sxsw 2012: the visual interface is now your brand
DESCRIPTION
Like it or not, the digital world has changed at a wicked pace and more and more interactions between companies and customers now happen via an interface. Careful consideration of the software's design is of paramount importance to any company wishing to grow their customer base or loyalty. At the center of this change sits the user experience, which has become a huge influence in how customers perceive a company's brand. Traditional marketing principles and practices aren’t effective in software. So how do you create an experience that is usable, desirable, and still stands out? Myers, an interface and brand specialist in design, marketing, and development for 16 years, will highlight the differences of software from other forms of media, you’ll gain insight for creating a truly unique experience that guides executives and teams, and can influence your company’s culture. You’ll learn new techniques such as defining the ideal experience, exploring first impressions with visual language studies, and designing signature interactions. These techniques build a memorable experience that’s hard for your competitors to mimic and your customers will fall in love with.TRANSCRIPT
› Nick Myers
@nickmyer5 #SXvisuibrand
The visual interface is now your brand
Visual design and the interface How to create unique digital experiences Engaging customers How user experience can influence the brand
What I’ll be talking about
More customer interactions are now digital More customer interactions are now digital
User experiences have improved User experiences have improved
Products are now more usable Products are now simpler
Expecta5ons are now higher Expectations are now higher
Expecta5ons are now higher Expectations are now higher
Expecta5ons are now higher We’re a spoiled bunch!
Expectations for mobile website speed increased from 58% in 2009 to 71% in 2011 for websites to load as quickly, almost as quickly or faster on their mobile phone compared to the computer they use at home. Nearly 60% of web users say they expect a website to load on their mobile phone in 3 seconds or less.
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People’s expecta5ons are constantly being redefined
Expectations are constantly being redefined
But compe55on is now more fierce Competition is now greater. Intuitive and simple are not enough to differentiate
www.flickr.com/photos/retrocactus/4949516534/
Design is now more strategic Design is more strategic
How do we respond to higher expectations, massive challenges, and also stand out?
What is brand? First…
A strong brand creates compe55ve advantage
A strong brand creates competitive advantage
Brands are defined by a customer’s experience
Brands are defined by a customer’s experience
User experience now has a greater influence on the brand
User experience now has a greater influence on the brand
As of Dec 2011, Facebook received 2.7 billion likes and comments per day.
Software is different
Organizations must understand customers
We need new methods to exceed expectations
4 key factors that elevate your digital brand
User experience should influence brands
Software is different
+ GE
+ Thomson Reuters
+ NetApp
Many companies are now software makers Many companies are now software makers
GE is now the 14th largest software provider in the world
SoFware is not fashion Software is not fashion
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ham-hock/3698805401/
Visual design sets expecta5ons, but the experience must deliver
Visual design sets expectations, but experience must deliver
Software needs to feel timeless Software needs to feel timeless
2001 2009
Digital products are more complex Digital products are more complex
The visual system must be more precise
There are fewer opportuni5es to present an iden5ty
Fewer opportunities to present an identity
The identity lives in the details The identity lives in the details
But too much personality interferes with the experience
Most importantly, we’re designing for people first
Screens are smaller and projected to overtake larger screens in the next few years
Screens are smaller
The interface is fading The interface is fading
www.flickr.com/photos/kjd/537496939/
Mo5on and interac5on now have greater influence on the experience (Clear app)
Interactions + motion have greater influence on the experience
Defining and creating a memorable experience
First, you must understand
Business objectives User needs Brand guidelines
Understand the problem
Workshops help define the experience more vividly
Images bring life to the conversation and guide an ideal experience
The experience is defined The experience is defined
Brand messaging is one-way communication. Experience attributes consider the customer’s perspective and context and is two-way communication
Why is this different?
Brand messaging
User needs + context
Business goals
Explore the visual language Explore the visual language
Ini5al impressions Ini5al impressions
Abstract visual studies from behavior Abstract visual studies from real behavior
Explore iden5ty in context We’re creating identities for the interface
Explore the behavioral language Explore the behavioral language
Signature interac5ons can differen5ate and delight
Signature interactions can differentiate and add delight
Customers remember, and share the amazingly good and amazingly bad experiences
Amazingly good Amazingly bad
www.flickr.com/photos/cote/4675658738/
Design patterns aren’t memorable
Conflict between unique and usable Conflict between unique vs. usable
How to create signature interac5ons Signature interaction: core experience, generate as a team, style, prototype
Signature interac5ons are no value if other founda5onal needs aren’t met
Remember: You can’t reach the top of the pyramid without a solid foundation
It’s easy to be different, but it’s difficult to be beYer
Connecting with customers
Only a deep understanding of our customers builds passion and brand loyalty
Only a deep understanding of our customers builds passion and brand loyalty
Inspira5on from ecosystems and permaculture
Permaculture help designers model a final design based on an observation of how ecosystems interact.
Modern “permanent culture” is a system design tool
A way of looking at the whole system or problem. And trying to fix what’s broken.
1 of Holmgren’s 12 design principles
Use edges and value the marginal: The interface between things is where the most interesting events take place. These are often the most valuable, diverse and productive elements in the system.
1 of Holmgren’s 12 design principles
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Let’s look at an organiza5on Let’s look at an organiza5on
Many of us are stuck in the middle Let’s look at an organiza5on Many of us are stuck in the middle
This was especially true of engineers This was especially true of engineers
All the ac5on is happening on the edges
All the ac5on is happening at the edges of your organiza5on
Effec5ve product teams in large companies operate closer to the edge
Effec5ve product teams operate close to the edge
Touchpoints are at the edges Touchpoints are at the edges
Staying in the center keeps you blind The center is blind to the edges
And tensions grow between marke5ng and product teams
And tensions grow between marke5ng and product teams
Brand guidelines are center-‐focused Brand guidelines are centrally created
Surveys are narrow views Surveys are narrowly focused
TiVo’s survey doesn’t collect insight of what I want or need
Market segmenta5on tools are sales-‐focused even if personas are created
Marke5ng segmenta5on is sales-‐driven
Usability tes5ng is inside because it’s oFen in a fabricated environment and it’s really only beneficial for valida5on
Usability tes5ng happens inside in a fabricated environment
And focus groups are just one big party in the center
And focus groups are just one big party in the middle
Even social media is a fabricated connec5on between a company and customers
Even social media is a thin connec5on to the outside
To truly understand customers you need to seek them out and visit them in their natural environments
To truly understand customers you need to seek them out
Seeing is believing Seeing is believing
Personas’ true value is to bring focus to your organiza5on about what’s important to your customers
Sharing insight from the edges is a powerful method of focus
If you can see and understand the edges you can speak with authority
If you truly understand your users’ needs you can transform an industry
And have greater influence on the experience of each product
And if you value the margins your organiza5on will innovate
Creating a culture of user experience in your company through leadership
What it takes
1. Leadership
2. Process
3. Principles
4. Tools
5. People
6. Education
7. Collaboration
8. Communication
What it takes
Change is hard (is there a willingness to change?) Change is hard! Metro has taken years of effort
Execu5ves are more involved Executives see the value in UX
User experience needs leadership We need UX leaders to transform companies
Design principles foster change Design principles foster change
Why design matters
Video credit: Energy Energy
Principles are now everywhere at Citrix
• Onboard training • Legal • Etc.
Principles are used everywhere: UX, HR, training, legal, ID badges
• Onboard training • Legal • Etc.
Mark Templeton, Citrix’s CEO, speaks of their importance regularly
The results for Citrix
UI guidelines inspire people to adopt a new system
UI guidelines can inspire product teams to adopt a new system
Development tools are most useful Development tools are cri5cal to craFing the right experience
Standards improve the baseline expecta5ons and share design ra5onale
Standards improve the baseline expecta5ons and share design ra5onale
But, standards can be one of the biggest obstacles to innova5on
Prac5ce Fusion’s web-‐based EMR
Give teams freedom to change
Collabora5ng to create the ideal experience is the best leadership you can give
Collabora5ng to create the ideal experience is the best leadership you can give
And the best thing marketers can do is spend 5me with product teams
And the best thing marketers can do is spend 5me with product teams
A process designed with users in mind increases the chance of success
A process driven by the edges increases the chance of success
A process designed with users in mind increases the chance of success
A process driven by the edges increases the chance of success
The iPad design is now influencing their web soFware
A few things to remember…
Value the margins of your organization
Visit the edges to understand user needs
Stop championing your brand, start championing your user
Drive your brand through user experience.
› Continue the conversation…
@nickmyer5 #SXvisuibrand cooper.com/journal
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+1 415 267 3500 [email protected]