Friday, September 21, 2007

Why it's all about the user experience


While vacationing in Maine, my 2.5 year old daughter learned to use the iPhone. She's not making calls, she doesn't check her email and she doesn't check the weather forecast. But she knows how to explore all the pictures that I've taken. Mostly of her, as you would expect from a proud father. She knows the photos button, can scroll through all pictures, move them around, enlarge them. I showed her the scroll function first but didn't have to tell her anything after.

That's where the future is: User Experiences that are self-explanatory, that feel very organic. If you have anything to learn on a site or dealing with new gadgets, the learning curve has to be very small. And enjoyable. Don't design experiences for adults. Design them for toddlers. If they don't get it with their endless patience, adults won't get it either.

And now I'm back enjoying lobsters, blueberry ale and some time away from Web 2.0.
Reality 1.0 is calling. See you next week at Advertising Week.

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