Tread, Traction and User Experience

Yesterday evening, I took my car in to have my tires inspected. The person who looked at  my tires said, “You probably have a month or two of ware left on the tires”.  In Heather time, this translates into, “Change them now, because it will be off your radar in one or two months”.

So, what do tires have to do with user experience?  More than you think.  Tires have treads and treads are pretty amazing when you think about it. It's all about traction, right?

World English Library defines traction as the adhesive friction between a wheel and a surface, as between a driving wheel of a motor vehicle and the road.

The purpose of the treads (in laymen’s terms of course) is to give the car traction on the road. Similarily, the knowledge we have about our customers is like that tread on the tire, i.e. it gives us traction, and keeps our (project) wheels gripping the road and going in the direction we need to be going. 

Make sure that you and your project team are checking the tread on your project tires.  Does your team have the customer knowledge & insight necessary to have exceptional traction on the road ahead?  If so, you are on the way to delivering delightful simplicity to your customer. 

____________________________________________________________ 

This article is part of a series:

User Experience Tips and Tricks Tied to Topics You Wouldn't Expect