As software goes, how important is a user’s first impression? Especially an unfavorable one? I don’t think they are very important at all. We shouldn’t let them instantly curtail our motivation.

No doubt, bad first impressions may be a sign that something really is wrong with our software. But there are two things I’ve learned that account for many bad first impressions.

Bad First Impressions Can Come from Unfamiliarity

Sometimes bad first impressions come from simply not having used the software before. We should really take these types of impressions with a grain of salt. For instance, the first time I used Gmail, I thought to myself:

These emails, they’re like mini-forums. They’re like threads of discussion...not email. Interesting. Strange. Do I like it? No. Yes. I don’t know...maybe?

Gmail email threads were initially a strange concept. I heard many people rave about it, but I heard an equal number rip it to shreds. Fast-forward a few months later. I stopped hearing about it altogether. Here’s a more typical conversation you might have with someone who uses Gmail today:

Male in red cap:

Hey dude, do you use Gmail?

Male in blue cap:

Yeah.

Male in red cap:

What do you think?

Male in blue cap:

It’s fine. Lately it’s been slow. Anyway, let’s go grab some beers!

It turns out that both types of email systems work for me, for these two fine gentlemen above, and for the vast majority of the world. After a while, we stopped obsessing over it. In fact, today, I use both Outlook and Gmail. I also know lots of others who use both a non-Gmail email client and Gmail. When I use Outlook, I expect normal, old-school email. When I use Gmail, I expect “special forum-like mail madness.” In the end, I’m comfortable with both.

I’ll admit it. It takes some guts to try to redefine paradigms as firmly implanted in society as email. In our line of work, fortunately, the stakes are a lot smaller. Radio buttons or drop-down list? Search box on every page or just some pages? The likely answer? Yes. Yes. Yes. And yes. In the end, when we are accustomed to seeing the same software over and over, there’s a good chance we’ll get comfortable with whatever design decisions we first had a problem with.

I hear the naysayers knocking loudly. Am I really saying that users should conform to software, instead of the other way around? Am I really suggesting that our initial reactions to software are not important? Is this coming from the same guy who helped bring you Flash Application Design Solutions: The Flash Usability Handbook [CB06]? Yes it is!

I’m not saying that first impressions carry no weight. But those initial impulse reactions we have to something we see for the very first time are often just reactions to the unfamiliar. We’re naturally daunted by something new. Yet, too often, as developers, we take those initial user reactions too seriously.

Bad First Impressions Aren’t Always Based on What’s Important

Here’s the other problem: sometimes bad first impressions are not indicative of what’s really important.

If Google just opened shop and I was a usability tester, here’s what my first impressions might be:

• The “Google Search” button should flip with “I’m Feeling Lucky” because I’m used to clicking the rightmost button when I submit information, and I’m usually going to search for something real rather than press my luck.

• I don’t get what “I’m Feeling Lucky” is actually going to do. That’s confusing. There should be instruction there as to what might happen when I click it.

• I had to go hunting for a while to find the advanced search option. Oh, and that advanced search page was hard to use.

• The navigation links at the bottom should be above the search bar, because that’s where I’m used to seeing navigation.

Ask me now, and I can refute most of my initial concerns. I’ve gotten used to the placement of the search button. After using the ”I’m Feeling Lucky“ button a couple times, I now know it just takes the first search off the list and sends you right there. The advanced search feature? I never use it anyway, so who cares if it’s not that easy to use? And ditto on those links at the bottom. I’m glad they’re underneath the search box instead of at the top.

First impressions are often skewed because we don’t really get how we’ll ultimately conform to the software. Initially, something we think might be important, like an advanced search option, ends up not being important at all. With something that’s a little off from what we’re accustomed to, like the order of the “Search” and “I’m Feeling Lucky” buttons, we simply get acclimated to after a short period of time.

So, when you’re confronted with negative feedback from your customers, clients, or co-workers, stick to your guns. Explain why you did the things you did. Ask them to let your work simmer for a few days. Don’t let that initial rush of feedback demotivate you.

If those problems still persist, then perhaps there really is a flaw in your application. But you’ll be surprised how many of those initial negative impressions often just fade away.