The Last Mile

Design as differentiator

Rob — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 19:32:00 -0500

We run into sales opportunities frequently who have no idea of the realistic cost of bad design. These business leaders have done cheap business cards or used family members who had some HTML skill and are left with the impression that web site redesign should be a quick turn project for minimum expense. Many of these businesses treat design as if it were a commodity – when it fact it is one of the few things left that should not be.

2008 - Deja Vu all over again.....

Rob — Tue, 08 Jan 2008 09:17:00 -0500

With apologies to Yogi, 2008 is starting out with a lot of discussion about Usability and User Interface.

This has been a trend in software design and web development for the last 2 decades, but today you can’t read about a product that doesn’t have some simplified user interface. This year’s International CES in Las Vegas is showing off thousands of new gadgets and all the marketing language seems to have a common theme “Ease of Use.” I found it interesting that prior to the show, the VP of Communications discussed how important Content is to all consumers.

We have very low quality video from 1993 of me saying almost the same thing.

Manufacturers are all in the ‘usability’ game today with new releases of products that differentiate their products. Check out a few recent product announcements from:

JVC as their “Everio hard disk camcorders offer enhanced usability in a colorful lineup for 2008.”

Samsung has this user friendly language in a recent press release “Whereas previous versions of MagicNet offered a simpler User Interface, MagicNet Pro is equipped with a professional, multi document User Interface, which offers enhanced flexibility and ease-of use for the network operator. Furthermore, MagicNet Pro offers a highly-customizable user experience, allowing operators to control the content and design of several designated areas. The upgraded MagicNet Pro system also offers two types of network connections: auto connection, within an easy-to-use sub-network and direct WAN connection.”

SONY rolled out improved versions of their Bravia flat panels with “slim bezels and thin depth, along with Sony’s new 3D graphic user interface.” And about 4 scrolling pages of features and specifications ;-)

Magellan is aiming to make GPS navigation as easy as Amazon’s “one-click” purchase.

So what does it mean?

It means that EVERYTHING should be easy to use. Start 2008 with your online experiences.

What does Web 2.0 really mean?

Rob — Tue, 10 Apr 2007 22:02:00 -0400

You would have been asleep at the wheel over the past few years if you haven’t heard how Web 2.0 ideas have engaged individuals and consumers with cool new possibilities. But the Web 2.0 moniker is still undefined to many corporate clients. What does it mean to their business?

The web has moved forward from Hypertext to a more rich ability to share information. Michael Wesch, a professor at Kansas State, made this great video that demonstrates the transition from text to Web 2.0. It is worth the 5 minutes of history if you haven’t already seen it.

Social networking, blogs, wiki’s, RSS, widgets and mashups have been all the rage on sites created by individuals. Facebook, MySpace, Googlemaps even personal pages from Apple generated tremendous media coverage as personal publishing took center stage in the ‘always on’ internet space.

The Way Things Look for 2007

Rob — Tue, 16 Jan 2007 21:39:00 -0500

The beginning of the year is a good time to rethink everything from personal finances to the extra stuff in your closets to your business plan. I looked at many of those things thinking through possible ‘resolutions’ for 2007.

There is growing evidence that visualization and “the way things look” effects all we do – especially now that we get a majority of our information through a computer screen. My wife has not been a heavy internet user, but she spent December researching her next vehicle using Edmunds.com and Consumer Reports info mixed in with manufacturers sites and actual test drives. She liked certain sites and hated others – because they made it easy to understand a lot of data about new automobiles. When it came time to decide – she was armed with more information than ever before and when her car arrives later this month I expect there will be no cognitive dissonance about the purchase.

Internet usage continues to grow at an unprecedented rate and people are actually choosing the usefulness – not just the self-publishing (MySpace, Facebook) and time-wasting (YouTube) features.

Design is Important Again

Rob — Sat, 02 Dec 2006 07:21:00 -0500

I’ve been carrying around the October Fast Company magazine for 2 months because of all the great articles in their third annual Masters of Design issue. The stories about brands like Puma are insightful, but the bigger picture is more important – Design matters in business again.

Retailers have shown us the lead in recent years as even Target and Walmart have pushed ‘brands’ over ‘value.’ Don’t get me wrong, they still have great value, but the empty big box stores across the suburban countryside, tell us that the 90’s are over and the bland version of the value story doesn’t sell long term.

World Usability Day

Rob — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 08:55:00 -0500

World Usability Day is today reminding us all that the user interface IS the most important aspect of application and web development. This year the Usability Professionals’ Association is sponsoring 218 events around the world in 40 countries.

Sell more this Holiday season

Rob — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 14:10:00 -0500

People are buying more online every year and annual ecommerce is expected to top $200 billion for 2006. And Forrester predicts that holiday sales will top $27 billion. With all those potential online dollars, are you doing the right things to improve your online sales?

Vialogix has long held that the user experience improves ecommerce (Creatas, Picturequest, Hinrichs case study examples). Recent collaboration between Akamai and JupiterResearch shows that the average time an online customer will wait is 4 seconds! More than one-third of shoppers will abandon the site with a poor experience. And 75% were not likely to ever shop on that site again! Those are pretty hefty penalties for bad design.

Haley & Aldrich in FastCompany

Rob — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 11:21:00 -0500

We recently helped Haley & Aldrich launch a redesigned web site for their October sponsorship of Pop!Tech. Company CEO Bruce Beverly and COO Larry Smith got great coverage in the November print edition of FastCompany magazine which can now be found online here.

Healthcare’s user interface

Rob — Sat, 23 Sep 2006 13:24:00 -0400

For more than a decade we have worked on web site development projects designing online applications and tools that make complex information easy to understand. No where is that more needed today than in healthcare.

The complexity of individual data alone is staggering. Claims information, deductibles, in-network vs. out-of-pocket, prescription vs. generic, health savings accounts and flexible spending accounts all confuse the average consumer.

Flexibility is Key to Success

Rob — Tue, 22 Aug 2006 13:21:00 -0400

While on vacation this summer I listened to my wife and started each day with more stretching. On the floor each morning I reminded my muscles that they have been spending too muchtime in an office chair. Stretching hamstrings and hip flexors before I windsurfed and kayaked and swam and jumped off the rocks with my kids made me feel younger and stronger. It also brought tightness I hadn’t had in my legs since high school sports. But I am slowly feeling stronger and more agile. And the hurt is the good kind.

Flexibility is the key to success in business today. The Internet gave consumers flexibility of when and where they find information. IT infrastructure gives companies, of all sizes, the flexibility to transact business from any location. Software services have given us the flexibility to scale that technology backend without the cost exorbidence of previous business models. Companies can no longer just “throw bodies” at projects. Large companies have realized that the game has changed and flexibility is key to their success.