Resources that will make you better at UX design

User experience design is the most talked-about and most-searched-for profession these days in India. UX Design has evolved into one hyper-growth industry. It is a requisite now, that people who have a wide range of skills generally do better in this field. One day the designers will be doing user research - interviewing customers, stakeholders, setting up brand voice, analyzing user insights, and the next day they’ll be white-boarding, designing interfaces. At some point they’ll be preparing the A and the B variations to test, busy rethinking how to focus time and increase productivity without compromising on the output.

Skills and expertise are bound together. Specialization implies mastery, and being an adaptable designer who seamlessly enters myriad spaces, roles and efficiently solves problems. Broadly, the design industry asks for versatility from its youngsters.

So, how does a designer prep for these industry demands and ride through these waves of change triumphant? To answer this question, we are enlisting a few resources that you will require to equip yourself with the required knowledge, skills and thinking.

1. Develop Design Mindset:

Deeply, relentlessly ambitious. Eternally inquisitive. These are some of the fundamental mindsets of a designer. Learn to ask the right questions. Be observant of the patterns in business and cultures. Equip yourself with this mindset so that you can ask the question, “Does this call to action button support or contradict what I am trying to communicate to the user?” And the answers will direct you to refine and improve the design; the little things that often go unnoticed, that ultimately enhance the user experience.

2. Books & Publications:

The UX industry may not be that old but, there are one too many publications and good books to read about available in the market. Read lots of content with special focus on design standards and best practices. Reading blogs, books, methods, watching informative videosof tools to keep updated about what’s happening in user experience design proves incredibly helpful.

3. UX Design Courses:

There are a lot of design practitioners and institutes that offer courses dedicated to UX design  in the form of practical tips, useful guidelines, best practices and case studies. A lot of these forums/ websites provide treasures of information on interaction design where you can learn directly from industry experts. Up-skilling is the norm these days. This is a good way to do just that.

4. Learning from the Heroes:

There are so many modern-day bigwigs and leaders we look up to. Veteran user experience mentors are offering collective ‘evidence-based’ research, opinions and interviews online these days. It is very easy to follow their thoughts and teachings these days. Learning from them, does add value whether you are just beginning or working towards taking your career to the next level.

5. Self-education:

There are many people who prefer learning new skills when working. R&d for better ways to accomplish tasks at hand, getting to know a new software or even how to follow certain methodologies. All of this content is available online where, sections like freebies, tutorialsare a resourceful collection of e-books and design kits!

6. Design Inspiration and Criticism:

There are also certain platforms where one can upload their work, get feedback, also comment and appreciate other people’s work. It is very important for designers to be in a clear and inspired state of mind. Inspiration can be found on many popular websites.

7. Psychology:

Emotions shape all our activities in adaptive ways. In the absence of psychological insights, decision making is virtually impossible to design for users. Understanding the importance of psychology in design is highly important. Persuading users through design can improve user experience. Understanding psychological triggers, the behavior of users is crucial in order to better engage them.

8. Design Projects on Personal Time:

Working on personal design projects other than the regular work, is an adventure in itself to know yourself and the world around you better. It challenges out-of-the-box thinking. Works wonders for the creative soul definitely increases your confidence levels and instills a pure problem-solving attitude.

9. UX Writing as a Design Strategy:

One of the primary goals of any good designer is communicating the intended message. The one that leads to a positive user experience. Be it talking the stakeholders in signing-off your designs. A designer communicates through UX writing, the color of text, the alignment of form labels are all part of this communication. Being able to guide the user through the obstacles they’re facing without being too noticeable and providing a positive experience through the written word is important.

10. Drawing parallels:

Crafting human-centered experiences are by nature of shared experiences. Engaging with users leads you to understand their authentic experiences. Similarly, interacting with people, in general, garners a similar effect. The more you interact with people, learn from their experiences, the more equipped you will be in terms of dealing with unsatisfied users, negative insights about designs and overall client relationship management. Also, drawing parallels from relevant industries benefits you as a designer, in many ways.

Explaining UX Design to a lay person – A designer’s guide

Every UX designer knows the joys and frustrations of explaining what she or he does to people who do not have a background to UX Design. And there can be as many number of ways as there are designers, each with its own track record of success and failure in articulation.

Having been through it again and again, with family members, friends and people in social gatherings, I have managed to identify a couple of best practices in explaining the meaning of UX Design to lay persons.

Don’t be in a hurry: Just as it is with the design process, take your time to empathize with the curiosity of your audience and get an estimate of the levels of curiosity. This will give you a good idea of how much information to share and how to pace your articulation.

Ascertain the audience’s exposure to designed products: Ask questions to know whether or not your audience has used designed products before. And if they have, what kind of products they have used – digital or physical. Find out what they have loved using and what they have disliked or have not felt strongly about at all.

Describe the outcomes of good and bad UX Design: Take examples from everyday life, such as the TV remote menu, bread toaster, overhead projector etc. to describe UX design thought and effort that might have gone behind those products. Be sparring in sharing the process of research, personas, wireframes, prototyping, etc.

Refrain from sharing a definition: Definitions of UX, by their very construct and bias towards accuracy and inclusion, tend to be technical. It is safe to assume that a lay person will find definitions off-putting.

Compare with other fields of endeavor that the audience understands: Art or engineering or programming are fields people generally understand – draw parallels and differences between these fields and UX Design.

Full article is originally shared on – YUJ Designs

Focus Groups is a good technique according to a top UX company

The principal the differentiator of a UX design company is that user preferences have a say in this category. The designer tweaks his designs based on customer preferences. This usually results in an overall better design. There are different ways using which you can judge customer preferences e.g.- the user interviews and contextual inquiries. In this article, we shall focus on a different kind of procedure to gauge customer preferences like focus groups. Top UX design studios use this method to get a better understanding of customer preferences. Let us look at the finer aspects of this method.

A designer’s bias

A designer has a particular view in mind while creating the designs. He does his best to look at the designs from different angles. However, certain angles do remain unexplored. The logic that one cannot check his or her own work comes to the forefront. Hence, it is always better to have an outsider/ independent point of view.

It’s all about the perspective

When you conduct customer interviews you get to understand her/ his views, opinions, journey and the struggle. Similarly, you are able to gauge customer preferences in the contextual inquiry as you are able to watch her/ his reactions to the problems under different circumstances. This gives you an idea of the user behavior the pattern in turn leading to understanding the changes required to project design. You can simulate a similar atmosphere in a closed room as well. This concept is known as the Focus Groups concept. Let us see how this concept works.


Focus Groups:

Leverage the power of group discussions

In this concept you have different people with diverse backgrounds assembling in a room to discuss the aspects of a design problem. Each person has a separate view of the functionality of the product. A moderator directs the discussion in a constructive manner. He guides the members subtly to focus on the areas you wish to observe them explore. This room has a one-way mirror for viewing your body language while you voice your opinions. This is a good way of evaluating designs because you get independent third party reviews just in the similar way you would have got from customers who actually used the design.

Based on this feedback, you can modify the designs to best suit the needs of the users. One of the best ways of incorporating changes in designs is to have a healthy mix of all the procedures. When you have different people evaluating your designs, you benefit more as you get different views at the same time. The customer’s choice is the main criteria when designing a product. When independent people evaluate your designs they take these factors into consideration with an unbiased mind. They bring a completely different angle to the entire proceedings. They generate a lot of constructive positive and negative reviews in the bargain. This results in a fantastic product that passes several quality checks before coming into the market.

Benefits and ROI of UX Design

This article is originally shared on – https://www.yujdesigns.com/benefits-roi-ux-design/


If design is not the center of your business, you are possibly missing out on opportunities to flourish in the digital age. Businesses are so much focused on their marketing outcomes that they overlook design in the haste of getting better ROI. Whereas, design should be a core piece of your business since it gives a competitive edge.

Traditionally, design was about beauty and aesthetics, but for the past few decades, design has taken a fabulous twist. Today, it is not only about making products look beautiful, but also about providing experience of interacting with the products. Businesses are continuously struggling to find ways to survive in the cutthroat competition and to have an edge over their competitors. Whether it is a website, application or any product, design creates a delightful and smooth experience for the user. Such seamless and fulfilling user experience is important for businesses since it helps in satisfying customers by offering enhanced usability and delightful interaction with the product. The improved customer satisfaction through design helps in attracting and retaining customers and selling a large number of products thereby giving competitive and profitable advantage.

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Design principles are so fascinating that they are being used as guiding points for transforming businesses. As a result, a term ‘business design’ is popped up, which is about applying design thinking to the businesses. Though design approach is quite significant, all companies are not embracing it. However, design works for every type of business.

To define exactly why design is a good business decision, we have a list of proven reasons. If you agree, leave your thoughts in the Comments Section!

• Business statistics

Out of $1 trillion spent last year, $150 billion is lost alone because of poor usability or user experience. $300 billion is the cost of poor customer service in 16 key economies. 8-year stock performance of companies focusing on experience has been more than 100%. The chances of customers recommending your product, paying more for your product or not switching to your competitors’ products increases dramatically if you focus on customer experience and user experience. DMI’s Design Value Index (DVI) has surpassed any other index by whopping 219%. A study by the UK Council and US Council has revealed that every dollar invested in design returns upto $100. These are real statistics by real people and real organisations that tell you the importance of having design or working with design teams.

• Enhances User Experience

In today’s world, user experience is a differentiating factor and design plays a significant role in offering an engaging experience to users. A good design engages your users and since they are happy with the experience you are offering, they less likely switch to your competitors. As per a CEI survey, 86% of the customers pay more for a better user experience. So, designing user experience considering end user can make a huge impact to the bottom line of a business.

• Attracts new customers and retains existing ones

A good design does not only mean the look or appearance of the product, it is about solving problems and enhancing its usability and accessibility. It provides your users a direct and easy way to the product information that they are looking for. Design helps you expand into new markets probably by designing the product according to the preferences of your target market. Along with acquiring new customers, a fresh design keeps your existing customers interested and help you contend with your competitors.

• Strong Customer Trust

Generally, digital products fail because modern users are not ready to labor through unpleasant user experiences. Users know that there are several other competitors willing to satisfy them. A design offering delightful experience creates positive perception of your brand that creates strong customer trust. Businesses providing high-level user experience are more likely to have customers recommending their brand to others. So, a design that creates a pleasant and seamless user experience gives you a power to have an edge over your competitors.

• Adds Value to Products

Effective design gives your users a reason to buy from you rather than from your competitors. It is an important source of differentiation since a well-designed product stands out from the competition. Design adds value to products because users are ready to pay more for well-designed products that can offer higher usability, improved functionality and aesthetics.

• Improves market position

Design process generate new product ideas, which then can be turned into innovative and competitive products suitable for your users. It also helps in making business processes more effective and in strengthening marketing approach. Design creates a strong identity for your business and improves your market position relative to your competitors.

About Us:

YUJ Designs is one of the top UX Design companies in India. Our work ensures both, a delightful product experience and a positive impact on customer's top line.

Wonders Serious UX Design Can Do

This article was originally shared on - https://www.yujdesigns.com/wonders-serious-ux-design/

Serious UX design comes into picture when you want to make your product successful in the market. Implementing right product design is important since it can do wonders to your business and can offer delightful experience to its users. 

Let us first understand what serious UX really is? How it is done? And what are its benefits?

What Is Serious UX?

Serious UX is the UX that makes business sense, makes money for your business, increases revenue through your product design, reduces cost and/or manages risks. It creates delightful experience for your users, engages them and lets them seamlessly achieve the intended goals using your product.

So, serious UX actually starts by asking the right questions about your business goals. First of all, you need to know what you want to achieve - increased revenues, conversions, engagements, reduced costs or reduced risk? Start at some point by measuring current metrics and then set business goals. Then it tries to achieve these goals by designing a great user experience. 

How Serious UX Is Done?

Serious UX is a balance between achieving business goals and user goals. It is data-driven design; this data could come from various sources and can be qualitative or quantitative in nature. Qualitative data includes your business goals, users’ goals, needs, aspirations, expectations, motivations and frustrations. Quantitative data could be web analytics or information from your business metrics as well. All of these data are gathered together and converted into a UX design, which ultimately achieves ROI for your business and intended experience for your products’ users.

So, the focus is on understanding users through user research and then converting that into meaningful designs that drive long-term value to the users. It is not about painting screens, but it is much more than that. Serious UX is allowing users to engage with your product, converting users into customers as well as allowing them to complete their intended tasks with high efficiency and effectiveness. It also needs designs to be tested well during the process of product design. Once the testing is complete, your design is completely de-risked. There is a competitive advantage in working with design teams closely for implementation of the designs.

"Serious UX is a balance between making business sense and making experience sense."

Benefits

1. Beneficial for All: Serious UX gives a great product experience to the users, satisfies needs of the customers, help product teams to develop a great product and overall benefits the organization by increasing ROI.

2. Cumulative Experience: Serious UX acts not only when users are engaged with your product but even before and after your users get engaged with your product. It addresses all those stages of the experience lifecycle right from attraction, entry, engagement, exit and looks beyond the exit, which is a cumulative user experience. 

3. Earns ROI: Serious UX brings about complete change or transformation to the user experience of your product, which will again bring ROI to the business.

4. Clarity: Serious UX brings clarity about the business and about the business goals to be achieved through UX design. 

5. Focus: Serious UX brings your focus to the users, their needs and expectations rather than a technological innovation or change. The entire organization then gets focused on user or customer needs and becomes oriented towards user experience in all of their actions and processes. 

6. Achieves goals: Serious UX also tries to achieve user goals, allows them not to just complete their intended tasks with your product but also brings in delight, engages them, drives them more towards your product and achieves the business goals that are already set out. 

7. Long-term value: Well-implemented UX provides long-term value to your users and customers and hence, they remain loyal to your brand. 

8. Reduces costs: Well-implemented UX also reduces costs of rework, customer service and maintenance

Wrapping Up
Serious UX can do wonders for your business, but you just have to implement it in a right way. You must work with the right team/partner to implement serious UX. If you want to create memorable product experience for your users, we can come up with design strategies that create a staged experience for your users. We will deliver you the value that you truly deserve. Visit https://www.yujdesigns.com/ux-design-development/ to see our offerings.