Usability over looks

Yes! Finally a post about UI and UX. Undoubtedly one of my favorites. Of course I also love the technology behind the scenes, but a product is only good as is its interface with the users.

As a young product manager, I have dabbled in graphic design; on one particular project I was stripped of my UI design resource and had to do it myself, snigger snigger, those were the times. But more often I just wanted to make a pretty pretty interface.

As the title implies, all that changed. Sure I, have ended up with pretty, but anyone facing that design in an app would be confounded, and fail to understand what he needs to do or where to do it... luckily I had help. I have stopped trying to paint, and started to design for use - intuitive, pleasing, cognitive-stress free.

I recommend any and all product managers to study UX. There is an abundance of simple truths out there, and even a short course can help your vision, significantly. The greater challenge is to strip yourself of all knowledge and familiarity, and try to face any interface as a true layman - will a person arriving here for the first time know what he is supposed to do? How quickly? Are there too many options?

Your general layout must be usability focused. Don't ask the user any questions because an amazing amount of people doesn't like to read (I have proved this fact through user testing). Don't present more than 3-4 options. Are your fonts in the right colors, do their sizes reflect the hierarchy and importance, is the call-to-action clear? In most interfaces, the CTA is the very center around which everything else revolves, make sure it rings true with your audience. I've said it before and will say it again - roll out A/B version on production, if you can, and always aim to optimize your design and your conversion rates.

Once you've got all that going, OK, go ahead, make it pretty if you can. Lucky you :)