Part 2 of the article
In this article, I would essentially concentrate on what different brands provide to their customers. Is it always about the user experiences that determine the brand loyalty for top brands like Nokia? While I talk about this, I would also discuss the following pointers:
– Consistency between products with respect to interaction and pattern flow
– Mobile phones interfaces that behave like applications
– Getting the interaction right before testing
A good user experience is important. Although people go for style, most depend on the usability of the product. This determines the usability package of a good user experience model.
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What Our Users Believe
At a usability testing session here at Kern, we documented that many users don’t really care about the usability of a mobile phone. That becomes secondary to them. “It’s about the brand and the features within the phone. The more I can do with it, the more entertained I am!”, one of our users exclaimed.
What Lies Behind This Belief
So what really determines this belief? Don’t you think that it could be because of how the products actually benefit users? Years and years of experience, by this I mean a pleasant experience with the products of the brand determine its future growth. The more the users are able to use a product, the more the sales would grow. With this growth, the company’s revenue grows. With this revenue, there are more products churned out into the market. With these products, users are exposed to more, which determines a brand experience. So, what really determines this experience? Usability.
At the end of the day, it all boils down to consumer needs. Gone are the days where customer needs are determined by Business to Business ideologies. Today, it encircles Consumer to Business ideologies. Companies, typically, follow a top-down life cycle of servicing. But with usability taking the forefront, companies begin adopting the bottom-up servicing model.
Let’s have a closer looks at the market share of companies today.
Source: www.mobileisgood.com/statistics.php
Any guesses why Nokia leads today?
Brand Loyalty: This loyalty emerges when people find that the brand gives them value. Some characteristics include:
- Durability
- Good battery life
- Sturdy hardware
- User-friendly interface
User Experience: Nokia holds the largest consumer segment today because the usability of the interface is on a higher platform than its competitors. Users tend to accept this as a benefit.
So these pointers mentioned above lead to one thing- A good consumer relationship. Yup, that’s all there is to it! And how does this relationship begin? USABILITY!
Consistency Between Products With Respect To Interaction And Pattern Flow
As all of us already know, we will never find ourselves completely comfortable when we switch from one mobile phone to another. Yes, of course, exploring a new interface can be exiting! Ahem, sometimes not.
Today, most mobile phones make it especially tough for users to switch phones. The intention is simple. Designers want to provide something different each time. But is this at the cost of an enraging user experience? Ah, Ah. Think twice designers.
The more you pay for the phone, the more ‘features’ you need. Yes, that’s common as most users expect that. As designers develop a new interface each time, they completely change the task flow pattern to integrate these new features.
The key is to keep the interface consistent between different mobile phones. That does not mean we don’t innovate. Adding power and at the same time retaining its simplicity keeps users pleasantly engaged.
Mobile Phones Interfaces That Behave Like Applications
My my my! As the internet booms each day, demand grows each day; designers of mobile handsets forget their job roles. Forgetting that users of mobile phones operate software applications differently, designers engage users to use a mobile handset like an application. The result? Chaos!
Let’s just take an example- A widget from the Samsung X820
To set an alarm, this phone expects you to select an option like you would in an application. Easy enough to figure out? Think again. There is a vast difference between clicking on a computer and selecting a choice from a mobile. By clicking, the action can be directly manipulated. But by selecting a choice with the help of a keypad, the action needs to exude an affordance. Here, users are never going to figure out their next step.
Conclusion: Getting The Interaction Right Before Testing
As usability practitioners gain experience by understanding the world of how users function in an environment, they begin to understand basic principles that engage/disengage users while they use a product.
Before testing, a basic interaction pattern must be created. With the help of usability standards that are adopted by most usability practitioners, testing results would fetch more focused results.
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