Author Archives: Oliver McGough

Oliver McGough

Marketing & UX @ Usabilla. Interested in design, marketing, the games industry and all things sports. Can often be found wandering Amsterdam, lost; or having a good time with friends. Feel free to hit me up on Twitter or Linkedin.
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The Great UX Race Intensifies – Web UX improved 2% in 2014

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The internet’s quality has improved immensely these past few years, it goes without saying. The sites we frequent, the content we digest – everything is simpler, easier, and faster. Websites, brands, and designers are putting the user, the customer, first. This user centered approach isn’t new, but finally hit the mainstream with force.

CEOs are realising the profit potential of happy customers. Great user experiences = Happy customers = $$$. A simple equation.

This user centric focus has ensured online experiences are only improving. We’ve talked at length about the growth of the UX designer, but what are the causes & consequences?
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The Death of Web Design

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Medium, Shopify, Behance. What do they all have in common? High-quality website templates. No longer does an innovative idea require the web design skills to match; all manner of websites now exist, allowing you to implement that idea without the efforts of an experienced (expensive) web designer. This is perhaps the greatest web design shift of the past 3 years.
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The Best UX Articles of 2014, from the Usabilla Blog

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As 2014 draws to a close, we say farewell to another year of blogging. Over the past 12 months, we have been producing an average of two articles a week here at Usabilla; that’s over 100 pieces of fresh new content out there – providing all manner of tips, tricks and discussion.

Admittedly, this may be a bit much for you all to wade through. So to ease that experience, our most successful articles of the past year have been summarised here for you to get a feel of just what’s happened in 2013.
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The Best UX Articles of October 2014

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The days are getting shorter, the nights longer and the clocks have now retreated an hour. With leaves are scattered around, autumn is well and truly here. Not to worry, we’ve brought together our favourite UX articles of the last month to provide some relief from the thought of winter.

With so much quality content out there, we take one more look back at October 2014. We’ve compiled the 5 best articles from October we feel are interesting, invaluable or otherwise a must read for anyone with an interest in UX.
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Adapting to Users with Responsive Interfaces

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Over the past two years, responsive design has risen from niche technology, to an essential part of web design. We’re at a stage where if your site isn’t adapting to fit the screen – to fit the device – it’s outdated. This is the responsive revolution. The movement towards a more adaptive – a more intelligent – web.

Responsive design needn’t only be a cure for site formatting. Responsive design allows us to be… Responsive. Allows us to respond to our users. It opens the door for exciting new technologies. Interfaces can be fine-tuned for the individual, making use of location and other metadata.
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The Best UX Articles of September 2014

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It’s Autumn already… Nothing more needs to be said. Let’s escape the reality of the dawning Winter and jump straight into some awesome UX content.

With so much quality content out there, we take one more look back at August 2014. We’ve compiled the 5 best articles from August we feel are interesting, invaluable or otherwise a must read for anyone with an interest in UX.
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Flat Design was just a Trend, Apparently

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There is no doubting Flat design is the current darling of the design world. Flat, simple patterns provide a clean and fresh look. Minimalist designs perfectly adapted to the surge in mobile usage. Even a company like Apple, a longtime supporter of skeuomorphic design, has joined their contemporaries in the design switch up.

Flat design burst onto the scene in late 2012, heralding a new era for design. Windows proved the vanguard for these new principles. Implementing their Metro interface first on Xbox and Zune, before unveiling Flat to the world with Windows 8. The Windows shake up carried with it plenty of controversies, yet Flat Design has only grown from strength to strength.
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Consistency Counts: Never Forget Your User

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“Reinventing the wheel” is a common trend in the UX field, as is it within the majority of creative disciplines. Keen designers want to leave their mark; to prove their creativity and talent through fresh concepts. Fair play to them. How else are we to ensure trends evolve and continue to keep us interested and excited?

UX however, is a strange beast. A place where boundless creativity must be kept in check. Where any hint of misplaced arrogance can, and will, break a design; where “Reinventing the Wheel” is a trap best avoided. UX is about consistency.
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The Best UX Articles of August 2014

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So yea, summer happened – apparently. Already August seems an age away as the wind and weather returns to that downward slope. If you were too engrossed in summer to realise the year is 2/3 over, join the gang. No worries though, a catch up is on hand.

With so much quality content out there, we take one more look back at August 2014. We’ve compiled the 5 best articles from August we feel are interesting, invaluable or otherwise a must read for anyone with an interest in UX.
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