What our home pages are really saying (a dialog)
Often when I’m designing I try to imagine a screen interaction as a face-to-face dialog between two people. Specifically, I try to imagine that the person visiting or using the screen is trying to have a conversation with a person representing the website or software the screen is part of. Of course, real-life conversation is by its nature reactive…we can instantly respond to a direct question and generally structure our responses based on where the conversation is going. When we design, we don’t have this luxury, and so we are left with designing a one-sided static conversation. This is hard!…and the results are often stilted and not at all like a real human conversation.
In the conversation below I imagine what it would be like to talk to most home pages…you know the ones…with the giant “Sign Up” button that commands your attention above all else.
(BTW: the following is an excerpt from my upcoming book Make them Care!)
Setting: The beautifully designed lobby entrance to your company’s corporate headquarters.
You: “Hmm…I just found this place by taking a path that looked interesting. You do software or something?”
Him (Salesperson in building lobby): “We offer amazing Software!”
You: “Ok, what is it?”
Him: “Sign up Now”
You: “Um…what does it do?”
Him: “Sign up Now!”
You: “How does it work?”
Him: “No obligation or credit card necessary!”
You: “I’m trying to figure out if this thing can work for me.”
Him: ” Did I mention it’s free to sign up?”
You: “Ok, what does it look like?”
Him: “Here’s a tiny screenshot you can’t see any detail on. Sign up Now!”
You: “You’re not answering any of the questions I have.”
Him: “Sign up Now!”
You: “I’m done here.”
Him: “Sign up Now!”
Make them Care! - Struggling to communicate the value of your product or service? I'm writing a new book that shows you how to make people care about your product or service by clearly communicating the most important bits. For designers and marketers creating product web sites. Find out more.