#uxdispring2015

So today I got my first taste of in the field research. As part of my UXDI pre-work I went to Penn Station to study people using the electronic ticketing kiosks and even interviewed a few.

That’s right, this class wanted me to interview New Yorkers in a rush about their most recent financial transaction that I was supposed to be observing them partake in. Apparently, this class wants to kill me.

But lo, surprise surprise, I did survive. And I actually got some useful information. 

The kiosks are surprisingly effective. Pretty much everyone who used them were able quickly and easily select where they were going and what type of ticket they were buying. The entire process was very smooth. In fact, I only witnessed a few bumps.

I witnessed a woman have to hit buttons several times to get them to work because the touchscreen was not responsive enough. This is a problem I’ve faced myself when using these machines and one of the people I interviewed also noted as his only issue with the kiosks that sometimes “the keyboards don’t work.”

Obviously any piece of technology is going to occasionally malfunction or be out of order, but that can be headed off a bit by having regular QA checks. As well as better touchscreen technology, but that’s an unnecessary expense at the moment as for the most part as the touchscreens work well enough.

The only other hiccups people seemed to encounter were after selecting how many tickets, not being sure where to press and having to search for their method of payment.

When reaching the screen above people would select the number of tickets and then many people weren’t sure where to press next. A lot of people moved their fingers towards the bottom of the screen where the “Go Back” and “Cancel” buttons are before moving up to “Press to Continue” button. Even people who knew where the right button was, paused and hesitated to make sure they were pressing the right button before hitting it.

Nearly every other screen proved to have a quick, intuitive movement to it where even users who were clearly unfamiliar with the interface didn’t struggle at all. So this stood out. Especially since one of the subjects I interviewed who claimed to use the kiosks every day said the only problem they ever had with the machines was long lines. 

One way to solve this problem would be to put “Continue” in green down at the bottom of the screen next to “Go Back” and “Cancel” buttons where people expect it to be. Another solution would be be to have the page automatically continue once the user selects their number of tickets. 

The reason it currently doesn’t do so is to allow the user to select both adult and children’s tickets. If you were to have the selection of a number trigger a continuation to the next page you could have people select the adult number and then the children’s number. This would add an extra step and risk confusion for those buying children’s tickets so extra research would have to be done, but it is a potential solution (if this is determined to be a large enough problem to need solving, most likely it is not as most customer’s most important needs seem to be met by the current system).

The other hiccup could also be contributing to the potential line issue. I saw user after user, when it came time for payment either needing to search their bag for their debit or credit card or needing to call over a significant other or parent or sibling to hand over their card or some combination of the two involving fumbling and a hand off.

The machines make a sincere effort to prepare people that they will need to use a card. They have the words “Credit/Debit ATM Cards Only No Cash” on the machine more than once. And even if someone was using a machine that accepts cash, you’d think they’d be aware they’d be using their card and prepared to use it.

To some extent this is unavoidable human behavior. Especially for machines that accept cash as people may not be sure what method they want to use to pay and if people choose to use cash, well, that’s always a more involved process.

But I do think the Credit/Debit only kiosks could improve their signage to decrease this time waste. The current signage, both the wrapping and plaque kind of blend in with the machine. People looking at the machine just see that as part of the kiosk without actually reading it. Instead, if they offered a plaque or wrapping that offered the same message, but included logos of credit cards and one for debit I think that stimulus would affect people’s behavior more.

Overall, though, the kiosks are surprisingly well designed (I say surprising because I’ve had my own issues using them). All respondents interviewed had an overall positive view of them saying they’re “very easy to use” and “more efficient” than the human tellers. 

One interviewee said they chose to use the kiosks because it meant “less human interaction.” A statement that on the surface doesn’t seem to offer much, but behaviorally signifies that the kiosks are easy to use. As a fellow introvert, I understand taking the path of less human interaction, but I also know that no amount of human interaction is too much if the other option is a headache. 

Ok, so that’s an image of a horse mask on Amazon, not it’s checkout, but putting a screenshot of checkout would mean sharing some pretty private information I don’t want to just put out there on the interwebs. So, this will have to do.

And even on this page you can see how perfectly designed the start of the process is. The price is in a larger font, bolded, and colored red (which is the easiest color to see). But your eye is only drawn to that second. First it’s the large, yellow, super clickable “Add to Cart” button. 

That button is incredibly inviting.

And then if you have an amazon account and have ever ordered from there before, all it takes is one more click as they have your address and credit card information saved. I’ve never experience a smoother or easier buying process. 

As part of my course, I will be posting both good and bad design that I come across. My first post is about a feature on Amazon.com that made me smile.

This came about while I was trying to arrange the return of a book I’d ordered for class that was covered in some kind of waxy substance. I was required to print up a postage label but of course, while I technically do have a printer, the ink cartridges in it are in serious need of replacing, essentially making it a very large paper weight at the moment.

I was delighted to see that Amazon anticipates that many people these days, or at least the ones who use Amazon Prime, don’t have a home printer and responded to this need by building into their return process, an option to send the label to a friend for printing.

Here’s a close up:

When you click on the feature, a pop-up box appears that allows you to forward the information along, and send yourself a copy of the email as well.

Absolutely, little things like these are what make me smile. Can I save the PDF and send it to the person on my own? Of course. Do I really want to add another step to the process of sending back something that I would never have purchased in the first place had I known it would be covered in some mystery substance? Definitely not. 

You may have noticed the picture I chose with my first post. It’s a picture of the Lumio, a wonderfully designed lighting device. I picked that image because it resembled a sunrise signifying the start of a new journey without being so on-the-nose and cheesy. Also, it’s pretty in its own right. 

The Lumio is the product of an incredibly successful crowdfunding campaign and was recently featured on Shark Tank where the creator was offered deals by all 5 sharks.

It’s easy to see why it’s been so successful in both these arenas. You don’t have to be an expert to see it has a truly wonderful design. In fact, I’m going to break down the ways in which this design succeeds into two categories: Aesthetic and Utility.

1) Aesthetic Design

Put frankly, the Lumio is beautiful. There’s no denying it. I mean, I was able to use it as a substitute for a sunrise.

The wood casing is gorgeous and book design makes it inviting and easy to carry. But the real treasure is when you open it, you’re greeted with this pop up accordion glow. 

It invokes a sense of childlike wonder. So much so, that even though you know it’s coming, it’s still a bit of a surprise each time and you can’t help, but smile at it. There seems to be something almost magical about it.

I think this is due in part to the pop up book nature of the device, which is deeply rooted in all our childhoods where it’s connected to emotions of surprise and joy. But I also think it’s the simplicity and other worldliness of the glow. They got just the right level of light. Not so little that it doesn’t do it’s job, not so bright that it’s anything other than comforting to stare at.

This level of light is perfect for reading in bed without keeping yourself up or disturbing a partner, setting the mood, or providing light for an outdoor space while you share drinks with friends. The fact that the light can inspire thoughts of all these pleasurable experiences in my mind is the ultimate in aesthetic design.

2) Utility

I’m going to break this section down further into 3 separate groups

a) Portability

It’s a small device, but not tiny. You can bring it with you on vacation or a summer evening picnic or anywhere you want. It would easily fit in any bag. 

b) Ease of Use

It’s literally as simple as opening a book. That’s all you have to do to get this product to light up. If your product is simple enough to use that an infant could probably figure it out, you’ve done a good job.

It recharges with a micro USB port. If you have a smart phone, you’ve used a micro USB.

c) Multiple Uses

I’ve hinted at this throughout this post, but one of the best things about the Lumio in comparison to other lighting products it’s that it’s easily used in a number of different ways. 

It can be opened as much or as little as you want based on how much light you need and can stand on it’s own no matter how much it’s open, from a quarter of the way as a reading light to a full 360 degrees as a table centerpiece. It can also be hung or using the magnets in its back attached to a metal post of some sort.

Hi, world. My name is Neil Prospect and I’ve started this blog to catalog my journey through the UXDI course at General Assembly in New York for which I am equal parts excited and terrified. (Ok, I’m more excited than terrified, but “equal parts” just makes that sentence flow really well and the fear is real).

I’m entering this course to build a new path for myself doing something that truly interests me. So, to get to why I need said new path, let’s take a look at my background first:

I graduated college in 2008, so perfect timing for the economic crash (although, the job market was already on life support before the banking collapse dropped a figurative weapon of mass destruction on it). 

My wonderful sense of timing combined with no clear idea of what I wanted to do to set me forth on a long journey of meandering futility. I had graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science with a minor in Creative Writing. This led nearly everyone to believe that I wanted a career in politics, but nothing could be further from the truth.

I had become interested in politics partially out of a strong sense of morality/empathy, partially out of having very strong and loud opinions, and partially out of the type of thinking it asks you to engage in. Critical thinking, analysis, problem solving. Politics provided me with hours and hours of it.

And so it naturally followed that I would want to spend my time on that time of thinking when I went to the place where you’re supposed to spend your time thinking. College. 

I think most people view my Political Science degree as merely ... well, I honestly don’t know what they think my classes consisted of because they seem to assume that it’s scope is limited to entering politics. In reality my studies focused on communications and media, philosophy, history, logic and how to build an argument, and reached somewhat into other areas such as psychology and sociology. 

Maybe people think my degree was in current events. Current events were discussed, but in the context of a larger picture, a collection of ideas, skills, and disciplines that go into how societies function and states govern.

My goal was never to enter politics. That world never suited me. I always felt more comfortable outside that bubble ... perhaps poking it with a stick. Maybe my future was in media or advocacy or maybe something else entirely. After college, instead of staying in DC or joining a campaign, I moved back to my parents house in New York (not that I had the money to stay in DC anyway).

In my dream of dreams I wanted to be a writer, but in reality I would have taken any job I could get. I wasn’t sure what I would like and what I wouldn’t, the best option seemed to be just to get something that my skills would allow me to do and work from there.

Over the course of the past 7 years I have jumped from job to job to job taking whatever I could get. With the economy what it was this meant a lot of unpaid internships or positions where I got paid in an extremely minimal stipend or at best got an hourly wage. 

I’ve had some writing and editing jobs and as anyone in the field will tell you, they were not among the paying (not more than a stipend anyway). Those jobs made me learn the basics of HTML and SEO and promoting yourself online which led me to digital marketing positions.

I’ve worked for content sites, startups, content farms, digital marketing firms, a dive bar, Martha Stewart, and more. Anyone that would offer me work, I would take it. 

And in terms all those hundreds of salaried positions I never got well, some of them I was just one of thousands applying and never got seen, some of them I wasn’t qualified for, some I was over-qualified for (which was a problem despite my insistence that I didn’t mind and that I’d take the less money), some the job got changed at the last second, some someone else was hired by someone at another office without telling anyone, some thought I was perfect for another job that was their pet project that hadn’t materialized yet and never would, and so on and so forth.

I’ve been working hard and trying to scrape by and applying to everything I could possibly be qualified for (albeit in seemingly saturated fields) and I haven’t been able to get anything. I needed to try something different, something new. I couldn’t keep banging my head against the wall and expecting anything other than a splitting headache.

Meanwhile while applying to everything in sight (including jobs all over the country and all over the globe, at companies I despised, and programs like Teach for America), I had come across some articles about coding bootcamps. They were interesting and they offered a chance to change gears and enter a high paying field. Plus, I always wanted to learn coding.

A few problems, though. While I always wanted to learn to code, I wasn’t passionate enough about it to want to do it for 90 hours a week or throw my life into it. Furthermore, a lot of these places only accepted a handful of people and I had almost no coding experience and I lacked passion. Others were really expensive. Too much for something you’re not passionate about. Too much in general as I couldn’t afford it.

A friend of mine had suggested General Assembly classes a lot over the last few years, but (a) which should I take? (b) they were all more expensive than I could afford and (c) they all started like 3+ months away and there’s no way I could support myself for that period of time without income. Besides, I was totally going to finally get that job I was looking for within that 3 months. 

Fast forward to a few weeks ago. I noticed an alert on social media about a friend’s business expanding. I was so proud and excited that I went to take a look at the website .... and ... well, I couldn’t help myself but send an incredibly long, very much unsolicited, and extremely apologetic email explaining things about the website that needed to be changed or moved and why.

I was so embarrassed by the email because who the hell am I to tell her how to run her business? But I was just trying to be a friend and help her out with something I felt I had a talent for and enjoyed doing. I definitely enjoyed doing because I spent several hours on this analysis just for funsies.

I recalled a blog post I had read several days before about a UX consultant who did similar things professionally. And this was when I began thinking UX could potentially be a field for me, but I had no idea of how to break into it. 

But as I did a bit of research I realized that this wasn’t my first brush with UX. At a digital marketing firm I worked at we were encouraged to do a lot of reading in the field and stay up to date with new developments. For me the most enjoyable parts of this reading/research was always about user testing and the process of how users engage with sites. I remember wishing I could do that for a living. I think at the time it all fell under Quality Assurance, but it’s possible it was called UX and that terminology simply didn’t register.

So in trying to figure out how to find a way to get a job in UX despite not entirely understanding the field and having no experience in it, I decide to check with my old friend General Assembly. And to my surprise they not only had an intensive UX course, but one coming up in early June and there were payment plan options to help me afford it.

It was still a monumental risk, hence the terror currently taking years off my life, but sometimes you need to take risks. Researching UX has been like an epiphany. This is where I belong. It’s something that employs all the skills and types of thinking I enjoy. It’s creative and inventive and challenging. And most all look back on all the applications and interviews, this seems like something I’d enjoy more than 99% of those positions. 

UXDI will provide me with the skills I need to work in the field and a portfolio, so I can walk into an interview with confidence and show them what I can do.