3 UX Strategies for Enhancing Product Design
1. Observe Patterns
Consistency reduces the need for users to re-learn how your product works.
As a rule of thumb, I make the case to use established UI or interaction patterns when the proposed interaction is common and already well understood by the majority of users.
Whether this is a navigational UI, placement of UI or other habitual elements, it makes sense to follow established patterns rather than create new ones for the user to learn.
There are times for designers to innovate — and times to heed patterns.
Consider looking at several mobile apps or web products, placements of navigation are located usually around the sides and near the very top or very bottom of an app.
Why? This is because the eye scans those areas first when looking for certain UI and it is out of the way of the main content. Disrupting this pattern can cause confusion for users adjusted to a certain placement of UI.
This is not to say that designers must strictly adhere to such patterns and never seek change, rather it is a generally a wise choice (or at least a safe choice) to consider similar products and the current ecosystem in which the UI pattern you are creating already exists as a common pattern. That is also what your users are most accustomed to.
2. Ease of Use
Onboarding is one area where a concise and efficient experience with high ease of use leads to engagement/retention while the opposite will result in churn. Consider the following as inputs into the ease of use of your product:
- Efficiency
- Effectiveness
- Engagement
- Tolerance for mistakes
- Learnability (or a low barrier for getting started)
All the qualities above influence the user’s level of satisfaction, when their goals, mental models, tasks and requirements are all met.
3. Be Competitor Savvy
Be aware of your product’s strengths and weaknesses relative to its competition.
To stand out and win customers or your industry area, consider studying what the top aspects are that are the most valuable to your customers.
If your competitors are beating you, consider what are the top things you can do to catch up. Learn how to distinguish your brand and stay engaged with your audience over a time.
Part of being a designer is cultivating sensitivities.
Well design school may teach you to have an eye for a pleasing aesthetic, correct use of color schemes or understanding how to adjust for different design languages, I find that as a working designer, it is also helpful to develop a sense of your product relative strengths and weaknesses among its competitors.
