Do We Need To Focus On User Centered Design?

User Centred Design(UCD) is a framework which primarily focuses on user’s needs and limitations. Throughout the design process, user’s preference is of prime importance. However, it is not all about honoring user’s opinion but at the same time it is required to validate how pertinent their thoughts and ideas are by comparing them to the real-world applications.

The fundamental idea of User Centred Design is to provide users with a design they actually want to have instead of forcing them to get accustomed to the design layouts specified by the designers. Design strategy in this case is solely based on the target product. It is a multistage design strategy that is being carried out in three stages viz. pre-production, mid production and post production. During the design process, user centred design encounters too many changes depending on the original requirement.

 There are certain types of validation approaches followed in User Centered Design that includes:-

• Ethnographic Study
• Contextual Inquiry
• Prototype Testing
• Usability testing

 There are some standards set by ISO that has to be followed in every User Centred Designs:-

• The design must be unambiguous for users as per their knowledge, tasks and environment.
• It should engage user throughout the design process
• The design should be primarily based on user’s need and should perform well as per their evaluation.
• The design should address the complete user experience.
• The design team must have technical skills, creativity and expertise

 A User Centred Design must consider the following questions while working on the project:-

• Who has to use the product
• What are their objectives and requirements
• What is the experience of the users in terms of the product accessibility
• What are the functions specified by the users
• How should the product work
• What devices are being used for accessing the document

 

The main components of User Centred Designs are:

Visibility:- This feature enables user to have a look and also specify whether they can access the document or not. Most of the times, it deals with interaction and usability.

 Accessibility:- Users must be able to find what they are looking for and complete the task they are supposed to do. Accessibility, in User Centred Design is related to creating designs as per the knowledge of the user. For example, the user interface of a banking software should not be like that of an educational institute. This is because users in educational organisation might be unaware of such interaction design used in banking..

 Legibility:- Although User Centred Designs are subject oriented, but the approaches must be made in accordance with the general considerations like basic knowledge of a user. Design should be readable, font should be declarative and there should be uniformity.

Oodles Studio is one of the well-built designing companies that specializes in most of the designing fields like interactive website design, Mobile Apps UI Designs and other domains of graphic designing.