Whoops, Your UX Is Showing

Back in my days as an advertising copywriter, one of the rote insults—and we had a bunch—was “Whoops, your strategy is showing.” It was generally reserved for an ad deemed too obvious in its creative execution.

I was reminded of this recently after coming across three different, highly transactional sites that  trumpeted changes to either interface or interaction design based on user research.

I Am (an urban) Legend

Have you heard the one about the guy who dropped his iPhone in the toilet? And then dried it out with rice?

We Are Not User Experience Designers if We Are Not Talking to Users

So says Whitney Hess and Huang Qinghong:

"You guys sitting on couches in air-conditioned offices, sipping tea, smoking cigarettes and coming up with buying tickets online, have you ever considered our lives? Have you experienced the agony of buying tickets?"

Read more about the Not-So-Happy New Year: Rail Website Woes In China.

Blue Collar IA

My unique take on User Experience Design. Coming soon...

On UXD: Tom Wolfe

The Relationship Between Poor UX & Lost Revenue

Went to my local gas station/carwash this morning. Not my favorite place to either fill up or wash my car, but its easy-to-get-to location and combination of the two services make it a popular destination and give it a significant competitive advantage.

The story with this place is the same as it is in most towns: Premium gas prices due to a wash on premises. They're always a few cents more than competitors just a few miles down the road in either direction because the nearest wash is ~5 miles away.

Alas, their point of difference is also their Achilles' heel.

On UXD: Bill Maher

June 10, 2011 New Rule: Country Crock