Last night I found a 50% off deal for custom created calendars. I thought it would be a good idea to buy one and customize it with my photos from China. I believed it could make a great present for my parents for Christmas, as they are always asking me for pictures and we don’t see each other so often. (Sometimes is hard to be so far away from home.)

I was all enthusiastic and started to look through all my pictures in order to find the best 12. I uploaded the pictures and double checked everything for printing. According to the website I should pay €7.99 as the calendar is half price. I went on and decided to start the checkout steps:

(more…)

Picture by Jacques Strappe

The other day I received an email from a website I registered with, asking me for feedback. The website provides training in different technologies and a lot of times they have special offers and even free courses that I am more than happy to take.

I consider asking for feedback as being a good example of service design. It shows that the company is looking to improve and they are open to suggestions. They want to learn what their customers want in order to implement the changes and perfect their services to fit the customers’ needs.

Most of the times this goes well. People like to be asked about their opinion: this gives them confidence and the feel that their opinion matters. In my case, I know if I was the one asking for feedback I would like people to respond and this is why I usually reply to the feedback questioners.

(more…)

I have always loved minimalist design. It has a beauty about its simple forms and clear lines that appeal to me. I came across this bin design by Grace Youngeun Lee and I liked it so much I began to visualize where I would put her design in my own home. That’s when I began to run into trouble. I live in your average apartment with the standard features, two bedroom, kitchen / living room combo, bathroom. Even though I thought the design was beautiful, I could not think of one place I could put such a distinctive item. It hadn’t really occurred to me before, that all the minimalistic items I love so much would struggle to work in your average home. The qualities that make the design striking cause it to sit uneasily in a mainstream context. Its clean aesthetics clash with your standard mass-produced product.

Does this mean a minimalist design can only work when surrounded by other minimalist products? Or the opposite, a lack of other products and just shear, clean space that allows it to be appreciated for its aesthetic beauty? If this is the case, where is the line drawn for its range of influence? Is the only true home of a minimal piece a modern residence, where clean lines and crisp aesthetics were at the front of the architects mind?

Perhaps the piece is intended to sit in contrast with the relative chaos of mass production? That this contrast serves to highlight its simple beauty.

I guess until I can figure out where to put my beloved Grace Youngeun Lee bin, I’ll just have to stick with my mass produced swing top. Function over form anyway, right?

At the end of April I was part of the team AmazEd that participated in the Irish finals of the Imagine Cup competition. The Imagine Cup this year was hosted by the Science Gallery in Trinity college. In order for us to get internet access on the day we had to register on the Science Gallery website.

There are very few places in Ireland that provide free Internet access and I believe it was smart of them to ask for some details in exchange for this service. A few weeks ago I found out that the details I provided are worth more. This is when I received a Membership Card that would not only give me free WiFi in the Science Gallery building but also reduced ticket prices for selected events, special invitations to hush-hush happenings and advance notice of all that is up and coming. And all of this with a welcoming note that put a smile on my face.

At first I only wanted to have access to the Internet during a competition and in the end I got a lot more. I really believe this is a great example of marketing and service design that every business should follow.

Let me know what you think. What are your thoughts and ideas on this?

UX Workshops provides workshops around “User Experience” with highly experienced experts.

May 18: ‘Enterprise Information Architecture’ – Louis Rosenfeld
May 19: ‘Commercial Ethnography’- James Kalbach
May 20: ‘Personas and Mental Models’ – James Kalbach

Early bird pricing is available until April 2, 2009. Space is limited.

For the detailed program of the workshops, please visit www.uxworkshops.com or have a look at http://tinyurl.com/7fhlf5

Location of the workshops:
EMPIRE RIVERSIDE HOTEL
Bernhard-Nocht-Straße 97
D-20359 Hamburg
www.empire-riverside.de

Here is a good example of a design which looks beyond the simple functions of the product to the emotional perceptions and requirements of the user.

The Playpump is used to pump water in schools in such places as South Africa, Mozambique, Swaziland and Zambia. It is essentially a windmill on its side. Unlike other pumps, the Playpump is designed to be driven by children in play, who use the wheel as a merry-go-round.

Water pumps are placed in areas of high drought and provide drinking and irrigation water. They greatly benefit the surrounding areas and are seen as something to be celebrated. Designing a pump which incorporates the play of children, takes this emotional element into account. Its design combines the function of the pump with the celebration of its installment and use.

Rather then the traditional approach of designing emotion into a product, the Playpump is a manifestation of emotion generated by its presence. It is an interesting perspective to consider when trying to design that ‘must have’ product.

There is nothing worse then feeling like a faceless number being rammed through a system. Increasingly customers are turning to service providers who take into account both their emotional and functional needs. Unfortunately it is also one of those things that’s simple to say but can be difficult to actually pull off. Many businesses shy away from such approaches because they are uncertain of what steps to take. They assume changing to this method will be time consuming and costly. But the simple fact is that when it comes to emotions, it is more often the small things that have the greatest impact.

For example, I recently had a trip to the hairdressers. This is usually something I dread and want to be over in as little time as humanly possible. However on this occasion it was surprisingly pleasurable. But what was different this instance from previous others? It wasn’t until I got home and thought about it that I realized all the little human actions and interactions that had taken place. While I waited for my turn, I was presented with a cup of tea, a biscuit and a chocolate. When ready, the hairdresser asked for me by name and introduced herself. She pulled out a chair and sat down facing me to discuss what I would like to get done. The cut was fast and efficient. When leaving, she said goodbye, again by name. What is the additional cost of this approach to all the others I had previously been subjected to? A few euro for some chocolate and biscuits. The rest was changes in the behavior of the service provider, the small things that related me to her. It was down to such a fine art that I was unaware of the subtle differences, only that I enjoyed the experience as a whole.

It is often the interactions, frequently viewed as padding to the service, which leaves the biggest impression on the customer. Being aware of the client throughout the process, rather then exclusively concentrating on the end result, will provide a well-rounded service, which caters to both the functional and emotional. It is the small differences which will emotionally link the customer to the company and greatly increase the chance of a return customer.

via thecoolhunter

Though a few of the pictures were compelling of cooler car parks, I was most taken by the following quote:

Innovative developers and designers are recognising just how crucial this is – it’s almost too late by the time the consumer arrives at the front door. The “experience” of good design starts well before that.

How true. An experience begins and (ext)ends well before and beyond the actual “use” of a product or service. The winners and losers in the experience economy are the ones that have influenced as many touch points as possible from first impression to a lasting impression.

My father just got his iPhone 3G. Beyond all the features and functionality, one of his first comments to me was, “The phone came fully charged!” Think about it. You get one of the most anticipated gadgets on the planet and the first instruction is to fully charge for 12 hours before using. Brilliant. Works right out of the box. Apparently the AT&T salesman in the States said it was the first phone that ever arrived fully charged.

Note: Can anyone confirm that all iPhone 3G’s arrive charged?

What’s wrong with a little deception in design if it is for the better? This Good Experience post is worth the read just for the nursing home that installed a fake bus stop outside their Alzheimer ward to stop patients from wandering away. Brilliant.