UX Design Process: A Comprehensive Guide

What is a UX Design Process?

Starting with the basics. Imagine you’re paying for a pizza with a digital wallet. Your actions, the complexity of the process, your impression, and the chance of success turn into a unique user experience. To make it enjoyable, you need to take several key steps as a designer.

So the UX design process is like a roadmap to creating responsive experiences when people use a product. During the steps, you do your best to understand clients' needs and make products to solve their pains.

Importance of UX Design in Modern Product Development

Design plays a huge role in successful products. It helps craft positive experiences that meet user needs and ultimately increase satisfaction, engagement, and business success.

Following are the reasons why the UI/UX design process matters:

• User satisfaction: Good UX means an intuitive product. People are more likely to be satisfied and continue using it, as well as recommend it to their friends, colleagues, etc. Word of mouth.
• Better engagement: A well-designed experience keeps users engaged. When people can work their way around a product with ease, they use it longer; this in turn leads to increased retention.
• Reduced development costs: The deeper you go into development, the more expensive any changes are. So better early than late. If you invest in design early, you can identify issues and the target audience's needs before the final build is ready. With this strategy, you save money and effort.
• Better accessibility: One of the pillars of the UX design process is accessibility. The more people can use your product, the better, even if they have disabilities. For instance, your target audience is seniors. Nearly 28% of them probably have bad eyesight. So your product should offer high readability. It also helps meet legal requirements and widens the potential user base.
• Competitive advantage: In the sea of products, a thought-out user experience can give you extra points and set the product apart from its competitors. People will more likely choose an app offering a better experience than one with more features but a harder workflow.
• Higher conversion rates: For businesses, a good UX leads to higher conversion rates, whether that means more sales, sign-ups, or other desired actions. If people enjoy using the app, they complete their actions.
• User-centered innovation: Your team prioritizes the target audience’s needs and feedback so that the concept reflects what real users want.
• Brand loyalty: People with a positive experience are more likely to trust the brand and become loyal customers.

How the UX Design Process Evolved

The UX practice of design changed over the years, with technology, behavior, and philosophies of design changing over time. It developed from usability-central thinking towards a balanced, user-central practice with connotations, inclusions, and collaboration. That long journey reflects the value of creating successful products through the user experience.

The UX terminology started taking off with Don Norman at Apple in the early 1990s. As a famous designer himself, Norman stressed that all issues with interaction must be considered by the user and product in terms other than usability through to visual design.

Here’s a quick rundown of important milestones:

• The 1940s-1960s saw UX designers dealing with usability and function at its core. Products must have been easy to use but sometimes neglected the emotional aspect of behavior and interaction in terms of the user.
• Technology development saw UX designers valuing worth of knowing about requirements and behavior in terms of users, and with that, approaches in practice that are user-central saw studies of users becoming part of the practice.
• The 1980s saw an explosion in personal computers, with usability dominating. Principles in behavior psychology helped grasp thinking and decision processes in terms of users and make them use these principles in developing approaches for experiences that would become even more engrossing and persuasive in character. In addition, graphical user interfaces (GUIs) first saw significant improvement in usability and behavior.
• During the 1990s, web development created a boom in digital design, and a decade after that, software development practices like Agile began to present in UX design thinking processes. Iterative cycles of work became essential for designers, and quick prototyping and feedback turned out to be the norm. User testing, research, and creating personas were optional during that time.
• In 2010 and in today's times, attention to accessibility is high. Experts go out of their way to make a product accessible to disabled people and a range of background profiles. Now, with AI and machine learning added, our practice is about designing flexible experiences with voice interfaces and conversation design.

Key Elements of the UX Design Process

After all these years of evolution, the workflow has become complex, featuring different stages. Each of them is important: you can’t just simply skip one and pray for getting great results. That’s why it’s crucial to adhere to industry standards.

Here’s a simple breakdown of the UX design process steps:

Research

Start by learning about the potential users. Ask yourself a few questions. Who will utilize your product? What are their age, their hobbies, and their pain points? How will your app solve their goals?

Then conduct surveys with the target audience to gather information. Also, see how people interact with similar products—your competitors. Chances are, you will notice some cool features you can leverage or even improve in your product.

Ideate

This is the brainstorming phase. You take the information from research and then come up with as many ideas as possible to meet users' needs. Together with the team, you analyze each solution and discuss whether you should implement it. Will it actually help the users, how much will it cost, and will there be more problems than profit?

Design

At this stage, you create wireframes as blueprints of the product. They show the placement of the elements and frame positions. With their help, you can analyze user flows, predict potential issues, and solve them beforehand. It’s essential to check if the layout isn’t visually overloaded, as we all tend to add all the cool tricks we know.

Make sure there are as few steps as possible between the user and their goal, removing any unnecessary elements. Decide on colors and branding to make your product easy to recognize.

The next step of visualization is high-fidelity prototypes with animations. They show the looks of the final product, so you can use them for testing with the target audience. What’s more, if your app is cross-platform, you have to check how it looks on different screens.

Test

Share your prototypes with real users to see how they interact with the design. Gather feedback to understand what works and what doesn’t. Also, be sure to check accessibility, as many people have disabilities. This effort will greatly broaden your audience if you show you care for them.

To get a full review of the UI/UX design process, leverage various types of testing, for example:

• With or without moderators
• Remote or in-person
• Contextual inquiry
• Tree testing
• A/B usability testing
• Guerrilla testing

Iterate

Based on the feedback, make improvements and adjustments. This step may take a while. You run tests, get insights, build new prototypes, and start over until the product is just right. Sounds rather tedious but this stage is a must.

Evaluate

Even after the launch, you continue to gather user feedback from app stores and usability tests to improve the product over time. With product scaling, it’s important to balance the user flows and avoid visual overloading.

Implementing and Enhancing UX Design Processes

Being a creator of user experiences is all intriguing and engrossing. You crush down old walls to shape new forms, draw lines connecting user paths, and help people complete their actions. However, you have to keep your mind cold on both stages with several things solid in memory.

Let's begin with the implementation stage:

• Identify user personas: Each user is a unique person, with certain demographics, needs, and behavior. Still, that should not ruin your research. Take these qualities like clay and construct detailed user personas. These personalities will drive your design decisions to meet the expectations of real people.
• All-side collaboration: One soldier does not make a battle, however experienced they are. Grab your team and convince them to aid you in the design process and generate diverse perspectives. Regular progress sharing is key to addressing all needs.
• Focus on responsiveness: Sometimes a number of target platforms can make your eye twitch: tablets, smartphones, smartwatches, etc. Here, you can set on a path of a mobile-first approach to make your product work seamlessly on different devices and screen sizes. Still, don't neglect cross-platform testing to see where your design falls apart.
• Use design patterns: Construct a design system with consistent color, typography, and buttons. This way you hit two birds with one stone: get rid of mishmash on different screens and features as well as lessen the cognitive load of users.
• Accessibility best practices: Some parts of a target audience have disabilities, so they need help accessing and using the app to the fullest. Add proper color contrast for people with bad eyesight, VUI for hand-free access, alt text for images, etc.
• Metrics monitoring: Once released, utilize analytics to understand user interactions, task completion rates, and other key performance indicators. Use this data to plan your further enhancements.
• Stay updated about UX trends: Be in constant learning about emerging trends, new tools, and evolving best practices of UX design. Attend workshops, webinars, or follow influential designers to gain fresh perspectives.

Some of these tips, like keeping an eye on the trends, work for the improvement stage of the UX design thinking process as well. However, here are some more insights you can use to polish an existing design:

• Simplify navigation: Check if the current navigation is intuitive and straightforward, especially on smaller screens. Look through the menu items and limit them if necessary.
• Improve accessibility: With different guidelines such as WCAG, judge the level of accessibility. Add clear and legible fonts, appropriate color contrast, and alternative text for images.
• Enhance visual hierarchy: Enhance hierarchy using size, color, and spacing. CTAs should be highly recognizable and conspicuous.
• Optimize loading times: Users expect apps and websites to load in 3 seconds or less. Reduce image size and minimize code to improve page loading times. Speed testing should be performed routinely, with changes implemented based on the results of such testing.
• Mobile-first approach: See how the current design looks on mobile devices. Test the touch interaction for ease and efficiency of use.
• Microinteractions: Small animations or responses to users' interactions—like button clicks—make the user's experience more interactive and engaging. These kinds of interactions support a purpose but do not interfere with the main tasks.

Design Principles and Guidelines

The industry has been evolving for years, and it has developed many guidelines and standards. Some of them are less popular than others, however, using them along with the latest trends significantly increases your work’s quality.

Some popular design approaches include double diamond, design sprint, and design thinking.

Double diamond

The methodology was devised by the Design Council back in 2004, and it consisted of four UX design process steps: Discover, Define, Develop, and Deliver. They take up two diamond shapes.

The first diamond is about doubting the brief, defining the problem. The second one is exploring the possibilities where iteration, testing, and development are summed up.

• Discover: Explore the problem space. Gather insights to identify user needs by researching.
• Define: Synthesize your insights to articulate the problem you are solving clearly.
• Develop: This is where the creation of various solutions, prototyping, and testing are done to refine ideas.
• Deliver: Finalize the solution; prepare it for launch. Continuous improvement of the design through user testing and feedback is made in this stage.

Pros:

• Process clarity: It distinctly outlines the phases, and you work your way right through each stage efficiently.
• Fosters Divergent-Convergent Thinking: During the discovery phase, it allows creativity to flow through divergent thinking, while the convergent phase refines these ideas into an actionable solution.
• User-centered focus: Emphasizes the user’s needs through thorough research, your designs are more likely to resonate with the target audience.
• Iterative nature: Provides continuous improvement based on user feedback, where designs evolve to meet changing needs.

Cons:

• Time-consuming: It can be time-intensive, which might not suit projects with tight deadlines.
• Potential for scope creep: Without proper management, the extensive research and ideation phases lead to expanded project scope.
• Can feel rigid: You might find the structured phases too limiting and prefer a more flexible design process with rapid iterations and no distinct phases.

Design sprint

A design sprint is a time-constrained process for creating, prototyping, and testing ideas taught by Google Ventures. It usually takes one week and involves the following UX design process steps:

• Grasp the idea: The first stage embraces understanding the users, their needs, and the context of the problem through research and observation.
• Outline: Then you grind all this data like a true detective from a famous TV series to find the specific user needs you are trying to address.
• Sketch: You come up with a huge number of ideas and solutions without judgment to encourage creativity.
• Make a decision: Pick sketches with the highest viability.
• Prototype: Create low-fidelity versions of your ideas to visualize and test the solution quickly. Test the prototypes with users for feedback, through which, in the course, redesign the product iteratively.
• Validate: Get feedback from users and verify if the design decision is correct.

Pros:

• Rapid validation: You can quickly test ideas, and collect user feedback in a condensed timeframe.
• User-centered: The design is in line with actual user needs because users are integrated right from the outset. Efficient resource use: The approach saves resources that could have been used in developing concepts perhaps not in line with the user's expectations.

Cons:

• Time-intensive commitment: requires a full commitment of teams, which for some organizations with very tight schedules, may be a bit hard to afford.
• Shallow depth: Quickness often compromises the depth with which problems are explored, possibly missing complex issues.
• Not for all projects: It is not suitable for projects that require more in-depth research or longer-term planning.

Design thinking

It is a user-centered methodology in problem-solving, putting much emphasis on understanding the needs and experiences of the user. Being non-linear, it could also be thought of as a toolbox for rapid problem-solving.

The process usually covers the following phases:

• Empathize: The stage at which the needs of the user are understood through observation and engagement.
• Define: Clearly articulating the problem based on insights gathered during the empathize phase.
• Ideate: Generate a wide variety of ideas and solutions through brainstorming.
• Prototype: Creating low-fidelity representations of ideas in order to explore possible solutions.
• Test: Receiving feedback from users on prototypes for the improvement and refinement of the solutions.

Pros:

• More innovative: It fosters creative problem-solving and unleashes unconventional ideas.
• Better user satisfaction: Since the approach puts much focus on the needs of users and solutions that will relate more to the users.
• Flexibility: You can apply it to a wide range of problems and industries, making it versatile.

Cons:

• Cultural adaptability: To unbound creativity and collaboration, you'll have to push back any cultural differences or disagreements.
• Time-consuming: Just like other strategies, the iterative nature requires a great amount of time, which may not be feasible for all projects.
• Skill variability: Success depends on the team's ability to effectively engage in each stage, which varies among team members.

Lean UX

Lean UX is a UX design thinking process that reduces waste, increases efficiency, and creates collaboration in the user experience design process. Largely inspired by the Lean Startup approach, it emphasizes validated learning and rapid iteration toward the adjustment of user needs as fast as possible.

During the Think phase, you keep your gears going to draft hypotheses on users and their needs. Then goes the Make section, where you turn these drafts into simplified prototypes. Their sole goal is idea representation. In the phase named Check, you invite real users for testing these prototypes. Here is when you check if your deductions are correct or throw them to the bin and start anew. In the last stage, you Learn how to modify the next cycle based on feedback and insights from the current one.

Pros:

• Efficiency: You draft hypotheses, so this approach eliminates the need for spawning unnecessary documents.
• Low risk: You learn much earlier in the design process, reducing the impact of costly changes.
• Flexibility: Easily pivot based on your learning from testing and iterating.

Cons:

• Requires cultural support: It will succeed based upon the will of the team to embrace experimentation and collaboration.
• Ambiguity: Provides: lss specific documentation, which may mislead some team members.
• Time management: With rapid cycles, these are rather challenging to balance with the need for thorough user research and design validation.

Each of these strategies has a user-centered approach and iterative processes. Therefore, they are strong frameworks for solving design challenges and fostering creativity. So pick the strategy that corresponds to your project's nature and goals. With these approaches, you develop an overall better design and create user-oriented products.

Tools and Technologies

There are many tools you can use depending on your goal in the UI/UX design process. Quick prototyping, research, high-fidelity design, animation—there are apps to enhance your processes. When picking a tool, consider your skills, and the app’s ecosystem. It should be rather popular, with a large number of libraries, extensive tutorials, and helpful features.

Some of them you already know, like Figma. It is a must in the modern skillset. Still, let’s take a look at all options:

Design and prototyping tools

• Figma: A famous, web-based interface design tool that offers collaborative real-time design, prototyping, and feedback.
• FigJam: A collaborative whiteboarding tool created by Figma, where you can brainstorm, plan, and organize ideas visually in a flexible, digital workspace. It integrates seamlessly with Figma's design tools.
• Sketch: A vector-based design tool primarily used for web and mobile UX design, offering plugins for enhanced functionality.
• InVision: A prototyping tool that allows you to create interactive mockups and gather feedback.

Wireframing tools:

• Balsamiq: A rapid instrument that helps construct low-fidelity designs focusing on layout and functionality.
• Axure RP: A comprehensive wireframing and prototyping tool with detailed interaction design and documentation.

User research tools:

• UserTesting: A platform for conducting user testing and gathering feedback on prototypes and designs from real users.
• Lookback: A user research platform that offers live interviews, usability testing, and feedback collection.
• SurveyMonkey: A tool for creating surveys to gather user insights and preferences.

Collaboration and communication tools

• Slack: A communication platform that facilitates team collaboration, sharing feedback, and integrating with other tools.
• Trello: A project management tool that helps teams organize tasks and workflows related to design projects.
• Miro: An online collaborative whiteboard where you can brainstorm and visualize ideas together with the team.

Analytics and user tracking tools

• Google Analytics: A web analytics service that tracks user behavior on websites and apps to inform design decisions.
• Hotjar: A tool that provides heatmaps, session recordings, and surveys to analyze user interaction and improve user experience.

Accessibility tools

• Axe DevTools: A browser extension that helps identify accessibility issues in web applications during the design process.
• WAVE: A web accessibility evaluation tool that provides feedback on the accessibility of websites.

Case Studies

At Shakuro, we pick a suitable UI/UX design process for each project based on the target audience and the budget. With a wise combination of strategies and best industry practices, we deliver a user experience that strengthens your digital services.

Select

The Select mobile app—the company's most valuable touchpoint with its users—needed a comprehensive revamp.

After deeply researching the target audience, we designed a true dark theme, new icons, a custom map, and an updated user concierge feature. The app had a large number of daily users, so we also created a thought-out onboarding for a smooth transition. This approach allowed the team to refine UX, making it enjoyable for both new and returning users. Later, the Android version obtained the same solutions.

Along with the mobile app, the Select website revamp came along naturally. Since it was a desktop version, the website offered robust gestures with complex filters and search options. What’s more, the company had partnerships across multiple industries, and some of them required a custom integration approach. For example, a hotel search partner API needed an easy-to-navigate interface with a consistent experience.

Mirko Romanelli

Mirko Romanelli is a product and industrial designer that specializes in minimalist design. He really inspired us, so our team came up with the following idea: the collaborative project-rebuilding his website.

The main task was to renew the website, making it current with today's design trends while fulfilling Romanelli's vision in creating an award-winning digital experience. We would like to interpret his commitment to simplicity through the concept-driven design and narrative of his work. Extended study, smart placement, and getting just the right mix between visual and functional clarity: this technique can nail both the brand spirit and user experience.

Culturepulse

It really was a big pleasure to work with this fresh marketplace platform that enables star sportsmen to sell exclusive NFTs, such as digitized T-shirts, sport shoes, cards, and literally every other merchandise piece. Therefore, it allows creating a very specific user experience that combines a real thing with its virtual twin.

CulturePulse needed an of-the-moment presentation, capturing its essence but retaining the characteristics and keepsakes of the founders. For this, we took on a non-linear approach—a way to make opening up a digital package a thrilling experience, and why customers would continue returning for more.