Imagine this: you’re a designer who has been tagged on a pull request as a reviewer. It’s up to you to look at the changes made and decide if you are going to approve them and let them frolic with the rest of the app code.

User testing is a great way to validate assumptions and gain new insights about how people interact with our websites and apps. When it comes to eCommerce (and in particular mobile commerce or “mCommerce”) it’s critical to understand how people find and purchase products online. This was evident on one project where we were tasked with testing the mobile website design for retail membership giant, Sam’s. As it turns out, there are many common navigation patterns that aren’t nearly as effective as people might think.

Think of the app on your phone that you love using: the one that just makes sense when you use it, the one that feels like it was built with you in mind. This is good UX or User Experience. Good UX makes an application sticky; it invites new users and retains active users. UX is the process of designing an application (or product) that is intuitive for people to use by considering how they will use it. Intuitive interactions are important for every project simply because people like things that are ‘easy to use’. However, creating a product that is easy to use takes lot of time, expertise, and iterations.

There is nothing more rewarding than watching people use your app and seeing how they interact with it. User testing is a lot like making dinner for someone; you choose a recipe, ingredients, and invest time making a meal you hope your guests will like. Then you sit down with them and talk about what is good about the meal, what could be improved, and if you’d make it again. At Bitovi, we put a lot of value on testing our designs (and our assumptions!) to be sure we’re building the right thing for our clients and our clients' customers.

After a technology-filled day at work, one of my favorite ways to relax is to sit with my dog and knit something. I love the tactile qualities of fiber. I can create something both appealing and functional (much like the interfaces at work), but without hunching over my laptop.

The goal of every UX team should be to solve business problems with thoughtful design solutions. In fact, I’d say it’s not difficult to find a designer or agency who can create great-looking designs. Beautiful and useful design is a given in our industry. At Bitovi, we do those things too - but I want to know what makes our design team different. I want to help people understand why are we uniquely qualified to work with our clients.

People have been studying design for ages, but we rarely see much crossover in the design fields (e.g., graphic design, web/app design, interior design, industrial design, advertising, film). However, Web designers can learn a lot from other design approaches to create better, more inclusive experiences, and a strong foundation for lasting products.