How hearing Hoofbeats helps customer experience design?

When you hear hoofbeats, the old medical saying suggests you think “horses not zebras”.

Medically, this means doctors analyse symptoms and first check for common ailments, not rare conditions; however, their approach shifts based on the context of the patient and is why they undertake a fact-finding mission to learn more.

A patient suffering flu symptoms who has returned from Africa will be treated differently from someone who remained local and is suffering flu symptoms during winter.

So how does this relate to customer experience design?

The approach doctor's take is the same as those designing customer experiences. Customer experience design is about analysing the context of the consumer and structuring click paths in alignment. If websites can anticipate consumer buying/information gathering journeys, they can present relevant content precisely at the right time.

This is the value of customer experience design.

Customer experience designers need to understand precisely who the "hoofbeat" belongs to and why. So if you hear "hoofbeats" and you are standing in a paddock in the country, think horses, if you hear "hoofbeats" while in the Savannah, think zebras.

Defining the "Hoofbeats"

Bringing this approach to customer experience design requires a detailed view of a consumer's context for every page of a website and for each device.

While this is a high-level view of what to consider, the questions below are a starting point to assist you in how you need to think:

1. Who are the consumers landing on a particular page?
2. Where has he/she come from? Their source may indicate their intent. If so, use this information.
3. Where are they in their journey
4. What actions will they want to take on this page? Keeping in mind a consumer's goal may be different on a smartphone compared to being on a desktop/laptop.
5. What actions do you (the retailer) want the consumer to take at this stage?
6. What is going to motivate the consumer to proceed to the next step of his/her journey?

Retailers need context before forging ahead and designing experiences. With this said, it’s a wonder why retailers copy the design, functionality, and layouts of each other. The rationale is typically, “if it works for our competitor, then it will work for us”.

One could argue that if a competitor is trying to acquire the same target consumer, this rationale works. In fact, it doesn't.

Many different elements make up a consumer journey that are not related to functionality and on-page design, which influence the buying journey: customer service/support messages, delivery promises, page load speed, inventory control and availability, supply chain support.

Merely copying one or two functional or visual elements will do more harm than good because it out of this holistic context you are meant to create.

The next time you consider copying page elements or functional elements from the likes of Amazon, Apple, or even a close competitor, think twice.

There are many different “hoofbeats” in retail.

Get your context right, then design.