Interaction design

The expression user-friendliness doesn't appear out of the blue because it is quite clear that users prefer a good interactive application. A smart design contains of a well-organized lay-out, buttons who act like the user expects and information which appears when you are looking for it. So during this whole process the experience, expectations and thinking of the end user are at the centre.

Target groups and objectives

Therefore it is important to know in advance which are the objectives of the end user with your interactive application. Will this person obtain more information about your company, complain about a product, apply for a job or place an order? And what kind of person is the end user; young or old, type of education, aimless surfing on Internet or having a specific search command? These are all questions to answer before an interactive application can be build.

That is why Proteon Design always starts with a study of the target groups and objectives of an interactive production. It is not the technology or the hype of that moment which are at the centre, but it is the end user who is the most important topic.

Story boarding and scenarios

After examining the target groups and objectives Proteon Design starts with giving a sketch of the product. providing step-by-step how an end user can use the application and can perform orders. The most common scenarios are analyzed and are showed with the use of story boards. Depending on the kind of production, it is possible to choose between story boarding on paper or story boarding as a mock-up website.

There will be a difference between screen issues who may draw more or who may draw less attention. Also Proteon Design examines how a combination of text, (moving) images, music, a spoken comment, animations etc, can support the interaction. Eventually the website is based on the most common use, so unnecessary extra buttons and texts who will obscure the site will not be present.

Extensive usability tests

The story boards are tested in an early stage to obtain a objective opinion of the design. This will be done with employees who are well informed about the behaviour of the end users or, preferably, with the end users themselves. The usability tests can be done both online or offline, at the customer's location or at a special designed usability labs. Although many clients seem to consider usability tests as unnecessary costs, in practice those tests shorten the internal discussion and improve the end result. So a usability test recovers the costs in most cases!

The next step: the graphic design

When the interaction design is finished, we start with the next step: the graphic design. In many cases Proteon Design already has thought about this subject during the realization of the interaction design. Both designs will fit together perfectly. Read here more about the way Proteon Design implements graphic design.