Emotional Design Principles for Wearables
A lot has been written already about UX/UI design principles for wearables, but how should a wearable make you feel?
Let’s define a wearable device as one that may be always on the individual, as opposed to a handheld device like a phone, which may have some of the same features. But there are some features uniquely convenient to a wearable device; it may use sensors and motion detection to take biometric readings like temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, etc.; it may use fingerprint or retina recognition to securely identify the wearer; it may use GPS and geofencing to determine the wearer’s location.
Given the immense amount of personal data available to wearable devices and the apps that run on them, from a privacy standpoint the person wearing it should have an understanding of the data being collected, have the ability to turn any or all tracking on or off, and control how their personal data is used or shared.
From a user experience standpoint, when the wearable device is being worn and is turned on, it should make the person feel Safe, Informed, Connected, Healthy, In Flow, and Known.
And when it is turned off, even if they are still wearing it, they should feel Secure, Anonymous, and Free.
From a business standpoint, it’s to the benefit of the manufacturer of the wearable device or app that people come to feel the opposite way when they are not wearing the device. For instance, if an individual feels Unsafe, Uninformed, Lost, Disconnected, Blocked, and Uneasy when they are not wearing their device, they will be highly motivated to wear it continuously.
If they only feel Secure, Anonymous, and Free when they are not wearing the device, they are much less likely to wear it consistently.
Additionally, the person wearing it should not feel Annoyed — so notifications should be Appropriate, Limited, and Easy to Customize.
Notifications should not be the primary purpose of an app. An ideal wearable/app experience is seamless and as close to interface-free as possible, and the goal should be to simplify and enhance real-world interactions. Under the right circumstances, the person wearing the device should initially feel Amazed, and later they shouldn’t notice how they are feeling or have to think about it at all.
For example, the ideal, wearable-enhanced experience of checking in at the airport might go something like this:
Story Time
Your wristband speaks through your car speaker, giving you parking directions, then informing you of an ideal, open parking space close to your gate on level 3. As you park, the voice lets you know your flight is still on time. Your wristband taps you gently to remind you to validate your identity with a momentary thumb-press.
As you enter the airport, your device communicates with airport security to confirm your presence. Your wristband lights up with three green circles to give a clear visual indication to yourself and others that you have passed security checks — you may now check your luggage and begin boarding. Your earbud tells you to turn left to go through baggage check and reminds you of your gate number after you drop off your luggage.
You stop by the café and get a cup of tea and a sandwich. As you exit the café your wristband communicates your identity, and miniaturized RFID trackers on the price tags communicate the nature of your purchase to the store. The cost is automatically deducted from your designated account.
As you sit down in your airline seat, your wristband begins charging while in proximity to the built-in charger in your arm-rest. Because your vital signs indicate you are feeling a little tense, when you close your eyes and tap the raised ♪ icon on your wristband, your favorite relaxing travel playlist begins to play on your earbud.
How did that feel?
As the passenger went through the check in experience, the goal was for them to feel Safe (protected), Informed, Connected, Healthy, In Flow, and Known. They might turn the device off once they reach their vacation destination so they can feel Secure (untrackable), Anonymous, and Free. Did they feel freaked out and under surveillance? Ask them… probably not if they opted in to wearing the device and turning tracking on in the first place. But make sure you ask them!
To design experiences like these with minimal visual interfaces and interaction, Experience Designers can sometimes leave behind UI design and Visual Design and focus instead on being futurists and empathic story-tellers. We can communicate this vision via storyboarding or simply through words.
