UX Design

This week in UX design, I learned about the fundamentals of UX: what it means and its significance in web development and tech. If you’re new to this like me, then you’re probably expecting me to follow up with said information. So, UX stands for user experience and is the quality of the experience someone has when interacting with a specific web design. 

UX designers are responsible for conducting research about their targeted users, creating user personas, determining what information will be included in their digital products, designing wireframes, creating prototypes, and conducting user testing to ensure they are creating a user-friendly, quality website.

There are 5 core components in UX design:

1. Research – understanding the user’s needs, behaviors, and challenges that might arise while trying to develop effective, valuable, user-friendly digital products via surveys, interviews, user testing, and other observations.
2. Information Architecture (IA) – the organization, labeling, and structuring of content so that it’s easy to locate, comprehend, and use.
3. Interaction & Visual Design (IxD) – designs how the user can interact with a product to achieve their goals in an easy, useful, and sometimes fun manner (e.g., visual cues on how to interact with the product, error messages, hardware functionality with the interface, etc.). The visual aspect takes into consideration Gestalt Principles and graphic design principles to convey a brand effectively.
4. Usability – ensures that the website is not only aesthetically appealing but also functions in a way that supports its users easily and understandably.
5. Prototyping – this is a sample or concept that you can test before building the full version to verify that its other core components are performing efficiently.

There are 9 common UX Deliverables:

1. User Personas – basic profile, goals, motivations, skills, background, etc., that represent the real people who will interact with your product.
2. Storyboards – a visual narrative that tells the story about how the user interacts with your product.
3. Customer Journey Maps – a flowchart or diagram that shows the steps your user must go through when interacting with a product while highlighting their thoughts and feelings along the way.
4. Brainstorming – the method through which designers gather ideas for addressing the challenges and possible outcomes that were revealed in the research phase.
5. User Flow – a step-by-step diagram mapping out how the user moves through a website to complete specific tasks.
6. Site Map – a diagram that shows the hierarchical structure of the website.
7. Wireframes – this is a technical document that maps out the page structure, layout, IA, and user flow of a site while considering the user’s wants and needs; it depicts how the interface elements appear and where they’re located on the webpage. 
8. Styles Tile – a visual reference that establishes the design direction – the look and feel of it.
9. Prototypes – a sample that tests the functionality of a product from its basic function, appearance, and usability.

Each of the above tools ensures that a design is built for the user, not the developer or assumptions. It reduces guesswork and helps everyone involved (designers, developers, stakeholders) stay on the same page. Following the UX process can prevent costly mistakes and produce a product that is easier and more enjoyable

Results in a product that’s easier and more enjoyable to use. It reduces the likelihood of rework and increases user satisfaction, engagement, sales, and retention. 

Without fully understanding the UX process at the time of completing my client blog assignment, I realized that many of the steps were organically completed with my client’s best interests in mind. Without adhering to those processes, a project would require a lot more redos over time because every aspect is based on guesswork and assumptions; adhering to the UX process prevents excessive work.