Conceptual and detailed design of user interfaces
The problem
If functionality is the heart of your product, then the user interface is its soul. Because it is the visible part of any product, to many end users the user interface IS the product. Unfortunately, designing the user interface is often an afterthought. It should come as no surprise, then, that many interfaces simply don’t work. Website usage statistics show that many transactions fail to be completed, while records of support calls suggest that users are baffled by the interfaces they are forced to use. A poorly designed user interface is at best a minor irritation for users, and at worst, in the case of mission critical systems, can contribute to life-threatening situations.
Conversely, sometimes a great deal of attention is paid to user interface design, but the design principles followed are misguided. Instead of focusing on usability, for example, designers become obsessed with flashy graphics and colour schemes. The end result may be a pretty face, but an unusable product.
Part of the problem has to do with the user interface design process itself. For some reason, everyone thinks they’re an expert in user interface design, just as they know what “good art” is. Everyone, marketing, sales, development and management, has an opinion. While these can be a good source of ideas, how do you choose between conflicting ideas and how do you keep everyone happy?
The solutions
For excellence in user interface design, call upon the experts. Namahn has proven experience in solving complex design issues as well as establishing what the real design requirements are. Our user-centered design process ensures that products are designed with the needs of actual users in mind and that feature creep and unnecessary complexity are avoided. The user-centered design process is a proven methodology that satisfies not only the users of the product but also the various stakeholders involved in its development.
Interaction design is an engineering discipline. Rather than relying on amateurs and an uncontrolled process, you should work with the experts.
The approach
Note: before designing the interface the functional requirements of the product should be well understood.
The needs of all stakeholders are established through observation, meetings, interviews and workshops. It is important to determine not only what the interface should do, but also the environment in which it will be used. These may be such things as a very high performance requirement, poor screen resolutions, poor lighting conditions, outdoor operation or a high pressure working environment such as a derivatives trading floor.
The design process operates at different levels. The high level conceptual design brings together all the elements of the interface in a consistent whole, while the detailed design describes each of the individual elements.
Good
design is an iterative process. It involves assessing, and analysing all
the possible solutions before “homing in” on the final solution.
This is done both by the design consultants working independently and together
with the client.
In order to collect feed-back about the designed concept, Namahn performs
usability tests.
The deliverables
Both the conceptual design and the detailed design specifications are presented in well structured and comprehensive reports.
The report outlines the actions required by the user, the screen or page layout to achieve this and the required response of the system to the actions. The layout is presented as a wire frame representation that can be finished with a detailed appearance design. Sufficient information relating to the look and feel as well as the aesthetics is provided so that you can build an interface with the same appearance.
A style guide, based on a design project can be provided
to ensure consistency across the products and aspects.
The benefits
By working with experts in interaction design and following our user-centered design methodology, you can be sure that the design concept developed will be a winner. Your user interface will be accepted by end-users. Moreover, the Namahn approach ensures wide acceptance within your organization as well. The final design concept is well accepted by all the stakeholders since they have all been involved from the very beginning of the project.
The delivered reports are an excellent communication device. They are understandable, concrete and actionable. They are particularly well received by developers, whose job it is to actually build the interface. The use of a common language and concepts, as well as clear descriptions minimizes or eliminates the communication problems that often plague such development projects. The end-result is a constructive interdisciplinary team effort, not to mention an excellent product.
The Namahn experience in balancing organizational and technical requirements within a compressed time frame means that you get a solution that really works. The final product satisfies both the product users and the product creators.