Hire me for your next app
Looking to build a new software app and not sure where to start? Get in touch to talk about your project - I can help you take your app from an idea to a real business. I do UI and UX design, and I do it for both mobile and for web.
When you work with me you get to work with a UI & UX software designer that has designed and built multiple number one apps on the App Store. I’ve worked on high profile apps like Discovr and Product Hunt, delivering all design from concept stage right through to delivery on the App Store.
Working together…
When I work on an app, I’ll do whatever it takes to make something that people can love. There are very few things that drive me more crazy than an app that is hard to use. I get frustrated with inefficiency, complexity, and over-design. Instead the goal is to create designs that are simple, obvious, and useful.
Most of the work I’ve done involves software design and development across all stages of the product lifecycle. Usually this means I do user research, prototyping, experience design, visual design, interface design, interaction design, and occasionally even software development - everything you need to design great software. I also often manage the complete software release and app maintenance process, and are normally involved in software support, usability testing, software quality assurance, and software consulting. When you work with me I typically use a 4 step process to design and develop your software.
Step 1. Understand
When I take on a software design or development project for your business I like to start at the very beginning. I want to spend as much time as I can with you to understand your business’s goals and users, gathering information, questioning, and listening to try to uncover the real underlying problems and issues. Then I want to know your business targets for your app, who is involved in your project, and your business and design constraints that surround the project.
After that I start exploring some assumptions and guesses with quick and dirty concepts on paper to see if I understand the problem and some of the ways it could be solved. At this point I’m just going for rough and quantity, starting to understand the basic user stories and how that might work in your app.
Step 2. Explore
After the first round of understanding it’s time to start exploring potential software development solutions. We usually end up with some of the core user stories mapped out in UI, a basic look-and-feel style, and some first-version solutions of the software system for each of major use cases. Most of the time I use Figma or Sketch to create high fidelity UI. This allows us to work quickly and preview designs on a real device without getting lost in abstract details that don't actually work.
Step 3. Test
After exploring it's time to share and test. The best way to share work is to get it onto a device with working UI and code. My preferred way to share is to have a demo software build in Xcode or provision to one of your mobile devices, or deploy a prototype app for review on the web.
Once the work is in your test users hands we can test and measure how everything performs. Normally this means usability testing in person or via video, user feedback, and quantitative analyses to evaluate the work against the project goals.
Step 4. Repeat.
Once the first version of your software app is live I like doing as many iterative releases as possible. The apps needs to feel great and achieve the business goals, and this can only be achieved by going around and around many times.
If you have a limited software development budget then I often transition out after the first few major versions have stabilised and the app is working well.
At this point I can help you hire your own in-house team of designers and developers so they can grow the app into its next stage, or I can return to help out with major revisions or minor updates as needed.