My Methodology
A peek into my mind to see how I think, work and do.
Welcome to My Web Portfolio
If you have stumbled so far down the rabbit hole, I sincerely thank you for your attention.
In this case study, I shall share with you my strategies and thought processes that go into each and every of my designs.
Step 1. Start with background information from everyone, especially the client stakeholders
An important step of the project which many junior designers miss out, it is extremely important for us, the experience designers, to understand the business and the brand. In fact, understanding what the brand means to a lower level executive (that 1 point of contact for every project) is much more important than hearing the visionary tales from their bosses. What exactly does their brand resonate? What exactly do people and customers think about their business?
Step 2. “Context, Context, CONTEXT!!!”
“GIVE ME THE CONTEXT”
People who have worked with me must have heard this a thousand times. True story.
We should not just design based on what requirements are given. As the designer, it is our responsibilities to really understand the background stories of every function and feature, how they are likely to be used, before we can start to design the solution.
Step 4. Write a Problem Statement
I find it enlightening to be able to pen down the problem and situation of a project in 1–2 sentences. No rocket science here — it should not be too long.
A well crafted Problem Statement proves that I have an innate understanding of the situation, as Einstein has said,
The problem statement isn’t easily written. I believe that it requires effort to understand the situation, and that is when we will be able to dig deep enough to cover the root problem.
Step 5. Define the Overall Objective
An Overall Objective comes immediately after the Problem Statement. If the problem statement says “brand awareness is bad”, the overall objective will likely be to improve the brand awareness.
The Overall Objective is having the end solution to the problem in mind.
It sets the strategy and vision of a project. While it may not be a common item for designers to think about, as a Strategist, I see it’s importance to be significant enough that all stakeholders should be agreeable to the Overall Objective before the project commences.
Step 6. Define the Design Objective
The Design Objective complements the Overall Objective, wherein it is here that we strategize what design approach to take in achieving the end objective.
Are we going to refresh the brand to give to target a younger audience, or are we going to rely on visuals to sell the story?
Defining the Design Objective is setting the art direction for the project.
Putting Everything Together
A project happens for 2 reasons: Something is broken; or Something is missing.
As a UX Strategist, it is important to understand the usefulness of writing Problem Statements and then defining Objectives to tackle said problem. If a something is broken with a project, I will apply my analytical and problem solving skills to pin-point the problem statement.
If something is missing, it is my job to to understand the context, requirements and gather insights to define Objectives for the project.
