The class exercises have given me an opportunity to experiment with different visual storytelling styles to build out a given concept.  For example, the bodystorming exercise we did, which echoed the IDEO approach towards developing a new shopping cart, was a fun and unique way to take a far-reach idea (like our new “Start your day” alarm clock/dashboard) and try to bring the concept and design to life through flow charts, theatrics and a mini-interaction test.  My favorite class exercise/assignment was the Egypt-social media infographic.  Although challenging to find the data needed, it was really enjoyable to take a current event and iterate on the way to best visually represent the correlations and possible impacts of social media upon the Egyptian revolution.  Additionally, having two all-class feedback rounds for our infographics was particularly useful from both a critic and creator perspective.  I really appreciated being able to see the varied creative interpretations of the assignment, and I was able to apply learnings and comments from across people’s work to my final design.

The chance to tone my creative muscle around interaction design is extremely useful to my career in marketing, which currently spans web, email and video channels.  I’m making design choices on a daily basis to build out creative, so having the vocabulary and understanding of the components that make up good and bad design from the readings, lectures, exercises is extremely useful.  I’ve already noticed an enhanced awareness from our focus on interaction design that has caused me to question certain design decisions that counter some of the heuristics we’ve learned and advocate for a better customer experience.  Our focus on the design process and diligence underlying good, user-centered design will also help me flesh out and execute future projects.  And finally, my term project has allowed me directly focus and build out an idea around an interactive, online Windows test drive that I am going to pitch back to my team.  The design concept I’m working on will bring together the user-centered design approach, customer mental model, and key design principles we’ve learned in class. I ended up working with our audience research team to conduct a quick survey to some of our core global markets to try and identify the expectations and needs of the customer around an e-trial, and the insights from this have been extremely useful and supportive of an interactive online trial.  They are also helping inform my flow chart, wireframe and overall customer experience through the Windows test drive.  I believe the learnings from this project and the eventual testing of a pilot experience will have a significant impact upon how we approach marketing in the future for Windows.

Homepage:

Search results for “american films”:

Art Library location page:

Help page:

Build an engaging, interactive online experience that allows people to directly explore a number of scenarios and features within Windows 7 and Windows Live.  The experience would essentially be like a guided interactive tour, starting with a short overview and demo of the feature benefit and then, walking people through each step and have them complete it (e.g. dragging their cursor to crop a photo) so they can have a hands-on trial of how it works.  Through screencasts and animation, the experience would simulate the actual user interface and behavior of Windows 7 and Windows Live as much as possible to allow people to get a very real “test drive” of the operating system.  These various “test drives” would live within an overall wrapper that allows people to pick and choose what they want to explore by feature name, content category, and skill level.

Why do it?

Research has shown that when people try Windows 7 in person, they grow a strong preference for Windows and intent to purchase.  However, currently this is limited to retail stores and special events as it is very resource intensive and challenging to get people in front of a new Windows 7 PC and provide a 1:1 demo. The “test drive” would help efficiently scale this learning because it would be accessible by anyone who has an internet connection.

• The “test drive” interactive model invites people to participate, driving stronger engagement with the information and scenario than a passive video.
• People who come to Windows.com do consume video content at high rates and videos drive high satisfaction, so interactive videos could take this to the next level.
• Unlike other technology products or software, it’s difficult to give someone a free test trial of a new operation system – the upgrade steps vary depending on that the customer is currently running and if a custom install is needed, the process can be quite lengthy and involved.  Not to mention, the process it takes to undo the trial afterwards.
• It is possible to do a virtual PC simulation where the user can play with a full version of Windows 7 that is loaded onto a host PC, but there a couple of downloads are needed and there are stability issues here.  It’s also challenging to integrate a structured guide of specific scenarios and steps into a virtual PC simulation to help people identify and try the benefits of Windows. And the unguided, explorative format is an intimidating learning experience for the average user.

Initial Design Strategy

• Business goals
  o   Increase preference towards Windows
  o   Increase intent to purchase Windows 7 or a new PC running Windows 7
  o   Increase downloads of Windows Live
  o   Engage customers with key scenarios and features
  o   Efficiently mimic offline, in-person trial
  o   Create a modular experience that can be leveraged beyond Windows.com (OEM, retail, partners, events, elearning).
• Marketing and branding goals
  o   Make people aware of the new features/benefits of Windows 7
  o   Increase loyalty with the Windows brand
  o   Decrease fear and anxiety associated with learning how to use a PC
  o   Get people excited about Windows 7 and wanting more
  o   Foster fun and engaging experiences
  o   Authentically show the Windows 7 UI experience, features, and interactivity.
  o   Look and feel needs to bring the Windows 7 brand ID to life
• Target audiences
  o   Main target: 
  • Parents
  • Tech Trendsetters or Savvy Socials (see below)
  • Current Windows XP users
  • Shopping for a PC in the next 12 months
  • Little knowledge of Windows 7 capabilities

  o   Secondary:

  • New Windows 7 users
  • Not aware of all the new features/benefits of Windows 7
  • Some anxiety around trying things and exploring on their own without a “safe” environment

  o   Personas:

  • Tech Trendsetters: I love the power and potential of technology. Using the latest and greatest devices and services is both fun and functional. Technology is an invaluable part of my life and I can’t imagine getting through the day without it.
  • Savvy Socials: Keeping up-to-date with friends and family is my primary motivation for using technology. Whether I am social networking or chatting, I like feeling that my friends and family are right
• Task analysis:
  • Quick access:
    • Pin favorite apps to the taskbar
    • Use Jump Lists to get to recent/favorite documents, websites, etc.
    • Windows Search to find the file or program you’re looking for
    • Live Taskbar previews – see before you select
  • Manage windows:
    • Snap 2 windows to each side of the screen
    • Shake a window to clear away the clutter
    • Peek to quickly look at the desktop
  • Create
    • Edit photos
    • Edit movies
  • Connect
    • HD video chat
    • Social networks in the Social hub
    • Files in the cloud
    • Sync files across PCs
    • Access media on your home PC from your laptop over the internet
    • Use your PC as a DVR
  • Share
    • Share photos
    • Share movies
    • Send photo emails
    • Share office documents over the web
    • Share printers (HomeGroup)
    • Share folders (HomeGroup)
• Technological constraints
  • Use Silverlight:
    • Need to find out what percentage of Windows.com visitors have Silverlight installed
    • Need to check on any potential browsers that don’t work with Silverlight
    • Gather known limitations with Silverlight for product accuracy – e.g. can’t mimic shift button functionality and can’t distinguish between a left vs. right click.
  • Consider creating a down-level experience in Flash
    • What are the additional costs for this?
  • Make it modular, so we can syndicate to other platforms and external sites/partners.
  • Accessibility – captions and voiceover for guided tour.
• Critical success factors (*compare to normal video formats)
  • Engagement:
    • Total views
    • Trial starts and completes
    • # of clicks per visit
    • Time on site
  • End action:
    • Clicks to “Shop for Windows 7”
    • Downloads of Windows Live
    • Next step in purchase funnel
  • Customer satisfaction:
    • Survey results
    • Ratings
    • Sharing
    • Repeat visits

Outline of paper

• Description of idea
• Supportive research
  o   Survey data from in-person trials
  o   Quantitative and qualitative data from retail stores

• Analysis of other interactive videos and virtual PC simulations
  o   Windows PC Scout (interactive shopping guide)
  o   Interactive “adventure” videos/games on YouTube

• Design strategy
  o   Business goals
  o   Marketing and branding goals
  o   Target audiences
  o   User group
  o   Environmental Profile
  o   Task analysis
  o   Technological constraints
  o   Critical success factors

• User-centered analysis
  o   Look at existing research/conduct research
  o   Analyze customer’s mental model for trials/demos

• Description of concept

• Important interactive elements/content requirements
  o   Initial menu to choose feature to try
  o   Way to jump past basic info for people more familiar with Windows and PCs
  o   Navigation system throughout – steps, menu
  o   Ability to pause/start
  o   VO + onscreen text
  o   Visual prompts for key steps
  o   Feedback for steps/errors and to prompt people who haven’t done the needed action on screen
  o   Error control/help – minimize frustration

• Flow chart
• Wireframes of 1 of the interactive player and one of the features

• Outline of test and measurement plans
  o   A/B test of interactive trial vs. video online
  o   Possible in-store test at Microsoft Store in Bellevue
  o   Test to Consumer Panel

1. Bejeweled Blitz (Facebook)

2. Happy Aquarium (Facebook)

3. Wii Tennis

1.       Bejeweled Blitz (Facebook)

• Game overview:  In Bejeweled Blitz, you have 1 minute to line up 3 of the same gems to score points and load more gems. It’s similar in concept to Tetris, but you always have a fully loaded board of gems and there are special combos that award you more points.  For example, lining up a T-shape of the same gems scores you extra points.  You can also add boosts before you start a game, which you purchase with coins that you’ve earned or purchased which can help dramatically improve your score.
• Controls: The only thing you can do in this game is swap the placement of 2 gems with a left click and movement of your mouse to try and create combos that score you points.
• Challenging: The 1 minute time limit makes this relatively simple game quite challenging.  It’s also difficult to learn all the special combos. When you start the game for the very first time, there is a splash screen that displays some of the combos, but I glossed over that info at first since I just wanted to get in and try it.  And finally, sometimes you just don’t get a great board of gem options.
• Fun:  This game is highly addictive for several reasons.  1. The short sprints of this casual game make it seem guilt-free to play a game, 2. They play to your competitive nature by displaying your score ranking relative to your friends on Facebook. 3. They call out your high score and give you merit badges, etc. that you can share on Facebook, and 4. They sporadically reward you with rare found gems, slot machine opportunity to get more coins and other motivators in between games.

2.       Happy Aquarium (Facebook)

• Game overview: This game is quite different than Bejeweled Blitz.  It starts with a very linear setup that walks you through a number of steps as part of a tutorial to show you how to get fish and take care of them in your aquarium.  Then after you complete the tutorial, you are given 100 coins and are sent to the store to buy fish for your new aquarium.  After that, the game is very explorative and there really seems to be no time limit – you can feed your fish, clean the tank, or train your fish. It really tries to simulate a virtual fish tank.
• Controls:  Like Bejeweled Blitz, you use the movement of the mouse and let click to control your aquarium.
• Challenging: Even though they have the initial tutorial, it’s actually not very clear what you can and can’t do with your fish and the aquarium.  A lot of it is trial and error as you see what you can even click on and how different tools work.
• Not fun:  I’m just not a Tamagachi type of girl.  I don’t feel that much attachment to virtual pets and need a faster paced game and more direction.

3.       Wii Tennis

• Game overview:  For Wii Tennis, you can choose the number of players and characters.  In our case, a match was a game where you serve and hit the balls using the Wiimote buttons and moving the Wiimote.  If you are the only one playing, you control both the characters on your side of the net, and the character closest to the ball when you swing will try to make contact.
• Controls: There is a Wiimote that you use to control the motions of your character.  In tennis, the character moves on the court for you, but you control the speed and timing of the swing.
• Challenging: Navigating the menus with the Wiimote does take a little getting used to and it’s not always intuitive what certain buttons are needed for certain actions. However, the Wii has made drastic steps towards simplifying games and bringing them closer to the actions done in real life.
• Fun:  Wii Tennis is a really fun game, and I can say this even having grown up playing tennis for the past 23 years.  While sometimes I wish it had a little more dimension – e.g. ability to control movement of character across the court and things like spin and placement better, the simple nature of the game is very fun to play on your own or with others.

4.       Kinect Dance Central

• Game overview: In Dance Central, similar to Guitar Hero, you choose a song and skill level. Then, you can choose to step through the dance moves, following a trainer. If you get the move right away, the trainer moves on to the next move.  If you don’t, it breaks it down for you and you practice it a few times.  When you’re done learning the moves, you can select “perform” and you put it all together with the full song, following the trainer and getting points for the number of right moves and perfect moves in a row.
• Controls: Kinect is really on a whole different level than the Wii, because your body really is the controller.  Since I’m not a big gamer, I love not having to worry about the right buttons and memorizing certain commands so I can just focus on the game itself. The Kinect tracks your joints, depth of field and motion through 2 cameras and infrared.  It also has 4 microphones built in so it can also respond well to voice commands.
• Challenging: You can’t really “cheat” the actions needed like you can with the Wii – Dance Central actually requires you to match the beat and have some coordination.  It’s a little hard to match some of the more complicated moves that the trainer is doing because of the mirrored perspective of seeing them doing it and then, seeing your body sensor on screen.
• Fun:  Hands down my favorite game – would love to have more time to try all the other games. The games feel so much more dynamic because you are required to be more physically involved and because the removal of the controller reduces the mental barriers between your decisions and movements and the actions on screen for the game.

Second, the course addressed my initial curiosity around what makes a sticky mobile app and this mostly circled around the app purpose – identifying an app that fulfills a key need and makes sense for people to use on their phones.  For example, a traffic app is very sticky, because it helps drivers save time and frustration by avoiding traffic jams and finding alternative routes.   And people would use it frequently, because traffic patterns and travel destinations are always changing.  Moreover, people don’t always have access to a computer or time to wait for the radio to give us the latest report, so the app makes for a very convenient and handy tool to have in your pocket.  Brad Ellis, our guest speaker from Rogue Sheep also brought up another way to make apps sticky through fresh content –Brad talked about how his team look to build apps like Postage that can easily leverage seasonal content to keep customers coming back for new templates and to help get promoted within the App Store.

Third, we learned a lot about different promotional strategies through our course book and guest speakers.  At the core of this is the app itself and trying to get key real estate in the iPhone app store.  This continues to bewilder me, being a marketer at heart and wanting to believe that fun and innovative plans can draw additional awareness and downloads of the app.  If I were to release an app, I would still try a variety of different tactics, but given the course learnings would first focus on the basics like being discoverable within the app store.  For example, Jim Bricker, who designed the Order Pizza app, discussed how his app went from a handful of downloads to thousands and thousands of downloads once he associated the keyword, “Pizza Hut” with his app, which allowed it to jump to being one of the top apps listed for searches for “pizza” and “pizza hut.” This was echoed by other speakers who work hard to keep their ratings up, determine the right pricing strategy, and strategically time re-releases to try and become more prominent in the app store listings.  Additionally, the design of the icon, screenshots and description, which help an app stand apart from other apps are important marketing elements.  Michael Schneider also discussed the value of directly integrating sharing and rating tools within the app to help spread the word and increase the number of positive ratings.

The fourth key learning, which surfaced from readings, lectures, and close interactions with existing apps, centered on constructing a good user experience.  Leading with the end user in mind versus fancy design or packing an app full of features is necessary to creating an app that is intuitive to use and lets people quickly get to what they need.   This includes little things like ensuring all the buttons are finger-friendly and that any action gives the user feedback (visual or text cues that something is occurring like “Listening” and the circular dial that appears in Shazam).  And this also includes the fundamental information flow through an app, the navigation bar and persistent navigational elements like a back or home button.  Interacting with existing apps, trying to piece together print outs of Yelp’s screen flow and designing our own information flow and screen shots gave me a big appreciation for the challenge of designing intuitive paths that help people through core use cases.

Overall, I think my course goals and learnings shifted from being more theoretical to being more tactical.  I really enjoyed the end to end process of brainstorming and completing an app précis, which allowed us to directly leverage class themes and best practices from our readings and guest speakers.  That being said, surveying the course topics and activities, I can also see how a number of the above learnings can be applied beyond the smartphone world.  If you’re designing or marketing a product or website, you also need to pin point a need, focus on the user experience, and ensure you have essential content necessary.

Personally, I had never visited the website of an iPhone app before taking this class, because majority of the time, I’m browsing for apps directly from my phone and I expect the key benefits, features and screenshots to be outlined on app landing page in the store.  And I’ve also found that my patience for having to click and visit another site to learn more is growing thinner by the day.  That being said, I am really only going off anecdotal information at this point. I would love to see the data around clicks from an iPhone app landing page in the store to the app website and vice versa.

However, if you were trying to optimize promoting your app through social media and the press, I could see how having a destination for that foot traffic would be quite useful.  I am also really keen on the idea of having a video that walks you through the experience like Rogue Sheep has done with their Postage app here: http://postage.roguesheep.com/.  And if I was buying an app, I would definitely want as much information and a sneak preview into the app experience as possible and would be willing to take the time and extra steps to seek out this additional information.

Additionally, I’ve found that navigating the iPhone app store on my phone and in iTunes can be extremely frustrating.  The categories and sorting aren’t very intuitive (prime example of Cooper’s cognitive friction) and the search functionality often doesn’t return all possible relevant results.  Creating a website that can be indexed by search engines as an alternative path to allowing people to find your app could prove fruitful for others who use search engines as their default to find and learn about apps versus the app store itself.

App purpose: Help curious art lovers explore Seattle’s famous First Thursday art walk in Pioneer Square and learn more about participating artists and their collections.

Rationale: According to the First Thursday website, First Thursday in Pioneer Square is actually the first art walk in the United States.  In 1981, a group of Pioneer Square art dealers printed handout maps, did small-scale promotions, and painted footprints on the sidewalk outside their galleries on the first Thursday of the month.  Today, Pioneer Square is at the heart of Seattle’s art scene with studios and galleries that span over 54 blocks and a wide range of art from sketches to mixed-media installations that often rotate month to month.  An app could allow both locals and tourists to better explore and appreciate this vibrant and organic art scene and community.  It would provide an on-the-go tool where people can easily find and navigate to participating studios and galleries, and learn more about the art and artist.

Audience: art lovers, artists, socially active people, art investors/buyers/sellers, tourists

Rough feature brainstorm:

• Location Services: integration with Google maps to display studios and your current location (below is what’s currently on the First Thursday site)

• List:
  • View studio > then drill down to see hours, artist(s), type of art

  

  • View by artist > drill down to bios and showcase of art (audio/video clip?)
  • View by art/exhibit category (e.g. drawing, sculpture, photography)

  

• Featured artist/artwork
• Ratings/comments for studios/galleries
• Add artists/artwork to a Favorites folder or action sheet where you can connect with artists by email, Facebook, Twitter, etc.
• Featured artist/artwork
• Ratings/comments for studios/galleries
• Add artists/artwork to a Favorites folder or action sheet where you can connect with artists by email, Facebook, Twitter, etc.

Competing apps: There aren’t any true competitors here, however, there are a few apps I stumbled upon while searching through iTunes that serve as really good models for how this First Thursday app could work.

• Dumbo Art under the Bridge Festival (Free in iTunes) – This app is a great model for the Art Walk app I’m envisioning. The app helped people navigate the 3 day festival in Brooklyn through a digital map and schedule of events, and extended the experience by offering videos, recorded statements, text and images from the artists so that people can learn more about them and their art.

• Museum apps like Brooklyn Museum and Portland Art Museum are in a similar realm and I think their simple UI approach paired with appropriate visuals and an easy way to drill down into more information is executed well.  I think the layout of the First Thursday app could be pretty similar to these examples, just some of the content would be swapped.

Possible organization sponsors: Pioneer Square Community Association, CityArts, Seattle’s Convention and visitors Bureau, Seattle Art Blog, City of Seattle – Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs or a mobile app agency trying to gain experience (this is what ended up happening for the creation of Dumbo).

• App purpose: Find local events and happenings in Seattle. There are a number of offline and online resources that promote local Seattle events, but there really aren’t many apps out there that are providing a great calendar of festivals, concerts, street fairs, etc.  It would be great to have an app where you could find events by category, date, and location.
• Audience: The main target would be socially active, local Seattlelites.  The secondary target would be tourists.
• Competing apps:
  • Serendipity (Free in iTunes): You can locate live music, theater, and other live events for the day. It is integrated with Google Maps and you can create an account and group to share your location with others in your group. The app is free, but has very sparse information listed.
  • SwamiCity Seattle (Free in iTunes): With SwamiCity, you can select from the below screen of categories to find something to do in Seattle.
    
    Within a category, there are a number of venues listed, but some of the navigation and user experience could  be improved. For example, under “Concerts,” it then lists “Seattle Concerts,” which is a bit odd since the whole app is supposed to have Seattle information. And majority of the links direct to web pages versus an information page within the app itself.
  • ToDo Finder (Free in iTunes) – This app appears to be the closest competitor, but I actually couldn’t get it to read my location properly. According to the app’s description, you can search for a variety of things on the spot from salsa dancing to poetry readings. You can also find things to do using the search functions for where and when.
    
  • There are also specific venue apps like Sasquatch! Festival, Woodland Park Zoo, and iSIFF
  • And a number of city travel guides like Lonely Planet Seattle City Guide that may include a sprinkling of local events.
• Possible organization sponsors: The Stranger, Daily Candy, Seattle’s Convention and visitors Bureau, City of Seattle, Seattle CitySearch, Seattle Weekly

App # 2: First Thursday

• App purpose: Help people navigate the famous First Thursday art walk in Pioneer Square and learn more about participating artists and their collections.
• Audience: art lovers, artists, socially active people, art investors/buyers/sellers
• Competing apps: There aren’t any true competitors here, however, there are a few apps I stumbled upon while searching through iTunes that serve as really good models for how this First Thursday app could work.
  • Dumbo Art under the Bridge Festival (Free in iTunes) – This app is a great model for the Art Walk app I’m envisioning. The app helped people navigate the 3 day festival in Brooklyn through a digital map and schedule of events, and extended the experience by offering videos, recorded statements, text and images from the artists so that people can learn more about them and their art.
    
    
  • Walking tour apps like Invisible Paris (Free in iTunes) that give you a guided tours of an area could also lend itself well to the First Thursday app. And below are some screenshots of the Invisible Paris app’s tour of street art.
    
• Possible organization sponsors: Pioneer Square Community Association, CityArts, Seattle’s Convention and visitors Bureau, Seattle Art Blog, City of Seattle – Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs or a mobile app agency trying to gain experience (this is what ended up happening for the creation of Dumbo).

App #3: Metro Trip Planner

• Purpose: While I am a big fan of OneBusAway, I would really love to see that app integrated with King County’s online Metro Transit Trip Planner. Trip Planner lets you put in a start and end address, day, and the time you want to leave your starting point or arrive at your destination, which allows you to better find and plan a route in advance or when you’re going somewhere new. Whereas OneBusAway and the slew of other iPhone Seattle bus apps are optimized for certain routes you are familiar with and finding the next soonest bus at one of your regular bus stops. Usually, I have to use a combination of Google Maps or Trip Planner to find the best bus route and stop, and then consult OneBusAway for updated departure times.  Additionally, I can also see the full route map of a given bus line and the regular weekday and weekend cadence for the buses instead of having to continuously query by each specific time and location.
• Audience: tourists and local Seattlelites who are trying to plan a trip by bus and need to figure out the best bus route for a given time and start/end address versus just real-time bus info for a specific stop.
• Competing Apps:
  • There are a bunch of bus apps, including OneBusAway, Seattle Bus, myTransit – Seattle, Seattle Bus Map, TransitGuru Seattle, and TransitScope, that fundamentally offer the same benefits. They allow you to see when the next bus is arriving at a specific stop, store your frequented routes, and see routes and where you are to some extent on a map.  OneBusAway appears to be the only free iPhone app listed and the others range from $0.99 to $4.99.
    
    
• Possible organization sponsors: King County Department of Transportation (created the Metro Transit Online Trip Planner), Seattle’s Convention and visitors Bureau, and City of Seattle.

Brad Ellis who designed the Postage app at RogueSheep, which allows you to create and send postcards with your photos to friends and family, and T.A. McCann, founder of Gist, a site and app that help you better store and access information about the contacts you care about most, both confirmed the unique nature of iPhone app marketing. They explained how users mainly utilize the app store on the iPhone itself or in iTunes to discover and try new apps, and because of that, the surest way to getting a high volume of app downloads was to appear prominently in some of the major categories of the iPhone app store such as “Featured.” Ellis also discussed how Postage has created seasonal templates such as Valentine’s Day postcards, which have helped keep their content fresh, and more importantly, allow them to be featured by Apple in the store during the holiday seasons. Both Ellis and McCann also furthered Wooldridge and Schneider’s emphasis on the design of and functionality of the app itself by emphasizing the importance of good ratings from users, which bears a lot of weight on people trying and buying an app and your ranking within the app store.

Wooldridge and Schneider outline 4 key things to keep in mind when designing an app: first impressions, evaluation of information, user interfaces, and building in the ability to share and rate the app. Given the sheer volume of apps that now flood the store, it is important to focus on the first impression – the name, icon and rating score of your app. When I’m scanning the store for a specific type of app, an intuitive name and a relevant icon are key to helping me find what I’m looking for.  The Seattle Traffic View app has a name and icon that could be improved. Using “view” and showing this scenic montage of Seattle icons doesn’t sell me on the ability of this app to help me navigate traffic through traffic cameras.

After you’ve drawn someone in through your icon and name (and also through sustaining a good rating score), it is important to give some TLC to the description and screenshots you provide. People usually want to be able to learn more about what they’re about to download first, especially if they’re going to have to pay something.  While this seems like common sense to me, I was surprised by the number of apps I’ve come across that don’t have any description listed about the features and benefits of the apps. Below is a screenshot of the Serendipity Seattle app that only has the below screenshot of Google maps loading.  This definitely does not help entice me to download the app and I assume they have no good content to showcase.

For the user interface, Wooldridge and Schneider stress the importance of creating prototypes that map out the flow and components of the app to ensure you’re designing something that will delight the end user.  For the most part, users aren’t asking you to reinvent the wheel and appreciate consistent use of certain icons and navigation tools such as the “+” sign to open up a sharing or favorites menu.  However, at the same time, there are many examples of customer user interfaces that make sense and help bring the app to life, such as this iHandy level:

And lastly, Wooldridge and Schneider advised considering building in sharing and rating tools directly into your app.  They note how Apple’s automatic prompt to rate apps once you’ve deleting them is not sufficient as this generally attracts low ratings from customers who were obviously unhappy if they’re removing your app. I actually have come across a few apps that have prompted me to rate them while I was using them, but I actually haven’t ever followed through on those.  Some of them prompted me too early before I felt like I could commit to a rating and other times, I’ve been too focused on the task at hand to be bothered. That being said, I still think this is a valuable function to put in your app to help prompt more ratings and the ability to share when you’re actually engaging with the app itself.