Be our guest!

Or why we don’t talk about users...

“Who do we think we are? Each one of us is a brain, and an athlete, and a basket case, a princess, and a criminal…”

Web site designers and software developers often use the most convenient definition: ‘user’. Josh Bernoff sparked a debate recently about the term ‘users’ and how he wants to think of people who use technology as ‘people’, ‘customers’, and ‘friends’ instead.

This debate has been especially interesting because I’ve always been a big fan of the word ‘guest’. Rather than thinking of anonymous users using the websites we deliver, or the applications we develop, I like to think of them as guests to that site or application. For some reason, the term ‘user’ makes me think that they’re somehow obligated to use the website or application, whereas a ‘guest’ is under no such obligation: if the experience doesn’t meet their expectations then they’re free to leave. That subtle change of emphasis makes you remember that the whole guest-experience (not the user-experience) is of critical importance.

Those who know me won’t be surprised to learn that there is a Disney connection here: language is very important at Disney, and there is a very specific vocabulary. “Be Our Guest. Perfecting the art of customer service.” has this to say: “At first glance, the language may seem contrived and largely inconsequential. But words create images and corresponding assumptions in people’s minds. Take the word ‘guest’. An unhappy guest and an unhappy consumer are likely to create two different images in an employee’s mind. Guests are welcome; consumers are statistics. If someone is your guest, don’t you feel a greater obligation to ensure his or her happiness? ... How we talk about work does make a difference.”

So, how would you prefer to be treated: as a user, or as a guest?