UI/UX Articles and Interesting Tidbits of the Week
November//23//2018
Here are some interesting finds on UI/UX of the week!
1.https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2018/11/use-case-for-augmented-reality-in-design/
Augmented Reality in Design. Another great article from Smashing Magazine, focused on the applicability of Augmented Reality applications on a series of verticals. The article details the intricacies of AR, and contextualizes its application on e-commerce platforms, social media and gaming. The use cases that are showcased in the article are equally pertinent and relevant. Highlight of the article includes:
“As you can imagine, AR in a mobile app can change all that. Augmented reality allows for more meaningful engagements between your mobile app (and brand) and your user. That’s not all though. Augmented reality that connects to geolocation features could make users’ lives significantly easier and safer too. And there’s always the entertainment application of it. If you’re struggling with retention rates for your app, developing a useful and interactive AR experience could be the key to winning more loyal users in the coming year.”
2.https://www.nngroup.com/articles/push-notification/
Mistakes in Mobile Push Notifications. Another great article from the Nielsen Norman Group focused on Notifications. At a time when notifications seem to be a resource for applications (and brands/products) to actively engage with their clients/users, this article focuses on presenting errors that are typical when adopting notifications, discarding the overall product experience, and particularly the customer reaction that comes along with it. Highlight of the article includes:
“Consider the generic messaging that iOS sends users: X company would like to send you notifications. This message focuses on what the company wants from users, but not on what the user will gain from the company. For some apps (such as social-media or news apps) users can make reasonable guesses on the sort of information they will see in notifications. On the other hand, it’s harder to guess the content of the notifications sent by a retail or an entertainment app. Details about the nature of your notifications can make users understand whether they need them and can increase the perceived credibility and trustworthiness of your app (after all, you’re being honest and transparent about your notifications, rather than trying to fool your users into accepting them).”
3.https://www.nngroup.com/articles/wishlist-or-cart/
Wishlists or Shopping Carts. As the e-commerce platform battle intensifies, it’s always relevant to read the articles from Nielsen, focused on studies surrounding Wishlists, Shopping Carts, and what the concept of “Saving for Later” actually means. A lot of these products anchor themselves, and their experiences, on the expectation that users/consumers will create accounts and of course go through the checkout flow. But in parallel with these flows, there’s the concept of personalization, tracking favorites, and of course, wishlists (which prompts the participation of other users and hopefully a widening of the reachable consumer group). Highlight:
“Although many sites in our study featured wishlists that allowed users to save items for later, people were reluctant to use them because they expected a high interaction cost for setting them up (for example, due to having to register). Instead, most participants preferred to save products for later by adding them to their cart. Furthermore, the label Wishlist implied to users that its primary purpose was for sharing gift ideas with others; many thought that doing so will be perceived as greedy or inappropriate, and neglected to consider other uses for wishlists. Names like Favorites or even My List did not have the same greedy connotation, although they also carried expectations of tiresome registration and setup.”
