PS: I love you and also others
Design for one and for all
Yesterday I went to buy a soft toy for a small kid. So I went to a big supermarket, which has many things including toys. In the toy section I was looking hard whilst walking through the aisle but I didn’t find the spot at first.
Then suddenly a small girl came running around, picked up a Winnie-the-pooh from the bottom shelf and showed it her mother (I guess) who was coming behind her. It was just right there where I was standing! How did I miss that? Wasn’t I looking enough or not having focus?
Previous studies show that eye level is the most effective location for product placement (Van Nierop et al., 2008), meaning that we tend to look at what is in our eye-level. Not rocket science but behavioral science!
So you see? Certain things like our psychology, cognitive science, behavioral science does not change in 1900's or 2000's! Such stays the same, we are still humans! The eye-level capturing of things is just one example of that.
Should we address all users/ user needs?
This is a big debate and a question that arise from time to time. This sounds to me like “Should I love all or just you”? (Well of course baby I only love you Darshana Senavirathna)
The thing is it was easier for the kid to sight the toy but was tough for me. May be the supermarket strategy was to get the children’s attention, but I also had the need to buy a soft toy to a kid. Were I addressed or included in their segment of supermarket buyer experience?
There you got the answer for the big question! What matters is how we use and to what extent we apply the unchanging knowledge we have(hoping aliens don’t invade or mutants don’t arise). Obviously, the market cannot keep addressing me and the kid at the same time, right?
Hmm, can’t they? What do you think?
Quoting from Interaction Design Foundation:
Whilst every product and system will present its own design challenges the nature and limitations of human cognition remain the same for every interactive experience. Therefore, though it is essential to understand the characteristics, thoughts and behaviors of specific groups of users, it is equally important, if not more so, to understand the cognitive processes that underlie all interactive experiences.
