Blog

  • All
  • Events
  • Research
  • Strategy
  • Our News
  • Thoughts
  • Design
  • Techniques
User Testing: Radical innovation through human insights 400 302 Border Crossing UX

User Testing: Radical innovation through human insights

On September 20th 2019 User Testing will be hosting, Radical innovation through human insights. This breakfast event will see User Testing share key insights from their recent UK financial services customer research study and panel discussion with industry leaders in CX.

read more
Are you heading to LBG’s ConnecTech 2019? 700 437 Border Crossing UX

Are you heading to LBG’s ConnecTech 2019?

Are you going to the Lloyds Banking Group: ConnecTech conference? Then we’ll see you there, as Border Crossing UX has been invited as a guest speaker to deliver a talk on Why UX Matters and two workshops on how to use Critical Thinking and Creative Thinking.

read more
Innovation Festival 2019: Enabling the Rural Revolution 1836 940 Border Crossing UX

Innovation Festival 2019: Enabling the Rural Revolution

For the 3rd year running, CGI has invited us to design and co-facilitate their design sprint at the Northumbrian Water Group (NWG) Innovation Festival. We’ll be exploring: ‘How Might We enhance rural communities and the environment using emerging technologies?’

read more
Esther Stringer speaking at Digital Transformation Scotland 2019
Why Digital Transformations fail (and how to stop them) 1120 840 Border Crossing UX

Why Digital Transformations fail (and how to stop them)

Digital Transformation is no longer the new kid on the block. But the need to deliver a transformation efficiently and effectively has never been more important. That’s why I was pleased to see the immense turnout for DIGIT.FYI’s 4th Annual Digital Transformation Conference.

read more
Festive opening hours at Border Crossing UX 2018 1920 1440 Border Crossing UX

Festive opening hours at Border Crossing UX 2018

2018 has been a great year and we’d like to say a massive thank you to all our wonderful Clients, Collaborators, Partners and Friends. We’ve worked on some great projects this year and with some great people across sectors and have solved some truly interesting business challenges.

read more
What we’ve been up to at Border Crossing UX in 2018 1920 1440 Border Crossing UX

What we’ve been up to at Border Crossing UX in 2018

2018 has been an incredibly busy year for us. Which is why we’ve been looking forward to the Summer, as it’s normally a bit quieter. But not this year … we’ve been flat out with projects, talks and festivals! So, here’s our latest round-up.

read more
Dynamic Earth Edinburgh
DIGIT Fintech Scotland 2017: Conference Review 860 472 Border Crossing UX

DIGIT Fintech Scotland 2017: Conference Review

Dynamic Earth once again provided a unique but intimate location for Fintech Scotland 2017. Fintech leaders from around the UK attended the conference exploring innovation and regulation within the financial services sector.

read more
Fintech Scotland Infographic
Infographic: The Growth of FinTech in Scotland 1300 6876 Border Crossing UX

Infographic: The Growth of FinTech in Scotland

Fintech Scotland 2017 was another great event from the team at Digit.fyi bringing together talent from across the sector. After two days of debate and discussion here’s our infographic of how this multi-billion pound industry has grown.

read more
Turing Fest Logo
Turing Fest 2017 – our top conference highlights 860 490 Border Crossing UX

Turing Fest 2017 – our top conference highlights

Last week Calum and I went to the EICC for Turing Fest 2017. With a pen and notebook in hand, we took advantage of what the Strategy and Product streams had to offer. Here is a round up of my top three talks and takeaways.

read more
Turing Talks 2017 – using technology for good 860 490 Border Crossing UX

Turing Talks 2017 – using technology for good

The Turing Talks took place last month. A day packed with disruptive insight that challenged attendees to think differently. As proud sponsors of the conference and the Turing Trust, there was no chance we were going to miss this event!

read more
Supporting Strathclyde University Chamber Choir 305 227 Border Crossing UX

Supporting Strathclyde University Chamber Choir

Strathclyde University Chamber Choir is a Glasgow-based charity boasting European performances and live BBC Radio broadcasts. They wanted to reach a larger audience online. We worked with them to help their music reach more people.

read more
Alexa
User Centred Design for the Internet of Things (IoT) 1451 1335 Border Crossing UX

User Centred Design for the Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) is the front line of innovation. Found all around us, its applications present challenges for both hardware and design. To overcome those challenges, designers need to adopt the right process: user-centred design.

read more
UX Scotland Logo
Don’t miss out on UX Scotland: 7th to 9th of June 2017 2640 1500 Border Crossing UX

Don’t miss out on UX Scotland: 7th to 9th of June 2017

UX Scotland 2017, now in it’s fifth year, is the conference for all with an interest in user experience (UX) and design. With less than three weeks to get your tickets now for the opportunity to connect and learn from industry leaders.

read more
What can Virtual Reality (VR) learn from the demise of 3DTV? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

What can Virtual Reality (VR) learn from the demise of 3DTV?

After years of excitement, promise and disappointment, the 3D era is over. Now, VR appears to have taken over the reins. As both are troubled by similar problems, I wanted to discover what lessons VR can take from the demise of 3DTV?

read more
web development team collaborating
UX Design Predictions 2016 – Were They Right? 734 489 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Predictions 2016 – Were They Right?

Experts and professionals often attempt to predict what the next big trends will be. But do they get them right? I’ve had a look back at articles and headlines. Here are 3 of the biggest predictions that caught my eye and how they really did.

read more
Christmas
Merry Christmas 2016 from Border Crossing UX 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Merry Christmas 2016 from Border Crossing UX

Merry Christmas 2016! It has been a mixed year for us at Border Crossing UX, a year of change in business and environment. 2016 for us was a year of growth, development and a lot of hard work! We are focusing on our achievements during this festive time.

read more
design
Responsive vs Adaptive Design for Website Development 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Responsive vs Adaptive Design for Website Development

Responsive and Adaptive design are two common approaches for website development. Both allow websites to be experienced on different sized devices. But, it’s important to be aware of the key differences before choosing.

read more
City at night
ScotChain 16: Blockchain The Digitisation of Value 860 489 Border Crossing UX

ScotChain 16: Blockchain The Digitisation of Value

I was delighted to attend ScotChain 16, which brought together people from academia and industry. Here is my take on the afternoon and how Blockchain technology means the real digitisation of value, not just information.

read more
Mobile Phone in use
Usability: The Core Principles of Web Usability 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Usability: The Core Principles of Web Usability

Whether it’s a tin opener or a website, if people can’t use it, they won’t. Usability is integral to success. It directly influences the user experience. Poor usability impacts brand perception, employee productivity and your bottom line.

read more
wireframe
What is a Prototype and How Do They Reduce Wastage? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

What is a Prototype and How Do They Reduce Wastage?

Delivering an experience that truly meets end-user needs and goals is difficult. Often, compelling user experiences are the result of an iterative design process. But how do you validate your designs in user testing without wastage?

read more
User Experience Design Workshop
Why Do User Experience (UX) Personas Matter? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Why Do User Experience (UX) Personas Matter?

A user experience persona is a fictional character that represents the needs and constraints of a range of real users. It is essentially a design tool used to inform the design at the beginning of a process and validate decisions in the later stages.

read more
People writing diaries
What is a Diary Study and Why Should You Care? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

What is a Diary Study and Why Should You Care?

A Diary Study is a longitudinal research method used for collecting qualitative user data. It is self-documented to promote honest feedback reflecting their experiences. It’s a perfect way to understand what people think and feel.

read more
Team
Summer 2016 – What We’ve Been Up To @ Border Crossing UX 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Summer 2016 – What We’ve Been Up To @ Border Crossing UX

Its Summer 2016 and normally, we look forward to this quiet quarter, but this year seems to have been busier than ever. We were sorely disappointed with the result of Brexit – but we decided to make some bold and positive changes.

read more
Pokemon Go
Pokémon Go or more likely Stop? (When good games stall) 860 573 Border Crossing UX

Pokémon Go or more likely Stop? (When good games stall)

It’s the game of the Summer: Pokémon Go. After a couple of weeks of heavy ‘testing’ (or more accurately desperately collecting Eevees) I’ve realised that I spend more time on Pokémon Stop than Go. So, why is everyone talking about it?

read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links & Resources: July 2016 Round-up 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links & Resources: July 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the useful UX Design links: July 2016. Great actionable advice from some of the best in the industry. This month features Co. Design, UX Booth, Nielson Norman Group, UIE, Conversion XL and Mind the Product.

read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: June 2016 Round-up 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: June 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round up of the best business and UX strategy links: June 2016. Get insights from other people’s successes and failures. This month features Lean Blogs, Astronomer, David Cummings, First Round and Medium. Happy reading!

read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links & Resources: June 2016 Round-up 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links & Resources: June 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the useful User Research links that we have come across in June 2016. Great actionable advice from some of the best in the industry. Featuring Nielson Norman Group, Andrew Chen and Medium. Happy reading!

read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links & Resources: June 2016 Round-up 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links & Resources: June 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the useful UX Design links from June 2016. Great advice from some of the best in the industry. This month features Apptimize, Disambiguity, Nielson Norman Group, Baymard Group and Medium. Happy reading!

read more
Social Evening
Join us for a drink at UX Scotland’s social evening 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Join us for a drink at UX Scotland’s social evening

Having been on the panel since 2013, we’re proud to be sponsoring the infamous UX Scotland Hemma Bar party! Join us for the post-conference social event, on Thursday 9th June 2016. Your choice of the finest drinks, Smorgasbord and fab people.

read more
Mobile UX – User Adoption, Retention and Growth 720 479 Border Crossing UX

Mobile UX – User Adoption, Retention and Growth

Last month I presented my thoughts on Mobile User Experience (UX) at Mobile Scotland 2016. I shared my 3 golden rules of how to deliver a great mobile user experience: 1. Keep it simple; 2. Be personal and; 3. Knowing when to stop.

read more
UX Scotland Logo
Our News: UX Scotland 2016 and Border Crossing Media 2640 1500 Border Crossing UX

Our News: UX Scotland 2016 and Border Crossing Media

It’s that time again, UX Scotland 2016 is just around the corner. This year it has been extended to 4 awesome days of talks and workshops. As UX Scotland is a must-attend event for us. So we’re absolutely thrilled to sponsor this year.

read more
Mobile testing
What we’ve been up to at Border Crossing Media (May 2016) 860 489 Border Crossing UX

What we’ve been up to at Border Crossing Media (May 2016)

As usual we have been hard at it with new staff, office moves, talks and presentations at Digital Transformation and EventIt, and plenty of client work for NHS 24, FutureScot, Edinburgh Designs and RBGE . Here is our round-up of news.

read more
UX Design Links Icon
Mobile User Experience (UX) Design Links & Resources: May 2016 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

Mobile User Experience (UX) Design Links & Resources: May 2016

Here’s our round-up of the useful Mobile UX Design links: May 2016. Great actionable advice from some of the best in the industry. This month features articles from Google, UIE, Nielson Norman Group, and Apple. Happy reading!

read more
Mobile User Experience (UX) for Journey Planning Apps 1120 1120 Border Crossing UX

Mobile User Experience (UX) for Journey Planning Apps

The latest versions of Transport for Edinburgh’s (TfE) journey planning apps are available to download from the App Store and Google Play. Shameless plugs aside we wanted to share what it’s been like working with Lothian Buses’ team.

read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links & Resources: May 2016 Round-up 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links & Resources: May 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the usefulUser Research links from April 2016. Great actionable advice from some of the best in the industry. This month features The Effective Engineer, UX Matters, and Mike Fishbein. Happy reading!

read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: May 2016 Round-up 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: May 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the best UX strategy resources May 2016. Get insights from other people’s successes and failures. This month features insights from Peter Reinhardt, Steve Blank, First Round and Nielsen Norman Group. Happy reading!

read more
Esther Stringer talking at Eventit 2016
User Centred Design Matters: User Experience for Events 1920 976 Border Crossing UX

User Centred Design Matters: User Experience for Events

We were asked to present a Learning Zone session at EventIt 2016. Find out how applying user centred design techniques will improve the experience of your events attendees, exhibitors and sponsors – throughout the event lifecycle.

read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links & Resources: April 2016 Round-up 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links & Resources: April 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the useful and interesting User Experience (UX) Design links from April 2016. This month’s articles and insights from UIE, Conversion XL, Nielson Norman Group, OnStartups and UX Matters. Happy reading!

read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links & Resources: April 2016 Round-up 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links & Resources: April 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the useful User Research links that we have come across in April 2016. Great actionable advice comes this month from User Focus, Nielson Norman Group, Andrew Chen and Baymard Institute. Happy reading!

read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: April 2016 Round-up 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: April 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the best business and UX strategy links and resources April 2016. This month features insights and learning from McKinsey & Company, Sam Altman, Steve Blank and First Round Review. Happy reading!

read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: March 2016 Round-up 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy Links & Resources: March 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the best business and UX strategy links and resources March 2016. This month features insight, articles and learning from Jerry Chen, Google Ventures, Sachin Rekhi and First Round . Happy reading!

read more
Top Tasks on mobile
UX Design Techniques: Red Routing and Top Tasks 860 489 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Techniques: Red Routing and Top Tasks

In the age of the consumer, it is vital for companies who conduct business online to identify their user’s goals.  By pinpointing the key tasks that people want to carry out on your website, you are establishing your ‘Red Routes’ or ‘Top Tasks’.

read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links & Resources: March 2016 Round-up 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links & Resources: March 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the interesting User Research links that we have come across in March 2016. Great actionable advice and insights from UserFocus, Nielson Norman Group, UX Matters and Baymard Institute. Happy reading!

read more
User Experience Design Workshop
Using Personas for your Digital Transformation 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Using Personas for your Digital Transformation

A persona is a representation of a user. A good persona should be based on interviews with real customers.  A persona then has the ability to help design teams empathise with the user and appreciate their frustrations and difficulties.

read more
Attending an Event
Digital Transformation 2016: Transform or Evolve? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Digital Transformation 2016: Transform or Evolve?

Digital Transformation 2016 was one of those awesome events when a bunch talented people get together and talk. In our breakout session I shared how to understand a problem fully before starting to design the right solution.

read more
storyboarding
UX Design Techniques: Introduction to Storyboarding 860 489 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Techniques: Introduction to Storyboarding

A storyboard is a method in which to illustrate the interaction between a person and a product. They allow a team to visually map out and specify how a user interacts and reacts to a product whilst considering additional external factors.

read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business and UX Strategy Links: January 2016 Round-up 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business and UX Strategy Links: January 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the best business and UX strategy links and resources January 2016. This month features insights and learning from Folding Burritos, UIE, UX Matters, ShakeUP and Nielson Norman Group. Happy reading!

read more
people surfing online in restaurant
Is your booking process helping or hindering your business? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Is your booking process helping or hindering your business?

Living in the digital age, a restaurant’s website has become the customers first point of contact. So, it is vital that it is user friendly and easy to navigate. The online booking system should be fool proof. But how often are they?

read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links & Resources: January 2016 Round-up 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links & Resources: January 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the useful and interesting User Experience (UX) Design links from January 2016. This month’s insights from UX Booth, Conversion XL, Nielson Norman Group and the Baymard Institute. Happy reading!

read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links & Resources: January 2016 Round-up 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links & Resources: January 2016 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the interesting User Research links that we have come across in January 2016. Great actionable advice and insights from 3 articles from the Nielson Norman Group, UX Matters and UIE. Happy reading!

read more
Merry Christmas and Thanks for an Awesome 2015! 596 836 Border Crossing UX

Merry Christmas and Thanks for an Awesome 2015!

Merry Christmas and thank you for an amazing 2015! It has been a busy year for us at Border Crossing Media with some really exciting work, great clients and some really fun events. We wanted to take a moment to thank all of you.

read more
Santa Inc Logo
Service Design for SANTA Inc pt. 4 – The Big Man 1920 1091 Border Crossing UX

Service Design for SANTA Inc pt. 4 – The Big Man

With only 2 days until the big event we had to share the big man’s persona from our Service Design workshop. With more names than most, and nearly a millennium of spreading goodwill at Christmas, Santa Claus needs to stay on top of his game.

read more
Santa Inc Logo
Service Design for SANTA Inc pt.3 – Production Crew 1920 1091 Border Crossing UX

Service Design for SANTA Inc pt.3 – Production Crew

You may not have heard of our third persona from SANTA Inc. But believe me, without this guy, noone would get their presents on time – if ever! Bernard has a tricky job, keeping his team of over 1,000 elves productive and focused.

read more
Santa Inc Logo
Service Design for SANTA Inc. pt. 2 – COO Mrs Claus 1920 1091 Border Crossing UX

Service Design for SANTA Inc. pt. 2 – COO Mrs Claus

Ensuring success as the number 1 Christmas provider for nice children year on year requires strength in leadership and a strong head for numbers. Our second interview was with our project sponsor Mrs Claus.

read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business and UX Strategy Links: December 2015 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business and UX Strategy Links: December 2015

Here’s our round-up of the best business and UX strategy links and resources December 2015. This month features insights and learning from Andrew Chen, UserFocus, Percolate Industries, Digital Telepathy and UIE. Happy reading!

read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links & Resources: December 2015 Round-up 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links & Resources: December 2015 Round-up

Here’s our round-up of the useful and interesting User Experience (UX) Design links from December 2015. This month’s articles and insights from A List Apart, Nielson Norman Group, Google Ventures and UX Booth. Happy reading!

read more
Santa Inc Logo
Service design for SANTA Inc. – Rudolf from Logistics 1920 1091 Border Crossing UX

Service design for SANTA Inc. – Rudolf from Logistics

This autumn we were commissioned by a family company run out of the North Pole. Whilst they have been delivering Christmas cheer for centuries they were concerned by the wave of internet disruption to their traditional business model.

read more
A collaborative user experience design workshop
Service Design for the Business Gateway Edinburgh 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Service Design for the Business Gateway Edinburgh
Do you know what the difference between a micro-business and an SME is? Up until recently I didn’t. But thanks to a recent project I now know that a micro-business is in fact an autonomous enterprise with less than 10 employees and under €10 million turnover. Which means this company, Border Crossing Media, is a [...]read more
What we’ve been up to … 150 150 Border Crossing UX

What we’ve been up to …
It's been a while. Apologies for that! But its been really hectic here at Border Crossing Media. In fact that’s an understatement we’ve been swamped! From exciting new projects to last-minute presentations, we’ve been up to a really strange mix of things over the past few months. So here’s a brief overview of what we’ve [...]read more
User Research Resources: Nov 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

User Research Resources: Nov 2015
Here’s a round up of the user research resources we’ve come across and bookmarked recently. Interested? Click the “read more” link below. Customer Journey Mapping Is at the Heart of Digital Transformation (Knowledge@Wharton) According to Raman Sapra, global head of Dell’s digital business services, the best way to leverage digital is to take a comprehensive [...]read more
UX Design Resources: August 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Resources: August 2015
Here’s our round up of the useful UX Design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “read more” link. The right design at the right time (Google Ventures) “Many of the successful yet “poorly designed” companies used as examples — e.g. Craigslist, or Google circa 2004 [...]read more
UX Strategy Resources: August 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

UX Strategy Resources: August 2015
Here’s our round up of the best business and UX strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “read more” link below. This is the Product Death Cycle. Why it happens, and how to break out of it (Andrew Chen) This post covers each step [...]read more
User Research Resources: Aug 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

User Research Resources: Aug 2015
Here’s a round up of the user research resources we’ve come across and bookmarked recently. Interested? Click the “read more” link below. On Surveys (UIE) "The whole reason to bother going to the trouble of gathering information to inform decisions is that ultimately you want those decisions to lead to some sort of measurable success. [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy Links: July 2015 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy Links: July 2015
Here’s our round up of the best business and UX strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “read more” link below. Lean Innovation Management – Making Corporate Innovation Work (Steve Blank) Steve Blank on how he’s helped large companies and the U.S. government innovate [...]read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links: July 2015 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links: July 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience (UX) design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “read more” link. Change Blindness: Why People Don’t See What Designers Expect Them To See (Nielsen Norman Group) “People often overlook new visual details added to an [...]read more
Meeting Discussion
3 Things SMEs can learn from FinTech 860 489 Border Crossing UX

3 Things SMEs can learn from FinTech
Written for the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce blog find out what lessons SMEs can learn from the world of FinTech. The world of FinTech is exploding. Here in the UK we are right at the epicentre of a revolution in the financial services. There has been a lot of speculation regarding how this young sector [...]read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links: July 2015 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links: July 2015
Here’s a round up of the useful and thought provoking user research resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in the latest user research insights, click on the “read more” link below. How to prioritise customer research when everything is a priority (Google Ventures) “It’s well known that it’s best to test ideas early [...]read more
Conference round-up: UX Scotland 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

Conference round-up: UX Scotland 2015
I was at UX Scotland a few weeks back. Yet again, it was a really good couple of days. The keynotes were brilliant and the programme was rammed full of useful tutorials and workshops. Here’s my take on the conference: Day 1 Practical creativity Dan Saffer kicked things off with a really apt keynote that seemed [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy: May 2015 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy: May 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful business and UX strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “read more” link below. Organisational Debt is like Technical debt – but worse (Steve Blank) “While technical debt is an understood problem, it turns out startups [...]read more
people walking
Long term care revolution – ready for the challenge? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Long term care revolution – ready for the challenge?
Last week I was fortunate to be part of something new. Something I hope to be big, something I know will change our world: The long term care revolution. And now I'm going to challenge you to become part of that too. The problem It's been known for sometime that the World's population is ageing. [...]read more
Airplane Landing
A beginner’s guide to pre-launch landing pages 860 489 Border Crossing UX

A beginner’s guide to pre-launch landing pages

In an ideal world we’d all like to launch a beautiful, complete and bug-free product, on-time to a captive audience of prospective customers. But the truth is you’re more likely to launch a buggy product or service late to your pals.

read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links: May 2015 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links: May 2015
Here’s a round up of the user research we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in the latest user research insights, click on the “read more” link below. A User Research Case Study on Slack: Phase 1, User Interviews (Medium) “I conducted a short study on Slack to understand the user experience on a macro [...]read more
Planning Meeting
How to develop a pre-launch plan for your start-up 860 489 Border Crossing UX

How to develop a pre-launch plan for your start-up

Over the years I’ve come across and contributed to a diverse range of start-up launch plans. A key ingredient of the successful start-up launches I’ve observed has been a willingness to invest time and thought into an objective-driven plan.

read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links: June 2015 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links: June 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience (UX) design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “read more” link. Frictionless Design Choices (Learn by Shipping) “A design can be minimal but still have a great deal of friction. The Linux command line interface [...]read more
Collaborative UX Design and Planning
Planning an effective website – where to start 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Planning an effective website – where to start
Whether your business has been around for a while or you are just starting up building effective websites can be tricky. Getting an awesome website that does what you want, fulfills your user's needs and looks great can be like tightrope walking. Then add in any of the issues or delays or changes that happen in any [...]read more
Space Rocket Launch
Why you should pre-launch your start-up (not your product) 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Why you should pre-launch your start-up (not your product)

Why are so many start-ups not willing to pre-launch their businesses? When lean start-up or minimum viable product are becoming such well known terms. As UX consultants we collaborate start-ups to pre-launch their business, not their product.

read more
American Football Conversion
Conversion rate optimisation: process matters 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Conversion rate optimisation: process matters

Conversion rate optimisation (CRO) is a process used to increase the percentage of visitors that complete a specific task or action. Generally this relates to financial or data transactions but what that task or action is, doesn’t really matter.

read more
Expert review
Expert usability reviews: when (and when not) to use them 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Expert usability reviews: when (and when not) to use them

A formal or informal expert usability review is a common starting point for most of our projects. Oddly enough it’s also one of the only methods in user centred design that doesn’t directly involve people who will use the product or service.

read more
The rise of user experience: is a little knowledge a dangerous thing? 150 150 Border Crossing UX

The rise of user experience: is a little knowledge a dangerous thing?
As we specialise in user research and user experience we’ve always done a lot of work with other agencies and in-house teams responsible for improving a website or appliation. Rarely this may require a whole scale redesign. But more often than not, this involves making (and testing) incremental changes over time. The rise of user [...]read more
The Apple customer experience: a story of innovation and iteration 860 489 Border Crossing UX

The Apple customer experience: a story of innovation and iteration

Apple have a track record of going against the grain. But what’s interesting is that they’ve always been willing to take business risks. Not just with their hardware and software but the customer experience they deliver.

read more
Google Analytics on Computer
Email marketing: how to build your email database 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Email marketing: how to build your email database
Despite the changing ways in which we receive and consume content, one thing that has remained a constant in a professional context, is email. In fact email marketing is still one of the most effective methods for reaching, converting and establishing a long-term relationship with your customers. Not only does it have one of the [...]read more
UX Scotland 2015: Are you going? 150 150 Border Crossing UX

UX Scotland 2015: Are you going?
Are you heading along to UX Scotland 2015? Held in Edinburgh this conference is aimed at those with an interest in user experience, service design and product development. This year’s conference is scheduled for the 11-12th of June with the pre-conference workshop happening on the 10th of June - check out the full programme on the [...]read more
Journey Planning on Map
Customer mapping: the basics 1920 1091 Border Crossing UX

Customer mapping: the basics

Customer mapping or customer journey mapping is key to delivering an excellent customer experience, whether you operate online or not. It allows you to identify what your customers need, desire and feel when they interact with your company.

read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy: April 2015 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy: April 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful business and UX strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “continue reading” link below. Compulsive Beahviour Sells (MIT Technology Review) “Nir Eyal is showing software designers how to hook users in four easy steps. Welcome to [...]read more
FinTech insights: What Consumers Want 150 150 Border Crossing UX

FinTech insights: What Consumers Want
Want to know what people really want from new FinTech products and services? Well so did we so we went along to the first Techstars FinTech Speaker Series powered by Datamonitor Financial to discover: What Consumers want. This week François and I were working from London and also attended the FinTech Speaker Series Event with Datamonitor Financial [...]read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Links: April 2015 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Links: April 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience (UX) design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “continue reading” link. Modelling the Mobile User Experience (SlideShare) Bryan Rieger from Yibuu does it again with this awesome presentation on the issues (and a potential solution [...]read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links: April 2015 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links: April 2015
Here’s a round up of the user research we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in the latest user research insights, click on the “continue reading” link below. Pilot Testing: Getting It Right (Before) the First Time (Nielsen Norman Group) “Pilot testing (a session or two before the real test) helps fine-tune usability studies, leading [...]read more
Online Retail
Is your online business helping or hindering your offline business? 1920 1091 Border Crossing UX

Is your online business helping or hindering your offline business?
Making the right impression first time whether online and offline is the best way to drive sales. As a user experience specialist I have been interested in the way that customers now interact with retail companies using both online and offline touch points to research, validate and make purchasing decisions. With each new development of technology [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & UX Strategy Links: April 2015 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & UX Strategy Links: April 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful business and UX strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “continue reading” link below. The rapidly disappearing Business of Design (Wired Magazine) A must read article! “If you walk into a meeting in which you are [...]read more
UX Design round-up: May 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

UX Design round-up: May 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience (UX) design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “continue reading” link. Finding Agile Nirvana with the One Feature Release (Crisp’s Blog) “One common attempt at shortening the time of up-front design work is the practice [...]read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Links: March 2015 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Links: March 2015
Here’s a round up of the user research we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in the latest user research insights, click on the “continue reading” link below. Ethnography guidance: Open policy making toolkit (GOV.UK) “GOV.UK have produced some absolutely brilliant guidance documentation on ethnographic research. This is a must-read if you need to generate [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & Strategy Links: March 2015 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & Strategy Links: March 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful business and (UX) strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “continue reading” link below. The most common mistake when forecasting growth for new products and how to fix it (Andrew Chen) This is an excellent article [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
UX Strategy Round-up: March 2015 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

UX Strategy Round-up: March 2015
Here’s our round up of a number of user experience strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in some resources to read over the festive period, click on the “continue reading” link below. Design for continuous experimentation (SlideShare) Just stumbled upon an amazing presentation I’d completely forgotten about! How to design for continuous experimentation by [...]read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Round-up: March 2015 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Round-up: March 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “continue reading” link. Design's fully-baked deliverables and half-baked artifacts (UIE) “Deliverables tell the story of what we think the design should be. Artifacts tell the story of how [...]read more
User Research Round-up: Feb 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

User Research Round-up: Feb 2015
Here’s a round up of the user research we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in the latest user research insights, click on the “continue reading” link below. Why do we conduct qualitative user research? (Mozilla UX) This is an incredibly thought-provoking post from the Lead User Researcher at Firefox. In it he explains that [...]read more
UX Scotland 2015: Call for Speakers 150 150 Border Crossing UX

UX Scotland 2015: Call for Speakers
Now in it’s third year, UX Scotland 2015 will be held at Dynamic Earth (Edinburgh) on the 11th-12th June. If you’ve been before, you know what you’re getting, so grab your early-bird ticket before the 27th of February. If you’ve not attended UX Scotland before, you should definitely consider attending this year’s conference. Who should [...]read more
UP Logo
User Experience Talk for Up Accelerator 860 489 Border Crossing UX

User Experience Talk for Up Accelerator
Last week we delivered an introduction to user research and user experience for an incredibly talented and committed bunch of entrepreneurs from UP. Based at the Creative Exchange Leith, the UP techmedia accelerator programme is focussed on: “Finding business with a prototype, early stage product, service or platform with the potential to grow significantly. And [...]read more
UX Design Resources: Jan 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Resources: Jan 2015
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “continue reading” link. Sketching your way to a mobile UX design (UX Matters) This is a really nice overview of how to sketch out mobile UI’s and then [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
UX Strategy: Festive Reading 2014 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

UX Strategy: Festive Reading 2014
Here’s our round up of a number of user experience strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in some resources to read over the festive period, click on the “continue reading” link below. How to choose the right UX metrics for your product (Google Ventures) The Google Ventures team on how to make the most [...]read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research: Festive Reading 2014 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research: Festive Reading 2014
We know it's nice to kick back and read at your own pace over the festive period. That's why we've put together a special round-up of the user research resources we've learnt from recently. Click on the “continue reading” link below to learn more. Understanding human behaviour to improve mobile research design (Biz Community) Shirley Eadie, founding [...]read more
Merry Christmas And Happy 2015 150 150 Border Crossing UX

Merry Christmas And Happy 2015
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from all of us at Border Crossing Media. What a year 2014 has been! We’d like to thank all of our clients, friends and family for helping us have such a momentous year. It really wouldn’t have been possible without you all!   Out of office We’ll be [...]read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Roundup: Dec 2014 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Roundup: Dec 2014
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience (UX) design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “continue reading” link. Time with Users: Set Personal and Company Goals (Nielsen Norman Group) How much time do you allocate to simply observing your customers use your [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & Strategy Links: Dec 2014 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & Strategy Links: Dec 2014
Here’s our round up of the most useful business and user experience (UX) strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “continue reading” link below. The Banks of the Future: An Experience Design Perspective “In the age of the customer, banks can no longer afford [...]read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Roundup: Dec 2014 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Roundup: Dec 2014
Here’s a round up of the user research we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in the latest user research insights, click on the “continue reading” link below. Rethinking Segmentation for the New Digital Consumer (Knowledge @ Wharton) It used to be assumed that people exhibited predictable behaviours in their public and private lives based [...]read more
UX Design Links Icon
UX Design Roundup: Nov 2014 1150 647 Border Crossing UX

UX Design Roundup: Nov 2014
Here’s our round up of the most useful user experience (UX) design resources we’ve come across recently. Get actionable advice you can start implementing today by clicking on the “continue reading” link. Form Usability: Getting 'Address Line 2' Right (Baymard Institute) It's amazing how one seemingly simple field can cause bewilderment and uncertainty for users. Enter [...]read more
UX Strategy Links Icon
Business & Strategy Links: Nov 2014 1146 651 Border Crossing UX

Business & Strategy Links: Nov 2014
Here’s our round up of the most useful business and user experience (UX) strategy resources we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in learning from other people's successes and failures, click on the “continue reading” link below. The Art of Customer Loyalty (HelpScout) This eBook will help you understand what you need to know to build a company [...]read more
User Research Links Icon
User Research Roundup: Nov 2014 1147 651 Border Crossing UX

User Research Roundup: Nov 2014
Here’s our round up of the most insightful user research we’ve come across recently. If you’re interested in the latest user research insights, click on the “continue reading” link below. 100 Days of iPhone Use: Understanding the Details of Mobile Device Use (Mobile Life, Stockholm University) This academic paper from Stockholm University investigates how Internet-connected [...]read more
The Importance of User Experience 150 150 Border Crossing UX

The Importance of User Experience
A few months ago we were invited to write an article for Business Comment Magazine. We jumped at the chance as even though we contribute articles online we rarely do this for print publications. We were given a tight remit - write an inspiring post that is targeted at people who've never heard of the [...]read more
Man on a website on his laptop
Are you running Drupal 7.32 or lower? 860 489 Border Crossing UX

Are you running Drupal 7.32 or lower?
If your website is powered by Drupal, an open source content management system, then you need to read this. A significant security issue has been found within the code of most Drupal 7 installations and a patch has now been issued for versions below 7.32. The Drupal core development team are recommending you should assume your [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: October 27 – 31, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: October 27 – 31, 2014
Here’s the links we’ve bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research How to do a Jobs To Be Done Interview (Jason Evanish) Design Research Techniques (Design Research)   Strategy Should More Banks Acquire UX Design Firms? (The Financial Brand) The Business Model Canvas Gets Even Better [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: October 20 – 24, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: October 20 – 24, 2014
Here’s the links we’ve bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research 8 Shortcuts For Better, Faster Design Research (Google Ventures) UX Researcher: A User’s Manual (Boxes and Arrows) Persuading Clients That the Need for User Research and Usability Testing Is Real (UX Matters) Strategy CUBI: [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: October 13 – 17, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: October 13 – 17, 2014
Here’s the links we’ve bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research Customer Development for Startups (GrooveHQ) When to Use Which User-Experience Research Methods (Nielsen Norman Group) The Right Way to Do Lean Research (Boxes and Arrows) Conducting Usability Research for Mobile (UIE) Combining User Research [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: September 22 – 26, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: September 22 – 26, 2014
Here’s a list of the links we’ve come across and bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research The New Face Of Usability Testing (Measuring Usability) Digital Tools for Design Research (IDEO Labs) A Simple Introduction to the Practice of Ethnography and Guide to Ethnographic Fieldnotes [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: September 15 – 19, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: September 15 – 19, 2014
Here’s a list of the links we’ve come across and bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research 8 Shortcuts for Better, Faster Design Research (Google Ventures) 4 Simple eCommerce Product Page Tests That Take Less Than an Hour (KissMetrics)   Business How to Find the [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: September 8 – 12, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: September 8 – 12, 2014
Here’s a list of the links we’ve come across and bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research 11 reasons computers can’t understand or solve our problems without human judgement (The Urban Technologist) A Step by Step Guide to Creating Effective User Journey Maps (Web Design [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: September 1 – 5, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: September 1 – 5, 2014
Here’s a list of the links we’ve come across and bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research Consumer Barometer 2013 (Google) The Ethics of UX Research (UX Booth) Demonstrate Thinking Aloud by Showing Users a Video (Nielsen Norman Group)   Business Pew Internet Research: 15 theses [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: August 18 – 22, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: August 18 – 22, 2014
Here’s a list of the links we’ve come across and bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research The Role of Iterative Usability Evaluation in Agile Development: A Case Study (UX Matters) Research for the Right Audience (UX Booth) How to Conduct Design Research for Home Healthcare Devices [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: August 11 – 15, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: August 11 – 15, 2014
Here’s a list of the links we’ve come across and bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research UX Without User Research Is Not UX (Nielsen Norman Group) Learning About and Modelling Users (UX Matters) Ten User Testing Bad Habits (The Brain Lady Blog)   Business [...]read more
Our Bookmarks: August 4 – 8, 2014 1053 597 Border Crossing UX

Our Bookmarks: August 4 – 8, 2014
Here’s a list of the links we’ve come across and bookmarked this week. Click the “continue reading” link below - they’re definitely worth a read! User research Recruiting Participants (Google Ventures) Customer Councils: A Research Tool for Agile Development (UX Magazine) Portrait of a Mobile Consumer: An Infographic (UX Matters) The Benefits of Tracking People [...]read more