User experience feedback
Here at the Digital Communications team we believe in taking a user-centred approach to our work, and we’ve written a lot about this. We endeavour to put the user at the centre of our decision making process with a…
Why is the user important?
As we may have mentioned a few times already, the digital communications team is committed to a user centred approach to our work: whether that be research, design, content or build. We have placed users at the heart…
The benefits of user-centred design: Lessons learned from the Norwegian Cancer Society
The core model: Designing inside out for better results We have highlighted the story of the Norwegian Cancer Society before. After undergoing a big user-centred redesign, the organisation saw massive benefits for the…
Why simplicity improves the user experience for all
The myth of the sophisticated user Our goal as designers is to make things as easy as possible for the user. When we set out to simplify content and convert jargon terms into plain English, we are sometimes told that…
Web strategy, and why user-centred design excels
Why are colleges flunking web strategy 101? I’ve talked to organizations that have spent 3-4 painful years developing a governance model that works. But it often ends up in a tangled Web of committees and steering…
What users really care about, and tablet sales
How much information should you give customers online? I enjoyed this article about the radical idea of designing a website around the user’s needs. The example given is of a home swimming pool company looking for a…
User stories, the impact of search engine optimisation, and vestibular disorders
There is no overarching theme to this week’s articles. Just three articles I think are worth sharing. Encouraging content collaboration through user stories Here is another usability approach similar to personas,…
Improving the University’s course pages
With over 200 courses available, prospective students, parents and teachers come to our website to find out what St Andrews has to offer.
Digital Communications team update – July 2021
Latest updates from the digital communications team and useful articles and resources relating to digital best practice for July 2021.
How do you write for different audiences?
When a website only has one audience, it is easy to understand and cater for user needs. More often than not, though, websites have multiple audiences, and you need to communicate very similar information in different…