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What's Your Intention, Anyway?

by Shelly Bowen

We’ve all heard that writing specifically with your online audience in mind is important. And there are lots of ways to create a picture or “persona” of these viewers, including looking at:

  • demographics of your target
  • how long they stay on one page
  • the weather where they are — cold, hot, dry?
  • when they visit — day, night, or weekend?
  • where they came from
  • the words they used while searching for you

But, as CEO Olivier Chaine of magnify360 pointed out yesterday in design seminar hosted by the AIGA, there’s another element that’s really, really important when crafting a great user experience. It’s INTENT.

Know Your Audience … Even Better, Read Their Minds

How do you know what their intention is? Well, that takes a little creative thinking. And maybe just a little mind reading.

Example: You’ve heard about a new shoe store in your favorite shopping plaza. You go to the site. A big central banner shows the latest shoe with a buy now button. But did you intend to buy yourself shoes online? Probably not — you want to see pictures of the store, see exactly where it is on a map, and some idea of what the merchandise looks like.

What’s the intent of your customers? There may be more than one. And once you’ve got a handle on their psychology, what do you change? I can help out there, if you need it.

Many thanks, Olivier, for the added perspective to persona building!

Posted by Shelly Bowen on Jan 29, 2009. Filed under Online Customer Experience / Research, Web Content Strategy

 

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