Simple is Best

Just to illustrate, think of all the things you can do with today's cell phones. But would you want to?

A recent survey reveals that the majority of subscribers in the U.K. aren't using the added goodies on a cell phone.

60 Percent -- Say they use their cell phones strictly to send and receive calls and are not interested in using the extra services that are available.

18 Percent -- Say they don't want to go through the user manual to learn how to use applications.

30 Percent -- Say they use the camera feature to snap and send pictures to family members and friends.

12 Percent -- Say they access the Internet or send e-mails via their cell phones.

3 Percent -- Say they use the street navigation service.

1 Percent -- Say they blog from their cell phones.

Source: SNAPin Software survey of 1,961 U.K. cell-phone subscribers.

So, what's the lesson? In an increasingly complex world full of complicated gadgets users are just not that interested in features that take a big effort to learn. Even a small effort can be too much. Anything we can simplify will be more successful. Features which are self-evident and require minimal learning will be those most-adopted by today's users. Simple is best!