UX Daily - User Experience Daily

What changes when presenting feels easy? Your audience leans in from the very first moment. They’re hooked on every word. They nod, take notes, and act on your ideas. You click to your final slide and see it in their faces: they get it. People remember what you say, and they remember you. That’s what happens when you know how to structure a clear, confident presentation. These skills don't just h…

Research on siloed teams is often the responsibility of a small number of people. On agile teams, we often involve more decision makers in research, which is a little trickier than it sounds. In this video we’ll discuss the idea of team research and talk about some ways to make it easier and less disruptive. [[video:1038]]The Take AwayCollaborating with team members, especially engineers, can dra…

Have you ever been confounded by inexplicable error messages? Designers and developers often overlook error handling and user mistake management when building websites and mobile applications. This leads to the all too familiar frustration and poor user experience. Here you’ll learn about two types of human errors—slips and mistakes—and how to deal with them.One famous online retailer had a spate…

Technology is rapidly advancing and alongside comes a new way of understanding and approaching emotion in our homes. From the use of ambient color and smart lighting to wearable technology and scent-based systems, the relationship between technology and emotion is evolving.This relationship is still in its early days, though. Scented candles, soft lighting and a wood fire are the traditional devi…

Your next UX gig might not be found on a job board, but at a coffee shop, local meetup or social media post. In UX design, while a strong portfolio is a prerequisite, your connections can be the secret ingredient to your success. They open doors to hidden job opportunities, provide valuable insights, and offer support and mentorship. Discover how to nurture a strong network and make meaningful co…

Have you ever clicked on a button that didn't respond? Or have you found yourself lost in a maze of confusing menus? You’re not alone! Such interactions lead to users' frustration and missed business opportunities. If you’re a designer, developer, or business owner, you’ll want to understand what counts as good design vs bad design. After all, it helps you create a better digital product for…

In this lesson, you'll discover why accessibility testing is essential for validating your design work and how it differs from both usability testing and code-level QA. You'll examine the critical importance of testing with users' own devices and configurations in their natural environments, rather than relying on sterile lab setups.In this video, Frank Spillers, Service Designer and Founder and …

Designers and developers automatically bring visual assumptions to their work, such as prioritizing map displays over search results. Alternative approaches are essential for users who don't interact visually with these services.In this interview, Frank Spillers speaks with a blind user about the accessibility challenges of Google Maps and location-based services. They discuss how visual bias in …

The design profession is evolving, and it’s up to designers to shape their future. Traditional design was focused on aesthetics, the visual appeal. Up until the 20th century, generally designers were not included in strategic decisions; they were thought of as simply producers, as craftspeople. Now, in the 21st century, designers have the opportunity to take a seat at the table, influence busines…

You're in the review meeting and the team lead just asked a question about the project you've been refining for weeks. You know the answer. But when you open your mouth, nothing comes out. Meanwhile, your mind is saying: Wait, double-check, make sure, don't risk it. Then, someone else jumps in and answers for you. By the time you have your response, everyone’s moved on and you’re kicking yourself…

In this video, Frank Spillers, Service Designer and Founder and CEO of Experience Dynamics, walks you through how color contrast, captions, cognitive differences, and motor limitations can change the way people use websites and apps, and explains why creating disability personas and testing across a range of needs helps you build more inclusive experiences.Note that the video refers to Asperger s…

In this video, Frank Spillers, Service Designer and Founder and CEO of Experience Dynamics, explains how making content screen-reader friendly through clearer structure and meaningful text, like headings, alt text, captions, and transcripts, can reduce “junk” for users while also strengthening SEO signals.[[video:688]]Modern Screen Reader NavigationWhile the core principle of reducing unnecessary…

[[video:109]]It’s a recipe for disaster if you simply add a step entitled "be creative" into a linear plan for a creative work project. Likewise, if you just wait for that heavenly spark of insight to come, you may be in for a not-so-great, long-drawn-out surprise. In this video, you’ll learn three best practices on how to create high-gain and low-risk plans that are both open to creative insight…

[[video:80]]Sometimes, the pressure to come up with a good idea can make you completely stuck in your ideation. Your critical sense gets the better of you, and all your ideas seem like bad ones. What if instead of trying to think of a good idea you deliberately set out to think up a bad idea or a silly one? In this video, you learn to use the ideation method “Bad Ideas” and see how thinking up, a…

Are you intrigued by UX (User Experience) design? Is it something you’ve simply read about, dabbled with, or considered taking up full-time? UX design is a dynamic, interdisciplinary industry that’s constantly evolving. There is no better time to become a UX designer—global demand, countless job opportunities, low barriers to entry, accessible online resources, affordable UX certifications, and t…

UI Animation is a valuable skill in a designer’s toolkit. You can use UI animation effects to reduce cognitive load and add personality and charm to an interface. More importantly, animation will help you overcome language and cultural barriers in interaction design. However, if done poorly, animation can seem distracting and even nauseating! So, how can we ensure we use animation effectively? Wh…

People get easily bored with trends, and every few years, the pendulum swings from one way to another. We have all seen the rise and fall of iconic fashion pieces or art movements. The same thing happens in User Interface (UI) design. UI trends go from interfaces that mimic real-world objects to super-minimal interfaces with no embellishments. All of these have their advantages and disadvantages.…

Why do some designs feel intuitive while others feel frustrating? When you design without user research, you’re designing for yourself, not them. Personas are research-based representations of real users—without them, we default to our assumptions and create products, services and experiences that fall short. This step-by-step guide shows you how to build personas that lead to designs people actu…

Affordances define what people can do with your product. Here, we look at the different areas where you can incorporate affordances in mobile UX design.Visual perception psychologist James Gibson introduced the concept of affordances to describe the relationship between organisms and their environments. Don Norman brought affordances to the UX community’s attention with a concept called the “Norm…

Notification design is critical in the age of mobile interruption. It’s become a key part of mobile user experience (UX) design. Here, we look at how designers can create transparent interactions that add value to people's digital exchanges instead of nuisances that distract the user or create mental health issues.Products notify users to get their attention, and only rarely for productive reason…