Week 1: Introducing user experience design

Companies of all types
and sizes rely on user experience
designers to help make their technology easier
and more enjoyable to use. The demand for user experience designers is so high that a lot of companies can’t fill their job openings. Luckily, there are lots
of people like you who are excited to enter the field of user
experience design, also known as UX design. Here’s the good news. UX designers come from all kinds of backgrounds
and experiences. Lots of UX jobs don’t require a specific work history
or a college degree. In fact, some UX
professionals have taught themselves the skills needed
to land their first job. That’s where this
program comes in. Through these courses, you’ll gain the foundational skills, hands-on experience, and confidence you’ll need
to become a UX designer. This program is for anyone who wants to find a
job in UX design. When you complete this program, you’ll have the opportunity to share your information with top employers like Google that are interested in hiring entry-level UX designers. So, welcome to Google’s certificate
in user experience design. We’re so excited you’re here. This program is split
into seven courses, with each course concentrating on a different part of UX design, from explaining the basics of UX design to designing
your first prototype. Be sure to take the
courses in order, so you can build on
your knowledge and skills as you go with
every new assignment. Each of the seven courses
is broken down into weeks, and each week includes: videos, readings, hands-on activities, discussion prompts, and quizzes. Whether or not you complete the material in a
week is up to you. You have the flexibility
to go at your own pace. Throughout this program, you’ll learn how to conduct research, draw a wireframe, and create your own designs using tools
like Figma… and Adobe XD. You’ll also complete
three unique projects to demonstrate what you’ve learned and to earn your
completion certificate. When you’re finished, you’ll
have a portfolio of work, a polished resume, and
interview skills to support you as you apply
for jobs as a UX designer. Whether you’ve been experimenting in UX design
for years, or you’re completely new to the field, you can complete this program. Everything is
entirely self-paced, which means you decide how
much you want to do each week. Along the way, you’ll learn from other Google employees,
or Googlers, each with their own unique
perspectives and backgrounds. We’ll share how we
became UX designers, give professional
tips, and provide you with a glimpse into
our day-to-day work. Keep in mind, depending
on where you work, your UX role might be
general or specialized. Your responsibilities could vary widely from role to role, and so could the members
of your team. We’ll cover all that in
more depth as we go. Because Googlers
created this program, you’ll learn the most
practical information needed to launch your
own UX design career. So let’s meet your instructors. My name is Michael, and I’m an interaction designer in the privacy and data
protection office at Google. I’ll be your instructor
for this course, where we’ll cover the most
fundamental principles of user experience design. I’m super excited to guide you through the first
part of the program. Now, I’ll let the rest of the instructors
introduce themselves. Hi, I’m Emily. I’m a senior UX researcher
for Google Assistant. I’ll be your instructor for
User Research: Empathize, Define, and Ideate, which is about
understanding your user and the design problem
you’re trying to solve. My name is Karen, and I’m
thrilled to lead you in this next part of your
UX design journey. I’m an interaction designer on the Material Design
Team at Google. We’ll soon be creating storyboards, wireframes, and
low-fidelity prototypes. I’m Jason, the head of Equity
Engineering at Google. I’m your instructor for Course 4, where we’ll use your newly
acquired research knowledge to conduct studies and
test those early ideas. Hi, I’m Kunal, a UX designer for the
Material Design team. I’ll be the instructor for Course 5, where we’ll cover how
to create mockups and high-fidelity prototypes in Figma, a digital design program. I’m Dave, and I’m a UX
manager on Google Maps. I’ll introduce you to Adobe XD, which is a design tool you’ll use to create the second project for your portfolio. I’ll be there to
guide you through each step as you design
a responsive website. Hey, I’m Paolo, and I’m the director
of UX for YouTube Ads. I’ll be your instructor
for Course 7, where you’ll create a
third portfolio project and build a portfolio that’s
ready for the job market. And I’m Shabi, an
interaction designer for the central
accessibility organization. I’ll be stopping by throughout the program to show
you how accessible and inclusive design
should be included in every step of
the design process. So you’ve met your instructors
and heard a bit more about what you’ll
learn in this program. Coming up, we’ll explore the field of user experience in more depth, so you can decide if
you want to pursue a career as a UX designer. Are you excited? Let’s get started.

Welcome to your first course. Anyone interested in UX design
can complete this course, because you don’t need any
previous experience in design, and you don’t need
a college degree. In this first video,
we’ll cover the goals of the course and the history of UX design. UX designers help make technology easier
to understand and more enjoyable to use. So, when did the study of
user experience, or UX, begin? Let’s learn some quick history,
to get us up to speed. The phrase “user experience”
was first coined in the 1990s, by cognitive psychologist, Don Norman, as technology use expanded and evolved. Although the term came
about relatively recently, the principles of user experience
actually stretch back thousands of years, all the way to ancient China,
where the practice of Feng Shui began. Practitioners believe that
the arrangement of a physical space, like how furniture is positioned in a room,
could bring someone luck or improve their health and happiness. Today, lots of different industries
still rely on these same basic ideas. In the tech world, user experience
mostly focuses on how people use or interact with products. In this course,
we’ll explore the foundations of UX design and why it’s so important for
consumers and businesses. We’ll learn common terms, tools, and
frameworks that UX designers use. We’ll discuss how to plan and
participate in design sprints, a common method for
collaborating on projects. And finally, you’ll begin to build
your professional presence online, including starting your portfolio.
To help keep track of what you’re learning, you’ll take practice quizzes and
complete peer reviews and self reviews. You’ll get plenty of chances
to go over the materials and practice. At the end of the week, you’ll wrap up
the course with a graded assessment, to show what you know. So, let’s start at the beginning and learn
the basics of user experience design.

I started off my career in animation, and I worked in the industry for
a number of years. And at one point, when I saw
the internet really maturing, and I saw all the opportunities online,
I started to realize that there was a bigger canvas there where
I could display my work. So I felt that I could pivot to UX design
and use some of my interaction design skills that I inherited from that industry
to help me in my career in UX design. One of my first jobs in UX
was working at a startup, and it was a really great opportunity
because I had the chance to work through the whole UX pipeline — all
the way from doing research all the way to
launching the product. So I had the opportunity
to wear a lot of hats and I got to work with a lot of different
people outside of my UX field, like engineers and
project managers and things like that. So it was a really great opportunity
to try all these different things, and also just to learn the craft
of UX in a very deep way. And at that time, I was the only
UX designer at the company, so I was also doing branding and
marketing and iconography and basically everything you
can think of under the sun. I came in knowing some of
the skills that I needed, but I actually learned quite a bit on the job, just from working and
collaborating with other people. I learned the process along the way. The more websites or the more products
that got shipped, the more I learned about the process and the more I
started feeling more comfortable. It was really exciting to see a product
finally launch that we’d been working on for so long. And it was also really rewarding to get
feedback from users about what they thought of the product that I’d designed. So I’m super excited about
this certificate because of all the opportunities it’s going
to give people around the world. When I first got started in UX, there weren’t a lot of opportunities
available for resources to get started. So I feel that this certificate really
will help everyone regardless of what your background is, regardless of whether
you have a background in UX design, or visual design, or anything. You can get started with
this certificate and you can get a really great foundation and
get the UX design job of your dreams. Hi, my name is Michael and
I’m a UX designer at Google.

Hello again and welcome to the
first week of the program. I hope that you are just as excited as I am to get started. At the beginning of every week, you can look forward to
a video like this one, from me or one of my colleagues. We’ll give you a
brief rundown of what you can expect
to learn that week. This week we’ll explore
how this program works. Then, we’ll cover the
definition of UX design and why UX design is important
for consumers and businesses. We’ll also discuss
the different roles within the field of UX, what makes a user
experience good or poor, the responsibilities of
entry-level UX designers, how UX designers work
with cross-functional teams, differences in UX design jobs depending on company
size and industry, and how to pursue a
career in UX design. As you can tell, we have a lot of learning ahead of
us. Let’s get started.

UX Design 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Creating Delightful Experiences

Welcome to the fascinating world of UX design! This tutorial will equip you with the fundamentals of crafting user experiences that are not only usable but also enjoyable and meaningful.

What is UX Design?

Imagine walking into a store where shelves are organized, signage is clear, and finding what you need is a breeze. That’s a good user experience. UX design is about crafting interactive products (websites, apps, games, etc.) that are intuitive, accessible, and evoke positive emotions for the user.

Why is UX Design Important?

Great UX makes products a pleasure to use. This translates to:

• Increased user engagement and retention: Happy users keep coming back and using the product more.
• Improved brand perception: Positive experiences build trust and loyalty towards the brand.
• Enhanced business success: Happy users = better product performance = happy shareholders.

The UX Design Process:

UX design is not magic, it’s a well-defined process:

1. Empathy & Research: Understand your users’ needs, goals, and frustrations through user interviews, surveys, and usability testing.
2. Define & Ideate: Based on your research, identify key issues and brainstorm creative solutions that address them.
3. Prototype & Test: Build low-fidelity prototypes and test them with real users to get feedback and refine your design.
4. Design & Develop: Translate your approved prototype into a high-fidelity design and collaborate with developers to bring it to life.
5. Launch & Iterate: Continuously monitor user feedback and iterate on your design to ensure ongoing improvement.

Essential UX Design Principles:

• Usability: Make your product easy to learn, understand, and use for everyone.
• Accessibility: Ensure everyone, regardless of their abilities, can access and use your product.
• Visual Design: Use aesthetics to guide users, create hierarchy, and evoke positive emotions.
• Information Architecture: Organize content in a logical and intuitive way to facilitate easy navigation.
• Interaction Design: Design interactions that are smooth, responsive, and feel natural.

UX Design Tools & Resources:

Learning UX design doesn’t require fancy software – start with pen and paper for sketching! However, several fantastic tools can enhance your workflow:

• Wireframing & Prototyping: Figma, Sketch, Adobe XD
• Usability Testing: UserTesting, Lookback
• Design Inspiration: Dribbble, Behance, Awwwards

Getting Started:

Ready to dive in? Start by practicing these:

• Analyze the UX of everyday products – what works well and what could be improved?
• Design a simple interface for a common task, like booking a movie ticket.
• Take online courses or attend workshops to learn best practices and deepen your skills.

Remember, UX design is a continuous learning journey. Embrace experimentation, feedback, and iteration to create delightful experiences that resonate with your users.

This is just a starting point! As you explore further, remember that the key to great UX design is empathy, a user-centric approach, and a constant quest for making the world a little more enjoyable, one interaction at a time.

What is user experience?

How a person, the user, feels about interacting with or experiencing a product

User experience is how a person, the user, feels about interacting with or experiencing a product.

Hi again. Earlier we
discussed how UX designers help make technology easier to understand and more
enjoyable to use. In this video, we’ll define user experience and UX design. We’ll review why UX design is important for consumers and
businesses. Let’s get started. The user experience is
how a person, the user, feels about interacting with or experiencing a product. A product is a good,
service, or feature. It might be a physical product, like a video game controller or a bag of potato chips, or a technology product, like an app, website, or smartwatch. There are many
things that can make up a good user experience. In this video, we’ll
highlight some of them. For example, for a user to
have a good experience, the product needs to be usable, equitable, enjoyable, and useful. Let’s break that down. To begin, user experience
is about improving usability or making
something easier to use. This means that the design, structure, and purpose of the product are
clear to everyone. Think about a ketchup bottle. Historically, ketchup
came in a glass bottle. The user had to hit the bottom of the glass to make
ketchup come out. Often, no ketchup or too much ketchup would
come out of the bottle. Today, the ketchup
bottle has been redesigned into a plastic
squeezable bottle, which makes it easier
to use and allows users to control how
much ketchup comes out. UX designers need to think about every person who
uses the product. This might include people with disabilities,
or people with very different life
experiences from your own. For example, one user might find an app with a lot
of text easy to use. On the other hand, a user with a visual impairment might want different
features like sound. Considering the unique needs
of many different people is important work and thinking about equitable design is key. Being equitable means
your designs are useful and marketable to people with diverse abilities
and backgrounds. User experience is also about making things
enjoyable to use, which creates a
positive connection between the user and the product. UX designers foster that
positive connection by taking a user’s thoughts and feelings into account when
making products. Think about ordering
takeout food online. When you search for a
restaurant in Google or Yelp, you can see photos of dishes and read reviews from other people who have eaten there. This experience is
enjoyable because you can make a more informed choice
about what to order, leaving you feeling
happier about the product. So, how do we figure out what makes a user happy with the product? That’s where research comes in. To know how users feel, we have to collect evidence
on how they’re experiencing that product in real time
and ask them about it, too. We’ll discuss this in
a lot more detail later. As humans, we want
products that are useful, meaning they solve our problems. For example, if you’re lost, a map app telling you how
to get home is useful. But if the app can’t find
your current location, it’s not so useful anymore. So now we know what it means for a user to have
a good experience. Why is it important to business? In 2018, the research firm
McKinsey & Company studied companies in three
industries: medical technology, consumer goods, and
retail banking. They found that,
regardless of industry, businesses that focused
on good usability and design performed better
than their competitors. Basically, it comes down to this: When people like a product, they use that product a lot, and they recommended it
to their friends. And more people using the product means better business
for the company. Plus, when users have a good
experience with the product, they’re more likely to have a positive opinion of the
company that made it. A win-win for the user
and the business. Can you think of a
product you loved so much that you shared
it with a friend? If you did, that’s a great example of user
experience design in action. Despite all this, a lot of
companies don’t understand the important role that UX design can play in
improving their business, and that’s where you as
a UX designer come in. So now you know how to describe user experience and UX design. And you understand
why UX design is important for consumers
and businesses. Next up, we’ll learn more
about what UX designers do.

Navigate the Labyrinth: A Guide to UX Design Roles and Collaboration

Ever wondered who breathes life into the seamless experiences you love in apps and websites? It’s the dynamic world of UX design, and it’s not just about fancy visuals! This tutorial equips you with the essential knowledge about UX roles and the collaborative teamwork that brings magic to user interactions.

The Diverse Choir of UX Voices:

Imagine a bustling orchestra, each instrument contributing its unique melody to the grand symphony. In the UX design sphere, different roles act as those instruments, harmonizing to create delightful user experiences.

• Interaction Designers: These are the conductors, orchestrating the flow and functionality of a product. They bridge the gap between user needs and business goals, ensuring a smooth and purposeful journey for users. Imagine the mastermind behind Google’s intuitive security tools – that’s the interaction designer at work!
• Visual Designers: Think of them as the violinists, weaving visual magic through logos, fonts, layouts, and color palettes. They breathe life into the interface, making it aesthetically pleasing and guiding users through the experience.
• Motion Designers: Like the percussionists adding dynamic flair, motion designers bring interaction to life. They craft smooth transitions and animations, ensuring users enjoy a visually engaging and fluid journey.

Beyond Design: The Supporting Cast:

While design takes center stage, a talented supporting cast plays crucial roles:

• UX Researchers: These are the detectives, gathering insights through user studies and interviews. They understand how users think, feel, and interact with products, providing invaluable data for design decisions.
• UX Writers: Think of them as the eloquent narrators, crafting clear and concise language for buttons, labels, and product messages. They ensure users understand exactly what’s happening and where to go next, making the experience intuitive and effortless.
• Production Designers: These are the stagehands, meticulously ensuring design consistency and functionality. They bridge the gap between design and development, preparing assets and specifications for engineers to transform the vision into reality.
• UX Engineers: The builders, they translate the design into tangible products. They possess the technical expertise to bring the visual and interactive elements to life, making websites and apps function seamlessly.
• UX Program Managers: Like the orchestra conductor, program managers maintain rhythm and coordination. They set goals, manage timelines, and facilitate communication, ensuring the team operates smoothly and the project stays on track.

Collaboration: The Harmonic Blend:

The magic of UX design truly lies in collaboration. Each role brings its unique expertise, sharing ideas, and building upon each other’s contributions. This seamless teamwork ensures that the final product resonates with users, meeting their needs and exceeding expectations.

Ready to Join the Chorus?

This is just a glimpse into the fascinating world of UX design roles and collaboration. Whether you’re drawn to the strategic flow of interaction design, the artistic flair of visuals, or the insightful world of research, there’s a place for you in this harmonious orchestra. Dive deeper, explore each role, and discover where your voice can contribute to the beautiful symphony of user experience design!

Remember, UX design is more than just aesthetics – it’s a collaborative tapestry woven with diverse skills and perspectives. By understanding the roles and embracing teamwork, you can help create experiences that resonate, delight, and truly connect with users.

Which of the following is NOT a type of user experience designer?

UX engineer

UX engineers are not considered a type of UX designer. However, they frequently work with the user experience team to translate the design’s intent into a functioning experience, like a website or an app.

Okay, we’ve covered the basics of what user experience design is
and why it’s important. Now, let’s discuss
different roles within UX design and colleagues
you might work with. UX designers come from a lot of different backgrounds: marketers, artists, teachers, small business owners, cashiers, or anything really. Rather than sharing
similar work histories, UX designers tend to share common skills and
interests instead. A lot of UX designers have
a good sense for visuals, which means you recognize
when an image fits or doesn’t fit in the space or what colors complement each other. But you don’t need to
know anything about graphic design or even be able to draw to be a UX designer. UX designers tend
to be curious about people and like thinking about
how people’s minds work. They also enjoy figuring
out how people use products and how to make
those products easier to use. UX designers are empathetic too. Empathy is the ability to understand someone else’s feelings or
thoughts in a situation, and it’s a major part of UX. Remember earlier
when we mentioned equitable design and designing for everyone? Well, in order to
design for everyone, we need to understand
how a person might feel or what they might
think in any situation. Just like a lot of UX designers don’t share work histories, they don’t always share
educational backgrounds either. A lot of UX designers
learn on their own by taking courses like this one and teaching themselves the skills they need to
get entry-level jobs. They’re pretty resourceful too, tapping their experience
from other jobs or hobbies to build a foundation
for their new careers. So, we’ve covered common
characteristics of people drawn to UX design. Now let’s explore what those
UX designers actually do. When you think of
the word “design,” you might think it’s all about the visual aspects of a product. But it’s only one small part of what the UX
designers might do. In fact, there are many
different kinds of UX designers: interaction designers, visual designers, and
motion designers. Let’s start with interaction
designers, who focus on designing the experience of a product and how it functions. They figure out how to connect
the users’ needs and the business’s goals with what’s
actually feasible to build. As an interaction
designer at Google, my team and I are
responsible for defining the user experience for security and privacy
related tools. In my world, users
always come first. There are also
visual designers who focus on how a product
or technology looks. They might be responsible
for designing logos, illustrations, or icons. They may also decide
font color and size, or work on product layouts. Motion designers are another
common type of UX designer. They think about what
it feels like for a user to move
through a product and how to create smooth
transitions between pages on an app or a website. Similar to UX designers, there are also graphic
designers who create visuals that tell a
story or message. Graphic designers usually work on the appearance of a physical product, like an invitation or a poster, while UX designers focus on how users interact
with the product. Outside of design, there are many other roles in
the field of UX. Collaboration is
an important part of a UX designer’s job. So let’s talk about a few of the most common colleagues
a designer might work with. UX researchers conduct
the studies or interviews that help us learn
how people use a product. Then there are UX writers,
who think about how to make the language within a product clearer to make the user
experience more intuitive. This could include writing
labels for buttons or adjusting the tone to
be formal or friendly. Next up, we have production
designers, who often act as a bridge between interaction designers
and engineers. They make sure the first
and final designs match in the finished product
materials and that the assets are
ready to be handed off to the engineering team. The assets are everything
from text and images to the design specifications,
like font style, color, size, and spacing. Which brings us to
the UX engineers, one of the groups
that UX designers work with most frequently. UX engineers translate
the design’s intent into a functioning experience,
like a website or an app. Finally, UX program managers ensure clear and
timely communication so that the process of building a useful product moves
smoothly from start to finish. This might include setting up goals and writing project plans. In this video, we’ve explored different types of UX
designer roles you might pursue and introduced you to other
colleagues you might work with. Coming up, we’ll talk about how to create a good user experience through design.

Master the Journey: A UX Design Tutorial on the Product Development Lifecycle

Welcome, intrepid designers! Prepare to embark on a voyage through the product development lifecycle, the map that guides your creations from mere sparks of imagination to tangible experiences. This tutorial will equip you with the knowledge and tools to navigate each stage of this thrilling adventure, ensuring your designs captivate users and become beacons of success.

First Stop: Brainstorming Like a Superhero!

Imagine a blank canvas, a world of possibilities. This is the essence of brainstorming – the stage where you and your team unleash your creative might. To conquer this realm, equip yourselves with:

• Empathy: Immerse yourselves in the user’s world. Conduct research, interviews, and user testing to understand their needs, desires, and frustrations.
• Idea Generation: Unleash a storm of ideas! Use techniques like brainstorming sessions, mind maps, and even role-playing to explore every avenue.
• Critical Thinking: Not all ideas are created equal. Analyze and refine your concepts, discarding the unessential and polishing the gems.

Next Destination: Defining the Design Compass

With a treasure trove of ideas in hand, it’s time to chart your course. The define stage is where you transform your brainstorm into a clear vision:

• User Personas: Craft detailed profiles of your target users, encompassing their demographics, behaviors, and motivations.
• Problem Statements: Identify the core challenges your product will address, ensuring your design laser-focuses on user needs.
• Information Architecture: Organize the content and functionality of your design, creating a logical and intuitive flow for users.

Crafting the Blueprint: The Design Workshop

Now, with a clear destination in sight, it’s time to roll up your sleeves and build! The design stage is where your vision takes tangible form:

• Wireframing: Sketch out the basic layout of your design, defining the placement of elements and user interactions.
• Prototyping: Breathe life into your wireframes with interactive prototypes, allowing users and stakeholders to experience your design in action.
• Visual Design: Don the cloak of aesthetics! Apply your understanding of color, typography, and imagery to create a visually appealing and cohesive experience.

Testing Ground: Putting Your Design to the User Test

No grand design is complete without rigorous testing. The test stage is your battlefield, where you refine your creation into a user-centric masterpiece:

• Usability Testing: Observe users interacting with your prototypes, identifying pain points and areas for improvement.
• A/B Testing: Compare different design elements to see which resonate best with your users.
• Accessibility Testing: Ensure your design is inclusive and accessible for users with diverse abilities.

Launch Day: Unleashing Your Design to the World!

The moment of truth arrives! The launch stage is where your design sets sail onto the open seas of the real world:

• Deployment: Prepare your design for its final form, whether it’s a website, app, or physical product.
• Marketing and Promotion: Spread the word! Generate excitement and anticipation for your design among your target audience.
• Monitoring and Iteration: Remember, the journey never truly ends. Analyze user feedback and data to identify opportunities for ongoing improvement.

Beyond the Tutorial: Your Design Odyssey Awaits!

This tutorial is just the first step on your UX design odyssey. As you progress, remember:

• Curiosity: Always be curious about your users and their needs. Embrace a “beginner’s mind” to continually learn and evolve.
• Collaboration: UX design is not a solo adventure. Work closely with your team, including developers, researchers, and stakeholders, to create truly outstanding experiences.
• Iteration: Embrace the iterative nature of design. Be ready to refine, adapt, and improve your creations based on user feedback and data.

With these tools and principles in your arsenal, you’re ready to conquer the product development lifecycle and shape digital experiences that delight and inspire. So, go forth, brave designers, and let your creativity light the way!

Remember, this is just a starting point. Feel free to adapt and expand the tutorial to include specific tools, exercises, and examples relevant to your chosen design domain. Bon voyage on your UX adventure!

Welcome back. All
of the work you do as a UX designer involves
developing a product, whether it’s an
app or a website. Let’s explore the product
development lifecycle. The product development
lifecycle is the process used to take a product from
an idea to reality. Every task you carry out during a project will be linked to one of the stages
of this lifecycle. A project starts out with a team trying to
solve some sort of problem. The problem usually
covers how to develop a product that provides
the best user experience. There are five stages in the product
development lifecycle. Let’s go through each one. The first stage of the product
development lifecycle is brainstorm. It’s an active discovery stage that’s all about generating ideas about the
user and potential needs or challenges
the user might have. During the brainstorm stage, the team generates ideas
to solve a problem, understands the audience
they’re designing for, and identifies needs or
challenges the audience may have. Research plays a key role
in this first stage because you’re exploring different ways to get to know the audience
you’re designing for. UX researchers and writers are often heavily involved
in this stage, where the team might
conduct interviews with potential users or
conduct other research. The second stage in the product development
lifecycle is define. Define is all about
using the insights from the brainstorm stage and
starting to narrow the focus. During the define stage, the team determines
concrete ways that the product being developed
will impact the user. As a UX designer, you’ll begin to think more about specific details
related to the product, who the product is for, what the product will do, and what features need to be included for the product
to be successful. Statements that
outline the goals or outline any
problems you want to answer with the product design are the focus in
the define stage. The third stage in the product development
lifecycle is design. In the design stage, UX designers begin to
actively develop ideas, and they also check that all specifications from the
define stage are realistic. The first two stages are more about preparation and planning. They give you a clear
understanding of who the user is, what the user wants, and which problems or challenges you want to
address in your design. Using the insights from
the first two stages, UX designers generate designs that keep the user top of mind. You’ll create many
different assets, including storyboards, which are sketches that help explore the user’s experience, or wireframes, which provide outlines of
the content layout. Or you might create prototypes, which are models that allow UX designers to test the
functionality of a design. All of these things will be
covered later in the program. The fourth stage is test. In the test stage, the team evaluates
the product design based on feedback
from potential users. Testing designs with users is really important
because it helps the team focus on
the user first and foremost and the designs second. Testing helps identify areas to refine or improve the designs. It also helps UX designers consider the interactivity
of the design. This is a stage that involves
lots of interaction between UX designers and
front-end engineers as they figure out
ways to create an end product that satisfies users’ needs and is
practical and functional. They discuss things like how
the color or font can fit the company’s brand or whether the prototype designs are
easily understandable. Finally, the last stage of the product development
lifecycle is launch or sharing
a finished version of the product with the public. This might involve
listing an app in the Google Play Store
or Apple’s App Store, making a website go live, or putting a physical
product on store shelves. Launching can be
very satisfying for you and your team because you have the chance
to understand how your designs will be
received in the real world. However, the work on a product isn’t quite
finished after launch. You may still identify opportunities to
improve on the designs or learn even more about the user experience
based on feedback. This could involve going back
to the design or testing stages and figuring out ways to produce a more enhanced
version of the product. Now you’ve been introduced to the five stages in the product development
lifecycle: brainstorm, define, design,
test, and launch. Coming up, you’ll
learn about some of the characteristics of a good user experience.
Meet you there.

Unlocking Great UX: A Practical Guide to Meeting User Needs

Welcome, aspiring UX designers! This interactive tutorial will equip you with the skills and knowledge to craft user experiences that are not just pleasant, but truly exceptional. We’ll dive deep into the four pillars of good UX design: usability, equity, enjoyment, and usefulness, empowering you to create products that users adore.

Phase 1: The Usability Equation

• Challenge: Imagine a website navigation so confusing, users end up lost in a digital labyrinth.
• Solution: Step into the role of a “usability detective.” Analyze websites, apps, and physical products, identifying roadblocks like unclear buttons, illogical layouts, or unnecessary steps.
• Activities:
  • Conduct user testing sessions, observing how real people interact with interfaces.
  • Run A/B tests to compare different design elements and see which ones improve user flow.
  • Learn about UI best practices for button placement, text hierarchy, and information architecture.

Phase 2: Designing for Every User

• Challenge: A mobile game built for able-bodied players leaves out users with disabilities, creating an inequitable experience.
• Solution: Champion inclusivity! Understand the needs of diverse users, including those with vision impairments, motor limitations, or cognitive differences.
• Activities:
  • Research accessibility guidelines and tools like screen readers and voice control.
  • Design with contrasting colors, clear instructions, and keyboard navigation options.
  • Test your designs with users from diverse backgrounds to identify potential barriers.

Phase 3: The Art of Delightful Interactions

• Challenge: An app’s checkout process is so tedious and frustrating, users abandon their carts, leaving a trail of bad feelings.
• Solution: Infuse your designs with joy! Think beyond functionality and incorporate elements that spark positive emotions.
• Activities:
  • Explore gamification principles to motivate users and create a sense of achievement.
  • Craft engaging animations and micro-interactions that make the experience feel personal and playful.
  • Use storytelling and humor to add a human touch and create memorable interactions.

Phase 4: Making Useful a Mantra

• Challenge: A new social media platform offers endless features, but users struggle to find value in the overwhelming interface.
• Solution: Focus on purpose! Ensure every design element contributes to the product’s core goal and user needs.
• Activities:
  • Conduct user research to understand user goals and motivations.
  • Prioritize features based on their impact on user experience and problem-solving.
  • Refine designs through iteration, removing unnecessary clutter and streamlining workflows.

Bonus Level: Unleashing Your UX Superpower

• Challenge: Apply your newfound knowledge to everyday objects! Analyze the UX of physical products like kitchen appliances, furniture, or even your favorite board game.
• Solution: Practice makes perfect! Share your observations and design improvements with fellow learners, sparking critical thinking and creative problem-solving.

Remember: Good UX design is a continuous journey. This tutorial is your launchpad, equipping you with the tools and mindset to navigate the ever-evolving world of user experience. Keep exploring, keep learning, and keep pushing the boundaries to create products that not only work, but truly resonate with the people who use them.

Ready to embark on your UX adventure? Let’s unlock the potential for amazing user experiences together!

This tutorial provides a framework for you to expand upon, including specific examples, case studies, and hands-on exercises. Feel free to tailor it to your chosen design domain and encourage learners to actively participate through discussions, group projects, and real-world application of their newfound skills. Bon voyage on your UX journey!

What qualities are needed in a product for users to have a good experience? Select all that apply.

Equity, Enjoyability , Usefulness

A product that’s useful, equitable, and enjoyable contributes to a good user experience.

Welcome back! As you learn
more about UX design, you might start noticing
functionalities in phone apps or store layouts that you’ve never
considered before. Have you ever created
an account on an app and had no
idea what to do next? Or have you pressed a
button only to find out that what you’d thought
was going to happen didn’t? Predicting user roadblocks and potential design mishaps is what good UX design is all about. In this video, we’ll
explain what makes a user experience
design good or poor. It might seem like a good design is based on personal preference, but most designs that
are considered poor or unpleasant for the user don’t
reflect the user’s needs. Think about a product
as simple as a door. Have you ever tried
to leave a room, pulled the door handle, but the door didn’t budge? That’s because you
were supposed to push the door
handle, not pull it. As designers, we have to
think about how to improve the user experience with the door so that we can easily
exit and enter. Doors with this kind of poor user experience are
called Norman doors. Remember Don Norman, who
invented the term UX? In his book, “The Design
of Everyday Things,” he first describes this
phenomenon, and he explains how a user’s experience isn’t always considered in a product’s design. Doors are just one example
of user experience. Let’s think about UX
design in technology. Well-designed apps
aim to save space on the screen by using icons
instead of text, so more information can fit. Icons are also pleasing to look at and easy to understand, no matter the user’s
native language. But sometimes the
meaning of an icon is impossible to figure out
unless you tap on it. In that case, text would
be a lot more useful. Good design considers
the user’s needs. For the user to have
a good experience, the product needs to
be usable, equitable, enjoyable, and useful
among other things. For example, the purpose of a shopping app is to buy things. If you put a pair of shoes in
your virtual shopping cart, you expect to be
able to buy them. But if you add the shoes to your shopping cart and are then told they’re out of stock, that is not a good
user experience. Good user experiences
should create products that are intuitive
and easy to use. Each product should be designed to make the user
feel a certain way. A key task for UX
designers is to tie a specific emotion to the experience of
using the product. Start paying attention to
the things you use everyday. The direction you have to turn the faucets in your bathtub, the way your baby’s
pajamas button, what error messages
on your phone mean, and which way to open doors. You start to recognize both positive and
negative aspects in each of their designs. Use your own experiences
to think about what makes a design good or poor. What could be made better?
What’s already working? We’re going to continue exploring these ideas during the rest of this course and for the entire
program. Exciting, right?

Tutorial: Navigating the World of Entry-Level UX Design

So you’re drawn to the fascinating realm of UX design, and entry-level positions are beckoning. But what exactly does being a junior UX designer entail? Let’s dive into the core responsibilities you’ll encounter, equipping you with a clear picture of this exciting career path.

1. User Research: Unraveling the Mystery of Your Audience

• Why it matters: Before building anything, you need to understand who you’re building for. UX research provides the foundation for informed design decisions.
• What you’ll do: Conduct interviews, surveys, and usability testing to gather data on user needs, behaviors, and pain points. Analyze data to identify key insights and trends.
• Pro tip: Hone your active listening and empathy skills to truly connect with users and uncover their unspoken needs.

2. Wireframing: Sketching the Blueprint of Your Design

• Why it matters: Wireframes are low-fidelity blueprints that define the layout and content of your product or website. They’re crucial for iterating on ideas and gathering feedback before diving into high-fidelity design.
• What you’ll do: Create basic sketches or digital mockups that outline the placement of elements like buttons, menus, and information.
• Pro tip: Start with pen and paper to encourage rapid iteration and brainstorming. Master digital wireframing tools like Figma or Sketch as you progress.

3. Prototyping: Bringing Your Design to Life (Early Stages)

• Why it matters: Prototypes are more advanced models that demonstrate how users interact with your design. They help refine functionality and user flow before investing in final development.
• What you’ll do: Build static or interactive prototypes using tools like InVision or Adobe XD. Collaborate with developers to create basic functionality.
• Pro tip: Focus on core user journeys and essential features during early prototyping stages. Don’t get bogged down in creating high-fidelity visuals too soon.

4. Information Architecture: Organizing the Maze of Content

• Why it matters: Users need to find what they need quickly and easily. Information architecture (IA) defines the structure and navigation of your product, ensuring efficient information flow.
• What you’ll do: Analyze content, create sitemaps, and define labeling and menus. Collaborate with content creators to ensure consistency and clarity.
• Pro tip: Think like a user. Put yourself in their shoes and consider how they would navigate the information landscape.

5. Communication: The Bridge Between Design and the World

• Why it matters: Effective communication is essential for collaborating with colleagues, presenting your ideas, and getting buy-in from stakeholders.
• What you’ll do: Attend meetings, write emails and reports, and present design concepts. Actively listen to feedback and adapt your designs accordingly.
• Pro tip: Develop strong writing and presentation skills. Learn to tailor your communication style to different audiences.

Remember:

• Each job and company are unique, so your specific responsibilities might differ.
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions and learn from experienced designers.
• Be proactive, eager to learn, and passionate about creating user-centered designs.

Wireframing, prototyping, researching, and creating information architecture are all common responsibilities of an entry-level UX designer.

True

An entry-level UX designer may be expected to do any of these tasks.

So far, we’ve explored the different types
of UX designers. Over the course of this program, you’ll become much
more familiar with the most important tasks
that UX designers do. You might even be drawn to a particular path or specialty. To get started, let’s identify some typical responsibilities of entry-level UX designers: Researching, wireframing,
prototyping, creating information
architecture, and communicating effectively. Entry-level UX designers start their careers by doing a lot of tasks to learn the basics. One of those tasks
might be research. UX designers use research to understand audiences and learn
about their backgrounds; demographics, like
age and location; motivations; pain points;
emotions; and life goals. There’s a lot to learn about
users and their preferences, and UX designers want to
discover as much as they can in order to inform
their product’s design. An entry-level designer
also creates wireframes. A wireframe is an outline or a sketch of a
product or a screen. It helps the designer figure
out how a page is arranged, where each piece of a product
fits in with the others, and how users will likely
interact with the product. Wireframing is one
of the first steps designers take when building
a new product or feature. It’s done after or at the
same time as the research. We can wireframe by drawing on paper or digitally on a computer. Here are some examples
of wireframes I’ve done. This is for a webpage on
Google’s transparency report. Notice that they’re
just basic drawings? But you can tell what goes where. These wireframes were
designed to demonstrate the basic structure
of the page to gain support from
key stakeholders, people with a business
interest in the final product. A UX designer will also
create prototypes. A prototype is an early
model of a product that demonstrates functionality,
like a wireframe, but a lot more advanced. While a wireframe gives
you a general idea of where things go and how
the product will function, a prototype illustrates
a progression from one screen to the next. We can draw our
prototypes on paper, create a physical prototype, or build a digital prototype. Here’s a prototype for Google’s transparency
report that I created, and here’s the final version. The purpose of wireframes and
prototypes is to figure out the best design for a product
inexpensively and quickly. Another responsibility of
an entry-level UX designer might include creating the
information architecture, which is the framework
of a website, or how it’s organized,
categorized, and structured. For example, when you
click the File menu on a word processing
application like Google Docs, you expect certain options, like New or Print, to appear
in the dropdown menu. Or when you click on
a company’s homepage, you expect to find a
link to an About page. That structure is the website’s
information architecture. Finally, an entry-level UX
design job, like many jobs, also requires a lot
of communication, like meetings with colleagues, writing emails, creating
proposals, or pitching clients. In short, entry-level UX
designers should know how to research, wireframe, prototype, create
information architecture, and communicate effectively. Your exact responsibilities
will vary depending on where you work
and how specialized you need to be for your
particular job. Up next, you’ll learn about
being a generalist or a specialist and what that means
for your career options. Intrigued? Let’s go.

My name is Dane, and I’m a
visual designer at Google. The life of a UX
designer at Google is pretty interesting
and really fun. When you’re working on a product, you’ll either be drafting up a new solution or a new
feature of that product, or you’ll be building upon
something that already exists and finding a
way to improve it. You’ll start by
identifying the problems. What are the issues going
on within this product? Why are we even looking to improve or introduce
this feature? Once you start to
find those problems, you’ll start to realize
what the solution is and why it needs to be
done a certain way. You chat with other people
on your team to see what solutions could be
feasible, and you get to work. You’re going to be interacting with everybody on your team. There are other visual designers
that you can chat with. There are researchers
that can tell you what has been decided in the past and what hasn’t
been explored yet. There’s also interaction
designers who can tell you, “Oh, well, this page should move
in this way or this should happen as soon as
you tap this button.” This is an opportunity to
get the feedback that you really need to be able to
push your project to success. Once you go into a
UX critique session, you’ll present that to the team and that’s
when you’ll start to get really high-level
feedback as to how the interaction
should change or how it can be improved for the
success of the product. When you’re a
full-time UX designer, you’re going to expect a lot of UX critiques that help contribute to the
success of the product. What’s really important
is to remember that it never has anything to do
with you as the designer, it just has to do with the
solution and how we can collectively make sure it’s the best that it
could possibly be. As soon as you come
to a solution, that’s when you go in and you chat with the higher-ups and the leads to see if this is a solution that’s
ready to be implemented. Once you get the pass for it
to be implemented, you then start passing it on to engineers who will be able
to build out your solution, and then you get to
see it come to life. As a visual designer, being able to create something that’s going to
impact other people every single day. And because I’m focusing on the
front-facing visuals, it’s our job to determine
how this is going to look and how it’s going
to work for people. I think having that impact
and having that role is pretty important and pretty meaningful
as a UX designer.

Navigating the Maze: A Guide to UX Design Career Paths

So you’ve embraced the alluring world of UX design and are eager to chart your course. But with numerous paths beckoning, choosing the right one can feel like navigating a labyrinth. Fear not, intrepid explorer! This tutorial will equip you with the knowledge to confidently choose your ideal UX design career path.

I. The Crossroads: Generalist vs. Specialist

1. Generalist: Embrace the Renaissance UX designer! You’ll wear many hats, juggling tasks like user research, wireframing, visual design, and prototyping. This broad exposure is perfect for budding designers to discover their passions and develop diverse skills. It thrives in smaller companies where agility and versatility are key.

Pros:

• Gain a holistic understanding of UX
• Discover hidden talents and passions
• Adaptable and versatile for diverse projects

Cons:

• Less depth of expertise compared to specialists
• Can feel overwhelmed by juggling multiple tasks
• May not be readily available in highly specialized teams

2. Specialist: Deepen your dive into a specific UX domain, be it interaction design, visual design, or usability testing. This path requires focused training and experience, but rewards you with mastery in your chosen field. You’ll likely find your niche in larger companies with dedicated design teams.

Pros:

• Extensive knowledge and expertise in your chosen area
• Highly sought-after in specialized teams
• Opportunity to become a leading authority in your field

Cons:

• Narrower focus can limit exposure to other aspects of UX
• May require additional training and experience
• Not ideal for those seeking diverse design challenges

II. The Evolving Path: The T-Shaped Designer

Imagine a majestic “T,” where the vertical bar signifies your specialty and the horizontal bar represents your complementary skills. This is the coveted T-shaped designer, blending deep expertise with valuable knowledge in other UX areas. This path emerges organically with experience and cross-training, making you a versatile problem-solver and a valuable asset to any team.

Benefits:

• Bridging the gap between specialists and generalists
• Tackling complex design challenges from multiple angles
• Enhanced collaboration and communication skills

III. Making the Choice: A Matter of Heart and Head

Choosing your path is a personal journey. Consider your passions, skills, and desired work environment.

• Passion: What excites you most within UX? Is it crafting stunning visuals or dissecting user interactions? Lean towards your passion!
• Skills: Identify your strengths and areas for development. Can you juggle multiple tasks or prefer deep focus? Align your path with your existing skills and growth goals.
• Work Environment: Do you thrive in fast-paced, adaptable environments or prefer specialized teams with dedicated roles? Choose a path that complements your preferred work style.

Remember:

• Your path can evolve over time. Don’t be afraid to experiment and explore different avenues.
• Continuous learning is crucial. Invest in professional development, online communities, and mentorship to stay ahead of the curve.
• Embrace the journey! Each path offers unique opportunities and challenges to shape your design journey.

With this guide as your compass, navigate the exciting world of UX design career paths and chart your course to success!

Specialist UX designers are more common at smaller companies with fewer employees.

False

Specialist designers are typically more common at larger companies where the organization can afford to have a large team of UX designers.

Hi again. So far, we’ve learned about
some of the tasks an entry-level UX designer
might do each day. We’ve also mentioned
that your role might differ depending
on where you work. In this video, we’ll explain the differences
between generalists, specialists, and T-shaped
roles in UX design. A generalist is a UX designer with a broad number
of responsibilities. Most UX designers
begin their careers this way, doing various tasks. For example, you might do a bit of interaction
design work, a bit of visual design
work, and more. One benefit of being a generalist is that you get to try out roles and find a specialty
that you’re passionate about. Generalist UX
designers are common at smaller companies
with fewer employees, as these companies don’t
have big design departments. You might have to wear many hats. A generalist might be responsible for a combination
of user research, branding, user flows, UX writing, visual design, prototyping,
production design, information architecture, and usability testing,
among other things. Most generalists
start their roles knowing about one or
two of these topics. They learn about other areas on the job from their
colleagues or mentors. UX generalists can also continue their education through
professional development, doing their own research to keep up with industry trends, and participating in
online UX communities to learn from other designers. On the other hand,
if you become really interested in one
part of UX design, you might find your
niche as a specialist. A specialist dives deep into one particular UX design role, like interaction, visual,
or motion design. While a generalist has
a breadth of knowledge, a specialist has more depth of knowledge in one
kind of UX design. Specialists usually work
at large companies where the organization
can afford to have a big team of UX designers. At Google, we have thousands
of specialized UX designers. Take me, for example. I specialize in
interaction design. We covered some specialist
tracks earlier in the course. If you need a refresher, check out the glossary. As you advance in your career, you may become a
T-shaped designer. A T-shaped designer
specializes in one kind of UX design and has a breadth
of knowledge in other areas. This is called a T-shaped
designer because your skills look like an uppercase T. The vertical line of the T is the kind of UX design you specialize
in, like visual design. The horizontal line
across the top of the T includes your
complementary skills. These skills might come from other fields, like
interaction design, that cross over with
your specialties or soft skills that help you
work more effectively. Becoming a specialist or generalist isn’t always
a conscious choice. It might be based
entirely on where you work and what skills are needed. When I started in UX design, I was a motion graphics designer. Then I worked on video games, apps for businesses, and apps
about financial technology. Now that I work at Google, I focus on privacy as an
interaction designer. The more experience you
get in the industry, the broader your perspective. You’ll be exposed to a lot
of different companies, design principles,
and work styles, and you’ll learn how each one can better inform your designs. As a UX designer, there’s always room to grow
and opportunities for change. Whether you become a
generalist or specialist, there are plenty of options.

My name is Erika, and I’m
a senior visual designer. A visual designer
is someone who uses iconography, typography,
color, space, and textures in
their products to create consistent and
accessible design patterns. For example, if you
were to look at an app, pretty much anything
you see on the surface, the buttons, the
colors, the typography, the white space around all of those elements is what a visual designer would
be responsible for. During my last year of college, I worked at a web design and development agency
where I got a ton of experience with
graphic design and actually UX design before
I even knew what that was. From there, I went
to work at a startup called Waze, before
they were acquired by Google. There I was hired just as a general designer where I worked on things
like our website, our app, designing little
icons, illustrations, research. I was considered a generalist,
and I worked on a lot of different design roles. From there we were
acquired by Google, and so my role became a
little bit more formalized. I was technically a UI designer, but I still was a
generalist and I worked a lot on marketing design, the app UX, as
well as a lot of web design for things like
dashboards and analytics. I branched out to the visual
design path at Google, and that’s what I’ve been ever since for the last few years. As a generalist designer, you work on a bunch of
different things from interaction design and visual
design to user research. This would typically happen
at maybe a startup or an agency where you work on a variety of different projects, and your responsibility depends on whatever hat you
need to wear that day. Some of the benefits of being a generalist designer are
that you can learn a ton, and oftentimes this will be in like a fast-paced environment, you don’t really have
time to stop and really go deep into
any of these roles, rather you just learn
by doing and it’s a really quick and effective way of seeing what all the
possibilities are within UX. At bigger companies, there are specialist
designers. For instance, at Google there are
interaction designers, visual designers, UX engineers, UX writers, and UX researchers. For these roles the expectations are a little
bit more clear for you, so you’ll be evaluated based on what work you’re doing
specifically within a product. A UX writer will be responsible for all of
the copy and all of the strings throughout
any product you may see. They are within their team known to be the expert
in their field. The benefits of being
a specialist are that expectations
are very clear for what your role is and
there are a ton of resources that you
can continue to just develop your expertise. What I like about
being a specialist is that I know that anyone on my team trusts and knows
my work and can come to me with any of their
visual design problems. Having been both a
generalist and specialist, I’ve really enjoyed both, and especially earlier on in my career being a generalist, it was a really
good way for me to ramp up on all things UX. I got to work on
such a variety of projects and it really
helped me to hone my craft. Once I had been in the
UX space for a while, I realized that I really was more drawn to visual
design challenges, and that’s what led me along
the visual design path. Now being a specialist, it feels good to know that you’re an expert in your field. I can definitely see the benefits in both being a generalist and specialist and maybe more so being a generalist when
you’re first starting out.

Introduction

UX designers often work on cross-functional teams with other designers, engineers, researchers, product leads, and program managers. This can be a great way to learn from other disciplines and create better products. However, it can also be challenging to collaborate effectively with people from different backgrounds.

Benefits of working in a cross-functional team

There are many benefits to working in a cross-functional team, including:

• A broader perspective: By working with people from different disciplines, UX designers can get a broader perspective on the problem they are trying to solve. This can help them to create better solutions that meet the needs of all stakeholders.
• More creativity: When people from different backgrounds come together, they can generate more creative ideas. This is because they have different ways of thinking and approaching problems.
• Better communication: Working in a cross-functional team requires good communication skills. This is because team members need to be able to clearly explain their ideas to each other. This can help to avoid misunderstandings and ensure that everyone is on the same page.
• Faster development: When team members work together effectively, they can develop products more quickly. This is because they can share resources and knowledge, and they can avoid having to duplicate work.

Challenges of working in a cross-functional team

There are also some challenges to working in a cross-functional team, including:

• Different priorities: Different team members may have different priorities. For example, engineers may be more concerned with the technical feasibility of a solution, while UX designers may be more concerned with the user experience. This can lead to disagreements and delays.
• Lack of trust: If team members do not trust each other, it can be difficult to collaborate effectively. This is because they may be reluctant to share their ideas or give feedback.
• Language barriers: If team members do not speak the same language, it can be difficult to communicate effectively. This can lead to misunderstandings and delays.

Tips for working in a cross-functional team

Here are some tips for working in a cross-functional team:

• Be clear about your goals and expectations: At the beginning of the project, make sure that everyone is clear about the goals and expectations for the product. This will help to avoid misunderstandings and ensure that everyone is working towards the same thing.
• Communicate effectively: Communication is key to working effectively in a cross-functional team. Make sure to communicate regularly with your team members and be clear about your ideas and feedback.
• Be respectful of different perspectives: Everyone on the team brings different perspectives to the table. Be respectful of these differences and be willing to learn from others.
• Be willing to compromise: Sometimes, you will need to compromise to reach an agreement. Be willing to compromise and be open to new ideas.
• Celebrate successes: When the team achieves a goal, take some time to celebrate. This will help to build morale and keep the team motivated.

So far you’ve learned about common
responsibilities of UX designers and the types of roles that
UX designers might have. But like many people,
UX designers don’t work alone; they work on cross-functional teams
that might include other designers, engineers, researchers,
product leads, or program managers. In this video we’ll discuss how
these cross-functional teams work together to build a product. Imagine you’re working on
an app for ordering food. You and your team want to build a new
feature that shows users restaurants that offer allergen-free meals. The product lead decides
the scope of the project, the UX researcher tries to understand
user trust, like whether users will trust the information about allergens or
trust the app itself. The interaction designer
figures out the flow for ordering, like how to include
allergen-free foods in the search filter. The visual designer thinks
about how to make it easy for users to find allergen-free
foods in the product. These UX designers create
wireframes and prototypes to show the experience that
users will have in the app. The engineers bring these wireframes and
prototypes to life and create ways for restaurants to each add information
about their allergen-free options. As you might have noticed,
it’s important for UX designers to collaborate with engineers,
because engineers build the final product. This collaboration happens
throughout the entire process. There are multiple opportunities
for UX designers and engineers to provide feedback to each other
to make their changes together. There are a lot of moving parts here. This is where the program manager
comes in to ensure clear and timely communication across the team, so the process of building useful apps
moves smoothly from start to finish. Every team and team member has
a different task to complete, but ultimately they all have the same goal: To build a product that’s usable,
useful, equitable, and enjoyable for users and businesses. Coming up, we’ll discuss the types
of companies UX designers work at. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised
by how many options you have.

Startups and small businesses

UX designers at startups and small businesses typically wear multiple hats and are responsible for a variety of tasks, such as:

• Interaction design
• Visual design
• User research
• Prototyping
• Wireframing
• Testing
• Content strategy
• Marketing

They may also be involved in the development process, working with engineers and product managers to bring their designs to life.

The job can be challenging, but it can also be very rewarding. UX designers at startups have the opportunity to make a big impact on the product, and they often get to work on cutting-edge projects.

Freelance

Freelance UX designers are self-employed and market their services to businesses to find clients. They have the freedom to pick projects that interest them, make their own schedule, and work with a variety of brands.

Freelance UX designers need to be good at networking and self-promotion. They also need to be able to manage their time and finances effectively.

Advertising agencies

UX designers at advertising agencies work with clients to create marketing campaigns. They may be responsible for developing wireframes and designs for digital products, as well as other tasks outside of the usual UX design scope, such as graphic design or writing.

The job can be fast-paced and demanding, but it can also be very creative. UX designers at advertising agencies have the opportunity to work on a variety of projects and to collaborate with other creative professionals.

Design agencies and design studios

Design agencies and design studios provide a one-stop-shop for the look of brands, products, and services. UX designers at design agencies are typically generalists and may be the only designer on a project. They are exposed to a lot of different industries and get to solve unique problems.

The job can be challenging, but it can also be very rewarding. UX designers at design agencies have the opportunity to work on a variety of projects and to collaborate with other creative professionals.

Big companies

UX designers at big companies are typically specialized in their work and focus on one project from beginning to end. This is a great way to learn about a specialization within UX design and to learn from other experts.

The job can be demanding, but it can also be very stable and secure. UX designers at big companies have the opportunity to work on complex projects and to make a real impact on the user experience.

Choosing the right company

The type of company you work for will have a big impact on your job responsibilities and career development. It is important to consider your own interests and skills when choosing a type of company to work for.

If you are interested in working on a variety of projects and collaborating with other creative professionals, then a startup or design agency might be a good fit for you. If you are interested in learning about a specialization within UX design and working on complex projects, then a big company might be a good fit for you.

No matter what type of company you choose to work for, it is important to be passionate about UX design and to be willing to learn and grow. With hard work and dedication, you can have a successful career in UX design.

What does a design agency focus on?

Design and branding

Design agencies or design studios provide design and branding services.

Welcome back. So far, we’ve discussed why
user experience is important, the job responsibilities
of a UX designer, and the teams that UX designers often
work with. Now we’re going to explain the types of companies you
could work at as a UX designer, and how your job may differ depending
on that company’s size and industry. Say you’re hired by a startup or
a small business. First, what’s a startup? Well, in simple terms, a startup is a new business that wants to
develop a unique product or service and bring it to market. Startups generally
have tight budgets and few employees. So each person has to perform
a variety of jobs and move quickly. If you’re a UX designer at a startup or
other small businesses, you’ll likely be a generalist. Designers
at companies with fewer employees get involved in many parts of the business.
You might be responsible for both interaction and visual design,
conduct user research, or even help with marketing.
Talk about having a lot of jobs to do! Working at a startup or small business
can be stressful but also very rewarding. You’ll learn quickly, so it can be a great way
to launch your career. Another job a lot of UX designers
start out in is freelance. Freelancers work for themselves and market their services to
businesses to find customers. As a freelancer, you get to pick
projects that interest you, make your own schedule, and
work with a lot of different brands. Another common place UX designers
work is at advertising agencies. Advertising agencies are teams of
creatives hired by clients to build marketing campaigns. For example, a beverage company might hire
an ad agency to create a campaign for a new soda. As a UX designer, you might be
responsible for developing wireframes and designs for digital products for
the new campaign. You may also do work that’s outside of the usual UX
design tasks, like graphic design or writing. Working at an ad agency is a lot
like freelancing in that you get to work with a bunch of different brands,
but you’ll be employed by the agency, instead of being self-employed, and
you’ll be part of a team. Design agencies and design studios
are another option for jobs. A design agency provides a one-
stop-shop for the look of brands, products, and services. They’re usually
more specialized than ad agencies because they focus on design and branding. Your average day working at a design
agency is a lot like working at a startup. You’ll probably be a generalist and
the only designer on the project. You’ll be exposed to a lot
of different industries and get to solve unique problems. But since design agencies
work with multiple clients, you might not work on a project
from beginning to end. UX designers at design agencies
regularly move between teams and work on different stages
of a product’s development. Finally, you can work as a UX designer
at a big company, like Google. Big companies have thousands of employees
working on lots of different projects. UX designers are typically
specialized in their work and focus on one project
from beginning to end. Working at a big company is a great way
to learn about a specialization within UX design. Plus, you get to
learn from other experts. One trade-off is that you might have fewer
options to gain skills outside of your specific role, so a desire to specialize
is key. Now that you know what’s out there, which types of companies
are you most excited about working at? If you’re inspired, share it with other
learners in the discussion forum.

You’re making awesome progress. You’ve learned all about the UX design industry and
explored where you might work. Now, let’s talk about common career paths
for UX designers, and the kinds of jobs
you will be qualified for after you complete
this program. An internship is a great
way to start your career. An internship is usually a short-term job with
limited responsibility. You often work closely
with a supervisor to learn more about a job or industry that you
are interning in. It’s a fantastic way to
get real job experience. Plus an internship might lead to a full-time
job in the future. Another way to start your
career is an apprenticeship. Apprenticeships provide on-the-job training to help you develop real skills. Apprenticeships are similar to internships, because you work closely with an experienced professional. However, apprenticeships generally last longer
than internships: around one or two years
instead of a few months. And apprenticeships
are always paid. You could also
explore freelancing, which we discussed earlier. You may recall freelancers
work for themselves and market their services to businesses to find customers. Working as a freelancer
can help you gain experience on real
UX design projects. A good way to get
started as a freelancer is to offer your services
to a small business or a nonprofit in exchange for a good recommendation and a project to include
in your portfolio. Once you have a couple
of projects under your belt and some references,
you can begin charging customers. If you’re excited to
explore freelancing, we’ll discuss it in more detail
at the end of this program. The most common way to start your
career in UX design is an entry-level job. Entry-level jobs are roles that do
not require prior experience in the field. The skills and portfolio pieces
you’ll develop in this program will help you get started as
an entry-level UX designer. Plenty of companies might be
interested in hiring someone who’s completed this program and
produced a portfolio of outstanding work. Someone like you! A job that says it requires
a year of experience, might instead accept your certificate
and portfolio as proof that you have the skills for the job. It clearly communicates your
value, so don’t limit yourself.

Hi, my name is Juan. I’m a visual designer at Google. I come from the
Dominican Republic, especially from a
small town in DR, where I don’t have
access to Internet. My passion for computer and
Internet was very, very high, that every day after school when I get
home, I take my CPU, and put it on my head, and walk more or less one mile, to connect to this small lab, because this was the
only location in my town where I can get
access to Internet. The first thing that
I do when I went to the lab was open
Google Search.com, and just find tutorial
about how to use Photoshop, how to use the software that people in that
time used for design. I remember that that
was very fun to me. I am an immigrant,
I remember I moved to United States
like 10 years ago, and I can’t find job in
design, because first struggle, I cannot speak English.
Even now, probably, you need to use subtitles
to understand me well, because even now I cannot speak English very well. But I try. As immigrants when we come from our country
to United States, the first idea that
we have in mind is just apply in fast food. I remember back 10 years ago
when I moved to Connecticut, I went to multiple
fast food places, and I never get a job, and my first job experience
in the United States, was cleaning toilet in a hotel. I really loved that job. I never imagined that, years later, I’m gonna start my
first career in design. How I get from
working for a hotel, doing housekeeping work,
into Google is interesting. It’s a crazy and
interesting journey. I applied to other
design studios, and I learned a lot doing drafts of rough designs for
digital agencies. And after a couple years
working in the industry, I just studied by myself, using Google Search to
find how you Photoshop, how you use internet, how you freehand, and
all the design software. After that, I remember
that a friend suggests me, hey, I think you should
work for Google, you have the potential
to work for Google. But at that time, I don’t believe that
I can work for Google, because I never
went to college. All the design
things that I know, I learned by myself. He recommends me, I
didn’t get the job, I didn’t pass the second call
from the interview process. Years later the
recruiter contact me because they think that I could be a good
fit for the company. I received an email, “Hello from Google,” and that was really interesting
because in the beginning, I thought that was a spam, but I decided to open
because I’m curious. When I read the email, where the recruiter says, “Hey, we believe that now you could be a good fit
for the company, and we want to have
a call with you. Do you still want to
work for Google?” Of course, I was very nervous, I can’t believe that I
was reading that email, that Google wants to
have a call with me. I feel very important, and of course, after 10 minutes, after I take a deeper breath, I decide to answer the email, and I answer, and the
recruiter was very humble. They made me feel important, they was very friendly with me, and this interaction made
me feel more confident. Then I move to the second
step of the interview, with a visual designer, where that person was
asking me questions about how I design, what is my design process? They tried to
understand how I work. And the next step was, “Go to the office, and have a interview in
person with eight people.” That was very intimidating
to me, again, especially that I don’t speak English, but I prepare myself. I have a problem
with my language, but I know that I was good in my design, I feel
confident with that. What I did, I did
amazing presentation with a lot of interaction, because I want to show
them all my potential, and then I received the call
that they want to hire me. I’d really like to
share this because sometimes we don’t believe
that we can go far, and me, that I came from a village, or a small town, in
the Caribbean without Internet access and now
working for Google, is something that
made me feel proud.

My name is Mike, and I’m a design manager at Google. Growing up, I always had a computer in the
house, and mostly we would play games and things like that. But we learned to be
comfortable with a PC early on. When I was in high school,
I was in a drafting class, and we used computers to draw. I spent a lot of extra time learning
from the teacher outside of class hours, playing on the computer. So, around that time I
moved from the Northeast. I was just outside of Philadelphia, in South Jersey, so I moved to
the South, in North Carolina. And there was a lot of culture
shock for me, and also sort of a disconnect with parents. There was a lot of autonomy or
sort of freedom in a lot of ways. So, I ended up dropping out of high school
just for a number of those discomforts and kind of wandered off on
a different path for a while. I did a number of different things. I worked at car washes. I worked at restaurants. I did network cabling. I put installed network cabling
in offices and buildings. Eventually, I bought a computer a few
years later and started tinkering again. So, I started learning the tools to
create a website for my dad’s company. So, now I had a kind of a client.
And I just learned. I just kept learning one
thing after the other. I’d build it, design it, publish it. And then, I started wanting
to make it do more, and I wanted it to have some functionality. So, I started learning
simple scripting, and it just kind of continued
to evolve from there. In the beginning, you’re learning things
so quickly, and there’s just like this excitement that comes with everything
that you figure out that works. And in one day, you could figure out how
to do a layout, and manipulate colors and fonts, and each one of
those is like a little win. It’s just like a little boost that
keeps you going for the next thing. And eventually, they get harder and
harder, and soon enough, you’re building fairly complex systems. I definitely struggle with
impostor syndrome even to this day, and I’ve been in my career for 25 years. Sometimes, it’s just struggling
to figure something out, and then just starting to fall
into the pit of thinking, “I just can’t do it.” And then, I just drive myself forward. Just kind of a work ethic approach. Persistence was a lot of it. And also not being afraid to ask others,
or to look for other inputs and resources. You can’t do and solve
everything by yourself. Knowing when you’re stuck and
maybe why you’re stuck and thinking of creative ways to get unstuck. That really helps with impostor syndrome,
and that’s true today. The nature of my work isn’t
as technical as before. When I run up against something
I haven’t dealt with before, I don’t feel like I’m the most
informed person in the room. I listen or ask questions. I try to find other resources
to become more informed.

Okay, we’ve sure covered
a lot this week. Let’s quickly recap
what you’ve learned. We’ve explored: how
this program works, the definition of UX design, why UX design is important
for consumers and businesses, the different roles
within the field of UX, what makes a user
experience good or poor, an entry level UX designers
job responsibilities, how UX designer works with
cross-functional teams, differences in UX design jobs depending on company
size and industry, and how to pursue a
career in UX design. We’ve got a lot more
exciting topics to come. As you continue
through the program, think about the type
of job you might be interested in pursuing
when you’re done. Every new thing you learn
here takes you closer to your first role in UX design and closer to landing
your dream job. Up next, we’ll explore
common concepts, tools and frameworks that UX designers need to know
to excel in their careers. Keep up the great work.