The IT industry is rapidly rising, and it is no surprise that the demand for digital mastery is at its peak. Companies hunt for new talent in various IT-related professions regardless of whichever country you live in. Whether it may be a UX designer in Nairobi or IT support services in San Diego, certain skills can be helpful for many companies. UX designers are in demand because UX design is essential for the user to have a good experience with a service or product.
As you can deduce, a good user experience means greater customer satisfaction, allowing your business to grow significantly. However, the demand for UX designers means there is a lot of competition, which means many people are competing for high-paying jobs. If you are one such designer who wants to stand out from the rest but doesn’t know what skills you should prioritize, we’re here to help you out. This article will discuss 5 skills that every UX designer should master.
1. Prototyping
Prototyping is an essential part of the product development process. It allows the dev team to understand what the final product will look like by creating a prototype. A prototype simulates the final product to be tested for feedback. This testing allows the team to collect data that designers can use to improve the final product. Prototypes can be sketched but also computer-based for mouse and keyboard interaction. Designers can also test whether the product will match the system while also testing page functionality and application navigation. As designers notice problems, they can make different prototypes until they land on a final product free of faults. Therefore, it is an essential skill that any UX designer should master.
2. Visual Design Understanding
UX designs are typically very visual in nature, so they will likely be using all kinds of graphic design software like Photoshop and Illustrator. Therefore, understanding visual design is crucial for designers to effectively use these tools and thus, come up with a fantastic design. There are various design concepts that designers should be proficient in understanding like:
- Typography
- Layout
- Icons
- Colour.
3. User Research
To make effective designs, UX designers need to understand what audiences want. Typically, the design should satisfy a need, solve a problem or make them happy somehow. UX designers can make a better product and create it more efficiently by conducting user research. Therefore, user research will include understanding user psychology and personas to make informed design decisions.
This will also involve understanding user testing, including the prototyping we previously mentioned. Therefore, user research will make your UX design process more efficient.
4. Information Architecture
Information architecture refers to the organization of information and content effectively and understandably. This is crucial for products or services to be successful as it significantly improves the user experience. This makes it easier for them to understand, search and navigate through the system. This is applicable to all sorts of applications, websites, software, and even physical spaces. If you are new to information architecture, making sitemaps is an excellent way to understand good information architecture.
5. Wireframing
Wireframing is part of the UX design development process that can go hand in hand with prototyping. Wireframing involves making a wireframe which is a stripped-down version of the products free of all the visual design elements. The intent behind a wireframe is to understand the page elements to ensure it fulfils user intent before implementing the visual design. Therefore, they will typically be grayscale when page interactions are tested because the element designs have not been decided yet. As you can see, wireframing can be an essential component of UX testing.
Conclusion
UX design is a profession sought after by many companies as it involves enhancing the user experience. This can make the company grow significantly due to customer satisfaction. However, since there is so much competition, it can be difficult for UX designers to stand out. We have discussed some of the essential skills that every UX designer should master to stand out from the competition. We hope this article proves helpful and aids you in becoming the best designer we know you can be.
