… don’t try to show taxonomies, concept maps, site maps, task analysis grids, design process maps and even wireframes to execs.  These tools are all useful for designers, but not for execs.  Please trust me when I say they will only serve to freak out the execs.

A perception persists that designers are the arbiters of style, and that we work mainly in slick big-city lofts behind oversized computer monitors. There’s no doubt that many of us do love giving form to objects (likewise, few can deny the allure of a nice loft). But design is now so much more than aesthetics. Designers are systems thinkers. We create everything from electric vehicle infrastructures and citywide transit networks to social media healthcare apps and countrywide HIV helplines.

To create these kinds of complex systems we have to spend time doing research in the field, so we can understand who will be using what we design and how they will use it. This is how we can make designs that are relevant and usable.

Here’s a link to the full article, which describes a recent pilot project she worked on in rural Zambia ”that used text messaging to deliver lab results between doctors and HIV-positive mothers and infants.” Great stuff.

In reality a product is all about the experience. It is about discovery, purchase, anticipation, opening the package, the very first usage. It is also about continued usage, learning, the need for assistance, updating, maintenance, supplies, and eventual renewal in the form of disposal or exchange. Most companies treat every stage as a different process, done by a different division of the company: R&D, manufacturing, packaging, sales, and then as a necessary afterthought, service. As a result there is seldom any coherence. Instead, there are contradictions. If you think of the product as a service, then the separate parts make no sense–the point of a product is to offer great experiences to its owner, which means that it offers a service. And that experience, that service, is the result of the coherence of the parts. The real value of a product consists of far more than the product’s components.

Why is there a difference between the information architect and the visual designer, if designers understand hierarchy and organization, why isn’t it up to the visual designers to set up the wire framing?

Her nonperishable site promises to be a great resource for budding designers and art school students — check it out!

NOTE: This YouTube video is from the MX 2010 conference, but it covers the same material Samantha presented at IA Summit.

Works for REI: started in 1938, member-owned

Started with story:  Speaking at a conference in Palm Springs – got to stay in a fancy resort hotel.  But had been flying all day and was tired; wanted an adult beverage.  Wine on hotel menu cost $80.  Decided to find a grocery store nearby. But had to get out of the 13 acre resort… with a crappy map. Had to tip someone to find the exit of the hotel. After getting her alcohol, she got lost in the dark at the hotel. She gave the hotel a FAIL for explorability.

Later learned that they have a no-sign policy. They even asked conference attendees to remove their conference badges (!). No signs on the doors; no label on the ice machine door or restaurant.

Why should you care about this story?

65% of visitors to online search engine were looking for further info on a product or service they saw on TV or read about in a newspaper

53% of US products say the research products online that they later buy off-line.

Even if you think you are web-only, you are multi-channel.

Customers are interacting with your brand; they really don’t care about your channel(s).  We shouldn’t act like the channels are different ways of interacting with the customer.

Example: US Airways iPhone app and website – bad customer experiences. Gets to counter at airport, and there’s nobody at the desk, and no self-serve kiosk.

Our marketing peers are way ahead of us on this – they’re talking about cross-channel experiences.

Some guidelines.

1. Think about on ramps and off ramps.

2. Don’t assume the customer is using the front door.

3. Provide holistic experiences at all entrances.

Example of REI un-holistic experience: Award mentioned in company Tweet, but not on the corresponding webpage.

Ex 2: Best Buy store pick-up — you can’t get directions to the store from there.

Ex 3: From Google to “How to Choose a Kayak” article on REI site.

Think: Are your on-ramps and off-ramps a good experience?

4. Be consistent. (brand consistency)

REI ex: simple color schemes for print coupon, web page, store signs, etc.  Coordination & timing are crucial but challenging. It’s a “big production” to stay consistent.

4. Consistent information is important

REI ex: info on webpage and on sign in store are not the same.

5. Be consistent but optimize channel capabilities.

Ex: Surface use in hotel lobby.

Ex: Tobi: augmented reality dressing room – you can try on clothes virtually.

Ex: Target’s iPhone app – not just for advertising; provides availability and ** WHICH AISLE IT’S IN. **

How do design holistically?

A: Use metrics. Had metrics on how many people brought an ad into the store.

Related disciplines:

UX design

Service design

Customer experience

CRM

Multi-channel communications

Tools & Methods

Field experience etc.

“Wander the halls” in your organization – see what the print designers are doing, look at the signage being developed for the stores, hang out in marketing, etc.

Leave your comfort zone.  E.g., go to the store!  See how things look there from the customer’s point of view.  Go to competitors’ stores. Make friends in the call center. Go to the warehouse to learn about the logistics of packaging.

“You can’t have a completely consistent experience.”

Understand the goals of your executives. Their incentives are different from yours.

Listen “holistically” using all the usual UX research plus all other resources available (chat transcripts, social media, sentiment analysis, etc.)

Hang with a new crowd. Hang out with marketing, IT, finance, consultants, etc.

Museums are doing some fascinating things in this area, asking how attendees interact virtually as well as physically with the museum.

[Libraries too! I mentioned MAYA's work on the Carnegie Library in my Q & A comment - here's the link to their case study from that project: http://www.maya.com/portfolio/carnegie-library ]