I’ve submitted two really fun sessions for SXSW 2015. The first, It’s Time To Design Better Smartwatch Interfaces, will share the results of a wearables research study that I’m collaborating on with the talented folks at AnswerLab. The second, How Kids Changed The Way We Design For Adults, is based on the amazing design work done by my friends at Doberman.

Sound good? I hope so. Because we need your help! Please be a lamb and take two minutes to vote for these sessions. It’s quick and easy:

1. Sign up for the SXSW PanelPicker if you haven’t already.
2. Visit the two session proposal pages: It’s Time To Design Better Smartwatch Interfaces and How Kids Changed The Way We Design For Adults.
3. Click the “thumbs up” icon to cast your vote.

That’s it! Thanks a million for you vote. And if you’d like to know more about what we’ll cover in these two sessions, please read on…

It’s Time to Design Better Smartwatch Interfaces

Established electronics players like Samsung, Sony, LG, and Motorola have already introduced smartwatches. Upstarts like Pebble, Martian, and many others are nipping at their heels. And of course, the long anticipated Apple iWatch will make its debut (we hope) in late 2014.

With broader penetration right around the corner, it’s time for businesses to develop strategies that embrace the smartwatch market. In this session, we’ll discuss the design considerations that will support those strategies — and help brands develop content and functionality that’s appropriate for this soon-to-be-standard form factor.

We’ll present hot-off-the-press research findings from in-depth user testing with a variety of smartwatches and smartwatch apps. We’ll reveal insights about how people consume content on smartwatches; best practices for design considerations like input, navigation, screen layout, and typography; and ideas about how physical design and aesthetics affect smartwatch desirability.

How Kids Changed The Way We Design for Adults

Kids don’t have patience for user experience research. They don’t care what your marketing team wants, and they won’t make an effort to please your developers. They’re not loyal to your brand. And, of course, the youngest among them can’t even read.

But rather than thinking that kids are clueless, we need to view them as a clue to designing better digital products and services for people of all ages. After all, don’t your users sound a lot like the description above? Adults are also impatient, uncooperative, unloyal, and can — but won’t — read information on a screen!

By adapting your research and design processes to align with the preferences, cognitive abilities, social skills, and attention spans of kids — you’ll be better armed to create innovative, intuitive, and delightful products and services for adults.

This session will show you how to evolve your methodologies and take advantage of an emerging set of digital design principles inspired by today’s youngest users.