I had high hopes this one would be different - great reviews! Progressive visual paradigm based on research! Access and sync data from multiple devices: iPhone, Windows 8 laptop, and Windows 7 desktop.
I signed up for a free 30-day eval, and purchased a one year subscription after 2 weeks - regardless of all the red flags:
- Rocky Install - The documentation was incorrect. The only reason I was successful was due to educated guesses based on a lot of experience installing software and managing product evals. My feedback to support was brushed off .
- Poorly Accessible Documentation - Local documentation required a separate download, and was formatted as a project. Cute, but time-consuming when trouble-shooting a problem. Other resources available online were equally difficult to wade through: FAQ, blog, and [gag] training videos.
- Annoying Buzzwords - Instead of a "New To ..." or "First Steps ...", the primary starting point is "Brand X 101 - Onboarding and User Documentation". Because I was skimming, my first read was "waterboarding". Why would they want to torture me? more so than being subjected to training videos? I had to look up the term because I'd never heard of "onboarding".
- Quirky [Unintuitive] Interface - Even though there's a nice picture of the Steve Ballmer visiting the office on the About page, with a note that he's the CEO of MicroSoft in case you didn't know, or at least he was...the application is not standard Windows. Among other issues, I got tired of trying to figure out how to change the font size. Not a killer in and of itself, as I've tolerated iTunes for years, but...
- Functionality - This is the clincher. I pictured sharing projects with my husband, but he gave the app a thumbs-down for not supporting drill-down projects. At the time, I thought he was being persnickety. Upon reflection, it is exactly this lack of functionality that led to why I stopped using the system. I was spending more time moving tasks around from project to project, fiddling with "notes", and trying to make logical categories than I was getting shit done.
The Product Manager/Co-founder refused to process the refund because the request was made after the 30-day period expired. Instead, he wanted to train me, "to help [me] overcome...and solve the challenges [I] faced".
Support and Client Satisfaction
I know it is hard to make - and keep - happy customers. I've spent many hours discussing the magic of "good" customer support with my husband. We've worked together building products for public safety agencies for over 20 years with four different companies. Public safety is a tough market: budgets are tight, cycles long, and the clients are innately suspicious of bad intentions.
The basic motivation for making happy customers is kind of selfish: happy customers don't need as much support. The time saved can be used developing new functionality and products. Happy customers make referrals to peers and provide good references. Life is good!
But, how do you know whether or not users are "happy"?
Most organizations measure client satisfaction based on "ticket" volume, the total number of calls opened and closed over a period of time. The assumption is low volume and high close rates equates to high client satisfaction - regardless of whether problems are correctly identified or resolved.
Evidence of client satisfaction may be established via survey - which typically results in "proving" what "everyone" knows via poorly framed, biased questions.
- Barriers: Forms/paperwork, required authorization, etc.
- Lack of response or long delays between reporting and interaction
- History of problems that don't get fixed
- Fear of being a Squeaky Wheel: that onerous label applied to "complainers" that results in anything said being dismissed with thinly veiled, behind-the-back eye-rolling and social stigmatization.
Complaints are Valuable
Even though it can be hard to listen to, the criticism and complaints from unhappy customers are some of the most valuable information available to building great products and solutions.
The squeaky wheel is not your worst enemy. That customer is still vested and giving information that can identify the top priorities: that areas where applying limited resources will produce the biggest bang for the greatest number of users.
But, you probably already know what's wrong...which is why hearing about it can be so irritating. The problem may be impossibly expensive to fix, not very fun to work on, or politically delicate.
On the rare occasion someone reports a problem you don't know about, kiss their feet and do everything you can to encourage this behavior! These folks are your golden canaries in the coal mine.
So who is the enemy? Users who don't talk. "Lieutenant, your men (products, relationships, etc.) are already dead." It's just a matter of time. They don't need what you got...
Good clients talk. What they have to say may be hard to hear or deal with, but each contact is an opportunity to show you care for that person, that you value their experience - especially when it differs from your own - and appreciate their time. You many not be able to fix every problem, but most users when approached with timely response, sincere respect, and honesty become enthusiastic supporters and partners, helping to trouble-shoot and resolve problems, buying time when you need it most.
Training is Not the Issue
One of the few things that makes me more nuts than hearing someone whine about "needing training", is being told that I need it. Training is a lame excuse. It's a defensive maneuver that demonstrates lack of commitment and motivation.
I'm perfectly capable of identifying the information I need, and taking whatever I'm working on to the next level. I learn most effectively by organically gathering information and testing. I have a hard time sitting still in classrooms and meetings.
Although I've produced training videos to make users happy, I hate sitting through them. What I want, is well-written searchable text that I can hit from either inside a help system or a search engine, and an intuitive user interface that adheres to basic application standards for that operating system.
Admittedly, I'm not most users. Nor am I like most trainers. I started tutoring one-on-one when I was 8 years (teachers in the US deal with bored gifted kids by making them tutor their classmates), and have been teaching ever since.
Based on my experience working with adults and children, both as unwitting volunteer and tech professional, if we are ever to nurture the innate talents of individuals, we need to stop training people.
Instead of assuming the problem is the user, open your mind and listen.
The Screen Door
20 years ago, we replaced the screen door with a screen curtain. Our dog, Katana, invented this solution. She was a wonderful dog, and but unfortunately, the proverbial bull in the china shop at 78 pounds of pure exuberant muscle.
After replacing the screen door for the third time, we started to realize...there is no "training" this dog. She doesn't mean to run through the door; it just happens.
On one charge through the closed door, Katana did not bend the frame, but instead tore the screen along the edges. Ah hah! We cut the fabric a little higher side and bottom and voila! A real solution.
Watch and Listen
Even when support comes from the right place, when users are regarded with compassion and respect, it's a constant battle to crawl out of your own personal shit and listen instead of blaming the user.
The other day, my mom mentioned the house was cold. She was having problems using the new thermostat to turn on the heat. I went over to her house the next day, and patiently demonstrated again how to use the system.
Then I asked Mom to show me how to make the heater turn on. She stared at the panel for awhile, and asked "what does override mean?". Having been down that question-and-answer before, I realized: Mom doesn't need more "training"; she needs an on/off button.
There are few things more gratifying than building tools and deploying systems that users love. The only way to get there is to create a partnership based on trust, where users spend time explaining what they need. Often, the conversation starts with a problem or complaint. Don't shut down the information you need with ticket systems, surveys, and assumptions.
"Them that know, know what they know, and them that don't know, don't know they don't know" - Maria Muldaur
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