181 Jonathan Courtney: UX Design for Large Brands

Jonathan Courtney is a UX designer and Product Strategist. He runs the cheeky design blog, UX Messiah. Originally from Ireland, Jonathan moved to Berlin and co-founded the UX Design agency AJ&Smart in 2011. AJ&Smart has worked with some of the largest brands on the planet, including the UN, eBay, Lufthansa, and Zalando. In this insightful interview, Jonathan talks about how he got into UX, what is broken in most agencies design process, and how AJ&Smart uses design sprints to get a high-fidelity prototype in the client's hands in less than a week. Jonathan Courtney - UX Designer http://jonathancourtneyux.com/   AJ&Smart on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ajsmartdesign/   ==================   Our episode this week is sponsored by LiquidWeb. Liquid Web is offering a 33% discount for your first 6 months of managed WordPress hosting. Head over to https://LiquidWeb.com/wordpress and use the code WPTONIC33 at checkout for your discount.   ==================   Table of Contents for Episode 181   0:00 Podcast intros. 2:40 How user experience has evolved over the last ten years, and how Jonathan defines UX. 4:15 Design thinking and how it has influenced UX. 6:29 How AJ&Smart innovated their design process with design sprints. 10:20 Why personas and user research failed where design sprints succeeded with AJ&Smart. 12:50 "Planning is guessing". 13:41 Taking an idea to a nigh-fidelity prototype quickly. 18:47 The collaborative effort that goes into storyboarding an app or a site. 24:01 Why getting to market quickly is better for iteration. 26:52 Every company HAS to have great UX and UI, where 10 years ago, this wasn't the case. 29:07 It's all about the process. 31:29 Metaphors in UX, and how previous conventions, and platform-specific design patterns influence UX decisions. 34:38 Thoughts on major refreshes on apps that millions that people use. 38:40 Does the physicality of a device influence how people use it, and how the design takes shape? 42:59 Are we  heading to a place where templated design puts us out of a job? What should you be focusing on if you are a UX designer? 45:20 "Solve problems, then decorate". The future is now when it comes to the ever-increasingly connected web. 48:28 Digital products are becoming formless. 49:36 Podcast outros.   ===================   Links mentioned during the show: United Nations: Increasing food donations with design sprints   The Lean Startup   Are We Hitting "Peak Design"?   Instagram’s big redesign goes live with a colorful new icon, black-and-white app and more (2016)   ===================   Find bonus content for this episode on the WP-Tonic website: https://www.wp-tonic.com/podcast/181-jonathan-courtney-ux-design/