I think the problem lies with the fact that designers assume people will develop a need for a specific product, when actually people develope functional needs (they want to accomplish stuff). Products serve these functions either well or poorly.
People don't develop a need for an iphone (that comes after it became a fashion statement). People have a need to accomplish certain tasks which might involve: staying in contact with friends, checking your favourite websites, want an phone that is easy to understand, etc. You would be better off observing your users over a time period and see if they develop a need for communication (forum), frequent news updates (blog) or instant communication (chat services like twitter, skype, etc.). Also look at your frequent visitors / users (look at what their needs are) as they might be the trend setters and they will convince others to use your new services. Yes, I am referring to books like The Turning Point and Purple Cow for inspiration on understanding and "predicting" your users future needs. ________________________________________________________________ Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)! To post to this list ....... [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help
