I remember the signs on bus stands that read – “call this number to report a problem”. But, of course, I and I imagine many others, never called the number, even if something was badly wrong. A similar approach has been used to report other issues as we go about our daily lives, including reporting… Continue reading An example of using the ubiquity of WhatsApp to gather customer feedback in a physical space
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An example where a hotel turned a bad service experience into a good one
I booked a last-minute weekend getaway, and after spending some time researching hotels – I found one that suited my budget and needs. When checking in, I was upgraded to a larger room – result! I thought. After a long day being a tourist, I retired to my hotel room around 10pm. I hadn’t noticed… Continue reading An example where a hotel turned a bad service experience into a good one
There has to be a backup. We can’t rely on self-service alone
Recently, I arrived at a hotel wanting to check-in, and the front-of-house staff directed me to a self-service kiosk. The kiosk asked for my surname to begin the process. I duly entered it but could not find a reservation under my name. The booking had failed, and now I had no reservation. This wasn’t a… Continue reading There has to be a backup. We can’t rely on self-service alone
Convenience of travelling in a digital age
I often travel without making much of a plan. Working out how to get from place to place can be stressful. For example, on a trip to Barcelona, I left London without figuring out how to get to where I needed to at the other end. Being on a late-night flight, I wouldn’t usually do… Continue reading Convenience of travelling in a digital age
Examples of useful workshop games
Great ideas don’t have to come from the UX or service designer on a team. Instead, a good designer taps into the knowledge and facilitates idea generation with others. One way of doing this is through design games. Here are a few that I’ve tried and had success with and some that I haven’t (yet).… Continue reading Examples of useful workshop games
You can find a gem of an idea when you look at user needs, not just business needs
Today I saw an advert for Awaymo. Awaymo offers interest-free instalments for holiday flights. For many, holidays are annual or more frequent events like winter, rain, or train delays. But we can be bad at saving up for them and may often not have the money ready when we see a great deal or desperately… Continue reading You can find a gem of an idea when you look at user needs, not just business needs
Paying by cheque – upgraded to the age of digital
Some banks have recently started allowing users to pay in a cheque using their mobile app. Recent rule changes mean that by the end of 2018, instead of sending the cheques to a physical location to be processed and cleared (which can take six working days), they will have to be digitally cleared instead. For… Continue reading Paying by cheque – upgraded to the age of digital
Startups disrupting death and mortgages
I’ve noticed an increase in startups that tackle topics such as death and mortgages. Not the traditionally sexy products or services we’ve seen in the last ten years, but something we all face is ripe for disruption. Death is a topic too often ignored. People, especially young people, are the least likely to plan that… Continue reading Startups disrupting death and mortgages
You can always iterate
I fell in love with digital, partly because of the way you can quickly change something if it isn’t working. On the other hand, physical objects are often considered unchangeable once created. As a result, teams do all their research upfront, prototyping and user testing to be 100% sure of the final solution before building… Continue reading You can always iterate
Interesting interpretations of GDPR
I recently had to make a payment at a council office. They had chip and pin payment terminals but told me that because of GDPR, they were being phased out in favour of online payments. However, their interpretation of online payments was to hand them my card, which they then took to a computer in… Continue reading Interesting interpretations of GDPR