Posted By Dashboard Spy ~ 5th March 2012
Some more great resources for my Dashboard Spy readers
Today, we’re focusing on making sure that our sites and applications actually give our users what they need. Long time Dashboard Spy readers know that my whole focus is on the user experience, particularly that of dashboard design. How can we be sure that the users are getting what they need? It’s actually NOT by listening to what they say they want in their requirements documents. It’s NOT even in the mockups and page layout wireframes that they help produce. It’s only by iterative testing of actual screens that they express how they feel when they interact with a system design. (Yes, I’m a big fan of quick iterations to actual prototypes!)
This is a direct link to a fantastic PDF titled "Intro to A/B Split Testing for Marketing Optimization". It’s a great read for everyone but absolutely critical for anyone working with the marketing department.
Next, here is an ebook from IBM called "The Interactive Marketing eBook: It’s All About the Journey". It’s about how to engage website visitors in an interactive dialogue.
Finally, this is another free resource for your UI team. It’s a UI Kit with graphic components delivered as a PSD file.
Keep on keeping on!
Hubert Lee
The Dashboard Spy
PS. Some readers have been writing me asking again for my powerpoint dashboard mockup template. Here you go:
Recommended Reading
Posted By Yannis ~ 26th January 2012
I recently came across the Vizualize.me site and decided to give a try based on my LinkedIn account profile. I must admit that the idea is simple but brilliant. The site rapidly helps you turn your LinkedIn profile into a beautiful and meaningful set of charts and graphics highlighting your personal and professional data. Build and customize your own professional viz !
A recent survey said that HR and recruiters don’t want to spend more than 30 seconds reading a CV. Text resumes are easily boring and most of the times too prolific. Vizualizing your data should be the future way of promoting yourself.
Yannis
Recommended Reading
Posted By Dashboard Spy ~ 12th December 2011
Hello Dashboard Spy readers!
Just a quick post to share a technique on finding lots of those ever-so-fascinating Magic Quadrant reports from Gartner.
A lot of you have been asking how I dig up the actual reports. Yes, they can be hard to find.
Here is the trick:
Companies that get mentioned favorably in the Gartner Magic Quadrant reports like to get the rights to distribute them. You can find them available for download in their websites. Most often you have to go through a registration process to get them but here’s a quick way to find them using Google.
We take advantage of a consistent “footprint” in the reports themselves. (remember all those pattern findng tricks we’d do back in the day to do screen scrapiing?).
Go to google and enter this into the search box:
“magic quadrant for” filetype:pdf
Yes, use the quotes.
Also, I like to pick the date range as “past year” – you can do this in the “advanced search” to get more recent results.
Try running the search and you’ll find direct links to many Magic Quadrant reports!
Enjoy this simple search technique! Hope it opens your mind to using “footprints” as a seach technique.
Here’s a link to simply click on:
Gartner Magic Quadrant Reports on Google
Hubert Lee
The Dashboard Spy
Recommended Reading
Posted By Dashboard Spy ~ 29th November 2011
When I create wireframes for business intelligence dashboard projects, I don’t want any particular visual element to be “too catchy”. A wireframe should be low fidelity and not distract by being “too graphic”. However, it’s nice to pop in icons. The usual icon libraries are just too colorful and impactful. So, what do I use?
Here’s a great set of icons for wireframing. It’s a collection of 1000 icons done in greyscale. Here’s a look at the styling:
You can download the icon set from this link: Greyscale Icons (zip file)
Be sure to share your business intelligence dashboard wireframes, mockups and prototypes.
Regards
The Dashboard Spy
Recommended Reading
Posted By Dashboard Spy ~ 22nd November 2011
Here’s a sweet find for you enterprise dashboard designers out there. You know how you are always on the look out for cool graphics for your business intelligence interfaces and enterprise dashboards? Well, get ready to do some downloading because I’ve found a nice free set of icons and graphics that you’ll want to incorporate into your business dashboards.
Click on the graphics to go to the download location.
Take a look at these dashboard alert boxes:
And here are some very nice dashboard navigation menus.
For more dashboard icons go to the main post here:
http://www.copyblogger.com/free-website-graphics
Recommended Reading
