“User experience design as a discipline is concerned with all the elements that together make up that interface, including layout, visual design, text, brand, sound, and interaction,” according to the User Experience Professionals Association (UXPA). “User experience works to coordinate these elements to allow for the best possible interaction by users.”
According to the UXPA, the typical user experience design process is broken down into four phases: Analysis, Design, Implementation, and Deployment.
Analysis Phase
- meet with key stakeholders (e.g., clients, executives, programmers, marketing workers, engineers, quality assurance specialists, and other UX designers) to establish goals and the budget for the project
- conduct field studies in which data is collected about users, user needs, and product requirements; these studies involve both interviewing users and observing their behavior when they use similar products
- investigate similar products offered by competitors
- document user scenarios (i.e., every way in which users might potentially utilize the product)
- document user performance requirements (i.e., what they expect in regard to layout, visual design, text, sound, etc.)
- develop a task analysis (i.e., the steps that must be taken to create the product)
Design Phase
- brainstorm design concepts and metaphors (graphic elements that mimic or copy real-life objects like buttons)
- develop screen flow (the order in which users will see various interfaces as they navigate the product) and navigation models (which define where users start, how they navigate through the product, and all of the major elements of the product such as screens)
- develop a wireframe (a basic outline of navigation and content elements that make up a user interface)
- experiment with and test design concepts
- create prototypes on paper (these are known as low fidelity prototypes)
- conduct usability testing on low-fidelity prototypes
- convert approved low-fidelity prototypes to digital prototypes (which are known as high-fidelity prototypes)
- conduct usability testing again
- document standards and guidelines
- create design specifications for review by executives and customers
Implementation Phase
- conduct ongoing heuristic evaluations (a usability inspection method for software or hardware in which the interface is compared against accepted usability principles, commonly referred to as heuristics) to identify areas in which the product does not follow those principles
- fix design issues and any other problems that have been identified
- work closely with programmers, clients, and executives on various aspects of the design
- conduct usability testing
Deployment Phase
- use surveys to obtain user feedback
- conduct field studies to gather information about real-time use
- check objectives using usability testing
- when objectives are met, production of the finished product is started
- 3-D Printing Specialists
- Accountants
- Agile Coaches or Trainers
- Animators
- Art Directors
- Artificial Intelligence Specialists
- Audio Recording Engineers
- Audit and Assurance Accountants
- Auditors
- Augmented Reality Developers
- Automation Engineers
- Autonomous Vehicle Safety and Test Drivers
- Back-End Developers
- Big Data Developers
- Billing Clerks
- Blockchain Developers
- Bloggers
- Bookkeeping and Accounting Clerks
- Brand Ambassadors
- Business Continuity Planners
- Business Development Managers and Directors
- Business Intelligence Analysts
- Business Managers
- Cartoonists
- Chief Customer Officers
- Chief Executive Officers
- Chief Financial Officers
- Chief Information Officers
- Chief Information Security Officers
- Chief Robotics Officer
- Cloud Engineers
- Columnists
- Compliance Managers
- Computer and Office Machine Service Technicians
- Computer and Video Game Designers
- Computer Network Administrators
- Computer Programmers
- Computer Support Specialists
- Computer Systems Programmer/Analysts
- Computer Trainers
- Computer-Aided Design Drafters and Technicians
- Content Management Specialists
- Copywriters
- Credit Analysts
- Cryptocurrency Specialists
- Customer Service Representatives
- Customer Success Managers
- Cybersecurity Architects
- Data Entry Clerks
- Data Processing Technicians
- Database Specialists
- Deepfake Professionals
- Digital Advertising Workers
- Digital Agents
- Digital Designers
- Digital Marketing Workers
- Digital Workplace Experience Engineers
- Directors of Corporate Sponsorship
- Driverless Car Engineers
- Editorial Assistants
- Editorial Research Assistants
- Editors
- Electrical Engineering Technologists
- Electrical Engineers
- Electronics Engineering Technicians
- Electronics Engineers
- Embedded Systems Engineers
- Enterprise Architects
- Ergonomists
- E-Sports Professionals
- ETL Developers
- Financial Analysts
- Financial Consultants
- Financial Institution Officers and Managers
- Financial Institution Tellers, Clerks, and Related Workers
- Fraud Examiners, Investigators, and Analysts
- Full Stack Developers/Engineers
- Geospatial Analytics Specialists
- Graphic Designers
- Graphics Programmers
- Green Marketers
- Growth Hackers
- Hardware Engineers
- Health Informaticists
- Hedge Fund Investor Relations Specialists
- Help Desk Representatives
- Industrial Designers
- Information Assurance Analysts
- Information Security Analysts
- Internet Consultants
- Internet Content Curators
- Internet Developers
- Internet Executives
- Internet Marketing and Advertising Consultants
- Internet of Things Developers
- Internet Quality Assurance Specialists
- Internet Security Specialists
- Internet Store Managers and Entrepreneurs
- Internet Transaction Specialists
- JavaScript Developers
- Live Streamers
- Machine Learning Engineers
- Magazine Editors
- Market Research Analysts
- Marketing Consultants
- Marketing Managers
- Media Planners and Buyers
- Media Relations Specialists
- Microelectronics Technicians
- Mobile Software Developers
- Model View Controller Developers
- Motion Graphics Artists
- Multimedia Artists and Animators
- Multimedia Sound Workers
- Mutual Fund Marketing Specialists
- Network Operations Center Engineers
- Network Operations Center Technicians
- Newspaper Editors
- Office Administrators
- Online Gambling Specialists
- Online Journalists
- Online Producers
- Online Reputation Managers
- Personal Privacy Advisors
- Podcasters
- Product Development Directors
- Product Management Directors
- Product Managers
- Product Owners
- Radio Frequency Identification Device Specialists
- Sales Development Representatives
- Sales Representatives
- Salesforce Developers
- Scrum Masters
- Search Engine Optimization Specialists
- Semiconductor Technicians
- Site Reliability Engineers
- Smart Building Systems Designers
- Social Media Influencers
- Social Media Workers
- Software Application Developers
- Software Designers
- Software Engineers
- Software Quality Assurance Testers
- Special and Visual Effects Technicians
- Systems Setup Specialists
- Technical Support Specialists
- Technical Writers and Editors
- Technology Ethicists
- Telemarketers
- Unity Developers
- Video Game Art Directors
- Video Game Producers
- Video Game Testers
- Visual Interaction Designers
- Webmasters
- Writers