UI Breakfast: UI/UX Design and Product Strategy

Social media these days resembles a war of bots. However, it's still a powerful tool — if you do it right. Today's guest, Mojca Mars of Super Spicy Media, helps people find their voice and become successful in social media marketing. You'll learn what formats and visuals work best, what you should write about, how to approach advertising, and how to do genuine, helpful outreach. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes Super Spicy Media — Mojca's social media consultancy Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook — a book about social media by Gary Vaynerchuk Brown Sauce — an article by JD Graffam on writing better microcopy John Loomer — great blog about Facebook advertising Facebook Ads Manual — Mojca's book Follow Mojca on Twitter: @mojcamars Email Mojca at mojca@superspicymedia.com Today's Sponsor Today's episode is brought to you by Remarq — fast, professional formatting for your reports and proposals. Just focus on your content, while Remarq automatically creates beautiful PDF documents. Go to Remarq.io and use the coupon code UIBREAKFAST to get a 20% lifetime discount. Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

We're back after a short break! Today we're exploring user experience in online stores. Our special guest is Kurt Elster, the guru of ecommerce and the founder of Ethercycle. We break down the entire purchasing flow and explore design specifics of each step: product list, item description, shopping cart, and checkout. You'll learn how to showcase your products, reduce friction, and motivate your customers. Download the MP3 audio file: right-click here and choose Save As. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes Ethercycle — Kurt's ecommerce consultancy for Shopify businesses Ecommerce Bootcamp by Paul Reda and Kurt Elster Kurt Elster's Ecommerce Hacks Weekly The Unofficial Shopify Podcast J. Peterman, CozyPhones, Violent Little Machine Shop, Everest Bands — some of the stores we mention as examples The Brain Audit by Sean D'Souza Kurt's website Free resources for ecommerce professionals and store owners Follow Kurt on Twitter: @kurtinc Today's Sponsor Today's episode is brought to you by Remarq — fast, professional formatting for your reports and proposals. Just focus on your content, while Remarq automatically creates beautiful PDF documents. Go to Remarq.io and use the coupon code UIBREAKFAST to get a 20% lifetime discount. Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

Hiring a good designer has never been easy! Today I'm talking to Sarah Doody — a guru UX designer, teacher, and writer from New York City. You'll learn how to approach the hiring process in your particular case, whether education matters, how to navigate in the variety of design professions, and what skills to look for. Designers, on the other side, will get an insight how to better present themselves. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes The UX Notebook — Sarah's awesome newsletter The 5-Step UX Research Formula — Sarah's upcoming masterclass 65 Point Checklist For User Research Projects — free UX research guide from Sarah The UX of Hiring for UX Positions — an article by Dan Maccarone & Sarah Doody Sarah's main website Follow Sarah on Twitter: @sarahdoody Today's Sponsor Today's episode is brought to you by Remarq — fast, professional formatting for your reports and proposals. Just focus on your content, while Remarq automatically creates beautiful PDF documents. Go to Remarq.io and use the coupon code UIBREAKFAST to get a 20% lifetime discount. Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

Writing proposals isn't fun, but they're a crucial part of any design project. Today our guest is Nathan Powell — designer, author, and founder of Nusii (online proposal software). You'll learn how to do discovery work, what to include in your proposal, how to structure it, and how tiered pricing can help you make an unbeatable offer. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes Nusii — Nathan's SaaS product, online proposal software for creative businesses The Creative Professional's Guide: How to Write Better Proposals — Nathan's book on Amazon Handmade Studio — Nathan's consulting service (landing page design for startups) Follow Nathan on Twitter: @NathanPowell76 Win More Proposals in Only 5 Days — free 5-day email course from Nusii Big Thanks to Our Sponsor Today's episode is brought to you by Remarq — fast, professional formatting for your reports and proposals. Just focus on your content, while Remarq automatically creates beautiful PDF documents. Go to Remarq.io and use the coupon code UIBREAKFAST to get a 20% lifetime discount. Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

Design or development? You can say "yes" to both! Today we're exploring the story of Sacha Greif, the founder of Sidebar.io and the author of Discover Meteor. He successfully combines the roles of a designer and a developer, and achieves results in both fields (all while being a community star). Join us to hear about his straightforward approach to life, projects, and the learning process. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes Sidebar, Telescope, State of JS — Sacha's projects Step by Step UI Design, Discover Meteor — Sacha's books Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman Sacha's website Sacha Greif on Medium Follow Sacha on Twitter: @SachaGreif Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

Smart, narrow positioning is the key to success for anyone who sells their services. Who is your best customer? What kind of work do you want to be famous for? The world-class positioning expert Philip Morgan gives away a ton of actionable advice on this topic. You'll learn how to stop being a generalist, quit the pricing game, and become a successful specialist by employing your best talent. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes The Positioning Manual for Technical Firms — Philip's book Positioning Accelerator Program Double Your Freelancing Academy — a 7-month program where Philip is participating as an expert Philip Morgan Consulting Sign up for Philip's free positioning crash course Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

Your creative skills aren't worth much until you practice them regularly. But how do you find time for that? Our special guest today is Shawn Blanc — author of The Focus Course, a creative entrepreneur, and my role model from years ago. You'll learn how to set goals, avoid distractions, build personal integrity, adopt the right habits, and live a truly focused life. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes The Focus Course, Shawn Blanc, The Sweet Setup, Tools & Toys — Shawn's websites and projects Byword — great tool for writing in Markdown (read its review on Tools & Toys) Delight is in the Details — Shawn's first book (read my review here) The Procrastinator's Guide to Progress The Crossroads of Should and Must by Elle Luna The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg Deep Work by Cal Newport Monument Valley Soundtrack — Shawn's favorite music for doing focused work Download your worksheet on finding creative focus (and more free resources from Shawn) Follow Shawn on Twitter: @shawnblanc Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

Customer support is the key part of user experience. But how do you handle it right? Our guest today is Alex Yumashev, the founder of JitBit Helpdesk, who has been in this industry for many years. You'll learn why customer support can't be a temporary job, how to approach it in a human way, and why even CEOs should still be doing support on a regular basis. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes JitBit Helpdesk — Alex's main product HelpSpot — another helpdesk product by our fellow bootstrapper Ian Landsman The Long, Slow SaaS Ramp of Death — the famous presentation by Gail Goodman (then we talk about her selling Constant Contact) David Cancel, Jeff Bezos — advocate for senior staff members doing support Inspectlet — software for tracking and recording user behavior HelpSpot, HelpScout — great support blogs by other companies Visit JitBit Helpdesk Follow Alex on Twitter: @jitbit Email Alex at alex@jitbit.com Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

When does A/B testing have a positive impact on your business? How do you make intelligent, informed decisions? How do you prevent your ego and past experience from interfering? Today our guest Nick Disabato, my good friend and a world-class expert in A/B testing, talks about his research-driven work process and his humble philosophy. Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes Draft — Nick's solo design consultancy Revise Weekly — Nick's lesson series on A/B testing The previous episode on conversion rate optimization with Momoko Price The previous episode on Jobs to Be Done with Eric White Visual Website Optimizer, Evan Miller’s Sample Size Calculator, iA Writer, Ulysses, Trello, Basecamp — Nick's tools Draft's Letters — Nick's newsletter (here's a recent issue about deep dish pizza in Chicago) The A/B Testing Manual — Nick's upcoming book Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.

Dear friends, the podcast is finally back after the break! Our guest today is Heidi Pun, my designer friend from Slovenia. We talk about The Design Superpower — a free email course we just launched. We break down the entire process: how we came up with the idea, solicited articles from the top design superheroes, put the course together, and launched it across multiple platforms. If you're planning a product launch anytime soon, our takeaways will be super-valuable! Podcast feed: subscribe to http://simplecast.fm/podcasts/1441/rss in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes or Stitcher. Show Notes The Design Superpower — the free email course we just launched Email 1K, Web Traffic 1M — free courses by Noah Kagan Design for Hackers — a free course by David Kadavy (now evolved into a whole series of products) Ine De Baerdemaeker of PostScripting — the awesome editor of our course ThemeBro — Heidi's project where she strategically gave away a paid book for free The UX Notebook, InVision, eWebDesign, Muzli, Sidebar.io — resources who helped to share our course Design for Founders — Heidi's main website Follow Heidi on Twitter: @design4founders Sign up for the Design Superpower and please help spread the word (it will only be up for another few weeks) Leave a Review Reviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes.