User Experience Advertising: July 2009

Best Social Media Marketing

Best Social Media Marketing, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Dear Social Media Experts around the country,

What's so expert about you? You use twitters and have 50,000 followers? How can you be an expert at something that everyone knows. I mean.. tell me something that's new and nobody knows.

This guy... have you done this kind of marketing?
I don't think so. Hire this guy asap!

Productive Meeting

at 6:57 AM Tags adv325

Productive Meeting, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

1 hour meeting... 45 min conversation of not much.
Meetings could be so unproductive yet it is unavoidable. What is? Being unproductive? That is avoidable.. but meeting itself is not.
Whatever... i get to create these at the meeting regardless. So.. what a productive meeting.

Nano Mind Map..

at 7:08 AM Tags adv325

Nano Mind Map.. , originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Another mind map.. This is little bit different because it focuses on Two concepts rather than one. I was trying to brainstorm to find a way to advertise Nano product using social media.
Lots of good ideas.. This is actually going to be seen by the client, and let's hope that this generates some good ideas at the meeting.

Austin - New Parking Meter

at 10:51 PM Tags adv325

Austin - New Parking Meter, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Yay.. we dont have to carry bunch of changes anymore! We can now use the credit card to park on the street! Well.. now there is more competition to beat though.

I love this design! I thought the new system the city was implementing was going to be huge and bulky design that Houston downtown has. But this one is fairly small and slim. Now, the biggest part is to check the user experience and usability of this machine. It looks like these machines are ready to go any day.

iPhone App Mock Up - Starbuck

at 7:21 PM Tags adv325

Starbucks I Phone App

View more presentations from djteknokid.

dj Heaton

at 11:02 AM

Current addiction at work.
I love how trance put me in the flow to work.. hiphop and other music just won't cut.

$20.09 Campaign Wireframes

at 6:08 PM

$20.09 Campaign Wire Frames, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Wireframes for new project

Shift of Paradigm 2 - Water Campaign

at 5:03 PM

Shift of Paradigm 2 - Water Campaign, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Who is giving water to whom? Instead of focusing on giving bottle water to the homeless people, how about we shift the paradigm? We could create awareness for the donation for the homeless who participates in this campaign. This could change the perception of the homeless people we are scared to engage with.

Stencil Biz Card

at 9:26 AM

New Cards, originally uploaded by Design Commission.

Love this as a UX designer

Mind Mapping - New Website Launch

at 7:24 AM Tags adv325

Mind Mapping - New Website Launch, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

So new FG SQUARED site was launched but there is no publicity. Here, I quickly created a mind map to explore possibilities to get the publicity. Next, transfer this information to more presentable document to share with team.

Mind Mapping - User Experience Advertising

at 7:23 AM Tags adv325

Mind Mapping - User Experience Advertising, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

User Experience Advertising is still a new relative term. Because of my background in user experience and my major in advertising, I am really curious to see what the combination of those two look like.

Culture Shock.. Korea -> USA

at 12:35 PM Tags adv325

Man.. I have been in US for 16 years now.. I even clearly remember the date when I left Korea, July 23rd 1993 that is. Even till this day, I still think that has been the biggest day of my life that turned my life upside down, in a good way. (damn it.. but i still speak like I only have been in this country for couple years... -_-)..

Yesterday during spontaneous tweetup among @djteknokid @mikechapman and @mlfnow, I had chance to talk about the culture shocks. What have been the biggest culture shocks in my 16 yrs of experience in US? Because I indirectly experienced US culture, like everyone else, through Hollywood movies, fast foods, and other popular brands such as Nike and Coca Cola, I was able to have sneak peek at the US culture that I was going to experience for the rest of my life. Because of the US pop culture, I did not get to experience the same level of culture shock that the Americans have when they visit other part of the world outside of US. But there is no way the pop culture alone can portray the entire US culture, and of course I had culture shocks of my own.

My top 10

1. 7.11 Big Gulp... when I first saw the size of this drink, I first though it was to feed the entire family.
2. Size of regular soda can... it's almost half the size in Korea ( post picture here!)
3. Amount of Food in 1 serving.. food again!
4. Kindness.. ppl were saying hello and good morning to a complete stranger!
5. Make up and Short skirt to school.. unthinkable in HS back in Korea
6. HS Kids driving.. impossible in Korea!
7. Math classes being a joke.. This was probably the hardest subject for me in Korea, but it became my favorite subject in US.
8. Tip & Tax.. what is this again?
9. Commercial breaks during a show.. There is no commercial interruption during a show in Korea. But the commercial breaks are much longer in between shows.
10. Street Fighter 2.. I was being called cheap and dirty in US because I was doing "jab jab throw. jab jab throw"... that was perfectly fine in Korea Share

Sunday Journal Session

at 10:58 AM Tags adv325

So many people studying.. reading books on Sunday morning.

Sunday Journal Session, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Today I came to a different coffee shop to tackle my journals. This is going to be my entry #21 out of 40. I hope to complete at least 6 more journals before I leave this place today.

This journal assignment has become one of my favorites of all time. I have to admit that I have not been this motivated to be creative in a long time.

Napkin Scribbles = Overrated?

at 12:57 PM Tags adv325

Napkin Scribbles = Overrated?, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Go get yourself a creative journal. Consult ADV325!

Shift of Paradigm

at 12:55 PM Tags adv325

Shift of paradigm , originally uploaded by djteknokid.

While I was making a truck run with @MLFNOW with Alan Graham, he gave me a great way to look at things from different perspective. Of course, as a UX designer, it is my job to look at things from users point of view. It is almost required that I look at things from different perspective, but Alan took this approach to next level.

What was so amazing about his approach?
He basically said how helping homeless people is something we should do for ourselves not for them. Forget the fact that we are providing with them food, we are doing good deeds, and we become "better" people for doing it. It's the experience I felt during the run...
I get to look at how other people are living. I get to look at the life from their perspective, how happy they seem regardless of the situation they are in. It was some sort of enlightenment I experienced. I felt very ashamed that I always complain at the work place while I sit my ass in the place where AC and free water are provided 24/7. It was almost like a religious retreat I used to be involved with.

Now.. it's time to look at every project with the shift of paradigm... who is it really for? who really benefits from this? It maybe you.

Social Media Banking

at 12:35 PM Tags adv325, social media

Social Media Banking, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Heh.. I am trying to think outside of the box!... Of course this idea will never happen in the real world, but who knows huh?
The idea is simple... it works just like Facebook. You get to see what you are friends are doing and you get to show what you are doing to people of your choice. But instead of the picture upload and status updates, you get to share your spending and banking experiences. How crazy!

REAL WORLD! think inside the box

at 12:24 PM Tags adv325, creativity

REAL WORLD! think inside the box, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

One thing I love being back in school is how I get to think outside of the box. Especially the class I am taking right now, adv 325 under Sean Thompson, has brought new light in my dull life. As an UX Designer, i often rely too much on my left brain to solve the problem. What are some of the reasons that I learn to think inside the box in the real world?

1. Budget
2. Time
3. Expectation
4. Knowing that my idea is going to be turned down
5. Brand Perception
6. Criticism
7. Being not in a position to make an important decision...

but... these all just sounds like bunch of excuses to me. I need to expand my horizon.

Change of Scenery = Creative Juice

at 11:50 AM Tags adv325, creativity

Saturday Journal Session, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Change of scenery usually bring more creative juice for me. My room does not really give me the creativity that I need to complete a project like the creative journal.

This picture was taken with iPhone Quadcam app. This is one of my favorite apps of all time.

Agile Self Development

at 10:56 PM Tags adv325

Self Agile Development, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Agile development has been one of the hottest buzz words in the Biz Dev / PM / Web Dev / Soft Dev industry. There are thousands of advocates all around the world who are not only sold on this idea but spreading the word like its their religion. I have been involved in several agile dev projects and I also agree that it is probably best way to manage projects / company.

Self Development
Could agile development method be used in the self development? Could you improve your skill sets, expand your network, build on your career with the agile concept? I am trying to utilize this concept to on my own self development. This is what I am trying to accomplish.

Iteration
Team of one, I doubt that I need two weeks for each iteration. I would actually keep it at one week and review myself every Sunday night.

Velocity
How many blogs can I post in a week? How many case studies and work samples can I present in a week? How about reading blogs / articles / book? How many work outs per week? Would it be such a waste of time & effort to keep in track of all the actions I am taking in my life? What happened to the fun & spontaneous life?

Scrum - Daily Meeting
Gather myself in the morning with the schedule in front of me. Quickly go over the action items I have to accomplish.

Retrospective
What was good / bad / hopeful for the iteration? How can I improve myself in the bad items and accomplish the hopeful items. Share

Community. Knowledge Management & Agile Dev

at 7:41 AM Tags adv325

Knowledge Manamgenet in Social Media Space, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

After meeting thought...

- Pilot Program : 10 -15 sales people to run a community for a month
- gather requirement through experiences & observation
- information architecture through experiences
- run alpha community before the modification on the theme (easier for experiments, implementation, change and updates.
- have agile methods. have a small goals to accomplish everyday
- find patterns. how people search for assets (videos in this case)
.. more to elaborate... Share

Design. Writing. Math.. Grouping

at 6:24 AM Tags adv325

Design Theory in Grouping: How it is evident in writing and math as well....

Twitter University

at 9:06 PM Tags adv325

I am sure some professors are already exercising this somewhere... but it would be awesome to have students to be on Twitter for a discussion. Just the same way people discuss and share information during SXSW using various Hashtag. Currently, I am only connected one person in my class who I have been actively exchanging class related information.

It would be so much easier to prepare for a test if more students are connected using social media other than the one school provides. I think Twitter would be the perfect tool to bring a discussion among students.

"Does anyone understand what the professor meant when he talked about the creative pyramid?"

I bet with more students connected to my Twitter, I would get that answer easily. Share

5 Traits of Creative Person & Creative Process

at 6:45 PM Tags adv325, creativity

So this is from the Adv class again.

1. Curiosity
2. Playfulness
3. Courage
4. Controlled
5. Motivated

Well.. it sounds like these are traits are also for
a. the leader
b. the innovative person
c. the outlier (from Malcom Gladwell)

But... I have seen many leaders who are not creative... humm. Maybe they weren't the leaders after all?

Creative Process
You never get anywhere by just sitting there and thinking about the problem. (or just discussing about the problem). this is why I love jotting down my ideas and thoughts on the piece of paper.

Creative Process : is the internal method by which one thinks and invents or solves.
Your way of thinking is totally cool.. but be open. Everyone has different way to think, none of them are right or wrong. There are many different ways to solve one problem. Share

Wonder Girls Performance on The Wendy Williams Show

at 9:19 PM Tags adv325

Wow.. the Korean pop sensation Wonder Girls performing on.... The Wendy Williams Show (?). Well it is a national show and I am just proud of these girls stepping up in the big stage. Regardless of the outcome, I have to give it out for the effort.
Much prop to their producer, JYP, the one who i had admired in the past. Share

Sci Fi So Negative

at 8:36 PM Tags adv325

So today in the class, we spent about 15 min demolishing the rebranding effort done by Sci-fi, soon to be known as SyFy.
I was the only person who brought up a positive point in the class that people outside of US may have easier time pronouncing the brand. Sci could easily be pronounce as Ski.
Here is the new SyFy

Yeah.. the name SyFy may sounds silly ( especially in America), but the new logo looks so much better than the old one.

Someone mentioned in the class about the rebranding of Pizza Hut. Because Pizza Hut is now known as The Hut, it would not change his frequency of eating there. How about applying the same concept to the SyFy case? You would drop the channel and not watching your favorite show now that they are SyFy instead of Sci-Fi? If the channel continues to support good programs and shows, the name of brand would not matter too much, IMO. Like the professor said at the end of the class, they may prove the critiques wrongs after 10 years. I am with SyFy in this case... They are going to win the international fans with the rebranding. Share

Top of frost tower

at 7:37 PM Tags adv325, austin

Top of frost tower, originally uploaded by djteknokid.

Had a meeting with client on the top of Frost tower in downtown Austin. Austin's downtown view is not all that great, however, no way I am going to complain that I got to brainstorm here. I sorta had hard time breathing... blame on the altitude? ..

9 steps to achieving flow

at 8:50 AM Tags adv325

• You have clear goals
• You can receive (or give yourself) immediate feedback
• The task isn’t too simple ( uninspiring = boring) or too difficult (creates anxiety)
• Action & Awareness merge (stuff becomes automatic)
• No distractions
• No fear of failure
• No self-consciousness
• Time becomes irrelevant, distorted
• Task becomes autotelic

As a director / manager... what are you guys doing that distracts your employees from being in the flow? Share

Thinking Inside the Box

at 7:07 AM Tags adv325

It must be the $ and corporate environment I have been involved so long, I feel like my creativity has diminished significantly since my days in highschool.

My professor at Adv 325 has asked a question about the factors that limits creativity. Here are some answers from the students, including the one from myself.

1) Criticism
2) Tendency to be stubborn with one decent idea
3) Budget (can't come up with Star Wars when the budget is Blair Witch Project)
4) Pressure to come up with something great

I have been involved in projects which I witnessed all 4 of the above factors. How do I overcome above obstacles?
1) Directors / Managers at the meeting need to ensure that no idea is bad idea during brain storm session.
2) Again, meeting facilitator needs to make sure to continue the conversation without dwelling on one idea.
3) This is a very tricky one... I don't see the budget as an obstacle you have to over come, it is more of a factor that you have to work WITH.
4) One thing I have noticed over the course is that execution is what makes the idea great, not the idea itself. Sure, there are some exceptions.

I sure hope to utilize some mind mapping and creative process to the real world practice in future projects. More to come... Share

40 Journals in 30 Days

at 6:56 AM Tags adv325

Only 1 week has passed yet I am supposed to be at the journal #14 by now... This is insane! But oh well I guess that's what the summer school is all about. I am only on #3.. So behind. I just need to keep in mind that journal entry is a free form of expression that I could write just anything I want. It's not like there are many people reading this blog anyway.

40 Journals in 30 days reminds me of the Arabian Nights Tale, 1001 nights. The princess would have been one famous blogger if she lived in the present. How did she do it? Well, I guess it's possible given the fact that she was locked in her room all day, doing nothing much. If i was locked in my room all day, I think I could also come up with one blog entry per day. Humm... Some people these days get paid to blog, full time, right? Share

School vs. Real World

at 7:55 AM Tags adv325

Because I work in an agency, I am always in a position to pitch my ideas to sell. It's sad that ideas have to be monetized or else the time I spend to be creative would be labeled as 'waste.' I think this is one of the main reasons why it is so hard to be creative and innovative, being right brain thinker, in the real world.

Now I am back in school and I have been taking some advertising classes. Some people were wondering why I go back to school when I established my career in a good position. It wasnt the concept of degree that I was attracted. It wasn't really the fact that 'you need a degree to be an executive.' My decision happened when I looked at some of the advertising classes that UT is offering. How could I not be excited when I see the list of these classes? Share

User Experience Advertising

at 9:41 PM Tags adv325

Today I regsitered
UserExperienceAdvertising.com and UXAdvertising.com
Because of my background in user experience design and my current major in advertising, I think I am onto something innovative that has just risen above the surface in the advertising industry.
Let me introduce you user experience advertising. It is not a whole new concept. It just has not been very well defined and documented. Basically I see this as a way to advertise to the public focusing on the user experience. Some of the examples would be: in game advertisement, YoutTube video contest, and branded theme park.
Instead of pushing marketing content to the audience, now the brand can provide memorable experience to the users so they can engage with the campaign.

A Chinese proverb states:
Tell me, I’ll forget
Show me, I’ll remember
Involve me, I’ll understand Share

New Semester - Idea #1 : Social Media Broadcasting

at 6:30 PM Tags adv325

Let me log in to Facebook and read some of my friends' status update.

Jean : its nice to be at home... about to watch Bachelorette.. yeah!!
Billy: Ice cream, two episodes of Weeds, bed by 9:30. Gearing up for whatever Kate throws at us tonight.
Jiae: Lunch down on South Congress with my school mothers and Kristen! fun it was!

Since Facebook and Twitter provided an ability to update one’s status and broadcast it in real time, I have noticed people utilizing this functionality in a similar manner. They are reporters of their own. Reporting live action data to their friends as it is happening right this second.

Using the similar concept, my intern and I had come up with a new way to broadcast an event, the social media broadcasting. No, it is not Meebo nor SopCast like real time broadcasting. We are talking about using the existing social network such as, Twitter, Facebook, and Youtube to broadcast a live event using various tools.

Tomorrow, my company’s CEO, Steve Golab, and we are joining Austin’s non-profit organization, Mobile Loaves and Fishes to help homeless people to distribute much needed bottle water and foods. Of course, our main focus will be helping the needed, but we would like to broadcast the experience of volunteering at this event using camera, iphone, and laptop. By doing so, our goal is to gather more volunteers at these events.

I am going to be doing what I am good at, using different tools to update my social networks to get the words out there. This probably is the best way to serve at this event, in my opinion. … I don’t have too much money to contribute yet : p

Share

In Love with Audio Books

at 10:20 PM

I love audio books. I love the fact that I can double the productivity by listening to it while I: cook, clean, do laundry, workout, and drive. I love the fact how I am always gaining knowledge every minute I am awake. I have been basically addicted listening to either podcasts or audio books the last couple months.

Here are the list of audio books I have completed or in the process of completion.

10 Faces of Innovation by Tom Kelley
Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath
The Dip by Seth Godin
On Intelligence by Jeff Hawkins and Sandra Blakeslee
The Shack by William P Young - 3 / 4 way done now..

I also have been listening to Harvard Business Review, Psychology Today, and UX Week podcasts.

If you have hard time reading a book because of various reasons, I recommend you to give audio book a try. Share