Three Minds On Digital Marketing @ Organic

Adaptive Path, an experience strategy, user research and design firm recently announced the completion of their Mobile Literacy project. They studied mobile device usage in rural Gujarat, India.

As the lead Experience Architect for Chrysler International, I'm anxious to learn the full findings of their study. One tidbit of information agrees with what we learned researching our International mobile users. (Check out the Jeep South Africa site on your phone -- or shrink your PC browser.)

In many parts of the world, low cost mobile phones are more often used than PCs to access the Web. In fact, many international users do not own a PC, so they access the web exclusively from their mobile devices.

So what does this mean for those of us trying to reach these audiences? Here are three crucial tips to consider when planning:

1. First and foremost, do not ignore the need to create an exclusive mobile website. While many users will attempt to access your sites from their mobile devices, this will only lead to frustration. It's very likely that parts of the architecture, page weight, and technology will not work in a mobile web browser.

2. Take the time to consider your navigation and architecture. Top nav, side nav or however you've structured your navigation does not translate to the mobile architecture. Instead, you'll need to create a nested architecture and rely heavily on breadcrumb trail navigation.

3. Be ready to pare down your content. Your mobile website shouldn't be simply a modification of your existing site. Leave out information that isn't relevant to a user on the move. It's not a likely that a mobile user will browse for extended periods of time, so it's important that you surface the information most relevant to them.

Anthony Viviano

For some, it's coffee. For others, it's thinking about what awaits them at home. And for a select few, it's about what is at home. For those like Molly Layton, working from home has it pluses -- including being able to take a break from the digital world to enjoy time with her favorite co-worker: Riley.
 

It's hard to have a bad day when there is a dog curled up on your feet. While it can sometimes be difficult to conduct business as usual, it is not impossible.  I recall more than a few conference calls that were interrupted by some fierce barking on my end, usually at the postal delivery service. I'm blessed with great co-workers in both my home and business offices though, which means once everyone has shouted "Hi Riley," and laughed a bit, we've always been able to get back to the business at hand, with the mood of the participants noticeably lightened.

Pets are generally patient creatures - they also possess an uncanny ability to intuit or sense when owner stress levels are rising. Once they pick up on it, they seek to intervene. You may be able to put them off for a little while, like postponing an internal meeting, but the longer you make them wait, the more disruptive they tend to become. It is, I would say, generally perilous to ignore them.

The results of taking their urgent calls, and following their lead, so to speak, can be surprisingly productive. Sometimes Riley and I play, sometimes we go off leash and tear up the park, and sometimes we just wander and sniff every little corner of this fabulously smelly world. Often I find that complex problems (that no amount of time spent in front of my screen have solved)  miraculously resolve themselves in my head while my body is in motion.

Spending time like this, I've begun to see that the break from work is just as valuable as the time spent working. I'm grateful for my office manager, Riley, who helps me to get back on track, whenever I begin to stray.

But what about those of us who work in an office every day? There have been plenty of studies that show pets in the work place are beneficial. Many sources (including the American Humane Association) state they can:

1. Improve morale
2. Increase productivity
3. Inspire better performance
4. Reduce stress
5. Lower absenteeism
6. Increase willingness to work longer hours
7. Act as ice-breakers during client visits
 
And it looks like many companies have tried it out. If that's a requirement for you, use Simply Hired to find your next dog-friendly employer. When offices do allow you to bring in your pet, they usually have policies -- to keep it fun. Guidelines like only on certain days/times, sign up sheets, "three strikes you're out" in regards to accidents, no barking, must be clean and on a leash often apply. 

Organic, Inc. is the first company I've worked for that offers pet insurance -- in both our U.S. and our Canadian offices to help cover the costs of your pet's healthcare. At first, I thought it was silly. Since, I've come to believe it says a lot about the company.

A happy puppy is just as cheerful as the new mom bringing in her newborn and provides a pleasant lift in the atmosphere.
 
Are pets the break we need to pull us out of this interactive universe and clear our heads? Does your office allow pets?
 
Molly Layton
Sarah Jo Sautter

image credit: Kate loves Bar Pt

I recently came across an article that had me questioning the validity of my position as an Experience Architect. A San Francisco-based Interaction Design Firm, Cooper (a la Alan Cooper) asked "Is Interaction Design a Dead-End Job?"
 
In fact, discussion around these topics has heated up of late. Jesse James Garret, the infamous experience designer who coined the term "Ajax," recently made the bold statement that Information Architects (IAs) or Interaction Designers (IxDAs) do not exist. So where does that leave people like me who hold title of Senior Experience Architect on our business cards?
 
Both Cooper and Garrett arrive at the same conclusion. We're User Experience Professionals with titles such as User Experience Designer/Architect/Planner ... However you spin it, we think about the experience.
 
So what exactly does this mean?
 
Interaction Design as function is certainly not dead. Information Architecture as a function is also alive and well. The scope, however, has changed/expanded, and the functions are performed by more than just IAs or IxDAs. As a Senior Experience Architect, I work closely with and am sometimes mistaken for an Interaction Designer. An Experience Professional considers a task and all the touch points between a user and a technology. Our goal is to plan a seamless, intuitive experience from beginning to end. This entails structure, flow, and navigation. We also look at any interactive elements and try to make them obvious.
 
Lately, I've been following Dan Klyn who, among his many interesting observations, compares our architecture craft to that of a real architect. He quotes Walter Gropius who says, "Architecture is a mastery of space." So, the question Klyn asks is, "User experience design implies a mastery of __________?"

I submit that it still implies a mastery of space, but the definition of space is expanded. Good architecture considers the structure, the space, how one enters and what one experiences in the space. Emotion and art is involved. Comprehensive architectural design affects the structure, way finding, interior design and emotion.

A writer might see my role differently than a designer. An engineer surely sees my work differently than a project manager. But, when done successfully, experience architecture serves all of their needs.

How do you define Information/Experience Architecture? Do you think it's here to stay?

Anthony Viviano
 

image credit: grange85

In the troughs of advanced digital technology, there's still an underground group of people who are embracing the science of photography in its fundamental form. Yes, pinhole photography is alive. Our own Chad Stoller has been trying his hand at it since he received a 35mm pinhole camera kit from his mom as a birthday present.

I'm sure we've all tried to make one as a grade school experiment. But there are adults who take great time and skill to cultivate the perfect pinhole camera.

In celebration, Worldwide Pinhole Photography Day is this Sunday. Try your hand at something creative. Need some inspiration? Chad Stoller shared this site.

It has me asking: as technology simplifies our lives more and more, will the science behind how things work become lost?

If you were to build a camera, what materials would you use? Share your pinhole camera and photos with us.

Sarah Jo Sautter

Dan Klyn, a speaker at the IUE2009 conference, is an information architect by trade, and has sought out to create a book via collaboration around the lessons that IAs and XAs have yet to steal from "regular-old architects".

regular-old-architects seem to do a better job than information architects in the schematics-and-models phase of a project. their trade is an ancient one, and i suspect they've learned some things about the creation and use of abstract representations of design intent to secure client buy-in and sign-off.

His goal is to help those in the design and marketing profession avoid those dreaded client words: Now that I see it! It's this type of miscommunication and misunderstandings that leads to last minute changes and bad decisions, because the client didn't really understand until it was too late.

What can we learn from architects:
1. Start with the joints (points of stress)
2. Progressive disclosure: a logical, smooth storyline
3. Detail generates character
4. Embrace collaborative authorship
5. Get physical, get emotional

Sure, these are good lessons for information architects, experience architects, user experience designers, etc. But I would argue that there is a wider moral to be learned from each one of these points. We should all be testing out friction points in projects and presentations, spending our energy wisely on the pieces that create character, give our clients a reason to care... These five lessons from real architects teach us how to tell better stories and thus how to create better work.

image credit: Psycho Crow [Flickr]

Online privacy is a personal issue for people. Every inch we move into a more open and thus exposed web creates dozens of angry blog entries and Facebook protest groups. But ultimately, there are a lot of people out there that have come to accept the reality of their digital footprint. And far more out there that don't even know how to do anything in order to protect their privacy better.

So the question is: If awareness comes to more than the technically savvy few, is there a threat to data accuracy? And as data becomes more inaccurate, so does the relevance of contextual advertising, creating a new generation of people who rather just "shut it off", because it means nothing to them.

Should we be giving users more options to turn off ads, to turn off tracking? Or should we just be giving them better ads? And are those two things becoming mutually exclusive?

Today's marketer has to wrestle with a plethora of new platforms, channels, and delivery medium. She needs to deliver emotionally resonating messaging to online, offline, out of home, set top, personal computer, mobile, laptop, occasionally connected, touch sensitive, and always on devices.

A week or two ago, Randall Rothenberg's post on "heartbeats and mouse clicks" broke open a topic that has been seething below the normal work-a-day lives of interactive marketers for a long time. Randall opens his article with: Quick -- name four fantastic, emotionally resonant, culturally significant and successful interactive advertising campaigns from the past year.

How did you do? Did you find a campaign that really emotionally engaged you? That nameless visceral reaction to an idea, an image, a word, an experience. Like Randall, I couldn't name any. Nothing. The closest I could come was the RG/A Nike+ integration. I didn't have a visceral reaction to it, but the elegance and simplicity and the change in behavior it has wrought with me is certainly something that stands out.

The Evolution
Just when everyone was getting comfortable with the last fall's redesign, Facebook is changing the game again. So what does the social network powerhouse have in store? How about a simplified publishing model, elevating real-time activity, rounding out the corners of the design, oh, and changing the way we interface with brands and fan pages. The future is here right? Well, let's see.

Power to the People!
The new profile home page is giving more power to the users. Win right? Yes! Filters allow you to completely customize your feed quickly. Get the content you want and follow the people you care about most. The stream is getting faster, smarter and cleaner. Publishing content has become easier and faster as well. Posting directly from your wall increases the likelihood of continuing the conversation. I love changing a simple thing like asking, "What's on your mind?" instead of "What are you doing?" It entices users to pontificate a bit. Share thoughts as well as activities. Not unlike another social friend of mine that rhymes with twitter.

About three years ago, a couple people in our Toronto office shared their cravings for roti. Little did they know it would drive new traditions -- or enlighten those of us who had never heard of the addictive bread. It started as a communal gathering that spawned the need for online ordering (known around the office as Rotitron 3000). The ordering system provides weekly stats on the number of rotis ordered, the type ordered, strength of roti and more. Since November 10, 2006, Organics have spent $9,703 on roti lunches.

Today, we've launched the iPhone app "Rotitron Mobile." No more missed rotis if you can't get to your computer before the Thursday deadline.

Thanks to David Feldt in Toronto for the scoop.

Sarah Jo Sautter

image credit: A-dit-ya [Flickr]

A recent article in the UXmatters newsletter pointed out to a trend among some in the UX (user experience) community to take the U out of UX and refer to the discipline as experience design instead.
 
The reason for this change in terminology is that experience design recognizes the fact that most interactions are multifaceted and complex. They encompass much more than just the architecture or usability of a particular user interface. They also include all of the social, emotional and even cultural consequences of the interaction.

I'm in full support of making this change, as I don't think the title Information Architect really covers all the different types of work that I need to do in order to work together with the client and the team to craft the experience. I'd be happy to call myself an experience architect or designer.

But in the end the question isn't just about titles. By changing the titles, what we're really trying to solve is how to put all the pieces of this diverse field of work together.