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I have a similar tip to provide: When a designer or developer shows you a version that is not nearly done, don't provide any _specific_ feedback. If you mentio

by 55555 10y ago

I have a similar tip to provide: When a designer or developer shows you a version that is not nearly done, don't provide any _specific_ feedback. If you mention specifically that a button should be red instead of blue, for example, then you are communicating that they are almost done, and they simply need to make the minor changes you mention for you to be happy. If the work isn't nearly finished, it's better to instead say, "Great work so far. I don't want to rush you. I think you should spend some more time refining the UX. Do a few trial runs as a user and do the best job you can to make the most perfect UX possible." As soon as you mention specific things, they mentally move on.

mangeletti 10y ago
Absolutely terrific advice. As soon as I read "_specific_ feedback", my eyes lit up. Another issue with specific feedback is that "...should be red instead of blue" type feedback can derail a designers whole thought process, a thought process which usually doesn't end at the delivery of a draft, which is merely an optional stop along the way in the mind of the designer. A designer might have ideas for how to address certain kinds of objections to a draft. For example, if boss says, "It doesn't match our brand well enough.", the designer might have some specific ideas that he/she came up with, in case that was a perceived issue. If, instead, the boss says, "It doesn't match our brand well enough, so add more blue.", then the designer's route can no longer be used, and an entirely new route has to be determined. I use the railway analogy, because I think it actually maps exactly: Imagine you, as a train passenger, told the conductor (the person you've hired to be your railway professional) exactly where to go, and there wasn't a predefined switch for getting there OR the switch for getting to that exact location has already been passed. The only way to achieve this new route is to backtrack or build a new switch track, both of which are more expensive than continuing on the existing route to a location that also solves the passenger's problems.

by 55555 10y ago

mangeletti 10y ago

Absolutely terrific advice. As soon as I read "_specific_ feedback", my eyes lit up. Another issue with specific feedback is that "...should be red instead of blue" type feedback can derail a designers whole thought process, a thought process which usually doesn't end at the delivery of a draft, which is merely an optional stop along the way in the mind of the designer. A designer might have ideas for how to address certain kinds of objections to a draft. For example, if boss says, "It doesn't match our brand well enough.", the designer might have some specific ideas that he/she came up with, in case that was a perceived issue. If, instead, the boss says, "It doesn't match our brand well enough, so add more blue.", then the designer's route can no longer be used, and an entirely new route has to be determined. I use the railway analogy, because I think it actually maps exactly: Imagine you, as a train passenger, told the conductor (the person you've hired to be your railway professional) exactly where to go, and there wasn't a predefined switch for getting there OR the switch for getting to that exact location has already been passed. The only way to achieve this new route is to backtrack or build a new switch track, both of which are more expensive than continuing on the existing route to a location that also solves the passenger's problems.