of people misconceptualise UX design to be a
result of creativity only, that it is all about
designing beautiful screens. That’s where
people often go wrong and start jumping in with
their preconceived notions. As a UX designer,
you hold the responsibility to educate and
create awareness about this field i.e it is about
solving human problems and frustrations. User
interface is only a tool/medium which designers
use to interact with a system. But UX includes
all that and the users’ psychology, personality,
cultural influences, social settings, needs and
goals.
User Research -The most important fact-sheet
is user research insights. User research gives
us the confidence to take a design decision in
user’s favour. As a UXer, it helps you convince
the rest of the world that what you know stems
from empirical evidence. For example, by
conducting user research you discovered that
when reading customer reviews, users typically
prefer a scrolling log but they don’t like to click
the “Read More” button all the time.
Empathy - a designer has maximum amount of
empathy for the user as compared to anyone
else. You are the advocate of the user. It’s the
empathy that makes you learn more about
them, care for them, and provide them the best
experience they deserve. You are the face of
the user for rest of the project members. The
more empathy you possess as a designer, the
more willingness to defend design decisions.
Experience and heuristics -Because you have
solved a lot of design problems in the past, you
have developed an ability to back your
decisions and solutions with adequate
reasoning. One of the greatest qualities of a
designer is applying heuristics. Their ability to
sense what works and what doesn’t is what
makes them a designer by passion and not by
accident.
Psychology - plenty of scientific research and
behavioural observation have gone into backing
design principles. For example, the reason we
shouldn’t have more than 5-6 menu items is
explained by a concept called ‘cognitive load’.
The human mind can store only 5-6 items in its
working memory at a time. This proves it further
that every single design decision is grounded in
human behaviour and attitudes
such as Hick’s law, Fitt’s law, Gestalt’s laws, to
name a few.
Conclusion
Despite having existed in the market for over
two decades, there still exists widespread
misconception and lack of awareness about the
field of user experience design. UX is not a work
of art alone. Plus, the job of design is not to
create something beautiful only- its primary
function is to solve problems.
One more thing, when non UXers take design
decisions with you, they are not always wrong.
They have a perspective, remember? Design
decisions never right or wrong, it’s always about
whether it works for the users. It’s subjective.
Always remember: UX is a collaborative
process. Everyone has the right to exert design
decisions but it’s you who can defend it for the
sake of the user.
About Author :
Kamaksh Gangani
UX Designer
Kamaksh is a Design Thinker who believes in taking “informed” Design
Decisions. He has taken over 40 Design Thinking workshops, and has
mentored over 100 Design Students. Has more than 13 years of overall
experience in digital with over 10.5 years in Design. Kamaksh expertises
in Design Transformation and setting up processes and teams. He has
solved design problems for some large enterprises, one of them being
Honeywell. His love towards behavioural psychology has brought him to
this field. He enjoys Road Trips and reading about Psychology.
Connects :
linkedin.com/in/kamaksh
“Digital artwork”
By :Smit Kapse
Sandip University
21