If I were Will Wright, I’d say that ‘Fun is the process of discovering areas in a possibility space.’ We talk so much about emergent gameplay, non-linear storytelling, or about player-centered content. They’re all ways of increasing the possibility space, making self-refreshing puzzles. Theory of Fun In a similar vein, is it possible to say that [...] Read more »
No scene that doesn’t turn
Look closely at each scene and ask: what value is at stake in my character’s life at this moment? Love? Trust? What? How is that value charged at the top of the scene? Positive? Negative? Some of both? Then at close of scene, ask: where is this value now? Compare. If answer at end is [...] Read more »
Not every interaction is a moment of truth
Stories are the creative conversion of life itself into a more powerful, clearer, more meaningful experience. They are the currency of human contact. Robert McKee I’ve been wrestling with the concept of moments of truth lately. One of the objectives when visualizing experiences using customer experience journey maps is to identify and redesign the moments [...] Read more »
Do you have an [enterprise] app for that?
Gartner predicts that by 2013, 40% of enterprise knowledge workers will have removed their desk phone, as illustrated in this great infographic on this history of the knowledge worker. I’m one of those 40%. I participate in online meetings while soaking up the sun on my deck. I’m drafting this blog post from the Sleepless [...] Read more »
Designing experiences with content
What’s the worst customer experience you’ve ever had? In this presentation from Content World, I (partially) chronicle my own worst ever customer experience using a simplified customer experience journey map. While it wasn’t the worst in terms of any one interaction, the overall experience as it unfolded over time, across multiple interactions, and through multiple [...] Read more »
Taking a people-centric approach to the design and deployment of enterprise software
There’s been a regrettable lack of discussion on the challenges of designing usable, engaging experiences for enterprise software. Often the business problems solved by B2B vendors were compelling enough that whether or not they were easy to use organizations were willing to put up with poor design. Companies purchasing the software have traditionally been more [...] Read more »
10 reasons content strategy is essential when designing a holistic customer experience
Next week I’m attending (and speaking at) the first Content Strategy Forum in Paris. I’m intrigued by the discipline of content strategy because I believe that now, more than ever before, content strategy is critical for designing a holistic customer experience. No longer will content be thought of as a necessary evil (technical how to [...] Read more »
Designing for a holistic customer experience – thinking outside the product
Economies right now are fundamentally becoming less about physical objects and more about creating ideas and experiences… We now have a new challenge: we have to meet a new emphasis on improving experiences instead of objects, and we need to improve the flow of interactions between customers and service providers. – Daniel Pink, Business Thinking [...] Read more »