Volkan Çetin

Product Designer

Product Design Best Practices

Creating exceptional product experiences requires more than just good taste or technical skills. It demands a systematic approach, clear principles, and a deep understanding of both users and business. Here are the key practices that separate good design from great design.

Core Principles

1. Start with the User

Every design decision should begin with the user:

  • Understand their context: Where, when, and how will they use this?
  • Know their goals: What are they trying to achieve?
  • Respect their constraints: What limits their ability to use your product?

Practice: Before designing anything, write down what you know about your users. If the list is short, do more research.

2. Clarity Over Cleverness

Users don't want to be impressed—they want to accomplish their goals:

  • Obvious over clever: If users have to think, you've failed
  • Familiar over novel: Use patterns users already know
  • Simple over complex: Remove everything that doesn't serve a purpose

Practice: Show your design to someone who's never seen it. If they can't immediately understand it, simplify.

3. Consistency Creates Confidence

Consistent design makes products feel polished and trustworthy:

  • Visual consistency: Colors, typography, spacing that work together
  • Interaction consistency: Similar actions should work similarly
  • Language consistency: Use the same terms throughout

Practice: Create a design system. Even a simple one helps maintain consistency.

4. Progressive Disclosure

Don't show everything at once:

  • Start simple: Show the essentials first
  • Reveal complexity: Add details as users need them
  • Guide the journey: Help users discover features naturally

Practice: For every screen, ask: "What's the minimum someone needs to see here?"

Design Process Best Practices

Research Before You Design

Don't skip user research:

  • User interviews: Talk to real people about their problems
  • Competitive analysis: Learn from what others have done
  • Data analysis: Understand how people currently behave

Common mistake: Designing based on assumptions instead of research.

Prototype Early and Often

Build to learn, not to impress:

  • Low-fidelity first: Start with sketches or wireframes
  • Test quickly: Get feedback before investing in polish
  • Iterate based on learning: Each prototype should teach you something

Common mistake: Spending too much time on high-fidelity designs before validating ideas.

Test with Real Users

Your opinion isn't enough:

  • Observe, don't ask: Watch how people actually use your design
  • Test early: Don't wait until everything is perfect
  • Test often: Regular testing prevents big mistakes

Common mistake: Only testing with people who already know your product.

Measure What Matters

Track metrics that indicate real value:

  • User behavior: What do people actually do?
  • Task completion: Can users achieve their goals?
  • Time to value: How quickly do users see benefits?

Common mistake: Focusing on vanity metrics instead of meaningful ones.

Visual Design Best Practices

Hierarchy and Focus

Guide users' attention:

  • Size: Bigger things get more attention
  • Color: Use color to highlight important elements
  • Position: Important things should be prominent
  • Contrast: Make key actions stand out

Practice: For every screen, identify the one thing you want users to notice first.

Typography

Type is interface:

  • Readability first: Choose fonts that are easy to read
  • Hierarchy: Use size and weight to create structure
  • Consistency: Limit the number of type styles
  • Line length: Keep lines readable (50-75 characters)

Practice: Test your typography at different sizes and in different contexts.

Color

Color communicates:

  • Meaning: Use color consistently (red for errors, green for success)
  • Accessibility: Ensure sufficient contrast (WCAG AA minimum)
  • Emotion: Colors evoke feelings—use them intentionally
  • Restraint: Too many colors create chaos

Practice: Test your color choices with colorblind users and in different lighting.

Spacing

Space creates relationships:

  • Grouping: Related things should be close together
  • Breathing room: Don't cram everything together
  • Consistency: Use a spacing system (4px, 8px, 16px, etc.)
  • Balance: Distribute space evenly

Practice: Remove elements and see if spacing alone creates the right relationships.

Interaction Design Best Practices

Make Actions Obvious

Users should know what they can do:

  • Clear affordances: Buttons should look clickable
  • Obvious labels: Use clear, action-oriented text
  • Visual feedback: Show that actions are working
  • Error prevention: Prevent mistakes before they happen

Practice: Can someone use your interface without instructions?

Provide Feedback

Users need to know what's happening:

  • Immediate feedback: Show that actions registered
  • Progress indicators: For longer processes
  • Status updates: Keep users informed
  • Error messages: Explain what went wrong and how to fix it

Practice: Every user action should have a visible response.

Reduce Cognitive Load

Don't make users think:

  • Chunk information: Break complex tasks into steps
  • Use defaults: Pre-fill what you can
  • Eliminate choices: Don't offer options users don't need
  • Provide examples: Show what good input looks like

Practice: Count the number of decisions users must make. Can you reduce it?

Handle Errors Gracefully

Mistakes happen—design for them:

  • Prevent errors: Use constraints to prevent invalid input
  • Clear messages: Explain what went wrong in plain language
  • Recovery paths: Show users how to fix problems
  • Don't blame: Error messages shouldn't make users feel stupid

Practice: Try to break your own design. How well does it handle mistakes?

Content Best Practices

Write for Users

Content is part of the design:

  • Plain language: Avoid jargon and technical terms
  • Action-oriented: Use verbs, not nouns
  • Concise: Every word should earn its place
  • Helpful: Answer questions users actually have

Practice: Read your content out loud. Does it sound natural?

Structure Information

Organize for scanning:

  • Headings: Break content into scannable sections
  • Lists: Use lists for multiple items
  • Short paragraphs: Long blocks of text are hard to read
  • White space: Give content room to breathe

Practice: Can users find what they need without reading everything?

Accessibility Best Practices

Design for Everyone

Accessibility isn't optional:

  • Color contrast: Ensure text is readable
  • Keyboard navigation: Everything should work without a mouse
  • Screen readers: Use proper semantic HTML
  • Alt text: Describe images for those who can't see them

Practice: Try using your product with only a keyboard or screen reader.

Mobile Design Best Practices

Mobile-First Thinking

Start small, then scale up:

  • Touch targets: Make buttons big enough to tap (44x44px minimum)
  • Thumb zones: Place important actions where thumbs can reach
  • Simplified navigation: Mobile screens are small—prioritize
  • Performance: Mobile users often have slower connections

Practice: Test on actual devices, not just in the browser.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

1. Designing for Yourself

You are not your user. Your preferences and context are likely very different.

2. Perfectionism

Done is better than perfect. Ship, learn, and iterate.

3. Ignoring Data

Your opinion matters, but user behavior matters more.

4. Copying Without Understanding

Learn from others, but understand why their solutions work.

5. Skipping Research

Every hour spent on research saves ten hours fixing mistakes later.

Building Your Practice

Continuous Learning

  • Study great products: What makes them work?
  • Read design books: Learn from experts
  • Join communities: Connect with other designers
  • Practice regularly: Design is a skill that improves with practice

Build a Process

  • Document your approach: What works for you?
  • Create templates: Speed up repetitive tasks
  • Establish standards: Maintain quality consistently
  • Reflect and improve: Learn from each project

Collaborate Effectively

  • Communicate clearly: Explain your design decisions
  • Listen to feedback: Others see things you miss
  • Share early: Get input before you're too invested
  • Build relationships: Design is a team sport

Conclusion

Product design best practices aren't rules to follow blindly—they're principles to guide your decisions. The best designers:

  • Start with users: Understand real needs and contexts
  • Prioritize clarity: Make the complex simple
  • Test everything: Validate assumptions with real users
  • Iterate continuously: Design is never done

Remember: Great design serves users while achieving business goals. When you balance user needs with business requirements, you create products that are both loved and successful.

The practices outlined here are starting points, not destinations. As you grow as a designer, you'll develop your own approach. But these fundamentals will always serve as your foundation.

Questions for Reflection

  • Which of these practices do you already follow?
  • Which areas need the most improvement?
  • How can you integrate these practices into your daily work?