The magazine subscription application design adopted by Milk Street Magazine suggests that the primary persona (if there was one) was the magazine billing department, not the subscriber. Marketing implicated as well in this case study.

The scenario: I subscribed to Milk Street magazine in March after buying a copy of the print magazine. I followed instructions on the “subscribe” card in the magazine.

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Design that occurs in a vacuum is usually called “art.”

Design that has its goal the desire to help users solve problems does not happen in a vacuum. We need to learn how to give (and receive) feedback from peers, clients and bosses.

Whether you aspire to the manager track or want to be a productive member of a design team, you’ll need to get comfortable giving feedback. The rules for providing effective feedback for a design parallel those for giving feedback on employee performance.

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