The Ten Commandments of
User Experience
Nick Finck & Raina Van Cleave
March 13, 2010
SXSW Interactive 2010
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Use #UXsxsw on twitter
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?
What the hell is UX?
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“User Experience is a focus,
a thread that runs through
all of our disciplines, and
which no discipline owns
or controls.”
- The UXsters
Explain UX
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• Accessibility (GAWDs)
• Information Architecture (IAI)
• Information Design (IDA)
• Interaction Design (IxDA)
• Technical Writing (STC)
• Usability Engineering (UPA)
• User Research (HFES)
• Visual Design (AIGA)
• Web Analytics (WAA)
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The First Commandment
The User is
always Right
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“You are not the user.
Neither is your boss.”
- Jessyca Frederick
Director of Product Management,ThisNext
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Customer (or User) Needs
Business Objectives
Technical Requirements
Sweet
Spot
Finding the sweet spot
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The Second Commandment
Understand the
User
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Photo by Andrea Wiggins
http://www.flickr.com/photos/anikarenina/550438755/
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The Third Commandment
Avoid
Solutioneering
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Identify & fully understand
problems before finding
solutions
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The Fourth Commandment
Form follows
Function
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“Form must play within
the general realm of
the familiar for easily
understood functions.”
- Thomas Vander Wal
Principal, InfoCloud Solutions
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Photo by Jason Hoover
http://www.flickr.com/photos/surrealize/3366780929/
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Photo by Thomas Hawk
http://www.flickr.com/photos/thomashawk/2671536366/
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Photo by Andreas Adelmann
http://www.flickr.com/photos/adelmann/3302583508/
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The Fifth Commandment
Content is King
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“Design is about
communication, and it
takes more than pixels
to communicate.”
- Derek Powazek
Content & Community Genius
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!
95% of web users do not
read 80% of your content!
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This doesn’t mean that
your content isn’t
important, it means it’s
more important.
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The Sixth Commandment
Innovate, do not
Imitate
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Pedometer Nike+
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The Seventh Commandment
Access is
for Everyone
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Photo by Jenny Morros
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13799732@N08/1411680967/
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Photo by Dirk Borchers
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dirkborchers/495659224/
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Photo by Rion Nakaya
http://www.flickr.com/photos/rion/47437262/
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The Eighth Commandment
Plan before you
Design
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“With our users in mind and
the right vision we can plan,
and develop successful
applications”
- Aaron Irizarry
Principal, Solv
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Photo by Roxanna Salceda
http://www.flickr.com/photos/roxsm/1210497131/
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Photo by Effie3
http://www.flickr.com/photos/eclennox/181224204/
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Photo by Luann Hopkins
http://www.flickr.com/photos/luannhopkins/2156607113/
Photo by Paige Adams
http://www.flickr.com/photos/phadams/2642717270/
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The Ninth Commandment
Understand the
Goal
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“Executives can no longer
afford to formulate strategy
without embracing user
experience”
- Peter Morville
Principal, Semantic Studios
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Photo by Howard Gees
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cyberslayer/952953634/
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If your website could do
only one small thing, what
would that one thing be?
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The Tenth Commandment
Learn from Failure
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“Failure is success
if we learn from it.”
- Malcolm S. Forbes
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!
Michael Jordan failed to make
his varsity basketball team
Albert Einstein's teacher
described him as "mentally slow"
Walt Disney went bankrupt
several times
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Thank you!
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The Ten Commandments
of User Experience
Nick Finck
@nickf
nick@blueflavor.com
http://blueflavor.com
Raina Van Cleave
@rainaterror
raina@spindriftdesignworks.com
http://rainavancleave.com