We tell you how to choose the direction and where to teach design if you are a beginner and do not understand what you like best: graphics, web, or UX.
Concepts, images, and typography
If you like to work with associations, visual images, meanings, cultural code – try your hand at graphic design, illustration, or typography. This is probably the oldest direction of design: the beginning of graphic design can be considered the publication of the first printed book “Diamond Sutra”. It was published in China in 868.
Graphic design affects not only book publishing. Its main task is to create effective visual communication between a business and its clients. No entrepreneur or startup can do without a logo, identity, or corporate font. Given the development of the market and the growing struggle for customer attention, the business has a demand for fresh ideas and visual solutions.
A graphic designer is a person with a rich visual culture. Working with graphics requires a high level of concentration, the ability to listen to others, and convey information through specific images.
There are many directions: typography, leathery, development of logos and identics, design of books, posters and product packaging, outdoors and design of websites (don’t forget that you will have to bring your designs to life by converting your PSD to WordPress). To make up your mind, ask yourself the following questions:
– 1. Do you pay attention to the font when you read a book, watch a poster, or study a website? — Then you might be interested to try your hand at typography.
– 2. Do you pay attention to street banners and shop signs, how clear and attractive are they? Do you notice where you would and would not go? — Then you should try your hand at outdoor advertising or UX-design – help people with navigation.
– 3. Can you now name five company logos that you like? Do you notice the meaning, shapes, colors? — Wow! You’d probably be interested in creating logos and fonts.
Processes, scripts and behavioral patterns
If you like to analyze user behavior and work through site interaction scenarios, take a look at the UX design.
UX – literally means “user experience”. More broadly, it includes the experience that a user gains from working with your site or application.
This new direction of design appeared about ten years ago, however, then it was perceived as part of web design and not allocated. About two or three years ago, UX-design was formed as a separate direction: began to appear specialized educational courses and workshops, and companies began to look for staff UX-designers.
The popularity of UX-design can be explained by two reasons. First, a huge number of educational literature, free lectures, and webinars made the profession of designer more accessible. High competition motivates us to improve the quality of services and to specialize in certain aspects of design. Secondly, clients have become more educated and conscious. If in the 2000s sites were created just because they had to, today the client understands why he wants the site, who his clients and what he wants to get in the end.
Since the user experience and interface design are inseparable, it is almost always one person – UX-designer. He interviews the customer and future users of the product, collects and analyzes information about the customer’s target audience, makes a CJM (Customer Journey Map), a map of the customer’s journey from the first contact with the product to the service, service, and result.