Disable Features or Remove Them…
I received an email from a marketing manager at work today in response to a user interface layout that our team proposed yesterday:
The product marketing position is that the functions which are not licensed should be visible on the screen but greyed out. They should not be removed from the screen. The rationale is that the greyed-out text serves as a reminder/incentive to the user that these functions could be made available to the user.
My response:
I disagree with the suggested implementation.
Commercial software packages do not annoy people with unusable features unless they are part of an optional “upgrade” — like shareware enticing users to upgrade to a fully functioning version. The optional features take up half of the valuable screen real estate on the page; users will waste time trying to figure out what “modes” will make the features active. You will essentially frustrate the user by dangling the features in front of them or confuse them by showing them something they cannot use. The idea is to keep the user focused on available application features — not on unavailable, optional features. Including “teasers” is a fantastic way to frustrate users and make using the product an unenjoyable experience.
Customer Support also comes into play when the user cannot figure out how to use the disabled functionality since it looks like it is available. When you look at the added cost for customer service just to tell the user that they cannot use the functionality they can see, the scenario becomes less attractive.
Just as important, greying out these features breaks standard definitions. Disabled portions of the user interface are used to indicate functions that are not available due to a modal or user-configurable state. For example, in Microsoft Outlook, I do not have access to the font or style menus because I write emails in plain text; they are not greyed out because I’m using Outlook Express and I need to upgrade to Outlook 2003.
Why set the user’s frame of mind to be “Why doesn’t this feature work? I wonder what else doesn’t work” when we can set a more positive outlook by communicating the message to purchase great new features through documentation or a sales rep?
It’s nice to see that you’re on our (the consumer’s) side.
But then I remember just what this program you’re working on does.
Today, six days after I sent out the email above, half the marketing department was let go, including the person who sent me the original email…
Cause and effect? Last straw? Or tightening of the belt?
Fortunately, the new decision is to remove the licensing feature altogether. The appliance now will have all features enabled by default, eliminating my issue.