Design thinking needs to challenge conventional thought process. That’s when innovation happens

Before, the outset of book buying and delivering companies like Flipkart or Amazon in India, the whole book purchasing experience was mostly going to the bookstore, browsing the books and then buying what you like with limited options of payment like cash or occasionally card payments. Chances were you won’t even find a book you really have your heart set on because bookstores have a limited capacity of stock holding. User experience to the rescue- Consequently, Amazon has overturned the very idea of book buying and delivery solutions from across the world to your doorsteps. Today Amazon dominates the online shopping industry. As Brian Reed says, ‘everything is designed. Few things are designed well.’   Amazon is all about delivering a premium user experience by keeping the customers’ needs as the foundation.   Amazon operates through websites, mobile apps, m-sites and what not. Amazon promises each customer a personalized shopping experience, a wide range of...

Have you noticed how the tea kettle is designed? Why is it designed differently from other pots that hold liquids like water? It is because the tea kettle holds boiling hot liquid which needs to retain that temperature till it gets consumed.  It also needs to serve the purpose of pouring the hot tea into small cups, without it getting cold while doing so. Hence the kettle is designed with a handle to lift the hot pot. A spout is incorporated so that the liquid can be carefully poured into the small cups with ease while retaining the required temperature. Now imagine using the regular water pot for storing and serving tea. You will probably end up burning your fingers; mess up the place while pouring tea and it will most likely be served cold! Human mind is capable of imagining far more sophisticated solutions to problems when we are faced with constraints. The kettle demonstrates that someone successfully overcame the problem of handling hot tea and could elegantly serve it...

Information Architecture — Navigation Navigation is the way in which a user will cruise through the information provided in the product to achieve his end goal. This is a crucial component because if the navigation does not guide the users properly, it can lead to frustration and eventually the product will end up losing the users. Information can be organized in many ways to make it available to the users in an efficient way. The different navigation patterns are: 1. Single page pattern: This is a very simple pattern meant for small websites where all information is fit into one single page 2. The flat pattern: This is meant for simple websites where the topics available are few and they all are arranged as peers, that is, no hierarchy. 3. The index pattern: This is a simple pattern with one single index page that points to different pages. 4. The hub and spoke model: This is where the users can access several workflows that start at a single poin...

Information Architecture — Labeling Labeling Labels represent bigger chunks of information. You can say it gives a visual representation of the structure of the information. Labels can be textual or iconographic. Types of labels Textual labels : These are texts which are hyperlinked to another page of information. It ideally tells in a word, what the user can expect if he clicks on it. The different kinds of textual labels are: 1. Contextual links: These are texts within a content which is hyperlinked to further information or to another page. 2. Headings: These are used to describe chunks of information. It has to be obvious and inform the sequence of the hierarchy. 3. Navigation systems: These are the labels used for navigation system. For instance, Main page, home page, search, FAQ, Contact us, About us etc. These labels should be consistent. 4. Index terms Iconic labels: These are labels that are pictorial and represent the information it can lead to or cont...

What is information Architecture? Imagine a national library where a person walks into find a book for reference. But upon reaching, he sees that the entire lot of books is piled up on the floor. He now has to pour through each pile to check where the book he wants is. Chances are that he eventually gets frustrated and walks out grumbling. That is, if he had not given up just upon seeing the pile of books in the first place. Would it have not been easier had each book been arranged in a certain sequence to make the task of selecting a book easier? The primary task of Information Architecture is to take the information (read it as an overload of information) in our hand and arrange and structure them to make it usable for the users. What is information Architecture? A kitchen is a place of everyday use. Most of the activity that happens in the kitchen is complex and between it all a few things are taken for granted because it is never thought about in any other way- the wa...

Difference between Interaction Designer, Visual Designer and Usability Expert — Continued Difference between Interaction Designer, Visual Designer and Usability Expert — Continued UX Design is a relatively new field which has rapidly gained importance and popularity for the development of digital products. Given its recent rise to the top as one of the most important aspects of digitalization there is still quite a bit of confusion regarding the different roles in the field of UX design. In this article, we will try to illustrate the difference between UX vs UI vs Research & Usability hopefully clearing some of the myths on the way. 1. UX/UI designer — UX and UI are not synonymous and there is nothing called a UX/UI designer. What is referred to as a UX/UI designer in the industry is often a generalist UX designer who can manage the end-to-end design process. Now, while this may work for a startup that is trying to save cost or smaller organizations still building the U...

Difference between Interaction Designer, Visual Designer and Usability Expert Difference between Interaction Designer, Visual Designer and Usability Expert The UX process is not a single element or activity, but a process where a series of activities are conducted to ensure that the product delivers a good user experience. It begins by understanding the business requirement, researching to know the users, then collating all these information to develop a wireframe which is later aesthetically prepared and developed. It all does not stop there. The product is further tested to make sure that it functions well and is taken well by the users. Now between all these activities, the lines or distinction between each process is blurred. Since a UX designer ends up performing more than just one part of the process, it is not surprising that such blurring occurs. Yet, there are some core processes which can be clearly demarked. UX Designers can become experts in these core processe...