UX & IoT

NEW RESEARCH: THE USER EXPERIENCE OF THINGS

Why Ubiquitous Sensing and Software Require a New Approach to User Experience Design

Research Overview

Our interactions with technology are shifting from laptop to mobile, and increasingly across other devices as well. Consumers’ expectations are shifting too: always on, always accessible, and always easy. We’re now entering an era where screens become secondary, and other modes of interaction like voice, gesture, and motion are converging with data-driven networked services. Meanwhile, product organizations are struggling to create sustainable IoT experiences and service models. Colliding technological, social, and economic forces are demanding companies re-think the role and development of UX. To effectively design any connected product or experience is to design the coordination of a whole system – not just a product.

New research conducted by industry analyst, Jessica Groopman explores the often overlooked market dynamics redefining user experience (UX) in a connected world. Including inputs from 23 ecosystem leaders, this report addresses the following key questions:

  • What’s different about UX in the Internet of Things?
  • Why is UX an essential foundation of digital strategy?
  • Who owns UX? What is the role of product?
  • What are trends and forces are re-shaping UX
  • What are notable examples of companies redefining UX with hardware and software innovations?
  • What steps can we take to develop exceptional UX in the Internet of Things?

Download the Full Report here at no cost

Research Features

  • Research inputs from more than 23 ecosystem participants
  • Case examples from companies across industries
  • Frameworks to support connected product/service design
  • Best practices and recommendations for product manufacturers, designers, brands, service providers, and innovators

Who needs this report?

  • Chief product officers, product leaders, product managers, product developers
  • CMO, CIO, CDO, customer strategy leaders
  • Digital strategists, Innovation leaders, “change agents”
  • Brands and enterprises developing connected products and services
  • Enterprise software providers, hardware and firmware manufacturers
  • Agencies involved in product strategy, development, positioning

Table of Contents

  • Executive Summary
  • What is User Experience? (UX)
  • Why is UX Different in the Internet of Things?
  • Trends & Forces Impacting User Experience Design
    • Connected Form Factors Are Proliferating
    • New Interaction Modalities Are Emerging
    • Back End Innovation is Transforming Front End Experience
    • The Rise of the Faceless & Formless Interface
  • In the Internet of Things, UX Design is Strategy, Not a Tactic
  • 12 Best Practices for UX Design in the Internet of Things
    • Re-define User Interface
    • Design Systems & Solutions by Assembling Multi-Disciplinary Teams
    • Design for User Centricity within Each Interaction
    • Embrace Design & Technology to Minimize Steps between User & Objective
    • Understand the Responsibility of Anthropomorphizing Products
    • Design Safeguards Directly into Product (& Ecosystem)
    • Prioritize Digital Identity Along the Supply Chain
    • Design Customer (& Partner) Support Programs Alongside Products & Services
    • Design for Evolution, Not Revolution
    • Design to Problem-Solve
    • Test, Test, Test. Test Again. And Keep Testing
    • Design for Integrated Context & Interoperability
  • Conclusion
  • Research Methodology
  • Ecosystem Participants & Acknowledgements
  • Endnotes


Questions? Feedback?

Contact Jess Groopman