6.1 Introduction

Could user-centered design have saved us from the dot-com crash? Probably not. The dot-com crash resulted from a complex relationship of many contributing factors. Poor customer experiences contributed to the eventual decline of many dot-com companies, but they were not the sole reason. Many of the dot-com companies had the perfect solution to a problem that did not exist or for a market where no customers existed. The abundance of venture capital, the rush to bring products to market, and the focus on building wealth these were bad situations that allowed startups to spend and grow rather than to "learn to execute properly, listen to their customers and build their businesses" (Perkins and Perkins, 2001, p. 83). The usability of many products and services provided by dot-com firms could be questioned, but it was only one of the factors that contributed to the eventual downfall of so many. Building a business that can operate profitably is the goal for any successful venture; it lessens or eliminates the need for further use of investment cash (Gurley, 2003). To do this, startups need to build products and services that their customers will buy and use. The quantity of purchase orders for the products eventually determines whether the company will be successful (Bell, 1991). Donoghue (2002) posits that the ultimate success measures for the user experience will be financial. For many startups these financial measures may be irrelevant early in their corporate development. Startups and investors...