Digital Design in Action

Creative Solutions for Designers

Chris Jackson, Nancy Ciolek

• Publisher: A K Peters/CRC Press
• Year: 2017
• Print ISBN: 9781138831735
• eBook ISBN: 9781317560326
• Topic: Computer Science
• Subtopic: Digital Media
• Index: Computer Science

Digital design is not only about creating visually appealing products and promotions; it needs to possess a practical aspect in addition to being aesthetically appealing. Digital Design in Action explores these pragmatic applications and the creative design aspects for various mediums, including the web, apps, ePub, visual presentations, and PDF. Using the latest digital publishing tools and a project-based pedagogy, this book includes projects ranging from real-world to experimental. Each chapter contains the perfect balance of vibrant figures, techniques and applications to help guide the reader into harnessing their inner potential.

Key Features

• Presents methodologies used to deploy layouts for multiple digital output, using the latest tools and techniques
• Includes a supporting companion website containing digital examples, plus all exercise files and supporting art
• Contains end-of-chapter exercises and real-world and experimental projects
• Structured to help design students create dynamic content in class and on the job later down the line.

1

Understanding Visual Communication Design

Digital design is not just about making things visually attractive on the screen. It encompasses research, planning, presentation, and programming. Before we jump into action, it is important to review the key ingredients that make visual communication design effective. The main focus is on understanding the content, who will be using it, and how design facilitates communication while empathizing with the users.

This chapter reviews the underlying framework in designing visual communication for the digital world. At the completion of this chapter, you will be able to:

• Describe the different types of content used in design projects.

• Define a user who will be interacting with the content.

• Communicate the content effectively using visual design principles.

• Explain the process of planning, designing, publishing, and managing a digital project.

Approaching a Digital Design Project

One of the most intimidating aspects for designers is determining how to begin a project. A common misstep is to immediately open a software package and start creating visuals. How can you successfully design a project when you know nothing about the project’s subject matter? Designers must first read and understand the content they are trying to communicate.

Know the Context and Content

What is the difference between context and content? Context refers to a set of conditions or circumstances that are relevant to the situation. It answers who, what, when, where, how, and for what purpose; for example, the client’s goals, resources, budget constraints, accessibility, and technology. Content refers to the actual intellectual message to be communicated.

No matter what digital device, the goal of screen design is to clearly and efficiently and effectively communicate content. You have probably heard the popular phrase, “Content is king!” The more you focus on the content, the easier the design decisions will be moving forward. So, what types of content do designers encounter?

• Legacy content already exists and needs to be edited, revised, and/or updated

• Custom content can be accessed from blogs and video posts

• User-generated content is user-controlled and may need to be moderated at a cost

• Social media content provides marketing opportunities but requires more maintenance to keep current

• Legal content are the client’s privacy policies, copyright information, and terms and conditions

The connection between context, content, and users is fundamental to effective information architecture.

Define the Users

Linking the client’s goals to the user’s needs provides a specific objective toward which you can design. Whether you are designing for desktop, mobile, or wearable devices, you should focus on a “user-centered design.” What does that mean? Design is about satisfying the user’s needs and solving their problems. A user may be one individual or thousands; all with the same wants and needs. You are not the user and can’t design something for everyone.

Defining the user goes beyond identifying common demographics such as age, gender, and location. Designers need to think about the entire user experience (often referred to as UX, UXD, or UED). Who will be using the project? Where will the project be viewed? When will the project be viewed? How will it be viewed? There are many distractions that can compete and/or interfere with your design. Defining the intended audience and how they will engage with the content provides a solid blueprint for success.

Designers have to understand the following about the intended users:

Audience: Age? Gender? Location? Income Levels? Education? Disabilities?

Environment: Home? Work? On-the-go? Noisy or quiet space? Outdoors or indoors?

Time: Leisure? Budgeted/time allotted? Quick check?

Device: Old? New? Bandwidth Issues? Connectivity Speeds?

Next, figure out what the users want. Why is the project being viewed? Users’ motivation may come from a desire to learn more about something, curiosity, or it is required for their jobs. Just like clients, users have goals that will influence the final design. These goals and objectives include:

• To Learn — provide valuable and relevant information; repeat and reinforce the content; visualize data; break content into smaller modules for better retention; provide assessment tools such as tests to measure the user’s progress

• To Get Answers — design searchable content and interaction; build navigation that promotes fast access to the content; avoid using long animation or time-consuming interactions

• To Engage — create a call-to-action button; provide clear and direct instructions; build in error prevention during the purchasing process; show user feedback and orientation; design elements that convey security in interacting with the project

• To Explore — add surprise and randomness to the interactions; create a navigational path that changes each time the project is used; provide multiple methods of navigation

Goals drive the design. Make sure the design solution satisfies the user’s objectives and motivations.

Finally, the project’s design needs to empathize with the user. Users are emotional. They have needs, hopes, and fears. Designers affect users through visual communication. So, how do you learn from your users? In addition to describing the target audience, observe them in action. Users often make assumptions that will cause errors and disrupt the flow of the communication. Ob...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Table of Contents
• Introduction
• Chapter 1 Understanding Visual Communication Design
• Chapter 2 Creating a Visual Presentation
• Chapter 3 Prototyping a User Interface (UI) Design
• Chapter 4 Designing Interactions
• Chapter 5 Exploring Responsive Design
• Chapter 6 Integrating Motion in Digital Design
• Chapter 7 Composing Interactive Forms
• Chapter 8 Publishing to Mobile Devices
• Chapter 9 Understanding Visual Storytelling
• Chapter 10 Evaluating and Testing Usability
• Index