User Centered Design

At Fluid Perception Media, we are experts at designing large web based systems.

Processes such as Information Architecture (IA), Interaction Design (IxD), User Experience Design (UX or UE), Usability Analysis (UA), and others are key elements that ensure a system meets the needs of web users and businesses. We understand the importance of these processes, can help you understand them, and ensure your system adheres to best practice.

Some suggest Information architecture (IA) is more an art than a science. It involves the structure and categorization of information to allow users to find what they are looking for and complete their chosen task.   In plain English IA is the process of deciding what you want your website to do, and then creating a blueprint of the site based on these requirements.

The larger a system is, the more complex the blueprint. As the blueprint becomes more complex, the need to tap into expertise like ours grows.

User Research is the process of understanding and documenting who the users of a system are. Their strengths, weaknesses and experience related to the system being developed need to be taken into consideration for the design to be effective. Large scale systems may have a widely disparate audience which will factor greatly into the degree of research required. User personas and scenarios of use are common methods of documenting user research.

Interaction Design (IxD), refers to “the practice of designing interactive digital products, environments, systems, and services.” The keyword in this definition is interactive. Based on experience, experts at IxD imagine or predict how users will interact with a computer system. Based on the predicted behaviour the system is designed accordingly. Interaction between users and a system must be efficient – IxD helps make this a reality.

User Experience (UX) is a field of study that explores how people feel about using a product, system or service. UX defines individuals’ personal interpretations of a system in terms of effectiveness, efficiency, and ease of use. Users’ experience can change over time as a system changes and because every individual will have a different view about a given system, the study of UX is subjective in nature.

Customer Experience (CX) is similar to UX, however it involves “the sum of all experiences a customer has with a supplier of goods or services, over the duration of their relationship with that supplier.” CX defines how a customer feels about their overall interaction with an organization, regardless of whether the context of the interaction is related to a sales, service or customer support.

Good customer experiences generate repeat business and customer loyalty online and offline. CX needs to be managed effectively in order to  meet (or ideally exceed) your customers expectations.