Tools n Techniques Article Series
By nature, a UX designer’s job is to make the user’s experience better, including our own. We’re are often curious to see how other designers are using different tools and techniques to get better findings, work more efficiently, or help convey information. At meetups, attendees often ask me what resources I can provide for a UX activity, but there usually isn’t a lot of time to go into details beyond mentioning an article or book for them to google later.
The Articles
To put a little more substance beyond mentioning an article or book, I’m starting a series of articles on tools and techniques that I keep in my UX toolbox. These are tools and techniques that I’ve tried — repeatedly — so not something I’ve stumbled across and got excited about (although that does happen), but something that’s been iterated and adapted for different situations and worked well, so much that they’re now a part of my UX process.
In each article, I’ll go over the basics: the purpose, any supplies needed, how to use the tool/technique, and references to resources. Some of these methods aren’t going to be anything new. It’s stuff I’ve read in books or learned in workshops, but it’s all stuff I’ve put into practice and can speak to how well they’ve worked. So, think of these articles as part Instructable and part Yelp review.
Most of these tools and techniques can be done with very little budget or supplies. This is ideal if you’re learning about UX and can’t invest a lot or have a small budget. Even if you have a nice budget, why spend more when you can spend less and get similar results?
As you try some of these tools/techniques out, I recommend starting small (either on your own or for a small project) to see how well it works for you before trying it out with a larger team or project. Let me know how they work for you or if you create any variations for your UX toolbox.
Join in the Sharing!
If you have tools or techniques that are part of your toolbox, I encourage you to write about them or share them at a meetup in your community (e.g., lightning talk, local conference, etc.). So much of our field is improved based on our experiences that sharing is a great way to help new and current UXers, as well as help strengthen the field itself.
exploreUX’s Tools n Techniques In-Person Series
If you’re in the Raleigh-Durham area, exploreUX and Triangle UXPA is hosting a monthly Tools n Techniques series, where current UX practitioners share their favorite tools/techniques(from hacks to methodologies) that make their job easier.
