Lee Dunbar

Dec

4

Despite your political leanings, Stephan Dion and the Liberal party taught us an important lesson this week. The medium IS the message.

The absolute horribly produced video that was sent to the press gallery to be distributed to the networks represented a comical string of errors worthy of the Keystone Cops. The video arrived late, was in the wrong format, the composition of the video was well below the quality seen on many amateur YouTube videos, and the quality caused people to speculate that it was shot on a camera phone.

This caused people at the water cooler and the media to talk about the poor quality of the video rather than the message itself.

Research at Stanford University’s Persuasive Technology Lab indicate that people judge the credibility of a message based on the quality of the medium — be it a visual cue, quality, aethstetics, etc. If this is the case, and it certainly seems to bear out in my experience, Dion very well could have done even more damage to himself and to the rest of the party.

The lesson to be learned here is this —pay absolute attention to the quality of the media you are using. Make sure the design works, make sure the aesthetics support your branding and positioning, and make sure that when you do present something to the public that it actually helps your cause rather than hurt it.

And now the video in question (it looked much worse on TV than on YouTube):

Of course, this isn’t the first video to hurt Dion’s credibility:

Tags: Brand Experience Stuff, Design Stuff, Experience Design Stuff
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Sep

11

Hey — it happens to the best of us. As you develop your product you keep adding features and layers of complexity as you continue through the development cycle. That’s what the customer wants, right? More features? More complexity?

Not always. Maybe never. Sometimes developers get to the point where they lose sight of what their purpose is. That is, to solve a problem or need. Sometimes the product itself can become a barrier to the desired result, whether it be for business, convenience or entertainment.

This is the conclusion 2K Sports came to when designing their newly released NHL 2K9 video game.

“Feeling last year’s version was too complicated, 2K Sports is offering a simpler entry into its hockey title, promising gamers can pick up a controller and play from the get-go with virtually no learning curve. There are deeper playing options with plenty of complexity, but the goal was to make the title simple and fun out of the box.

“Thomas and his California-based development team concluded that as consoles grew more sophisticated, hockey games became more complex, turning off some gamers.

“We just kept layering controls and adding more functionality and looking for the next silver bullet feature that we had to put in there. And we kept layering this stuff on. And what happened, in our mind, was I think the game got out of hand.”

Read the article It’s Game On for NHL2K

I can relate to this story. When we purchased EA Sports’ NHL08 for my two boys they would not use it, deciding instead to keep playing NHL06. They didn’t like the way EA changed the controls, taking what was an intuitive, simple interface with the game and adding far too much complexity.

While this article speaks specifically of products, the same idea holds true for process, place, graphic design and other elements that are designed.

Tags: Design Stuff, Experience Design Stuff, Technology Stuff
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Aug

23

The Round-Up

August 23, 2008

From the, ‘They aren’t buying what you are selling’ department, ComputerWorld is reporting that a full third of PC buyers are downgrading to Windows XP. Even when stripping Vista down to core components to make it as close in functionality to XP as possible, Vista was 40% slower, Barth claimed, citing recent tests Devil Mountain has performed. “Vista’s performance had been an ongoing problem, and the only thing that’s saving Microsoft’s bacon is the faster processors and more RAM on today’s PCs,” he said. “Moore’s Law is always on their side.” I have to admit that since I do a lot of video and photo editing, that a downgrade to XP would be the option I would go for as well.

I guess this is kind of old news, but Ottawa’s 20Q has a Disney version of their 20 questions game, a very addictive game I would add. Think of a place, thing or character that has something to do with Disney and see if you can stump the application.

Speaking of Disney, if you visit their webs site, you can now create your own Disney page. On a side note, when are they going to get rid of the failed go.com part of the URL?

I’m a big fan of Michael Geist. CTV reports, “Critics of the Harper government’s proposed changes to the Copyright Act have launched a cyber crusade to fight the controversial bill. They’re using everything from Facebook to YouTube to Wikipedia to blogs to get their message out. They want the government to either scrap or make serious amendments to Bill C-61 when Parliament resumes next month. At the helm of the digital movement is Michael Geist, a professor at the University of Ottawa who specializes in Internet and e-commerce law. In addition to his own blog, Geist runs a Facebook group called Fair Copyright for Canada that boasts 90,000 members.” I am also a big believer in the effectiveness of social media tools, so I will be interested to see how effective this campaign is.

The Daily Show and Colbert Report are two of my favs. The American Political Science Association has posted an article about what is coined, the “Colbert Bump“. Democratic politicians receive a 40% increase in contributions in the 30 days after appearing on the comedy cable show The Colbert Report.  In contrast, their Republican counterparts essentially gain nothing.  These findings appear to validate anecdotal evidence regarding the political impact of the program, such as the assertions by host Stephen Colbert that appearing on his program provides candidates with a “Colbert bump” or a rise in support for their election campaigns.

Tags: Design Stuff, Marketing Stuff, Neat Stuff, Sports Stuff, Technology Stuff, Web Stuff
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Aug

9

In a post I wrote about a month ago, I outlined my frustration with changes made at the concession stand of a drive-in my family frequents. I shared that we have given up on the concession stand and were now bringing our own snacks and drinks. It seems we are not alone, and the owners may very well have noticed a decline in overall sales, as the drive-in in question has added a few lines to their website:

“We ask that you kindly refrain from outside food and beverage … “

Hot, fresh, spend half an hour in sweltering heat lining up to get it. No thanks!

Tags: Brand Experience Stuff, Business Stuff, Customer Service Stuff, Design Stuff, Experience Design Stuff, Retail Stuff
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Jul

23

The Round-Up

July 23, 2008

Well, here’s today’s collection of things that caught my eye …

Gizmodo gets an exclusive tour of the Lego factory. See video showing the entire manufacturing process of the Lego bricks. Kinda like learning the Caramilk secret.

An article in Computerworld outlines how web 2.0 can facilitate development 2.0, facilitating better software quality and a more efficient process.

Isn’t it ironic? From the fossil fuel capital of the US, the state of Texas Approves a $4.93 Billion Wind-Power Project.

Can product piracy be a good thing?

Wired reports that, seeking to make money from mistyped website names, some of the United States’ largest ISPs instead created a massive security hole that allowed hackers to use web addresses owned by eBay, PayPal, Google and Yahoo, and virtually any other large site.

It’s reported that Tesla Motors is starting to deliver their production electric cars. Here are the stats: 220 miles per charge, 125/mph top speed, 248hp peak, 3.5 hour charge time and 0-60 in 4 seconds! That’s a serious entry in the green car market. While you’re at it, take a look around their website. Great use of blog software to build community around their brand.

Are computer manufacturers really bowing to the RIAA’s demand to disable stereo sound on computers?

I love this idea of “crowd-sourcing”. Reuters has an article about “eCars – Now!”, a Finnish Internet community seeking to apply the collective approach to start converting used petrol-fuelled cars to electric ones, with the first roll-out due this year.

Tags: Brand Experience Stuff, Business Stuff, Community Stuff, Design Stuff, Technology Stuff, Web Stuff
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Jul

15

The Capo d’Astro Bar

July 15, 2008

When I was in college one of my profs gave us a paper with the following story, and suggested that if we only learn one thing from him, he’d like it to be the lesson learned from the story of a copywriter, a piano and a Capo d’astro bar.

The story is as follows:

Back in the sixties, I was hired by an ad agency to write copy on the Aeolian Piano Company account. My first assignment was an ad to be placed in The New York Times for one of their grand pianos.

The only background information I received was some previous ads a few faded close-up shots . . . and of course, the due date.

The Account Executive was slightly put out by my request for additional information and his response to my suggestion that I sit down with the client was, “Are you one of those? Can’t you just create something? We’re up against a closing date!”

I acknowledged his perception that I was one of those, which got us an immediate audience with the head of the agency.

I volunteered that I couldn’t even play a piano let alone write about why anyone should spend $5,000 for this piano, especially when they could purchase a Baldwin or Steinway for the same amount.

Both allowed the fact they would gladly resign the Aeolian business for either of the others, however, while waiting for that call, suppose the deadline was attended to.

I persisted and, reluctantly, a tour of the Aeolian factory in upstate New York was arranged. I was assured that “we don’t do this with all of clients” and my knowledge as to the value of company time was greatly reinforced.

The tour of the plant lasted two days and although the care and construction appeared meticulous, $5,000 still seemed to be a lot of money.

Just before leaving, I was escorted into the showroom by the National Sales Manager. In an elegant setting sat their piano alongside the comparably priced Steinway and Baldwin.

“They sure do look alike,” I commented.

“They sure do. About the only real difference is the shipping weight-ours is heavier.”

“Heavier?” I asked. “What makes yours heavier?”

“The Capo d’astro bar.”

“What’s a Capo d’astro bar?”

“Here, I’ll show you. Get down on your knees.”

Once under the piano he pointed to a metallic bar fixed across the harp and bearing down on the highest octaves. “It takes 50 years before the harp in the piano warps. That’s when the Capo d’astro bar goes to work. It prevents that warping.”

I left the National Sales Manager under his piano and dove under the Baldwin to find a Tinkertoy Cap d’astro bar at best. Same with Steinway.

“You mean the Capo d’astro bar really doesn’t go to work for 50 years?” I asked.

“Well, there’s got to be some reason why the Met uses it,” he casually added.

I froze. “Are you telling me that the Metropolitan Opera House in New York City uses this piano?”

“Sure. And their Capo d’astro bar should be working by now.”

Upstate New York looks nothing like the front of the Metropolitan Opera House where I met the legendary Carmen Rise Stevens. She was now in charge of moving the Metropolitan Opera House to the Lincoln Center.

Ms. Stevens told me, “About the only thing the Met is taking with them is their piano.”

That quote was the headline of our first ad.

The result created a six year wait between order and delivery.

My point is this. No matter what the product or service, I promise you, the Capo d’astro bar is there.

Tags: Advertising Stuff, Design Stuff, Marketing Stuff
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Jul

4

My family has been going to the same drive-in theatre five or six times a summer since we discovered it about four years ago. Last season new owners took over and at the end of the season they renovated their concession building so it would be ready for this year.

On the surface not much has changed. They removed part of the counter so that it is straight instead of a ‘T’ shape, and they removed an antique projector that sat in the corner of the concession lobby. One apparently small change they made has greatly affected the guest experience as a whole.

They removed three drink coolers that the previous owners used in favour of a self-service fountain machine. This of course would likely triple if not quadruple their margin on drink sales. However, this may not equate to more profit for them.

This seemingly small change has slowed service to an absolute crawl. Under the old owner’s system, guests would go to the fridges off to the side of the concession lobby and once they chose their drinks, they would join the line to pay and grab any other snack they may have wanted. Smooth, simple and efficient.

Under the new system everyone gets in a single line which first runs perpendicular, and then turns parallel to the new, straight counter. First there is the coffee station where you pour it yourself from a typical household coffee maker, and don’t forget to add your cream and sugar. Next stop, the popcorn rack where some of the best popcorn you’ll ever taste sits pre-bagged, warm and fresh. Right beside is the self-serve butter and popcorn salt. Next stop is the small counter-sized beverage fridge that holds bottled water and a small selection of juice. Next, the drink fountain machine, where two people at most take about forty seconds to one minute each to fill-up their drinks. Next we have a jar of pickled eggs and another of pickled wieners, dig those hands in there and pick the one you want! Next we have a small selection of candies and chocolate bars. And finally stands the cashier, where you pay for the stuff you picked, and you also place your order for hot food such as fries, hot dogs and burgers that you then stand in another line to pick-up on the other end of the counter.

The new system is terribly inefficient. I watched the cashier as I stood in line and I would estimate that about 60% of her time was wasted because of the log-jam at the fountain machine — and to a lesser extent the other self-service stations. As a result the line is long and slow, and the people in the line-up frustrated. Some, like me, gave up entirely. We now bring our own food and drinks.

And that’s my point. This is absolutely poor customer service. The new owners were thinking of margin, and their convenience rather than the customer’s experience. At the end of the season, when sales are tallied they just might find better margins on their fountain drinks, but I suspect that they just might find that a number of people are forgoing the concession stand for their own thermos of coffee, cooler of drinks, and bag of snacks. The concession food is a lot more expensive, and with their new system a lot of people won’t have the patience to wait for their snacks while they miss the movie.

Anything you do in business needs to follow a design process — and the most important aspect of any design — is the experience you create for your guests. You do this successfully and the profit will come.

Clearly, the new owners didn’t think about the implications of their new design. Hopefully they will do something about it — and while they are at it, they can improve the situation with their bathrooms, but that’s a story for another day.

Tags: Customer Service Stuff, Design Stuff, Experience Design Stuff, Retail Stuff
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Jun

24

The Round-Up

June 24, 2008

What happens when Google and Disney get together to throw around a few ideas? You get the Walt Disney World Resort available on Google Earth in 3D. The project features over 1,500 fairly detailed 3D models of buildings and attractions in all four theme parks and more than 20 of Disney’s Resort hotels. I had a lot of fun scrolling around — what a great way to allow your guests to move around and explore the park when they are either planning or dreaming if a trip to the most magical place on earth.

Montreal is the first North American city to role out a self-service bike rental system. Users will be able to pick-up a bike at one location for a nominal fee and drop it off at another location which are dispersed around the city.

More search engine election fun. A blogger has launched a Google bomb attack on McCain. The strategy was designed to raise the rankings of negative news stories about McCain. Yes, the same strategy you use to raise the visibility of your organization, can be used by your competitors to raise rankings of negative stories or reviews about your organization, officials, staff, or product. It is a good strategy to continuously monitor your own brand, trademarks and product category keywords. It can be as simple as subscribing to a comprehensive Google news alert.

It also seems that people are messing with page views and video ranking on YouTube. In an effort to make it the most viewed video, a blogger has created a refreshing web site that is increasing the number of views of Avril Lavigne’s Girlfriend video.

Tags: Advertising Stuff, Brand Experience Stuff, Community Stuff, Customer Service Stuff, Design Stuff, Experience Design Stuff, Marketing Stuff, Search Engine Stuff, Web Stuff
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Jun

24

Where is Matt?

June 24, 2008

I am not sure who Matt is, the story on the Stride Gum web site and also on Wikipedia is that he’s a guy that quit his job so that he could travel around the world. And this he does — dancing in some of the most beautiful and interesting places on earth. Not only does Matt dance, he has many guests that jump in and dance with him.

I am not sure if this is real, or just a buzz/viral tool developed by Stride, all I do know is that it brought a smile to my face.


Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo

Tags: Advertising Stuff, Brand Experience Stuff, Design Stuff, Funny Stuff, Marketing Stuff, Web Stuff
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Jun

17

One of my favourite movies of all time is Stephen Spielberg’s, Jurassic Park. In the movie, Sam Neill’s character, the technologically challenged paleontologist, Dr Grant says, “I think we’re out of a job,” to which Jeff Goldblum’s character, a trendy mathematician quips, “Don’t you mean extinct?”

While  Spielberg included this line in the movie as a reference to a remark Phil Tippett made after sitting with Spielberg to view early tests of CGI animation techniques that would eventually replace all of his go-motion animation, the same fate could have fallen on the full size animatronics built by the legendary Stan Winston, who passed away June 15th after a long struggle with multiple myeloma.

Stan was a lead member, and integral part of Jurassic Park’s design team. His team built the full-size animatronics that he described as being, “A perfect combination of art and technology.” It was actually Spielberg’s original intention to use these full-size dinosaurs throughout the movie, but it became clear early on that this just wouldn’t be feasible.

August 1992, the production of Jurassic Park began in Hawaii. Eager to see how their dinosaurs would perform, the first scene shot featured an interaction between one of Stan’s full-size models — a triceratops — and the characters played by Neill and Laura Dern. “It was important that we either got bloodied on our first day of shooting or succeeded,” Spielberg says, “Thankfully for Stan Winston and his team, it worked wonderfully.” Winston’s full size characters brought an element of believability and level of interaction that could not have been achieved through CGI alone.

I am one of those geeks that actually gets as much, and likely more, enjoyment out of watching the “the making of X” bonus features on DVDs as watching the feature itself. If you ever have the chance, it is a treat to see how the team brought the dinosaurs to life in Jurassic Park. Along with other members of the team, Stan Winston shares some great stories throughout. On the T Rex, he shares, “It was wonderful to see this 9000 pound wonder, 40 feet long, acting.” Indeed it was Stan.

Stan Winston was a pioneer, a legend in experience design. He shocked, fascinated and entertained. He has left an impressive body of work that will entertain people for years to come.

From Wired:

“Most recently, Stan Winston Studio devised the suits featured in Iron Man. The movie’s director, Jon Favreau, said Winston brought a “childlike enthusiasm” to his craft.

“He was the king of integrating practical effects with CGI, never losing his relevance in an ever-changing industry,” Favreau said in a statement. “I am proud to have worked with him and we were looking forward to future collaborations. I knew that he was struggling, but I had no idea that he would be gone so soon. Hollywood has lost a shining star.” 

In the wake of Winston’s death following a seven-year battle against multiple myeloma cancer, Aliens producer Anne Hurd told Variety: “Stan Winston never looked at anything as a problem. It was always an opportunity. I never saw him defeatist, regardless of what may have happened. And he had an incredible childlike passion for films and for makeup effects and animatronics.”

Tags: Design Stuff, Experience Design Stuff, Technology Stuff
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