Digital Insights

At IWMW 2017, I asked a simple question; Why do some digital teams struggle, while others flourish? The answer lies not in management or investment, but in the daily decisions we make and the approach we take.

We like to think a responsive website makes our sites mobile friendly, but that is not the whole story. There are still ample ways we can screw up the user experience and damage our placement in search results. https://boagworld.com/design/site-mobile-friendly-think/

In 2005 I wrote a post about the problem with periodic website redesign, yet in 2017 I still have clients asking for help with yet another one. This post lays out why they are doomed to failure and offers a better way. https://boagworld.com/digital-strategy/website-redesign/

Content management is an enormous challenge for big organisations, especially when it comes to legacy content, much of which is owned my many content creators across the company. How do you deal with ageing content on a website with little central control? https://boagworld.com/content-strategy/content-management-legacy/

Most of the people who write for the web are not professional digital copywriters. How can these people create better content without years of training? They only need to ask one question. http://boag.me/2sTJ80J

The Interaction Design Foundation is not another Silicon Valley startup trying to flog you second rate online training. They are a well established not-for-profit seeking to increase diversity in the UX community through affordable quality education. http://boag.world/WD9dA

We all need to win over clients and stakeholders to do our job. Without them, we cannot get approval to do the things we need to do. But, most of us are surprisingly bad at doing so. The question is, how are we messing up and what can we do about it? http://boag.me/2reHWYb

When you run your own business it can be tough to take a break. Especially hard if you work alone. In this post, I share some techniques and tips that help me get quality downtime. https://boagworld.com/news/take-vacation-right-way-freelancer/

As User Experience Designers we use prototyping all the time. But persuading clients and management they are worth the time and money can be frustrating. This post lays out the business benefits of prototyping. http://boag.me/2qDrYUH

When thinking about a career in UX, focusing on qualifications is not the answer. But a solid grasp of techniques and principles is essential. http://boag.me/2pgQJYc

There has been much debate about whether it is possible to design the experience of users. Can you really be a user experience designer? I believe that depends on how you define the role. https://boagworld.com/usability/can-you-design-an-experience/

Sooner or later many of us as digital professionals end up having to write a website review. When we do, we need to do more than focus on the surface and instead delve a little deeper. https://boagworld.com/digital-strategy/how-to-write-a-transformative-website-review/

Great work is only possible in the right environment. But many of us don’t work in a place like that. How can we change our workplace? That is the question I answer in this talk at Awwwards London. https://boagworld.com/usability/say-want-revolution/

Many things shape the experience of users. However, nothing is more likely to drive users away than a poorly performing website. http://boag.me/2orNU64

Many seem to be ever more desperate to get people to sign up to their newsletters and mailing lists. In this post I want to show you how you can get subscribers without resorting to Intrusive overlays. https://boagworld.com/usability/improve-newsletter-signup/

We need colleagues to change. Whether creating a better experience or encouraging digital thinking. We need them to do things in a different way. But, change is hard and people are often reluctant.

The images on your website can be both a curse and a blessing. They can be a compelling part of your content. Yet they can cripple performance, especially in todays multi-device world. It is time to squeeze the most from every image we use. http://boag.me/2o3MawY

A user experience designer is not the same as a user interface designer. Their tools are collaboration, research and design thinking. Not Sketch or Photoshop. http://boag.me/2n1hcbS

Recently while in Iceland I had a wide ranging conversation with Hagnýt menningarmiðlun. We covered a range of subjects from sparking a user experience revolution to education in web design. You can watch the video here: http://boag.me/2lRrNmp

Many in-house digital teams are under resourced and under appreciated. But moaning isn’t going to bring about change. Fortunately, there are positive steps you can take.