Top 5 Steps of UI/UX Design Process
UI and UX: When it comes to product design ,two terms that are often used , but actually have different meanings. Let’s take a closer look and know what exactly is the difference?
First of all , UI stands for “User Interface” whereas UX stands for “User Experience”.
The term ‘UI/UX design process’ was first introduced in the late 1990s by the famous designer and cognitive Psychologist Donald Norman. He once states that :
“ I invented the term because I thought human interface and usability were extremely good. I wanted to cover all aspects of the person’s experience with the system, including industrial design graphics, the interface, the physical interaction, and the manual. Since then, the term has spread widely, so much so that it is starting to gain its meaning.”
— Donald Norman
In order to make the product successful, the product should be delightful and enjoyable which means that the product not only fulfill the requirements of engineering , manufacturing and human factors be satisfied but attention must also be paid to the entire experience. So to make the product design and experience brilliant , the entire design process can be divided into 5 phases:
At the very beginning of design process , a design or researcher team conducts heuristic evaluation which is a way to test whether the current Product is user friendly or not. In other words, it tests the site’s usability.
1. Empathise
The first stage of the Design process is to gain an empathic understanding of the problem you are trying to solve. It’s very important because in the stage 1 we understand about the real scope of the product and their existence.
At the very beginning of design process , a design or researcher team conducts heuristic evaluation which is a way to test whether the current Product is user friendly. In other words, it tests the site’s usability.
This process involves Design Team, Product Manager and Business Manager.
The aim of this step is to get a clear picture of who your end users are, what challenges they face, and what needs and expectations must be met. In order to build user empathy, you’ll conduct surveys, interviews, and observation sessions.
The outcomes of this phase are User Personas, User Stories and Use Case Diagrams.
2. Define
By putting together all the information gathered in the first stage, the next step is to define the problem statement. It is a responsibility, as a design thinker to define the challenge you are taking on, based on what you have learned about your user.
There is a lot of different ways to explain a define phase, but the most significant activity where you’ll need a wall of sticky notes. These sticky notes will be filled with the observations and ideas you heard throughout your research.
By collecting all the information on how people are currently solving the problem gives more innovative and brilliant solution. Starting with a good understanding of people and the needs helps us to move forward in the product deign.
3.Ideate
Once the design requirements are determined, this is the stage where you generate potential solutions. It is where creativity is critical. During the third stage , designers are ready to start generating ideas.
The goal of this stage is not to come up with a ready to go solution or give a visual design of the product. It’s time to brainstorm ways to address those human needs. You can create as many potential solutions as possible.
Brainstorming is a great way to generate as many ideas by leveraging the collective thinking of the group , by engaging with each other , listening and building on other ideas. Only one conversation is allowed at a time. No other person must intervene when an idea is being given.
Mind maps is another activity that can be used in this stage.
4. Prototype
The prototyping phase in the design thinking phase is the crucial phase among all the stages . The only way to really know whether an idea is reasonable is to test it. Build a quick prototype / mock-ups of each potential solutions.
Prototyping during the problem specification phase is done mainly to ensure that the problem is well understood.
The Most Useful Prototyping Methodologies are :
- Paper Prototyping
Best in the early stages of design, mainly for testing product ideas.
- Wireframes
Most common form of prototyping. A wireframe is considered as the backbone of the product. Also Known as the skeleton of the design. It shows overall look of the final product.
- Clickable Prototypes
Shows a visual representation of the user interface of a product.
- Validation or Testing
The results generated during the testing phase are often used to redefine one or more problems and inform the understanding the users.
Gather a small group of people who are correspond to the target audience . It is useful to ask a pair of people to use the product altogether, which means one person will operate the prototype and another person will guide the actions and explain the final results. Research team will be observing all pain points where the user finds some difficulty on using the product.
The testing phase is the most straightforward one of all 5- we put the prototype in front of real users and then gather their feedback. After the testing phase, you’ll know what features of your product users love and what not.
While finalizing your final product, there are certain things that needs to keep in mind. They are : Is the system user-friendly ? or Is it flexible and easy to operate ?
With everything you learn from the testing phase or problem specification phase , you’ll ensure that the new design meets the needs and abilities of those who will use it.
Conclusion
Above UI/UX design process strategy will help you in achieving the goal. By finding an appropriate solution and understand what a user needs will help in making the product flexible and user- friendly.
If you have feedback/suggestions, let me know in the comment!
I hope you enjoyed the article :)