should be a platform for your business to have a conversation with your users. Architect it as such.

Jonathan Lupo - http://www.twitter.com/userexperience

Usability and Engagement: Success Metrics of Design

In an age where every consumer interaction with a brand is measurable across multiple digital channels, it is important to understand which metrics and measures are valuable to you, based upon your role in a business. It is a common mistake to measure everything, at regular intervals, without an understanding of how to make these measurements actionable. Data holds different meaning to different individuals within an organization. It may be used to inform marketing tactics, advertising spending, product development, or user interface design decisions.

Design Measurement
I am a user experience designer, so I will focus on the measurements and research used to assess the success or failure of a Design, within a digital context. User experience designers need to understand how to analyze the user interface of digital applications, in order to assess:

1. The usability of the Design

2. The Design's level of engagement

Usability -
Individuals visit web sites and download applications to achieve specific tasks. User experience designers spend time with these individuals, prior to conceptualizing a Design of an application or web site, to better understand and document the relevant tasks of these individuals. The easier it is for end-users of an application to achieve the tasks that they came to perform, the better the Usability of that application's design and user interface.

Usability Testing-
User experience designers encourage a business to perform Design validation of key elements of an application or web site's Design (usability testing), in order to ensure that anticipated, end-user tasks can be easily completed. Usability testing is a process by which UX Designers recruit participants, who are representative of the target, end-user segment for the Design, and observe them trying to complete key tasks, using the Design. The level of frustration that end-users exhibit, as well as their rate of success or failure, in attempting to complete key tasks, ultimately determines the usability of the Design. Measuring usability, typically, does not require a statistically significant sample size, however, new, online Usability Testing tools do allow for larger populations.

Engagement -
While usability is certainly an important criterion for a Design's success, it is merely "table-stakes." That's because a Design that is highly "Usable" does not ensure that it will be widely adopted by consumers. Therefore, It is also important to measure the level of engagement of the Design.

Engagement Analytics -
Measuring the level of adoption of an application can be done at many levels. This type of measurement is quantitative, and requires a large amount of data. At a high-level, marketers should benchmark the amount of traffic that an application receives, and set goals/projections for a redesigned application interface. However, marketers will need to isolate the key screens that have been redesigned, or new features that have been added to the application, to begin to understand if the new Design is driving engagement and adoption.

Brand Perception and Awareness -
A great way to understand if new products, applications, or Design is affecting the popularity or perception of a brand, is to take the brand's pulse through social media measurement. There are now, four conventional key performance indicators (KPI) that are used to gauge a brand's reach and perception (taken from the online tool, socialmention.com)

1. Strength - likelihood that the brand is being discussed in social media

2. Sentiment - ratio of positive to negative mentions in social media

3. Passion - likelihood of individuals repeatedly mentioning the brand in social media

4. Reach - measurement of the range of the brand's influence in social media

As with any other quantitative measurement, benchmarks should be taken prior to new Design enhancements, or the introduction of new marketing campaigns, products, applications, etc. Projections should also be made, based on business objectives. Marketers may, then, effectively utilize these key performance indicators to assess the impact, level of engagement, and likely adoption of brand enhancements (including Design changes).

Jonathan Lupo - http://www.twitter.com/userexperience

Site Map Do's and Don'ts

It may come as a shock to hear this, but, unless your client is a developer or a content strategist, site maps are rarely valuable documents to show them. Why then, is the site map continually socialized to the wrong stakeholders, and incorrectly positioned as a dependency for other Design deliverables (Which we know will result in the site map becoming a road block for the rest of the Design process)?

Site maps confuse and distract certain stakeholders, because:

• Site maps are abstract, system-level documents - They document a system, but are not visually representative of that system at an interface level. Consequently, they take a certain level of extrapolation to understand how the hierarchy works, at a page, or screen, level.
• Site maps can appear dense or complex - Site maps take time to study and understand. You'll likely have about an hour, max, to present your site architecture to your client. How on Earth are you going to convey that level of complexity and detail, in that amount of time, especially to a "C-Level" executive? When designing a site map, think about simplifying the diagram, or presenting multiple views of the map, "peeling away the layers of the onion," to gradually expose more detail.
• Site map "approval" is typically considered a dependency for the start of the Design process - Yeah. It's weird to think that everyone on the team expects the Information Architect or User Experience Designer to completely nail the entire taxonomy and flow of an application, without even having sketched a screen or two. Word of advice...don't hold up Design, while awaiting site map approvals.
• Site maps are NOT good for presentation of a UX vision - There are more effective visualizations, infographics, and high-level diagrams that can be utilized to convey the User Experience Vision, or Strategy, for an application, to a marketing executive. The interconnection of pages or screens isn't a visualization of a strategy. It is a visualization of a content hierarchy.

What are site maps good for, then, if they aren't great tools to convey the high-level vision for an application?

• Site maps are good for development and implementation - Site maps are invaluable documents to illustrate to developers, how to construct the hierarchy of pages or screens in the application. It is a document that is generally delivered to a client or team of developers, prior to the screen level user interface designs. That being said, I strongly recommend that site maps are not considered "FINAL," until the very end of the Design process. There. I said it!
• Site maps are good for content development and categorization - Because site maps represent the "outline" of the content, they need to convey, in some cases, the flow of the narrative to the end-user. This is especially true when designing the information architecture of a marketing web site or application. Content strategists and developers will want to map their copy and content to the site map sections and sub-sections.
• Site maps are good for SEO planning - The underlying framework of a web site is extremely important, when planning for the search engine optimization of a web site. It is critical to understand the likely searches that consumers will perform to access the client's web site, and create an information architecture that will, at a primary level, satisfy likely searches. Thus, the site map becomes a communications tool amongst four parties:
• Information Architects/User Experience Designers
• Copywriters
• SEO planners
• Developers

Of course, old habits die hard. It will take a long time before agencies realize that they shouldn't, out of habit, shove the "site map" deliverable at the beginning of a project plan, and require the client "sign-off" on the document before the Design process begins. But, please don't force the client's CEO, or CMO, to sit through that presentation!

Jonathan Lupo - http://www.twitter.com/userexperience

The Proper Use of a Site Map

It may come as a shock to hear this, but, unless your client is a developer or a content strategist, site maps are rarely valuable documents to show them. Why then, is the site map continually socialized to the wrong stakeholders, and incorrectly positioned as a dependency for other Design deliverables (Which we know will result in the site map becoming a road block for the rest of the Design process)?

Site maps confuse and distract certain stakeholders, because:

• Site maps are abstract, system-level documents - They document a system, but are not visually representative of that system at an interface level. Consequently, they take a certain level of extrapolation to understand how the hierarchy works, at a page, or screen, level.
• Site maps can appear dense or complex - Site maps take time to study and understand. You'll likely have about an hour, max, to present your site architecture to your client. How on Earth are you going to convey that level of complexity and detail, in that amount of time, especially to a "C-Level" executive? When designing a site map, think about simplifying the diagram, or presenting multiple views of the map, "peeling away the layers of the onion," to gradually expose more detail.
• Site map "approval" is typically considered a dependency for the start of the Design process - Yeah. It's weird to think that everyone on the team expects the Information Architect or User Experience Designer to completely nail the entire taxonomy and flow of an application, without even having sketched a screen or two. Word of advice...don't hold up Design, while awaiting site map approvals.
• Site maps are NOT good for presentation of a UX vision - There are more effective visualizations, infographics, and high-level diagrams that can be utilized to convey the User Experience Vision, or Strategy, for an application, to a marketing executive. The interconnection of pages or screens isn't a visualization of a strategy. It is a visualization of a content hierarchy.

What are site maps good for, then, if they aren't great tools to convey the high-level vision for an application?

• Site maps are good for development and implementation - Site maps are invaluable documents to illustrate to developers, how to construct the hierarchy of pages or screens in the application. It is a document that is generally delivered to a client or team of developers, prior to the screen level user interface designs. That being said, I strongly recommend that site maps are not considered "FINAL," until the very end of the Design process. There. I said it!
• Site maps are good for content development and categorization - Because site maps represent the "outline" of the content, they need to convey, in some cases, the flow of the narrative to the end-user. This is especially true when designing the information architecture of a marketing web site or application. Content strategists and developers will want to map their copy and content to the site map sections and sub-sections.
• Site maps are good for SEO planning  - The underlying framework of a web site is extremely important, when planning for the search engine optimization of a web site. It is critical to understand the likely searches that consumers will perform to access the client's web site, and create an information architecture that will, at a primary level, satisfy likely searches. Thus, the site map becomes a communications tool amongst four parties:
• Information Architects/User Experience Designers
• Copywriters
• SEO planners
• Developers

Of course, old habits die hard. It will take a long time before agencies realize that they shouldn't, out of habit, shove the "site map" deliverable at the beginning of a project plan, and require the client "sign-off" on the document before the Design process begins. But, please don't force the client's CEO, or CMO, to sit through that presentation!

Jonathan Lupo - http://www.twitter.com/userexperience

Social Marketing: Reach Vs. Engagement

There seem to be two opposing sides on the topic of marketing through Social Media. Although I'm certainly no expert, and never claimed to be, I can say that the side whose platform is "get as many followers as you can," is probably less credible than the those who believe that success on Social is determined by how engaged your followers are with you, and with the content you push.

That being said, social media should be treated like any other marketing medium, and a balance needs to be struck between "Reach" and "Engagement." These are classic marketing objectives that are measureable, with metrics and indicators to allow for improvement over time.

Mobile UX Strategy - Web Site or App?

With the wide consumer adoption of smartphones and tablets, digital consulting firms are proposing mobile tactics as part of a larger digital strategy, to their clients, based on an understanding of their clients' business objectives, competitor landscape, and consumer needs. When proposing this strategy, consultants must decide whether it is more beneficial to their client's business, to develop a native, mobile application, or to build a mobile-optimized, web site.

Recent research seems to suggest that, in general, consumers prefer to engage with native mobile applications (due to their responsiveness, and because they are better able to leverage some of the nifty, user-interface capabilities of the mobile device). However, mobile-optimized web sites enable businesses to be accessible on a wider spectrum of form factors and devices.

The question is, since there are clear benefits to both tactics, how should a business decide which mobile tactic would best meet their specific needs?

The following are key considerations to help a business decide upon a mobile direction ( App vs. Mobile Web Site):

1. How well-known is the client's brand? There is a greater likelihood that consumers will seek and download an app from a well-known brand than a lesser-known brand, so, brands with less awareness are more reliant on app store placement, prominence, and promotion, to gain popularity with consumers. Since an app has a limited "promotional" window within an app store showcase, a lesser-known brand should consider entering the mobile space with a mobile-optimized web site. Why? The client probably already has a traditional web site that has gained a certain amount of organic search engine equity over the course of years. Consumers are more likely to look for services that the client offers, via mobile search, than directly searching for the brand, via app download.

2. What are key, mobile use cases, based on anticipated, consumer behavior? Are they "online" or "offline" use cases? One benefit to native applications, depending on their intended functionality, is that they can sometimes be useful in an "offline" situation. Mobile-optimized web sites, on the other hand, are always accessed via "the cloud," restricting their usage to "online" use cases. A key question a business should ask itself, is whether or not the application needs to function when end-users are offline. If so, a native application may be the way to go.

3. What is the "technographic profile" of the consumer base? The technographic profile of an end-user segment, describes the nature of the segment's likely adoption of relevant technology. An important consideration, when developing a mobile strategy targeted to this segment, is, obviously, whether or not the target segment is likely to adopt the application's intended mobile platform. If not, or if adoption will likely be spread across a wide variety of mobile platforms, the mobile strategy may lean in the direction of mobile-optimized web site, versus a platform-specific application.

4. Will the app functionality need to access data or capabilities native to the mobile device? As mentioned earlier, an application may be more useful, or engaging, if it leverages specific features of a smartphone or tablet, which cannot be accessed by a mobile-optimized web site. If this is the case, choosing to develop a native, mobile application, may make it easier for a client to take advantage of the cool features of the application's intended devices.

5. What is the budget for the mobile initiative? Developing a native, mobile application may be costly for clients with a limited budget (depending on the functionality of the application). Additionally, the native application may need to be redesigned, to be optimized for a variety of form factors, which, ultimately, increases costs. If a client only needs a simple, mobile presence, and wants to be accessible on a wide spectrum of mobile platforms, it may be a good idea to recommend a simple, mobile-optimized, web site.

6. How aggressive is the timeline for the initiative? Aggressive timelines may actually prevent a client from developing a native application, distributed via an "app store" like Apple's. Consultants must factor in the "app store approval process," when planning a mobile application's design, development, and deployment, timeline. If the application does not meet the standards of the app store (and Apple has very strict standards), there is a risk that an aggressive timeline may be blown.

7. Will there be an eCommerce, transactional component, to the mobile application? Currently, all purchases of digital media (music, movies, etc.) initiated via native iOS applications, must end up as iTunes transactions. That means that Apple gets a percentage of each sale initiated through a native iOS application. To avoid paying the fee, a business with redundant digital media products to those found on iTunes, should consider developing a mobile-optimized web site, as a consumer-facing storefront.

In short, the decision to build a native app, or develop a mobile-optimized web site, requires careful consideration. Consultants need to thoroughly examine a client's brand, business, and likely end-user behavior, before making this decision. Making the wrong decision could be costly, miss a window of opportunity, or result in an application that goes largely unnoticed by it's intended audience. As always, planning, through careful investigation of business objectives, as well as likely, end-user behavior, can prevent a failed mobile strategy.

"Just-in-Time" Mobile Apps

With mobile application design and development, "timing is everything."

That's because smartphone users are fickle when it comes to downloading applications. There is a low-barrier to acquiring content, because apps are cheap and quick to download. Unlike desktop software, mobile applications fill end-user desires, cravings, and short-term needs. Mobile apps do not always suit the longer-term needs of end-users. For example, on the days leading up to Hurricane Irene, I scoured Apple's App Store, looking for the best Hurricane Tracker. After the storm, having found an app to suit my short-term needs, I, just as quickly, deleted the application from my iPhone.

My behavior does not appear to be anomalous, judging from a recent study of Mobile App users, conducted by a Massachusetts-based application analytics firm, Localytics.

With thousands of Android, iPhone, iPad, BlackBerry and Windows Phone 7 apps analyzed, the study found that users do tend to try out new apps, but 26% use the app only once!

This study seems to underscore a need for mobile application developers to think about the timing of their mobile application deployment, as well as the customer "needs" their application is intended to fill. As always, it is recommended that app developers conduct primary research with their end-users, to gain a deep understanding of their likely behavior and engagement with the app. Research for mobile development should include customer investigation around the types of events, motivations, and triggers for mobile application usage.

Another opportunity for mobile application developers seems to be the targeting an application for specific, time-based, events, such as:

1. Holidays
2. Conferences
3. Theatrical Releases
4. Political Events
5. Sporting Events

Thus, app developers may consider capitalizing on a major event, with the understanding that the application is likely to be used once, and then removed.

Goal-Oriented Design: a Primer

Design is purposeful, and, by definition, aims to achieve goals. Good Design, therefore, begins with a careful examination of the specific goals it aims to achieve. Because Design is engineered to achieve goals, there is a process to follow, which includes the observation and analysis of potential end-user engagement, with the Design.

There is unprecedented potential for user engagement and interactivity with contemporary, digital applications. Engagement is multi-channel, complex, and social. Therefore, it is more important than ever for Designers to conduct contextual research with end-users, and analyze their behavior across a wide spectrum of devices.

Step 1 - Identify End-User Goals, in addition to Business Objectives, for the Design

Design, for business applications, aims to achieve two sets of goals:

1.      First and foremost, Design aims to achieve measureable, business objectives.

2.      Innovative businesses also understand that Design needs to meet end-user goals

Step 2 – Hire a “Design Research Specialist”
It takes a special type of Designer to properly identify and document end-user objectives. She must begin the process as a detective, systematically observing and analyzing relevant user behaviors to the business. Luckily, this specialist (an Information Architect, perhaps), has a Design research methodology at her disposal. Following a “User Centered Design” process, she conducts her investigation, and sifts through a mountain of behavioral data to plan a Design that can achieve its intended objectives.

Step 3 – Perform the Right Research: “Contextual, Behavioral Research”
Only a specialist is able to recognize the influence that an environment has on user behavior. She understands that a special type of user research is required, to collect information about environmental factors on behavior. Contextual, ethnographic research is the ideal method of observing natural user behavior, versus lab-based research, which may be less accurate due to environmental bias. This type of research, called “Contextual Inquiry,” captures relevant behaviors, where the interaction is most likely to occur (e.g. - an office, a home, or a shopping mall).

Step 4 – Understand how to Properly Analyze Research Data – Information Architecture
Contextual Inquiry findings are qualitative in nature, so the richness of the finding is more important than the amount of data that the research study produces. The reason that the quantity of data is not important in qualitative research is due to the fact that behavioral trends emerge quickly. That being said, Contextual Inquiry can still generate a large quantity of rich data, which require a specialist to interpret. As behavioral trends emerge, so do different “types of users.” Information Architects illustrate key behavioral differences, as uncovered in the research, in the form of behavioral personas. Behavioral personas highlight different sets of primary tasks that are important to each “type of user.” Aggregating key tasks, in the form of personas, help designers make sure that their Design accommodates the needs of each primary type of user.

Information Architects go a step further in their qualitative analysis, by extracting the key tasks from each persona to form end-user “mental models.” Mental models are a grouping of each user segment’s tasks, into task categories and sub-tasks. The goal of the mental model is to identify and prioritize all key user tasks for each segment. Once completed, the Information Architect can generate ideas for content to satisfy each user task identified in the mental model. This process makes it easy for an Information Architect to define the high-level information architecture of a digital application.

Step 5 – Synthesize Research Data into Design – Interaction Design/UI
Once an overarching, information architecture is established, an Information Architect proceeds to define the screen-level user interface, and interaction model, for the application. Often, screen-level design begins with a simple, series of questions that the Information Architect asks herself. “What is the most important element on this screen?” Then, “what is the second most important element on this screen.” It is a process of task prioritization that drives the layout of each screen. Behavioral research also provides valuable insights about the level of sophistication with the interfaces that each user type encounters on a daily basis. Observing this behavior helps Information Architects understand the “Technographic Profile,” or level of proficiency with technology, of each user segment. They then use this knowledge as a filter for the level of sophistication of the user interface elements they propose.

Design Tip: Collaboration is the Key to Great Design
A good user centered design process should strive to include participation from different Design disciplines. I recommend having a visual designer accompany an Information Architect on research studies to observe, 1st-hand, likely, end-user behavior. Observation gives Designers greater Empathy for the application’s end-users.

Re-evalua

Great Thinking is Never "Out-of-Scope"

"Out-of-scope" is a phrase that Creative professionals are used to hearing from budget-conscious Project Managers and Account Managers who, to their credit, are trying to ensure a profitable account for a consulting business. While it may be true that the cost and effort to implement a great idea may be "out-of-scope," based on a given project budget or statement of work, great ideas are NEVER out of scope, and should be generated constantly for clients. When Creative professionals are regularly told that "thinking," "brainstorming ideas," and "innovating," are "out-of-scope," they will limit their thinking to following "client requirements." However, that's not, in most cases, why a client hires a consulting agency. If they just needed a firm to execute on requirements, chances are they would hire a team of freelancers or use internal resources to do production work around a given set of requirements.

But, that's not what happened.

The client hired you to think about their problems, customers, and business. The client wants you to help them identify a strategic roadmap for deploying tactics that will evolve their business. If you come up with killer ideas, the Project Manager and Account Manager need to help the client figure out how to execute them, within timeline and budgetary parameters. And, if it can't be done, within the initial timeline and budget, it's your job, as a great consultant, to document your recommendations, so that these ideas can be put on a roadmap for the future.

...oh, and bill it to "business development (non-billable)."

Thrill your client. Give them great thinking. Be a great consultant and you will be rewarded with new projects.

Reinventing Registration Forms

Perhaps the biggest challenge for a website designer, from a brand and user experience perspective, is the design of the website's registration form flow. When designing an experience around registration, User experience designers generally focus on the creation of usable forms, best practices, and optimizing the process. The end result, however, is always a form. Whether it is a single page form, or multi-page form, registration always results in a form. All in all, it seems that registration never benefits from the due diligence of understanding a brand, content strategy, or likely user behavior...which is odd, given that the registration process poses the biggest threat to the perception of a client's brand, if the process results in a poor user experience.

Marketers and keepers of the brand also have high expectations from consumers, when they ask them to register. They tend to add "optional" marketing fields, hoping that the consumer will freely offer up their personal information. The problem is, on a registration form, there is usually no apparent benefit to giving the brand additional, optional, personal information.

It's time to rethink the registration form.

Designers should begin with an in-depth understanding of their client's brand, tone, and voice. The end goal, is to convince the consumer that there is a worthwhile reward for offering up the information that is being solicited. Asking the consumer for personal information, and then illustrating the benefits of doing so, requires a two-way dialogue.

As designers, we should ask ourselves, is a "form" the best vehicle to have a conversation with the consumer?

Perhaps, we need to understand and map out the dialogue that the brand would like to have with the consumer, if the brand was an actual person, engaged in a conversation. Maybe it would go something like this:

"Hello. We are psyched that you are here, and think you are going to enjoy your experience. Let's get to know each other!"

"What's your name? _______________"

"Thanks, {username}!

Did you know that, if you connect us with your Facebook profile, we'll be able to provide you with instant recommendations for products and services? We promise that your personal information and profile will be safe, and not given to a third-party.

"Would you like to sign-in to Facebook, now? _______________"

(if they do connect with Facebook quickly reveal how many recommendations are being generated)

Etc.

The point is, as Usability Engineers, we tend to focus on how quickly end-users complete the registration process, instead of how effective the experience is at encouraging consumers to have a deeper level of engagement with the brand. In theory, creating a meaningful dialogue, highlighting consumer benefits, and designing an engaging experience, should result in deeper brand connections, versus a quick, optimized form.

Best Practices Are Killing You

Not too long ago, digital media was a palette for pioneers to express new concepts, for reasons that were both personal and professional. At that time, however, the limitations on expression were severe. Bandwidth was low. Screens were smaller. Access was tethered. The buzz came from the ability to produce a valuable concept, and share it, instantly, with the world.

The early days of digital expression required individuals to focus on their ideas, because the sizzle was costly. But, it didn't matter. The idea was what was important. We got Google, eBay, and Amazon. Those days produced iconic, digital brands that defined specific types of user experiences. As soon as these useful experiences gained traction in the digital marketplace, consumers got accustomed to "design patterns," which usability professionals named, "best practices."

Suddenly, there were rules that governed the user experience design of specific types of digital experiences (Search. Browse. Buy.) These rules allowed other, "me too" brands, to quickly design and deploy digital storefronts and experiences for consumers to easily perform intended tasks, and, just as quickly, leave. Consumers became "users," reduced to their personified behaviors, and focused on specific tasks. Brands became largely irrelevant, because their platforms, engineered from "best practices," rendered them invisible to "mindless users" who came to complete tasks, and only remembered that Google got them to where they needed to be.

The rules of the universe have now changed.

Every conceivable service is available through every conceivable digital channel. Bandwidth is high. Screens are huge. Everything is connected to the cloud. Experiences are multi-channel. Possibilities are endless.

In this new world, if you are a brand that offers a commodity product or service, and you are content to apply "best practices" to provide these services to consumers, prepare to be squashed!

Ask yourself, "why is Apple the most important brand in the universe?" Because the brand stands for something. It is synonymous with innovation, and the creation of memorable, engaging, user experiences, with the launch of each new product and service.

So, why are user experience designers content to apply "best practices" to client experiences? Because it is easy to do so. Applying design patterns to an experience requires no brand or customer investigation. It reduces Experience Design to thoughtless Design production. Worse, this practice is envangelized by notable, self-proclaimed, Usability experts.

If your brand is well-known for the products and services it offers to consumers, to the extent that it is top-of-mind to consumers within a specific category, then it may be ok to apply "best practices" to your digital user experience. However, don't rely on best practices for too long, as you can rest assured that another brand is thinking about how to reinvent and differentiate the same digital products and services that you offer to consumers.

Mobile Platforms Force Us to be Better UX Designers

A few years ago, in a time before iPhones and iPads, designing for mobile platforms meant designing within serious constraints. Limited screen real estate, low bandwidth, and minimal browser capabilities, forced us to be minimalistic in our approach to mobile web user interfaces. Usability and Clarity were core Design principles, during the mobile web's "Dark Ages." In those days, the focus was squarely on facilitating key user tasks and behaviors that made sense, based on what the user was likely doing with the phone. Today's sophisticated, mobile devices, have amazing capabilities. They have large, multi-touch screens, access to WiFi as well as fast mobile networks, application marketplaces, GPS, video capabilities, etc., etc. In theory, "the sky's the limit" when it comes to contemporary, mobile user interfaces.

Inherent in this new found freedom, however, is the temptation to ignore all of the lessons that "Constrained Design" has taught. Luckily, new standards, trends in usage, design patterns, and best practices are emerging, to help Designers keep the focus on what is important to Mobile UX Design:

1. Understand likely usage - Your consumers' mobile usage is probably going to be different than their web usage. Seek to understand what your end-consumer is trying to do on a phone or tablet before you attempt to re-present your entire web site within a mobile context.

2. Simplify the user experience - The secret to great interface design is the ability to make it instantly intuitive to end-users. Avoid the temptation to clutter the interface with unneccessary options, filters, and interface "decorations."

3. Elevate and prioritize key tasks - Select the top 4 main tasks, and elevate them to the main menu bar. Understand what is a top-level task, and what is a sub-task that can be integrated contextually within the appropriate top-level task.

4. Tailor the experience to the strengths of the platform - This is the fun aspect of Mobile UX Design! Consider the cool features of the target, mobile platform, and exploit them in the user experience. For instance, if an application is intended to deliver recommendations to the user based on geography, consider using a native GPS functionality of a phone to bring these recommendations back instantly, based on the user's current location.

5. Start with a great core concept, and enhance it over time - Simplicity should be the guiding principle of the core concept of the application, as well as the interface itself. Launch an application with a few key features, and develop a roadmap of enhancements over time, based on usage patterns, industry trends, and level of effort.

My Life as an [INFOGRAPHIC]

I thought I'd jump on the bandwagon, "INFOGRAPHIC" craze, so I created a graphic of my professional history. I wish more resumes that are passed on to us at Empathy Lab were graphically depicted.