Project Design – Tips from An Expert

Are you like me and like design so much, you go as far as designing your design project? (you read that right) Project design is a really important part to creating a successful project. 

So next time you want to create an effective project design, consider these 7 crucial steps. In this article, you will learn about creating a project design with an effective project strategy. 

I also threw in some tips to help with your project execution.

7 Steps For A Successful Project Design (Project Design Process)

A good project design has a strong planning phase. Whether you use a project manager or a project management software on your laptop, you should use these steps to organize and complete your project plan. 

Step 1. Define Your Project Goals – Think SMART

Before you start any project, it’s important to think about the outcome. It’s like putting a destination into your Google Maps before putting the car in park. 

Kind of makes sense right?

Depending on your design project, your goals may vary, but the most typical goals might include:

• Solving a specific customer problem
• Boosting sales or conversion rates
• Increasing brand awareness
• Enhancing efficiency
• Give clients a memorable experience
• Solidify a brand identity and values

Any of these goals will help you steer and progress your project through the design process. 

Whenever I am starting a project, I try to prioritize what are the most important goals first, but will always work a second and third goal in the background. It anything it helps me learn how to improve in more than one area.

Think SMART

When setting project goals, it’s important to think SMART.

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.

By defining your project goals using the SMART criteria, you can ensure that they are clear, attainable, and have a definite timeline for completion.

Specific goals outline exactly what needs to be accomplished. 

Measurable goals allow you to track progress and know when you have achieved success. 

Achievable goals are realistic and can be accomplished given the resources available.

Relevant goals tie in with the overall purpose and direction of the project, ensuring that efforts are focused on what truly matters.

Time-bound goals have a set deadline for completion, preventing procrastination and helping to prioritize tasks. 

I have always found that SMART goals keep me on track. When I don’t use SMART goals, I will generally get side tracked or my project will take a different direction than originally planned. – Sometimes this isn’t a bad thing.

Step 2. Project Design Phase: Gather Information & Research

All successful projects start by gathering information and conducting thorough research. This process plays a critical role in the project design.

It enables you to identify potential challenges, anticipate future needs, and ensure that the project meets its objectives and goals. 

By gathering information, you’ll gain valuable insights into the needs and preferences of your ideal client. As you know, this will lead to a more effective design project.

Research serves as the foundation of the project, providing the necessary data and knowledge to inform decision-making and guide the development process.

Different types of research

So what type of research should you do for your project? Well there are a couple to consider.

Market research: This is the broad investigation of a target market, including its size, demographics, needs, and competitor landscape. Think of it as shining a light on the entire market scene to understand the lay of the land. 

Customer surveys: These are targeted questionnaires used to gather specific insights from your target audience. Imagine them as listening posts directly from your potential customers, revealing their preferences, pain points, and buying habits.

Industry analysis: This dives deep into a specific industry, examining its trends, growth potential, key players, and regulatory environment. Picture it as peering through a magnifying glass to understand the inner workings and dynamics of your chosen industry.

Whether it involves market research, customer surveys, or industry analysis, the information gathered and researched will ultimately shape the project’s direction and determine its success. 

For a lot of designers, even me, the research part can be tedious and a step standing in the way of the design process (the best part), but it is necessary and a needed part of a project design process. 

Step 3. Project Design Phase: Develops Concepts and Alternates

All good design projects go through iterations. It’s what makes a good design great. In this step, you should be time to think about different concepts and through the process of elimination arrive at the best solution. 

Developing concepts involves brainstorming and exploring different ideas and possibilities to achieve the project’s objectives.

Its my favorite part of the process because it allows for creative problem-solving and innovative solutions to be considered before settling on a final design concept.

By developing alternatives, designers can evaluate various approaches and determine the most effective and efficient way to execute the project. This is also a great time to take into account different perspectives and potential challenges.

Use this opportunity to consider different materials, technologies, and methodologies that can result in a more sustainable and cost-effective end result. 

Step 4. Post Design Phase – Prototype and Test

Now the rubber is starting to meet the road!

Prototyping involves the development of a preliminary model or version of a product or system, allowing designers to evaluate its functionality and performance. Through the testing phase, the prototype is subjected to various experiments and assessments to identify any potential flaws or weaknesses that need to be addressed.

Don’t want to read? Check out this video on prototyping:

As I said, this step is essential. It helps refine the design and ensure that the final product meets the desired standards. 

The testing phase is also when you should put your prototype in front of real users to gain valuable feedback.

If you systematically work through a project design by designing, building, and testing prototypes, you can enhance the quality of the final product and reduce the number of iterations to get to a great project. 

Step 5. Project Design Documents – Perform & Document

Documenting your design is potentially one of the most important steps in project design.

Properly documenting your design will ensure that someone else can properly review the design if needed. 

Not only can you make sure others can see the design materialize, but you can also follow the process from start to finish to help you keep record of all the decisions made through the project. 

It is important to thoroughly document this process in order to ensure that all design decisions and considerations are properly recorded. This documentation serves as a reference for future stages of the project and can help to clarify any design choices that may come into question later on.

Additionally, having a clear record of the design phase can also aid in communicating the rationale behind the project design to stakeholders and team members.

Step 6. Design Best Practice – Implementation & Development

Once the design project is finalized, it needs to be translated into real-world action. This involves team coordination, resource allocation, and execution of the plan.

The implementation phase is where the vision becomes reality, and it requires careful monitoring to ensure everything is on track. This stage is dynamic and often involves problem-solving, quick decision-making, and adapting to unexpected challenges on your part.

This stage requires a strategic and proactive approach to ensure that the project stays on course and delivers the intended outcomes.

Step 7. Final Phase – Launch or Deliver The Project

 Launching or delivering a project is the culmination of the collaborative efforts put into the project design. This is the end of the project life cycle (at least the project design phase). 

Don’t forget to take a minute in this phase of the project and celebrate the end of a successful project!

The goal for every project is a seamless and successful launch. To do that, this might includes coordinating with the project team, stakeholders, and any necessary external partners. Clear communication and a well-organized plan are key to delivering the project on time and within budget. 

A project manager or project manager tool is a great option to make sure everything goes as it should.

As you near the launch of a project, also consider looking back at your SMART goals and see how well you stayed on track. 

Here’s a great video about the entire process:

Improve Your Project Design With 5 Expert Tips

Tip #1: Solve One of the 4 Pillars of Wealth

Health, Wealth, Relationships, and Happiness are sometimes referred to as the 4 core pillars of wealth. Solving one of these pillars will help keep your design project relevant for a long time. 

Your project charter might be created with one of these pillars in mind. 

Tip #2: Journey Map The End User (Before The Design Phase)

Walking a mile in someone else’s shoes is good, but is it good enough for a good project design? A good design project should try to go deeper into what the end user will be doing with the final design. 

What that means for your project design is to take a deep dive into the end users’ experience. You can try journey mapping and working through scenarios your end user might experience. 

Be sure to keep the end user in mind at every step in the project. 

Tip #3: Solve the Problem Others Aren’t

As you work through the project design steps, always think about what you can do to go above and beyond. Think about what others are doing and look for gaps in what problems are being solved. 

This can be one of the goals of the project. “Do something on one else has”. 

Tip #4: Use Visuals and Storytelling

You and I can see that the world is really taking a liking to visual content. Much of social media today is images and videos instead of text.

Your project design can incorporate this as well.

This may mean using graphs, charts, or images to convey information to your team members. 

Telling a story also makes things easier to remember. Consider your project a story. What will the story be like at each part of the project? 

Tip #5: Communicate Everything

If you are on a multi-person team, make sure that your communication is top priority. People sometimes need to hear things a few times before they make a note of it. This can be as simple as follow up emails, or as complex as full-blown resource management tools and work management meetings at every phase of a project. 

FAQ

Some frequently asked questions about project design. 

What Is Project Design?

Project design is the strategic roadmap that guides your initiative from initial concept to successful completion. It’s the crucial first step that brings your vision to life by addressing key questions.

Project design is an opportunity to build a project roadmap and compile different aspects of a project. Project design is an early phase of any project, but ultimately has the most impact on the outcome of the project. 

What is A Project Manager’s Role in Project Design?

A Project Manager plays a crucial role in the success of project design, acting as the orchestrator and facilitator guiding the process from concept to completion.

Typically a Project Manager will be involved with all members of the project. Their job is to keep people on task and aware of the project budget, the project timeline, and the various project tasks that need to happen at any given time. 

They likely will also be in charge of compiling and assembling the project proposal, various project deliverables, and creating the project schedule (but not without the help of the team).

Project Managers might ultimately is a key piece for a project to be successful. 

Wrapping Up

Projects just don’t happen overnight. as you can tell, there is a lot going on and even more behind the scenes. Having a great project design is critical not just for the sake of the project, but maybe even for the sake of your sanity. 

So, next time, save your sanity and use project design to plan your project successfully. 

I hope this was helpful!