To capture the competitive edge in application development, it is essential to pay close attention to the user experience (UX). By designing for and with your target users, you will be able to create products that hit the target market with a bang.

This article suggests some fairly straightforward ways to put UX into your development process without compromising your time to market. These quick, down-and-dirty insights and tips can help you figure out your own approach to user-centered design.

Figure 1. UX hotspots in application development

When developing a software project, some UX checkpoints are more important than others. The first hotspot comes early on, when you are fine-tuning and polishing your application idea. Iterative and agile development is important for software development; it can be important for the user experience, too, if you remember that some visionary work done up front will take you a long way.

The second hotspot occurs at the point where you create a mind map to chart your design journey; doing so will help you see details and the big picture at all times.

The third and fourth hotspots are all about design decisions. Here’s where you make sure that the very best efforts are put into the cornerstones of design: layout and flow. It’s also where you test your designs and analyse the results with an open mind.

The fifth hotspot is about playing it smart and interacting with users to gather as much intelligence about your application as you possibly can.

For more information, see the hot spots.