Digital Product Design and UX Consulting

A good interface creates a seamless and enjoyable user experience that is both aesthetically pleasing and functional. The design should be simple, clear, and easy to use, while also being visually consistent with the overall appearance of the product.

As we increasingly move into an abstract digital world, the understandability of digital solutions becomes more important.

In interface design, information is weighted, reduced and presented in a clear way to make it accessible to the user. Information and options are arranged in a logical sequence. Visual metaphors offer the user clearly presented states and options.

A good interface design can thus make technically complex processes accessible to humans - the use of software becomes simpler, faster and safer.

Companies that place a high value on the user experience of their digital services and software applications, according to a study by strategy consulting firm McKinsey, double their growth compared to other competitors who neglect the usability of their products.

A new product, project, or feature always starts with many new ideas. We evaluate these ideas, form an opinion, and select the "right" ones. We often get it more or less wrong.

The more work we invest in implementing wrong ideas, the more expensive the corresponding mistake will be.

Therefore, it makes sense to build quick prototypes or simple implementations to validate our ideas. This way, we quickly find out if we were wrong. Often this leads us to new approaches. We reach our goal in small steps and avoid costly mistakes.

There are different types of prototypes. Their level of detail depends on the insights we hope to gain.

A paper prototype consisting of first hand-made sketches gives a good first impression of the display sequence of a user interface.

Wireframes play an increasingly important role in the structural design and size relations of elements, but the visual design is ignored.

A click prototype with detailed design mockups already creates a clear image of visuality and can also illustrate an initial dynamic behavior. Static designs are linked together so that it is possible to view them realistically by clicking on control elements in sequence. This already creates a realistic impression of usability.

A good prototype is characterized by the pragmatic means of choice and enables fast and inexpensive knowledge gain.

User testing allows for the gathering of valuable feedback from actual users. This feedback can be used to identify issues, improve the user experience, and ensure that the product meets the needs of its intended audience.

By incorporating user testing early and often, teams can make data-driven decisions and avoid costly changes later in the development process. Additionally, involving users in the testing phase can increase their buy-in and engagement with the product, leading to higher adoption rates.

It's difficult to estimate exactly how much time and budget can be saved by skipping user research without knowing the specific project and its goals.

However, skipping user research can potentially save time and budget in the short term, but it can also lead to a product that does not meet the needs of its intended users, resulting in a higher risk of failure and wasted resources in the long term.

User research can help ensure that a product is designed to meet the needs and preferences of its intended users, which can increase the likelihood of success. Therefore, it is generally recommended to include user research as part of the design and development process.

Building too many new features without considering the overall core experience can lead to a cluttered and confusing product. It can result in a decrease in user satisfaction, engagement, and can also make it more difficult to provide support and training for the product. It can also lead to delays in delivery and increased development costs.

Therefore product teams should strive to improve the overall core experience of a product instead of extensively building new features. One way to achieve this is by using the Kano model, a customer satisfaction framework that helps identify which product attributes are most important to customers. By using this method, product teams can prioritize improvements to the core experience that will have the greatest impact on customer satisfaction. A more simple version of the Kano Model is the MoSCoW method, that subdevides features in 'Must, Should, Could, and Won‘t'.

Providing a positive core experience can lead to increased customer satisfaction and loyalty, resulting in higher retention rates and potential word-of-mouth promotion. Additionally, a well-designed and intuitive core experience can lead to increased efficiency and productivity for users, ultimately leading to greater productivity and revenue for the company.

Instead of solely focusing on adding new features, product teams should strive to improve the overall usability and accessibility of their product's core experience. This can include simplifying navigation, improving the design, and ensuring that features are easy to use. By focusing on the core experience, product teams can create a product that not only meets the needs of their users but also exceeds their expectations, leading to greater success in the long term.

Static styleguide PDFs are no longer an efficient or effective solution for modern digital products.

One of the main reasons for this is that they do not provide the flexibility and scalability that digital products require in today's fast-paced development environment.

Static styleguide PDFs are typically created once and then are not updated again, meaning that design changes are not reflected in all instances of the product. This can lead to inconsistencies and a poor user experience. Additionally, static styleguide PDFs require manual updates, which is time-consuming and can lead to errors.

To overcome these issues, pattern libraries have emerged as the state-of-the-art solution for maintaining consistency and improving the overall user experience in digital products.

A pattern library is a collection of reusable user interface (UI) components that can be used across a digital product. Using a pattern library has several benefits for digital products, including:

Consistency: By using a set of pre-defined UI components, a pattern library ensures that the overall look and feel of a digital product is consistent across all pages and screens. This improves the user experience and makes it easier for users to navigate the product.

Efficiency: When building a digital product, developers can use the components in a pattern library to speed up the development process. This is because the components are already designed and tested, so developers don't need to start from scratch for each new screen or feature.

Flexibility: A pattern library allows for flexibility in design, by providing a set of components that can be used in multiple ways, and in combination with other components. This enables a design system and design language that can adapt and evolve with the products and its features.

Collaboration: A pattern library allows for easy collaboration between designers and developers. Designers can work on creating new components and updating existing ones, while developers can use the library to implement the design.

Maintenance: A pattern library is a living document, so can be updated and maintained over time. By maintaining a consistent set of components, it's easier to identify and fix any issues that arise in the product and improve the overall user experience.

Overall, a pattern library is a valuable tool for digital products because it promotes consistency, efficiency, flexibility, collaboration, and maintainability, by providing a set of reusable UI components that can be used across the product.