Importance of human-centered design for software development
If we do not understand users, we will be designing and developing IT products that do not meet their needs.
With this dynamic, the new product, far from being a solution, would become a creator of new pain points, would leave customers unhappy and could cause a major environmental impact.
To visualize the problem, let's think about the development of an attractive system that causes a delay of 10 minutes in finding what is being sought. The user is likely to give up using it. This would cause the customer to lose ROI and engagement, and not achieve the expected results.
In this article we analyze the aspects and phases to consider in order to achieve an empathetic and effective design. We also address the principles of accessibility in software, the benefits provided by human-centered design, and its main challenges.
What is human-centered design?
Today, the software industry is seeking to achieve human-centered design, whose main characteristics are empathy and accessibility.
This is an approach that is in tune with the demands and needs of those who interact with them. To understand what it entails, it is important to know how to distinguish the concepts that define and characterize it.
He empathetic design seeks to resolve the needs of users in a way usable, intuitive and easy.
It is characterized by understanding and comprehending the people who use digital products and services, putting oneself in their place to understand the requirements and “pains” they have or experience.
El diseño no es solo cómo se ve y se siente. El diseño es cómo funciona.
Donald Norman
This discipline covers all activities that include processes, machinery, technologies and people. Among them, software development.
This is a data-driven approach, which aims to solve the needs of users and not the interface (which is part of the final part of the design process).
For its part, the accessible design focuses on detect, plan, ideate, analyze and design digital products and services.
It consists of an aesthetic and functional design, which must include the greatest number of users, regardless of their abilities or contexts, and their eventual permanent, partial or temporary disabilities.
The key is to work on accessibility from the five senses, providing elements and functionalities that allow the developed systems to be used normally, without any barrier or blocker.
That is, to provide Equal opportunities for access to technological products and services through inclusive tools.
How to achieve human-centered design?
The principles of human-centered design focus on creating solutions that effectively respond to the needs and experiences of users.
Some of the issues that need to be considered during the process are as follows:
1. Understanding the characteristics, needs, desires and limitations of users, through research, interviews, surveys or field studies.
The aim is to capture their specific experiences and contexts, in order to design products that address real problems and are relevant.
2. Adopt the perspective of users to understand their emotions and points of view.
This means considering how they interact with the product from their own context, including their frustrations and expectations. Empathy helps design solutions that are not only functional, but also emotionally binding..
3. Creating products that are accessible and usable by as many people as possible, taking into account a wide range of abilities and contexts. This includes designing interfaces that are Flexible and adaptable to different needs and abilities.
4. Implement a continuous feedback process with those who will use the product throughout the development cycle. This phase should be carried out through the creation of prototypes and the carrying out of tests that allow the design to be adjusted and the product to be improved continuously.
5. Test in real-world scenarios and authentic usage contexts, to identify problems that might not be apparent in controlled trials, in order to ensure that the product is effective in the real world.
It is worth noting that flexibility in the design process allows it to adapt to emerging needs and changes in user expectations.
Principles of accessibility in software
The basic principles of accessibility in software development that must be considered in a human-centered design are the following:
Perceptible
Information and user interface elements should be presented in a way that everyone can identify with some ease. This means, for example, allowing people to adjust presentation settings such as text size and colors.
Operable
Software functions should be accessible through different input methods (keyboards or voice commands, among others). While interactive elements, such as buttons and links, should be easy to identify and select.
Understandable
Information and interface handling should be clear and consistent, allowing users to understand the content and how to interact with it.
Various aspects to consider include the use of simple language, clear instructions, and intuitive navigation, as well as error prevention and correction to help users complete tasks correctly.
Robust
It involves designing software to maintain its functionality and accessibility as technologies evolve. The key is to ensure that users can continue to interact with the system seamlessly in the future.
Phases to achieve an empathetic design
In an article A framework for empathy in design: stepping into and out of the user's life‘, Merlijn Kouprie, Sr Experience Design Researcher at IKEA, and Froukje SleeswijkVisser, associate professor at the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering at Delft University of Technology, describes four stages to achieving human-centred design.
The proposed process allows the design team to enter the lives of users to obtain a deeper understanding of how disability, gender or purchasing power affect their interaction with a digital product.
1. Discovery
The first contact with the user public occurs, in person or through research or other methods. Curiosity arises to explore and discover that person's experience.
2. Immersion
The design team takes an active role in discovering the aspects that influence the experience of those who use the product, through qualitative studies.
3. Connection on an emotional level with users
Through their own past experiences, which the designer uses to reflect, compare and come to understand the experience of the person with whom they want to empathize.
4. Separation
The design team breaks that emotional connection in order to reflect, make sense of the users' world, and implement their knowledge and understanding of the experience into the ideation process.
The key throughout the entire process is the willingness of the design team, their curiosity and motivation. The level of empathy that will be achieved and the learning that will be extracted will depend on this.
Benefits of human-centered design
Human-centered design offers a number of key benefits, both for users and organizations.
From the user perspective, improves your experience by creating products that are more intuitive, inclusive and easy to use. In this way, increases your satisfaction, feeling valued and understood. As a result, More engagement with the product is achieved.
This approach ensures that people with physical, sensory or cognitive disabilities can seamlessly use software developed according to the principles of empathy and accessibility.
The company customer, for its part, obtains a higher return on investment (ROI) from Better retention and conversion rates.
Additionally, a focus on accessibility helps organizations comply with legal regulations and standards, avoiding potential penalties and improving their reputation.
In terms of its social impact, human-centered design:
- Promotes the inclusion of people with disabilities.
- It contributes to greater equality of opportunity.
- Reduces technological exclusion barriers.
- It makes it easier for people to be more autonomous.
- Promote a culture of social responsibility
- It allows for the development of durable systems with less environmental impact.
Finally, it promotes innovation and creativity.
Main challenges
Design teams face significant challenges in the process of developing empathetic and accessible systems.
Often, the technological stack is not compatible with accessibility tools. That is why the design team must adopt, from the selection or creation of a design system, to the final prototype, the elements necessary to achieve the inclusion they propose.
For example, choosing contrasting colors, clear and legible typeface families, and simple structures.
They also focus on avoiding flows that leave the system or application, to view secondary documentation outside, among other accessibility practices.
In addition, they work strictly with WCAG 2.2 standards, always trying to exceed AA as a minimum measure, with AAA as the ideal measure.
Possible design restrictions are also among the challenges to be solved. Sometimes accessibility requirements can conflict with the visual design, which requires a careful balance so that the product is attractive, empathetic and accessible at the same time.
Furthermore, it should be noted that accessibility standards and technologies evolve over time. This means that solutions designed today may require updates to remain effective in the future.
Addressing these challenges will enable the development of IT products that not only comply with accessibility regulations, but also offer meaningful and equitable experiences for all users.
Conclusion
By putting themselves in the shoes of users, web design teams can anticipate barriers and frictions that might arise in using a system, and develop solutions that are not only functional, but also emotionally satisfying.
This leads to a more fluid, intuitive and personalized experience, which increases the satisfaction and loyalty of those who use the product, and the likelihood that it will be adopted and valued in the long term.
Furthermore, human-centered design contributes to inclusion, ensuring that the product is accessible and relevant to a diverse audience, which is essential in an increasingly global and heterogeneous world.
Contact us to find out How we help organizations build usable and accessible products, and How we create technology products with interactive, functional and human-centered interface design.
