2023 Coursera Inc. All rights reserved. In this blog post, I am explaining the purpose, structure, and best practices of a UI UX Design case study and portfolio. This is particularly important when giving background on the problem you set out to solve. You can use the steps in your process to create a navigation section, such as the one offered in UXfolio, to tie all parts of your case study together. He uses the same color for his headings and the visuals in the case study, achieving a very put-together feel. Highlight your specialty. User Experience Strategist @userfocus. It could be attributed to the combination of the amazing illustration on his homepage and his bold choice of colors. If you dont want your portfolio to be public, you can set a password for your entire portfolio. This is exactly what a great portfolio home page should achieve: it should make your readers want to learn more. Maintain your tone of voice. Writing a case study is the way a UX researcher demonstrates their value. These types of projects often simulate real-world situations by giving you the constraints of a brief to work from, as well as teammates to collaborate with. Some work may need to be password-protected due to NDAs, but you want to give recruiters something to look at without having to email you for a password first. A UX designer portfolio is designed to showcase a UX designer's work. Keep the same tone as in the rest of your design portfolio's copy, in order to form a clear personal brand and consistent browsing experience. Reflecting on a project shows that you didnt just move on to the next one after delivering the design. A good intro section underpins the rest of your case study. But need someone to work a little on the research part and the to do some ux activities and to have it in a presentation pdf. Our speakers were keen on conveying how important these case studies are, as recruiters won't simply take notice of your design outputs. Discuss how to put together a portfolio . So many portfolios are grid images on a white page, and while there's nothing wrong with that approach, Jared's portfolio stands out for its light grey background and use of color in general. This is also your time to showcase any unique hobbies or things that make you, well, you. Give examples of great case studies + how to write one. 2. It showcases the entire process in a step-by-step fashion. But its also an opportunity to let your creativity shine., Portfolio example: Jeremy Stokes - Cultivate, Jeremy Stokes is a former Google UX intern and current product designer at Duolingo. Natalies case studies include illustrations that are similar in style. Roys Boulderr App case study has a good balance of visuals and texts. Clearly indicate that this is an unsolicited redesign and that you have no affiliation with the company. Outline your role in the project and who else contributed. This is a good way to encourage visitors to get in touch. We could look at this portfolio for hours (and we do come back to it from time to time) for a very simple reason: it makes us smile. -Lend your graphic design skills to a worthy cause with donate:code. The idea is to have a functioning piece of software by the end of the competitive event, usually constrained to 24 to 72 hours.. Her thumbnails share the same mockup style, resulting in an overall consistency. Looking for a way to volunteer your UX design skills? One important feature is the "Back to Top" button on the right-hand side of the case study pages. By Lexie Kane on March 10, 2019 Topics: UX Teams Your portfolio website is itself a demonstration of your skills. Be respectful of the original designers, and try not to insult their work. If you can tell an effective story while integrating human-computer interaction principles throughout, youll come across as a great UX designer that any company would like to hire. Contact: This doesnt have to be its own page, but be sure to give recruiters a way to get in touch after youve wowed them with your work. 4. I design products & brands." The rest of the content follows Rachels design process, including research, sketching, and prototyping. Below are some examples of case study deliverables during the design phase. UX case studies are examples of design work which designers include in their portfolio. Case study:Literally anything on her portfolio, but here's her latest Zillow project Why it's awesome: It's a case study that integrates images in a way that is incredibly readable. These are only really small details, but when we read these subtitles we cant help but smile. What you need is a nice introduction, carefully selected fonts, and a nice, harmonizing color palette to create something beautiful. These features include text ideas and guiding questions for copywriting, prototype embedding, scrollable mockups, galleries, statistics section and many, many more. You'll also have the opportunity to participate in a Capstone project to build the front end of a web application. Why not use the same principles when it comes to presenting your own work in your portfolio? Victorias take reassures us that app concepts are perfect material for UX case studies, as they show even more of your personality and perspective on design. Yesha Shah 144 Followers If youve worked on different projects, you can write case studies for the ones that call for it, while categorizing the rest of your work into collections. Then design it. It is a much better option than forcing clashing colors and elements next to each other. His passion project, Cultivate, lays out a clear problem to solve: theres a stigma around talking about mental health, particularly within the Black community. Whats more, she tied all her elements together, achieving visual coherence by using yellow as the accent color. Knowledge of UX methods and their application. Be clear about the scope and limitations of your project. And its worth hovering for these titles and subtitles! This article breaks down the anatomy of a UX case study to help you tell a simple and effective story that shows off your skills. Consider including screenshots of your design with call-outs of key changes inspired by your usability testing like this: Now its time to show your final designs. This is a level that many designers aspire to achieve, and so use these case studies as a source of inspiration and as something you can look up to. And only a very few portfolios have that effect. If you have to sign an NDA, make your case study password protected or keep it general, focusing on the early ideation. He uses case study level password protection on two. This can be more challenging than an unsolicited redesign, as it lacks the inherent structure and constraints of an existing product. Most of Rachels case studies are password-protected. Companies like Apple, Meta, Google, Amazon, and AirBnB are known to hire interns on their UX teams. You may not have a huge budget (or any budget at all) when working on a passion project. Also, pay mind to your introduction. UX portfolios are made of UX case studies. Marthe knows that a great case study goes beyond showing beautiful screens and other deliverables. In the Mimic case study Josh decided to showcase the final designs by focusing on challenges and user needs. Only visitors with the password will have access to your work. How does the Pixpa portfolio builder work? Ability to discuss and explain your design decisions and back them up by applying customer insights and business metrics. Here are the most common user research methods: As you explain the process for your methodology, answer these key questions: A comparative and competitive analysis is a good way to describe the results and what you learned, as shown below: Or, you can include your key takeaways in bullet points, as shown in this example: Next, walk the reader through your design phase. And through case studies you can show it to them. In a goal to improve accessibility of Xbox content outside of desktop use, he lay outs the issues that need to be solved and clearly highlights the objectives of his case study. Its hard to choose a favorite from her 4 fantastic case studies. This is a more holistic approach instead of the usual process-explanation take. 3. Sagars Strategic Design for Misas Spectracase study walks us through his process from the challenge to research, ending with reflections. We dont understand the copy in Hyks Moje Osiedle case study, but we can see that he included plenty of visuals alongside the text to help his readers comprehension. Think of the introduction as your time to capture your readers attention in a concise, articulate manner. Thats because Nicola experimented with the device mockups arrangement on each thumbnail. $120. Its not surprising, since shes an experienced UX/UI designer. She digs into the insights and challenges uncovered during her user research, points back to other apps where she found inspiration and ideas, redefines the Wish apps information architecture, and validates her design with usability testing. Using UXfolios thumbnail styles, Quentin made sure that the case study titles appear on hover only. Feel free to link externally to any documents that may be too lengthy for your portfolio site. On his case study thumbnails, he achieves visual consistency by showing mockups in front of bright, rectangular shapes. Its structure is fantastic. By the end, you'll have completed nine projects in a lab environment or web application and earned a Professional Certificate from Meta. This technique gives a sense of closeness and raises the credibility factor of a case study. Just remember: When youre writing your UX case studies, show how your users influenced your design decisions. It's not rocket science, but there are certain guidelines to follow to make your portfolio a success. In UXfolio you can set passwords on the portfolio level as well as the case study level: Denise has designed for various industries from real estate, e-commerce, advertising to healthcare. When your projects are so wide-ranging it can be hard to achieve visual consistency on your portfolio home page. If you aim to be a generalist, choose projects where you worked on all elements of the design process. Also, try to make it easy for the reader to establish a connection between those two parts. Having roughly the same size for all of your projects will keep consistency in check. Itll make your job easier and itll help your audience too, as theyll know what to expect from your next one. Pick an app or website that youre familiar with, and make it better through your design process.. The background information will help the readers understanding and itll create a better reading experience. Experts discuss new best practices for leading creative teams where collaboration happens remotely & in-office. This is where you get to show your personality and briefly talk about your history. How to write great case studies that speak to the audience? Thats because theres a portfolio formula that works. Case studies are an essential part of a UX portfolio. Therefore its understandable that UX leads and recruiters want to see your approach and process. Jon Aizlewood May 19, 2022 Phill applies his storytelling sensibility in presenting the case studies, outlining his thorough process step-by-step. Another way to add real client work to your UX portfolio is to complete one or two small projects pro bono. Of course the final design is important too, but they want to see how youve arrived there. You'll learn the skills you need for an entry-level role in less than six months, no degree or prior experience required. This is your opportunity to highlight your design-thinking skills and what went into each of your design decisions. Ux Portfolio. Though putting one together might seem like a huge undertaking, once you get an idea of what makes a great portfolio itll come easier. This can be a good tactic if you have NDA-protected work that you want to showcase without exposing it to the whole world. All Rights Reserved. Felipe, whos a senior product designer, created a simple yet engaging UX designer portfolio. This is your opportunity to show hiring managers how you think under pressure. Youve landed your first interview for a UX designer role. In summary, your UX design portfolio should contain 3-4 UX case studies and some information about yourself. The UX portfolio includes some big names and extended case studies of the work he has done for them. Realistically, a product will continue to grow in an iterative process; explaining the direction the product is heading or talking about features that are coming up in future iterations is a great way to showcase this. If you dont want to add too many case studies to your portfolio (or you just dont have enough projects yet) using larger thumbnails is a great way to fill the space in your portfolio. David Travis. This type of project is great for: Establishing familiarity with the design process, Shu Jiang, a product designer at Google, includes an excellent example of an unsolicited redesign of the app Houzz in her portfolio. User research is useless if it doesnt influence your design decisions. Many designers believe that the more youve worked in the industry the more case studies you need in your portfolio. Choose projects that are fun or interesting to you and that youd be proud to display in your portfolio. You can do that by creating enticing case study thumbnails and featuring them on your home page. Those numbers leave no room for doubt about the quality of WebFX's services. 1. Squarespace . Focus on process over finished product. Youve seen some of the best portfolios and youve probably realized that they share many similarities. Typically, most people choose to build their portfolio online, in the form of a website, as an additional layer of demonstration that they understand how to create effective digital interfaces and flows. He does a great job at using the blue accent color throughout the case study. HCI graduate student, Victoria, demonstrates that you can create a unique UX designer portfolio without ending up with an over-designed mess. Acknowledge any unrealistic elements in your case study., Upon completion of the Google UX Design Professional Certificate from Coursera, youll have three end-to-end projects for your portfolio: a mobile app, a responsive website, and a cross-platform experience. Consequently, you gain some extra room for and experimentation with the imagery of your thumbnails. Mood boards and style guides. For one, your story should be at the heart of your case study. In the Toolbox case study, Carson wrote about the key challenges they faced during the wireframing phase. Her portfolio contains both case studies and lots of samples of her work. 3. Portio is built with Bootstrap 4. Get free online user experience lessons at uxtraining.net. UX Portfolio Case Study template (plus examples from successful hires) | by Calvin | UX Planet Write Sign up Sign In 500 Apologies, but something went wrong on our end. Throughout the previous years, long case studies have been the standard among UXers. How do you build a UX design portfolio with no experience? Your key elements here might include: As you continue building your story, answer the same questions that you did for the research section: If possible, include a deliverable for each methodology. Use emotive language to show empathy. Check out our portfolio to learn how our digital marketing solutions drive results for clients!