📰 3 DESIGN ARTICLES
17 GIFT IDEAS FOR UX DESIGNERS
- Each year, Team Designlab curates a list of fun, useful, and just plain hilarious gifts for designers. This year does not disappoint (we may be biased).
THE AURA OF CARE IN UX
- In this article, Stephen Farrugia takes an impassioned look at how businesses commercialize UX, using it as a monetization tool, rather than an empathetic way to support their customers.
- One of the first examples Farrugia uses is the customer backlash that occurred when the Airbnb interface hid additional costs until the final checkout page. Rather than address the real issue (the inflating prices of those hidden fees), the company chose to implement a deceptive UX pattern.
- “UX needs to make clear distinctions between commercial design work and design as a social good so the aura of care is not just an aura. Until that happens we’ll continue to see the worst companies hire the best people to help them make the worst things.”
A FRAMEWORK FOR INTERVIEWING CUSTOMERS
- Looking for a framework to help you structure your customer interviews? Here’s a useful guide from Poornima Mohanas and Rahul Mohandas that walks through types of interviews, sample questions, and more.
- Depending on which stage of the product life cycle you’re in, the customer interview questions have a different goal. In the discovery phase, for example, questions tend to gravitate towards open ended questions about goals, challenges, frustrations, and day-to-day activities.
- “In an era of ever-faster product innovation, you should build products for customers that revolve around their pain points. Once you start talking to customers, the adrenaline rush that you get will keep you wanting more.”
PORTFOLIO INSPIRATION 💜
Alex Tam, a UX Academy graduate, uses strong typography, layout, and whitespace to showcase exceptionally strong UI and UX skills throughout this highly aesthetic portfolio. Each case study is presented in a clear, easily-scannable manner, making it easy to click through—and become captivated by the design process walkthrough.
Got a portfolio you love that you’d like to share with our audience? Email your suggestions to hello@designlab.com.
INTERESTING STUFF ...
- UK watchdog slams the brakes on Adobe’s bid for Figma
- 3 ways to boost app retention without gamification
- What is quality anymore?
- Google announces Photo Stacks
- Usability labs: cool or old school?
Design is the silent ambassador of your brand. - Paul Rand, designer of the IBM logo
FROM THE LAB
MASTER DATA & DESIGN
A new cohort of Data-Driven Design is coming up in February. Gain a strong proficiency in data and connect with other successful designers and mentors throughout this 6-week course, where you’ll work hands-on with real data sets and connect with other successful designers and mentors.
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