Function and form go hand-in-hand.
I am a problem solver who cares about crafting products that are useful, usable, and beautiful. I solve real-world problems by creating digital experiences that empower the user while staying true to established brand guidelines.
I understand the perfect user interface should look good, but it should work even better. Alongside stakeholders, I uncover problems, offer pragmatic solutions and ensure the vision is executed all the way through the development process.
You know you have achieved a great customer experience when users feel comfortable engaging with all your brand has to offer.
Customers should feel comfortable and secure whether they are inside your store front, engaging with your mobile apps and websites, and utilizing your products. If everything they see, touch and interact with feels familiar to them, your brand will flourish. Because happy customers are exceptional marketers for any company.
When it comes to holistic solutions, I shoot for no less than the moon 🙂
How do I approach UX?
Define the problem.
I try to clearly understand what problems stakeholders are trying to solve by asking questions specific to product pain points and the corresponding business objectives.
Hash it out.
This is the time where I like to get the key players from design and development into a room to brainstorm, sketch out ideas, tweak user personas and workflows, uncover any obstacles, etc. Essentially do whatever it takes to gain team consensus on a holistic vision and execution plan.
Ideas in a layout.
Layouts can be wireframes or fully designed static screens. Prototyping is the best way to get a feel for the product workflow. Iterating and ironing out all of the kinks before handing off to the development team will help ensure an efficient and effective development process.
What worked? What didn't?
Whether it's early prototype testing or evaluating the final release of a product I gather feedback from users and stakeholders and start an evaluation process to address any issues that surface.
Use Guerrilla UX.
Create a targeted and pragmatic UX process to achieve quick results.
Guerrilla UX: a time management process.
Let’s face it.
Digital teams would love to have the time and resources to properly vet problems through extensive user-centered research and testing for each and every project. Sadly, this is not always possible in the real world.
Business goals and objectives can trounce the UX/UI design process at almost every turn. Your team must be able to adapt quickly but also deliver effective results.
Guerrilla UX to the rescue!
In situations where I have very little time to dedicate to extensive user research, I take a regular UX research method and altered it to reduce time and cost.
The basic structure consists of:
- Stakeholder feedback
- Assess available user feedback
- Competitive analysis
- Create user workflows
- Create wireframes
- Iterate based on additional feedback
Throughout my career, I have discovered that a number of problems can be solved by using this agile process. Companies sometimes use an elaborate UX process when it is not needed. There are many successful companies who have invested time and money to solve many shared problems. Study their workflows. If they are sound, expand upon and adapt them to your needs.
Use the time and money saved to explore ideas that truly differentiate you from your competitors.
The power of good UI and how it enhances engagement.
Visuals make digital products approachable as they bridge functionality and aesthetics.
Digital products with a good user interface give a competitive edge in a constantly growing world where companies are starting to realize the importance of a good user experience. Sound functionality and good visuals are extremely important in establishing a brand and relationship with users.
I implore a visual hierarchy as a core design discipline in all of my UI designs to provide clear navigation and an intuitive interaction system. I organize UI components in a way so the brain can distinguish the objects by their physical differences including color, size, weight and the surrounding negative spaces.
