Today I'd like to write to all those new UX Designers, please do not market yourself as a "Junior". Maybe it’s just me, but I feel that using this word only hinders your attempts to “break” into the UX career field. Personally, I’ve removed this language from my LinkedIn, portfolio and resumes. I’ve dropped the word Junior. I’m just a UX Designer. No other qualifier. But why? You are automatically placing yourself into a category that you probably don’t want to be in. When a recruiter or hiring manager looks at your CV and sees the word “junior” prefacing your title, there WILL be assumptions and biases made. Besides, what is the difference between a Junior UX Designer and a UX Designer that just started? Anyone? When I began my UX career I applied for many jobs and spoke to many mentors and educators. One day, while getting a portfolio review, my mentor said to me, “Remove the word aspiring from your title.” Very pointedly. I’d never gotten this advice before. He continued, “Remove “hoping” as well. You’re not hoping or aspiring to be a designer. You design every day. You’re studying it in school. You are a designer.” So how do we fix this? Firstly, if your portfolio, resume or LinkedIn uses words like “Junior UX Designer” or “Aspiring UX Designer”, remove them. You’re a UX Designer. No more adjectives. When you speak about your career trajectory do not use words like “I hope,” or “I’d like to” or “I’m aspiring to.” Speak definitively about what you’ve done, and what you plan to do. In UX it is also important to acknowledge you’re open to learning. Remember, this is an ever-growing field with lots to discover. No one knows everything, and there is always room for career improvement. Photo by Ivana Cajina on Unsplash

Starting at the beginning of march 2021 Google published the certificate program “Google UX Design Certificate”. I immediately got interested because it’s something I’ve been waiting for a long time. Did you know that over 300 thousand people enrolled in the Google UX Course since it launched? That’s a lot of competition. Luckily the number of people who actually finished it is much smaller — around 25 to 30 thousand (I'm one of the finisher 😎) . It’s a huge drop-off but still the number of new “Google Certified designers” each year is significantly higher. But what happens next? Don’t sit back Many people think that when they get the certificate, that’s it. Companies are going to fight for the opportunity to hire them and all will be great. No. You got the basics in and now you need to work really hard to learn more and polish those skills. Try to read industry articles daily, see different perspectives, read case studies from various companies to see how their approach differs to what Google teaches. Because as I stated before, Google teaches some things “their way” that is not necessarily how the industry does things. Even searching for some of the processes and their names can yield much less result than using the name they’re more commonly known by. Work on your portfolio You need to remember that the certificate itself is pretty worthless. You finished a course created by Google, but the certificates are issued by the platform — Coursera, which is ironic because the platform is famous for bad UX. You won’t get a job based on just finishing the course and having those course projects in your portfolio. Chances for that are slim. Add more case studies to your portfolio. Design! Do design tutorials and if you’re planning to be a designer and not a researcher learn UI design. Sadly that’s also the Google’s course biggest issue. I really liked most of the course, but the UI part, don’t get me started on that. It’s actually the reason I created my own UI courses, so people can truly learn to make good UI, but even my courses aside, just practice UI — from YouTube tutorials and learn from medium articles. Pretty UI’s sell better because people buy with their eyes, and that means recruiters buy with their eyes too. Stand out! Good advice that I will try to cover in more detail is to have a variety of projects. Have a mobile app, a website and something different in your portfolio. Like a smartwatch app, or a browser extension. Or a parking meter, atm, smart fridge — the possibilities are endless. Focus your portfolio on projects first, then on yourself, but try to present yourself in a way that is fun and shows you for who you are. Oh and always have a photo of yourself in your portfolio, people viewing it react better to faces than to text — that’s just human nature. Network Networking is after the portfolio the second most important aspect of your design career. The short story is that you need to create a Twitter and LinkedIn profiles, make them consistent and start participating in the design community. There are many groups on LinkedIn, join them and get active, leave feedback under projects from other designers, be a nice person and be active. That will help you get seen. Eventually you can also start posting your own projects to groups and to Twitter, but I always suggest to comment on projects of others first. Learn from that, then post yours. So… What’s next? If your goal is to get a job in design, and you completed one course already — that’s great — you’re on your way there. But don’t think for a second that the course is all you need to do. I believe that if you’re motivated enough to complete a big, complex course like this, you’ll do fine with all the extra work you need to do after. Just keep going! Photo by Mitchell Luo on Unsplash

We’re all familiar with that period of anguish after an interview when we’re waiting for feedback. In the end, the agony can be worth it if you get the role. But what if things don’t go according to plan and you’re met with rejection? There’s no doubt about it - it can hurt! However, as the saying goes: ‘when life gives you lemons, make lemonade’. In order to improve, we need to learn to see every rejection as a learning opportunity which will help to set us up for success in the future. Here are some tips on how to move forward after interview rejection, and how to make your lemonade all the sweeter: Quiet the negative voice in your head and restore your confidence Losing out is never fun, so take the time you need to gather your thoughts and get into the right headspace to move forward. Treat yourself to a little indulgence and be kind to yourself. Remind yourself that you did well to get a final stage of an interview; a job rejection doesn’t define you or undermine your achievements. Ask for feedback Seeking feedback calls for courage but can be invaluable in helping you understand why you didn’t succeed at interview, and how you avoid this in future. Let them know that you’re still actively continuing your job search and would value any insights they have about why they didn’t feel you were the right candidate on this occasion. Not everybody will provide feedback and some companies have policies against it. If you get some helpful feedback in return, that’s great, you can work on it. But if not, even asking shows that you’re someone who can move on from disappointments and is willing to learn from them. You may also find out that you were a close second for the role and would be considered in future for another! Remember what you did right While it’s easy to beat yourself up, try to avoid it! Revaluate the interview and think about where things didn’t go as smoothly as you would have liked and reflect on what went well. Write it down whilst it’s still fresh in your mind. A 2-column approach of ‘what went well’ and ‘what I could have done better’ is useful. You can use this as a plan on how to tackle interviews differently in the future, and perhaps compare your next interview to see how you’re improving. After all, if you only focus on the negatives, you won’t be able to see the positives. Instead of blaming yourself for the failure, applaud yourself for landing an interview with a great company, and know that if you were able to do it once, you’ll be able to do it again. Stay positive & determined Sustaining a positive mental attitude is crucial during this phase and you will need to be calm and collected to focus on the next opportunity. Remember, you are not alone, and that your patience, dedication and hard work will pay off. Know what you can’t control While you can control some things about the interview process that may affect the outcome, there are other things you can’t control. You might feel that you’ve given the best interview of your life but remember that there may be deciding factors you won’t be aware of. Remember too, that sometimes it’s simply about ‘fit’. Perhaps there was another candidate with the same skills and experience level as yourself, but they just connected better with the interviewer. Often there’s little you can do about this, but ensuring you’ve researched the organisation’s values and purpose statements will help you get off on the right foot with the company culture. Be gracious Even if the last thing you want to do is connect with the company that turned you down, you should. Send an email thanking the interviewer for the opportunity and stressing that although you may not have been the right fit for this position, you would still like to be considered for any future roles. It will leave the door open to the chance of working with the company in the future. Photo by Han Lahandoe on Unsplash

Designers use storytelling to get insight into users, build empathy and reach them emotionally. Designers create personas to represent target users and add conflict to stories that reflect their user journeys and problems. Crafting stories, designers can better understand what users want from a solution. Stories enable us to understand and remember in a way that a simple recitation of facts or a bulleted list of statistics simply doesn’t. This is because stories don’t just provide information, they are also a vehicle for emotions. We often consider stories entertainment because they make us laugh, cry, and scream—and it’s these emotional experiences that make stories resonate with us. This is extremely valuable in UX design, where our goal is to create the best possible experience for a user. Successful user experiences often evoke emotional responses, whether it’s a smile of delight or just the relief of finishing a task efficiently. According to psychologist and UX strategist, Susan Weinschenk, stories engage the visual and auditory areas of the brain along with many others, which means when you listen to a story, your brain is active and engaged. This brain activity sustains your attention, makes the experience more enjoyable, causes you to develop a deeper understanding of the information communicated, and enhances your memory of it. How to Reach Users through Stories You can use storytelling in your design process to present your user research results in an engaging way and create empathy with your target users. This will help you steer the design process and keep it user-centric. Here’s what you can do: 1. Define your target users with personas – to envision users’ likely experiences and gain empathic insights. Personas are based on user research but tell a story about your insights. An example persona might be “Rick”, a 47-year-old manager struggling with his work–family-life balance. He even works on his train commutes. Feeling drained, he wants better control of his life. 2. Create a plot, with conflict – to make the personas heroes and envision how they can overcome specific problems using your design. Make this a mapped-out journey or storyboard with each persona’s aim/s clearly defined. E.g.: Rick discovers your (yet-to-be-designed) time-management app online. He downloads it and completes your questionnaire about work commitments, family, outgoings, etc. He starts using your app, letting it collect data from his phone and fitness tracker about time on various tasks/activities, stress levels, alertness, etc. After a week, your app charts his tasks and activities, including sleep, heart-rate data, etc. Tapping a phone tab, Rick sees time-management suggestions on how to become more productive, well-rested, etc. He has the option to continue or suspend monitoring (e.g., if on holiday/vacation). 3. Give your design the supporting role – show it improving your persona’s/user’s life and how easy it is to use. For example, consider how many steps Rick needs to use your app and if voice-controlled devices at home might influence its suggestions. 4. Work with the setting –When and where users use your design is vital for building empathy. For Rick, it’s the home, train and workplace. But what about (e.g.) busy professionals working from home? 5. Tailor the look/feel – Your design’s appearance is vital regardless of its functional benefits, so design the most appropriate (e.g.) layout, colors, typography. For example, Rick prioritizes an at-a-glance, easy-to-use design, but soothing colors would complement larger fonts, etc. Always Consider The What – The user problem/s you define: E.g., They work too much overtime because of…? Budgeting problems at home? The Who – The users themselves, envisioned through personas. This includes people who play influential roles in the main user’s/persona’s story. You can identify them using customer journey maps. The How – Your story arc, with a beginning, middle and end. From introducing the player/s at the beginning, you build towards their biggest problems (which many factors can affect) and finish with the happy ending your design delivers. Ultimately, your design should predict your target users’ actions at every level possible. Testing will help confirm how successful it is. Photo by Etienne Girardet on Unsplash

Readability is one of the most important aspects of Web design usability. Readable text affects how users process the information in the content. Poor readability scares readers away from the content. On the other hand, done correctly, readability allows users to efficiently read and take in the information in the text. You want users to be able to read your content and absorb it easily. Assuring your content and information have good readability and legibility is on the top list for good SEO and a great user experience. 5 guidelines to ensure a good readability Scannable Text, this goes hand in hand with readable text. Making copy scannable consists of good use of headers, hierarchy and focus points to guide the user through the content. White Space, in content-heavy layouts, spacing contributes to the readability of content. White space helps to offset large amounts of text and helps the user’s eyes flow through the text. It also provides separation between elements in the layout, including graphics and text. Consistency is often regarded as an important technique for usability, but it also applies to readability. Consistency in the hierarchy is important to a user-friendly layout. This means that all headers of the same importance in the hierarchy should be the same size, color and font. Density of Text, this refers to the amount of words you place in one area. Density of content has a major impact on your content’s readability. Density is affected by spacing options such as line height, letter spacing and text size. Clean Graphical Implementation, every text body needs some sort of visual support, be it an image, icon, graph or illustration. Placing the graphic in the article can be challenging. Sufficient space is needed between the graphic and text. Conclusion Most of the users will read less than 30% of the written content since we are mainly scanning the information and stopping on whatever is interesting to us. Assuring good readability and legibility is a great way to prepare your content for a great experience. Photo by Patrick Tomasso on Unsplash

Google Chrome is the world’s most popular web browser because you can easily add extra functionality using an extension. Extensions are easy to use and allow you to customize your browsing experience. Moreover, you do not require any coding experience to use these extensions. There are thousands of Google chrome extensions for graphic designers. Here are 5 must have Google Chrome Extensions for every designer. 1. Whatfont This is a similar extension to the Fontsninja, this plugin helps you to find the font family name, size, line height, color, and the weight of font used on a particular page in the website. Link to download Whatfont extension 2. Heurio — UX Check & Visual Feedback Tool This tool will help communication between designer and developer. Using this extension you can turn any website into a canvas and add your notes which can be later shared with the developer. Through this extension, those minor misunderstandings will be thrown away during the deployment phase. All you need to do is open a website, click on the extension, pin your ideas by clicking on any element on the website, and share a link with all the changes to the developer team. Link to download Heurio extension 3. Window resizer This extension resizes your window to any resolution so that you can emulate any device. You can set height and width to change the website window to a particular window. Through this extension, you can view how the website looks on various devices even without resizing the browser. Link to download Window resizer 4. Savee Save images from any site directly into your boards on savee.it Saving all your workspace images in the gallery and feeling difficult while finding those images? This extension helps you to store all your images, inspirations, etc in one place and you can access these images from anywhere. Link to download Savee extension 5. Color by fardos By using this extension you can pick the color from any website. You may ask, isn’t it a normal color picker extension that I already have? The Answer is No, One of the coolest features in Color by fardos is you can type any color name and you will get shades, tints, tetradic, triadic, complementary, and split complementary of that particular color. It’s hard to search a website and know the complementary and other basic things of color. So I use this plugin to save my time. Link to download Color by fardos extension Conclusions Google Chrome Extensions are a great way to save time and work efficiently. You can simply pick up colors, fonts, and images directly from web pages with these extensions. These free Google Chrome extensions solve many issues faced by designers. You will, however, need to experiment with different Chrome extensions to find the ones that work best for you. Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

UX design is the process of enhancing user satisfaction by improving the usability, efficiency and accessibility of a website. Also, the conversion rate is directly proportional to the UX design of the website. Hence, the main emphasis of businesses is to hire the best UX designer. But, a good UX design includes much more than an intuitive user flow and an eye-popping layout. A great User Experience will instantly elevate the browsing experience of the users. This, in turn, will lead to more traffic and increase in conversions. Improving your User Experience will convert visitors into leads, buyers and brand advocates. Here are 4 ways on how to improve the User Experience of your website: 1. Design a Clear Call to Action Button Call to Action (CTA) are the buttons that are used in a website to guide users towards conversion. The most common CTAs are: Start a trial, to sign up for updates, to download the app, book a consultation and many others. Using a clear and attractive Call to Action button improves the user experience of any website. The Call to Action attribute should be placed on every page of the website. It has been observed that websites which have a clear CTA have higher conversion rates. Having a clear CTA also improves the overall user experience. Moreover, if your website is designed in folds, it is important to keep your Call to Action above the fold so that it is easily visible to the users. Here are a few things that you should keep in mind: The colour of CTA matters. Using colours can make the CTA stand out and gives them more prominence. Use contrasting colours in CTA’s as compared to the colour scheme of the entire web page. The CTA text should be action-oriented. Avoid using passive verbs in the text. The text should be subtle yet active enough to prompt the user to take the requested action. While writing the Call to Action text, the word count should not be more than five words. Hence, a clear and visible Call to Action in your web design is imperative to a great User Experience. 2. Catch Your 404 Errors While searching, users generally expect to land on the exact specific page they were searching for. In case they land an error, a 404 error in most cases, they will navigate to another site in their search for a faster service. Well, 404 errors have the capability to drive users away from your webpage. But, I understand, 404 errors are not completely unavoidable. So, how do you tackle the problem? The first step is to find out for which searches the 404 errors are displayed and then fix them as soon as possible. Rather than allowing your site to navigate to the standard ‘404 error: page cannot be displayed’ page, personalize the error messages so that users find them friendly and appealing. Use relevant, entertaining and pleasing images on the error page to reduce the annoyance caused to the user. Make it clear to the users that you will provide a comfortable and smooth browsing experience. To achieve that, customize the error text and add a personal touch to it. While it is not possible to completely eliminate the error messages, fixing these no found errors will bring you one step closer towards designing a good UX. 3. Use Authentic Images Images instantly lift up any webpage and make the content visually appealing. But, the kind of image you choose, can make the overall design of the page appear good or bad. Rule — Stay away from stock photos, always. While it is cheap and extremely easy to use stock photos, trust me, it will do more harm than good. Stock images might look professional, but, within no time the users will be able to make out that these are stock images and thus lose interest. Original photos draw more visitors as they have a realistic approach to them and the user can connect with them. Whereas stock images are overused and don’t appeal to the users. One more thing to keep in mind is that using stock photos will send across a message to the sure that you have not invested many efforts in designing the website. Also, it won’t look unique as they might have already seen it somewhere else. So, always use authentic images, no matter how basic and simple they might look. But, stay away from stock photos. 4. Faster Page Loading Time If your webpage loads slowly, it will frustrate the users who will eventually abandon your website and move on to another site which has a faster loading time. It has been observed that if your page takes more than 2 seconds to load, the user leaves the website. Also, based on the loading time of your website, users decide whether to further visit your site or move on to another site. So, if the landing page of your website is slow, there are high chances that the user might not even go through your website. Remember, just improving the page load speed of the website for desktop is not enough. It is important to optimize for mobile users as well. With the mobile-first approach being promoted by Google, optimizing and designing your webpage for mobile users has to be done without fail. There are many online tools which can help you check whether your website delivers a speedy user experience across all platforms. One of them is PageSpeed Insights by Google. Using this tool, if you enter the URL of the site you want to check, Google will highlight the areas where your page speed is weak and also give suggestions on how you can improve. Conclusions A great User Experience is not just about providing useful information. Rather, it includes providing useful information in an engaging and pleasing manner. No matter how good your service or product is; if it is not able to catch the users attention, it is not enough. Hence, invest time and efforts and to create an engaging website design. Rest assured, your focus and efforts on improving the User Experience of your website will surely generate more traffic and improve conversion rates. Photo by Dallas Reedy on Unsplash

2021 was another crazy year, but web design is all about looking to the future. Because of its relationship with technology, the digital realm can be a showcase for new innovations in animation, interaction and overall immersion each and every year. Let’s pause for a moment to wrap things up and see what the future holds by taking a sneak peek at some of the top graphic design trends for 2022 and exploring why they're on the rise. The top 10 web design trends Every day, an estimated 500k new sites are put online—so, when you create a website in 2022, how will you make sure yours stands out? Here are some of the trends in web design we anticipate making an impact in the upcoming year. Clean designs Symmetrical layouts Serif & lightweight typography Earthy & primary colors (with a touch of neon) Images of real people 3D motion elements Surrealistic visual combinations Blur effect Fluid gradients Surprising interactions 01. Clean designs Web design trends this year will push busy concepts like maximalism to the side. Compared to the demand for more in 2021, we’ll start emphasizing minimalistic characteristics and websites with a more delicate visual weight. But don’t mistake this for all-out minimalism. It’s not the same minimalism we’re used to. 2022 will hold onto dynamism in web design, but sleekness is important, and we’re cleaning things up this year. We anticipate that the web will still see sophisticated effects—just more refined, less crowded and aiming for a smoother browsing experience. Web design example by The Blue Denim Project 02. Symmetrical layouts One thing’s for sure—a good website needs a harmonious composition. According to the principles of design, balance can be achieved in two ways, using symmetric or asymmetric website layouts. While asymmetrical designs ensued from last year’s obsession with organized chaos, this year's website layouts are embracing the theme of simplicity. Like DaVinci’s Virtuivian Man, web design trends in 2022 will inspire perfectly symmetrical balance. From split pages and grid layouts, to balancing designs with imagery and text. Symmetrical website layouts allow you to draw attention to intentional places, which is one reason why this is trending. For example, if a webpage is divided into two content blocks—half visual and half text—it’s a clean way to split the focus and tell a complete story. Web design example by Tumult 03. Serif and lightweight typography Offering a juxtaposition to modern vibes, serif fonts are making their way into 2022 web design trends. In the framework of typography, serif typefaces are those that include a tip at the edge of the letter’s shape, such as Times New Roman, Garamond and Georgia. As we look around, we see more brands taking advantage of the elegance these fonts have to offer. There’s also a tangible aspect to serif typefaces that remind us of print, bringing a classic tone into this year’s design trends list. In continuation with the minimalist trend, we can also see more designers implementing lightweight fonts into their designs: Texts are appearing big—but sophisticated. In line with the concept of colorful minimalism, the new version of boldness will come from color and typeface choice this year. Web design example by Suvelle Cuisine 04. Earthy & primary colors (with a touch of neon) Nature is in vogue again, and so are primary colors. Bringing a subtle tone to this year’s round of web design trends, earth inspired website color schemes are making an appearance in 2022. Influenced by a cultural emphasis on sustainability, we’ll see an overarching focus on nature-forward designs. Society’s pursuit of sustainability and the preservation of our climate have also permeated the web design industry. What we anticipate is a mix of nature inspired hues with basic primary colors to create harmony. Stylish neon palettes will work their way into the mix, adding a fun edge without being the leading aesthetic. Web design example by Mikaela Rubin 05. Images of real people Beauty ideals change every decade. Motivated by culture, history and society, it's clear that a new standard has reached the web in 2022—and diversity is it. Inclusivity is the new normal, both in and outside the web design world, with more brands embracing images that speak to diverse backgrounds, races and ages and emphasize inclusivity. The new set of standards resonates with everyone, and websites in 2022 should include images representing individuals from all walks of life: the LGBTQ+ community, individuals with disabilities, elderly, diverse skin tones, body types, and more. These days we are seeing many fashion houses and leading brands bringing real humans—not models and professionals—into their shows and advertisements. By using images of real people that are similar to customers, or their friends and families, brands become relatable. Especially when it comes to eCommerce, this web design trend is a smart branding decision since more people can envision themselves using your products. Web design example by Amber Magazine 06. 3D motion elements Despite its already blossoming popularity in the past year, running the gamut from text components and abstract visuals to transparent videos—3D elements will be used as a design element of their own to create an effect that’s truly unusual. It’s a trend that’s evolved. The hype around maximalist ideas in 2021 resulted in web designs using many styles of motion elements and transparent videos. But in 2022, motion will be synonymous with 3D visuals, and it will be applied with more precision. Web design example by Yonson 07. Surrealistic visual combinations Many websites will produce something completely out of the ordinary in 2022, going for the surprising effect of surrealistic visual combinations. Picture online stores in space, strange virtual settings and other Dali-esque imaginations. These “out-of-this-world” compositions have major potential to capture visitors’ attention and let them get lost in your design. We’ve seen this recently with big fashion houses who are developing this trend into editorials. A good example is Balenciaga's SS '22 campaign below—the impressive creativity makes their collection stand out even more. When thinking about how it will be applied to web design, it's important to say that it doesn’t have to be made using video. These surrealistic experiences can be created by using vibrant images on your site and combining them with interactions to create an unexpected impression. 08. Blur effect Blurry elements are appearing everywhere, and we love this emerging web design trend for its versatility. Whether it’s blurring part of a visual, stretching or bending an image, or applying a dose of glass morphism—the blurred effect can vary in intensity, adding a subtle surprise that blends into a composition. Using this effect this can add a sophisticated dimension to a website design, and for the adventurous web designers out there, you can level it up by using it with color. This is really the edge of the edge, and it won’t fit just anyone. Brands that are really high end or edgy will benefit from surrealistic design, but it is very delicate and needs to be treated carefully. 09. Fluid gradients Prominent throughout print and digital design alike—such as posters, logo design and website backgrounds—gradients are a trend with no end in the horizon. By blending multiple colors and distortions into one composition, this versatile effect continues to give brands on the web an edgy look. 10. Surprising interactions From “scrollytelling” to animated effects that react to visitors’ actions on your site—there’s no better way to establish a sleek tone than using website interactions. In 2022, we’ll see many website designers using movement as a tool for drawing attention, but what’s truly trendy is the use of animation to achieve a minimalistic and unexpected web design. Information can be hidden behind a certain visual element until a visitor hovers over and reveals it. This game of “hide and seek” can help maintain a website’s clean layout, hold on to information, and facilitate a surprising effect. Pages will continue to be more minimalistic, yet dynamic and smooth. Even when it comes to the spread of animation, the movements will be clean and aimed at consuming information easily. Web design example by Molton Brown Happy 2022! Photo by Thomas Park on Unsplash

Each year, we see certain design trends come into the spotlight. They catch on like wildfire and leveraging them can contribute significantly to your success. Keeping up with the times not only speaks to your user, but also validates your brand. Below are the top 5 design trends we’ve seen in 2020. 1. Dark mode With the introduction of dark mode on popular apps, many users have grown to love giving their eyes a rest. Dark mode allows users to view their screen in a color scheme that uses light-colored text, icons, and graphical user interface elements on a dark background. When incorporated into web design, dark mode gives your website an ultra-modern look. Consumers usually want the most up-to-date products and services, so your website should reflect these trends and preferences. Dark mode is a great way to build contrast and make your design elements pop. The dark interface complements the bright elements, allowing your users to read your copy with ease as they navigate throughout the site. In addition to great contrast, dark mode is known for saving battery life on digital devices, which is always a nice extra gift for your users. Coffee website landing page in dark mode. Image credit akorn.creative. Landing page in dark mode with main image of a shirt and suit with a button saying, “Get Started.” Image credit Davenport Blazers. 2. Mixing photos with illustrations and graphics Layering graphics on top of photos is a great way to mix illustration with realism in your design. This rule-breaking trend has dominated the market in 2020, seen in many industries from fashion to home cooking. This alternative, creative approach adds a certain amount of “cuteness” and delight to otherwise bland, common images. You can also leverage this tactic to call out serious attributes, such as communicating complicated concepts like finance or technology. Whichever reason you choose, this is a great way to add some personality to your web design. Landing page incorporating photos and graphics to make a visually appealing initial impression. Image credit Zhenya Rynzhuk. Main page for company promoting airbags for cyclists. It incorporates real photography of bikers surrounded by graphics to make a visually appealing landing page. Image credit Igor Vensko. 3. Minimalism and white space Minimalism is a classic design trend still popular among today’s best website designs of 2020. Its elegant, beautiful, and easy-to-understand appearance makes this technique highly usable, yielding a delightful user experience. It’s also a trend that has evolved over time; in 2020, for example, we’re seeing even larger sections of white space. This helps guide the user’s eyes to the most important parts of the page, such as copy or a product image. With little to distract, a minimalistic approach keeps the user focused on the product and what’s important. Photo of Despicable Me 3’s marketing campaign incorporating white space. Image credit Illumination Entertainment. 4. 3D everywhere! 3D designs have found their way into many mainstream experiences. From Nintendo to cartoons, we’ve evolved from flat experiences to something more 3D. It’s no surprise that this trend has found its way into design, as well. A parallax website design 3D design to break the boundaries between digital space and reality. It adds depth and realism to your site and captivates the user in a unique way. And with the rise of VR, designing 3D elements is in much higher demand. It’s a great way to create an immersive experience on your site, encouraging your user to stay longer. Image of a 3D shoe giving a lifelike experience. Image credit Toke. Image of a 3D frame with items inside and Gucci logo written above it on the wall. Image credit GG Marmont. 5. Streamlined, minimum navigation Another design trend is to incorporate streamlined, minimum navigation. Minimum navigation limits the amount of choices a user has to make, allowing them to focus on your product. With your information architecture minimal, you can create an experience with few distractions. Another reason for this trend is due to the decrease in screen sizes over the years. From desktop to phone to present-day wearables, UI real estate is becoming smaller and smaller. Designers are challenged with fitting navigation into smart watches, a very popular form of wearable tech. With screens as small as 44mm, it’s no wonder minimum navigation is a popular design trend. Landing page showing very few options for navigation besides down or “Notify Me.” Image credit deandesign. Example of a website with limited navigation; the only call-to-action is an email sign-up. Image credit Clint English. Happy 2020! Photo by Thomas Park on Unsplash

Having worked on multiple design systems throughout my career, I now know that the launch of a design system does not necessarily mean it will succeed. The push towards a launch date can be enormous, and when you finally get there, the satisfaction is incredible. But the success of a design system relies on many other factors: A design system without functional onboarding processes, documentation, version controls, request management tools, technology, and users is nothing more than a style guide. Without users, a design system’s power to affect change is negligible. So what are the common reasons design systems lose the love of their users? Outside of developing a product that users find value in, adoption relies on other factors too. You need to consider the following: Does it have consistent documentation? (Users are unclear about implementing a component) Is there a robust onboarding process? (Users don’t know where to start or are overwhelmed) Do you have a request management system in place? (Users requests are falling on deaf ears, and bugs aren’t being fixed) In this article, I am going to focus on user onboarding. I will provide you with strategies to help streamline the onboarding process and reduce the noise when you make your first release. Material Designs introduction is a great example of onboarding standards. Design System Onboarding How to do it and where to start? Before launching, you’ll need to create a streamlined onboarding experience for each user group. This requires a thorough understanding of how users will access the product, configure their workspace, and use it day-to-day. Audit the existing setup process: Now you can develop a set of instructions for each user group. Conduct user research: There are many methods — interviews, surveys, usability testing, etc. Most importantly, witness how users interpret the instructions and approach setting up the design system. Look for possible drop-off points. Where did users get stuck? What was missing from their experience? If they didn’t succeed, what did they do next? Synthesize and identify insights: Based on the feedback, identify patterns, sticking points, moments of uncertainty, and work towards solving them in new iterations of the onboarding process. In the past, I have included an onboarding guide inside the design system sketch file. Keep the onboarding process swift and easy Offer a simple download + install method. You want designers to feel empowered to start immediately. Think about convenience here. Designers won’t want to have to download things from different places. Keep all the necessary assets in one location and within reach. You’ll probably want to include: Software (e.g. Sketch, Abstract, Github), fonts, logos (PNGs), icons, illustrations, a pattern library, templates, and a branded presentation kit. Streamline product updates so everyone is working from the same version. Most robust design systems use an RSS feed to manage and deploy updates. The RSS feed delivers library updates directly to anyone who has downloaded the library. Ensuring everyone has the latest version of the design system. Other tools that can help manage version control and file backups include Github and Abstract. Surprise and delight via the initial download package. At a minimum, you will want to include the setup instructions and a list of any other tools necessary they’ll need to use the design system. But this is an opportune time to unleash more value adds for the users. You could include a list of tools and resources to help designers work faster. I typically categorize recommendations based on what is required and what is recommended. For example: I included the list of plugins inside the sketch file along with other onboarding guidelines. Required Stark (for checking contrast for ADA compliance) Craft (for syncing to InVision) Find and Replace (for rapid replacement of text within layers) Sketch Palettes (to load colors into the color picker) Automate (speed up your workflow in sketch) Recommended NoCoffee vision simulator (helpful for understanding color contrast) Library Symbol Replacer (for replacing symbols with library symbols) An example of the designer's onboarding process in Carbon. Why start with onboarding designers? If a designer refuses to use the design system, it is unlikely a developer will either. While I can’t speak to best practices for onboarding developers, I can speak to best practices for designers. Here is the challenge: Other than personal incentives (faster development, being asked by a manager, etc) no one holds developers accountable for using the design system. Though adoption has to be mutual between designers and developers, developers do owe some accountability to the designer as their output must honor their design. TL;DR: Given designers' influence a developer's output, ensuring designers know how to use the product will set off a domino effect. The carbon design system includes downloadable kits for designers. Well-designed onboarding breeds collaboration What design tools make your life easier? What makes you more efficient? What tricks help you meet unreasonable deadlines? Whether it is plugins, open-source platforms, mockups, templates, spell-checkers, etc. they all count. Lead by example and share those tips in your design system documentation. After all, the very reason for a design system is to create centralized knowledge. I’ve always found lifting my team up and supporting them to do their best work, raises the standard for your whole team. I guarantee the tips you share will leave a lasting impression on young and inspired designers long after the design system has rolled out. And hopefully, they will pay it forward and you will learn something too! Conclusion As a member of a design system team, you have an opportunity to leave a long-lasting legacy behind. Your team has the power to transform the way an organization designs, delivers and innovates. But first and foremost, you need to develop a solution that prioritizes your users and their needs — in this case, your internal delivery teams. The success of your design system relies on conversion rates — which start with user adoption. Use this opportunity to showcase the power of thoughtful user experience design paired with detailed documentation, consistent communication, and empathy. Photo by Muhammad Salim on Unsplash

Typography is a key element of design that complements the content you create. With an endless number of fonts available online, it’s up to the designer to know which to use (or not to use) when choosing the best fonts for websites. Below, you will discover some of the best modern fonts available for websites today. Fonts are crucial for creating an awesome user experience, conveying brand values, and completing your web design. Before we start discussing the 5 best fonts for websites in 2022, it is important to note that the best web design fonts are often freely available on the Internet. The best font sites tend to be Adobe fonts, Google fonts, and Microsoft fonts. 1. Open Sans Open Sans is a highly readable, neutral, and minimalist font to choose from. This sans-serif font is one of the best fonts for user experience (UX) and readability. Open Sans is a safe option for most experiences and works best for businesses that value quality control and reliability. Some of the best websites of 2020 are designed in Open Sans. Typeface: Sans-serif Pairs well with: Montserrat, Lato, Brandon Grotesk, and Roboto. Download Open Sans via Adobe Fonts. Examples of Open Sans text styles. Image credit Google Fonts. 2. Montserrat Another one of the best web fonts to choose from is Montserrat. Montserrat is a geometric sans-serif font that easily can be incorporated nearly anywhere in your site. This font scales well, as it can be easily read regardless if it’s large or small. The millennial demographic tends to gravitate toward this bold and youthful font. Typeface: Sans-serif Pairs well with: Open Sans, Roboto Slab, and Lora Download Montserrat via Adobe Fonts. Examples of Montserrat text styles. Image credit Font Squirrel. 3. Roboto Roboto is a sans-serif typeface that is geometric but also has open curves. It is considered a friendly and professional font, and it is used in both scenarios. Roboto also happened to be the default font on Android and other Google services. Typeface: Sans-serif Pairs well with: Roboto Slab, Open Sans, Lato, Playfair Display Download Roboto via Adobe Fonts. Examples of Roboto text styles. Image credit Google Fonts. 4. Playfair Display Playfair Display is a serif font with an elegant, modern quality that features undertones of femininity. This font is the perfect choice for websites with a female demographic. The lighter the weight, the more aesthetically pleasing this font is in nature. Typeface: Serif Pairs well with: Roboto, Lato, Open Sans, Montserrat, Georgia Download Playfair Display via Adobe Fonts. Examples of Playfair Display text styles. Image credit Adobe Fonts. 5. Merriweather Merriweather a serif font designed to be highly readable on screens of all sizes. No matter the weight, it maintains its sophisticated feel suitable for any brand that takes itself seriously. It strikes the balance between style and simplicity often seen in luxury brands. Category: Serif Pairs well with: Proxima Nova, Avenir Next, Roboto, Open Sans Download Merriweather via Adobe Fonts. Examples of Merriweather text styles. Image credit Adobe Fonts. Now it’s your turn Now that you have the knowledge and understanding of typography, it is up to you to decide which typefaces and fonts are best for your design. However, before you choose a random font, think through your brand and do research on the fonts you have in mind to ensure they align with your brand identity and vision. Additionally, if you need help sourcing fonts, many professional user interface (UI) kits online have vast collections of fonts that you can incorporate into your design system. Also, be sure to utilize online prototyping tools to create a prototype to put in front of users to gather feedback on your font choices. No matter your individual process, know the power of typography and leverage that to your brand’s advantage. Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

If you’re applying to jobs, you probably already have an elevator pitch. They go like this: imagine you only had 30 seconds with the hiring manager to make a case for yourself. Now’s not the time to tell your life story, or to detail every twist and turn of your career journey. Instead, your goal is to quickly establish where you can provide value and why. When it comes to your portfolio, this mental model applies every bit as much. Most case studies are too long The sad fact is that most case studies I’ve reviewed take the opposite approach. They assume that hiring managers have the time and interest to read several detailed narratives for each candidate. Or worse, they were written as a disembodied report with little thought for the audience that would consume it. Here’s the truth: many portfolios won’t get looked at. If they do, they’ll get only a few seconds. Hiring managers are looking at dozens, if not hundreds, of applications. They use mental heuristics and filters to make quick judgments. And if your case study doesn’t grab them right away, you’ve lost them. Later on, in an interview, you may have a chance to speak to each case study and go deeper on the findings. But until you get there, think of your portfolio as a presentation aid. You might even consider doing what many other researchers do, and build it in slide deck format. And, no different from a slide deck, it should be both minimal and self-contained. Identify the problem First, you need to set the stage. Where did this project come from? At what stage did you enter the picture? Make it crystal clear what problem you came in to help solve. Who were your stakeholders (if applicable), and what were their goals? For product teams, this might be a business initiative or KPI. If you’re working with a non-profit, this might be increasing visits, donations, or volunteers. If there were lots of potential problems to tackle, how did you choose one to focus on? Make it concrete. What would have been the cost of not fixing it? If possible, put a number to the opportunity to save or make money. Now put it together. A few examples: The Snöber team wants to create a snow removal solution, but needs to understand how people approach this problem today. They estimate a total addressable market (TAM) of $840 million. I reached out the SPCA ahead of their annual fundraising drive. Switching to a remote gala during the pandemic had significantly cut down donations. Define the approach Hiring managers want to know if you can apply the right method to a problem. So which methodology did you choose? If you collected data from participants, how many — and how did you select that sample size? Provide some context to defend the decision you made or at the very least imply your reasoning. Indeed, you may be leaving a lot of details out, or even skipping over other phases of the project. That’s okay. The point is to help your audience focus on the 10,000-foot view before zooming in. Now put it together. Continuing our examples: We conducted 15 user interviews with participants matching one of three profiles: commercial property managers, home owners, and renters. We tested the site’s main donation flow with 10 current and prospective donors. Share the solution Last, let’s talk about your impact. Whatever your background, education, or experiences, hiring managers are wondering: what can you do for our team? Focus on presenting the insight itself. This can be phrased in a way that hints at the method: “Most participants interviewed said…” or “84% of survey participants indicated…” Connect this to a recommendation or possible implementation, whether a design change or prototype that someone on the team made. Then, if possible, translate the value of that finding in money earned or saved. Don’t fret if the stakeholders or product team decided to go in a different direction. The key is to describe what the end result of implementing your solution would have been. Now put it together. Concluding our examples: We found that 1 in 5 people who invest time or money in snow removal end up hiring a professional. If the team can convert 25% of these people with faster, more convenient, and more reliable service, they’ll be on track to realize $42 million in revenue. We recommended removing several unnecessary steps in the donation flow, including one that led 30% of participants to accidentally give to a sister organization. With these improvements in place, we expect 15% more donations over the next year: up to $450,000 based on 2021’s budget. Put your elevator pitch together Assemble all the elements, and you’ll end up with an elevator pitch like this case study for a Snöber, a hypothetical snow removal startup: The problem: The startup team wants to create a snow removal solution, but needs to understand how people approach this problem today. They estimate a total addressable market (TAM) of $840 million. Our approach: We conducted 15 user interviews with participants matching one of three profiles: commercial property managers, home owners, and renters. We found that 1 in 5 people who invest time or money in snow removal end up hiring a professional. The impact: If the team can convert 25% of these people with faster, more convenient, and more reliable service, they’ll be on track to see $42 million in revenue. Next, rehearse it until it’s second nature. Be prepared to share when asked for a story about a project you’ve done. Create accompanying visuals for your portfolio. Then, when you have their attention and interest in an interview, you can go into all the rich details. Photo by Cristian Escobar on Unsplash