Imagine this:  you barely know how to type, you have macular degeneration (meaning you have a really hard time seeing), you’ve never turned a computer on before, and you’ve never used a mouse.  Yet, while my father knows little about computers or how to get around online, he was clued in enough to know about Dragon Naturally Speaking software.  His take:  if he could talk to the computer and it would type for him, his online experience would be much better.

After some thought, my sister and I decided upon an HP 23″ TouchSmart All-in-One computer.  We wanted something like an iPad but bigger.  We thought if he could touch it, it would be better than trying to type it.  It was a good call.  We set the monitor’s DPI at 300% and he can see all the icons, but even with Control+, the back button, home button, and menus remain proportionately too small.  (Some add-ons have helped with this.)

For Dragon – it’s great in concept, but not 100% there when it comes to working with and training the software.  For example, the training modules use a very small font size; with the screen set at a larger DPI, what’s showing on the screen is something my dad can read, but he can’t scroll to see what else is “on the page.”  Either way, we’re finding training to be harder than it should be.

Considering this company is aware that people might have vision problems who use their program (in training, they highlight this fact), why isn’t there a short quiz at the beginning of the set-up wizard asking about what the issues are (e.g., I just want to dictate more than type my emails and letters vs. I’m a slow reader due to dyslexia or nystagmus vs. I have visual issues that make reading and using a computer more difficult for me), and then take them to the type of training program which will work best for them?  Part of my frustration is that I don’t know this program, so I can’t teach him.

After a couple of days of training him on things like how to close a program (and what  a program is), how to use the mouse (because the touchscreen is great, but the mouse is still helpful), etc., we realized that he would benefit from a program that “talked to him” (e.g., read him web pages).  So we bought a program, Natural Reader, which despite installing twice, will not read aloud to him.  Customer support is only available via email.  They are slow in responding.  I’ve tried everything I know how, but I can’t get it to work.  So here’s a company that caters to people who want help with reading for one reason or another, and they only offer email support?  Clearly their business model got in the way of their customer service model!

Despite all this, my father was upbeat as I left yesterday.  After a successful search session, about a topic of interest to him, he said he’d “sensed the nectar of the fruit” the Internet could offer.  Hadn’t tasted it yet, mind you, but sensed the possibilities.  While he’s never been mechanically inclined, the gleam in his eye reminded me of when he’s learning a new game:  he loves games and if he approaches the Internet this way, as a game he can win, the web will be fun and fruitful, vs. frustrating.

Why is this relevant in a general sense?  Do you know if you have a special needs target?

• If you’re a restaurant who has a large older population, do you have a large-size print menu?
• If you’re a movie theater, do you have someone who can help seniors to their seats?
• If you’re a shopping mall, is there above-ground parking for people who see less well in low-lighting conditions?

It’s not just about vision; hearing, muscle strength/agility/dexterity, nutritional requirements – you name it, can impact people and, consequently, who your business can attract.  We call this “holistic usability.”  Maybe it doesn’t matter much now, but as the 76 million Baby Boomers continue to get older, this target segment is going to impact your business more and more.

Take a few minutes to read your customers’ comments, or – better yet – listen to them talk.  In conventional research, we’re always talking about what can be done to get consumers to overcome hurdles to buying your brand.  What happens if they’re dissatisfied with a category of products/services because no one thought to make one small change?  A small change with a big return?  That’s a pretty simple formula for increasing market share in these still-hard economic times!

However…it just so happens that several months back, my sister needed a new phone and I told her I’d been hearing great things about the Droid.  (As we’re on Verizon, iPhones aren’t an option for us – yet.)  They were running a two-for-one special; she got a Motorola and an HTC Eris.  She experimented with both and ended up with the Motorola because it had a better touch-screen for typing.

So, I got to play with the Eris.  Here’s my short-list summary:

I nearly bailed on the Droid when I couldn’t make a hands-free call when driving.  I compromised, only making a call when parked, but that’s not always viable.  Loved the other features, though.

What got me the most was the short battery life.  It was so bad, I called to ask for a replacement battery.  It was sent; no better.  I’d leave the house with the phone fully charged (green light) and within a couple of hours, it was dead.  I tried turning off the data connection, but then I couldn’t get email messages – which for me is the primary reason for having a Smartphone.

I was in the field this week doing shop-alongs.  I realized that if my phone was dead, no one could get ahold of me.  So it was bye-bye Droid and welcome back BlackBerry, at least for now.

Manufacturers need to know that Smartphones aren’t toys for many of us – they’re essential office equipment.  If it can do more, I’m delighted; but if the phone/email doesn’t have enough power to be on for at least 20 hours a day, I’m taking a step back to my tried-and-true BlackBerry until newer phones solve this primary problem.

For me, cool doesn’t trump utility.  Does that exclude me from their target audience?  I know I’m not alone (I heard Leo LaPorte  talking about this yesterday).  Maybe this is just an evolutionary step.

What type of field usability studies did Google/Droid do?  Extend the battery life, offer genuine hands-free (Bluetooth) voice dialing, and the ability to turn web-browsing off when not in use, and I’m back…because not-so secretly, I’d really prefer to be using a cool toy – I mean phone.

But think about it: while Amazon has broadened its scope on what it sells, have they moved to “Merchandising 2.0″or beyond?  In my view, they are no longer leading.

Just for starters, why can’t I…

View the “back of the book”?  I want to read the book description (better than the publisher’s version), see which authors/publications have written a blurb on the book recommending it, and read the author bio.

Be notified when an author I like is going to publish a new book?  Even on the Amazon site itself, one doesn’t have this feature.

See all the books that the magazines are touting as great reads for the month?  Real Simple had a summer book section in its June issue.  When I read it in May, nearly 3/4 of all their recommended new books weren’t available on Amazon.  This happens to me a lot.  If a magazine or publication is going to help sell books through recommendations, shouldn’t Amazon be savvy enough to take advantage of it?