sketching now more than ever

Sketching, Now More than EverRobert Stribley

UX Sketch Camp NYC – 10/12/14

Robert Stribley@stribs

some of my early sketches

We’ve been sketching for eons

But now, we’re sketching more than ever

• IdeaPaint Inc makes a paint that turns any surface into a whiteboard

• Its sales have doubled every year since introduced in 2008

• More than ½ its business is in the workplace

See “Doodling for Dollars,” Wall Street Journal, April 24, 2012

Why sketch?

• Enable communication• Make abstract

concepts concrete• Iterate on ideas• Jumpstart

collaboration• Ensure recollection• Humanize ideas

What can I sketch?

• Home pages? • Category pages?• Product pages? • Wizards & widgets?• Search results?• Processes?• Anything, really?

Now, you’re catching on

And there’s so much more to sketch for …

• Smartphones• Tablets• Google Glass• iWatches• Responsive design• Ubiquitous

computing

Who can sketch?

•Information architects•Interaction designers•Graphic designers•Content strategists•Project managers•Business analysts•Functional analysts•Developers •Client directors… Anyone really

What sketching isn’t …

• Sketching isn’t only for designers

• Sketching isn’t difficult• Sketching isn’t drawing

You don’t need to be Michelangelo to participate

However, we can learn from the pros

Who often begin with a sketch

Adding layers, detail, color

Until they complete their masterpiece

A few ways we sketch at Razorfish:

• Solo• Sketch to comp• Communicate to client• Storyboarding• As a team – collaboratively

Collaborative Sketching

my conversion story

Defining Collaborative Sketching

Origins

• Rooted in Design Studio Methodology• Grew out of industrial design and architecture• No “rockstars”• Different versions/methods• For example, Todd Zaki Warfel, Message First, talks

about …• Create. Pitch. Critique.• 6.8.5 game

Methodology• Sketch• Limit your time• Don’t worry about mistakes or style

Goals• Benefit from the participation of your colleagues• Communicate ideas effectively by visualizing them• Quickly generate ideas and refine through

iterations

Process:

1. Discuss2. Sketch3. Share4. Revise

Now, it’s your turn

Some great topics to explore today:

• Remote sketching• Sketching within Agile • Drawing and lettering• Storyboarding• Sketchnoting• Sketching across the design process• Tales from UX sketching masters• Collaborative sketching