Andy Thorne's Linkedin Analytics

Most companies write their mission once and bury it. We put ours where we can’t ignore it. On the wall (just by the studio door). Make it easier. For users. For clients. For ourselves. This isn’t just a poster. It’s a challenge. Every. Single. Day. "In everything we do, we have one mission: Make it easier. In your pursuit of making things easier, we challenge you to: Make it easier For users to complete their tasks, so their day-to-day runs smoothly. Make it easier For clients to reach their goals by crafting seamless journeys that convert. Make it easier For us by embracing curiosity, a can-do attitude, ownership, and big picture thinking. Because how we work shapes what we create. From driving traffic to creating effortless user experiences, our work ripples outward. Every click should count. Every experience should be seamless. Every project should make a difference. This is what we do. This is Factory Pattern. Let’s make it easier. "

🌊 You can’t control the sea, but you can learn to surf the waves. This post-it—and my surfboard—live in my office. It’s my quick reset when things feel out of control. Deadlines move. Projects shift. Chaos happens. Instead of resisting the waves, I remind myself to ride them. Adapt. Adjust. Keep going. The best work doesn’t come from perfect conditions—it comes from how we navigate the unpredictable. And, note to self: I should actually surf more.

🧠 Is your mind being influenced? Every click. Every scroll. Every hesitation. Great websites don’t just look good—they guide your decisions without you even realizing it. Here’s how they do it: Tapping into cognitive biases (so choices feel effortless) Triggering emotions (to build trust & engagement) Navigating decision patterns (reducing friction & hesitation) Grabbing attention (at the right moments) Leveraging habits (so actions feel intuitive) This isn’t manipulation. (It sort of is.) 🔥 Want to make your website more persuasive? Try this Amazon trick: 💡 Scarcity & urgency drive action. Amazon masters this with tactics like: 🔹 “Only 2 left in stock” – creating FOMO. 🔹 “Order within 2 hours for next-day delivery” – triggering urgency. 🔹 Lightning Deals – making decisions feel time-sensitive. When users feel like they might miss out, they act faster. The best websites don’t just exist—they influence, engage, and convert effortlessly.

Easyplant Nailed Website Conversions—in Just 4 Words 🌱 👉 Our plants water themselves. That’s it. That’s the message. And it’s perfect. 🚀 𝟭-𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗨𝗫 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁: 𝗘𝗮𝘀𝘆𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝘁 ✅ Solves a real pain point – No more dead plants. ✅ Instantly clear – No thinking required. ✅ Flips hesitation into action – If plants water themselves, anyone can keep them alive. That’s the power of great UX messaging. One tiny shift in words = a massive shift in customer behaviour. 𝟭-𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆? If your value proposition doesn’t immediately solve a problem, it’s too complicated.

Cracking the Code: UI vs. UX vs. CX 🌟🔍 In design lingo, we often hear UI, UX, and CX. While related, each distinctively impacts a product or service's experience. Let's dive in: 1️⃣ User Interface (UI) - What is it: The digital face of a product; buttons, icons, layouts. - Focus: Aesthetic pleasure and brand alignment. - Goal: Craft an intuitive and visually captivating interaction. 2️⃣ User Experience (UX) - What is it? The journey a user embarks on with a product, covering usability and satisfaction. - Focus: Seamless traversal of user hurdles for smooth sailing. - Goal: Delight, ease, and add value to each interaction. 3️⃣ Customer Experience (CX) - What is it? Your customer's adventure with your brand—from discovery to closing. - Focus: Capturing hearts and minds at every interaction online and offline. - Goal: Fulfil and surpass expectations for loyalty nirvana. ✨ In short: UI crafts beauty, UX sculpts ease, and CX paves the road to loyalty. Master them, deliver better experiences!

If your headline is doing all the work... you’re doing it wrong. I ran a 1-second UX audit on Taplio’s homepage. The headline? Strong. Clear, focused, and exactly what creators want to hear. But the details that close the deal? They’re whispering when they should be shouting. 🧠 𝟭-𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗨𝗫 𝗔𝘂𝗱𝗶𝘁: 𝗧𝗮𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗼 ✅ Clear outcome – Growth on LinkedIn? Yes please. ✅ Action-led – “Write the posts you need” speaks directly to creators. ❌ How it works? Tucked away in small pill-shaped labels below the hero line. 🔍 The 3 things that actually sell it—AI suggestions, scheduling, analytics—don’t get the attention they deserve. 𝟭-𝘀𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆: Your headline tells the goal. Your supporting copy shows the way. But if no one sees it, it might as well not be there. 💡 𝗧𝗶𝗽: Give your key benefits the same visual weight as your headline. That’s how clarity and conversions grow.

Ever wonder why your customers keep getting distracted? It’s not bad design. It’s biology. And it’s happening up to four times a second. 😳 According to research from Princeton and UC Berkeley, our brains naturally flicker between short bursts of focus and scanning for distractions— 4 times per second. We unconsciously pause and scan the environment to see whether there is something outside our primary focus of attention that may be more important. That was great when we needed to spot a predator mid-blackberry snack. But today? It means your customers are hardwired to lose attention - even in the middle of buying something. 🧠 So if your website, landing page, or product isn’t designed for that reality... They miss your headline. They skim your CTA. They bounce before they convert. Instead of blaming your customers for "not paying attention," design with it in mind: ✅ Remove competing visual noise ✅ Focus each screen on one clear goal ✅ Design for scanning, not reading ✅ Make your value prop obvious at a glance The best digital experiences aren’t beautiful. They work with the brain - not against it. Image credit: Art by Daehyun Kim

🛒 Ever clicked “Buy Now” too quickly... then regretted it? You're not alone—and your customers are doing it too. I once worked with an eCom brand getting a flood of refund requests. Why? Customers were rushing through checkout, missing key info, and having buyer’s remorse before the package even left the warehouse. So we broke the “UX rules.” We added friction—deliberately. 🧠 A review step. Just a simple “Are you sure?” moment with delivery info, product summary, and a little nudge to double-check. The result? 📉 Refund requests dropped by 18%. 📈 Checkout completion rate stayed the same. Sometimes the best UX isn’t about speed. It’s about confidence. Deliberate friction builds trust. And trust builds better conversions.

If you’ve ever felt stuck, this visual will shift your perspective. We design / do things for for people every day. But how often do we design our own lives? This visual hit me hard. It’s called A 90-Year Human Life in Weeks. Each tiny square = one week. Each row = one year. The whole grid = your entire life, assuming you make it to 90. That’s 4,680 little boxes. Most of us have already coloured in a fair chunk. But here’s what gets me: Every hero, mentor, and creative mind you admire? They worked with the same grid. Same number of boxes. Same ticking clock. This chart doesn’t just give perspective—it gives permission. Permission to start again—because next week = a fresh box. Permission to create boldly with whatever time remains. I talk about UX frameworks all the time. This might be the most powerful one I’ve ever seen. So what will you do with this week’s box? Let me know 👇 And I’ll tell you mine. P.S. Also, this from Tim Urban, the original author. “We tend to feel locked into whatever life we’re living, but this pallet of empty boxes can be absolutely whatever we want it to be. Everyone you know, everyone you admire, every hero in history—they did it all with that same grid of empty boxes. The boxes can also be a reminder that life is forgiving. No matter what happens each week, you get a new fresh box to work with the next week.”

First UX, now AX (Agent Experience). "Too many companies are focusing on adding shallow AI features all over their products or building yet another AI agent. The real breakthrough will be thinking about how your customers’ favourite agents can help them derive more value from your product. This requires thinking deeply about agents as a persona your team is building and developing for."

I thought I’d never say this... But I’m back in love with Google Analytics. Not for a report. Not for a new dashboard. But because they brought back something we all needed: 📝 Comments... Yes, wonderful, helpful Comments! I filmed a little love letter to celebrate. Because if you know, you know. GA4, you’ve been forgiven ❤️.

There’s a huge difference between assuming what customers want—and actually uncovering what they need. Here’s how we break it down to get to the truth fast 👇 🔍 Jobs, Pains, and Gains — Our Go-To Framework We use a trio to understand what users actually need from your product, site, or service: 📌 Jobs – What your customer is trying to get done 📌 Pains – What gets in their way 📌 Gains – What success looks like to them These three insights guide everything—from strategy and copy to design decisions. Grab the exact templates we use: Jobs Pains Gains ✍️ How We Do It We start by writing each need or challenge on a sticky note. To keep it real, we phrase every note like this: “I want to...” That way, we make sure we’re solving problems people actually have, not just ticking off feature requests. 🧠 Trigger Questions We Use in Every Project Jobs What’s the task they need to get done? What’s the bigger goal they care about? What’s frustrating about the current way they do it? Pains What’s slowing them down? Where are they getting stuck? What risks or fears are at play? Gains What would make this feel like a win? What would save them time, money, or effort? What would surprise and delight them? 🎯 The result? Clear priorities, better briefs, and a team that’s solving the right problems. 📥 Want our sticky note template + process? Just drop the word "need" in the comments and I’ll send over the exact template we use to define Jobs, Pains, and Gains—plus a simple process to run it with your team. We use it daily. You'll wonder how you ever mapped user needs without it.

One of my favourite things? Hiring. It’s a sign of growth. Of building something that matters - with people who make it better every day. Right now, we’re on the lookout for a Project Manager to join us at Factory Pattern. Someone who loves to keep things moving, who thrives on teamwork, and who knows how to turn plans into progress. You’ll be working alongside a brilliant team (lucky you), helping us deliver high-impact digital projects—from websites to CRO and beyond. 📍 Based in Cheltenham 💻 Hybrid working 💼 £30–38k salary 🙌 A chance to really make your mark Know someone who’d be a perfect fit? Tag them below 👇 or DM me.

Most people think success comes from big leaps. But here’s the twist... It's the tiny, relentless steps that truly create waves. The Japanese nailed it with Kaizen (改善)—a philosophy of continuous improvement. Think of it as your secret weapon for greatness. No need to: 🚀 Roll out a colossal project today. 📈 Nail the perfect strategy by sunrise. ⚡️ Solve all problems with a single stroke. Instead, why not: ✅ Enhance something by just 1% today. ✅ Implement one small tweak that snowballs into big gains. ✅ Maintain your consistency, even when progress seems elusive. 💡 Those big victories? They’re just small, deliberate actions multiplied over time. Fast forward a year—what will you be proud to have consistently nurtured? 👇 Drop your thoughts below!

Why You Need to Rethink 'Best Practices' in UX Design 🚫✨ We've all heard it before: It's just best practice. But have you ever stopped to consider whether these so-called best practices truly serve your eCommerce goals? As someone who navigates the world of UX audits and conversion optimisation, I've found that blindly following trends can sometimes lead us astray. Let's talk about the eCommerce giants. They've got resources we can only dream of, yet their solutions aren't one-size-fits-all. They conduct constant usability testing, iterate based on data, and aren't afraid to break from convention when it boosts conversion rates. Your unique audience deserves this level of attention too! Embrace A/B testing as your secret weapon—what resonates with a global brand might not hit home with your customers. So here's my challenge for you: next time you're planning a design overhaul or tweak, pause before defaulting to 'best practices'. Ask yourself if they align with the problem you’re trying to solve, your goals and audience needs. Remember, authentic innovation often means stepping off the beaten path!

💭 What people think goes into making a website: 1️⃣ Design 2️⃣ Concept 3️⃣ Development 📊 What actually goes into building a high-performing website: Information Architecture Wireframing & Prototyping UX Research & Testing UI Design & Interaction Design Frontend Development Backend Development Database Structuring API Integrations Performance Optimization Accessibility Compliance Core Web Vitals Optimization Security Implementation Content Management System (CMS) Setup Hosting & Server Configuration Cross-Browser Testing Mobile & Responsive Design Page Speed Optimization Schema Markup & Structured Data Technical SEO Implementation Analytics & Event Tracking Setup A/B Testing & Experimentation Error Handling & Debugging Deployment & Version Control Ongoing Maintenance & Updates ...and the list goes on. ♻️ Share if you agree!

Confession: For the first 16 years of my career, I thought I’d nailed web design. Clean layout? Check. On-brand colours? Yep. Pixel-perfect visuals? Always. But then I realised... humans had to use it. And that’s when the real learning began. Imagine if I were Mel Gibson in 'What W̶o̶m̶e̶n̶ Users Want' - hearing every user thought as they clicked, scrolled, and got stuck. 🎬 Queue movie trailer and deep gravelly voice... "In a world… full of friction, confusion, and tiny font sizes… One designer dares to ask the ultimate question: “What do users really want?” Coming this summer: Pop-ups they can’t escape Loading screens that never end Navigation menus lost in the Bermuda Triangle But just when all hope seems lost… They discover the power of empathy, research, and a well-placed CTA. 👂 They start listening. 🧠 They uncover real jobs, pains, and gains. 💡 They stop building what users say they want—and start creating what they actually need. 🎟️ WHAT USERS WANT Not just a movie. A movement. Rated ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ by happy customers everywhere. Coming soon to a screen near you—if we listen first, then design (i.e. do our job right). P.S. What Women Want is one of my favourite films. There, I said it. Let’s make websites that listen before they speak. P.P.S. I’m probably going to get done for copyright infringement by using this poster. ChatGPT did it, I was just the prompter.

I couldn’t believe it—one injury, one sausage machine, and now the UK's No.1 sausage brand. If you told me a Premiership rugby player would end up running the No.1 sausage brand in the UK, I wouldn’t have believed you. But that’s exactly what happened to Olly Kohn. A rugby injury put his career on pause, and instead of just waiting to recover, he threw himself into something new. His wife bought him a sausage-making machine, and suddenly, a small idea turned into something much bigger. We spent the day at Jolly Hog HQ , seeing firsthand how they went from a side project to supermarket shelves across the UK—and how they’ve never stopped evolving. 🥓 The Pigsty – Their pork-based restaurant isn’t just a business; it’s an experience and a brand ambassador. 🎪 Events & Festivals – The thing that first put them on the map took a back seat during COVID. Now? It’s stronger than ever. 🥖 Not Just Sausages – Pigs in blankets, sausage rolls, bacon—they keep launching new products because you never know which pot will take off. As Olly put it... "𝙔𝙤𝙪'𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙢𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙞𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙤𝙞𝙡, 𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙣 𝙮𝙤𝙪'𝙧𝙚 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙞𝙖𝙣𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙎𝙪𝙧𝙚, 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙨𝙛𝙪𝙡 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙢 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙗𝙤𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙞𝙛 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙚𝙨, 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙮 𝙤𝙣. 𝙄𝙩’𝙨 𝙖 𝙗𝙞𝙩 𝙡𝙞𝙠𝙚 𝙖 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙡—𝙗𝙚𝙘𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙬𝙚 𝙝𝙖𝙙 𝙢𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙞𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙜𝙨, 𝙞𝙩 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙠𝙚𝙙." That adaptability is what makes Jolly Hog more than just a sausage brand. They don’t just react to change—they embrace it. And that’s exactly what our team saw when we visited. Even with all their success, Olly and the team couldn’t have been more open, down-to-earth, and generous with their time. They shared the real story—not just the wins, but the tough calls, the risks, and the mindset behind building something that lasts. Hearing directly from Olly about how they navigated setbacks and how they never stand still. It was a masterclass in growth, resilience, and knowing when to pivot. And of course, we wrapped it up at The Pigsty with some of the best food I’ve had in ages. A massive thank you to Olly and the Jolly Hog team (The Jolly Hog | B Corp ) for the hospitality and the insights. Great people, great food, great lessons.