Since Tony Holguin tweeted Mickey’s 10 Commandments last year I’ve been itching to present on how they relate to User Experience and Interaction Design. So I’ve finally submitted the topic to SXSW 2012 with Tony’s permission. Check out the session page on SXSW for the full details.
If you’re not familiar with the SXSW process, the topic submissions are closed, but now the community is invited to vote for their favorite sessions. It’s not required that you be registered for the event to vote, but you do have to sign in/create and account. The community votes count for 30% of the decision-making process, 40% is by the SXSW Advisory Board, and 30% by the SXSW staff. (full faq)
So in summary, and in the words of the great Mayor Robert “Bob” White, “Vote for me”
While you’re at it, why don’t you vote for Andy Branch and Leonard Souza‘s sessions.
Mickey’s 10 Commandments
(originally for theme park design)
1. Know your audience – Don’t bore people, talk down to them or lose them by assuming that they know what you know.
2. Wear your guest’s shoes – Insist that designers, staff and your board members experience your facility as visitors as often as possible.
3. Organize the flow of people and ideas – Use good story telling techniques, tell good stories not lectures, lay out your exhibit with a clear logic.
4. Create a weenie – Lead visitors from one area to another by creating visual magnets and giving visitors rewards for making the journey
5. Communicate with visual literacy – Make good use of all the non-verbal ways of communication – color, shape, form, texture.
6. Avoid overload – Resist the temptation to tell too much, to have too many objects, don’t force people to swallow more than they can digest, try to stimulate and provide guidance to those who want more.
7. Tell one story at a time – If you have a lot of information divide it into distinct, logical, organized stories, people can absorb and retain information more clearly if the path to the next concept is clear and logical.
8. Avoid contradiction – Clear institutional identity helps give you the competitive edge. Public needs to know who you are and what differentiates you from other institutions they may have seen.
9. For every ounce of treatment , provide a ton of fun – How do you woo people from all other temptations? Give people plenty of opportunity to enjoy themselves by emphasizing ways that let people participate in the experience and by making your environment rich and appealing to all senses.
10. Keep it up – Never underestimate the importance of cleanliness and routine maintenance, people expect to get a good show every time, people will comment more on broken and dirty stuff.
Martin Sklar, Walt Disney Imagineering, Education vs. Entertainment: Competing for audiences, AAM Annual meeting, 1987
