User experience is about more than just UI; it’s about the behavior of people. It’s about designing services, systems, and applications for what people actually do (naturally) or what they could do ideally — not what we “think” they currently do. Interactions should be natural and therefore the design should be silent (not in the way of the person). Using an application (even for everyday tasks) should be… well… engaging.
This isn’t easy. Sure, there are usability and UX design principles and competencies, but there is nothing more telling and more accurate than learning the human using the application (you). And I don’t mean just learning your name, responsibilities, and background. I mean learning your psychology. Now. Don’t get all creeped out on me! Modeling systems after human behavior has led to many of the amazing gadgets and apps we enjoy today. And of course, as you might imagine, there’s no way to get it right — only to begin to engage, entice, and influence you, making your use of an application an enjoyable and seamless experience. And of course, we (designers) also try to create experiences that you may not know or even realize you’re going to like until you use them! And lastly, we try to design with intent (influencing behavior rather than modeling it). This approach has led innovation in app design and development to a new level. So in a nutshell, UX designers study what makes you YOU, so that we may understand how you perceive yourself, solve problems, make decisions, are influenced by others, and what motivates you to behave a certain way.
All this leads me to invite you to join my team at xChange12, our annual global user conference, for an ALM User Experience study. We’ll look at some cool stuff and ask you some interesting questions. You won’t want to miss it because you’ll be entered in to a grand prize drawing!
Studies are an hour long and will be held Monday through Wednesday, September 10-12, all day. Take a look at all of the sessions and register to attend! You can also email me at cglasgow@serena.com with any questions. Help us understand what makes you tick.
