Leveraging feedback-driven techniques in product design
The importance of using feedback as a driving force in the process of designing better products and how asking and receiving feedback play a crucial role in shaping and improving our iterative work.
As designers, we pour our hearts and souls into our work; let’s face it. We naturally feel a solid connection to what we create and take tons of pride in it, and when we receive feedback, it can be hard to detach ourselves from our designs. We might feel defensive, upset, or even angry if someone criticizes our work, and these emotions can cloud our judgment and make it tough to see the value in the feedback we receive.
To take feedback in stride, we need to develop a growth mindset. That means believing that our skills and experience can constantly be honed through hard work, time, and dedication; that’s why getting feedback from others may allow our career, products, and persona to scale. With little change in our perspective, we can view feedback as a chance to learn and grow rather than a blow to our ego or food for our beloved imposter syndrome monster.
When receiving feedback, it’s important to listen actively and without judgment. We might be tempted to explain why we made certain design decisions or defend our work, but doing so can prevent us from truly understanding the feedback and how we can improve our designs. Instead, we should listen to feedback with an open mind, ask questions for clarification, and try to see things from the feedback giver’s perspective.
It’s also crucial to remember that feedback doesn’t define our worth as designers. Just because someone critiques our work doesn’t mean we’re bad designers or our work has no value. Asking for feedback is simply an opportunity to enhance our designs and create better outcomes for our users, and as soon as we receive negative feedback, we should try to measure its accuracy and understand if it could be an opportunity to grow or something we don’t need to be concerned about.
And giving feedback can be just as tricky as receiving it. As humans, we have an innate desire to be liked and accepted, and when someone critiques what we have created, it can feel like a personal attack, but holding back on honest feedback doesn’t help anyone improve. So, let’s first focus on giving quality feedback in a way that doesn’t make others feel like they’re in the bullseye.
Giving Feedback
It’s pretty common for personal opinions to pop up during our design crit sessions, especially when discussing our subjective sense of taste and aesthetics. And that’s fine; we are free to express our personal judgment and taste. However, to be most supportive, we want to avoid letting our preferences interfere with potentially valuable feedback to our teammates. We should strive to provide feedback that is based on proven best practices, relevant data, or user needs, which could help change their perspective, approach, or decision for the better.
To give feedback effectively, we need to aim for a specific and actionable message. We want to avoid giving feedback like “I think,” “I like,” “I would,” or “I suggest.” Even if we smile or our tone and voice are relaxed, these phrases are shouting personal bias and preferences, which might not be really helpful. So, to provide clear and objective guidance, we should begin our feedback by expressing what works and what doesn’t work, or what could help instead.
What works
To address significant aspects of the design, we empathize with what enhances the experience or what can eventually be amplified. If we start by pointing out what works, we are halfway through an impactful and meaningful design crit session because we set a good tone right from the start, so the other designer is more open to listening, and it’s easier for them to believe that we are being objective and we aim for the best.
What doesn’t work
Defining what doesn’t work is a genuine way to identify inconsistencies and core problems within a design; of course, we should always focus our feedback on the design, not the designer.
What could help / could be improved
Expressing what could help is a gentle way to indicate possible improvements or changes within a design that are not contributing to the intended goals, are making it harder to communicate the intended message, or need more work and iteration. This helps to create a safe and respectful environment where the designer can receive feedback without feeling attacked or criticized, providing them the flexibility and freedom to act.
Receiving Feedback
While it’s easy to talk about actively listening and taking action on feedback, it can be challenging to put it into practice. That’s why we should foster a culture of feedback within our teams and make it a regular part of our work. Instead of waiting until the end of a project to seek feedback, we should seek it out at every stage of our design process. This ensures we catch issues early on and have time to iterate on our designs before it’s too late. But how do we ask for feedback?
How do we encourage others to share their thoughts in the context of a design solution? Let’s find out in ten actionable steps.
1. Provide the Context
At the beginning of our feedback request, we should provide a clear context regarding the product we are working on, its value proposition, and its purpose of being. This way, the reader will always keep in mind the product’s core values while reviewing our work.
2. Define the Core Problem/s
As Product designers, we know how important it is to define a real human need and then iterate solutions forward. Before asking for feedback, we should define a problem to refer to, and we can do it by simply quoting the task we’ve taken on, the How Might We question we are trying to answer, or summarizing the user needs/user story we’re trying to meet. This will help us stay on track and ensure that the feedback we receive is relevant.
By defining a precise problem, we provide context for others, and the more specific we are about the feedback we’re seeking, the easier it will be for them to answer.
3. Define the Stage
To help us focus on the right aspects of our design, it’s important to pinpoint at which stage of our process we’re at. This can generally range from: “Starting”, “Early stage”, “Midway” or “Completion”. And it can also be more specific than that defining the activity we’re taking on, such as “UX Research,” “User-flows”, “High-fidelity design”, and so on. This helps our colleagues understand where we are in the design process and what kind of feedback we need at that particular stage.
4. Be Mindful of Constraints
Constraints are a part of every design project, it’s what sets the rules of our products, and it’s important to define any constraints we’re working with in order to get accurate feedback. This could be the first time we’re using a particular tool or working with a new team. Providing context on the constraints we’re working with can help our fellow designers understand the challenges we’ve faced and the decisions we’ve made; besides, are boundaries that in design help to deliver excellent experiences.
5. Feedback Type
We want to be specific about the problem we are trying to solve, but it’s also crucial to address the type of feedback we want to receive from others. For instance, we can ask for feedback regarding the hierarchy, the layout, a specific interaction, and so on. We can also ask for feedback on specific areas, such as usability or accessibility.
6. Wrap up
After defining the problem, the stage, the constraints, and the type of feedback we want, one great way to prepare our design for feedback is to paste relevant screens into a collaborative whiteboarding environment like Figjam or Miro. By doing so, it would be effortless to receive proper feedback from our teammates.
7. Reaching out
By now, everything should be ready. It’s time to craft a brief message to send to our fellow designers or stakeholders, asking for their feedback.
A good way could be:
“Hey [colleague’s name], I’m working on [product], aiming to [briefly describe the problem or task], and I’m currently at [stage of the process]. I’m working with [briefly describe any constraints or limitations], and I’d love to get your feedback on [briefly describe the specific type of feedback you’re looking for].
By providing concise information upfront, we reduce the risks of generating confusion and give them a chance to come prepared even before looking at the design, making it easier for them to provide relevant and helpful feedback and save time for both parties.
8. Active Listening
By now, we have successfully asked for feedback; however, when we’ll receive it, it’s important to actively listen to what our colleagues have to say. We should try not to be defensive or dismissive of their feedback and remember that they are trying to help us create a better product. From here, we can take notes and also ask follow-up questions to clarify any points we’re unsure of.
9. Prioritize feedback
Not all feedback is equal. Some feedback will be more relevant and valuable than others, and if we receive multiple pieces of feedback, it’s important to prioritize them based on the design goals and project objectives.
10. Follow up
Once we’ve received feedback, following up with our colleagues or users to let them know how we’ve incorporated their feedback into our design can be great to show that we value their input and we are committed to creating a better product and stronger relationship by enhancing trust and collaboration within our team.
Great things are never done alone
Giving and asking for feedback is an essential part of our daily work as product designers, and we should strive to make feedback a two-way street by seeking out feedback from our colleagues and being open to constructive criticism, which helps us to take action. This may involve iterating on our designs, conducting user testing, or seeking out additional feedback from our colleagues.
Another best practice is to seek design feedback from a diverse set of stakeholders, including not only our designers but also managers and cross-functional colleagues who may have different perspectives and needs at any given time. By seeking out feedback from a variety of sources, we can create designs that are truly inclusive and meet the needs of our audience.
It’s easy to nod along and agree with received feedback, but it’s much more work to implement it in our designs, and we should view feedback as an ongoing process rather than a one-time event.
Start asking without hesitation; you might be surprised at the amazing ideas and solutions that come your way.
PS: You can download my Free Design Crit Template to effectively receive and give valuable feedback on design work. Happy designing!
