Exploring options in UX design

I think it is always good to try out different ideas when working on a project. I know that time does not always allow for exploration of several options. But I often find that by playing with a few different ideas, a good concept emerges that you did not expect.

If you are tied too strongly to one design, this expansion of ideas in to something better might not happen. So I encourage you to take some time to always try out different design ideas and layouts and see where the journey takes you. It is often surprising that the first idea you come up with, and the one that you thought was “perfect,” might not actually be the best. Play around with design a bit. That’s what makes it fun!

Here are some examples of me trying out different ideas of a page on a mobile website. Though they have the same content, the execution of the design varies quite a bit. Which design do you think is the most effective? How would you improve them? I am always happy to receive constructive and helpful feedback.

Exploring design option for a mobile website Jennifer Blatz User Experience UX Design
Exploring design options for a mobile website.

The discovery phase in a new UI project

Jennifer Blatz design research and discovery UX
Looking at design examples of dashboards that already exist helps me to get in the right mindset of designing something similar, and hopefully better.

I find that the best best place for me to start on a new  project is to see what’s already out there in the world. I like to do a bit of research, and see what items exist that are similar in design and purpose. It helps me to think about possibilities, what I like and what I don’t like.

I am currently in the process of designing a Dashboard that will be used in several veterinary hospitals. Having never designed a dashboard before, I thought I would scour the internet to see what visual examples I could use as inspiration on helping me get started.

After viewing various dashboard examples, I figure out what traits apply to my design concept, and what do not. Even though I might not have a pie chart in my concept does not mean I would discard a design completely. It’s often useful to pull pieces from several designs and combine them in to one.

As you can see from the collage of Dashboards above, they have a variety of components. Some work within my design and some do not. As the project progresses, we will see if any of these designs or pieces of the design end up in the final product.