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Know more about the booming industry of UI/UX design

User Interface (UI) design is the design of the graphical layout of an application or software. It is concerned with the look of all the interaction points a user has with the app or website, this includes the buttons they click on, the size and font of the content they read, images, menus they choose from, text entry fields and other visual elements. User Experience (UX) design is the design of the experience that a user has while interacting with the product with the goal of making it seamless and easy to use. This not only takes into consideration the usability and accessibility but also extensive research is conducted on how the interaction with the product makes the user feel.   How are they different? <table class="MsoTableGrid" style="border-collapse:collapse;border:none;mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; mso-yfti-tbllook:1184;mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="1"> <tbody><tr style="mso-yfti-irow:0;mso-yfti-firstrow:yes;height:13.5pt"> <td style="width:229.05pt;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> UX </td> <td style="width:229.05pt;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-left:none;mso-border-left-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-alt: solid windowtext .5pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> UI </td> </tr> <tr style="mso-yfti-irow:1;height:13.5pt"> <td style="width:229.05pt;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> Aims towards effectiveness of the product </td> <td style="width:229.05pt;border-top:none;border-left: none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.0pt;border-right:solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-left-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> Aims towards aesthetic interaction </td> </tr> <tr style="mso-yfti-irow:2;height:27.0pt"> <td style="width:229.05pt;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:27.0pt" width="305" valign="top"> This comes earlier in the development phase of a product </td> <td style="width:229.05pt;border-top:none;border-left: none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.0pt;border-right:solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-left-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:27.0pt" width="305" valign="top"> This process begins in the later stages of product development </td> </tr> <tr style="mso-yfti-irow:3;height:13.5pt"> <td style="width:229.05pt;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> Applies to all products, services or experiences </td> <td style="width:229.05pt;border-top:none;border-left: none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.0pt;border-right:solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-left-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> Applies specifically to digital products and services. </td> </tr> <tr style="mso-yfti-irow:4;mso-yfti-lastrow:yes;height:13.5pt"> <td style="width:229.05pt;border:solid windowtext 1.0pt; border-top:none;mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> Based on - Research, wire frames </td> <td style="width:229.05pt;border-top:none;border-left: none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 1.0pt;border-right:solid windowtext 1.0pt; mso-border-top-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;mso-border-left-alt:solid windowtext .5pt; mso-border-alt:solid windowtext .5pt;padding:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;height:13.5pt" width="305" valign="top"> Based on - Touch points, Visual Mapping </td> </tr> </tbody></table>   Here are some skills required to be a successful UX designer: ·         <a href="https://careerfoundry.com/en/blog/ux-design/what-skills-do-you-need-as-a-ux-designer/#wireframing-and-prototyping">Wire framing and prototyping</a> A major part of developing a product is envisioning what your product will look like, this is possible by creating wire frames, low or high-fidelity prototypes, mock ups, or user flows.   ·         Visual design and design software Visual design software like Figma, Sketch, Photoshop, and Illustrator are often used by UI and UX designers to create the various visual elements of a product. Besides proficiency in these tools, it is also important to know and understand best practices for visual design for things like typography, color theory, icons, layout, etc. ·         User research and usability testing To design a product aimed at solving a problem for a user or fulfilling their needs, a designer must be able to understand the user. This is done through conducting user research that focuses on understanding behaviors, needs, and motivations through interviews, surveys, usability evaluations and other forms of feedback methodologies. As one develops prototypes, user testing will be conducted to validate the design choices. Knowing how to iterate through these two user-centric phases can help make one a more effective designer.  <h4 style="margin-left:.5in;text-indent:-.25in;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1; background:white">·         <span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:Gautami; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;color:black;mso-color-alt:windowtext;font-style: normal">Information architecture <span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:Gautami; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;color:windowtext;mso-color-alt:windowtext; font-style:normal"></h4> The way content is organized in any product directly affects its usability. Information Architecture involves effectively organizing and structuring content. UX designers can help the users find the information they are looking for and navigate through the product effortlessly through IA.  <p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" style="margin-top:.25in;margin-right:0in; margin-bottom:0in;margin-left:.5in;mso-add-space:auto;text-indent:-.25in; line-height:normal;mso-list:l0 level1 lfo1;background:white">·         Application development It is an advantage for UX designers to have an understanding of application development, including languages like JavaScript, CSS, and HTML. Such knowledge enables them to have realistic expectations of what is possible in their design and make it easier for them to communicate with the development team.

Posted on 9/6/22

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