How I got here and things I've learned along the way
- Good UX Design is just plain ol' good customer service.
- The user wants what they want, when and how they want it. Give it to them seamlessly.
- Empathy is invaluable.
It’s not about what you make, it’s about what you make them feel.
- Andrea Trew
- If it's important, don't hide it.
- No silos! Stakeholders, developers, and product managers have the skills and knowledge to solve problems for the user.
- Experiment a LOT. Test a feature or product from MVP through basic functionality, reliability, and usability until it’s delightful. Find small successes and build on them.
Testing one user early in the project is better than testing fifty near the end.
- Steve Krug
- Photoshop PSD are nice, but designing straight into HTML saves heaps of time.
Psychology
I majored in Psychology with a particular interest in Cognitive Theory. I also found a love for statistics - accurately describing the world with math? Yes, please.
Retail
I was a bookseller and store manager for many years and along the line, I needed a website for the business. After receiving outrageous estimates from a few vendors, I decided to do it myself. And I loved it - the design, development, analytics, marketing campaigns, everything.
Freelance Web Designer
I had the pleasure of working with a variety of individuals and businesses to establish their online presence. I designed websites, shopping carts, emails, and collateral materials.
UX / UI / Product Designer
Lots of A/B testing solidly instilled an "Assume Nothing" attitude in me. I cannot underscore enough the importance of having someone advocate for the user throughout the development process.
Illustration by Dave Landis (lithespeed)
The Design Process
The best design comes from a comprehensive understanding of who the user is and what the user wants. When first approaching a problem, be empathetic and set aside your assumptions. Do the research, talk to your users, and collaborate with teams to fully define what the problems are.
Keep that multidisciplinary team communication going and brainstorm possible solutions. Prototype and test - validate that you’re building the right thing. Learn about the users from the results of the tests. Get new ideas based on how well the prototypes work.
Dev, Product and Design teams working together are better at determining priorities and the user is never an afterthought. Shared success is addictive.