NOT Just Another Mobile Guy

Think about UX when using QR codes

Some great examples of how NOT to use QRs. An execution that doesn’t put the user at the center of the strategy is a recipe for #fail.

(via @Econsultancy)

This one takes the cake for my favorite QR code campaign - great work by CP+B

[stats] Social & Mobile Shopping

Great stats - a few highlights:

• 1/3 or more of shoppers’ top Mobile behaviors are hyperlocal (i.e. sales, coupons, inventory, store info, 4SQ/ShopKick check ins)
• 50% never use our social networks to help us make up our minds on what to buy; though once we do, we use them extensively to do our homework (59%)
• the majority of people don’t trust reviews posted by retailers & brands 
• Facebook has become contest/promo central, and very few people (11%) care about being “a part of that retailer’s community.”

I love LEGO. I’m also an iPhone game addict. Based on the friendly conversations with other customers at the Wall o’ LEGO in their Sherway Gardens store, and the store reps’ bemused reaction to my “there’s a LEGO iPhone game?!”, I’m definitely not the only geeky adult that does. When I saw it, I was already over budget on my LEGO purchases, but what’s another $35 at that point? Awesomeness has its price.

Life of George was, apparently, made for people like me and my team, based on the level of LoG addiction that has overtaken the office. And as far as iPhone games go - or even games in general - LoG is pretty awesome. I’d put it on par with games like Cranium for both the skill & fun factor.

As a user who’s used to paying nothing for decent mobile games, my initial thought was, “why should I need to buy the boxed game to play it?” I’m definitely not a stranger to the freemium model, but the thrifty shopper in me says $35 is a lot for an iPhone game. The catch: this is NOT an iPhone game. It’s a LEGO board game that uses your iPhone/iPod Touch to play. The unboxing reveals the rationale - a set number of LEGO blocks & a dizzyingly funky game board with dots all over it.

After affixing the sticker (love it! Free marketing at its best!) to my moleskine, the instructions reveal the need to download the game from the app store (overlooking the lack of a QR to link to the download page). Starting the story mode, it’s clear that LEGO did their homework on the target demographic. Any game/app that makes users feel like it was made personally for them is doing something right.

 For those who discover the app on their own, the eCommerce touchpoints are simple and the experience is seamless. Their web store page in Safari isn’t a terrible experience, but this definitely counts as a missed & easy opportunity to optimize for mobile web.

The graphics and in-game instructions are beautiful - clean, clear, dead simple. My (not so) inner geek rejoices at the brilliant use of the game board to provide the perfect frame of reference for AR-style image recognition. Scoring is based on accuracy of your build against the picture they provide, as well as the time it took you to build it.

There’s a neat feature where you can add your own builds to the app. Cool upgrade: turn this into a global gallery where you can play other users’ LEGO creations.

What it’s really missing is a group play feature. There’s a simple two player versus mode, but like other board games could easily be played in a larger group. A cool upgrade to the versus mode would be a “build-off” mode that uses multiple devices networked via bluetooth, with everyone racing to build the target picture simultaneously.

The icing on this cake would feature an animated augmented reality experience based on your build, similar to the Digital Box. If you haven’t tried it for yourself, go to your nearest LEGO Store and try it. The various videos (1, 2, 3) don’t do justice to the experience. If you can lift the hefty box, check out the Super Star Destroyer - it’s like watching a LEGO Star Wars vignette.

Life of George is wicked, addictive fun and would definitely recommend it as a Holiday present for the technophile geek in your life. Since I’ve already got my copy, I’m holding out for the 3800-piece LEGO Death Star. #presentideasforJP

[infographic] A History of App Stores