Gist
Struggling to make design reviews more efficient and insightful? After facing similar challenges in our internal product design reviews, I discovered the SCAMPER method—a simple yet powerful framework that helps you ask the right questions and spot improvement opportunities faster.
Learn how you can use SCAMPER to focus on seven key areas and transform your design review process into a tool for innovation and efficiency.
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Introduction
Feel free to skip this section if you don’t care about the backstory
Design reviews require significant time and effort, especially when UX considerations are still in their infancy at your company. This challenge is often heightened when developers, eager to learn and gain experience in user experience design, take on these responsibilities in addition to their existing roles (As is the case where I work).
Here, our design review process is simple but somewhat messy:
- Available team members are each assigned one or more screens (such as dialogs, components, etc.) of the target service.
- Each member notes down any issues they notice (e.g., a button is misaligned, there are responsive resizing problems, etc.).
- We create mockups for ideal or suggested fixes where applicable.
- We return the review results, complete with mockups and explanations for our rationale, to the review requester.
While this process gets the job done, it leaves much to be desired. For one, it often takes too long for busy developers to go through each component, form item, contrast value, or dialog in the service to find UI/UX issues by gut instinct alone. We frequently find ourselves wondering, “What should I check next to find issues?” rather than asking, “What potential issue or improvement opportunity should I keep in mind while testing this screen?”
That’s when I got to searching for a “framework to success”, if you will, to asking the right questions when reviewing a product; and I found the SCAMPER method - A 7-step ideation process that shines when identifying improvement opportunities in existing products and services.
How to SCAMPER?
SCAMPER is an acronym for the 7 key questions to consider when looking for areas of improvement in a product:
1. Substitute
☁️❓ What can I substitute to improve my product?
This step involves considering what elements or features could be replaced to enhance the product. For example, replacing a text-based tutorial with an interactive guide can make the learning process more engaging and easier for users, thereby improving their experience.
The focus should be on the new value and experience created by the substitution, not just the act of replacing something.
2. Combine
☁️❓ Which elements can be combined to make your product or service more effective?
For example, combining the navigation menu with the search bar allows users to quickly access the information they seek.
In mobile design, combining elements is crucial for making the most of limited screen space. Another approach could be integrating a chatbot with a FAQ section to reduce support costs and improve the user experience.
3. Adapt
☁️❓ How can you take other best practices and contexts and apply them? Look at successful practices in different environments and adapt them to your product. For instance, optimizing a web application for smartphone use can significantly enhance the user experience for mobile users.
4. Modify
☁️❓ What can be changed in the design, functionality, or process of the product to achieve better results?
This step could involve altering the color scheme or layout to make the interface more visually appealing or user-friendly.
Streamlining processes, such as reducing unnecessary steps in a user flow, can also enhance the user experience.
5. Put to Other Uses
💭❔ Are there ways in which existing elements or features can be put to other uses? Consider how features like chat functions, traditionally used for customer support, can serve other purposes, such as gathering product feedback through in-app surveys triggered by specific actions.
6. Eliminate
💭❔ Which elements can be eliminated to make the product or service simpler and easier for users to use? Reducing the number of fields in a registration form can lower user abandonment rates. Simplifying the content on the top page of a website can make navigation more intuitive.
7. Reverse, Rearrange
💭❔ What new value can be created by changing the order or organization of elements? Rearranging information to prioritize what users need most can significantly enhance the user experience. For example, displaying critical data and frequently used functions first on a dashboard can make them more accessible.
Conclusion
The SCAMPER method provides a structured way to ask essential questions during design reviews. While it can save time and help develop strong reviewing skills, remember that a quick and clean approach isn’t always best. If you have the resources, consider exploring additional methodologies to achieve the best UX outcomes for your team.
Tokyo, JP