The best user experiences are enchanting

Posted on April 18, 2008 by Catriona Cornett • 3 Comments

\"The best user experiences are enchanting. They help the user enter an alternate reality, whether it\'s the world of making music, writing, sharing photos, coding, or managing a project.\" - Kathy Sierra

“The best user experiences are enchanting.  They help the user enter an alternate reality, whether it’s the world of making music, writing, sharing photos, coding, or managing a project.” – Kathy Sierra

Read Kathy’s article “User Enchantment…” here

Catriona Cornett

Catriona is a User Experience Designer who has helped over a dozen organizations obtain a competitive advantage by delivering great user experiences across desktop, mobile, tablet and other channels.

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Filed Under: Kathy Sierra
  • http://www.challishodge.com -challis

    I totally agree…when enchantment is what the user wants or needs. In many other cases the best user experiences are invisible. The people we design for are often delighted by simply accomplishing their intended goals. We as designers and UX practitioners are commonly guilty of creating disruptions along the way. In my experience, the most successful user experiences are defined at the overlap of business goals/objectives and user wants/needs. Leaning in one direction or the other is suboptimal. Enchantment sometimes fits perfectly in that overlap but its not as often as we might like to believe. Just ask your users :)

  • http://darmano.typepad.com David Armano

    I like Kathy’s use of the word “enchanting” here. It’s a refreshing departure from “surprise & delight” which I question more and more these days. Do I really want to be surprised when I use a Web applcation? Maybe not, but feeling “enchanted”—well that would be something. :-)

    Great blog. Looking forward to lots of inspiration here!

  • http://www.davidebowman.com David E. Bowman

    Catriona,

    What a great site. I immediately subscribed, and look forward to finding little bits of inspiration. Damn I miss Kathy Sierra’s blog.