Dive into user experience topics, issues and discussions based on our usability consulting. Want to learn about Lean UX, Mobile UX or how Interaction Design can apply to your project? You're in the right place.

A piece of our mind / our blog

It's time to think about time in your UX Design

By Frank Spillers

on July 18, 2018 - 11:12pm

Summary: Time is an important design variable to understand. Time or temporal aspects of tasks hide metaphors, flows or triggers that you can bring into your deisgn. Designs that miss out on the time aspect of Interaction Design face a poor or failed user experience. 

Examples of Time in Design

1. Pizza ordering: Domino's uses the time tracker as a way to manage expecations. 

dominos delivery tracker

2. Ticket-ordering: TicketMaster and others use the countdown timer to secure the purchase (and refresh inventory). 

TicketMaster countdown UI

How compliant is 'good enough' for Web Accessibility?

By Frank Spillers

on July 6, 2018 - 1:39pm
accessibility compliance keyboard

Summary: Accessibility compliance is governed by laws (Section 508 of the ADA in the US and the soon to be ratified European Accessibility Act). Web developers look to WCAG 2.0 of the W3 standards organization and typically aim at "AA" compliance. This article explores quality from an accessibility standpoint and points to areas of better compliance that go beyond the "getting by" approach. 

How your team defines "user research" can hurt your UX

By Frank Spillers

on July 5, 2018 - 8:18am
man at whiteboard looking frustrated

Summary: 'User research' has become a catch-all phrase to mean user testing in many organizations. User research has two main activities: usability testing and field studies. Defining your design research with only a validation exercise (testing) misses the essential discovery of user needs, pain points and desires that Ethnographic Field Studies provide. User research should always mean more than just user testing!

How are you defining user research?

Many organizations we work with and UX designers we provide training for, tell us they do 'user research'. Once we dig deeper, we find they are defining user research as user testing. This means only half of UX insights are actually making it to your team.  

The two main types of user research your team needs access to:

Differentiating your Mobile UX strategy

By Frank Spillers

on June 5, 2018 - 3:04pm

Summary: [VIDEO] 30 min recording from the Experience Dynamics webinar "Mobile UX Design: Use this process to get differentiation right!". In this webinar, Frank Spillers reveals some essential UX process secrets to our award-winning strategy for designing the mobile app user experience. 

Fact: Uninstall is the default: The average mobile app retention rate is 20% after just 90 days (i.e. 80% stop using installed apps after 3 months) -Localytics (2016).

Most approaches to Mobile UX Design sucks! Mobile app retention rates are spiraling downwards. We maintain, this is because many mobile app ideas are typically invented from a good idea, a conversation or your product requirements...not from your users world. Next mobile app design is outsourced or drawn up by a skilled designer. The result? Looks amazing, but doesn't hit the spot.

The importance of Storytelling for Presence in AR UX

By Frank Spillers

on May 28, 2018 - 4:56pm
woman explores Augmented Reality object

Summary: Storytelling is instrumental to delivering good UX in augmented or virtual environments. Storytelling evokes emotion, captures attention, guides and directs user interaction. One of it's primary functions is to deepen the usability goal called "presence" (the feeling of being there). 

Why is storytelling in AR so important?

Storytelling is critical for moving past "boring" in AR. Without good storytelling your user experience can stagnate or lead to poor engagement, confusion or helpless exploration. And storytelling is not just about transmitting content to your user... In AR, as with VR, story keeps 3D UX interaction on track. It provides experiential structure: users are pulled in or pushed out, moving toward or away from events or areas of the environment (physical or augmented)-- by design. 

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