Human beings are emotional, and everything you see or read brings out a certain emotion in you. The emotion can be anger, shock, surprise, happiness, or anything else. The same happens when you see a design. When you visit a website, certain emotions will play inside you.
Design helps in triggering different emotions in people. A well-designed website will appeal to the audience, while a badly designed website will drive people away. This emotion drives people towards decision making. The amount of time the audience spends on the website is mostly based on the design.
The design does not just mean the look and feel of the website. It is also widely related to user experience. Designs that are dedicated to the user experience will be structured in such a manner that they can connect to the audience. The entire usability and functionality of the website will be focused on the user experience.
A website with a good design will be more credible in the minds of people. The audience will be more inclined to visit, stay, and even interact with the platform if they are impressed with the design. In this course, you will learn about the key tools of user experience.
When you hire the best graphic designers, they’ll keep these types of things at the forefront of their minds.
Table of Contents
Purpose of Design
Every design is directed towards a purpose. Each of the elements you include in the design should have a specific purpose; only then can it enhance the user experience. Therefore, the first thing that you would have to determine before you go into the technical part of designing is the design’s purpose.
Most people think that the only purpose of design is aesthetics, but this cannot be far from the truth. Several other considerations define the purpose of any design. You will have to understand how the design will help the target audience rather than only thinking about how it would appeal to them.
Even if you create a very appealing design, you might not attract the audience if it does not serve their purpose. Therefore, you have to ensure that your design incorporates each of those elements required by the audience.
You should keep your design open to changes so that it matches the purpose and the customer preference. Once you have set the purpose of the design, the technical part would not be too hard. That is why most designers first make a blueprint of what their finished product would look like.
Key Tools of User Experience
User experience is how an audience feels when they are using the interface of any system. This system can be a website, software, or even an application. The audience should be able to glide smoothly through the system without any hindrance. This is very important if you want the audience to come and interact with the system. Enhance SaaS success with UX Design for better website engagement. Moreover, implementing localization for saas can ensure that users from different regions have a seamless experience tailored to their language and cultural preferences.
Certain key tools are very important for developing a good user experience. Here you will understand the three main tools that you will have to consider if you want the system to have a good user experience. The three key tools are as follows –
· User Persona
· Use Case
· Wireframes
User Persona
User persona or the user’s personality is the first thing that you should keep in mind when you are designing. Persona development is a very important process that should not be eradicated if you are trying to build a successful design. The persona would be built based on the kind of design that you develop.
Personas are potential users who will be using the system. When creating a persona, you can decide a name for each of the personas. This would help you get more personal and intimate with the user. Moreover, this would seem more realistic to you as a designer.
Thinking of different user personas would guide you in developing the design. Your persona would be decided based on the purpose of the design. For example, if your user base is searching for a system that would help them understand the actual weather condition, then the designer would design the exact system.
You will be creating a fictional character that is faced with the above-mentioned problem. The design would be created in such a way that they can focus on the exact solution. This will help in creating a high user experience that can appeal to the audience.
Use Case
A use case is a way your audience will be using the system. Once you have designed the system based on the user persona, you will have to determine the use case. Your design will be successful if you can understand how the user will perceive the system. Without this, you will just be designing a system that would adhere to the user’s needs.
You can play around with your ideas to see which design will help you in connecting to the audience. You can also look into other works to take inspiration about the design you are making.
Wireframes
Wireframes are a low-fidelity way to showcase the design that you would be finalizing. You can see how the designs have turned out before you make it go live for user experience. Designers use much different software to make these wireframes; however, the main idea is to answer the different questions that are in your head.
(Source : Google Images)
You should not focus on technology, rather on the design idea. Wireframes help in making the idea clear in your head. It will help you understand if the design has been developed just the way you want. Moreover, this also helps in saving a lot of time in understanding the loopholes in your design.
Summing Up
The three key tools – user persona, use case, and wireframes, are essential for the development of a good design. As a designer, it is vital that you keep the users in your mind while making any structure. Without this, you will not be able to create something that would be perceived positively by the users.
Once you understand what the user is trying to say, then you can stay one step ahead of your competitors. User experience is the most crucial part of any design, and without this, the design would not be complete.
When you realize how many factors are at play, the cost of graphic design becomes more and more of a clearly good investment, especially when you can get unlimited graphic design for one low monthly fee.