What if we have succeeded in creating intelligent content? Content that has semantic metadata, content that is tagged so we know where we can use it. How do we then present it to the people who have to base decisions on that content, to do their job? How do you design an interface that leverages the value of all those content assets? This was the question Ann Rockley put to me after my presentation at Intelligent Content 2010.
Arjan van Rooijen and I had just finished showing the first version of SDL Quatron, a workplace for marketers that provides marketing insight and control. We have been working with Philips to visualize the great content that is living in their IT landscape and to empower marketers to use that information to speed up and improve the product development and market introduction processes.
The most important thing in projects like these is to know your user. Since you are designing a solution for a limited set of people as compared to a rather abstract internet audience, you have the opportunity to really know your users. Drink coffee together, take them out for lunch, but at least talk to them!
- Rule 1: Refer to your users by name
Use the concept of personas, but make them real people, actual users. Since you know them in real life, refer to them by name. Create a mix of 5-6 users that cover the diversity in your user grouo that is bound to be present. Later on in your project you should always work with actual content from your real users; not only in the design phase but also in the development phase and during testing.
Collect user stories as well as use cases. Use cases tend to describe a theoretical process. User stories capture the real use. Knowing that a local campaign failed because somebody forgot to mention that the pack of coffee beans was already included with the standard product will give you the inspiration to provide sharing that insight with a larger community so others will not encounter the same experience.
- Rule 2: Check their Office files
Have a look at the Excel files they create. You will find there what planning they do and how they look at their own process. Have a look at the emails they send. And you will find out where the process is going wrong. Have a look at the PowerPoint presentations they create. You will find out what they like to talk about and where their passion is. And have a look at the Word documents they create. In the case of marketers: none. And you realize that they hate structure and do not like to read more than one paragraph of information at a time.
- Rule 3: Pretend technology is working as it should
Take your time to talk to the first line support team. They know best where people are having troubles, what information is missing or is hardly accessible. If they also do training they know the capabilities of the people for whom you are designing a solution.
But make sure to remove all references to non-working IT systems. You are not designing an IT support system. Your solution is to help them forward on the assumption that IT is doing its job, that the intelligent content is readily available when asked for.
