Best Practices for Destroying People's Dreams

Ever been handed a project or had someone come to you with an idea that immediately made you think, “This is probably a waste of time.” What if, instead of taking on the project, you first went to find out if it’s a good idea?

This talk is a mix of stories about people whose dreams were dashed (and they were thankful for it) as well as practical advice for helping you find out if that idea is any good.

The talk title comes from the fact that, over the course of his career, Matthew killed several projects by providing evidence that the project shouldn’t even begin (or should be stopped in its tracks). Twice, he’s had to deliver the bad news to someone who then went on to shutter their entire business. And they thanked him for it. Spending $20,000 to make that early decision meant avoiding spending millions to build something no one would want enough to justify the money, time, and effort.

Transcript

1. B E S T P R AC T I C E S F O R D E S T R OY I N G P E O P L E S ’ D R E A M S M a t t h e w O l i p h a n t p re s e n t s … And other ways UX can be helpful
2. O R , I F YO U WA N T A M O R E B U S I N E S S - Y T I T L E … M a t t h e w O l i p h a n t t a n g e n t s …
3. T H E W H Y S A N D H OW S O F S TA N D - A L O N E D I S C OV E RY P R O J E C T S M a t t h e w O l i p h a n t b a c k to p r e s e n t i n g … Of doooooooom
4. F R A M E O F M I N D • New Talk • 17 Years • Q&A&Constructive Crit • Client Services Lens • Workshop-to-Talk • Allergies Wo w. C a v e a t m u c h ?
5. T H I S I S J AY “ I h a v e a n e w b u s i n e s s a d d i c t i o n . ” P h o t o C re d i t : B o b M a c k , Th e Ti m e s - U n i o n
6. “ … H E L P E D B R I N G C L A R I T Y … ” “As we have suffered through mistake-after-mistake, our goodwill with clients is eroding and our orders are shrinking. I do not see the ability to stay profitable over the time it would take to build a new site. I'm just not willing to put any funds toward keeping it running during this period so HM must take a nap. I do want to let you know how much I appreciated your efforts, time, and ideas toward this concept. I'm sure its a good one that simply needs time and a better business plan to be effective and grow accordingly. I have asked Carl that if and when I bring HM back, nGen consider picking up the project but understand its usually about timing. Again, thanks for all of your input. You truly helped bring clarity to me and my decision.”
7. W H AT D O I M E A N B Y D I S C OV E RY ? O k a y, b u t s e r i o u s l y …
8. T H E “ W H Y I ( P R O B A B LY ) K N OW W H AT I ’ M TA L K I N G A B O U T ” PA RT O F T H E TA L K Ju s t w h o i s t h i s g u y ? Th e o n e o n t h e r i g h t … A l s o , t h e o n e i n f ro n t o f y o u .
9. W H E R E I T A L L R E F I N E D n G e n Wo r k s
10. U X : U S UA L E X P E R I E N C E S o u n d s l i ke y o u h a d i t g o i n g o n !
11. ~ A P R I L 2 0 1 4 S O DA R E P O RT W W W. S L I D E S H A R E . N E T / S O DA S P E A K S / T H E - S O DA - R E P O RT- V O L U M E - 1 - 2 0 1 4 “When asked to rank their organization from 0 to 10 on their ability to accurately estimate project costs, agencies left themselves quite a bit of room for improvement in 2014. The average for all agency and prodco respondents was just 6.09, indicating that most digital shops continue to struggle with estimation – a core business requirement that wields a tremendous impact on their overall financial and organizational success.”
12. W I S H F U L T H I N K I N G “ I n e e d t h i s l a u n c h e d b y t h e e n d o f t h e q u a r t e r. ”
13. W E C A N D O B E T T E R S u re l y t h i s p o w e r c a n b e u s e d f o r g o o d ?
14. W H AT C O U L D G O W R O N G ? O k a y, b u t s e r i o u s l y …
15. I N T H E C L I E N T S E RV I C E S W O R L D “ We n e e d a n a p p ! ”
16. I N T H E E N T E R P R I S E W O R L D “ L e t ’s s t a r t a w h o l e n e w l i n e o f b u s i n e s s ! ”
17. I N T H E S TA RT U P W O R L D “ L e t ’s b u i l d a n a p p ! ”
18. S T U D I O O N E . S O R RY, J O S H . “ I ’ v e g o t g o o d n e w s a n d b a d n e w s . Wa i t . Th i s f e e l s f a m i l i a r … ”
19. T H E H OW R i g h t . We g e t t h e Wh y, M a t t h e w. H o w a b o u t t h e H o w ?
20. B E F L E X I B L E A S YO U G O “ G o t h a t w a y. R e a l l y f a s t . I f s o m e t h i n g g e t s i n y o u r w a y … t u rn . ”
21. S TA K E H O L D E R I N T E RV I E W S N o t p e o p l e w i t h s t a ke s . O r v a m p i re s . O r z o m b i e s . Ty p i c a l l y.
22. W H O PAY S T H E B I L L S “ E v e r y o n e i s a p o t e n t i a l u s e r. ” … s u re t h e y a re .
23. W H AT I S T H E P R O B L E M Wh o d o e s n ’t l o v e a c o n s t ru c t i o n a n a l o g y ? N o o n e , t h a t ’s w h o .
24. P E O P L E W I L L TA L K Ti m e t o i n t e r v i e w s o m e re a l p e o p l e .
25. T I M E L I N E • Stakeholder interviews: 1-2 days • Competitive analysis: 1-2 days • Survey: 5 days • Customer interviews: 2 days • Document findings: 1 day
26. D E L I V E RY R e m e m b e r : Th e l e a s t a m o u n t o f e ff o r t f o r t h e m o s t a m o u n t o f g a i n .
27. W H E N I T D O E S N ’ T M A K E S E N S E N o n - p ro f i t s . G o v e rn m e n t a g e n c i e s . O v e r l y i m p a t i e n t p e o p l e .
28. N OT A L L G L O O M & D O O O O O O M Th i s p ro c e s s d o e s n ’t a l w a y s , o r e v e n u s u a l l y, d e s t ro y d re a m s .
29. ~ M E . J U S T N OW. “Thank you.” @matto MattAndMatthew.com
30. B O N U S M AT E R I A L b ra v o ! e n c o re ! y o u s t i l l h a v e 1 7 m i n u t e s t o f i l l !
31. P R OTOT Y P E R a i s e . R a z e . R e p e a t a s n e c e s s a r y.