I think i might have been in a bad mood when i wrote this.
- ‘Digital’ is not an abstract goal. It’s a essential business function. Your customer want to use your products or services at a time, location and through a channel that suites them. Which are the appropriate platforms to achieve this?
- Usability is not optional. It’s an essential part of a professional development process. As tools, interaction design practice and technology use matures the innate level of usability will increase. Only focusing on tactical usability issues to meet customer needs will eventually hit the law of diminishing returns, It will cost more to identify usability issues versus the expected return.
- People adapt. If a person believes a product will help them achieve their goal they will endure hell on earth to get it. (Remember the queues outside your local apple store on launch day, or when the last Harry Potter book was release, or trying to program your video player to record a show while you’re out?) So why don’t your customer want your product?
- Customer expectations change faster than your ability to keep up. Designing to meet needs enables your product or service to stay relevant for longer.
- Your current products might not meet the customer’s need – people may use your product, but you won’t build lasting relationships if it doesn’t help a customer to achieve their goal. As soon as something comes along that does meet their goal then your customer will be off.
Matthew Goddard 