Table of contents
Introduction
Design thinking, from the perspective of a UX-Designer, is a user-centric way to solve tricky problems and come up with novel ideas by emphasizing what users need. It involves a series of steps that you repeat as needed, and these steps can vary depending on the situation. These steps include the Empathize, Define, Ideate, Prototype, Test and Implement stages.
Redesigning The New York Times App, a UX case study by Johny Vino is a perfect example of how designers use the Design Thinking process.
The Case Study
Johny Vino, a product designer used the Design Thinking process to improve the New York Times app. He focused on making it more personalized for users based on their schedules and reading habits based on the problem statement involving these factors (Cost, Coverage, Irrelevant content, lack of usage). This is how Johnny applied the Design Thinking Process;
Empathize: Johny researched and discovered that users prefer reading news in the morning and evening. They wanted articles tailored to their habits. Based on his findings, he created user personas to aid as a UX reference.
Define: Johnny defined the problem as, "How can we give users timely and personalized articles?" Using detailed user needs and challenges in user stories and journeys.
Ideate: Based on the Define stage, Johny brainstormed various features like smart notifications, personalized home screens, flexible article layouts, and a voice assistant. He prioritized these based on user needs and project scope.
Prototype: He designed low and high-fidelity wireframes using Sketch and created interactive prototypes using InVision, with animations in Principle.
Test: Real users tested the app, providing feedback on usability, functionality, and looks. A/B testing and analytics measured app performance and engagement.
Key Takeaways
From the above, it is evident how useful the Design Thinking process is for designers; it's not always about tastefully arranging design elements and some fancy "prototyping" but rather focusing on the needs of users.
• Design thinking is a user-centric and iterative process that aids designers in creating solutions that are desirable, feasible, and viable for the users and the business.
• Design thinking requires empathy, collaboration, experimentation, and feedback to understand the problem, define the goals, ideate the solutions, prototype the wireframes, and test the feedback.
• Design thinking helps designers to create innovative and interactive user experiences that meet the users' needs and expectations, as well as the project's scope and objectives