Each website, e-commerce site, or app is designed with specific recipients in mind. It is important that the final digital product is tailored to its users’ needs and requirements and meets their expectations. How to find out what our future clients care about? This is one of the tasks of our interlocutor. Adam, a UX solutions specialist at You’ll, shared with us the details of his daily work.

What is UX and UI for you?
Adam Kuźma: UX stands for User Experience Design, which is a process of creating meaningful and relevant experiences and interactions between the user and a product or website, enabling them to perform selected tasks efficiently and smoothly. UI (User Interface Design) is responsible for the presentation and is a visual point of interaction through which the user communicates with the product. UI is the look, the impression, and intuitive. The metaphor well illustrates it — after entering the restaurant, we see chairs, tables, and a place setting, i.e., the entire interior. UI is what we see right away. UX includes food, service, background music, and lighting. A positive experience after leaving the restaurant is a good UX.

How would you define the UX designer profession?
UX designer makes products and technologies useful, pleasant, and accessible to people. The UX designer is primarily responsible for representing the end user’s point of view.

Would you describe the first step of your work as a UX designer?
User research is the starting point and an essential part of the UX design process. Thanks to research, we get to know users, learn about their behavior, goals, motivations, and needs. They show how users navigate our system, encounter problems, and feel when interacting with our product. Research can be done by interviewing or surveying potential users of the product and testing prototypes. Empathy and understanding of the user are the overarching elements of all UX processes and research.

Describe the UX designer work process in practice — from idea to implementation.
The first step of UX designer work includes user research and analysis of sample solutions from competitors. This allows you to obtain the information and data that are the base of the project. This information can be synthesized into personas, a summary of qualitative and quantitative data in the form of fictional characters representing real users and their behavior. Having this information, the UX designer can start working on the product’s initial prototypes, which are tested by him for usability and possibly given to the UI designer for a visual setting.

What are the 3 essential skills in a UX designer? What should he pay special attention to?
In my opinion, it’s empathy and good communication. Empathy, which is the ability to understand why people behave the way they do. This is probably the most important quality in this field. Putting yourself in the user’s position is essential to work in UX design. Transparency in visual and verbal communication allows you to present complex concepts to colleagues with less knowledge in the field.

UX designer and UI designer — should these two functions remain separate?
Despite coexisting in the same field , UX designer and UI designer are two completely different functions, especially in terms of responsibility and work processes. Both of these positions are critical to the success of the product, and designers work closely together. The business value of a good project is more and more recognizable over time. UX and UI are relatively new roles, so some managers and recruiters still believe that the same person should perform them — hence the examples of combining competencies in one position.

What are the most common UX mistakes?
A common error is a flawed work process or skipping individual elements, e.g., starting the design phase without researching the target group and checking market trends. It is difficult for such projects to meet the expectations of users. Starting visual work without specifically establishing content and interactions can waste time.
Another common mistake is not using universal systems and design patterns familiar to users of computers, smartphones, or other technologies. Some designers let their creativity loose and use their own icons because they think they look beautiful. Often times, users won’t recognize what they mean unless there is the text under the icon. A commonly known but ugly icon will meet the user’s expectations better than a beautifully designed, unknown symbol.

Could you highlight current industry trends?
I would distinguish three main trends:
Animated illustrations — this is a popular element of digital products. They add a human touch to the overall user experience. Animated illustrations are a viral design element in apps. By applying motion to the illustrations, we can bring our products to life and make them stand out by showing an extra layer of detail and personality. Animations are also one of the most effective ways to tell a story about your brand, product, or service.
Microinteractions — are a great example of how a small change or subtle animation can make a massive difference. They can change the users’ overall impression of digital products and take them to a higher level. Every year, new technologies and devices enable innovative microinteractions.
VR — in recent years we have also seen great progress in VR, mainly in the gaming industry, which very often introduces innovations and new technologies to the design of digital products. New consoles and tools using VR would open many opportunities and increase room for growth for UX designers, forming a communication bridge between the latest technology and people.

Adam Kuźma: UX specialist, creator of functional and creative designs as well as mockups for websites, shops, and online services.

Web Design Companies:
https://www.designrush.com/agency/web-development-companies/trends/outsourcing-web-design-development-project