Wednesday, September 24, 2008

Usability is No Longer Enough

Dr. Eric Schaffer, the founder and CEO of Human Factors International, has just started a blog with the above title.

The sub-title of his blog states: "We're nearing the end of the time when usability is a key differentiator. Websites must now be designed for Persuasion, Emotion, & Trust (PET) in order to stay ahead."

His first blog posting dated 12 September 2008 is: Why usability is no longer enough: the need to design for Persuasion, Emotion, & Trust (PET) where he goes on:

Whether a website is e-commerce, informational, or transactional, its mandate is to establish deeper relationships with customers. Understanding how and why people make online decisions that lead to conversion, and the subtle motivators and emotional triggers that influence how they react to website messages and content, is vital to maximizing the success of a site.

Hmmm. Plain old design for usability now is not "good enough" is it? ... Was it ever?