All posts about
User experience

User experience is about how a person feels about using a product, system or service. (source: Wikipedia)

Designing desirable experiences

Added on 23 August 2016 Peter Bogaards

The holy trinity: Usable, useful and desirable experiences.

“There is no justification for designing something that doesn’t solve a problem. However, the whole world is ready to consume things based on their aesthetic elegance. We cannot ignore the value of beauty. So, as a designer, if you can use your problem-solving ability to create a product that has great utility—as well as characteristics such as desirability, elegance, and beauty—and inspires pride of ownership, you can create a delightful ownership experience. Human emotions such as joy, pride, and love will enrich your product experience and actually give life to the product, making its ownership compelling and truly fulfilling.”

Arindam Roy a.k.a. /arindam-roy ~ UXmatters ★

Careers in UX: How different organizations approach user experience design

Added on 13 July 2016 Peter Bogaards

Multiple flavors of how to embed UX design in orgs.

“When looking for a job in UX, the company, team, manager, and even sector, company size, and focus should all factor into finding the right place. The core skills for UX jobs are consistent across different kinds of organizations, but some might be a better fit for different work styles, personality types, or interests. I’m writing from the perspective of a UX researcher, but the following exploration certainly applies to other UX roles. I’ll be drawing on my experiences working at several different types of organizations, as well as numerous conversations with other UX professionals talking about their experiences. Let’s take a look at four different but common types of organizations that employ UX professionals, along with some pros and cons for working with each.”

Laith Ulaby a.k.a. /laith-ulaby ~ UX Booth ★

Second-hand UX: The social implications of tangible tech

Added on 28 June 2016 Peter Bogaards

In open ecosystems, the experiences of all humans matter.

“From a philosophical perspective, a lack of care about the psychological and sociological toll our products may take on users could drastically alter the concept of a traditional society altogether. It’s better to recognize and reverse potentially harmful design patterns now before habits and cultural beliefs lose sight of social concerns that were once fundamental. Despite popular belief, money and societal good do not have to be mutually exclusive. Let’s start taking second-hand experience into consideration and make it a core part of the way we practice UX.”

Dash Neimark a.k.a. /uxdash | @ux_Dash ~ Boxes and Arrows ★

Why emerging technologies are the next great frontier for UX

Added on 27 June 2016 Peter Bogaards

UX seems technology-driven, but it’s not. Experiences are as old as humans are, in whatever circumstances.

“Robotics. Genomics. Synthetic biology. Such emerging technologies are today at the cusp of widespread commercial adoption and will have disruptive impact across industries—from agriculture to manufacturing and health to energy. These technologies are the next great frontier for User Experience. Science, engineering, and design are percolating on solutions to many technological challenges. UX designers are bringing the expertise they’ve gained in creating digital and physical products to bear on new robotic and even biological products. For instance, at the Wyss Institute, cross-disciplinary teams comprising scientists, engineers, designers, business people, and other innovators are creating and commercializing bio-inspired products. Last year, the Bio/Nano Programmable Matter group at Autodesk created a synthetic bacteriophage and 3D printed the virus. The company, which is best known for its design and engineering software, is now working on a next-gen software platform for synthetic-biology design.”

Jonathan Follett a.k.a. /jonfollett | @jonfollett ~ UXmatters ★

Customer experience versus user experience: Why the difference matters

Added on 23 June 2016 Peter Bogaards

The delta creates the concepts.

“User experience is not the same as customer experience. While most designers directly influence the UX, they also need to understand the larger context of the CX. The customer experience represents every step of the journey from when users are running price comparisons, to when users try the product, to when users may resort to customer service if their needs aren’t met.”

Jerry Cao a.k.a. /thinkjerrycao | @jerrycao_uxpin ~ The Next Web ★ courtesy of @nicooooooon

Traditional User Experience is at a crossroads (part 1)

Added on 1 June 2016 Peter Bogaards

Pick your wars as a UX leader.

“Great UX leaders understand what it takes to transform a company into a design-led organization. They know how to set up an organizational structure and inspire a culture that can attract the best talent—a culture that lets designers do what they do best and incorporates strategic design thinking into the organization. Such leaders also understand the language of business and can communicate within a business framework.”

Jim Nieters a.k.a. /jimnieters | @Jimnieters ~ UXmatters ★

What’s the difference between an experience and a customer experience?

Added on 23 May 2016 Peter Bogaards

Broadening the scope of (marketing) definitions.

“So if you think your UX and CX are enough to surprise and delight your audience, you’re not quite right. It’s how you weave those features into the bigger story you’re trying to tell as a brand that really matters. That’s what experience is, and that’s what you should be striving for with your marketing this year.”

Ted Karczewski a.k.a. /tedhartkarczewski | @TeddyHK ~ ContentStandard ★

OOUX: A foundation for interaction design

Added on 19 April 2016 Peter Bogaards

Where’s The Gang of Four?

“That’s what Object Oriented UX is all about—thinking in terms of objects before actions. In my previous article, we learned how to define objects and design a framework based on those objects. This time, we’re exploring how to smoothly transition from big-picture OOUX to interaction design by using a very simple tool: the CTA (‘Call-To-Action’) Inventory.”

Sophia Voychehovski a.k.a. /sophiav | @sophiavux ~ A List Apart ★

The difference between UI and UX

Added on 6 April 2016 Peter Bogaards

Apparently, this delta needs to be addressed again, again, and again.

“In today’s creative and technical environment, the terms UI (User Interface) and UX (User Experience) are being used more than ever. Overall, these terms are referring to specialties and ideas that have been around for years prior to the introduction of the abbreviated terminology. But the problem with these new abbreviations is more than just nomenclature. Unfortunately, the terms are quickly becoming dangerous buzzwords: using these terms imprecisely and in often completely inappropriate situations is a constant problem for a growing number of professionals, including: designers, job seekers, and product development specialists. Understanding the proper separation, relationship and usage of the terms is essential to both disciplines.”

Code My Views ★

The 11 minute guide to a bulletproof UX strategy

Added on 5 April 2016 Peter Bogaards

In a blink of an eye you have a UX STRATegy.

“The heart of great UX strategy lies in thorough research. Unfortunately, UX research is usually a mess. If you’re an outsider, you’re still getting to know everyone involved in the project at the same time you’re navigating which research activities to take on. If you’re an insider, it can be the same story.”

Robert Hoekman Jr a.k.a. /rhoekmanjr | @rhjr ~ TNW ★

Seven UX principles to include in your content that will hook readers

Added on 4 April 2016 Peter Bogaards

The magical number 7, for text only.

“(…) treating your content like a startup. This is something I’ve always been sure to do, and intend on doing it for my new book too. But that’s a product I intend to sell. Oftentimes we neglect the content that takes care of our marketing goals by confining it to a limited framework. When you treat your content as a product, instead of “just” a piece of content, you give it the attention and worth it deserves. And just like products, the user experience of your content matters just as much as the value you deliver within it.”

Tom Whatley a.k.a. /thetomwhatley | @thetomwhatley ~ Content Marketer ★

Making meaningful things together: Working towards a mature business

Added on 29 March 2016 Peter Bogaards

How team work is determined by its context.

“Sometimes people create conflicts during a project that only serve to get in the way of making meaningful things together. Or in other words, unnecessary and petty battles make work not fun and not productive. But why would people create such conflict? Perhaps a project was plagued by one, all, or some of the following factors: requirements were not collected or understood clearly, the core of the offering was not defined properly, there was too much distance between the customer and the project goals, too much money had been spent already for the project to fail, or it could be as simple as people just not knowing how to get along. All of these factors can make an environment of fear and uncertainty that prevents people from working together to create wonderful products and services. What elements of a project should we all be thinking about to help bring people together to make meaningful things together?”

Daniel Szuc and Josephine Wong ~ Journal for usability studies ★

Improving UX with Pixar’s 22 rules of storytelling

Added on 21 March 2016 Peter Bogaards

Just follow the rules. And then break them.

“UX designers know the importance of telling a good story—we strive to give our users a comprehensive understanding of our creations with consistency, accuracy, and intuitiveness. Recognizing the relationship between these disciplines resulted in a relatively fluid translation of Emma Coats’ rules into lessons for good UX. Think of these as a set of guidelines to facilitate your creative process.”

Eric Celedonia a.k.a. /ericceledonia | @ericceledonia Invision blog ★

A new challenger appears: UX prototyping, user feedback, and the rise of anime

Added on 2 March 2016 Peter Bogaards

Making, the most human activity there is.

“In this article, I’ll describe the UX and digital marketing prototyping methodology and then what I understand of a particular TV show genre counterpart. I’ll explore fundamental differences in these processes and outline what television can learn from UX. From there, I’ll introduce a unique storytelling ecosystem that already naturally integrates some UX techniques and how that leads, in my humble opinion, to the best TV in the world.”

Montgomery Webster a.k.a. /mxmlln | @uxMonty ~ Boxes and Arrows ★

Bridging the gap between content and design

Added on 16 February 2016 Peter Bogaards

Words and numbers as design material.

“Everything around us is designed on some level. There are decisions made about both the function and the form. This does not mean that everything is good design and that everyone should be a designer – just as every piece of content is not good content and everyone should not become a content manager or copywriter.”

Renata Barros a.k.a. /renatabarros | @rjmbarros ~ Gather Content ★

Why desktop UX still has something to teach mobile

Added on 14 January 2016 Peter Bogaards

The more reflective the designer is, the more it doesn’t matter how big the screen is. Only context then drives design.

“Mobile isn’t killing desktop in the way most of us expected it to. It is clearly the future growth platform of computing (at least, until the next thing comes along) but we have over-hyped the New Market Effect, focusing on “the shiny” and not paying attention to critical microinteractions that make a difference. We are so in love with flashy UX features that we ignore the deep impact of the proven and the mundane. The directions listed here are too easily ignored. They are actually the core building blocks of powerful UX experiences and need to be improved. It’s just a bit surprising that so much mobile inspiration can come from its inferior predecessor, the desktop UX.”

Scott Jenson a.k.a. /scottjenson | @scottjenson ~ FastCo.Design ★