Sample Ebook - Don't start with visuals: 7 secrets to help you design better interfaces with confidence

This is a sample of 32 pages of the book "Don't start with visuals".

Elevate your skills and gain confidence in creating masterful websites.

Like most junior designers working in-house or freelancing, my dream was to design great websites to be recognized as a top designer in this highly competitive field.

But, I failed at it because I didn't have the right methodology to create successful websites in order to satisfy the stakeholder's and clients' expectations.

Solving the wrong problem positions you as an amateur and makes you lose credibility in the eyes of both clients and stakeholders.

You struggle to design effective websites and to be seen as an expert because your process is confusing and relies too much on creating pretty websites.

You don't solve the right problem, and this leads to bad results and frustrations from your stakeholders and clients.

I know that designing websites that people love to use and that help you stand out is hard and comes with many challenges.

So if you’re sick of…

• Being lost about where and how to start your design project;
• Feeling stressed about meeting stakeholders' or clients' expectations;
• Being controlled by stakeholders or clients;
• Being uninspired in your work;
• Lacking structure in your design process;
• Feeling burned out and overwhelmed about the process of solving the right problem with your website design;
• Wasting time searching for reliable resources to improve your UX design and Web design skills;

I can help you overcome these challenges.

Today, I am trusted by stakeholders and clients in general as I have helped several of them create engaging interfaces to reach their business goals.

I also help designers create better websites and teach them how to overcome these challenges through in-depth articles that constitute the basis of the present guide.

This is why I feel you and know how I can help you succeed.

What is in this book

With “Don’t Start with Visuals, " I've put together a guide broken down into 7 steps of useful tips and tricks about UX Design and Web Design that I call secrets.

This book is based on more than 10 years of experience studying and working as a Web Designer / UX Designer for private companies and in-house.

It will teach you a process that balances user needs, business goals and creativity to help you design effective and engaging websites that add real value to reach a smoother process represented by the diagram below.

After reading this book, you will become a better and more confident designer that stakeholders or clients will trust and want to hire.

You will feel empowered and excited to advise others and collaborate with stakeholders, clients and peers to produce your best work possible.

Jerome Kalumbu

Inside the book

SECRET #1: Define a clear strategy: This chapter will teach you how to start a web project with a clear strategy.

SECRET #2: Know your users: This chapter will teach you how to identify your users' needs following a user-centric approach.

SECRET #3: How people process information: This chapter teaches you the basics of cognitive psychology to help you design better interfaces.

SECRET #4: Information Architecture is the backbone of your site: This chapter will teach you the best way of structuring your site to match users' expectations.

SECRET #5: Design from content first (not the other way round): This chapter teaches you why a site should be built on a good content strategy.

SECRET #6: Rapid and interactive prototype: This chapter will introduce you to different ways of prototyping your interfaces and how to test them.

SECRET #7: Make it beautiful: This chapter teaches you how to art-direct your design in order to add creativity and engagement to your interfaces.

What people say about this book

"Jerome doesn’t suggest designers abandon creativity and replace it with predictability. Instead, Jerome asks us to balance them. He encourages designers to embrace business goals and users’ needs as creative challenges. He gives us advice on how to make designs which add real value. We need more designers like Jerome and more books like this."

— Andy Clarke, Creative Designer and Author of “Art Direction for the Web”

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"I have been going through this e-book and I already gained clarity about important aspects of the design process. Secret n°1 and 6 definitely helped me gain confidence in my work!"

Isidro García Garrido — Computer Science Engineer

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"I've been reading all and finally I got good insights on how to create the correct structure for a website."

Francesca Ritrovato — Project manager

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"This is an excellent resource for all Web Designers, Designers and anyone interested in UX Design. Content is easy to read and  well thought out with practical examples.

Also, there are plenty of references and resources to better understand the design process and learn how to design beautiful and functional websites."

Alberto Fornos — Master's degree in Web Design Graduate

Who is it for?

This book is mainly for beginners in UX Design but it can also be useful to confirmed Web Designers or anyone interested in UX design,  working solo or in-house, willing to improve their skills.

About me

My name is Jerome Kalumbu — Senior Web designer. 

For the past ten years, I have been helping companies reach their business goals with their websites by improving their User Experience.

I also write articles related to UX Design. My main objective is to share my expertise with beginners and to help them design better interfaces.

Get your copy of the full ebook here - https://jeromekalumbu.gumroad.com/l/dont-start-with-visuals