Did you know that a UI/UX designer is in charge of developing and creating intuitive and simple interfaces according to the needs and tastes of the users of a product or service? Currently, this profession is a trend, because professional UI/IX designers are able to simplify computer systems for users in the case of websites, applications, software, etc.
In short, they are experts in designing a customer’s experience in the best way. Before continuing, it is important to differentiate between UI and UX. The first acronym refers to the creation of the interface (graphical or developed in CSS, HTML, etc.), while the second is the user experience.
As we can see, the work of a UI/UX designer is divided into two complementary and necessary stages to achieve the best possible experience. In fact, these professionals also consider the trends of the moment, for example, nowadays soft colors and dark mode are used on the screen to enhance the experience.
Similarly, bolder typographies are used, which are not as classic as in the previous years. On the screen, the user will only see the most relevant elements accompanied by animations. Static pages have been forgotten!
What Is UI/UX?
As we described in the previous paragraph, a UI/UX designer is responsible for generating a solution to a certain problem in a simple, intuitive, and user-friendly way. It differs from other professions in the sense that this solution is developed based on the needs, opinions, and tastes of users.
This task is generally divided into two parts: UI, which is considered exclusively the product design, where the goal is to impact users at first sight. This process is very valuable because it is what determines the functionality of the web or application in question.
The UX process, on the other hand, is developed point by point to make the user’s ease and navigation as simple as possible. For this to happen, the interface must be intuitive, among other things.
The UI/UX designer requires certain skills to carry out the job successfully. Some of the most important ones are:
- Communication: generally, the work that is done as a team, so communication is essential. This way, the needs of each member are considered to achieve the best solution.
- Empathy: this skill is important when working with users since their opinions must be objectively analyzed to understand their needs.
- Punctuality: the designer must adapt to the required deadlines and pay attention to the consequences of the work performed. Let’s remember that the objective is to always meet the client’s needs.
- Critical look: of course, carrying out the UI/UX design requires professionalism, as well as good practices and a critical look at one’s own work.
What Are the Steps That a UI/UX Designer Performs To Create the Product?
To better understand the process, we will explain both UX and UI below.
UX: User Experience Design
The professional in charge of this phase generates the presentation of the product, the user interface, and the practical experience of the web or in the application. The steps to follow are as follows:
- Research and analysis: To begin with, the UX designer identifies the needs of the users and the objectives to be achieved to meet their expectations. Different profiles of users are created to understand in-depth the emotions and frustrations. With these profiles, it is also possible to interpret the characteristics of each person and seek to solve the problems that arise throughout the experience. Finally, the user’s journey through the interface is verified.
- Creation and brainstorming: A diagram is made with the different stages of the user interface. Thanks to this, the designer can achieve a simpler visualization of the interface. In short the diagram is a visualization of the design development.
- Implementation: The UI designer intervenes and is in charge of making models (prototypes) that manage to represent the ideas presented by the UX sector. Once these models are approved, the interface is assembled.
- Follow-up: In this final stage of UX, user testing is carried out, as it is a fundamental process since real users are in charge of testing the interface and giving an objective opinion of the experience. In addition, professionals carry out different tests and analyze the results.
UI: User Interface
As we could learn thus far, UI design is integrated in the UX design stages, more precisely in the implementation. This means that all the ideas that the UX designer proposed are brought to life.
Of course, the role of this designer is fundamental to achieve the main goal: to get the best experience a user can have when surfing the web. The designers are in charge of creating visual and graphic aspects that attract attention, even the smallest ones, such as the size and color of a button.
In conclusion, the UI/UX designer carries out the following points:
- The design of icons and images to provide a better user experience.
- Attention-grabbing colors and text in strategic spaces.
- Typography of different fonts, highlighted words, etc.
- Page layout: graphics, images, and spaces between blocks.