Mobile & Responsive Experience Design (Emphasis on Experience)

April 12, 2012 By

Yes, everyone needs a technically responsive web design or a dedicated mobile site, in order to reach the ever-increasing percentage of consumers who find you on mobile and tablets.

But, after listening to numerous developer and developer service discussions on this topic, the over-emphasis on the technical tends to diminish the heart of the issue:  Mobile experiences are DIFFERENT than desktop.  I’d include the expanding ultrabook engagement format in this as well…

When someone finds you on a smaller screen, even if 50% of the prospects do this from their home (on the couch, while watching TV; see blog posts below), that consumer inherently has a different ENGAGEMENT FORMAT they are expecting.  They don’t need to access 100% of your data…they need to quickly pull up the data they want…

The experience needs to be controlled by the User…and responded to by the data/design (the User’s in control).

Small screens — Even medium screens (and virtual keyboards) — Are increasingly reducing “time on site” for Consumers.  Delivering ONLY the desired “experience,” quickly and efficiently, is paramount.

Therefore, the phrase “responsive experience design” – Where the User’s input shapes the data/content experience (intuitively, not through complex navigation) seems to be the Holy Grail of mobile design…Let the User define “context,” and then let the data flow specific to that context.

Obviously, we believe that natural language processing plays a big part of allowing the User to shape their content experience…Navigating and acquiring content through a User’s input…not forcing pre-set navigation…results in “responsive experience design.”

 

Filed Under: AI conversation, AI conversational network, Brands and Mobile, Conversational AI, mobile marketing Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Mobile Web and App Testing – The contentAI Toolbox (partial)

April 11, 2012 By

We’re frequently asked about how to check both responsive design as well as page-load time for mobile web.  And, “how can you test on the hundreds of Android devices)?

Here’s a partial list of what’s in our toolbox to address these issues:

In no particular order:

http://tools.pingdom.com    (General speed tests and breakdown of problem areas)

http://www.howtogomo.com/en/d/    (Go at least 2x levels deep for in-depth reporting; this is from Google)

http://www.laurencegellert.com/software/css-responsive-design-testing-tool/  (New responsive design emulator)

http://quirktools.com/screenfly/

http://responsive.is/

This  just came out for testing Android (additional OS support pending), on real devices and emulators with one click – It’s extraordinary:

http://www.appthwack.com/

Filed Under: Brands and Mobile, mobile marketing, Virtual Agents Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Virtual Agents on Mobile – NOT the same UX as Online

April 5, 2012 By

We have a lot of respect and appreciation for companies who’ve been working on “site agents” (virtual agents) on traditional web sites — Many have been in business for five years or more.  Typically, those site agents are charged with bringing up various data elements or Links, which helps the User to better navigate the site (often because whomever did the original navigation didn’t really anticipate the site scaling up).  The few who are working with video-based “agents” are interesting to watch, though their production quality fall short of where we feel it should evolve (a bit like watching local mattress commercials on television compared to a National ad).

The de facto standard for “site agents” has been to include a rather simple 256 color animated character that lip syncs to the voice (text to speech).  The quality here again is less than stellar.

While surprised it’s taken so long, we are now seeing some of those companies starting to package up their product for “mobile.”

What’s really surprising is that they are porting their exact same product – Delivering links or complex/dense text data — And, including those simplistic animated characters and audio (just on HTML.5 instead of Flash).

Hmmmm?

At contentAI studios, where we’ve been thinking about “mobile user experiences with virtual agents” for over two years, we decided long ago that including animated visual faces and audio was counter-intuitive to the average mobile user experience.  Often, the user is not in a location where they can hear.  Also, they don’t want to have to keep their visual focus on the small screen – they are “scan/viewing” across products, the world around them, a television AND their mobile screen…not singularly focused on one screen.

In that respect, we decided to focus our delivery of interactive narrative accompanied by still images that could “establish” the personality of the engagement, without requiring more than a fraction of a second of User Attention.  And, to deliver short, conversational engagements that are MOTIVATED by our virtual agents, not mere Q&A sessions “driven” by the End User – based on mobile experiences needing to be both contextual andget-to-the-point quickly.

Essentially, our virtual agents have a purpose specific to a Mobile User Experience…with the anticipation of the ENTIRETY of the experience, which extends beyond the screen, to the overall context of the engagement

So, will we include “animated characters with voices” on mobile?

No.  There are other companies who we can recommend for that.

We don’t think most Mobile End Users are seeking a duplication of static web experiences on their mobile devices.  But, perhaps, in some cases, it’s appropriate.  But it’s not what we offer here.  We also don’t believe that the current state of visual animated characters adds value to the User Experience; the lack of technical and visual quality is simply too much of a negative in our opinion.  End Users will “buy into” their chat experiences based on an establishing “still frame,” and they fill in the blanks on their own, without 10 frame per second 256 color “visual bots.”  We know this from our own research and analytics.

Because we never were in the mindset of “static web” virtual characters and have focused exclusively on “small screen” engagement, we aren’t porting over old assets to our mobile platform.  Everything is designed specifically for mobile.  To clarify, we also build for “desktop apps,” which are very similar experiences to mobile apps (small windows on the desktop; typically for extremely portable ultrabooks); but, most of our engagement is on mobile and tablets, based on our analytics.

What’s good for Brands is that they will have choices when it comes to how they approach adding a virtual agent to their mobile user experiences.

Based on price, quality and our exclusive focus on Mobile User Experience, we welcome an opportunity to present our platform in comparison to our competitors.

* Side note:  Yes, we include HTML.5 audio and video on our platform too – But, we use that precious (user) time and real-estate for Brand elements, not for animated characters.

Filed Under: Brands and Mobile, Conversational AI, Mobile, mobile marketing, Virtual Agents Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hey, contentAI, where’s that Voice Recognition?

April 3, 2012 By

We get that question alot (though phrased in a variety of ways).

Today’s New York Times story HERE  reminded us to bring up the topic in this post.

We could readily integrate our platform with server-side voice recognition or within native-apps – But, we don’t feel that the majority of mobile applications we produce really require it.  In fact, we believe that text-based engagement (private, personal) is preferable in most “mobile” situations.

That said, as we review the presentation slides from IgnitionWEST and other places, we are struck by how 50% or more time with mobile and tablets is concurrent with television viewing.  In general, internet connectivity also runs concurrent with the evening hours of television viewing.

One place we see a real opportunity to incorporate voice-recognition with our applications is specific to the emerging space of “television to mobile” content and ad extenstions.  When someone is in the privacy of their own home (on the couch), the ability to speak may be better than or equal to text (we’ll always offer the option for both).  From a technical standpoint, this also means the user will be in an environment with less ambient noise (traffic, etc.)…

So, it’s something we’re starting to tinker with.  It’s pretty straight forward — We just want to apply it to the “right” application, not do it for the sake of adding something that doesn’t really add value to the End User.

Look for updates on this in Q2 2012 (soon!).

Filed Under: 2nd Screen, AI conversational network, Brands and Mobile, Conversational AI, Friendly machines, Mobile, mobile marketing, NFC, Virtual Agents Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Mobile Virtual Assistants – SIRI, Lawsuits and Solutions

April 1, 2012 By

In the past week, concurrent with two lawsuits launched against APPLE and SIRI; mentioned in Venturebeat this week; and last week here  as well – We’ve been drawn into at least a half-dozen discussions about how/why/if this is warranted and how the contentAI mobile virtual agents differ?

First off, “SIRI” is promoted as a “virtual personal assistant.”  Basically, a front-end, single “voice” to reach data from multiple web services; plus some singular “backstory/character.”  Within a limited range of data sets, it does a fairly good job.  We agree that their television ad campaign in the United States set very high expectations for SIRI from consumers.  Watching those first ads, one of the Team here turned to all of us and said, “Can it really do all that?”

At contentAI studios, we do not produce “personal assistants.”  We produce virtual characters and brand agents that have knowledge and a “voice” that is specific to their customer’s needs.  Our virtual retail clerk doesn’t have a clue about how to help you manage your address book…we don’t really see “managing an address book” as a problem that needs solving…but, you may need help specific to a shopping experience at a specific retailer.

Also, our virtual characters are “motivated” to help direct a conversation.  SIRI, and other virtual assistants, are passive Q&A agents, who respond, but, don’t lead.

We believe that a brand needs to take the lead in a conversation.  An entertainment character needs to know it’s “scene motivation.”

Also, to reach consumers, we don’t believe in working with an individual proprietary OS.  The iPhone is about 11% of the U.S. mobile market.  The contentAI virtual characters on mobile web (and native apps) reach well over 50% of the mobile population with a single-build.

We do believe that pushing the AI envelope on a technical level is a wonderful thing.  We’re fond of some AI “personal assistants” that have been around since pre-SIRI days and which continue to evolve.  And, SIRI has done a good job of making “virtual characters on mobile” become something in-demand.  But, we are also believers (and practitioners) of setting and delivering realistic expectations.

Just as most of us have an expertise in one field and no knowledge about many other fields, our virtual characters are “more human” in their approach to AI knowledge.  We don’t need to tap into dozens of APIs to pull data for each bot…they are self-contained units or units that tap into specific knowledge to help consumers and audiences looking for specific experiences.

Our virtual characters were released on mobile web over a year before SIRI went to market.  We’re still focused on “virtual characters” not “virtual assistants.”   That’s where we do something SIRI doesn’t do — Each of our characters are unique to their job — Each have a different voice.  What we find is a high degree of User satisfaction.  People who come to our Apps are looking for a particular experience…one that can delight them and provide personalized information within the engagement.

So, in a nutshell, contentAI bots and SIRI are very distant cousins, at best.  contentAI produce motivated, brand specific virtual agents.  SIRI is aiming to be a broad-based personal assistant.  For most brands and entertainment properties, who want to reach over 50% of the mobile market, we believe that contentAI’s virtual characters are a solution, today, that will deliver highly satisfying experiences to customers and interactive audiences.

Filed Under: Brands and Mobile, Conversational AI, Friendly machines, mobile marketing Tagged With: , , , ,

Mobile – Where the Growth and Eyeballs Are…

March 29, 2012 By

There is an excellent Deck, presented by FLURRY, during IGNITION WEST last week  HERE

The two slides that really stand out — Specific to contentAI — Are related to 2-screen engagement times (when the television AND the mobile device are BOTH in use) and the ratio of ad dollars to consumer time (mobile spending will increase exponentially over the coming years to play “catch up”):

 

Those two slides tell a remarkable story with regard to opportunities for extending television content, both programming and ad-units, to mobile experiences.

After all, 50% of “Location” is the couch.

UPDATE (5 MAY):  From VentureBeat and a similar Nielsen Report on 2-screen experiences:

http://venturebeat.com/2012/04/05/tablets-and-tv/

“Device owners also seem to engage with content related to the TV as well, either by looking up information related to the show or looking for deals and general information on products advertised on TV,” Nielsen said in its report.

Filed Under: 2nd Screen, Brands and Mobile, Conversational AI, Mobile, Virtual Agents Tagged With: , , , , , ,

contentAI @ Ignition WEST – March 21

March 19, 2012 By

Look for us – Or drop us an email and let’s plan to connect — During Business Insider’s IGNITION WEST conference this week in San Francisco.

Representatives will be in the Bay Area throughout the week.  Please CONTACT US if you’d like to connect.

Filed Under: Brands and Mobile, mLearning, mobile marketing Tagged With:

Our Android Apps on Google “Play”

March 19, 2012 By

For those who weren’t watching, Google’s Android app store is now “Play.”

We’re in the process of updating meta-data and launching additional apps — And wanted to make sure anyone looking here, knew where to find us there. . .https://play.google.com/store/apps/

Filed Under: AI conversation, AI conversational network, Brands and Mobile, Conversational AI, mobile marketing, Virtual Agents Tagged With: , , , , ,

Innovation in Mobile Ads – Topic Du Jour

February 29, 2012 By

Nice perspective from Barcelona, as well as projections for the market:

http://venturebeat.com/2012/02/29/innovative-mobile-ads-grab-attention-in-barcelona/

What’s nice to see is that some “uniquely mobile” experiences are coming to light – beyond porting static web engagement – but, really thinking about the User Experience on mobile.

The future’s so bright. . .

Filed Under: Brands and Mobile, Mobile, mobile marketing, Virtual Agents Tagged With: , , , , ,

Origami Towel Creatures, Toys, Personalized Mobile Experiences & Delight

February 22, 2012 By

It was nice to see Portland, OR host last evenings talk:

Jared Spool Presents: Mobile & UX – Inside the Eye of the Perfect Storm – Portland, OR

Last night at the UoO building in Old Town.

We’ll post Links to his Deck when it’s available (Now available Here).

He’s been giving this talk for the past year, and a video is here:  http://vimeo.com/25547105

While there were 4x elements in Spool’s presentation that create this “perfect storm,” the over-riding metaphor for much of the presentation was a SIX FLAGS v. DISNEYLAND:  ”activity” v. “experience” paradigm.

Basically, SIX FLAGS offers a pretty straight forward activity-based flow, while DISNEY’s design encourages a more “experiential” flow for the End User.  The parallel was basically how online web sites are data/feature driven, while mobile (when successful) is more experience driven.

The natural extension of this, while not discussed, seems to us to be how a DISNEY-experience is “personal,” while a SIX FLAGS-activity laden day is more generic (everyone has nearly the same experience).

One slide in the presentation Deck were pictures of the origami towels that magically appear in someone’s “resort room” at the end of the day — sometimes surrounded by the visitor’s children’s toys (Toy Story with Origami towels).

The illusion is that this is a deeply personalized, memorable touch (even if 20,000 other rooms are nearly the same), in part, by adding the visitor’s toys to the tableau does make it “personal.”

Let’s extend this to “mobile thinking and UX.”

Mobile is a far more “personal” engagement format than “online.”

It’s in someone’s pocket, purse or bag.  It’s in someone’s hand.  It’s a one-to-one EXTREME CLOSE UP engagement.

It’s not just “experiential.”

It’s personal.

And, the UX, along with the programming, needs to fulfill “personal” engagement — Whether that is through deeply complex algorithms or smoke-and-mirrors fancy tricks (User’s will suspend disbelief and go along for the ride if you do it well), “personalization” of mobile experiences is what delivers:

Delight.

Which was another theme of the evening.

The contentAI studios conversational mobile platform is predicated on personalizing each and every engagement. Sometimes deeply, sometimes lightly.  But, it’s been a Prime Directive in the development of the platform since our focus went to Mobile, nearly 2 years ago.

We’ve been thinking about personalized mobile experiences for a long time.  Which is why the idea of putting someone’s children’s toys around a bunch of origami creature shaped towels, resonated so deeply.

Filed Under: AI conversation, AI conversational network, Brands and Mobile, Conversational AI, Friendly machines, mobile marketing, Virtual Agents Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,
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