1. MOBILE PHONE
INFORMATION
DESIGN
PART 1: WHY IT MATTERS
SCOTT GAYER Reynolds School of Journalism Master’s Project

2. How critical is mobile information?
http://video.ted.com/talks/podcast/JanChipchase_2
007.mp4
Up until 5:17

3. Numbers and habits tell all
 In 2007, over 4 billion people were mobile
 Mobile convenience transcends time and space
 Mobile convenience is linked to survival
 Over 799 million illiterate worldwide use mobile
 Many third world communities depend on mobile

4. So how well are we doing?
 The majority of the web is not mobile-friendly
 We are in the middle of emerging mobile design
 Cross platform war is unfinished
 Search mobile web vs. apps mobile web is undecided
 Deregulated mobile internet is untapped potential

5. What can we do in the meantime?
 Infuse principles of good print and web design
 Practice usefulness, discoverability and usability
 Think about someone other than yourself
 Finally, consider the cognitive throughput problem
 Solve it with: simplicity, learnability and predictability

6. What makes mobile design different?
 There are increased design tradeoffs
 Input gestures are unique compared to computer
 People use mobile in short focused bursts
 The unique access to personal data informs design
 Users have higher usability expectations than web
because of familiarity
 For a good lecture on the unique process of mobile
application design and development visit:
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SEwCRpTEgA0

7. Re-imagining Mobile Design
 Cross-platform push emphasizes a template driven
mobile design landscape (ex. iPhone interface)
 Could mobile design be the fertile ground for new
forms of web design?
 Could mobile interfaces become informative
usable and engaging without becoming typical?

8. MOBILE PHONE
INFORMATION
DESIGN
PART 2: PRACTICE
SCOTT GAYER Reynolds School of Journalism Master’s Project
Client : Grace Church

9. Designing my own application
 Step 1: Choose an audience I’m passionate about
 Step 2: Decide what that audience might need
 Step 3: Design and test..design and test

10. Phase 1: Usability/design education
 Steve Krug’s “Rocket Surgery Made Easy.
 Design classes in RSJ, additional design readings
 Software training in Adobe CS
 Keeping up with news in the mobile design
industry within the past 6 months

11. Phase 2: Test the pros, test screenshots
 Mars Hill Church app was tested to get an idea of
what people like in church app and what doesn’t
work.
 Wireframes were tested early to get initial
impressions

12. Phase 3: 1st Homescreen wireframe
 Lessons learned:
 Make titles clear
 Don’t oversimplify
 Color counts
 1st user impressions
help avoid pitfalls

13. Phase 4: 2nd Homescreen Wireframe
 Lessons learned:
 Emphasize the most
important
 Use real-estate
wisely
 The mobile web is
not the desktop
web

14. Phase 5: 3rd Homescreen Wireframe
 Lessons learned:
 Clarify titles
 Be unafraid to
employ better
design that
enhances usability
 Keep in mind
people’s fingers
 Limit cognitive
throughput

15. 1st navigable mockup
 Lessons learned:
 Unity is still important
 Win and doubt…make
it bigger
 Overemphasize
readability

16. 2nd navigable mockup
 Lessons learned
 Unity matters
 User feedback
can be great for
new content
 Familiar
standard device
interfaces are
important to
usability at
times

17. What could I have done differently?
 If I could have done it all over again
 Tested sketches earlier
 Conducted more surveys to gauge needs
 Interviewed more current mobile developers
 Tested more often and designed less

18. Conclusions
 Mobile information will see increased demand in all
areas of society and increases in global knowledge
 The emphasis we place on users must become
greater than ever before
 The collision of mobile computer programming and
information design must happen so that both worlds
benefit users in the best way possible
 Churches have huge potential to enable members a
more fluid communication portal through pursuing
mobile.

19. MOBILE PHONE
INFORMATION
DESIGN
SCOTT GAYER Reynolds School of Journalism Master’s Project