Richard MacManus of Read/Write Web checks in from the incredible-looking Webstock 2006 Conference in Wellington, New Zealand. His favorite event yesterday was Joel Spolsky’s talk on Blue Chip Products and how the best products in a particular category (the iPod, the Aeron chair) can so completely clobber their competition in a industry.
And here, of course, we’re talking about design. Mr. Spolsky concludes that “the world is monumentally superficial,” and proposes a simple, three part formula for great products: make people happy, think about emotions, and obsess over aesthetics. Remember those three next time you build something online, and you’re likely to be a winner in your category.
Note that Spolsky’s talk is based on an article on his site, if you’d like to read more.
