When it comes to UX design, the role of creativity is still debated. When designers start working on prototyping and sketching a design, it is sometimes unclear what’s their role in this process. As a result, some questions begin to form. For instance, how much can they stray from the idea they have been presented? Should they be using customer’s ideas, while implementing their own vision? Finally, how creative they are expected to be with a project to meet the needs and desires of the business owner, developers, and marketing department? So in this article, we have decided to explore what creativity is, and what’s its role in UX design. Read also: Trends In UX Design
The Importance of Creativity in UX Design
What Is Meant by Creativity?
Creativity means different things to different people. However, the most common definition of creativity refers to a process of creating something of value and unique. In general, there are several brain areas involved in creative thinking. So what does it mean being creative for a designer? Usually, creativity comes with several implications:
- Uniqueness
The end result of the process must be unique and of some value in the eyes of a customer.
- Outcome
Undoubtedly, the process is crucial here. However, it is not enough. To claim being creative and forward thinking, a UX designer has to have a positive outcome.
- Process
Outcomes define lots of things as it is an important aspect. At the same time, being creative means following a particular procedure.
How to Put Creativity to Work?
There many things a UX designer can do to become more creative. Here is a short list of ideas that go further than just common knowledge (although may seem like a common knowledge at the first glance).
- Do not think of project’s limitations.
Having them does not mean you cannot be creative.
- Experienced UX designers know that following a process is not something opposite to creativity.
Most creative UX people always follow a process as it helps them with setting intention, thinking things through, and taking care of numerous details.
- Be able to zoom in and out, from the detail to the highest level throughout the creative design process.
You may start going through the UX design process in a step-by-step manner, from the micro-design to the macro-design (large picture). However, the top-notch design projects are ones that allow a person to go back-and-forth between micro- and macro- if he or she needs to. This provides the ability to trace the relationships between these two levels, improving the quality of design.
- Start recording all your ideas.
Sounds funny, huh? But do not forget that Inspiration may come at any time, so your only task is to be prepared. Do not think that brilliant ideas will arrive again. Capture them right away as they appear. When you get an idea, write it down at once.
- Start taking a break more often.
Now that you activated your imagination, try taking some time off from any intense brain activity (in particular, UX design issues or questions). Do something that does not require much thinking in order to free up your mind.
- Identify your intention.
Write down or state clearly what you are working on, whether it is a creative idea you desire to work on, or an issue you want to solve. Read aso: Why is SEO so important?
UX Design is Where Structure and Creativity Meet
Creativity in UX is the process of reconciling abstract and good ideas with the real-world. In other words, UX designers reconcile business goals with a design practice. For this system to work effectively, it should have structure and coherence, but it also have to be flexible enough to be capable of accommodating the real-world.
UX Design Means Solving Problems
In simple words, creativity involves uncovering the needs of users. In UX design, it is aimed to make it easier for the people to do whatever they want within an app, while biasing their behavior towards certain results. Thus, a UX designer creates interactions that are used to achieve certain goals. Read also: Native Mobile Development VS Cross-Platform
Creativity Stems from Hard Work
Any digital product is too complex to come from a single insight. So creativity in UX design does not always stem from a single amazing idea. On the contrary, it is the result of hard work, which means that the sum is greater than its parts. Each part in this system has no or too little meaning. The UX design focuses on behavior suggestions and ergonomics to encourage behavior that fits with the business goals.
Key Takeaways
Creativity always brings innovation. The UX is the process of creating digital products that are imbued with this phenomenon. From this perspective, creativity plays a major role in UX design. At Loonar Studios, we have taken a broader look at the UX design process to understand where creativity in UX comes from. And we hope that this article has sparked some creativity in you. So go for it and be creative!