{"id":17795,"date":"2019-06-04T12:28:52","date_gmt":"2019-06-04T11:28:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/marvel7077.wpengine.com\/?p=17795"},"modified":"2020-12-21T06:40:52","modified_gmt":"2020-12-21T06:40:52","slug":"design-process-brainstorming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/shopjessicabuckley.com\/blog\/design-process-brainstorming\/","title":{"rendered":"Design Process – Brainstorming"},"content":{"rendered":"

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This design process series covers the exact design process we use every day at SetDev.io. It\u2019s a culmination of a six-year journey, bootstrapping a software engineering consulting agency as the sole designer. All deliverables discussed are attached as Sketch files for your convenience.<\/em><\/p>\n

I. Design Process Brainstorming<\/h2>\n

Ahhh a fresh, new project \u2014 very few things are equally exhilarating, right? Especially<\/em> if it\u2019s the freedom of a passion project. In this jolt of excitement, as a designer, it\u2019s almost second-nature to immediately<\/em> begin sketching<\/a>\/wireframing\/greyscaling the idea in mind; and yet this is almost always the wrong first step.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t worry, I\u2019m 100% guilty of committing this mistake multiple times but I\u2019ll save you a headache. In all likelihood you\u2019re not working alone but with either clients or teammates \u2014\u00a0this is a key principle that should remain at the forefront of your mind.<\/em> Particularly early on in a project, an extra sentence of communication today is worth hours of meetings tomorrow. Spending precious time iterating towards a solution that only you<\/em> have in mind, without at least reviewing your approach & assumptions, with the rest of your team, foreshadows friction.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s cliche but ultimately all products at their onset are simply hypothesis, experiments. At the very least, the team (teammates or clients) should know what experiment it is you\u2019re running.<\/p>\n

The focus of this first module, Brainstorming, is to make sure that all<\/em> stakeholders are on the same page \u2014 they know what experiment it is they\u2019re running. This is accomplished through two separate deliverables:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Project Vision<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n
  2. Competitor & Inspiration Analysis<\/strong><\/a><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    The first deliverable, the Project Vision, answers key high-level questions in order to provide an anchor of direction for the team. The second deliverable, the Competitor & Inspiration Analysis, visually translates these answers to effective market research.<\/p>\n

    Project Vision<\/h2>\n

    The Project Vision<\/em><\/a> is a succinct, guideline deliverable that outlines the basic constraints, direction & main key performance indicator (KPI) for a given project. Compiled through multiple internal\/team or client discussions, the deliverable has two main purposes. First, it gives ideas tangible weight by streamlining & translating them to actionable, to-do\u2019s. Second, more importantly, it creates the very first document that all<\/em> stakeholders, teammates or clients, can agree on.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

    An example of a project vision is presented to the left (or above on mobile). It\u2019s critical to note here that the number of questions & the questions themselves are not <\/em>static. All deliverables are flexible & this origin one is no different. For example, if the project entails multiple user-types, a great alternative might be: what is the end goal for each user-type?<\/em><\/p>\n

    The six cards towards the bottom are the most fundamental & likely least static questions. Again, a few of these things may seem obvious or even redundant to have on paper but I can\u2019t express enough that they might not seem so obvious to everybody else. <\/em>It\u2019s easy to assume that everyone is on the same page \u2014 take the extra time needed to make absolutely sure that all stakeholders, whether it\u2019s an internal project or a client-contracted project, participate (or at least read) this deliverable.<\/p>\n

    A few, short, effective meetings should result in a sufficient first draft. With the experiment now taking shape, it\u2019s time to analyze the current competitive & inspirational landscape.<\/p>\n

    Competitor & Inspiration Analysis<\/h2>\n

    The second & final deliverable in this module, the Competitor & Inspiration Analysis<\/em><\/a>,<\/em> serves to survey the competitive landscape for open niches. It\u2019s effective as both a design & marketing tool. By analyzing the competitive landscape, the idea is to identify potential market gaps.<\/p>\n

    Competitors<\/strong><\/p>\n

    While a very<\/em> rare handful of ideas have little to no direct competitor, every<\/em> product idea has at least a handful of indirect competitors. The first part of this deliverable is to thoroughly comb the app stores & Google for potential competitors. Download & walk-through at least three to five competitors apps \u2014 write about any overlapping commonality that stands out. The research conducted here is really useful for the marketing teams future positioning as it starts to become clear where the products potential strengths & weaknesses lie.<\/p>\n

    Inspiration<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The second half of research is spent looking for UI\/UXs solutions that address the potential market gaps identified from competitors. A great starting point is searching through Dribbble<\/a> or Behance<\/a> for related case studies. A second source is to simply open up your favorite apps to take note of what makes them a great experience \u2014 while your favorite app might have nothing to do with the idea at hand, these days very popular apps commonly hold a fairly-high standard of design worth inspecting.<\/p>\n

    \"\"<\/a>

    https:\/\/drive.google.com\/open?id=1ZUwHZI-UoMrQDP8Na12gnAkTqBSnDxIb<\/a><\/p><\/div>\n

    Putting It All Together<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The last step involves organizing the information & providing visual context like the example above. Try to keep it short, neat & informational. Again, please feel free to grab the Sketch template of linked throughout the piece<\/a>.<\/p>\n

    In Closing<\/h2>\n

    Module one is now complete! Though it contains only two deliverables, we\u2019ve now both communicated a common mission & identified a potential market gap. They\u2019re not anything extraordinary & understandably can come across as boring, but it\u2019s worth re-iterating here the main difference (or so I\u2019ve learned from my experiences) is that the professionals front-load communication in order to decrease the likelihood of unproductive communication in the near future. Don\u2019t overlook communication\u00a0. While the deliverables surely help you, the designer, flesh out the idea more thoroughly, it\u2019s really the cohesion that these first documents create that make them worthwhile.<\/p>\n

    In the next module, we\u2019ll leverage the knowledge gained in order to more clearly highlight our perfect potential user. Module numero dos, Researching, introduces the massively important concept of customer validation\u2014t<\/em>he lifeblood of any successful product in the long ru<\/a>n.<\/p>\n

    Sources<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

    Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products<\/a><\/p>\n

    The Design of Everyday Things<\/a><\/p>\n

    This article was originally published on Jesus' Medium page.<\/p>\n

    Further reading:<\/h3>\n