Thoughts on “The psychology of engagement” and the importance of user experience

User experience is so important to those creating content and the delivery device that surrounds it, yet so misunderstood and/or ignored, yet it is all around us.

In everything we read, every website we browse, every shop we wander round and even the mode of transport we got there in there is  an experience, whether we realised it or not, and the fact that a user noticed a journey maybe the clue to whether it’s working or needs some changes.

For news websites, it’s the journey a user takes through the site to their desired piece of content, and the importance of “removing friction from processes to get users to their end goal faster” as Martin Belam puts it, read Martin Belam’s full post: “The psychology of engagement” – Mo Syed at UX People.

What things are called, the size, shape, colour and location all have an effect on user’s interaction with a web page “as humans we make associations between different pieces of information just due to their proximity” as Martin adds. The success of a site’s user experience can be of great value in terms of reaching a site’s objective of highlight new articles or signposting revenue-related content.

Interaction is a key goal for new websites, so knowing the best way to get users to the content they want and inviting them seamlessly to interact and engage are vital. Having an understanding of why users do what they do, aka the psychology of engagement, and how to subtly guide them around a site should be a key part of any ongoing strategy, leading you in to other areas like usability studies and information architecture.

As Irene Pereyra says in her .netmagazine post ’10 steps to an engaging interactive user experience’: “1. Design for the user, really”, it’s easy to forget you’re publishing and broadcasting for the benefit of others not yourselves and your own personal enjoyment. A bit of homework on your audience and some user experience best practices in your design can make a huge difference to your traffic and level of engagement.

I’ve barely scratched the surface of the subject and am by no means an expert, but here are some related articles:
The UX of Learning – alistapart.com
How Long Do Users Stay on Web Pages?  – Jakob Nielsen’s Alertbox
Business Objectives vs. User Experience – smashingmagazine.com
A Web Designers Guide to Information Architecture – inspiredm.com
What is ‘Information Architecture’? by Martin Belam at guardian.co.uk
More advanced thinking: Subliminal User Experience – 24ways.org
‘User experience design’ as defined on Wikipedia

Journalists on Twitter: 1 profile or 2?

Q. Should journalists have separate Twitter accounts for work/personal use? I’m in two-minds what’s best practice – previously suggested separate, but now re-thinking…?

“	@fieldproducer morning. Q. Should journalists have 2 Twitter accounts for work/personal? I’m in two-minds whats best practice?
	richardkendall September 26, 2011

“	@richardkendall interested to see what @fieldproducer thinks but personally I’d recommend one. Some (few) I’ve trained opt for two.
	suellewellyn September 26, 2011

“	@richardkendall @fieldproducer I think there are better platforms for personal communication (mf)
	paulbradshaw September 26, 2011

“	@richardkendall @fieldproducer and that a professional twitter account benefits from occasional more personal tweets
	paulbradshaw September 26, 2011

“	@richardkendall I think people who completely separate the two *can* come across as dry.
	JosephStash September 26, 2011

“	@paulbradshaw sorry to jump in but I agree with Paul a mixture is good @richardkendall @fieldproducer
	Kaz_Ram September 26, 2011

“	@richardkendall It depends what the personal is for, if for tweeting about hobby etc then two best to stop it flooding work account
	fieldproducer September 26, 2011

“	@richardkendall Twitter is about showing personality and for those like @ruskin147 who have both its the personal one that’s more popular
	fieldproducer September 26, 2011

“	@paulbradshaw @richardkendall agreed it’s all about the right mix
	fieldproducer September 26, 2011

“	@richardkendall No. Work ones are usually crashingly dull. You just need to be careful what you tweet, I think.
	JonMWelch September 26, 2011

“	.@fieldproducer originally leaned towards separate accounts but now as @paulbradshaw suggests, work accounts benefit from some personality
	richardkendall September 26, 2011

So in conclusion, from the comments above – not an exhaustive examination but a decent cross-section: please feel free to add comment/develop the conversation - I would say a single Twitter account is less confusing for all concerned technically and in terms of following a journalist, but the key points are:

- Add personal comments alongside professional reporting, it adds some colour and personality to the more dry factual content, helps to engage your followers and show you are human, but keep it professional (common sense but worth noting).

- If you have a strong passion outside of your official publishing life that is disconnected enough from your daily work content, consider a separate account for keeping focus and clarity for these streams.

Useful free Android apps for journalists

Some hopefully useful applications to get started creating, storing and sharing content for Android smartphone using journalists and the like, because that’s what I’ve got!:

Dropbox – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.dropbox.android send/store files securely, along with DropSync – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.ttxapps.dropsync

Astrid Task/to-do lists – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.timsu.astrid, can sync with Google Tasks.

Evernote – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.evernote note taking/storing with Evernote account or Power Note – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.diigo.android which can sync with diigo.com account.

Google Docs – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.android.apps.docs open/write/share documents using Google account.

Adobe PDF Reader – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.adobe.reader.

Google Translate – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.android.apps.translate.

Record My Call – http://www.appbrain.com/app/record-my-call/com.record.my.call
Journalism.co.uk article: Ten fantastic apps, tips and tools for recording audio

Google Maps – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.android.apps.maps and Google Maps StreetView – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.google.android.street.

Twitter/social media management:
Have found TweetCaster faster than Twitter native app and a smoother than Tweetdeck with plenty of options for sharing/managing found links and information – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.handmark.tweetcaster

Tweetdeck – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.thedeck.android.app

Opera Mini – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.opera.mini.android best browser, enable sending/sharing links etc.

Adobe Photoshop Express – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.adobe.psmobile for photo editing or Quick Pic – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.alensw.PicFolder.

Photobucket – https://market.android.com/details?id=com.photobucket.android to enable social media publishing straight to Twitter as Photobucket now looks after Twitter’s new photo feature.

By no means an exhaustive list, I don’t claim to have used every app in depth, but they all have high ratings and/or are backed by reputable developers/brands.

See also:

• http://www.mobilemediatoolkit.org/
• http://onlinejournalismblog.com/category/mobile-phone-news/
• including:  What does a mobile journalist need? from October 2009, but still some good points worth noting.
• http://blogs.journalism.co.uk/editors/category/mobile/

Twitter’s evolution and the latest no news

Following the riots across England this week, Peterborough, like many towns and cities I’ll bet was awash via social media with rumour, suggestion and misinformation about potential disturbances in the city. Here’s how we handled that through our Twitter coverage:

Andy Dickinson makes lots of good points (here is my discussion with Andy on his article) on Twitter’s evolution for news organisations, suggesting via a tweet:

August 8, 2011 10:21 pm

Reporting that nothing is happening in your area/city? ask yourself is that really news.

@digidickinson

But I feel there’s a balance to be had here and saying no news is not a valid reason for Tweeting is not always fair. If as an official local news source on Twitter you’re seeing multiple tweets asking/predicting/suggesting there’s rioting or other event not actually taking place, at some point there is a duty to respond (it would be ideal to include all those Tweeters but with a 140 character limit, that’s not always realistic).

At the @PeterboroughET we took the policy of limiting our updates and retweeting local police (who were pretty on the ball with their updates) where possible to add weight to our information. Verification has always been key with Twitter, along with sifting and filtering sources and tip-offs, all part of regular news process, they are just magnified on social networks.

It would have been easy to respond to all those concerned locals individually (plenty of them genuine) and getting directly involved with those seemingly deliberately misinforming regarding potential or imagined riots in our area, that would best be served by a linked rolling story enabling longer coverage, but we took the view initially that publishing anything on our website would be fueling a non-existent fire.

This partly relates to the issue of resource, whether we spent much time on such a non-story, a vital issue especially for stretched local news teams, but mobile/web apps enable social media monitoring and interaction without being necessarily on duty or in the office, enabling news teams to react more quickly to events such as this.

It’s all part of the learning curve of Twitter for news orgs, which becomes more difficult as your following audience grows, but the benefits of being able to quickly inform, collaborate and communicate still outweigh its negatives.

Notes: Opening links in new windows

Thinking about news/newspaper websites and the best practice for user experience on whether to open external links in the current or a new window or tab, that is the question:

Many wise web folk suggesting opening in the same window/tab is the best practice and has been since 1999 according to Jakob Nielsen, especially with the increase in mobile usage and how those browsers handle this action.

It’s difficult area, with various schools of thought on it over the years. In principal I’d agree it’s wrong to force the user to open a new tab or window, as WebCredible and  Smashing Magazine explains:

From the usability point of view the decision to enforce opening links in new windows violates one of the fundamental principles of the user interface design: users should always be in control of the interface they are interacting with.

For example if it’s a link to more information or further content from an editorial story, e.g. a local council/police page, then it’s a logical user journey to go straight to the other site, the old maxim that if we provide good sources, they will come back to us later.

But for editorial sites I would lean towards a new window for external sites if it’s in a related but not specifically relevant commercial context, e.g an event or award sponsor.  Sven Lennartz in an article for  Smashing Magazine adds that : “It is appropriate to enforce opening links in a new window in case: the link may interrupt an ongoing process”

Discuss.

Restaurant review: Chimichanga, Peterborough

With city centre rival Nando’s due to open this summer, I thought it was time to revisit Chimichanga in preparation for a spicy comparison.

Frankly, it was a sad day when Panama Joe’s in Stamford closed a few years back but with Tex-Mex cuisine is currently in fashion, Chimichanga’s arrival in March 2010 was no bad thing adding variety to the city’s eating-out options.
Positioned opposite the now revamped St John’s Church and much improved Cathedral Square outdoor area, the general views and seating has certainly added an impressive view.
It was also a good excuse forward a warming Mexican feast on a damp June day.
It was early on a Sunday evening, so not too busy, which means you’re guaranteed that staff are quick and attentive. We were shown to a cosy booth as the friendly staff explained specials and served us drinks promptly.
I do like the decor, the statues and deep red tiles particularly conjure up, at least in my mind, Aztec and Mayan themes enhanced by a chilled, but up-tempo Latin rhythm soundtrack. A very pleasing and relaxing environment.
For starters my fiance had empanadas with chorizo while I had the nachos, I can’t resist, I should try something else, but it’s a weakness – washed down with a Brahma lager.
The nachos had a nice kick, while the empanadas were like a crispy pasty and not too spicy.
For a main I went for the blackened tuna salad with some changa chips. The tuna wasn’t as tender as a fresh steak, but the salad with roasted peppers, tomatoes and cucumber was fresh and overall it was a lighter dish, the changa chips were more stringy fry than thick potato chip for my taste! It was OK, maybe not one of their strongest dishes, but a good lighter option if you’re in a group but not after anything too spicy.
My fiance went for an old favourite, the chicken Chimichanga: I love the blend of beans, rice, tender chicken, spicy salsa, guacamole and melted cheese all wrapped in the fried tortilla, so naturally welcomed a good forkful. It’s one of those dishes I would love to try in Mexico at some point.
For ‘Pudines’ as the menu offers, we finished by sharing a honeycomb smash cheesecake – we’ve rarely the stamina for a dessert each – which was a light and tasty finale.
It’s a stylish and welcoming place for a quieter meal in a booth or for larger parties at the back, with a selection of wines, cocktails, margheritas and sangria.

7 out of 10

Information: Chimichanga, 6 Church Street, Peterborough, PE1 1XB.
Telephone: 01733 891119. Website – including online booking: www.chimichanga.co.uk/locations/peterborough/
Current lunchtime offer: Two courses £7.95 or three for £9.95

Menu examples:

Starters
Portobello mushrooms £4.95
Jalapeno bullets £5.25
Nachos with pico de gallo £3.75
Mexican spring rolls £4.95
Empanadas with chorizo or chicken £5.50
Various appetisers to share from £9.50

Mains
Chicken Chimichanga £10.95
Also available with Beef Chilli Con Carne, Prawn, Pork or vegetarian bean chilli filling
Sizzling chicken barbacoa £11.95
Chipotle meatballs £9.50
Chicken fajitas £12.95
Also available with steak, chicken and steak, prawn or Portobello mushroom filling
Grande chicken quesadilla £9.45
Mexican paella £9.95
Blackened tuna with salad £10.95

Desserts
Honeycomb Smash Cheesecake £4.75
Key lime pie £4.75

Details correct at 05/06/11

The value of an engaged news website audience

A few thoughts sparked by an article ‘Guardian part 2: What are engaged users REALLY worth?’ by the Wannabe Hacks:

Speaking from the point of view of a local daily newspaper website… All visitors have value, but they visit for different reasons. and they have become a disparate bunch, Twitter followers, Facebook likers, registered commenting site visitors etc. Different strategies are needed for each group.

Big reasons for staying/returning to the site: quality and relevance of content to visitor’s interests – as it always has been. Good quality journalism has long term value, celebrity stories have high short-term value.

Many people visit but never comment or interact on news websites, should we force these people to register? If they are a large but loyal number then I think the potential loss of audience is too great. If your publications voice is only being heard by a small minority how can consensus or influence be maintained?

Clamoring for the largest audience must be tempered with not overlooking delivering what your target audience want, be that subject or geographically based. If you’re not doing that then you’ll have little chance of moneting the audience.

The data on registered users though has huge long-term value, knowing what they look at, where they came from, their journey through your site, enables tailoring related content and commercial offers to them and justifying changes to your site structure.

There’s nothing wrong with commercial elements alongside quality content, but if it has relevance to the user, then there’s clearly more revenue potential and everybody wins!

In short, a very difficult area, a fine-line to be trodden through making enough money to pay for quality of content and product whilst keeping a strong, loyal audience and not driving them away with over-bearing commercial strategies.

In terms of skills, SEO and understanding how content works in a digital environment is vital to all editorial staff. Being able to judge how and when to add keywords and phrases into headlines/intros, compacting a story into a Tweet and other web-based copywriting and sub-editing is a hugely valuable skill-set.

Live blogging for journalists

The live blog is an opportunity to curate multimedia content and information from professional and non-professional sources ‘on the ground’, using editorial judgement in what to publish.

It’s a great collaborative tool for news organisations to cover major or breaking events, conferences or big issues using mobile tools and central monitoring to coordinate interactive content publishing, the audience then have the power to feed into the live stream and feel part of the process.

A live blogging strategy

As an example strategy, setup a CoverItLive blog and promote across all your platforms in advance where possible, setup initial questions if possible. Get all your journalist involved using Twitter, all their feeds can be added to the live blog, collectively creating the live blog stream without any other action required in its most basic form.

A manager can monitor the live blog, adding user comments and any related tweets as well as multimedia content and polls into the stream.

Specific Twitter hashtag feeds can be used if appropriate to integrate information from members of the public who may be at the scene and let the audience follow via Twitter if they prefer.

When to use a live blog

It has its place when suitable situations arise or events break as an important digital media publishing strategy that shows what can be achieved coupling journalistic skill and citizen knowledge with readily available digital publishing tools.

Editing and curating is a vital part of the operation, but this is clearly a different area of journalism from reflective, objective long-form pieces that would follow-up online and in print, but all have their value to the audience.

It’s just a new opportunity in a multimedia, multiplatform publishing world.

Further reading:

• Tips on tweeting live by Mary Hamilton – advice on choosing hashtags, sources and curation
• Twitter for journalists: beyond gathering and distributing content
• Styles of live blog: Guardian, New York Times, BBC, FT – Andy Bull, multimedia-journalism.co.uk

Crowdsourcing for journalists

Crowd Blur by jonicdao - flickr.com/photos/jonicdao

Crowdsourcing is a means of involving/collaborating with the audience in the newsgathering and storybuilding process. It can be useful in gaining a consensus of opinion or locating a knowledgeable source on a subject. It’s not suitable in every situation, but a strategy should be in place should an opportunity arise:

Once the bare bones of a print story are  in place, when you have the basic facts: what, where, when; and if it’s not an exclusive, get a story live and start gaining some consensus from your audience.

Create a short intro focusing on a talking point, something that will affect local people, attempt to engage public opinion through an active voice.

If story or feature is in its early stages and relates to a local issue, national issue with likely local effects or recent event that members of local community are even possibly likely to have an opinion on, push a short description of the story and ask for feedback. Remember even a small niche community group may have strong opinions.

In headline use “Add specific content keywords…” to alert potential interested readers, then timestamp the intro “10.20am: Story in brief…” to highlight the current nature and tell readers as story develops.

Keep body of the story short and to the point, just facts, then encourage witnesses/locals/those with knowledge to interact and engage.

Add a ‘call to action’ question, “What do you think about this proposal/change?” or “Have you been affected by this” then list ways to contact the news team. e.g.:

How has the event affected you? What can be done…?
Comment below, email news@yourpaper.co.uk, interact at yourpaper.co.uk/yoursay or discuss via Twitter @yourTweets

Further reading:

• 10 things that have been crowdsourced in 2011
• Lessons in crowdsourcing: Claire Wardle on using Ushahidi for the Tube strike | Online Journalism Blog
• Crowdsourcing a Better World – NYTimes.com
• 10 Tips « Crowdsourcing: A Fieldguide from WNYC
• Spot.us

links for 2011-03-23

• Free Tools for Monitoring Hot Search Trends | Adam Sherk
  (tags: seo tools trends monitoring search audience topics content)
• 12 Things to Do After You’ve Written a New Blog Post
  (tags: strategy blog blogging marketing socialmedia content promotion seo syndication shorturl bookmarking customers audience targeting)
• The Global Editors Network Manifesto | Global Editors Network
  (tags: network editors onlinenewspapers print media manifesto strategy future)
• 30 Excellent Examples of Color Usage in Web Design | Inspiration
  (tags: examples inspiration webdesign colour color)
• Why don’t journalists link to primary sources? | Hyperlocalists
  Annotated link http://www.diigo.com/bookmark/http://hyperlocalists.com/2011/03/20/why-dont-journalists-link-to-primary-sources
• Joukuu Provides Centralized Management for Dropbox, Google Docs, Box.net
  (tags: management joukuu software storage tools lifehacks centralised googledocs boxnet dropbox)
• The Biggest Flaw in NYT Pay Plan: It’s Backward-Looking: Tech News and Analysis «
  Annotated link http://www.diigo.com/bookmark/http://gigaom.com/2011/03/20/the-biggest-flaw-in-nyt-pay-plan-its-backward-looking/?utm_source=social
• Press Gazette Editor’s Blog » Search engine optimisation tips for journalists – from Malcolm Coles
  (tags: seo tips journalism writingforweb audience search twitter analytics onlinenewspapers)