Getting Started with your first UX Project

Making process for your first UX project. This is a follow-up post to previous one.

I am assuming that you have taken a leap, and are ready to convince your stakeholders to incorporate UX in your process of work. So now the question arises, where do you start and what process do you follow?

I will try to answer this by sharing with you my insights which helped me when I was starting:

1. Convince Stakeholders: Before you do anything, it is important to take your client into confidence and also show the value proposition. My first UX project was based on a freemium model, as we were still developing our process. I would recommend looking for active collaboration opportunities wherever you can find.
   If you’re a in-house designer and trying to convince your founders to take this leap, it would be very helpful to show them the value proposition that this process will bring to the existing business structure. Involve them actively and empathize, these are key people for iterating the UX process you’re trying to design.
2. Understand business needs: It is very important to understand where your client wants to take their business. At this point in time, it becomes very important to understand that you and your client are sailing towards the same outcome.
3. Case studies & Analogy: While no two UX process can be same in my opinion, referring to some case studies online before you start your projects will help you plan your project in is an effective way. To further make yourself more efficient you can plan sprints by referring to Google’s Design Sprint guidelines.
4. Understand UX terminologies & their application: As a beginner, you will come across a lot of terms that can haunt you and you can feel overwhelmed by its scope. Take a deep breath and relax. We all UXers have been there and you too will get past it. There is no harm in upgrading yourself with a little bit of knowledge to begin. This, a process of upgrading yourself can come via Institute Learning, Online courses, Boot camp or your local UX meetup group! (For me it was UX Brunch Club)
5. Form your UX Process: One of the best things about User Experience Design is that it can be applied to a lot of aspect of our daily lives. From Interfaces to Wearables, the application of UXD principles is immense. However, it is not important to plan as to how you’re pivoting to incorporate these new methodologies into your existing work/business processes. In my opinion, you’re the best person to draft your initial process. I believe this step helps us in validating our UX learnings and continuously make our process better. Which brings me to my next point.
6. Test, learn, build and repeat: It is very important to test your process/work regularly. Testing leads to logical findings which helps you in learning a lot about your work. Your learning shows you a scope of how things can be improved, which eventually helps you in building better outcomes.
7. Documentation: Execution in daily work life can disturb the way you’re trying to progress. A proper documentation helps you in managing all work in one place. This helps in keeping good track of process, learning and also help a lot in iterating faster.

Conclusion:

Your first process won’t be perfect but it is important to not stop and keep on challenging yourself to improve. The goal I set for myself is to become a better version of myself with every project we execute.

Further Reading:

The Design Sprint - GV

Is there an experience you want to share or have any feedback on this post? Please feel free to do so, I would be happy to hear.