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Presentation for Dallas/Fort Worth WordPress Meetup, 4/24/10, by Chris Ronan and Leia Scofield of RD2, Inc.
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@rd2incrd2inc.com
Chris Ronan
@cronan
http://blog.rd2inc.com/archives/author/chris-ronan/
Leia Scofield
@leia
http://blog.rd2inc.com/archives/author/leia/
A Design Studio + Lab + Partner
For companies who want to be the best in their line of business. And, for those who recognize the importance of delivering on design innovation as a valuable tool to take on their journey
what does "RD2" stand for?
R = ResearchD = DesignD = Develop
The name, further explained:
http://blog.rd2inc.com/?p=677
tools
Some of our tools are obvious
Text editors
Graphic design software (Adobe Suite)
Staging servers and environments
Some are less obvious
User Experience Plan
WordPress
Drupal
Yes, we use Drupal too
[bending spoon pic]
But why do we love WordPress?
[light saber pic]
From this...
To this...
what's the big design challenge?
design is subjective
That's the challenge and the beautiful thing all rolled into one
Applications of design that work best can
perform:
In a subjective world
In an objective world
sub·jec·tive [suhb-jek-tiv]
-adjective
"existing in the mind; belonging to the thinking subject rather than to the object of thought" "placing excessive emphasis on one's own moods, attitudes, opinions, etc.; unduly egocentric."
ob·jec·tive [uhb-jek-tiv]
-adjective
"not influenced by personal feelings, interpretations, or prejudice; based on facts; unbiased: an objective opinion." "verifiable"
Subjective:
We picked these colors because...It was the color of my first bicycle
They're the color of my dog's eyes
Because I think this color palette is beautiful
Objective:
We picked these colors because...They support the mood of your overall company
message and go to market strategy
They are in the corporate style guide
They exemplify a fundamental change or
direction in management
They best convey the mood and message I'm
trying to communicate
how do you design like a pro?
Step back and add the big, three letter filter...
WHY
Apply "WHY" to everything
Do it deliberately and with discipline...
...apply it to every idea, every widget, every category, every tag, every banner, every suggestion
or your website could start to look like this
framework for design
Step away from WordPress
Plan
Explore
Give yourself a context for "WHY"
STEP 1: define your goals and objectives
The overarching reason or purpose
The highest level mission
The key summary
Often found through core values
Goals and Objectives (Examples for Businesses)
"Unleash the power and authenticity of our strongest assets: our employees and our customers."
"Encourage brand loyalty and referrals from existing customers"
"Educate prospects about our brand"
Goals and Objectives (for People)
"Share my knowledge"
"Make friends"
"Increase my notoriety"
"Increase notoriety of my cat"
Spend some time thinking about goals
Try them out on friends
Tie all your decisions back to goals
meet christine - the client
Age: 32Location: East Dallas • Private Yoga Instructor• Specialized methodology• Needs more clients
Christine's Goals
STEP 2: identify your audience
Target Audience Definition & Personas:
A detailed picture of each member of your
audience in a “day in the life of” scenario
Often created from real life individuals who are
interviewed and/or studied
Motivations and activities are observed,
discussed, and documented
It's about Personas, their demographics,
and data related to their experiences
Data
google analytics
quantcast
woopra
polls
surveys
who is looking at your site?
what time of day? what day of week? where are they coming from? what pages do they visit most?
what are they searching for?
what are they browsing with? do they come back?
location? language? age? gender? education level? income?
Is this who you want your audience to be?
What do you need to change or improve to
make your audience the right one for your
goals?
WHY?
Personas
christine's personas
Persona: Julio
Age: 24Location: Uptown Dallas • Ready for one-on-one lessons• Looking for a personable expert• Internet Savvy
Persona: Joy
Age: 29Location: Carrollton • Busy mom• Long-time client of Christine's • Can't always make private
lessons
Persona: Naomi
Age: 42Location: Tulsa • Proficient in yoga• Wants to learn Christine's
specialty• Can occasionally attend a
workshop
Now your WHY has a WHO.
STEP 3: know your competition
Know and document your competitors
Do your Personas find them more
compelling? Why?
Make screenshots
Write your likes and dislikes
christine's competition
STEP 4: find your inspiration
It's not just about your competition
It's not just about others in your space
It's about completely different sources of
inspiration
Shoot it, snag it, scrap book it
Then document what inspires you about it
STEP 5: plan your content
Arguably your most important asset
Create an outline for anticipated content
Organize early
Write early
This informs the designer
This informs the developer
Don't forget to ask WHY
Pages?
Categories?
Tags?
Types of content?
Ads?
Posting frequency?
Multiple authors?
Plan and write as much content as you can
BEFORE you start designing.
christine's content
Pages: About, Contact, Class Schedule Content Types: Photos, Video, Events, News Categories: Lessons, Links, Events, Photos, Announcements, Workshops Tags: Specific poses, locations, details
STEP 6: list your features
List your desired features
Every dropdown, every tag cloud, every
widget
Weigh them against your goals and
objectives...asking why.
How would your personas respond?
Spam Prevention
Contact Form
Stats
Downloads
Related Posts
Comments
christine's features
STEP 7:
outline your needs
Wire Framing
Prioritize your features and functions
Score each and every item
Apply them within a wire frame and be
careful not to increase your scope!
And remember: this is not design yet!
christine's outline
design like a pro
Whether it's you, a design partner or a vendor,
now you have a collection of the most
important elements to inform design
If you follow a process or method with
discipline before you start design, you're
giving design a real chance
This is the plan for your big idea.
It's your blueprint.
Imagine you are building your home.
You need the architectural plan before
ordering the lumber.
so remember...
STEP 1: define your goals
STEP 2: identify your audience
STEP 3: know your competition
STEP 4: find your inspiration
STEP 5: plan your content
STEP 6: list your features
STEP 7: outline your needs
and always ask...
WHY
thanks! and let the force be with you!
@rd2incrd2inc.com