I'm here with Heather from Artisan Talent to talk about UI and UX designers.
Firstly, what is UI?
what does it stands for?
what is UX?
what does it stands for? and how are those two things different?
Well, UI will be User Interface and UX will be User Experience.
So very similar, they kind of cross.
Cross a little bit, it depends on the client you are speaking with.
Ahmmm...
So the user interface and user experience, the interface is what you see, the experience
is what they feel.
Ahmmm.
And kind of walking through the process, it's kind of what how my boss is explaining it
but it is a gray area.
You will see it named both and that's why I encourage you to click on it and read.
Click and read, always check it out.
Alright!
So let's focus on the UX design side understanding that we sort of talking about both.
Ahhh, what does a UX design career look like?
You know, starting from school and moving into what you guys do.
Well I, people go to school for UX design.
Some don't.
As well they might have traditionally studied graphic design in the print side but have
move into course work where it's got them into that more digital space.
Ahmmm.
some people are career changers in moving to UX.
It's very interesting.
There's... it's very interesting that career path that get them to where they are.
But someone that really passionate about design understands print and typography and moves
that into digital and understands exactly how to put together something that someone
feels when they are going through and experience online or on a mobile app or something like
that.
So that's, it's the design that you see when you click on something, what's your actually
looking at.
That is put together by a designer in trying to get you to keep moving through and stay
embraced in that place.
Okay.
Cool!
So then this is gonna come down, this is an odd question, I know but let's say you got
your education going on however you've got there, you've got a good sense for this (right!)
What kind of portfolio would you be looking to build?
When we look at user experience designers and user interface designers to, that digital
component is really very important.
There's some amazing print designers and print will never go away but you will have to be
able to bridge over into digital for sure and explaining that piece of it.
How something that is written on paper or it is done in print how that moves into the
digital space is responsive, ahmmm, can kind of tell a story through different ways online,
it's really kind of an art, I would say, not everybody is amazing at it, and in a portfolio,
it would be great to see, if they have done that before.
You know, any sort of exposure to it is important because, remember our clients are open to
someone coming in, a little bit more green, and it, maybe they really have a good design
aesthetic, and they see that, and that as long as you are putting your best foot forward,
they might take a chance on them.
Others want to see through the five years experience, that they joined some sort of
interface or user experience design somewhere else in transfer in that over.
So coming with experience to kind of jump in.
So just kind of depends.
Ahmmm.
Portfolios I would say, is almost clean it's very easy to navigate, there are no errors,
that's huge.
(no typos?)
Right! and something that isn't dated.
You know, I don't want something from 2008, 2009s, needs to be current.
Ahmmm.
For sure, or something that you've done in keeping that going, You know, I used to work
in a school, and I work with students, and I would always tell people, you're portfolio
is a living, a living document, a living thing, that's never gonna be finished, it's always
gonna keep going.
So, I always tell people that, just get it to a place where you're comfortable in presenting
it and we'll go from there.
What's one of the best portfolios you've ever seen?
One of the best?
Oh that's tough.
(Like...)
I can't, I can't name names (no, no! but i'm thinking, something tricky like someone did
an app or someone projected it on lasers on the side of a handcuffed building.)
I love when talent come in, and kind of treat me like a client sometimes, though they know
it's gonna be very conversational and very easy and we're just kinda kind of talk through
things, they might come to, to the office with their, with their tablet, and walk me
through how they would they would do it with a client.
Ahmmm. and maybe it's stuff that's under an NDA, that they can't showcase, you know, we'll
I can't present it to them, they have to hold the assets themselves.
You know, and they bring that, to show to me, and how they would actually showcase this
to a client.
I'm always mesmerized by when they come in with some cool presentations, and it's digital.
But then they also have a fallback, they're like, hey if this didn't work, I have stuff
in a little print book too.
or something that I can email to you.
So, that's, that always amazes me when they're already one step ahead of me because I'm gonna
ask (Like do you have a PDF, do you have a book, do you have an app?)
Wonder if this does not work when you get there, what are you gonna do?
You know what I mean?
So when they're kind of already thinking about that, I love that.
So that's a good question.
Really, what tips would you give for a UX designer in an interview situation.
I would say, hmmm.
Well, everything a little bit different based on the client.
You definitely want to read the description, and know your client, and know what they're
gonna look for.
Are they in the e-commerce business?
Are they in a definitely focused in retail?
Are they more on B2B?
You know, kind of know your audience and what samples you're gonna start with and have those
loaded up in the beginning and then have supplements all worth it that maybe they ask about, you
can go to.
So everything's gonna be a little bit different, in addition, portfolio you can obviously click
around and say if it was a more of a they want to see stuff on print too, i always have
people kinda tab things, so they can get to them very fast and know where to go and not
be kinda stumbling wasting people's time.
That's a very good tip!
Alright!
So final question to you, really, a UX designer job, what kind of job, what kind of salary,
you know, can you anticipate in the marketplace.
I appreciate you do some freelancing, some full-time maybe you could give a bit of a
sense of each.
Wow!
So freelancing, trying to think back most recently, hourly, I would say, we're gonna
go from like, kinda entry level for experience, it's in that 35 to 75 range.
(Okay) I would say.
75 being very experienced, amazing.
Salaries, I mean 50,000 to 150.
It just depends on the client.
So, and this could be a director level down to someone that is more an associate, ahmmm,
levels of experience designer.
Okay.
Cool! and because we have the total bias of hidden agenda, that's not so hidden.
You work with a company called Artisan Talent, and we're hoping people would watch this videos,
and reach out to you guys directly.
What are some of the advantages, as a UX designer in working with your, an agency like Addison,
with you guys.
I would say, the more you know, the more people you know.
The more connected you are.
And I always, I always tell talent, you know I want to be the person that finds you that
next opportunity.
But if I'm not, I'm still gonna be happy for you and I want us to stay in contact.
So I just, I'm another part of the network, we all are, we're all another part of that
network and the more you know, the more jobs, the more opportunities, the more things that
you're going to know about, in trying to navigate your career.
You know, there was a talent that came through here of mine, that's connected to me, and
she was kinda unsure, she got a job through us, and it's lost turned to a career on the
West Coast now with an amazing company she never thought, she could work for.
So we can be a stepping stone too to bigger and better things.
Ahmmm.
But I always tell people, we're just part of that network, and the more people you know,
like us to have me like your advocate in looking for jobs for you, the better.
the more chance you have in finding the great opportunity with one of our amazing clients.
Alright!
Cool.
Any last, out of the box tips for UX, people who are into UX design?
It's a very competitive market.
So my advice is just, you know, try to get samples from places that you've worked at.
Keep those things going, know that your portfolio is never gonna be finished.
I think that's huge, I feel like I hear that a lot with talent that I meet, they're like,
It's just not where I want it yet! and I go, just get it to a space (right!) that's most
current, you know, and keep applying and keep being able to talk about your work, know your
audience, ahmmm.
things, things turn out well for, in the UX space, there's a lot out there, but as long
as you're competitive and have a really good approach, Good things will happen.
Alright!
Good enough!
I love that tip of yours that the portfolio is a living document.
(It is a living document).
It's a living document.
Alright great!
Let's move on to something else as well.
Thank you!
(Thank you).