Rules of successful UX-meeting
By: Anna Nikitina
Tags: Ux Process, Freelance, UX Design, Conference, Meetings

And we got to the rules of a successful meetup for a UX project.

Preparation

Purpose

Every meeting must have a purpose! It is worth understanding why you organized this meeting and what you need to get in the end. Usually with me it is something like “to get design approval before handing over to the developers,” “to know the next steps,” “to get comments from the customer”, etc.. The goal helps you focus on the important things and get the meeting back on track in a productive way every time someone gets sidetracked. Be sure to write it down so you always have it in front of you.

Plan

I highly recommend putting a goal and a plan on paper for EVERY meeting, even if the meeting is organized by the client. When the event comes from the designer, you can do timings and set the main blocks of agenda. This not only helps to be more organized, but in my case, it also greatly reduces anxiety, gives a sense that everything is under control.

Preview

I usually send the design mock-ups BEFORE the meeting so that the client has a chance to review them and make questions. I know that this is not a popular method for meetings in which you need to sell a design to a client because we lose the “wow effect” and do not walk the client through the design. But personally, I believe that good design sells itself and the client can understand it without accompaniment. At the end of the day, how will the end users or consumers understand the design.

Regularity

Everyone is comfortable to meet on the same day and at the same time. Not only does this allow you to track the progress of the project, but it also disciplines both parties to prepare all questions and suggestions by a certain day. It also allows you to plan the project better and adjust things as you go along.

Give freedom to the team!

I am of the opinion that every team member should be heard if they have something to say about the design. But if you collect feedback from the team during video meetings, it won’t take an hour to process everything. To keep the meeting near the main purpose, you can create a special document where anyone can WRITE and justify their idea. This will not only weed out people who like to throw empty ideas, but it will also give the designer a chance to study the proposals in a quiet way to choose the really interesting ones.

During the meeting

Services

For online meetings, I prefer to use Zoom because it allows me to do recurring meetings, syncs with Google Calendar and invite different people. And I like the quality of communication. But this is a personal preference, and I’m sure you have your favorites. Share in the comments!

Notes

It’s important not just to listen to the meeting, but to take notes. Many times it can be difficult to combine presentation and notes, so you can assign a colleague to this position.

Recording

Going back to the previous point about taking notes. As a freelancer, I try to take notes myself. So, just in case, I record the screen and then upload it into the cloud. If I’m not sure I understood and heard everything, I replay the video. This trick has saved my reputation many times for those meetings when clients are presenting a demo or talking about some difficult concepts.

Smile

Meetings are always stressful, so let’s brighten them up with positivity and a smile! I adore my clients and always exchange energy with them. A positive and respectful attitude will always help when discussing difficult issues. It’s even easier to argue when it’s all done in good spirits.

Design is all about communication, and not just with the end user, but with the client!

After the meeting

Results

It is very convenient to send notes and key points that were discussed immediately after the meeting by simple email. The most important thing is to indicate who promised to do what and what information to provide. That way people will be more motivated not to forget and to provide everything that is expected.

Scheduling

Immediately after I send the letter, I take out and plan the tasks that are expected of me or my team. This is easy for everyone with regular meetings to do, because we get a little deadline each week.