by Tammie Lister Design for humans, not robots, with WordPress

Robots != humans Robots + emotions = omg Just what do you think you're doing, Dave? - Hal I am not malfunctioning, you are - Hector “ “ Life don’t talk to me about life - Marvin “

Websites shouldn’t be paint by numbers A website is more than a grid, it’s more than a formula and it’s more than the latest trend... Give your site a soul. Connect.

3 steps to designing for humans Make it personal Fill a need Create emotional responses

Make it personal We’re all different Avoid stock images - be an individual Avoid jargon infested copy - you are not a cliche Don’t preach - talk one on one Give it the human touch Create an identity for your site that stands out But, with personalisation comes great responsibility...

You can take personalisation too far!

Personalisation is a privilege not a right

Fill a need Aarron Walter - ‘Designing for emotion’ http://aarronwalter.com/ -

Examples : Flickr welcome messages Google logos MailChimp chimp antics Twitter fail whale Easter eggs Error pages - “to err is human” - Alexander Pope

No content

No content

No content

Don’t alienate Know your users, know their responses You can’t please all of the people all the time Too much emotion makes :( Awoga too much emotion#!? o_O

Getting practical... not just for new sites Action Existing Site New Site Custom error pages YES YES Create moments of joy and give visual hugs YES YES Ban boring forms YES YES Say NO to corporate gibberish and jargon YES YES Reduce the crud - less is more with sites - create paths YES YES Stand out from the crowd - know your market YES YES Talk to your users not down to your users YES YES

WordPress is for humans! Action WordPress Custom error pages Codex page Custom headers and backgrounds Built into most themes - easy to add Form plugins by the bucket load Gravity forms... list goes on Use language files to easily customise a theme Built into most themes - easy to add You control content It’s up to you what WordPress outputs Admin panel control Hacks, plugins... tunnel your users Unique look Roll your own or personalised theme

Create emotional responses

Thank you :) Tammie Lister www.logicalbinary.com Twitter : @karmatosed