WHAT'S THE PROCESS ?
As UX designers, we follow the standard double diamond method a.k.a. E.D.I.T. (Explore-Define-Ideate-Test) process to enhance user experience while creating or redesigning products. This iterative mothodology consists of mnay individual steps (Explore- Problem understanding, Secondary research, Competitor ananlysis, Stakeholder interview, Primary research, User interview, Define- Affinity mapping, Empathy maping, Persona & Scenario, Problem statement, Ideate-User journey, Task flow, Card sorting, Information architecture, Wireframing, AB testing, Prototyping, Test-Guerilla testing, Prototyping, Realtime uesr testing, feedback incorporation etc.) But each work comes with a unique type of challenge and it is important to know why were are doing it on each step. That’s why it is important to have a strategy.
HOW TO STRATEGIZE ?
Businesses build products to serve users which creates a market. Designers are the experts who bridge the gap between user and the product to create better experience. In industry, we design particular products which fits a particular market. That’s why it is essential to understand the product-market context. Example- To redesign an existing product for an existing market, competitor analysis is an important process for benchmarking solution ideas. Compared to that, to design a new product for which there are no competitors in the market, ideation and innovation are most important. Product-market strategy helps understanding the importance of each step.
In recent times, the line between service and product are disappearing. Most successful businesses have multiple products in an unified service model. Exapmle- Amazon, Uber, Facebook and many more. A product can be customer facing or internal user facing. Design must be relevant to the overall service. This is why it is impotant to know where the product is positioned and in which service design model.
HOW TO CONTEXTUALIZE ?
Everything exist within a context. Design exists within the context of users, business and technology. Design process should be contextualized by strategizing. Similarly a designer’s contribution should be evaluated based on scope of work and roles & responsibilities. The ask can be to do just research or ideate or to do everything from end-to-end. The outcome can be a result of individual or collaborative work. The above mentioned framework which inludes strategy, process and scope, is used to describe each work for better understanding.