incremental redesign: a more manageable approach to improving

Incremental Redesign:A more manageable approach to improving your Web site

Incremental Redesign

History of a classic user interface

1912 Ford Model T

Incremental Redesign

1928 Pontiac

Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

1932 Ford Roadster

Incremental Redesign

1959 Mercedes Benz

Incremental Redesign

1975 Chevy Nova

1979 Chevy Nova

Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

2001 Porsche 911

Incremental Redesign

2005 Lincoln Town Car

Incremental Redesign

2005 Lincoln Town Car

Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

The Redesign Wringer

01.1999 01.2000 07.2000 08.2001 08.2002 08.2003 08.2004

Incremental Redesign

- We’re not exactly sure what we’re doing.

Big rollouts (especially regular ones) send the wrong message.

- We’re more interested in playing with designs than serving users.

- We’re basing our designs on internal decisions, not on user requirements.

- We’re more interested in changing designs than dealing with the big picture.

- We’re treating our Web presence like print media.

- Our priorities are constantly shifting.

Incremental Redesign

Big rollouts drive users crazy

- New AND returning users have to learn where to find everything all over again.

- The user support network breaks down.

- Users frequently have to learn a new taxonomy and terminology.

Incremental Redesign

- No matter how carefully you try to inform users, big rollouts still come as a surprise.

Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

Big rollouts drive users crazy

- New AND returning users have to learn where to find everything all over again.

- The user support network breaks down.

- Users frequently have to learn a new taxonomy and terminology.

Incremental Redesign

- No matter how carefully you try to inform users, big rollouts still come as a surprise.

- Users are disturbed by dramatic (or what they perceive as dramatic) site changes.

Incremental Redesign

Big rollouts…

Incremental Redesign

… take months to accomplish.

… consume vast quantities of resources.

… frequently require simultaneous maintenance of two Web sites with the same content. … encourage “design by committee.”

… can become obsolete even before they’re done.

… bog down Web teams. Divert them from issues that require a more immediate response.

… become unwieldy and disjointed over time.… almost always take longer than everybody wants.… lead to proliferation of site-wide mistakes.

… frequently require needless content freezes.

Big rollouts…

Incremental Redesign

… are hell to document.… are hell to manage.

… are hell to troubleshoot.

- When a site is in such disarray that every layer needs to be replaced:

There are times when a big rollout makes sense

Incremental Redesign

- When the organization undergoes a drastic change in identity (and how often does that happen?).

- When you are migrating to a completely new architecture. MAYBE.

- new architecture - new technology - new organization

- new navigation- new content

Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

“simplicity, communication, feedback, and courage”

~ Ron Jeffries on Extreme Programming

- Keep your users close: Make them part of the ongoing development.

Principles of Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

- Integrate site changes in small doses. Do this regularly and often.

- Apply rigorous testing, evaluating, validation.

- Document, but don’t get bogged down in this.

- Adhere to Web standards. Make usability your mantra.- Leverage reusable objects.

- Practice team programming (if you’ve got the team).

- Fix the bugs they find QUICKLY.- Accept that you will learn as you go. And that your users are your primary teachers.

Examples of Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

eBay.com

Examples of Incremental Redesign

Incremental Redesign

eBay.com

20042003

Examples of Incremental Redesign

Amazon.com

2005

Incremental Redesign

Examples of Incremental Redesign

das.psu.edu

Incremental Redesign

Examples of Incremental Redesign

das.psu.edu

Incremental Redesign

Examples of Incremental Redesign

das.psu.edu

Incremental Redesign

Clutter Creep amazon.com

Watch out for

Taped-on Features

Bolt-On Technologies Rabbiting Technologies

Incremental Redesign

Advantages of Incremental Design

- Far more manageable – especially for small teams and lone Webmasters

- Nearly painless for users

- Can make better use of part-time, temporary employees, i.e. students

- Far less large-scale trouble shooting

- Users are happier with your product

- Allows for prototyping and perfecting technologies before moving on

- Documentation less cumbersome

- Simpler rollback, if necessary

- Easier to collect and manage content

- Users are more involved - easier to get more frequent user feedback- Usability studies more focused, less amorphous

- Easier to manage content providers

- More feasible to drop technologies that are not working- Conversion of future sections becomes increasingly a breeze

Advantages of Incremental Redesign

More fun. Less burnout.More creativity. More innovation.

Further Reading

The Quiet Death of the Major Re-Launch … Jared Spoolwww.uie.com/articles/death_of_relaunch

Designing Embraceable Change … Jared Spoolwww.uie.com/articles/embraceable_change

What is Extreme Programming? … Ron Jeffrieswww.xprogramming.com/xpmag/whatisxp.htm

Extreme Programming: A Gentle Introduction … J. Donovan Welleswww.extremeprogramming.org

Incremental Redesign