Frequently Asked Question - Isn't User Centered Design expensive?
User Centered Design is an extremely simple concept, but one that is almost never followed: Simply stated, it is the process of designing a website (or anything for that matter) with the needs of the end user being the primary concern during the design process.
This sounds stupidly obvious, but so often design is driven by appeasing internal stakeholders, or by a misguided attempt to "beat the competition". Users are often the LAST people to get a say in how the website is going to work, and yet they're the ones who have to use it!
One of the common misconceptions around User Centered Design (UCD) is that it is expensive - a belief reinforced by the six figure engagement estimates I've seen for a managed design process alone. And sure, if you're going to go all out, then yes, it can be a costly process, but there's two things to keep in mind: number one, you get a LOT of value for your money. It's an INCREDIBLY efficient spend for the outcome you receive, and number two: it doesn't HAVE to cost that much to get some genuine benefits out of it.
One of the factors that drives the cost of a UCD engagement up is its cyclical nature. The way a UCD engagement is supposed to work is that the designers sit down and come up with a design, that design is mocked up into a prototype, that prototype is tested against real users and their feedback on the design goes into updating the designs for another round. And another round. And another round.
In a perfect world, you never "finish" a UCD engagement, it is a continuous cycle of testing and improvement. This might work if you're a massive company, but it certainly doesn't work for the little people.
So how can you shortcut this, get some value out of the UCD concept, and avoid signing up your agency with a blank cheque? Simple - if you understand that the real value of UCD lies in considering the needs of the users first, then use this as the principle as the basis of your design process. Do your research, make sure you understand who your users are and what they are looking for on your website, then put those things first and foremost! By designing for your users right from the outset, you are ensuring that your website gets off to the right start, and then as your budget increases, you can bring in rounds of testing to ensure that the assumptions you initially made are actually true!
Assembler is a web design agency based in Perth, Western Australia. This blog is intended to be an informal, behind the scenes look into the web design and development industry. If you like our content, please follow us on LinkedIn or Facebook!