Speeding to the market with a sustainable idea is tough for any startup, especially when the rush to prototype mentality is such an integrated part of the process. However, with failure rates in the high 70 to 80 percentiles, many startups cannot afford NOT to prioritize a level of understanding of how or why their soon to be users gravitate to a specific experience.

The drawback of course that many will point to is lack of time. Time not only determines how fast we move in the startup community, but also the decisions that come with it and unfortunately research is usually the first to go. Why is research not held at such regard as acutal design or development you might ask. Well, the answer is simple…research determines the longevity of an idea, and the failure to do so usually shows its head well beyond development and design have turned the corner.

You can sometimes hide ineffective design with good development, and at times great design can mask inefficient functionality. You can’t hide understanding, no matter how amazing the app may be.

What is design research?

Design research is the ability to understand the many reasons of design decision making. The study of its purpose in creating an application and the process of arriving to its conclusion…but what does this mean for an application that hasn’t launched to the market? By understanding your users, the market landscape, you are then better equipped to create an experience that focuses around those findings. It’s like preparing to write a thesis. Of course, you can jump in and begin writing on a topic that you may be familiar with, but the true understanding comes from engrossing yourself into the learnings that are available to you. As a result, your ‘paper’ or in our case an application is then better positioned for success.

After all, the ultimate goal of all research is not objectivity, but truth
- Helene Deutsch

Today, we are going to take a very high-level view of understanding your competitors, the platforms and use cases that they are solving for, and a few exercises to try as you wrap your head around creating a better experience.

Competitive Analysis

Figuring out where your app is placed within the market is pivotal, and a competitive analysis tackles these questions head on. This analysis central focus is to look at your direct and indirect competitors with a magnifying glass, finding how they work, why it works, and what isn’t working.

In most cases, there’s usually a brief understanding of this within startups. The idea is usually driven by seeing a void within the market, or seeing a competitor that hasn’t solved for a problem. To create a sustainable design, however, we must dive into this a bit deeper for this to guide our decision making.

To begin laying the foundation of a competitive analysis, here are a few brief questions to begin with:

• Primary Solution — What services/solutions do your competitors provide, and what would you consider as their primary service or solution?
• Age and Demographic of their target audience — What is their primary user base? Who do they target from a marketing standpoint? Where are they located and how often would they use this service and why?
• Brand Voice — What terms would you associate to their brand voice? How does their imagery, color theory, and tone approach these characteristics? (Is it playful and illustrative or sleek and intuitive. Do they use imagery to convey messaging or do they use iconography and illustrations?)

Try this: Do you use Uber? If so, then you should be familiar with other ride sharing applications in the market like Lyft or Curb. If not, pick an app or service that you love to use. Now, list out some of the competitors that you know of and compare them using the above questions as a guide. Uber and Lyft may be very similar services but their brand positioning, and who they target can differ in various ways. How does your list compare between each other?

Platform Analysis

Now that you have a good sense of what your competitors’ solutions are and for whom they are solving these problems for, let’s consider understanding the platforms that are used to solve this issue. Here are a few additional questions to get you started:

• Primary platform — What percentage of users are on a mobile device vs desktop application or web? If this is a downloadable application, where are they ranked in these app stores (Note their ranking markets that coincide with their user base)? This information is important in determining whether their positioning is in line with who their target market is. It can also provide you with the know-how and knowledge on how you can capitalize within these associated areas.
• Use Case — How do these users interact with this application within the realms of their day to day lives? Is the primary use case within the comfort of their home or office, or is it something more specific like an airport kiosk or bookstore? As you go through the process of understanding these users, take note at where and why they use these platforms and in what scenarios do they come into play.
• Product Life Cycle — Understanding where a product started and how it has grown over time can be pivotal in gaining more knowledge in your market. What functionality have you seen take place over time in these applications, and how has the reception been for your ideal user base.

Try this: Do you like coffee? Find your favorite coffee shop or clothing store and jot down what products or applications are being used in the checkout process. If you noticed, apparel stores like Nike allow their staff to handle transactions using a mobile phone for a quick and effortless checkout process. Philz and Starbucks use many forms of mobile integrations from phone to tablet to solve for a similar problem of creating faster buying experiences. Does the application that you are designing fit into a similar paradigm? What applications are being used at these locations and how are they approaching commerce?

Experience Centered Research

This is where we get into the nitty gritty of the applications and based on the first two categories you should have a good understanding of who you are solving for. Here are a few questions that can be asked:

• Getting in the door — Now that you have downloaded these applications, take note on how the solutions, brand voice, and target market, come into focus in the experience. Is there a video or gif that introduces you to the app and how does that make you feel as a new user (or a returning user)? How quickly are you able to encounter the primary service? Is there a Paywall or signup flow that you should go through before integrating fully into the experience? What friction points are created by experiencing these areas?
• Integrations anyone? — For many social applications, you can utilize other pre-existing social accounts to speed the process of bypassing a signup/onboarding flow. Do your competitors use something similar, or is this truly necessary for your app? What other integrations have you noticed, and what integrations have you discussed as being a primary use case for the service you are providing? This could be anything from payment processing to social interactions, list out the integrations and compare/contrast how your competitors have approached them.
• Returning users — What are ways that users are encouraged to return to the experience? Is gamification key in introducing new features and rewards? How are notifications introduced and utilized in the overall experience? What is the timetable from signing up to being introduced to your first notification? How frequently do you receive updates via email or push/grow notifications? Compare across your market.

That’s it for now! In Part 2 we will discuss how this research comes into play in creating a plan of action for an MVP product. What’s important, and what can be prioritized later for shipping a product to the market.

The Importance of Pre-Design Research Part 1: How answering the whys can make or break an MVP was originally published in mediasans on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

Solving the problem: consistent, updatable styling that’s adaptable for any mobile screen size

You’ve designed countless UIs, from mobile Commerce to social apps, but haven’t found a way to create a system that can translate across multiple projects. As you stare at those 50+ screens that you designed for iPhone, your now struggling to figure out how to translate those same designs to a smaller or larger device, in a timely yet efficent manner. Of course, you’ve nailed down the export feature in Sketch for various resolutions, but that doesn’t get you to the finishline of seeing an updated UI, on a iPad, quickly and easily, and that’s where Lilac Studio comes in.

What is Lilac Studio?

Lilac Studio is what we call a UI system. A high quality UI kit that not only gives you screens and styles, but nested components that can be easily interchangable and scalable across various screens. Lilac Studio not only gives you the foundation to walk, but the know how to run through a new project quickly and easily. Nested components allows us to simplify our symbols to be flexible enough to be reused across various functional areas.

A UI Kit at its core, but much much more…

So let’s say that you want to create a symbol that can translate across multiple screens, for various purposes. How would you go about creating a symbol that not only doubles as a navigational element but also for form input and tables? Want to allow for responsiveness too? Sounds complicated? Well it could be. Check this out…

Input Fields that resize in Sketch? No Way.

Yes..way, in many ways the Lilac Kit allows for various customizations, including resizing input fields within your designs while keeping the aspect ratios of symbols as they should be, all while utilizing standard Sketch abilities (no plugin needed).

Brand colors from the style guide filters down to components, icons, field states, and backgrounds etc.

Want to show an error state with or without an icon? Done.

Tables that can change to fields and back again

Nested tables with interchangable overrides, plus the same flexibility that comes with the above input example gives you a powerful way of adjusting things on the fly. Below is an example of the same table component, being utilized with various overrides from icon to text to color. This give designers the flexibility of creating different functional elements without having to create them separately.

That’s all well and good, but what about content?

Within the 40+ high fidelity mockups we’ve included examples of articles, blog entries, and other content that uses the Lilac component library. Every card has its own variety of combinations, including but not limited to CTAs, icons plus text combinations, feed examples and much more. Mix and match to your hearts content.

I only see one screen size, how does this translate to iPhone X and iPad?

*Insert evil laugh*

Not only is each component resizable, but if you change the size of your artboard to match a different screensize, we’ve already included the native resizing ques from Sketch to adjust appropriately. Now, you have the same iphone screen, across 3 different devices with little to no adjustments necessary.

When to expect the release and how much will it cost?

We are finishing the final touches of the Lilac 1.1 Kit this week and releasing the update shortly after. For $35.00, you will receive the kit plus any additional updates to Lilac Studio. We plan to continue to update our component library as well as add even more screens.

What’s included in the 1.1 release:

• 40+ Screens of High Fidelity Mockups (not just wireframe, these designs are ready to go)
• 40 Icons
• 7 Categories
• Nested Components
• Editable Styles for Color and Typography
• Editable Styleguide that syncs across all screens
• Responsive symbols with native Sketch resizing
• Updates! (whenever we push a new update, screens or components for this dedicated kit, you’ll receive it no questions asked)

Want to find out when we release, follow us!

Speed through your workflow with Lilac Studio, a tiny but powerful UI System was originally published in mediasans on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

So here you are, sitting in that office chair now awaken to what you may call the designer’s matrix. You’ve seen the benefits of working from home first hand and can’t imagine a life where your cubicle becomes your forever workplace. You’ve seen others like you unplug from that chair and now its your turn to take the plunge…but before you endulge in that red pill of remote working and fall down that rabbit hole, let’s get you prepared.

Oh where or where did my designer go?

If you could ask each of your clients what their biggest fear in working with a remote designer is, communication is sure to be at the top. With all the benefits that remote working brings, communication is usually one of the first to drop if you’re not fully engaged with your projects and clients. To build an easier communication channel, create a process for you and your clients to follow, so that for any stage of the project’s lifecycle you are prepared. Here’s a few things to keep in mind…

Initial communication: (Contract negotiations, project briefs, and scheduling)

For those initial contacts, email and phone works perfectly fine here. This is a stage where you and your client are feeling each other out as far as project specifics and expectations. This is also the time where being fully transparent is highly pivotal to ease any concerns and creating a good foundation that your relationship will build from. Your schedule, how you handle reviews, pricing, and project management should all be discussed now so that once the ball begins to roll you can spend more time doing what you do best. Add in a video conferencing tool such as uber conference or hangouts, and you now have the ability to build trust across multiple channels.

Project Management: (Updates, Milestones)

This is where we enter the rabbit hole, you were able to land that great project and now its time to show up to the dance. Communication throughout the project is a must have, and here are a few ways that you can approached this. First, you need a real-time communication tool. Using Slack (Hipchat, Skype, Fuze to name a few others) allows for any communication to happen, as far as answering questions and detailing items within the process…but be careful, this should not replace your scheduled updates with the client. Use a video conference tool for those (your clients will thank you for this). Why? It helps to remove levels of misinterpretation that can happen through a chat tool, saving time and explanations in the long run. Tone and approach can be interpreted differently as a reader, and when your asking for feedback/input save those scenarios for either conference calls or video.

Work | Life Balance

One of the biggest things that happens when you become fully remote, is now your lifestyle becomes even more integrated with the way you work. If you choose to stay at home or travel abroad, make sure that everything work related is accounted for. Create specific times during the day for calls, times where you can work, and times where you can unwind. That way, your not having to reschedule meetings due to yoga class and your clients know exactly when you are available to chat just in case something comes up.

The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.
- Stephen Covey

You will also have to consider time zones and how that effects your schedule. If your client is based in New York and your on the west coast, buffer overlapping time slots so that you can be fully engaged with them and their availability. Same goes for managing time abroad.

Boast creativity by mixing up location

Instead of being fixated to your desk at home, changing the scenary can also bring new and refreshing ideas to your projects. Love coffee? Start by picking out a few coffee shops in your area and spend time during the day working from them. Once you gain the confidence in your schedule, pack a bag for a few days and travel. Becoming the ONE isn’t easy, but with adquent planning and a hunger to succeed you’ll cross that off your list in no time.

Build a remote working attitude and free your mind to get sh*t done was originally published in mediasans on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.

You have work, school, family, relationships, and a social life. Juggling all of these items while maintaining a sense of concentration can seem overbearing, but with these easy to use techniques you can tackle the most daunting of tasks head on.

Step 1: Recognizing your flaws

One of the biggest things that you can do immediately that will help to turn things around is identifying your problem areas. Do you have a tendency to wait to the last minute before tackling tasks (because of course, you work better under pressure)? Or do you spend too much time or attention towards one area of your life over others? A healthy balance is key in a happier lifestyle, and planning ahead of time so that your not under the gun with only hours before a presentation will help tremendously in the long run.

Nothing is more rewarding then having something ‘come up’ that could potentially derail an assignment, knowing that you planned ahead to have some buffer time available.

Step 2: Upgrade your workflow

Yes, it is time to upgrade from that endless iNote or planner that you have and diversify. Of course adopting a bunch of applications that will sit on your phone unused can be just as bad, but adding a few apps that fit well into your workflow can be a big win as you adjust into a busier schedule. Here’s a look at our apps of choice and a few others that will definitely help you hit the ground running.

Calendars

• Cal (What we use)
• Google Calendar
• iCal

Online Storage

• Dropbox (What we use)
• Google Drive
• Box
• Amazon Cloud Drive

Mail

• Cloudmagic Email (What We Use)
• Gmail
• AirMail

Time Tracking:

• Billings Pro (What We Use)
• Toggl
• Timely
• Hours

Communication

• Slack (What we use)
• Hipchat
• Skype
• Yammer

Note taking

• Evernote (What we use)
• Day One
• Notes

Step 3: Mobile task handling

With busy schedules comes less time to sit in front of your computer, so adding a method not only to keep track of those todos but also a better way of completing them is equally important. We use Gone, the task management tool for iPhone, to not only collaborate with others but to check off tasks and todos no matter where we are. There’s also others like Trello, Any.do, and some of the above mentioned apps include similar functionality that may be proven to be beneficial as well. In any case, being able to assign or manage what you have on your plate throughout the day is a positive in producing better results.

Step 4: Set time away for yourself

Last but certainly not least, rewarding yourself with time away from both work is as important as getting work done. We have all been there before…taking a ‘vacation’ with laptop stowed, sneaking to look at emails at the dinner table, it happens.

From telecommuting to programs that make work easier, technology has helped our lives in many ways. But it has also created expectations of constant accessibility. The work day never seems to end.

— 6 Tips for a Better Work-Life Balance by Deborah Jian Lee (Forbes)

When is the last time you have completely removed the notion of work during a time when you told yourself that you were taking time away? If your answer flirts with “I don’t know” or a few weeks ago, you may want to take some me time again to do something that you love. Take a few hours to do that thing that you always wanted to do. You will feel refreshed, rejuvenated and ready to tackle the next work week.

The author is the founder and principle designer at Mediasans, a full service creative agency based in California, and creator of Gone, the mobile first task management tool.

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Boosting your productivity with a busy schedule was originally published in mediasans on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.