Category Archives: Usability

What is user experience?

Of the many digital developments of the past five years, (e.g. mobile apps, tablets, console expansion into broader entertainment products) two of them that affect content people working in the sector are: “Web” is now an outdated term, replaced by … Continue reading

Posted in Content, Copy, Corporate communications, Corporate identity, Corporate online, Editorial skills, Experience design, Usability, UX | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Where digital fears to tread

Trains packed so tight you can feel the man’s hard-on in your back; freeways and motorways backed up so far the horizon looks closer than the beginning of the line. So what that your phone app is telling you how … Continue reading

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I want to read the text, honest

I have a thing about denim, I like it weighty and well made. So I was looking up what textile manufacturers makes the best denim and came across Cone Denim, who use old-style looms that produce heavyweight fabric with selvedge … Continue reading

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Read this

Read this mini-essay about the future of interaction design: A Brief Rant about the Future of Interaction Design

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Books on content strategy

A few books about Content Strategy have come out recently. Kristina Halvorsen’s “Content Strategy”, published by New Riders press; “Elements of Content Strategy” by Erin Kissane, published by A Book Apart; and “Clout” by Colleen Jones, also New Riders. These … Continue reading

Posted in Content, Content strategy, Copy, Editorial skills, Online strategy, Usability, UX | 1 Comment

Common sense and usability rules

There are a lot of best practices when it comes to online content and usability. Some of them are best, and some of them are merely practices. Three “practices” that have made it through to corporate marketing and web departments … Continue reading

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Is there a future for corporate websites?

No. Well, not as we currently know them. Site sections devoted to company information such as About Us, Our Business/What we do, Our company, Corporate social responsibility, and so on have no future. The information they do contain that has … Continue reading

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Just don’t buy, but can’t say why

Nielsen’s post, Alertbox: Middle-Aged Users’ Declining Web Performance has me muttering under my breath. He says: “Between the ages of 25 and 60, the time users need to complete website tasks increases by 0.8% per year.”

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Press releases, templates, activity over passivity

Todd Defren, Shift Communications, has posted the company’s updated social media press release. Helping companies structure their online content is always a good thing. It’s quite generous of Shift to offer the template for free. One of the template’s strengths … Continue reading

Posted in Content, Copy, Corporate communications, Corporate identity, Corporate online, Online strategy, PR, PR 2.0, Public relations, Usability, UX, Web 2.0 | Leave a comment

This means something. I’m just not sure what.

So I was talking to a useability expert the other day. He told me he’d finally got round to watching Citizen Kane, but couldn’t see what all the fuss was about. Could I enlighten him? Me: “Well, for starters, what … Continue reading

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