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How to Design a Brilliant Product Without Killing Your Cofounder
The document outlines key strategies for designing successful products in startup environments while maintaining positive cofounder relationships. It emphasizes the importance of user research, simplification, effective organization, and collaboration through structured workflows and communication. The guide is divided into three parts, covering wireframing, user testing, and team dynamics to ensure a streamlined design process.
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How to Design a Brilliant Product Without Killing Your Cofounder
- 1. How to designa brilliant product without killing your cofounder P R O D U C T D E S I G N F O R S T A R T U P S @thedesignnomad melewi.net
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- 5. Travelling for 7years Just got back from a roadtrip in ! Belize 40 countries and counting! In the last year: " New Zealand # Australia $ France % Italy & UK ' Iceland ( USA ! Belize ) Belgium * Netherlands + Denmark , Sweden - Switzerland
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- 7. Melewi T H ET R A V E L L I N G D E S I G N S T U D I O
- 8. We design awesomeproducts for users and businesses around the world Team of 8 people from 7 countries Just turned 5 years old Clients in 5 continents, 48 countries Millions of users globally
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- 12. 2010 now * disclaimer: thisis not my best lettering work
- 13. 2010 now in 3 parts;crammed full of info Everything I’ve learned on how to design a brilliant product without killing your cofounder P R O D U C T D E S I G N F O R S T A R T U P S
- 14. 2010 now Lean Effective Tips & tricks Wellorganised Well communicated
- 15. 1Everything I’ve learnedon how to design a brilliant product without killing your cofounder how to design P A R T 1 O F 3
- 16. 1 How to keepthings simple and effective I like things to be lean but organised This is how I do things Quick overviews (without diving too deep)
- 17. Wireframing how to design PA R T 1 O F 3
- 19. Page skeletons /blueprints Figure out what your pages / screens are Start sketching Continue sketching Fill in important text - e.g. Headers, call-to-actions
- 20. Don’t start witha program (e.g. Illustrator) Even the playing ground > even my grandma can sketch Share ideas quickly Don’t be afraid to re-do or edit Paper can be passed around, scribbled on, cut up Can be taken with you (unlike a whiteboard)
- 21. Too tempting tostart building No! It’s got to work / function right first Puts your thoughts + ideas down onto something you can test And with it, you go out and get results!
- 22. Wireframing Hacks Grid orDotted Sketchbooks Erasable pens! 6-UP or 8-UP
- 23. Wireframing Hacks GUI KitsDevice Template Evernote Scannable App
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- 25. Hi tech + Lowtech 2 3 1 4 Wireframing Hacks
- 26. how to design PA R T 1 O F 3 Interface Design
- 28. It doesn’t haveto look AMAZING It just has to look presentable! Do NOT jump straight into coding Sketch and test before working on the UI Use design tools to help you! Start and maintain a stylesheet for consistency
- 29. Colors Photos Fonts colourco.de kuler.adobe.comstocksnap.io stocksy.com fontflame.com fontpair.com
- 30. UI Frameworks & GUISets foundation.zurb.com semantic-ui.com getbootstrap.com
- 31. Grid GUI Stylesheet Systemise &Organise
- 32. how to design PA R T 1 O F 3 Prototyping
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- 34. Interactions & Animations Keynote + Magicmove = Amazingness
- 35. how to design PA R T 1 O F 3 Design Principles
- 37. Tell people wherethey are
- 38. Tell people wherethey are Keep things where they’ve always been (forks don’t belong in the loo, do they?)
- 39. Tell people wherethey are Keep things where they’ve always been (forks don’t belong in the loo, do they?) People read left to right, top to bottom, so…
- 40. Tell people wherethey are Keep things where they’ve always been (forks don’t belong in the loo, do they?) People read left to right, top to bottom, so… Keep your top-level info on the top and / or left
- 41. Tell people wherethey are Keep things where they’ve always been (forks don’t belong in the loo, do they?) People read left to right, top to bottom, so… Keep your top-level info on the top and / or left Keep your key actions bottom and / or right
- 42. Split the pageinto sections
- 43. Split the pageinto sections Keep sections holding roughly the same level of information or required focus navigation secondary primary
- 44. Split the pageinto sections Keep sections holding roughly the same level of information or required focus Keep the key area the biggest (and typically to the right)
- 45. Split the pageinto sections Keep sections holding roughly the same level of information or required focus Keep the key area the biggest (and typically to the right) Cluster information together to form groups
- 46. 2Everything I’ve learnedon how to design a brilliant product without killing your cofounder a brilliant product P A R T 2 O F 3
- 47. 2 Get your foundationright Spend time really figuring out what the problem is Remember: you’re not building for you! A brilliant product doesn’t come from a genius Even experts can’t guarantee it’s right till it’s been tested
- 48. a brilliant product PA R T 2 O F 3 User Research A K A “ Y O U W A N T M E T O T A L K T O P E O P L E ? ! ”
- 50. Know who you’retargeting inside and out What do they like and value? How do they think and behave? You cannot target everyone! It’s never a one-size-fits-all Decide, design and build accordingly Does your target audience segment even exist?
- 51. USABILITY.GOV “User research focuseson understanding user behaviours, needs, and motivations through observation techniques, task analysis, and other feedback methodologies a bunch of different ways
- 52. User Interviews A qualitativequestion and answer discussion conducted with one participant Contextual Interviews A specific “interview" method to collect observational data in a specific context Surveys A list of quantitative and or qualitative questions that can be filled at scale and anonymously I N S I G H T S E F F O R T I N S I G H T S E F F O R T I N S I G H T S E F F O R T
- 53. I N SI G H T S E F F O R T e.g. We believe that new mothers are lacking a support system that will help them feel less stressed and enjoy having a child more. Step 1: Create your hypothesis I want to know if new mothers are lacking a support system Step 2: Identify what you want to know I want to know if new mothers feel less stressed when talking to other new mothers I want to know what would help new mothers enjoy having their child more. User Interviews A qualitative question and answer discussion conducted with one participant
- 54. I N SI G H T S E F F O R T User Interviews A qualitative question and answer discussion conducted with one participant Step 3: Frame your questions I want to know if new mothers are lacking a support system I want to know if new mothers feel less stressed when talking to other new mothers I want to know what would help new mothers enjoy having their child more. How has your experience as a new mother been like? What is your support system like? Tell me about any friends you have who are also new mothers? Do you talk to them often? (Why / why not?) If you had a magic wand, what would you wish to change in your daily life?
- 55. I N SI G H T S E F F O R T User Interviews A qualitative question and answer discussion conducted with one participant Step 4: Make sure you’ve good questions Make sure it’s not leading Try to make it open-ended How little support do you think you receive? Do you feel you have enough support? Tell me about your support system Try to bank it off past behaviours Have you ever any sought help when you were struggling? Do you think you will seek help if you’re struggling?
- 56. a brilliant product PA R T 2 O F 3 User Personas
- 58. Representative snapshot ofyour target audience It should not represent one sole user Are there outliers?
- 59. No. Gender AgeCity Occupation User since… Other products used Income 1 Male 31 Singapore UX Designer 2015 Invision, Atomic 60k 2 Female 28 Singapore UI Designer 2015 Invision 79k 3 Male 45 New York City Marketing Manager 2016 Marvel 150k 4 Female 28 Kuala Lumpur Interaction Designer N.A. Invision 79k 5 Male 31 London Product Manager 2015 Marvel 60k 6 Male 31 Kuala Lumpur UX Designer 2014 Invision 60k There were some very different answers, who is most likely to have contributed them? Spotting Bad Data
- 60. Representative snapshot ofyour target audience It should not represent one sole user Are there outliers? Perhaps a different demographic is a better fit for your product. Have you been talking to the wrong people? Turn your research into something concise and human
- 61. Leia Organa “Darth Vaderdestroyed Alderaan (my home planet), and is taking over The Galaxy. I will not sit still for this! I need to defeat him. But how?! If only there was a way to destroy the Death Star and defeat the Empire once and for all…” N A M E Q U O T E A G E T E C H - S A V V Y F R U S T R AT I O N ( S ) G O A L ( S ) / 5 21 5 The Empire destroyed her home planet She doesn’t know how to destroy the Death Star # K E Y W O R D Bold Leader Courageous Princess * because she’s from the future To defeat the Empire To restore democracy within the Galactic senate
- 62. a brilliant product PA R T 2 O F 3 Usability Testing
- 64. Find people whoare your users Having an incentive usually helps (Starbucks gift card) All you need are results from 5 people Put yourself out there! Cafes, coworking space, friends, limitless possibilities Observing people using your product
- 65. Don’t ask questions,give tasks instead Person A: Give tasks + Interact Person B: Observe + Notes Approx. 3 to 5 things to do Humans feel obliged to please
- 66. Resist the urgeto help them Or to guide them Or to correct them No! Learn from where they struggle Deduce patterns from multiple tests
- 67. Usability Testing Process TaskScenario 1 Task Scenario 2 Task Scenario 3 01. Task Scenarios Setting the context and creating a task for the user to attempt to accomplish e.g. Purchase a pair of shoes for your best friend’s birthday Note-taker Interviewer 2. Set the Roles 3. The Rest 30M I N U T E S 5I N T E R V I E W E E S 1D E V I C E
- 68. 1. Be specificabout what you’ve observed “User couldn’t purchase item” “User couldn’t find the checkout button on the cart page” 2. Organise and group your notes to your task scenarios 3. Number and label your screens for accuracy 4. Create a hypothesis of what the problem is from the comments Task Scenario 1 1A 1B 1C 1D point point point point Cohesive and concise summary of the problem Sorting Your Results Task Scenario 1 Task Scenario 2 Task Scenario 3
- 69. 3. Write downobservations from each participant according to their colour (1 point, 1 post it) point point point point point point point point point point point point point point point point point point point point 2. Write down the user info for each participant, and set aside 1 2 3 4 5 1. Get a different coloured post-it for each participant Sorting Your Results
- 70. Sorting Your Results 4.Start grouping similar points together into piles point point point point point point point point point point pointpoint point point point point point point point point
- 71. Sorting Your Results 4.Start grouping similar points together into piles 5. Label each pile with their problem or issue point point point point point point point point point point pointpoint point point point point point point point point Unclear what the steps are to create an account Didn’t like having so many steps to sign up Couldn’t figure out how to check out their cart Couldn’t find delivery information Got stuck at adding product to cart Could not navigate to the products section Wanted more product information Did not have a credit card; could not checkout
- 72. Sorting Your Results 4.Start grouping similar points together into piles 5. Label each pile with their problem or issue point point point point point point point point point point pointpoint point point point point point point point point Unclear what the steps are to create an account Didn’t like having so many steps to sign up Couldn’t figure out how to check out their cart Couldn’t find delivery information Got stuck at adding product to cart Could not navigate to the products section Wanted more product information Did not have a credit card; could not checkout This will give you a quick idea on which problems were faced by the majority of participants, and which were outliers You can also quickly look over demographic traits via post-it colours to see if there are any correlations
- 73. Task Scenario User1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Task Scenario 1 Good Good Good Good Good Great Good Good Great Task Scenario 2 Poor Bad Average Poor Bad Poor Poor Poor Bad Task Scenario 3 Good Great Great Good Great Good Great Good Good Task Scenario 4 Great Good Good Great Average Good Great Average Great Task Scenario 5 Average Great Average Good Great Good Great Good Good Task Scenario 6 Great Good Great Great Good Good Great Great Great What can you tell from this table? Sorting Your Results
- 74. Task Scenario User1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Task Scenario 1 Good Good Good Good Poor Great Average Good Great Task Scenario 2 Great Good Average Good Bad Good Good Great Great Task Scenario 3 Good Great Great Good Bad Good Great Good Good Task Scenario 4 Great Average Good Great Average Good Great Average Great Task Scenario 5 Average Great Average Good Bad Good Great Good Good Task Scenario 6 Great Good Great Great Poor Good Great Great Great What can you tell from this table? Sorting Your Results
- 75. Task Scenario User1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Task Scenario 1 Good Bad Average Bad Poor Good Average Good Poor Task Scenario 2 Poor Bad Average Poor Bad Average Poor Poor Bad Task Scenario 3 Poor Good Bad Average Bad Poor Poor Good Poor Task Scenario 4 Great Good Good Good Good Great Great Good Great Task Scenario 5 Average Bad Poor Bad Bad Average Poor Poor Bad Task Scenario 6 Poor Bad Bad Average Good Poor Bad Poor Poor What can you tell from this table? Sorting Your Results
- 76. 3Everything I’ve learnedon how to design a brilliant product without killing your cofounderwithout killing your cofounder P A R T 3 O F 3
- 77. 3 Knowing how todesign a great product is useless if you can’t work together well to build it Getting on the same page makes a big difference Spend some time to intentionally put together a simple working structure and flow Prevent confusion, frustration, mistakes and wasted time = a better business & relationship
- 78. without killing yourcofounder P A R T 3 O F 3 Central Documents & Labelling Conventions
- 79. With so muchgoing on, and multiple iterations, things get confusing quickly The whole team needs to move in unison and with little confusion Your time is wasted answering needless questions Get everyone on the same page with some simple rules and guidelines
- 80. Keep a centraldocument that’s constantly being updated realtimeboard trellospreadsheets
- 81. Keep a centraldocument that’s constantly being updated Group and categorise features and functionalities Mark out notes, flows, sketches, etc. in one spot Number and label things for easy reference and organisation
- 82. without killing yourcofounder P A R T 3 O F 3 Timeboxes & Schedules
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- 84. Melewi Full team standup Mondaysto Fridays 3pm SGT Rain or shine Go through all projects statuses before doing stand-up (done yesterday, doing today, obstacles)
- 85. Melewi Sales Team Catch-up EveryMonday & Wednesday Go through statuses on everything
- 86. Melewi Set to recurevery 1 - 4 weeks So nothing slips or gets forgotten It’s a system that prevents reliance on people to remember things
- 87. without killing yourcofounder P A R T 3 O F 3 Working Styles
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- 90. 1 2 34Remember these 4 things!
- 91. Keep organised with centraldocuments Keep it lean and validation-focused Keep consistent with a stylesheet 1 2 3
- 92. Systemise, organise, iterate, andautomate Sometimes rules and processes are useful to have Reflect & introspect Work on how you collaborate Take care of yourselves! 4
- 93. @thedesignnomad M E LE W I . N E T
- 94. Want moaaaar insights? ME L E W I . N E T / N E W S L E T T E R
- 95. @thedesignnomad M E LE W I . N E T