We all want to sign up for an app to make our lives easier for human connection, workload, social interaction but when you break it all down is it really easy to do?
Remember when Google arrived, then Apple, and the first thing we all noticed was how simple it seemed. Type in a few words, press a couple of buttons and “Bingo!” we got what we wanted instantly and seemed happy with that. Move forward a few years and here we are, just wanting more from our Apps. But what do we want and why?
You can question “what if it could do this?” and “why doesn’t it do that?” and then all of a sudden someone (mysterious developer people) make it so. But now it’s way too complicated and you want to give up!
We Need Technology
Technology has exploded over the last couple of years no doubt, and mostly for good, but at the end of the day, we can only fit so much into our brains and multi-task so many options. We are still human and need to adapt to these pressures of understanding software.
Check out these stats below… We all ask for add-ons to what we use, but do we really end up using them?
Did Someone Mention Auto Parking?
According to a 2016 Accenture study, 16% of customers who attempted to purchase an Internet of Things (IoT) device found them too complex to use. Not only this, 18% of customers admitted to not being able to connect the devices to the internet. On a similar note, a J.D. Power’s Interactive Vehicle Report (2015) discovered that nearly one-fifth of drivers operating cars equipped with smart dashboards never actually used 16 of the vehicle’s 33 software features, including automatic parking. My car has automatic parking and I was so excited to get it BUT I have never used it… I’m too busy, I don’t trust it and in a busy area with cars waiting for you to reverse park, it’s just too much pressure. I love saying I have auto parking, though. It sounds so Star Trek!
In today’s fast-paced, technologically advancing world, where smart products and functionalities are rapidly evolving, millions of consumers are faced with the ubiquity and complexity of different software. For years, Apple has been recognised for its design simplicity and to-the-point approach towards conveying information. Recently, the multinational technology company came under fire for updating iTunes to support podcasts, TV shows, movies, apps and music streaming!
For years (since its launch in 2015), iTunes garnered praise for being a simple program that enabled users to buy, store and download music. However, with the recent revamp, Apple has disappointed millions of long-term supporters. Walter S. Mossberg, the American journalist who pioneered consumer-focused modern technology reviews, expressed grave concerns regarding the future of the company, as they’ve deviated from their creating “simple programs that just work“.
The biggest challenge most businesses face is that we expect our software devices, especially smartphones, to manage more work than they were intended to take on. “You’ve given people more of a skateboard or a unicycle. You can’t bring the groceries home on that,” says designer John Underkoffler of Oblong Industries, who was responsible for composing the futuristic designs in Minority Report. “There’s danger of making things so simple that everyone can use them, because then there’s not that much to do and not that much to learn on a device.”
With digital interfaces showing up in the most unexpected places – thermostat domes and watch faces, for example – communicating effectively with consumers is only going to get tougher.
Remember, the features introduced are only valid if they can be used for problem-solving. Spotting user behaviour patterns in order to cater to an individual’s software requirements is important for developing and shipping finished products that do well. That being said, every aspect of software must be so easy-to-understand that consumers don’t have to get in touch with their tech department every time they want to do something… Sometimes this can be a challenge for all us HUMANS as we all have different ways of interpreting solutions, views and logic that someone else has developed.
If you’re desperately looking for ways to simplify software development that’s easy to use, remember to work closely on underlying structures and subsystems to increase efficiency and flexibility.
Keeping it Simple
Our Logitout and Keylog Key and Asset platforms keep it simple and fun to use. They’re easy on the eye and easy to navigate working virtually from one screen. We also have a comprehensive guide section in a super quick video talking style format.
If you think its time to put away that old Key Book at front-desk then book in for a quick demo with Donna our Product Expert you will be pleasantly surprised at how a hi-tech system can be so simple to use.
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