Many people in technology field want to help others using their skills. However, building a digital product which solves the issues of the society is much tough than it sounds. Many launches have been organized but failed. Let’s know the reasons why this experience is so common and how to avoid it.
Since the last century, technology is impacting our lives in many ways and because it is responsible for improving so many things, people view it as a solution for every issue. Though, it doesn’t always make things better. People should choose to use them as it can help.
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Effects which take over the social media are the perfect example. When they catch on and become a habit, people gain wide reach. Twitter and Facebook are the most popular platforms where people can easily share ideas with friends and other people. Many networks fail to save their users from negative experiences.
Facebook and
Twitter are famous for allowing hate speech and harassment, despite reports being done constantly.
As social media is a useful way to highlight social issues and spur a conversation, however, it can’t change society by itself. We need to modify the way of thinking towards technology. It has to be less idealistic.
Technology is great, given that the skill set is limited; it is how the work gets done for humans. There is always more to learn. Before beginning any project, acknowledge and keep aside all your biases. It will only harm you in the long term.
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Locate target audience through data found in books and studies. If that doesn’t yield any results, go for empirical research. Through social media connections and shares, a Google results can be garnered quickly.
Question your guts every time. Explore on who, why, when, where and what and that will define the how. Look beyond your skill set.
Interact with your customers and audiences quite often. Observe how they think. Come up with those who interact with your audience like constant community organizations which will help you look your project more relevant.
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- Consider Negative Situations
Bad things happen all the time so don’t label them as edge cases. Consider all kinds of situations. Create reserves for the ones where things can go worse than you’d like.
Social change takes time. Things won’t change overnight. Issues like sexism, classism, racism and generations still exist. Technology requires people to work. Make sure that your work is taking right direction, only then socially impactful designs can be created.
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