A few weeks ago, Slice of Lime was invited to speak at the TechStars-powered Nike+ Accelerator in Portland, Oregon. The accelerator’s purpose is “to allow companies to leverage the Nike+ platform, and NikeFuel, to build offerings that inspire and assist people to live more active, healthy lifestyles.”

We held office hours with the teams and gave a presentation on “Lean UX”, stressing that user experience can be done quickly and effectively without investing a lot of time and money. In fact, it could be done for free within one day’s time.

In the Nike+ Accelerator, ten startups receive $20,000 to build an application over a three-month period. With a tight schedule, and a relatively small budget, each startup needs to iterate quickly and be willing to pivot when necessary (which is often). For many startups this is easier said than done. It’s hard to get through a large queue of ideas quickly while also allowing for customer feedback.

At Slice of Lime we don’t start a project without knowing how we will be getting feedback and validation on our work. We use a variety of tools to get feedback from our client’s users. We typically start by sharing our own internal sketches, move to high-fidelity wireframes, and eventually show designs and functioning code.

As an early-stage or pre-funded startup, working with a UX Design agency may not be in the budget. And that’s OK! It’s still possible to integrate a smart user experience into your workflow.

To demonstrate this, we came up with our own Nike+ Accelerator startup, and used it as a case-study.

Enter “Gut Check,” a conceptual iOS app based on the Nike+ API. The idea is simple: after checking in to one of Portland’s many great breweries (Foursquare, Facebook), Gut Check prompts the user to enter how many beers they’ve consumed, then calculates an activity that will burn off those extra (delicious) calories. Once the activity is complete, some clever calculations are done, letting the user know if they have kept off the beer gut.

How long did it take us to develop a basic idea like this, sketch out a few prototypes, AND get user feedback? Five hours. That’s right. Less than a day’s worth of work.

The only bit of technology we used is POP App (free on the Apple App store). A couple pieces of paper and some pens and we were on our way! Here’s how it works:

1. Sketch out the idea on paper.
2. Snap a photo of the paper using the POP App.
3. Add some tappable areas and link them to other “pages.”
4. Grab someone to test on.
5. Push play!

It’s pretty simple, and was actually quite fun. The best part about this approach to an idea is the ability to rapidly iterate and adjust based on feedback. A tester doesn’t like one of the navigation labels? Change it, and test again.

Here’s some video of one of our test sessions below.

A few things to keep in mind:

1. Get feedback, and get it early.
2. Don’t worry about making the sketches perfect. They are going to change.
3. Have fun!

We’ve also opened up the RSVP for the May 30 webinar, Controlling the Pace of UX with Content Strategy. All of our events can be found on our events page.

We’re excited to announce that Slice of Lime now has a Denver office! As of December of 2012, we’ve added six desks within the new Galvanize co-working space. What’s a co-working space, you ask? Here’s a description from Galvanize:

Galvanize creates an “innovation ecosystem” designed to give entrepreneurs and innovators the best chance of success at the start of their next (or first) big thing. Through the three pillars of Capital, Community, and Curriculum, Galvanize builds a community greater than the sum of its parts to spark disruptive ideas and breakout companies.

This is a perfect environment for Slice of Lime. We love working with startups and have a lot we can offer the Galvanize community with our expertise in marketing websites and UX/UI for web apps and mobile apps. Additionally, Galvanize has become a hub of activity for all business activities, from startups to enterprises, in Denver.

We have already integrated ourselves into the culture in a variety of ways:

1. We’ve been helping build out the gSchool website, which is a school within Galvanize that teaches Ruby on Rails, User Experience, and Mobile classes.
2. We sponsored and built the website for Starter House. This was Galvanize’s presence at SXSW which served as a hub for innovators to meet, recharge, and celebrate.
3. We’ve begun a live UX webinar series, open to the public, within the Galvanize space. The schedule of those events can be found here.
4. We host UX office hours at Galvanize for people to get quick advice on their work in progress.

We’ll continue to find ways to give back to the community and to get to know our neighbors in Denver.

Our headquarters are still in downtown Boulder and we feel that Denver is a great place for us to expand. As a sponsor of the inaugural Denver Startup Week last year, it’s clear to us that Denver has “arrived” as an attractive place to build a startup. With companies like Slice of Lime and other vendors, mentors, and co-working spaces, it’s now easier than ever to get the support you need to launch your business.

Want to come chat or see the space in Denver? You’re in luck! Galvanize houses a fantastic cafe, restaurant, and bar called Gather that’s open to the public. Reach out and we’ll setup a time to meet. Gourmet coffee is on us!

11:30am-1:00pm (MST): Webinar
1:00pm-2:00pm: Discussion and debate for those who can stay longer.

Register now through Eventbrite
Seating is limited to 25

Location:
Galvanize
1062 Delaware St
Denver Colorado 80204
United States

Note: Slice of Lime will host other UIE webinars so if you can’t make this one, we’ll see you next month. Thursday March 28th we’ll be hosting Using Comics to Communicate Your Ideas.

Building trust with a friend, girlfriend or boyfriend, sister, or a customer isn’t a one time event. It’s something that takes place over the life of a relationship. It’s integrated into everything we do and say. It’s setting realistic expectations and meeting or exceeding them. It’s delivering on those expectations, whether personal or professional. It’s real, it’s powerful, and it comes from knowing yourself and your service or product.

When building trust with your customers, don’t be afraid to write like a real person. Don’t be afraid to use words and phrases real people would use and don’t worry if they’re not sexy. They’re not sexy because they’re used all the time. If they’re used all the time, you can bet your customer is using them and that’s great for SEO and AdWords.

Don’t be afraid to ask your Mom. Give your content the Mom test: “If you sound like a tool saying it to your Mom, you probably sound like a tool.” Don’t try to be fancy. Use real words and phrases you would normally use talking to a friend. Or your Mom. It’s a conversation – treat it as such.

There’s a wealth of data on the interwebs to find out how people are talking about you, your products, or your service. Google’s Keyword tool is a great place to start along with Facebook, Twitter, Google analytics, and asking people how they talk about you product or service. If you don’t or can’t find what you’re looking for, hire a UXer to test, survey, interview, and ask for you.

You can check out our events page for other great educational experiences.