Get Your Product Used: Adoption and Appropriation v1
Designing for user experience and usability is not enough. If products are not used—and it doesn’t matter how good they are—they will be consigned to the trash can of history.
Sony’s Betamax, Coca-Cola’s New Coke, Pepsi’s Crystal Pepsi, and McDonald’s Arch Deluxe are among the most famous products which made it into production but failed to wow their audiences, according to Business Insider. In fact, Harvard Business Review dedicated a long piece to “Why most product launches fail”—so it’s not just big brands that aren’t getting their design process right but a lot of businesses and individuals, too.
So, what is the way forward? Well, once you’re sure that the user experience and usability of your product work the way you want them to, you’ve got to get your designs adopted by users (i.e., they have to start using them). Ideally, you want them to appropriate your designs, too; you want the users to start using your designs in ways you didn’t intend or foresee. How do we get our designs adopted and appropriated? We design for adoption and appropriation.
This course is presented by Alan Dix, a former professor at Lancaster University in the UK and a world-renowned authority in Human-Computer Interaction. Alan is also the author the university-level textbook “Human-Computer Interaction.” It is a short course designed to help you master the concepts and practice of designing for adoption and appropriation. It contains all the basics to get you started on this path and the practical tips to implement the ideas. Alan blends theory and practice to ensure you get to grips with these essential design processes.
What you will learn
- Why adoption and appropriation matter
- How to place adoption and appropriation in context with UX and usability work
- How to design for adoption and understand the critical factors in engaging users to adopt your designs
- How to design for appropriation and understand how “expecting the unexpected” isn’t quite as challenging as it might sound for designers
Who should take this course
This is an advanced-level course intended for anyone who is looking to launch successful products, and no prior knowledge is required:
- UX designers and project managers keen on learning how to design products that will be adopted and appropriated
- Software engineers interested in learning more about UX design and usability
- Entrepreneurs who want to ship products that users will purchase and use again and again
- Marketers interested in launching products that will get adopted and appropriated by users
- Newcomers to design who are considering making a switch to UX design
Courses in the Interaction Design Foundation are designed to contain comprehensive, evidence-based content, while ensuring that the learning curve is never too steep. All participants will have the opportunity to share ideas, seek help with tests, and enjoy the social aspects afforded by our open and friendly forum.
Learn and work with a global team of designers
When you take part in this course, you will join a global multidisciplinary team working on the course and the exercises at the same time as you. You will work together to improve your skills and understanding. Your course group will be made up of an incredibly diverse group of professionals, all of whom have the same objective—to become successful designers. It’s your chance to learn, grow, and network with your peers across the planet.
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Is This Course Right for You?
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Course Overview
- Each week, one lesson becomes available.
- Study flexibly. Take as much time as you want.
Lesson 0: Welcome and Introduction
To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 1 hour, 32 mins.
Lesson 1: Designing for Adoption
To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 3 hours, 44 mins.
Lesson 2: Designing for Appropriation
To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 4 hours, 20 mins.
Lesson 3: IxDF Course Certificate and Course Wrap-up
To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 13 mins.
What's Inside IxDF Membership?
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Questions? We've Got Answers
Why are design skills so important right now?
Design skills are valuable for both you personally and for your company.
For you personally, design skills are important because:
Design roles are growing faster than average. The World Economic Forum ranks human-centered design among the fastest-growing skill areas through 2030.
Employers increasingly expect design skills across roles, not just from designers. Knowing design thinking, user research, or UX principles makes you more competitive in any field.
Designers who combine human-centered skills with AI expertise are in especially high demand.
For your company, design skills are important because:
Design skills help your team increase sales, retain customers, and improve customer satisfaction. Better customer experiences lead directly to better business results.
Companies that invest in design outperform the S&P 500 Index by 228% (Design Management Institute, Design Value Index).
Design is more than aesthetics. It's how teams make products easier to use, services more efficient, and technology more human. These skills create value across every department.
I'm not a designer. Why should I learn design and AI?
Design and tech skills can open up career opportunities.
For example, if you're in a field such as:
Marketing, communication, HR, software development, customer service, business management, healthcare, teaching, and many more.
Why can design skills make you valuable in these jobs and industries?
That's because:
Design skills help your team increase sales, retain customers, and improve customer satisfaction. Better customer experiences lead directly to better business results.
Companies that invest in design outperform the S&P 500 Index by 228% (Design Management Institute, Design Value Index).
Design is more than aesthetics. It's how teams make products easier to use, services more efficient, and technology more human. These skills create value across every department.
Will this course give me hands-on, job-ready skills and help me build my portfolio?
Yes!.
You'll gain fluency in design processes and get job-ready, hands-on skills you can apply immediately.
This course makes it easy for you with templates and step-by-step guides, so you can easily present to managers and clients. All licensed for commercial use.
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Need more detailed instructions?
How long does it take to complete this course?
You can see the estimated total learning time just above.
But remember, it's entirely up to you! You can learn at your own comfortable pace. Anytime and anywhere, whether you're working full-time or juggling life and kids.
I missed the enrollment, and now the course is closed. What can I do?
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