My Design Process

Every design job is different and there’s no one right way to do it, but I like to use a human-centered design framework.

What is Human-centered design?

Human-centered design is a design approach that prioritizes the needs and experiences of people above all else. It considers their motivations, goals, behaviors, and emotions when designing a product or service. The goal of human-centered design is to create solutions that are not only functional and efficient but also user-friendly and enjoyable to use. This approach involves understanding the user, co-creating solutions, and continuously testing and refining the design until it meets their needs and expectations.

There are generally 6 phases in the user-centered design process, although different names by different people may refer to them. Despite variations in terminology, the essence of the phases remains consistent.

Here are the 6 phases: 

 

Discover:

Here’s how I approach the discover phase:

Market research: I start by conducting market research to understand the context in which the product or service will be used and to identify any potential opportunities and threats. This helps me to understand the competitive landscape and to identify areas where the product or service can differentiate and add value.

Meeting with stakeholders: I also conduct interviews with stakeholders to understand the business needs and to ensure that the design solution aligns with the organization’s goals and objectives. 

Problem definition: I then work on defining the design challenge in clear, user-centered terms. This involves identifying the specific problem that the product or service is trying to solve, and defining it in a way that is directly tied to the users’ needs and goals. 

User research: Next, I conduct user research to gather information about the users and their needs, as well as the context in which they use the product or service. This may involve conducting user interviews, surveys, and observations, as well as reviewing existing data. 

Competitive analysis: I also conduct a competitive analysis to understand how other companies in the same market are solving similar design problems, and to identify any best practices that can inform the design process. This helps me to understand what other products and services are already available, and to identify areas where our product or service can differentiate and add value. 

Data analysis: Finally, I analyze the data collected during the user research phase, and identify any trends, patterns, or insights that will inform the design process. This helps me to gain a deeper understanding of the users and their context, and to make informed decisions about the design direction. 

 

Empathize:

During the Empathize phase, I build on the user research conducted in the Discovery phase to gain a deeper understanding of the users and their needs, motivations, and pain points. To achieve this, I use tools such as User Personas, Empathy Maps, and User Journeys.

User Personas: User Personas are fictional characters that represent a segment of the target audience. I use the data synthesized from the Discovery phase to create these personas, which help me to focus my design efforts on the needs of real users and ensure that the end product meets their specific needs and requirements.

Empathy Maps: An Empathy Map is a tool that helps me to understand the users’ experiences from their perspective. By filling out the four quadrants of the map, Thoughts, Feelings, Actions, and Pain Points/Gains, I can gain a deeper understanding of the users’ needs, motivations, and pain points, and identify opportunities for improvement and potential areas for innovation.

User Journeys: A User Journey is a visual representation of the end-to-end experience of a user, from their initial engagement with a product or service through to the resolution of their needs or goals. By creating a User Journey, I can visualize the users’ experience from their perspective, identify pain points, and opportunities for improvement, and create design solutions that are tailored to the specific needs and requirements of the target audience.

 

Define

In the Define phase, as a product designer, I work on synthesizing the insights gathered from the Empathize phase to create a clear and concise problem statement. This statement acts as the basis for the entire design process, ensuring that I am focusing on addressing the most pressing issues faced by the target audience.

Another important aspect of the Define phase is the creation of the Information Architecture (IA). IA is the structure and organization of the information and content on a website or application. It includes the labeling and organization of content into categories and subcategories to help users find what they need quickly and easily. During this phase, I work on creating a clear and intuitive IA, taking into account the user needs and behaviors, business goals, and the content that needs to be presented.

 

Ideate:

The ideate phase is an exciting time where I get to explore different design solutions and generate ideas that will solve the problem at hand. During this phase, my focus is on generating a wide range of potential solutions and evaluating them based on feasibility, user needs, and business goals.

I start the ideate phase by brainstorming and sketching out initial concepts and ideas. This allows me to quickly generate a large number of potential solutions, which I can then evaluate and refine. I often collaborate with cross-functional teams, including developers, product managers, and stakeholders, to ensure that the design solution meets the needs of the business and takes into account any limitations and constraints of the technology.

Once I have a set of potential solutions, I explore and evaluate different design solutions and potential user flows. This involves considering different options and evaluating them based on factors such as feasibility, user needs, and business goals.

To validate and test these design concepts, I develop low-fidelity and high-fidelity wireframes. This helps me gather feedback from users, which I can use to refine and improve the design.

The ideate phase is an iterative and flexible process, and I often go back and forth between different activities and explore different design solutions until I find a solution that effectively meets user needs and business goals.

 

Prototype:

in the Prototype phase, my focus is on creating a working representation of the design solution, with the goal of testing and validating the ideas generated in the Ideate phase. This phase involves several key steps:

Select the most promising design concepts and create prototypes: I create low and high-fidelity prototypes to help visualize and test the design solution.

Validate design concepts with users: I conduct user testing with the prototypes, gathering feedback on the design solution and making any necessary adjustments to improve the user experience.

Refine and iterate: Based on the feedback I receive from users, I refine the design solution and make any necessary modifications to ensure that it meets the needs of the target audience.

Create wireframes and design specifications: I create detailed wireframes and design specifications to serve as a blueprint for the final product development phase.

 

Test:

The test phase is a crucial part of my design process where I validate the design solutions I have developed in the previous phase. In this phase, I focus on:

Conducting user testing to gather feedback and insights on the prototypes and wireframes

Analyzing user behavior and interactions with the design solutions

Evaluating the success of the design solutions in meeting user needs and solving the problem statement

Refining and iterating on the design solutions based on the feedback and insights gathered

Collaborating with cross-functional teams to implement the final design solutions into the product

Conducting additional testing and validation to ensure the design solutions meet the quality standards and user expectations.