V11.10..2011
User Expectations
Rise of the Baseline
Baseline vs LCD
Happy World Usability Day
Explore and celebrate: • Designing with an intentional outcome of sparking change in how people behave, communicate, and do things in the world
Where the baseline is changing
• Awareness/Data Density • Patience • Technology
Data Density
• More capable of finding what is needed in a group of a dozen instead of a group of a few
• Able to understand more complex controls and icons
Data Density: Yahoo 2001 2011
Data Density: CNN.com 2001 2011
Data Density: MSN.com 2001 2011
Patience
• Past successes make the baseline more likely to take the extra second
• Comfortable with the process
Tech • Mobile devices are pulling the entire technology inventory of a user
• Capabilities of today’s 5‐yr old tech is vastly different than 5‐yr old tech 5‐yrs ago.
How the baseline is being helped along
• Simpler tools for denser information • Consistency between disparate systems means immediate familiarity
• Design Thoughtfulness
Simple is overdone
• “Not simple” does not mean “complex” • Feature rich • Engaging
A Process for Usability ‐ Designing for Conversion
• Prototype • Evaluate • Observe • Understand
Conversion
• Turning casual interest into desired action • Universal goal: Attention, Interest, Desire and Action
Navigation Engagement
Higher Density
Win‐Loss Analytics
• Measuring why a user did or did not convert • Providing two paths • Understanding why one choice was less popular
Semantics Side Study Baseline • Represents the common
technology and cognitive abilities among target audiences
• Does not imply level • Can be used to target
above/below
Lowest Common Denominator • In tech used as a figure of
speech; not mathematical • Least sophisticated level of
technology or cognitive ability among target audiences
• Should be “greatest common factor”
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