Who is the main target of Internet products?

Alan Cooper divides users into three categories: the novice, the middle user, and the expert. He pointed out that in the area of ​​software, eventually, most users will stay in the intermediate stage.

Software, most users will stay in the middle stage

Who is the main Internet product design? Novice, intermediate users or experts?

We constantly look for the information we need on different websites every day, and do not know how many unknown pages we have opened. And each page may be a novice's time is short. About 3 times to visit, you can reach the middle level. Maybe you never need advanced to expert level - to understand how the site works and to use advanced, engineer-like features. In this sense, Internet products rarely include expert users. So what should focus on novice users or intermediate users?

One view: The Internet should be designed for novice users

The purpose of people visiting the site determines the number of novices.

Users visit the site for three main purposes:

They are looking for something

2, they want to complete a task

3, because they are five minutes away from the next meeting, they want to spend some time online

Most of the time, we accidentally find information through a variety of sources (like search engines) (scenarios like 1 or 2). Even the most commonly used websites, if you do not find a satisfactory answer will be mercilessly closed. Reuse this site may be a long time later. For example: One day I am looking for ** (Harmony), and one day I am looking for ** (maybe on the same website, maybe on different sites) and a few months later. So for this site, I have been in a novice stage.

And many website bugs mistakenly think users are mostly people who want to kill time (such as scenario 3). They think visitors will have 2 or more hours to stay on the site until they become intermediate users instead of just 5 minutes.

For websites, I'd like to impress people that it is impossible to include all the information on the Internet for all purposes (because you are not a google, even google requires a fantastic search algorithm). If people do not understand in a matter of seconds, what are the main things they can do? Are there any things they are looking for?

This determines that site creators should try their best to satisfy the potential users (novices) want to complete the action. Only to help them succeed, it means that the success of the site.

Pay attention to the user for the first time, to do with the mental model of the design

When the new registration will start from the initial stage. Most of the design and development of children's shoes too late to think about the initial state was filled with normal state test data. But it is the content and the least amount of information at this stage, many users will decide whether the product is worth the use of the initial interface. Ignoring the initial interface is definitely a big mistake. You know, the initial interface is the product of the first impression left, there will never be such a second chance ...

Steve Jobs must be deeply aware of the importance of the first impressions ... Whether it's the throbbing when opening an iPhone box or the OS x installation and first-run OS experience, maybe Steve Jobs might think One of the most important uses of a product by a user is that people expect it and create a first impression of the product. - John Gruber

Some people may say that the user is very smart drop ~ for the new features added education is enough. However, as mentioned earlier, the user is pathetic, do not expect to spend a lot of time to listen to your preaching. Good design Pursuit of an instinctive reaction to meet people's mental model design to reduce learning costs easier to accept.

No matter whether children or the elderly can use iPad smoothly, more information can visit "instinctive interaction design."

Another view: Internet products are designed primarily for "mid-range users."

Enterprises to establish different business model sites, decided to novice or intermediate user service.

Many business models of the Internet, different types of websites tend to target users are different. The main goal will be different.

Internet business model

In general, the more websites that require high user loyalty and stickiness, the more they try to meet the needs of "middle users". For SNS sites (such as Qzone, Facebook), where constant pursuit of user stickiness is concerned, there are not enough basic applications available for beginners to use. More and more SNSs are gradually phasing in to meet the growing appetite of "middle users" by continually adding new, more sophisticated features and applications.

Different stages of website development, new visitors and return users are different.

With the development of the Internet, more and more products are expected to increase user stickiness, retain intermediate users, and constantly attract new users to keep returning visits. If unscheduled returning users (2 or more) as unscientific users, the ratio of new visitors to returning users at different times of the site is also constantly changing. Website early, through the means of marketing and other benign new visitors ratio should be higher than 20 to 30%, even higher than the return visit users are normal. Mature site viscosity increases, perhaps the majority of users return visit. In order to continue to grow and develop, the website constantly promotes and optimizes the functions suitable for "intermediate users", and it is also very important to maintain the freshness and interest of users.

Finally found: even long-winded for so long did not appear an absolute answer. Hard to say that Internet products are designed for novice users or intermediate users, or to be based on the actual situation: your site positioning, development time and scale of comprehensive consideration. Very often need to focus on novice design, and strive to retain the middle of the user. At least, in my opinion, a novice Internet product designer is as important as an intermediate user. Of course, even the current horizons may not be enough, if there is what you want to see you at any time to Paizhuan.