Aaron's Design Artifacts: Flows n' Stuff

Hi there!

In this post I’m talking about and showing some of the many flow charts I made during my time at Vreal. I’ll preface by saying this list can and will change depending on future personal, team and project needs. Also, there are different types of flow charts one can use. I’ve also seen some confusion in labeling flow charts. The charts I’ve used the most are Task Flows

Flow charts are one of the great starting points for me when designing new features, laying out an app, etc. If I join a project and no flows have been created yet then I’ll create some, even if it’s for my personal use as it helps me understand the feature or system in its current implementation.

Flow charts are also not limited to just software experiences given their goal is providing a high-level, clear road map that focuses purely on functionality. They are also useful as I can send a chart out to team members for feedback and ensure everyone is in sync before moving forward. It allows folks to focus on the functionality and not be distracted by visual elements.

Being a very visual person flows are extremely helpful in providing a holistic view of how a user will interact with a feature or the different steps needed to achieve a goal. Seeing a road map of sorts that lays out the various paths and choices a user can take allows me to quickly ideate, get feedback and optimize before getting started with wireframing. As a project changes over development I’ll keep my flows updated as well.

Below are a few Task Flow examples I made while at Vreal.

Publish Content Flow

The first is a Task Flow I created to show the three different paths relating to a user publishing content on the Vreal desktop app.

Purchase Avatar Flow

This Task Flow was created to showcase a possible path for a user to purchase and equip custom avatars.

account creation flow

The last task flow was made when we were going to require users to log into Vreal. We considered three possible options; create a Vreal account or log in with your Steam or Facebook account. Registering your email and creating a Vreal account was the P0 option.

vreal desktop app flow

This is a snapshot of the Vreal Desktop App in it’s entirety (minus the various error states). I lost the exact date of creation. It shows people needing to be whitelisted before they could record content though so it’s definitely after the first redesign.

Aaron's Design Values

Below are my values that drive me as a product and experience designer. This list is not set in stone and can and will be updated as my knowledge and experiences bring new ideas and ways of thinking into my work and life.

These are listed in no particular order.

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Customer Company empathY

I empathize with and want to understand the intended customers needs while also balancing the needs of the company.

It’s important to realize that the company who is funding the project needs to benefit from the end product just as much as the intended customers. It’s difficult to try and find that balance but if the company is happy then the intended customer will also benefit.

Inclusive Design

I get input and feedback from as many people as possible - especially from stake holders.

When testing a prototype I try and get as many people to run through the experience as possible. I want to try and get people on the project, people familiar with the project and even those NOT familiar with the project. All will provide different types of feedback and any of them could provide a golden insight.

Always Learning

I’m always on the lookout for ways to be a better designer. Read, look and listen.

I tend to be an information sponge. Videos or posts on how things work (software and non-software related), movies, shows, video clips, blog posts, and books, etc. Really anything I come across that stimulates my curiosity and/or could be used as reference. You never know where inspiration or a solution might come from.

Always Ask Questions

I want to ensure I understand the problem and that it’s the RIGHT problem being solved.

Part of my job is to ask a lot of questions. This isn’t to be annoying and it’s not due to me not paying attention. I simply want to make sure I understand the problem I’m trying to solve. It’s critical to work in an environment that understands and welcomes this. Some types of questions include but are not limited to:

• Are we solving the right problem?

• Why do we think this will solve the problem?

• What are we trying to solve?

• Who are the intended end users?

Make A Difference

I want the work I do to have a positive impact on the end users. Whether the end product improves a user’s quality of life or improves their workflow.

COMMUNICATE

Communicate my ideas as soon as possible through design artifacts.

Communicating design is one, if not the hardest, things to do as a creative. One way to communicate an idea and its intent is through mockups and prototypes. You can talk and speculate about an idea forever. Get something you can interact with in front of people sooner rather than later to find out if it has legs or not and iterate from there.