It sounds like the start to a bad lightbulb joke, but we’re not changing any lightbulbs, at least not right now. It is a serious question that most clients and UX designers never think about.
So how many does it take to increase UX? As frustrating as it might sound, there isn’t just one answer. In fact, it varies greatly based on the project.
We have to first think about the project and what the client’s goals might be. After that, we have to put aside our creative egos just a bit and work as a team to create the perfect solution that solves the end user’s problems.
As Many As It Takes To Solve The Problem
The short answer is it takes as many UX designers as is necessary to fully solve the problem. For instance, if we were mathematicians, we’d keep bringing in new people until we could pool our intellects to come up with the solution to a complicated problem.
The same goes for us as designers. We all have slightly different skillsets and experiences. We all come from different backgrounds and lifestyles. One project may only involve the combined skills for two designers to increase UX while another project may have those two scratching their heads until two more join the team.
As long as we have a small team that’s able to bounce ideas off each other and combine the right types of expertise to solve the end users’ problems, it’s the perfect number of UX designers. The one thing we have to remember is not to get carried away by only bringing in the most well-known or most highly qualified. UX teams work best when it’s about skills, passion and positivity.
Basically, add to your team until you find the right balance for your projects.
One Is Never Enough
Want a simpler answer? We need more than one designer to increase UX. Sorry, but there isn’t a magical UX unicorn out there. If there was, we’d probably all be out of a job. Seriously, we’d have to have the equivalent of Superman to increase UX and make the project just right and even then Superman has to have help from time to time.
Why isn’t one enough? The answer’s simple – too narrow of a focus will never solve the problem completely. Every UX project needs multiple perspectives to fully understand and work towards the best possible solution. With one person, it’s easy to get caught up and miss things. A single person’s experience might not be enough to even begin to see the problem from the user’s perspective.
Don’t Forget About The User
To increase UX, we need designers on the team that think like the user. Having more than one or even two team members mean that there’s a higher chance of someone being more like the end user. When we have someone who has encountered the same struggle, we suddenly have both a designer and a beta tester all in one.
Of course, to increase UX, we don’t always have to leave it strictly to UX designers. That’s right – we can bring in end users too! It might sound like a recipe for disaster, but think about it. Why make a problem harder to solve than it has to be? We can meet with the end users and get their perspectives on a project. If multiple designers talk to different end users, we get a much clearer picture of what’s need to create better UX.
While we shouldn’t depend solely on the user, we should take the time to consider their opinions. After all, we’ve all run into users who want a zillion features crammed into a single product and then they complain when it’s too bulky. We may not be able to make something perfect, but we can always make it better.
It’s hard to let go of your pride sometimes and work in a team environment. We’ve all been there. But, it’s better to create an amazing end result as a team than a mediocre result working solo.
Image: Jay Gooby, Chinh Le Duc, Eugene Kim