034 : The UX of time travel with SFCD Agency

SFCD Agency It’s a seemingly simple problem — tell the user what time it is in different countries around the world — with an endless number of solutions. There are a few questions you need to ask yourself before even touching pencil to paper: What’s the best way for humans to manipulate time? And really, what is time?

SFCD Agency took a break from client work to put out its first mobile application: Miranda. It’s a time zone converter with an elegant and unique user interface. In this episode, Yasser, the Head of Product and Strategy, and Dmitry, the Creative Director, share their experience making Miranda.

It’s an inside look at the app creation process within an agency, where ideas are brainstormed and workshopped into their final form.

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028 : Better products through storytelling with Donna Lichaw

Donna Lichaw Storytelling has been a part of the human experience since the beginning of history (one of the reasons that we even have history). Our brains are wired to respond to stories — whether it’s an urban legend told to us around a campfire as a child, or the tale of an obese man who lost weight with an all-Subway diet.

Donna Lichaw knows a thing or two about the importance of narrative, having studied film for both her undergrad and graduate degrees. She now uses the power of the narrative arc to build compelling products that engage the user by leading them through a carefully crafted experience. She’s worked with companies such as Seamless, Citi, Bloomberg, and Atlantic Records, diving into the user experience and building products that stick.

This episode is amazing. My favorite part is when she applies the narrative arc to an app I’m working on, and we get to see the entire process in action (starts at 52:45).

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 58:18 — 46.9MB) | Embed

The reason why you haven’t made an app yet

I had the idea for my podcast long before it actually launched. In fact, I even had “launch podcast” on my to-do list for months, but it just kept getting pushed to the next day, and then the next day. It never actually got done.

But while I was procrastinating, I started thinking about the actual logistics of creating a podcast. What would I need in order to launch this project? I’d need basic things, like a microphone, and guests.

Eventually, I changed my to-do list. I took off “launch podcast” and added a small simple task: get a microphone. That one was easy — it took just five minutes on Amazon.com.

The next day, I added “find guest for podcast” to my to-do list. I shot out four emails to potential guests that afternoon, inviting them on the show. It took about ten minutes. Check.

Then, I figured out all the other individual steps I’d need to get my podcast published. I thought about things like audio recording software, editing tools, and a podcasting plugin for WordPress. My to-do list filled up with items such as “write podcast description,” and “get intro music.”

Two weeks after my microphone arrived, I launched the Novice No Longer podcast.

So why did it take me so long to get started? Was I just being lazy? Continue reading →

026 : How to hire a coder without learning code

Dann Berg You have an idea for an app. Maybe you’ve even made some sketches or you have the full wireframes done. Now it’s time to hire a developer…but you don’t have any idea where to begin.

In this episode of the podcast, I share exactly what you need to do to get an app in the app store. We start with your mockups then move into finding a developer, communicating with that developer, and submitting your app. This is the entire process.

If you’re ready to finally get that app in the app store, listen in.

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:32 — 28.6MB) | Embed

How to quickly make GIFs and become an outsourcing master

Using GIF Brewery to make a GIF

I still have the chat logs from my endless hours spent on AOL Instant Messenger back in high school (2000 – 2004). I rediscovered them recently and spent about ten minutes reading before I couldn’t go on any further. Every other word made me cringe.

There’s a very specific reason why I was cringing: I remembered exactly what I was thinking as I had those conversations, but that is not at all how it came across as I looked back at things. I thought I was properly communicating my thoughts, but everything was actually coming out all wrong. I wasn’t being witty, I was just being a jerk.

I’ve become slightly better with words since then (I hope!) but there’s only so far that text chats can get you. When you’re trying to explain something to someone, there are times when words aren’t enough. You need to show them.

But when you’re not sitting right next to that person, showing can be difficult. There are a few different ways to solve this problem. Chris Ducker, of Virtual Freedom, crafted what he calls the VA Training Trifecta, in which an entrepreneur can either text, audio, video, or some combination therein to communicate tasks with virtual staff.

But there’s another powerful tool that I use nearly everyday to quickly show people exactly what I’m talking about.

I’m talking about GIFs.

A GIF is the perfect communication tool for describing small bits of dynamic information, like how a button animation should work or the way something is working on your computer. You can guarantee that whoever you’re talking to can see exactly what you’re seeing, and it’s much easier to show rather than trying to describe the problem with words or going through the hassle of creating a huge screencast.

If a picture is worth 1,000 words, a GIF is worth over 9,000!

I’ve perfected a system that lets me make GIFs on my Mac in about 30 seconds. I’m going to show you exactly how I do it. Continue reading →