What is a UX Designer?
User Experience Designers (UX Designers) work to improve the connection between humans and goods. UX Design is an analytical procedure that considers the big picture of a product’s development and release, from initial user research and prototype creation through post-launch promotion. UX Designers are responsible for balancing the wants and demands of customers with those of a company or brand.
Experiences with products and services are always user experiences. This may involve making use of a smartphone application, visiting a website, testing out physical goods (like a new car), or making use of a service (checking into a hotel or using public transportation for example).
Making a product or service simple to use, pleasurable to interact with, and accessible is the primary goal of UX Designers. However, the phrase “user experience design” is most commonly connected with the creation of digital products like websites and applications. Although the specifics of the procedure change from one product to the next and one firm to the next, the standard stages of the design process remain consistent. The end objective of user experience design is to create or enhance a product in such a way that it gives the best possible experience for its intended users across the entire lifecycle of that product.
Responsibilities
As a user experience designer, you are in charge of making sure that people who use your products are happy with them. Consider yourself an advocate for the consumer who is always on the lookout for ways to enhance their experience. Here are some of the common roles and duties involved in the design process:
- Research – You should do user research to learn about your users’ wants, needs, objectives, habits, and problems. A/B testing, focus groups, A/B surveys, and individual interviews are all examples of tools that may be used in user research. A user experience (UX) researcher may take the helm in such organisations.
- Understand the brand and the user – Prioritise the user’s needs by considering the problem you’re seeking to address (and how this aligns with brand goals).
- Analyse – As you gather information, you’ll utilise it to create user personas that will help you prioritise features.
- Design – Create site maps, wireframes, or prototypes to help you and your team see the end result while you develop the design.
- Perform testings – Verify the design by seeing how actual customers utilise the item (usability testing). Find the design flaws and think of ways to fix them.
- Showcase your work – Make sure your customer or business receives the design solution you promised.
Salary
Salary ranges can be rather wide, depending on a number of factors such as the industry one works in, the employer type (public vs. private), one's level of education and experience, and one's geographic region. Generally speaking, salaries in London and its suburbs are higher than national averages.
The average UK salary for UX Designer amounts to £37,862, ranging from £23,000 to £61,000. The average London salary for a UX Designer amounts to £41,308, ranging from £25,000 to £68,000. UX Designers in the Greater London Area may expect an average of £2,889 in bonus pay, ranging from £1,043 to £8,001. Extra perks may include a 401(k) plan, private health insurance, a car allowance, a gym membership, and childcare vouchers. Freelance UX Designers and consultants can command a wide range of daily fees that reflect factors including their level of expertise, the industry they serve, the client’s geographic location, and the scope and difficulty of the project at hand.
Working hours and work location
As a UX Designer you should expect to work between 37 and 39 hours each week, Monday through Friday. Events and special projects with tight deadlines may need you to put in extra time after hours and on weekends. Self-employed individuals, such as self-employed contractors, often have the flexibility to work part-time hours. Work schedules can be adjusted if necessary.
What to expect
If user experience design is a field you’re interested in pursuing, it helps to get a sense of what a typical day looks like at the office of a UX Designer.
What exactly does a user experience designer do?
UX Designers typically function as part of a larger product team and act as a liaison between the product’s end user, the product’s development team, and the company’s most important decision-makers.
First and foremost, as a UX Designer, you should be an advocate for your target audience, which is the user or customer. When developing a new product, adding a feature to an existing one, or making any other kind of modification, the UX Designer must always keep the user and their needs in mind. You must also ensure that the product or service satisfies the requirements of the company. Does it fit with what the CEO wants to accomplish? Is it going to help with revenue growth or client retention?
The kind of projects you’ll be assigned to, the size of your team, and the importance of those projects will all differ greatly from one organisation to the next. Websites, mobile applications, and software design; perhaps even voice, augmented reality, and virtual reality device design! Services, such as those provided by public transportation or hotels, are the emphasis of some user experience designers rather than the creation of physical goods. What you do on a daily basis will also change based on the position you have and the business you are employed by. In addition to more hands-on design activities like wireframing and prototyping, you may expect to do research, testing, business analysis, project management, and different psychological concepts. Only by fully comprehending the users’ goals, requirements, and values can UX Design be successful. And there is no single defining characteristic of a positive user experience. Every possible outcome of a user’s engagement with a product is different, and every design is created with a specific purpose in mind
Qualifications
Because UX Design is such a broad and fluid discipline, there is no single, guaranteed way to build a successful career in the industry. UX Design makes good use of the transferable skills common to many other disciplines, such as:
- Graphic design
- Architecture
- Interior design
- Software development and Information Technology
- Industrial design.
Skills
UX Designers require a wide variety of abilities to tackle the many challenges they face. They require both hard (technical and design) and soft (people) abilities. Some of the skills that you will have to acquire or possess include:
must have skills:
- Knowledge of wireframing, prototyping and interpreting data and feedback
- Communication skills
- Adaptability
- Empathy
- Problem-solving and teamwork
- Business knowledge
- Training in web development or UX writing (This is especially true if you work as a UX Designer in a startup)
Work experience
Some of the ways to gain work experience and improve your chances of landing a good job include:
- Take at least one UX Course-Many different UX programs are available. Try to finish at least one. You may build your portfolio with the work you do in your User Experience classes. You can find work opportunities through these programs as well. Taking a UX course is beneficial not just for the knowledge it imparts, but also because it provides momentum, the essential fuel for a potentially lengthy career move. You might consider getting a level 6 digital UX professional integrated degree through an apprenticeship program that combines on-the-job training with classroom instruction.
- Mould your current experience-Most aspiring UX Designers enter the sector under the false assumption that they have no prior expertise in user experience. They plan to learn “from scratch” how to become a UX Designer. Here’s a little-known fact: the user experience design process is probably already present in some of your current projects. Ideation (brainstorming), research, solution implementation (design), and validation and testing are all crucial parts of user experience design.
- Complete the blanks- You can go back and fill in the blanks if your current projects lack sufficient UX deliverables to showcase your design approach.
- Acquire practical experience in UX Design- Do-it-yourself projects are the fastest way to get UX experience. These are the main means by which your UX may be “hacked” together:
- Make some changes to something that already exists. Pick one that’s full of holes so your answer stands out all the more.
- Help a small local business, such as a cafe or a shop, by offering your UX Design services for free. Participate in a hackathon, such as Startup Weekend, in which you’re assigned to lead the design effort.
- Make a presentation to a fledgling company (it might be a friend’s venture) about the value of user experience and user interface design, and how you can contribute.
- Complete your User Experience Portfolio and Apply- Produce a minimum of three high-quality user experience case studies to feature in your UX portfolio. To maximise diversity, your portfolio items should all be unique. It’s possible that three of them exist: a mobile app, a desktop app, and a mobile-friendly website.
Career prospects
UX Design is an exciting and always evolving field, so you might encounter a number of job titles associated with UX (UX Designer, interaction designer, product designer, and service designer among them).
As a UX Designer working at a smaller company, you’ll likely have a more general role with responsibility for each step of the design process. At a larger company, you might focus on one specialty or facet of UX Design, like information architecture, UX research, usability analysis, UX writing, UX engineering, or interaction design. As you gain experience, you’ll have the opportunity to advance within your specialisation to become a UX subject matter expert (SMX) or move into a managerial role as a project manager, product manager, or director of user experience. Since having satisfied customers is excellent for business, good UX has become a synonym for success
The need for UX Designers has skyrocketed, and their importance will only grow as the technology sector undergoes constant change. Designers that are actively involved in the trends that make UX Design relevant and important are at the forefront of this movement. The average salary for a UX Designer has gone up as a result of this growing demand. Therefore, a job in UX Design has bright prospects. And yet, the labour market may be very competitive. If you want to set yourself apart from the competition, finding a UX Design mentor and honing your portfolio are two essential steps.
Employers
Related Courses
The University of the West of Scotland teaches this program at their London Campus, so you’ll be studying at the heart of the UK’s VFX industry. This one-year, full-time curriculum is for students who have no prior expertise with computers or information technology. The course will help you learn much-needed IT expertise to help you prepare for a job as a UX Designer.
