Creating a look and feel for a website is not an easy task. Not only does it need to display information in a logical and easy to find way with little to no user instructions, it also has to be aesthetically pleasing and match our brand. Who is up to the challenge? Why that is Mr. Juan Prado.
Our Obi-Juan
Juan is one of our Front End Developers, working to create usable interfaces. He joined IZEA nearly a year and a half ago. He came to us straight out of of the Florida State University where he got his Master’s Degree in Information Studies. He’s Bachelor’s Degree is in Art History.
Juan started in the Orlando office but just a few months ago moved up to our New York location. It’s been an adjustment – the whole NY office is about the size of our smallest conference room in Orlando. But Juan’s liking it there. And he appreciates the flexibility he has to work in a different city. Plus, they have a nice view of Times Square.
If there is one thing you need to know about Juan is that he loves movies. He has trouble picking just one movie as his favorite, but in his top ten are “8 ½” and “Blow-Up.”
One of Juan’s favorite assignments was an IZEA survey program. He and Ben worked together on it – Ben doing the back-end functionality while Juan worked on the front end. They had two days to put the project together. Juan loved that it was such a compact and quick assignment and it worked.
The User Mindset
The goal of user interface is to make the site easy. To make it flow. In order to do so, you have to “get into the head of the user.” First Juan thinks, “if I was using this site, how would I do it?” From there, he figures out how the user can find information quickly and effectively.
User experience encompasses additional aspects such as making sure the page loads quickly and correctly. Basically, user experience touches on everything that can increase user satisfaction.
Challenge Accepted
There are some inherent challenges with Juan’s job. We only have three people who handle front end development for us. They work so intensely within the system that sometimes they get too used to it. When the design is implemented on the web, they always have to go back and make adjustments. The challenge is to not to become completely engrossed in the project so that you can’t see the forest through the trees. And to approach the design elements with fresh eyes every now and again to minimize edits later.
Another challenge is the constant battle between accuracy and the clock. The development team is often given quick turnaround times. They have to make sure their work is implemented without errors in the allotted amount of time. Time management and minimizing errors are essential. Luckily, we have a skilled group who have a lot of experience and know how to avoid common landmines.
Final Thoughts
Web development is moving to multi-platform. Developers have to consider that people are using different web browsers on their computers. In addition to connection through tablets, phones, and mobile apps. All the platforms have to act roughly in the same way. Juan sums this up simply by saying…
“There’s never a dull moment.”
