The COVID-19 pandemic has led to significant changes in how people have vacationed in 2020. To get away from it all without spending time in crowded places, vacationers have turned to vacation rental websites and have planned longer stays. For example, Airbnb recently reported a year-to-year doubling of long-term (>28 days) rentals and a shift
We’ve all spent a lot of time at home this year. The pandemic has made already-popular video streaming services seem essential. The popularity makes sense given the relatively inexpensive subscription fees, the lack of long-term contracts, and the many channels of access (through websites, mobile apps, smart TVs), and there is a LOT of content
One of the primary goals of measuring the user experience is to see whether design efforts actually make a quantifiable difference over time. A regular benchmark study is a great way to institutionalize the idea of quantifiable differences. Benchmarks are most effective when done at regular intervals (e.g., quarterly or yearly) or after significant design
Every year, it seems, there’s a new buzz word or a hot new method that comes up in UX research and product development: Agile, Lean, and Jobs to be Done are just a few. Design Thinking is a concept that’s received a lot of attention lately. But well before Design Thinking became part of the
Software dominates our professional and personal lives. A product’s usability, in addition to its features and capabilities, is an important influence on how likely users are to adopt new technology and recommend the software. Between 30 and 60% of the variation in Net Promoter Scores is determined by a product’s usability. Customers tend to recommend products
Despite the attention consumer-based mobile apps, websites, and software get, a lot of the world depends on business software. Business software supports core functions for organizations such as productivity tracking, communication, accounting, and sales. Several products also have a fair amount of crossover between business and consumer usage. Along with their features and capabilities, the
If you’ve had a meeting recently it was probably a virtual meeting. The use of online meeting software with integrated video and screen sharing capabilities, such as Zoom and Google Hangouts, has been growing for years. To say the usage has now skyrocketed is probably an understatement. Online meetings are ubiquitous in business and are
There’s a lot to do outside. Biking, hiking, fishing, hunting, boating, and driving an RV all fall under the umbrella of the outdoor recreation industry. Depending on how broadly it’s defined, it can be anywhere from a $10 billion to $800 billion industry. And all the gear needed for these outdoor activities can be bought
Online dating websites are one of the primary ways people find dates and even future spouses. These sites represent the bulk of a 3 billion dollar dating services industry. In fact, around 30% of recent marriages started online, but it’s not like finding a date is as easy as filtering choices on Amazon and having
Booking a flight online involves more than selecting two cities and departure times. Airlines have given consumers many more choices when booking a flight. Do you want: Economy, basic economy, sub-basic economy? 2 bags, no bags, 1 carry on, no carry on? Board early, board late? Pick a seat, get assigned a seat? Each choice
