UX design blends the needs and goals of both the business and users to craft digital experiences that deliver both functionality and flair. This design process starts by defining the core functionalities that a product or service must have to meet the needs of both parties. With consideration given to brand identity, UX designers bring together art and science to create digital experiences that are not only a joy to use but leave a lasting impression.
Research is a crucial step in the UX design process. This step involves gathering information about the target audience, including their needs, behaviours, motivations, and pain points. To collect this information we use different methods, such as interviews, surveys, and data analysis. The goal of this research is to gain a deep understanding of the users and inform the design process.
A persona is a fictional character that represents the target audience for a product or service. Personas are created based on research into the target audience and their needs, behaviours, motivations, and pain points. They are used to help UX designers understand the people they are designing for, and to keep the user’s perspective at the forefront of the design process. Personas provide a clear picture of who the users are, what their goals are, and how they interact with a product or service. This allows designers to make design decisions that are informed by the user’s perspective. It also helps to communicate the users’ perspective to the stakeholders. By using personas, UX designers can create more meaningful, user-centred designs that meet the needs and expectations of the target audience.
The customer journey maps out the steps a user takes to interact with a product or service, from their first awareness of the product to post-purchase evaluation. By mapping the customer journey, UX designers can identify key touchpoints and design for a seamless and enjoyable experience for the user. Additionally, mapping the customer journey can help to identify challenges and gaps created by previous poor design. This allows designers to address these issues and create a more effective and efficient user experience. By understanding the entire journey, from start to finish, UX designers can create a comprehensive and cohesive design that addresses the needs and expectations of the target audience at every step of the way.
In this step, UX designers develop concepts and ideas for the product or service, based on the research findings and personas. This can include sketches, flow charts, and other visual aids to communicate the design vision. The concepts are then tested and refined through user feedback and iteration.
These concepts are then transformed into wireframes, which are basic, low-fidelity representations of the design. Wireframes are used to test and refine the concepts, and to ensure that the design is functional and usable before the UI (user interface) design is created. By creating both, a concept and wireframes, UX designers can create a design vision that is informed by the user’s perspective and based on real needs and expectations, while also ensuring that the design is functional and usable. Through iteration and refinement, designers can arrive at a final design that meets the needs of both the user and the business.
With Vidar’s broad experience with design and usability, he is responsible for strategising the use of digital design within Studio Vi.
