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What is a problem statement in UX and how do you write one?

A problem statement summarises the user problem a UX designer needs to solve. Discover problem statement examples and learn how to write your own in this guide.

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UX designers are problem solvers. They spend time getting to know their target users, identifying their pain-points, understanding their needs and goals, and then designing effective solutions.

Problem statements are a powerful tool in the UX design process. They help UX designers identify and articulate the problem that needs to be solved, ensuring they’re on track to meet the end user’s needs.

In this guide, we’ll show you—with examples—what a problem statement is, why it’s so useful for UX, and how to write your own. 

Let’s begin.

What is a problem statement? A definition

UX design is all about solving problems for users. Before you can come up with effective solutions, you need to know exactly what problem you’re trying to solve. That’s where problem statements come in.

A problem statement is a clear, concise description of the user problem a UX designer needs to solve. 

It sums up, in a few sentences, who is affected by the problem, where and why the problem occurs (the context), and the impact of the problem — in other words, why it’s important that this problem be solved. 

Note that a problem statement does not suggest solutions. It may refer to what the user needs in broad terms, but it doesn’t start to consider what the answer may be. 

A problem statement is a springboard for further exploration, pin-pointing where UX designers should focus their efforts as they move from discovery to ideation and solution-finding.

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What does a problem statement look like? Problem statement examples

A problem statement is built on the following framework:

[User A] experiences [this problem] when they [try to complete this action / use a particular product or service] in [this context]. This is a problem because [it has this impact on the user experience and on the business]. 

This is still rather abstract, so let’s explore some (hypothetical) problem statement examples. 

Problem statement examples

1. a problem statement for a gym:.

Members of our gym are not able to book classes in advance, which often results in classes being too full and some members being turned away on the day. This regularly leads to complaints from members and makes it difficult for instructors to plan ahead. This could impact membership loyalty and referrals, as well as instructor retention.

2. A problem statement for a recruiting agency:

Jobseekers are required to manually input their personal details, work experience, and qualifications every time they wish to apply for a new role via our platform. On average, this takes around 1.5 hours per candidate per job. Recruiters are complaining that there are not enough applicants for their roles, and there is a high application abandonment rate. This is making it difficult for recruiters to meet their placement targets. 

3. A problem statement for a second-hand clothing app:

Sellers on our second-hand clothing app are unable to see where buyers are located, and buyers are unable to filter sellers by location. This often results in unfulfilled or cancelled transactions due to high postage costs, leaving both sellers and buyers unhappy. This is also impacting revenue. 

As you can see, each of these problem statements clearly outlines the user(s) concerned, the problem they face, the context of the problem, and the impact of the problem on the user, the organisation, or both. 

Now we know what a problem statement is, let’s consider when you might write one.

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When should you write a problem statement?

UX problem statements are usually generated in the discovery phase. That is, the part of the UX process that’s dedicated to understanding your users and what they want and need in relation to your product.

You might write your problem statement:

• Before conducting user research . Perhaps you’ve observed a particular issue with your product or been made aware of a bottleneck through customer or internal stakeholder feedback. You might write a problem statement and use it as the basis for further user research and exploration of the problem space. 
• After conducting user research. Once you’ve conducted thorough user research, you might write a problem statement to summarise and pin-point the main user problem you identified. This will then inform the ideation and solution-finding stage.

Either way, you should always write your problem statement before you start ideating and developing potential solutions. 

How to write a problem statement

So how do you actually write a useful problem statement? 

• Identify the people who experience, and are impacted by, the problem. This might be end users and customers, target users you’re trying to win over, and/or internal company stakeholders.
• Articulate the problem as clearly and concisely as you can. What exactly is the problem and where does it occur? Aim to keep your problem statement brief and focused while providing enough context.
• Explain the impact of the problem. How does the problem impact the user groups concerned? What undesirable consequences does it result in? If possible (and where relevant), explain how the problem affects both the direct user and the organisation/the business. 

If you don’t feel like you have enough information or insight to write your problem statement based on those three steps, consider using the “6 Ws” technique. You can do this in collaboration with key stakeholders and/or the rest of the design team—essentially anyone who can shed some light on what needs to be solved! 

The “6 Ws” technique is simple. Just answer the following questions—or, if you’re doing it as a group, ask each member to jot down their answers individually and then review them afterwards:

• Who is impacted by the problem?
• What is the problem they are facing?
• Where does this problem come up? 
• When does the problem occur? In what situation?
• Why does the problem arise? 
• Why does the problem matter? What impact does it have on the end user and/or the business?

With answers to each of these questions, you should be able to formulate an insightful problem statement. If you’re stuck with the actual writing part, use one of our examples from earlier in this post and simply switch out the key details.

What happens next? Using your problem statement 

With a well-crafted problem statement, you can investigate the problem space further and start to think about possible solutions. 

Often, UX designers will turn their problem statements into “How might we?” questions. This reframes the initial problem as a design opportunity, helping to spark the ideation and solution-finding process. 

For example: if your problem statement says that “jobseekers are required to manually input their personal details every time they wish to apply for a new role”, you might reframe this as “How might we streamline the job application process for jobseekers?”

If your problem statement says that “on average, it takes around 1.5 hours for candidates to apply for a job”, you might reframe this as “How can we reduce the time it takes for candidates to apply for a job?” 

Bear in mind that you may not go straight from the problem statement to “How might we?” questions and solutions. If further exploration of the problem space uncovers new or more pressing problems, you might need to go back and revise your problem statement first. 

As you know, UX design is an iterative process that’s rarely ever linear. Defining the problem is no exception! And it’s essential to make sure you’re focusing on the right problem; only then can you design worthwhile solutions that meet your users’ needs. 

Problem statements are just one of many tools used by UX designers to create impactful user experiences. For more tools and techniques, check out these guides:

• How to design a customer journey map
• How to use storyboards in UX
• The power of storytelling in UX design
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What Is a Problem Statement in UX? (And How To Write One)

What is a problem statement, and how do you write one? Look no further. We’ll show you everything you need to know in this guide.

The user experience design process is all about solving problems, but unless you define the problem, your design may miss the mark. This is why creating a problem statement for each project you tackle is so important. A problem statement, which can also be referred to as a POV statement or user need statement, succinctly sums up the problem or pain point users need you to solve with your design. 

By creating a problem statement, you ensure your team, including stakeholders and clients, are all on the same page about who you’re designing for, the problem you plan to help them with, and why it’s important. Ultimately, articulating these things through a well-considered, user-centric problem statement means your whole team will be working toward the same design goals.

In this guide, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about problem statements. Here’s what we’ll cover:

• What is a problem statement? A definition
• When should a problem statement be created?
• How to write a problem statement
• Problem statement examples

Ready? Let’s go. 

1. What is a problem statement?

A problem statement sums up the user pain-point or problem you’ll seek to solve with your design . 

A problem statement is an actionable summary of your user, their goals, and what you need to solve to meet those goals. It sets the course for your project’s user experience; however, it shouldn’t include anything about the design elements or user functionality you might employ to solve the problem. Instead, it should provide insight into why you’re designing the user experience to begin with. 

In other words, a user doesn’t need to be able to use two-factor authentication to get into a banking app, they need to be able to access their banking information securely. The problem statement should lay out the user’s need (secure access) but leave out any possible solutions (two-factor authentication), which shouldn’t be considered until further along in the design process. 

2. When should a problem statement be created?

Problem statements are created during the define stage , the second step in the Design Thinking process . This stage builds on the previous step, the empathize phase, in which you and your team perform user research to learn about the people who will utilize the product you’re designing, including their needs, desires, and challenges. Once you understand your users, you can’t move right into generating design solutions because you don’t yet have a specific objective for the user experience you’re creating. That’s what makes the define stage and problem statements so essential. 

The problem statement you create in the define stage will be your team’s guiding light in the ideate phase, and all the remaining stages, in the Design Thinking process.

Ultimately, you need to write a problem statement whenever you’re setting out to solve a user pain-point through design. So how do you go about writing an effective problem statement? Let’s find out. 

3. How to write a problem statement

There are several techniques UX designers employ to arrive at a succinct but well-thought-out problem statement. These include:

In the 4 Ws technique , you use the information you gathered in the empathize phase to answer the key questions: who, what, where, and why. Whether in collaboration with other members of the team or on your own, you will ask and answer questions that begin with the 4 Ws. This will enable you to describe who your users are, what they want, where they’ll use your product, and why their problem is important. For example, you could ask:

• Who : Who is impacted by this issue? Make sure to get specific by including information from what you know about users’ demographics, psychographics , personas, and other findings from user research.
• What : What is the problem? What are the obstacles users are facing? What are they trying to do? What will make the process less difficult?
• Where : Where will they be using the product? Is there a specific context in which the problem comes up? Is the issue purely digital or is there a physical component?
• Why : Why is this important? Why will users benefit from solving this problem? 

By asking questions based on the four Ws and brainstorming answers, you’ll be able to put into words the most important observations that came out of your user research, which you can then synthesize to arrive at a use-centric problem statement.

Much like the 4 Ws technique, the 5 Whys revolves around asking a series of simple questions, but in this case every one of those questions is “Why.” This technique helps you drill down on a problem to uncover its root cause by repeatedly asking a why question in response to your previous answer.

For example, perhaps during user research you discovered that a user named Jordan doesn’t have enough clothes to wear to work. Here’s how you can ask why to get to the root of their problem:

• Why doesn’t Jordan have enough clothes to wear to work? Because they don’t own enough business casual clothing.
• Why doesn’t Jordan own enough business casual clothing? They haven’t shopped for clothes in over a year
• Why haven’t they shopped for clothes in over a year? Jordan hates to shop
• Why does Jordan hate to shop? They get overwhelmed by the choices available
• Why does Jordan get overwhelmed by the choices available? Jordan doesn’t know what clothes will look best on them

The fifth question indicates that the cause of Jordan’s problem is that they don’t know what clothes will look best on them. As a result, your problem statement should focus on Jordan’s need for assistance to find the best clothes options when shopping.

While this technique is referred to as the 5 Whys, the number five is only a rule of thumb. In order to determine the root cause of a user’s problem, you may need to ask why more or less than five times. Either way, when you use this technique, you should stop asking why once your answers are no longer valuable in defining the problem.

Moreover, when using this technique, make sure each answer to a “why” question is grounded in a real world issue so you can reach a concrete conclusion about the reason for the users’ challenge. In addition, you may find that the answer to each “why” question has more than one legitimate answer. If this is the case, you should follow each branch of questioning because it could reveal your user has more than one problem they need help with. 

Fill-in-the-blank

In order to be useful, a problem statement must be brief, point to a user need, and help set a goal for the design of the project’s user experience. In order to ensure a problem statement captures those components, several UX professionals have created simple fill-in-the-blank formulas and templates that can be used when writing problem statements. 

For example, the Nielsen Norman Group’s Sarah Gibbons provides a simple structure for a problem statement that includes three components : 

These are then combined following the pattern: “[A user] needs [need] in order to accomplish [goal].” For example, if the user is a dog owner, your problem statement might be: “A dog owner [user] needs to spend more time playing with their dog [need] in order to keep him engaged and happy [goal].

Similarly, designer Dan Brown provides a worksheet for building a problem statement that includes several steps that end in a complete problem statement. The first step involves identifying a specific user. This user should be based on a persona or profile from the empathize phase of the Design Thinking process, and should include details about the job (trial lawyer, diner cook, college student) or role (parent, dog owner, sibling) that makes them relevant to the project. 

Next, taking the perspective of the user, specify three activities they engage in during the week and the reason each of those things is important. For example, a dog owner:

• Takes their dog for a walk because the dog needs to relieve himself.
• Plays with their dog so their dog can stay engaged and happy.
• Provides fresh water each day so their dog stays hydrated.

After this, take one of the three activities and break it down into the steps the user must take to complete the task, an obstacle they might encounter at each step, and how that makes the user feel. For example, if we expand on the activity of the dog owner playing with their dog, we might write:

• Find time to play with dog — busy with work — worried
• Give dog a choice of toys — dog has trouble choosing — bored
• Play fetch with dog — dog only brings the toy back half the time — frustrated

Finally, you can choose one of these three steps to develop into a problem statement based on the following formula: A [user] who feels [negative feeling] about [reason] needs to [step] but faces [obstacle]. So using the example of a dog owner, you can write a problem statement like: A dog owner [user] who feels worried [negative feeling] about their dog staying engaged and happy [reason] needs to find time to play with him [step], but is too busy with work [obstacle]. This template is a good starting point for helping you think through your users’ problems and, ultimately, arrive at meaningful problem statements. 

4. Problem statement examples

A problem statement is a way to explain the problems users need your UX design to solve and why. However, if it’s too broad, it will leave too many possible solutions open, making it challenging to arrive at the best one. As a result, keep in mind when writing a problem statement that it should be broad enough to allow for creative thinking and innovative solutions, but narrow enough that it can provide a direction for that solution. 

That said, there is no one right way to create a problem statement. No matter how you reach your final problem statement, it should be user-focused, which means it should begin with identifying a user and their need and include an idea of why they require that need to be met.

Here are some good examples of problem statements.

Problem statement from the user’s point of view: This kind of problem statement names a specific user and explains what they need from their perspective.

• I am a parent who wants to make sure my children don’t fall for scams on the internet, but I don’t know the best way to teach these skills because I can’t find high quality resources that explain the best way to do so, leaving me feeling uncertain.
• I am a young professional who wants to exercise regularly but I spend long hours at the office so I usually can’t make it to a gym before it closes, which frustrates me.
• I am a grandparent who wants to be able to easily see and talk to my grandchildren on a weekly basis, but I can’t because they don’t live nearby, which makes me feel lonely and disconnected.
• I am a single young adult who just moved to a new city where I don’t know anyone and don’t know where to go to meet people and make friends. As a result, I feel isolated. 

Problem statements based on user research: This kind of problem statement pinpoints a group of users identified during user research and states what they need and why they need it.

• Parents need a way to quickly and easily access high-quality information about teaching their kids how to avoid internet scams because currently it is hard to find resources about this topic, which leads to uncertainty.
• Young professionals need a way to exercise regularly even though they work long hours, making it frustratingly difficult to get to the gym before it closes.
• Grandparents need a way to easily see and speak with their grandchildren on a weekly basis even though they don’t live nearby so they won’t feel lonely and disconnected.
• Single young adults who move to a new city where they don’t know anyone need to know where to go to meet people and make friends so they don’t feel isolated.

Problem statements based on the 4 Ws: This kind of problem statement uses the 4 Ws technique to create a statement that outlines who has the problem, what that problem is, and where they experience it, and then explains why your solution should deliver a specific user experience to solve the user’s problem. In order to encourage brainstorming in the next phase of the Design Thinking process, you can state the last part of this kind of problem statement in the form of a question.

• A parent’s problem is that he wants to teach his kids how to avoid scams when they’re using the internet. How can we ensure he can get all the best resources on the topic he needs so he can avoid uncertainty?
• A young professional’s problem is that she needs a way to exercise regularly even though the long hours she works make it difficult for her to get to the gym. How can we give her an alternative option for exercise that will require no gym equipment and allow her to work out in her own time and space so she won’t be frustrated when she can’t make it to the gym?
• A grandparent’s problem is that they want to see and speak with their grandchildren on a weekly basis, but can’t do so in person because their grandchildren don’t live nearby. How can we give them a way to easily reach their grandchildren so this grandparent doesn’t feel lonely and disconnected from them?
• A single young adult’s problem is that she doesn’t know anyone in the new city she just moved to. How can we help her figure out where to go to meet people and make friends so she doesn’t feel isolated?

Problem statements using the fill-in-the-blank approach: For this kind of problem statement you can simply fill in the blanks in one of the problem statement templates provided in the previous section, such as this one: [A user] needs [need] in order to accomplish [goal].

• A parent of two needs to find high-quality resources in order to successfully teach his kids how to avoid internet scams.
• A young professional who works long hours needs to find a way to work out outside a gym in order to fit in regular exercise.
• A grandparent needs to easily see and speak with their grandchildren, who live too far away for them to see in person, in order to avoid feeling lonely and disconnected from them. 
• A single young adult who just moved to a new city needs to figure out where to go to meet people so she can make friends and no longer feel isolated.

You’ve likely noticed that some of these problem statement examples focus on specific design issues that may make up only part of a larger project. If you are tackling a large project, you’ll likely want to create an overarching “umbrella” problem statement that articulates the project’s overall objective and additional problem statements for each component of the project. 

In addition, if a specific component of your project is especially complicated, you may want to create a “parent” problem statement that describes a general goal along with several “child” problem statements that set sub-goals. However, this doesn’t mean problem statements should be created haphazardly. You should only create as many problem statements as are necessary to define the scope of your project.

Now that you know how to write a UX problem statement, you might want to learn more. If so, you’ll find the following articles useful:

• What is user research, and what’s its purpose?
• What is the UX design process? A complete, actionable guide
• What is product design?

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Problem statements in ux discovery.

August 22, 2021 2021-08-22

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Running discoveries can be challenging. Many teams start discovery research with little direction as to what problem they want to solve. When this happens, discoveries meander and result in dwindling team and stakeholder morale. Worse still, some discoveries begin with investigating solutions, rather than the problems those solutions are intended to solve. (Remember: if you’re investigating only solutions in a discovery, you’re not doing a true discovery! )

To avoid these issues, spend time upfront to identify and frame the problem . If you don’t know the problem, you’re not going to have much luck solving it! The better a problem is articulated, the easier and more effectively it can be solved. One device that help teams to frame a problem is a problem statement.

In This Article:

What’s a problem statement, how to write a problem statement, problem statements don’t need to be negative, how to use problem statements.

Problem statement: A concise description of the problem that needs to be solved.

It’s a helpful scoping device, focusing the team on the problem it needs to explore and subsequently solve. A problem statement makes clear what needs to be done in discovery and what’s out of scope. Problem statements are also great communication tools; well-written ones can be used to gain buy-in from stakeholders on why it’s important to explore and solve the problem.

Here are some examples of problem statements.

• Users of our newspaper app often export content from our app, rather than sharing content through our app. This is a problem because target audiences are less likely to know that the content came from our app, leading to lower conversion rates. This is also a problem for app users, as exporting content is time-consuming and could lead to a decrease in app usage.
• Sales reps spend a long time planning which leads to visit each month. Because planning is done manually — using Excel spreadsheets and printed paper lists — sales reps find it difficult to meet their targets. Many have complained that keeping track of which leads to visit takes away from the time they can spend with them. This is a problem because, when targets are not met, the business risks losing revenue.
• Each year, many applicants call the contact center seeking an update on their application. Applicants often spend a long time waiting to speak to an agent. Because contact-center staff members lack access to case information, they are unable to answer queries from applicants. This situation causes frustration for both applicants and customer-contact staff and represents an avoidable cost to the department.

It's a good idea to write a problem statement as early as possible in your discovery, as it can help set discovery goals and objectives. Many teams will compose their problem statement in a discovery kick-off workshop.

A problem statement should include:

• The background of a problem. Which organization or department has the problem and what is the problem? Why has the problem arisen? Note that in some cases you may not know the exact causes of the problem. This is what discoveries are for: to uncover root causes. (In this case, you may add this aspect once you’ve done your research)
• The people affected by the problem. There could be multiple user groups affected by a specific problem in different ways. In the problem statement, you should call out how the problem affects users. In some cases, internal employees (particularly customer-support staff) can be affected by a problem, as they often bear the brunt of poor user experiences –- for example, by handling disgruntled customers.
• The impact of the problem on the organization. If the problem is not fixed, what will be the effect on the organization? Reputational damage? Paying unavoidable costs? Losing out-of-market share? In some cases, you may want to quantify the impact in order to convince your organization to fix the problem. Your discovery could involve working out how much this problem costs the organization, and this information could end up in your problem statement.

To gather the relevant facts for your problem statement, you can use a simple technique called the 5 Ws , which involves answering the questions below. This activity can be included in a discovery kick - off workshop with your team and stakeholders.

• Who is affected by the problem?
• What is the problem?
• Where does this problem occur?
• When does the problem occur?
• Why does the problem occur? Why is the problem important?

If you don’t have all the answers to the above, don’t panic! While you should know what the problem is, you may not know exactly why it came about. This is what your discovery should tackle. Throughout the discovery process, you can return to your problem statement and add to it.

It’s important that problem statements are written well to serve their purpose. A problem statement should :

• Not be a laundry list of unrelated problems . A discovery effort should have one problem statement, and the problem statement should be focused on one problem. Of course, a single problem could cause further problems, and those related problems can be added to your problem statement. But listing many unrelated problems is a sign that you’re tackling too much.
• Not contain a solution . Leave solutions out of your problem statement. At the beginning of discovery, there are too many unknowns, so the the best solution is not obvious. At the end of your discovery, you’ll be in a good position to confidently put forward solution ideas that address the problem and take into account what you’ve learned.
• Be brief . Problem statements are effective when they’re concise. If you can condense your problem statement down to a few sentences, others will quickly understand what you focus on and why, and what’s out of scope. Spend some time to draft and redraft the problem statement with your team.

The examples I’ve given so far are negative — talking about something that needs fixing. However, problem statements can also capture opportunities (in which case they are sometimes referred to as opportunity statements instead of problem statements, although they are written and used in the same way).

Here’s an example of a problem statement that highlights an opportunity, rather than a problem that needs to be fixed:

The process of purchasing a newly built home can take a long time and requires many offline activities. This means sales often take a long time to close. There’s an opportunity to make home buying quicker and easier, and thus improve customer-satisfaction ratings and sales.

In an opportunity statement, we need to highlight the gap between where we are now (the present state) and where we want to be in the future (the desired state). A good question to ask to highlight this gap is: What do we want to achieve?

Your problem statement can be used as the starting point for structuring your discovery work. For example, if the problem statement was about improving the home-buying process, the goal for the discovery should be to learn about opportunities to make home buying quicker and easier. Once we have a discovery goal, it becomes easier to know what unknowns need research. For example, in this case, we probably want to know things like:

• Which activities do homebuyers perceive as difficult or time-consuming?
• Which activities or use cases can slow down the home-buying process and why?
• What does the end-to-end journey currently look like?

As you begin discovery, you can return to your problem statement and refine it — particularly if you’ve learned root causes or how much a problem costs your organization. Another reason to update your problem statement is if the discovery changes direction — which can happen when new areas of interest are highlighted through exploratory research. Finally, at the end of the discovery process, the problem statement can be communicated alongside your findings and recommendations to provide the full narrative of the discovery process.

A problem statement is a concise description of the problem to be solved. Writing problem statements at the beginning of the discovery process can create alignment and buy-in around the problem to be solved and provide direction in subsequent discovery activities. To construct problem statements, focus on who the problem affects, how it does so, and why it’s important to solve the problem.

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7 Effective Ways to Craft Compelling Problem Statements for UX Design

In the realm of UX design, crafting an effective problem statement is a crucial first step toward creating innovative, user-centric design solutions. A problem statement serves as the foundation for the entire design process. It helps UX designers to understand users’ needs and serves as a compass that guides designers through an intricate maze of user needs, frustrations, and aspirations. Understanding your user’s needs is essential to successfully addressing their painpoints.

In this article, I’ll define what a problem statement is and explore six effective ways of crafting compelling problem statements for UX design.

Understanding the Problem Statement for UX Design

In UX design , a problem statement is a concise, clear articulation of the user’s challenge or need that a design solution aims to solve. It sets the stage for the entire design process by outlining the context, scope, and painpoints of the user.

A well-crafted problem statement not only defines the problem but also serves as a guide for UX designers. It helps them to align their efforts with the user’s goals and expectations. By drafting a solid problem statement, you can not only sharpen the UX designer’s focus but also set the stage for designing innovative, user-centric solutions. This is essential to transform a user interface into an experience that delights and satisfies users.

Effective Ways of Crafting Compelling Problem Statements

Creating an effective problem statement can be a challenging task . The problem is that, without a proper problem statement, you might not be able to create a design solution that actually satisfies the user’s requirements.

Now, let’s consider some effective ways of crafting a compelling problem statement that can make your UX design process a smooth one. By taking these approaches, you can come up with a powerful problem statement that paves the way for your success.

1. Taking a User-Centric Approach

The first point to consider when crafting a problem statement is the need to take a user-centric approach. So start this process by putting the user at the center of defining your problem statement. In doing so, you must understand the user’s perspective, needs, and painpoints.

When defining the problem statement, be sure to use empathetic language that resonates with the user’s experience. For example, instead of stating: Users struggle with navigation , you might say: Users find it challenging to navigate the user interface. This leads to user frustration and a suboptimal user experience.

Only by understanding the challenges and frustrations a user interface causes can you define a problem statement that clarifies users’ needs for the UX designer and lays the groundwork for more effective problem-solving. So emphasize the painpoints that users are experiencing. It’s also important to articulate the problems that users are facing and explain how solving these problems can improve their experience. Doing this also helps UX designers keep their focus on the user and ensures that the design solution aligns more closely with the needs, preferences, and behaviors of the target audience.

2. Defining the Scope Clearly

The next important point to consider is the need to define the scope of the design solution clearly. Doing so requires that you clearly outline the boundaries and context of the problem. Many people provide vague problem statements that can confuse UX designers. So try to avoid making vague or overly broad statements. Those defining product requirements need to clearly understand and define what problems they’re facing to ensure that UX designers can deliver good results. It’s also very important to take different perspectives into account, as well as the potential causes of the problems.

Consider how different stakeholders might view the problem. Then share your problem statement with your stakeholders and gather their feedback to learn what they think. This can make it easier to articulate the problem in a better way.

In defining a problem statement, specify the target audience, the platform, and the specific scenarios in which the problem occurs. A well-defined scope helps in focusing UX design efforts and prevents the project from becoming overwhelming.

3. Highlighting Impacts and Consequences

Next, it’s important to highlight the impacts and consequences of the problem. When you emphasize the consequences of the problem, it becomes easier for the UX designer to underscore its significance and address the problem effectively.

Explain how the identified issues affect the user’s experience and, if appropriate, the overall business goals. Take a step ahead and define specific scenarios in which the problem occurs. Provide concrete examples that illustrate how the problem manifests in real-life situations. You can use anecdotes, case studies, or user data to paint a vivid picture of the problem’s impacts.

Doing so adds a sense of urgency and importance to the problem that can compel the UX design team to prioritize and address the problem more effectively.

4. Quantifying and Qualifying the Problem

A product team’s UX designers might not know and understand the problem well enough unless you tell them exactly what the problem is. So try to be as clear as possible. You should also try to provide data and evidence that supports the existence of the problem.

If necessary, conduct user research and usability testing and gather analytics data to quantify the impacts of the issue. To add depth and context to the problem statement, you should also try to incorporate qualitative insights such as user feedback and anecdotes.

Sometimes, highlighting key metrics or indicators that demonstrate the severity or scale of the issue can be super effective. Increase the credibility of your problem statement by combining quantitative and qualitative elements of the problem statement.

5. Aligning with Business Objectives

One of the most crucial things to do when working on your problem statement is to ensure that your problem aligns with your company’s business objectives . To do this, you first have to connect the problem statement with broader business objectives. Then you need to clearly articulate how solving the identified problem aligns with the organization’s goals and values.

Achieving this alignment not only justifies the resources your team has allocated to solving the problem but also ensures that the UX design solution contributes to the overall success of the product or service.

6. Using Concise, Clear Language

When drafting your problem statement, always keep it concise, and make sure it’s easy to understand. While you might sometimes be tempted to use jargon, that could lead to greater confusion. Avoid using unnecessary jargon or esoteric technical terms that might hinder the comprehension of either the UX design team or stakeholders.

By using clear, straightforward language, you can ensure that everyone who is involved in the UX design process shares a common understanding of the problem and its significance. This can make it easier for UX designers to solve the problem more effectively.

7. Focusing on Opportunities, Not Just Issues

Frame problem statements as opportunities for improvement rather than merely identifying issues. This positive framing encourages the UX design team to approach challenges with a solution-oriented mindset. When you focus on opportunities, you can motivate UX designers to innovate and create positive user experiences.

Crafting a compelling problem statement is a pivotal step of the UX design process and one of the first steps in setting the tone for creating successful solutions. The ability to articulate the problem effectively lays the groundwork for creating a user experience that not only meets but exceeds users’ expectations.

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Founder at WPBeginner and CEO at Awesome Motive Inc

West Palm Beach, Florida, USA

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Your Guide to Creating UX Problem Statements

Published: February 27, 2024

You've run a feedback survey to gain actionable insight into what users enjoy — or don't — about your website or app. Now, it's time to fix the obstacles they report running into frequently. But wait: Before you do so, you should create a UX problem statement.

I've seen first how detrimental it can be to enter the design process without giving adequate thought to your UX problem statement. If you do, you risk wasting time, money, energy, or completely missing the point. 

But don't panic: Creating a UX problem statement isn't too tricky. I'm here to walk you through everything you need to know about what it is, how to develop your own, and why you can't proceed without a UX problem statement. Lastly, I'll even share some examples that can help you start writing your own. 

What is a UX problem statement?

When to write a problem statement , how to use a ux problem statement .

How to Write a UX Problem Statement in Four Steps

Problem Statement Template

A UX problem statement is a brief description of the problem your team is solving for. It clearly outlines an issue or obstacle users face within your product or service. Typically, it will include information about the users who are experiencing the problem, additional context regarding when the problem occurs, and the consequential impact on user experience . (Psst: These 10 tips can help you improve your site UX quickly and efficiently .) 

The UX problem statement is widely considered a must-have because it forces designers to reflect on what went wrong in the original design and keeps the team solution-oriented. With a identified problem to hone in on, you can decide better how to tackle it. 

Free UX Research Kit + Templates

3 templates for conducting user tests, summarizing your UX research, and presenting your findings.

• User Testing Template
• UX Research Testing Report Template
• UX Research Presentation Template

You're all set!

Click this link to access this resource at any time.

The key to a successful UX problem statement is that you don't wait too long to write it. Because you will want to reference your problem statement throughout the design process, it's important that you have it easily accessible and, therefore, allow it to guide the decisions you will make. For instance, if your team waits to write a problem statement until it's done with building a high-fidelity prototype in Figma, it's already too late to make the most of it. 

Because of this, designers typically write a problem statement during the research or discovery phases of the process. This is also an ideal time to do so since you're already collecting insights about your users' needs and pain points. Therefore, by identifying the problem early, you can guarantee that all of your design efforts directly address the issue. 

I'd encourage you to consider your UX problem statement your "north star" as you iterate to solve for the user. By doing so, you can rest assured that you won't reflect on what you've created at the end of the process only to realize that it doesn't solve your users' problem at all. 

Influence your decisions throughout the design process.

Probably the most important thing your UX problem statement will do is help inform your team's decisions throughout the design process. Because everyone on the team will clearly understand exactly what needs to be accomplished, the statement will help ensure alignment and reinforce that all decisions made will be working towards fixing this issue. 

Inspire your team as you brainstorm. 

Have you ever heard the saying, "A problem well-defined is a problem half-solved?" This quote, typically attributed to John Dewey, is true in my experience. Your team may also find that with the problem well-defined, brainstorming is more seamless and efficient. 

Drive research. 

Does your team have more questions about the problem at hand? If so, you may consider digging deeper by asking follow-up questions or running a focus group. When you have an apparent problem, you can quickly figure out what pieces of the puzzle you are missing — and then do the research necessary to get them. 

Ensure a user-centered design. 

We've all used products that were created without a  user-centered approach to design . Yes, it does make that big of a difference! Using your UX problem statement, you can help bolster the chances of creating a product that feels user-centered to the people who matter most: Your users. 

How to Write a UX Problem Statement in 4 Steps

Writing a UX problem statement isn't too hard. The most important thing you can do is ensure you have all your information handy. If you do so, you should be able to write an effective UX problem statement in four simple steps. 

1. Ask yourself: Who is the user? 

Your first step is defining the users experiencing the issue. Does the problem span different personas, or is just one persona experiencing difficulty? Having an answer to this will help inform the way you tackle the problem. Plus, you'll have more insight into their behavior once you identify the subset of users experiencing the issue. 

2. Describe the problem concisely. 

This one's important! Your next step is to identify the problem clearly. The briefer, the better — but ensure you're articulating the issue correctly. For example, you may write that your users are experiencing frustration due to the main horizontal menu dropdown that disappears within two seconds, which is too quick for them to decide which dropdown option to select. 

3. Identify the impact it is having. 

Going with the example from earlier, are users unable to click the dropdown menu in enough time? Is it resulting in important pages that are going unseen simply because users can't access them? Examine the impact that this issue has on the user experience. This is crucial because it demonstrates why addressing the problem is paramount. 

4. Define your goals. 

This is your chance to clearly outline what you hope to achieve by reworking this feature. Don't be afraid to get specific. As a rule of thumb, your goals should be measurable and work to enhance the user experience. 

This isn't a step but a recommendation. I highly suggest you make your UX problem statement actionable. This helps ensure that you actually solve the problem at hand. 

Problem Statement Template 

To properly use this problem statement template, you'll need to gather the following: 

The  persona experiencing the issue 

The specific challenge they are facing

The context when the challenge occurs

The impact on their experience with the product 

Once you have these, you can plug them into the problem statement template. Here's one I like to use: 

" [INSERT PERSONA HERE] is facing [INSERT CHALLENGE HERE] when  [INSERT CONTEXT IN WHICH CHALLENGE OCCURS] , which is impacting their ability to [IMPACT OF THE CHALLENGE] ." 

You might want to experiment with your problem statement a few times to find one that's most effective. Keep in mind this is just a sample — you can tweak the phrasing to make it feel more intuitive to you. 

UX Problem Statement Example 

Going back to that earlier example I shared with you, I'll walk you through a UX problem statement example. 

Say you work for a graphic design agency, and one of your key personas is a content marketer who lands on your site to learn more about your design services. For the sake of this example, we'll call the persona 'Marketing Mary.' 

Marking Mary is experiencing frustration because the menu dropdown disappears within two seconds, which is too quick for Marketing Mary to decide which page she wants to select. Furthermore, those pages that are nestled within the dropdown and, therefore, inaccessible to the user, are garnering virtually no traffic. 

Here's what your UX problem statement may look like: 

"Marketing Mary is facing a menu dropdown challenge as the dropdown disappears within two seconds when she hovers over the site menu. This impacts her ability to navigate to the website's 'Contact' and 'Learn More' pages." 

My statement was getting long, so I broke it down into two sentences, which you're welcome to do. 

See? It's brief, clear, and demonstrates to the rest of the team exactly what they need to solve. 

Create a Meaningful UX Problem Statement

As long as you keep your UX problem concise and clear, you're going to do a great job writing one that helps your team solve whatever problem it is your users are facing. 

Don't forget to share this post!

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Problem statements: Everything you need to know

Last updated

12 February 2023

Reviewed by

Creating an effective problem statement is an important step when you’re considering a new product. It helps you to decide whether the product will meet an existing need of your target audience.

• What is a problem statement?

A problem statement describes the specific problem or pain point your target audience is experiencing.

This statement identifies:

Your ideal user

What they are attempting to achieve

A specific problem they frequently run into while trying to meet those goals

Ideas for potential solutions to those problems

You can use your problem statement as the basis for designing a product that will improve your target audience's user experience by solving that problem.

Keep in mind that this early phase in the product development process is focused on the user and the need you want your product to fulfill, not  the design of the product itself.

• Why is a problem statement important?

Products created for a specific purpose are more likely to appeal to your target audience than those developed without a goal in mind. A strong problem statement can ensure each of your products aligns with something your target audience is looking for.

• When should I create a problem statement?

Bringing a new product from an idea to market involves a complex series of steps, known as the Design Thinking process. This process is used throughout the whole product journey , from brainstorming and design to development and production.

The five stages of the Design Thinking process are:

The Empathize phase is the most research-heavy element of the design process. This is when you learn about your target audience and what they are looking for in a new product. The Define phase is when you work out how to best respond to the information gained in the Empathize phase.

The most effective problem statements are created during the Define stage. A quality problem statement ensures that ideas your team brainstorms during the third stage will serve the specific purpose you want them to.

Waiting too long to clearly define your problem may mean that what your team thought was an ideal solution may not address the exact issue your audience is facing. Brainstorming ideas without a problem statement may get you close to solving your target audience’s problem, but it will be much more difficult to zero in on exactly what your users want from your product.

• Benefits of a strong problem statement

Creating a strong problem statement at the start of a product development project can benefit your company and your customers in many ways.

Here are some of the most significant reasons why defining what need you are fulfilling with your future product can increase the likelihood of success.

Identifying the goals of your project

Starting a product development project with little direction or understanding of your end goal can prevent you from fulfilling its potential. A new product may have some success if you have a vague idea of its purpose, but knowing the exact goals of a particular product from the beginning, for your potential buyers and your company, will significantly increase your likelihood of achieving them.

Guiding your product development team

A strong problem statement can be a helpful guide for your product development team throughout every stage of the design process. When several people are working on your product design and development, it’s not always easy to keep everyone united during the process of bringing your vision to life.

Your problem statement serves as a reminder of your specific goals, as well as a stepping stone to help your developers draft and finalize your design and turn an early prototype into a tangible finished product.

For example, if your development team builds a front-end library of elaborate animations to enhance the feature, but your problem statement sights low Wi-Fi or loading problems as issues, the team can agree to keep the code as light as possible to reduce loading time.

Gaining support for your product

Potential products often need to show much promise early in the development process to obtain the necessary funding to get the product off the ground. Designing and developing a new product can require a significant amount of money, long before you see any profit. Raising the money you need to get started can be difficult if you can’t show strong evidence that your finished product will bring a strong ROI.

A problem statement that clearly shows potential investors, crowdfunders, and other donors why your product is valuable can convince them that supporting your product is worthwhile.

• How to write a problem statement in UX

You can take a few different approaches to create your problem statement. The Five Ws, the Five Whys, and fill-in-the-blank are the most common methods companies use to formulate the specific problem they want to address.

The Five Ws

A good technique for building your problem statement is to ask specific questions that help you determine the desired outcome of your product. Use the information gathered about your target audience during the Empathize stage to answer these questions. This will lead you to the problem you want to address and how you might solve it.

Ask these questions:

Who  does the problem affect? (your target audience)

What  is the specific problem your target audience is experiencing?

Where  does your target audience typically experience this problem and where will they primarily be using your product to solve it? (e.g. in their home or business)

Why  is finding a solution to this particular problem important to your target audience?

When does the problem occur?

Considering these questions can give you an idea of:

Whether the problem is important enough to your target audience to purchase your product to solve it

Whether it is an ideal solution for the circumstances under which they generally experience the problem

Whether your proposed solution will actually solve the problem

Whether your product will be a good fit for your target audience

The Five Whys

This technique works similarly to the Five Ws, but it digs deeper into the intended purpose of your product.

The Five Whys technique asks a series of at least five questions that build upon the previous question. This helps your team push toward a very specific problem instead of going with something too broad that may not be unique to your company.

Each question must begin with the word "why," and it challenges the previous question by repeatedly asking why that progressively smaller problem exists.

This technique is effective because the true solution to a broad problem may be vastly different from what your team might expect it to be. Breaking the initial problem down into a more targeted issue allows you to create a problem statement that is as specific as possible.

Fill-in-the-blank

This method starts with using your research to identify three specific pieces of information. These are used to fill in the blanks of a template sentence to quickly create an effective problem statement.

The three pieces of information are:

The intended user of your product

The challenge or problem that your product will solve for your user

The goal that fulfilling that need will allow your user to accomplish

Simply insert the three items into this sentence to create your problem statement:

"[A user] needs [need] in order to accomplish [goal]."

This method generally results in a more basic problem statement than the Five Ws or Five Whys techniques. This makes it ideal if you want to address a broader problem, although problem statements that are as specific as possible are more likely to result in successful products. This technique also provides a helpful starting point if you don’t have the time or resources to create something more specific.

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Creative Problem Solving for UX Designers

It’s normal to pull up sharp in front of a problem; after all, if there was a known solution, it wouldn’t be a problem. But knowing that it’s normal, doesn’t make encountering problems any less frustrating. So how do we avoid sitting in front of a UX problem for hours, achieving nothing?

That’s what creative problem solving is all about.

In this post, we’ll explore creative problem solving, and how it can help you as a UX designer. Then we’ll analyze how you can solve UX problems in a few, easy-to-remember steps. By the end of this article, you’ll have all the tips you need for UX problem-solving.

What is Creative Problem Solving?

Creative problem solving is a term developed by Alex Osborn, the founder of the Creative Education Foundation . In a nutshell, this term is about overcoming challenges in our work lives through innovative solutions. But, of course, such solutions vary by profession.

For UX designers, creative problem solving is about solving UX problems with efficient tactics, that work. And that’s precisely why UX problem solving is so essential because following a specific method can help us avoid getting stuck.

Whether you are a newbie or an experienced designer, you are probably focused on projects that require you to solve problems. If you have never had a problem before, you must be a superhero; for us mere mortals, here are the steps we need to follow to solve a UX problem:

UX Problem Solving in 5 Easy Steps

Delivering a great UX solution is influenced by two key parameters: user research and creative problem-solving. Suppose you have done your user research and are currently looking for an original solution to a problem. In this case, the methodology below will be handy:

1. Identify the UX Problem

I know this may sound obvious, but think about it. How many times have we lost days because we didn’t identify the real problem? If you are solving the wrong problem, it does not matter if your solution is original and innovative.

That’s why the first thing you need to do is think about the problem. Ask yourself what the real problem is, and then get to work solving it. Identifying the problem may take some time, but it will prove beneficial to your project in the long run.

2. Clarify the UX Problem

Now that you have identified the UX problem, it’s time to demystify it. In this step, you could create a user journey plan. It does not have to be perfect; some low-fidelity sketches are more than enough.

Set a timer and start visualizing your solution on paper. Remember, sketching is not about perfection or fine details. Once you have created a customer journey you are happy with, it’s time to move on to the next step.

3. Use Analytics

UX design isn’t about design per se. It’s also about numbers and data. This is why analytics are critical to UX problem-solving. Once you have gathered some data from users and competitors, it’s time to create patterns. This will help you better understand the problem and change your drafts accordingly.

Numbers and data alone can help you a lot if you combine them with an original idea. However, facts alone are not enough, and your original story will not be compelling without them. So what’s better than combining them?

4. Use Your Feedback

So you have come up with an innovative solution to the UX problem. You have successfully combined this idea with essential data. Unfortunately, your work is not yet done.

The next step is equally important. Once you have polished your ideas, you should share them with colleagues and/or customers.

It’s not easy to get feedback for your UX mapping, but it’s very constructive and will ultimately make you a better designer.

5. Solve the Problem

The last step is also the most fun. Once you have listened to people’s feedback, you can redesign your original solution. Then you are just one step away from solving the UX problem. Now it’s time to digitally redesign your idea.

This is the step where fine details matter. Creating a high-fidelity wireframe is not easy, but most UX designers have the knowledge and tools to get it done.

UX Problem Solving: Useful Tips and Tricks

Be methodical.

In my opinion, this is the most useful tip when it comes to UX problem-solving. You do not always have to be in a hurry. In the early stages of a project, try not to get distracted by other problems. Focus on finding the real problem.

Once you are sure you have found it, you can move on to finding the best solution. Then move on to the next step and so on. It becomes clear that being methodical is a brilliant tactic.

UX Problem Solving is All about the Ecosystem

UX problem solving is not about fine details. So try to care less about the design and more about the ecosystem you want to create. That will help you gather all the data you need, from user opinions to analytics.

Low-Fidelity vs. High-Fidelity Wireframes

Starting with sketches and low-fidelity wireframes is a brilliant thing to do. Whenever I have tried to start a project directly with high-fidelity wireframes, I have gotten bogged down in details.

For this reason, pen and paper should be your best friends in UX problem-solving. Sketches help you explore different approaches and get the feedback you need.

Explore Different Tools/Approaches

When it comes to solving a UX problem, there is usually one efficient solution. But that is not always the case. In most cases, we have to consider different alternatives and identify more than one critical interaction.

For this reason, feedback is also crucial for UX problem-solving. Your colleagues and customers will help you find the best method. Try to accept criticism and be open when listening to feedback. This way, you will ensure that you will find the best possible solution.

Solving a UX problem is not easy. However, if you identify the real problem and illustrate different approaches, you will be on the right track. Also, do not neglect to use the data and feedback you collect. The more tools you have in hand, the better UX designer you will be.

Nancy Young

Nancy is a founder of Onedesblog and a copywriter with over 10 years of experience. She loves creating showcases with beautiful graphics resources, web design, and photography.

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A design discovery universe

Published April 7, 2021

UX Challenges

My partner Taylor and I just launched some new UX Challenges.

👉 https://uxtools.co/challenges/

We made these so that designers can learn and practice crucial UX skills. There are too many clichéd UI exercises out there. These challenges are different:

👩🏻‍💻 Based in the real world. This isn’t another fake redesign or “create an ATM for a centaur.” Every exercise looks like a project you’d get in real life.

🛠 Practice important skills. UX is more than just UI. Each challenge helps you understand and train a specific UX skill like card sorting or usability testing.

💪 Stop reading: try UX. Nothing improves design skills faster than doing design work. Practice solving problems and see what real UX work is like.

💼 Get tangible takeaways. Have fun with mini projects, then walk away with a deliverable to put in your portfolio or use as a talking point in interviews.

Each challenge has a real-world scenario, a task aimed at helping you practice a specific skill, hand-picked references if you need help, and recommended tools.

Follow along on 🐦 Twitter : we’ll be re-sharing and posting feedback for people who share their completed challenges there.

Let us know what you think!

Will you take on one of the challenges?

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21 UX case studies to learn from in 2024

UX case studies are the heart of your design portfolio. They offer a peek into your design process, showcasing how you tackle challenges, your methods, and your results. For recruiters, these case studies serve as a metric for evaluating your skills, problem-solving abilities, and talent.

If you’re considering creating your own UX case study in 2024 but don’t know where to start, you’re in the right place. This article aims to inspire you with 21 carefully hand-picked UX case study examples, each offering valuable lessons.

But before we dive into these examples, let’s address a question that might be lingering: Is a UX case study truly worth the effort?

Is it worth creating a UX case study?

The short answer is yes.

Remember how in math class, showing your workings was even more important than getting the correct answer? UX case studies are like that for designers. They are more than just showcasing the final product (the polished website or app); they detail the steps taken to get there (the research, user testing, and design iterations). By showing your design process, you give potential employers or clients a peek into your thought process and problem-solving skills.

A well-laid-out case study has many benefits, including the following:

Building credibility

As case studies provide evidence of your expertise and past successes, they can build credibility and trust with potential employers or clients.

Educational value

By showing your design process, you provide valuable insights and learnings for other designers and stakeholders.

Differentiation

A compelling case study can leave a lasting impression on potential recruiters and clients, helping you stand out.

Iterative improvement

A case study is like a roadmap of each project, detailing the highs, lows, failures, and successes. This information allows you to identify areas for improvement, learn from mistakes, and refine your approach in subsequent projects.

Now that you know why a stand-out case study is so important, let’s look at 21 examples to help you get creative. The case studies will fall under five categories:

• Language learning app
• Learning app
• Travel agency app
• Intelly healthcare app
• Cox Automotive
• Swiftwash laundry
• Wayfaro trip planner
• New York Times app redesign
• Disney+ app redesign
• Fitbit redesign
• Ryanair app redesign
• Forbes app redesign
• Enhancing virtual teaching with Google Meet
• Airbnb’s global check-in tool
• Spotify home shortcuts
• AI-powered spatial banking for Apple Vision Pro
• Sage Express

In this section, we’ll explore case studies that take us through the complete design journey of creating a digital product from scratch.

1. Language learning app

If you’re a designer looking to get your foot in the door, this is one case study you need to check out. It’s so well detailed that it helped this designer land their first role as a UX designer:

Created by Christina Sa, this case study tackles the all-too-common struggle of learning a new language through a mobile app. It takes us through the process of designing a nontraditional learning app that focuses on building a habit by teaching the Korean language using Korean media such as K-pop, K-drama, and K-webtoon.

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Key takeaway

This case study shows how a structured design process, user-centered approach, and effective communication can help you stand out. The creator meticulously laid out their design process from the exploratory research phase to the final prototype, even detailing how the case study changed their view on the importance of a design process.

If you’re searching for a comprehensive case study that details every step of the design process, look no further. This one is for you:

This impressive case study by Finna Wang explores the creation of a fan-focused responsive platform for Jambb, an already existing social platform. The creator starts by identifying the problem and then defines the project scope before diving into the design process.

This case study shows us the importance of an iterative problem-solving approach. It identifies a problem (pre-problem statement), creates a solution, tests the solution, and then revises the problem statement based on the new findings.

3. Learning app

If you need a highly visual case study that takes you through every step of the design process in an engaging way, this one is for you:

This case study walks us through the design of a platform where users can find experts to explain complex topics to them in a simple and friendly manner. It starts by defining the scope of work, then progresses through research, user journeys, information architecture, user flow, initial design, and user testing, before presenting the final solution.

This case study demonstrates effective ways to keep readers engaged while taking them through the steps of a design process. By incorporating illustrations and data visualization, the designer communicates complex information in an engaging manner, without boring the readers.

If you’re in search of a case study that details the design process but is also visually appealing, you should give this one a look:

This case study by Orbix Studio takes us through the process of designing GiveHub, a fundraising app that helps users set up campaigns for causes they’re passionate about. It starts with an overview of the design process, then moves on to identifying the challenges and proposing solutions, before showing us how the solutions are brought to life.

This case study illustrates how a visually engaging design and clear organization can make your presentation easy to grasp.

5. Travel agency app

This case study is quite popular on Behance, and it’s easy to see why:

The case study takes us through the process of creating a travel app that lets users compare travel packages from various travel agencies or groups. The creators set out a clear problem statement, propose a solution, and then show us the step-by-step implementation process. The incorporation of data visualization tools makes this case study easy to digest.

This is another case study that shows the importance of using a clearly defined design process. Going by its popularity on Behance, you can tell that the step-by-step process breakdown was well worth the effort.

6. Intelly healthcare app

If you’re looking for a UX case study that explores the design journey for both mobile and desktop versions of an app, this is one you should check out:

This case study explores the process of creating Intelly, an app that transforms patient care with telemedicine, prescription management, and real-time tracking. The case study begins with a clear design goal, followed by a layout of existing problems and design opportunities. The final design is a mobile app for patients and a desktop app for doctors.

This case study highlights the importance of proactive problem-solving and creative thinking in the design process. The creators laid out some key problems, identified design opportunities in them, and effectively leveraged them to create an app.

7. Cox Automotive

If you prefer a results-oriented case study, you’ll love this one:

This case study delves into how Cox Automotive’s Manheim division, used LogRocket to optimize their customers’ digital experience for remote car auctions. It starts by highlighting the three key outcomes before giving us an executive summary of the case study. The rest of the case study takes us through the process of achieving the highlighted outcomes.

A key takeaway from this case study is the significance of using user data and feedback to enhance the digital experience continuously. Cox Automotive used LogRocket to identify and address user-reported issues, gain insights into customer behaviors, and make data-driven decisions to optimize their product.

These case studies are more focused on the visual aspects of the design process, teaching us a thing or two about presentation and delivery.

If you love a case study that scores high on aesthetics with vivid colors, cool illustrations, and fun animations, you need to check this one out:

This case study takes us on a visual journey of creating Rebank, a digital product aimed at revolutionizing the baking industry. It starts with the research process, moves on to branding and style, and then takes us through the different screens, explaining what each one offers.

This case study illustrates the value of thinking outside the box. Breaking away from the conventional design style of financial products makes it a stand-out case study.

9. Swiftwash Laundry

If you’re looking for a case study that prioritizes aesthetics and visual appeal, you should check this one out:

This case study by Orbix Studio gives us a peek into how they created Swiftwash, a laundry service app. It takes us through the steps involved in creating an intuitive, user-friendly, and visually appealing interface.

If there’s one thing to take away from this case study, it’s the value of presenting information in a straightforward manner. Besides being easy on the eye, this case study is also easy to digest. The creators lay out the problem and detail the steps taken to achieve a solution, in an easy-to-follow way, while maintaining a high visual appeal.

10. Wayfaro trip planner

If you’re looking for a concise case study with clean visuals, you should definitely check this one out:

This Behance case study takes us through the design of Wayfaro, a trip planner app that allows users to plan their itineraries for upcoming journeys. The creators dive straight into the visual design process, showing us aspects such as branding and user flow, and explaining the various features on each screen.

This case study shows us the power of an attractive presentation. Not only is the mobile app design visually appealing, but the design process is presented in a sleek and stylish manner.

App redesign

These case studies delve into the redesign of existing apps, offering valuable insights into presentation techniques and problem-solving approaches.

11. New York Times app redesign

If you’re looking for an app redesign case study that’s impactful yet concise, this one is for you:

This study details the creation of “Timely,” a design feature to address issues with the NYT app such as irrelevant content, low usage, and undesirable coverage. It takes us through the process of identifying the problem, understanding audience needs, creating wireframes, and prototyping.

This case study shows us that you don’t always need to overhaul the existing app when redesigning. It suggests a solution that fits into the current information setup, adding custom graphics to the mobile app. Starting with a simple problem statement, it proposes a solution to address the app’s issues without changing what customers already enjoy.

12. Disney+ app redesign

If you’re looking for an engaging case study that’s light on information, you should check out this one:

This case study by Andre Carioca dives right into giving the user interface a little facelift to make it more fun and engaging. By employing compelling storytelling and appealing visuals, the creator crafts a narrative that’s a delight to read.

Given how popular this case study is on Behance, you can tell that the designer did something right. It shows how injecting a little playfulness can elevate your case study and make it more delightful.

13. Fitbit redesign

If you want an in-depth case study that doesn’t bore you to sleep, this one is for you:

This case study by Stacey Wang takes us through the process of redesigning Fitbit, a wearable fitness tracker. The creator starts by understanding personas and what users expect from a fitness tracker.

Next was the development of use cases and personas. Through a series of guerrilla tests, they were able to identify user pain points. The redesign was centered around addressing these pain points.

This case study highlights the importance of clear organization and strong visual communication. The creator goes in-depth into the intricacies of redesigning the Fitbit app, highlighting every step, without boring the readers.

14. Ryanair app redesign

If you’re bored of the usual static case studies and need something more interactive, this app redesign is what you’re looking for:

This case study takes us through the process of giving the Ryanair app a fresh look. Besides the clean aesthetics and straightforward presentation, the incorporation of playful language and interactive elements makes this case study captivating.

This case study shows how adding a bit of interactivity to your presentation can elevate your work.

15. Forbes app redesign

This case study starts by explaining why the redesign was needed and dives deep into analyzing the current app. The creator then takes us through the research and ideation phases and shares their proposed solution. After testing the solution, they made iterations based on the results.

When it comes to redesigning an existing product, it’s a good idea to make a strong case for why the redesign was needed in the first place.

UX research

These case studies are centered around UX research, highlighting key research insights to enhance your design process.

16. Enhancing virtual teaching with Google Meet

This case study by Amanda Rosenburg, Head of User Experience Research, Google Classroom shows us how listening to user feedback can help make our products more useful and inclusive to users.

To improve the virtual teaching experience on Google Meet, the team spent a lot of time getting feedback from teachers. They then incorporated this feedback into the product design, resulting in new functionality like attendance taking, hand raising, waiting rooms, and polls. Not only did these new features improve the user experience for teachers and students, but they also created a better user experience for all Google Meet users.

When there isn’t room for extensive user research and you need to make quick improvements to the user experience, it’s best to go straight to your users for feedback.

17. Airbnb’s global check-in tool

This case study by Vibha Bamba, Design Lead on Airbnb’s Host Success team, shows us how observing user behaviors inspired the creation of a global check-in tool:

By observing interactions between guests and hosts, the Airbnb team discovered a design opportunity. This led to the creation of visual check-in guides for Airbnb guests, which they can access both offline and online.

There’s a lot to be learned from observing user behavior. Don’t limit yourself to insights obtained from periodic research. Instead, observe how people interact with your product in their daily lives. The insights obtained from such observations can help unlock ingenious design opportunities.

18. Spotify Home Shortcuts

This case study by Nhi Ngo, a Senior User Researcher at Spotify shows us the importance of a human perspective in a data-driven world:

When the Spotify team set out to develop and launch the ML-powered Shortcuts feature on the home tab, they hit a brick wall with the naming. A/B tests came back inconclusive. In the end, they had to go with the product designer’s suggestion of giving the feature a name that would create a more human and personal experience for users.

This led to the creation of a humanistic product feature that evoked joy in Spotify’s users and led to the incorporation of more time-based features in the model, making the content more time-sensitive for users.

Although data-driven research is powerful, it doesn’t hold all the answers. So in your quest to uncover answers through research, never lose sight of the all-important human perspective.

Artificial intelligence

The following case studies are centered around the design of AI-powered products.

19. AI-powered spatial banking for Apple Vision Pro

If you want to be wowed by a futuristic case study that merges artificial intelligence with spatial banking, you should check this out:

In this revolutionary case study, UXDA designers offer a sneak peek into the future with a banking experience powered by AI. They unveil their vision of AI-powered spatial banking on the visionOS platform, showcasing its features and their AI use cases.

This case study shows us the importance of pushing boundaries to create innovative experiences that cater to user needs and preferences.

20. Sage Express

If what you need is an AI case study that isn’t information-dense, this one is for you:

This case study by Arounda takes us through the design of Sage Express, an AI-powered data discovery tool that automatically extracts patterns, tendencies, and insights from data. It outlines the challenge, proposes a solution, and details the journey of bringing the proposed solution to life. But it doesn’t stop there: it also shows the actual results of the design using tangible metrics.

This case study underscores the importance of showing your outcomes in tangible form. You’ve worked hard on a project, but what were the actual results?

If you’re looking for a clean and well-structured AI case study, this will be helpful:

This case study takes us through the process of creating Delfi, an AI-driven banking financial report system. It details the entire design process from onboarding to prototype creation.

If there’s one thing to learn from this case study, it’s how a well-structured presentation can simplify complex information. Although the case study is heavy on financial data, the organized layout not only enhances visual appeal but also aids comprehension.

This article has shown you 21 powerful case study examples across various niches, each providing valuable insights into the design process. These case studies demonstrate the importance of showcasing the design journey, not just the final polished product.

When creating your own case study, remember to walk your users through the design process, the challenges you faced, and your solutions. This gives potential recruiters and clients a glimpse of your creativity and problem-solving skills.

And finally, don’t forget to add that human touch. Let your personality shine through and don’t be afraid to inject a little playfulness and storytelling where appropriate. By doing so, you can craft a case study that leaves a lasting impression on your audience.

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UX Design: A Process for Solving Problems

At its core, user experience design is about solving problems. But before you can solve a problem effectively it must be properly understood and defined. A good problem statement serves as a guide that both feeds the creative process and helps keep the team on track when exploring new ideas and solutions.

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A problem statement is a concise description of user issues or unmet needs that need to be addressed.

For example: “How can we help forgetful pet owners give medication daily in their home to ensure effective treatment, knowing that they may not set up a reminder themselves?”

“Fall in love with the problem, not the solution.” - Uri Levine, cofounder of Waze

Problem Statement as Diagnosis

If you had a sore throat and went to the doctor, she would observe your symptoms, run tests and then analyze the results to form a diagnosis in order to prescribe the right treatment. Similarly, a problem statement can be thought of as a diagnosis of design issues identified through observation and testing. Getting to a good problem statement requires both methodical exploration and empathy for those involved. 

Methodical Empathy

To identify all the necessary information and start  empathizing with the users , use the five Ws (Who, What, When, Where and Why).

• Who is experiencing the problem?  Owners of pets who require daily medication.
• What is the problem?  People forget to give their pets medication at the same time every day making treatment less effective.
• When does the problem occur?  Varies by person, but often either mornings and/or evenings. 
• Where is the problem?  At home.
• Why does this problem exist?  Creating a new habit, like giving a pet medication daily, is hard without a reminder.

To answer these questions you’ll need  user research  such as observations from user testing, or ethnographic research and you may want to measure certain behaviors using quantitative methods. If you have existing research, organize and filter it to find patterns and themes that answer the above questions. Create relationships and connections between the groupings. Synthesize the information to form ideas and stitch together the bigger picture.

Keep Asking Why

The first answer to a question is often superficial the first time around and needs additional exploration to find the root of what is really happening. To dive deeper, use the  five Whys method .

• Why don’t people consistently give their pets medication?  They have a busy schedule and forget.
• Why do people forget?  It’s not a part of their routine.
• Why isn’t it a part of their routine?  It’s a new behavior and even though they try to leave the pill bottle out as a reminder, it’s easy to ignore.
• Why isn’t there a better reminder than the pill bottle?  The lack of obvious environmental triggers means pet owners would have to take the initiative to set their own reminders.
• Why don’t people set up their own reminders?  Overconfidence in their ability to remember and/or general inertia.

Using this method helps get past the surface to really understand the problem. When the root cause is identified, it’s much easier to build upon it to formulate the problem statement.

Communicating the Problem

Once you know the problem you're trying to solve, the next step is communicating it to team members and stakeholders. It’s important to have a clear problem statement because it will guide the solutions. Here are a few traits a good problem statement should include:

Human-centered:  Focus on the user. Frame the problem statement around the user and their needs. Avoid being organization-focused and leave out mentions of technology, budget and product specifications.

Don’t: “Company X wants to ensure customers comply with veterinarian instructions and give pets their daily medication.”

Do: “What are ways we can help forgetful pet owners ensure effective treatment by giving medication on schedule?”

Broad enough for exploration but narrow enough to be manageable:  Leave room for exploration and different creative solutions. However, avoid being too broad which results in little direction.

Don’t: “Improve compliance with veterinary medication instructions.”

Do: “Help forgetful pet owners give medication daily to ensure effective treatment.”

Phrase as a question:  Rephrasing the statement into questions such as “How might we...?” or “What can we do to…?” encourages creativity, ideation and helps generate a wide range of solutions. For example: “How can we help forgetful pet owners...?”

Need Help Defining Your Problem?

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UX Design Problem Solving : How To Use the Design Thinking approach to Solve Design Challenges

The Design Thinking approach is fundamental to the success of designers. This approach is a framework that helps designers solve both their own problems and those of others. But what exactly is the Design Thinking method? What is UX design? How are they related?? What do these methods look like in practice, and why should you know about them? This guide will give you tips on UX design and the UX design problem solving process.

“Design is the arrangement/sorting of elements in a way that best accomplishes a specific purpose”. The design thinking power is the ability to see a problem and imagine a solution. The most important aspect of this is the ability to make a connection between a problem and an idea, or between two ideas.

— Charles Eames

Who is a UX designer?

User experience (UX) designers are responsible for creating a user-friendly interface that meets the needs of the user and helps them complete their goals.

They are involved in all aspects of the design process, including researching users, understanding their needs, defining goals and personas, creating wireframes and prototypes,, and testing products with real users.

How Do UX Designers Use Design Thinking?

Did you know UX designers use design thinking? It’s true. We’ve talked with many experienced UX designers and they’re constantly using design thinking when they do their design jobs. 

Design thinking is an approach to solving problems by using an iterative cycle of observation, brainstorming, experimentation, and feedback. It’s about understanding why people behave a certain way, and then creating solutions that fit their needs.

In fact, Design Thinking is the base of the UX design and UX design problem solving process, without which one simply cannot deliver any solutions. 

The Design Thinking Approach to UX Design Problem Solving

1. researching the problem.

Conducting research is the first step in UX design problem solving. It helps you understand your users and their needs, as well as identify pain points or challenges within an existing product or service.

This can be done through interviews and surveys, focus groups, competitor analysis, user testing sessions, and more. Your goal should be to gather as much information about a particular problem from as many different sources as possible so that you can determine how best to solve it.

2. Defining the challenges faced by the user

Defining the user problem is the next step of UX design problem solving. By defining a user problem, you’re setting yourself up for success by creating a shared understanding of what needs to be solved.

This isn’t just about getting everyone on board—this is about making sure that everyone on your team understands the same thing. And while it might seem obvious that this is important, it often gets overlooked. What’s more, there are a few things UX designers can do to make sure they’re not missing any opportunities:

• Be ambitious—but stay realistic: When you’re setting out to solve an issue for users and potential buyers alike, aim high! But always keep in mind what’s realistically possible given time and budget constraints, you don’t get too far ahead of yourself or over your budget (or both). This may mean doing some research on similar products or services before brainstorming ideas around how yours could be better.
• Don’t worry about other people’s goals:   Working with colleagues or clients who aren’t working directly with users every day can be difficult. They may not know what obstacles exist in their own processes until they’ve gone through them firsthand over time. And, even then sometimes they’ll need some convincing before committing fully themselves. Finally, don’t feel bad if there are times when these discussions hit roadblocks along the way.

3. Building Empathy with Users of your Product/Service

This step includes connecting deeply with the users and understanding the context.

Getting to know users involves talking with them directly or observing them in their environments or immersing yourself in their experience, among other methods.

Understanding a person’s context includes knowing what else they do in their lives and how those activities affect them. For example, do they work at night? Do they live by themselves?

Empathizing with the users will help you understand their mindsets and behaviors better when designing for them.

4. Understanding the needs of users to solve their challenge

You must first understand the needs of your users. This is an essential part of the design thinking process because it helps you to gather information about user needs and use it to make your design decisions.

Identify the people who will be using or interacting with your product or service.

5. Brainstorming to solve problems in the projects.

Brainstorming is a process where you can generate a lot of ideas. It’s an effective way to UX design problem solving.

In the beginning, we don’t know enough about the problem in order to solve it. But when we brainstorm we come up with a lot of different solutions or ideas which are not related to each other.

6. Visualize your solution idea

Some tips to successfully visualize your end solution:

• Use a whiteboard or a sheet of paper to sketch out your ideas.
• Draw a picture of your solution to help you see it from different angles.
• You can use mind-mapping tools to organize your thoughts and visualize them with images, text, and color.
• Use prototyping tools such as Balsamiq or PowerMockups to create a mockup of your solution that you can share with others for feedback before investing time in building anything too complex.

7. Improve and create new solutions for the existing products

Build-Fail-Iterate-Repeat is the motto of the Design Thinking approach when it comes to materializing your solution idea. UX design knows no differently. This allows the UX designers to incorporate user feedback at the early stages of design and improve their designs on the go. You can also attempt to make a rapid prototype from the idea to test it. This can be done using software or with old-fashioned materials like paper and glue. This involves testing the prototype with users to get feedback about whether it’s solving the problem or not. If you’re working on an existing project, this could take place within an established design process; if you are creating something new, you may choose to test the prototype on its own before progressing further into the design thinking process.

8. Refining the product according to user feedback.

This can be helpful for UX design problem solving. After you’ve gone through the above steps of Design Thinking, you’re ready to improve your product according to user feedback. This can be tricky because sometimes the customer is wrong! You may have created a successful design without even knowing it by listening to your intuition and following your gut. But other times, users will point out flaws that require changes in both your product and process.

No matter what the situation, it’s important not only to listen carefully but also to learn how to use user feedback as effectively as possible. 

But how to do this? Here are some tips:

• Ask questions about specific features or things they liked or disliked about the product. In order to clarify what they’re saying, their comments are more meaningful when it comes time for analysis (and we’ll get into analyzing soon).
• After asking questions, leave enough time between responses so that users aren’t pressured into giving an answer right away. Let them mull over each question individually before moving on. This allows insights from one question to generate ideas for another one!
• Try not just to hear what customers say but also to observe their behavior – does this mean we need some sort of testing lab? No! It just means being mindful when recording data like video footage from interviews. And, we can see how people behave naturally instead of forcing ourselves into unnatural situations where we might miss important information about their behaviors outside of certain contexts (like working environments).

9. Execution of the prototype

This is the final step in which the UX designer will execute the prototype with thorough assistance from UI designers and programmers. Here, a User Experience (UX) designer will take the final build of the product to test the functionality and usability, such as how easily a user can operate the product and how interactive it is. As a result, users get a perfectly designed interface ready for their usage. 

Final words

A UX designer uses human-centered design and storytelling techniques to create experiences for users. This approach to design thinking is one of the best ways to solve a problem. It doesn’t matter what industry you work in or what type of challenge you face–you can use this framework for any kind of project. The steps are simple and easy to follow, but they still require creativity critical thinking, and skills to develop a solution that’s not just adequate but innovative as well.

About the author

Anuradha is a passionate Design Thinking practitioner with 10+ years of industry experience. She has dived into the field of Design and Design Thinking, where she is trained to design experiences. She is the Founding Partner and Design lead at Humane Design and Innovation (HDI) Consulting. Her professional career spans various roles in Advisory, UX Design, Service Design, Engineering Design, Design integration, and Training. She was the lead designer of the Design Thinking and Innovation practice at KPMG. She has designed multiple digital experiences by conducting strategic UX workshops and design experiences that add functional and emotional value. To her friends & peers, she is the Bonding Agent of the team and always a Go-to person. She is an avid reader, blogger & painting enthusiast.

We at Humane Design strongly believe in the human ethos and draw inspiration from humans and other elements of nature to design innovative solutions for organizations of all sizes. We will be glad to be your success partner. Email us your requirements at [email protected].

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A global FMCG company

Increasing revenue with innovative products

Client background & brief

The client is a global FMCG company with a strong foot hold in the India market. The company is into four major categories with 10+ brands. In two of the categories (hydration and energy) the client business was losing market share as there were innovative products launched by startups and were eating up their market share. Client wanted us to help the category teams in envisioning 8 innovative products that can be launched into the market in 6 to 24 months timeframe and help them regain market.

How did we support

We suggested a Design Thinking sprint approach to get the outcome with agility and worked with the category teams on the following:

Quantitative:

• Estimated revenue from the new product launches of INR 900+ crores
• Driving agility in business as the team was able to deliver product prototypes in a few days that typically would have take 6-8 months
• Increased cross functional collaboration in product conceptualizing resulted in higher buy in and faster market launch

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Can a new dream city solve California’s affordable housing problem? | The Excerpt

On a special episode (first released on April 25, 2024) of The Excerpt podcast: For the past five years, a small group of Silicon Valley investors has spent nearly a billion dollars quietly buying up over 50,000 acres of farmland in northern California. The goal? To create an ambitious new California dream city, something that hasn’t been done in America for over a century. The California Forever project aims to create a livable, workable, walkable city that puts working families at the heart of its design, creating new housing for up to 400,000 people. Skeptics abound, but could this be the solution to one of California’s most intractable problems? The city’s designated architect, urban planner Gabriel Metcalf, joins The Excerpt to discuss the hurdles and possibilities of developing an entirely new city.

Hit play on the player below to hear the podcast and follow along with the transcript beneath it.  This transcript was automatically generated, and then edited for clarity in its current form. There may be some differences between the audio and the text.

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Hello and welcome to The Excerpt, I'm Dana Taylor. Today is Thursday, April 25th, 2024, and this is a special episode of The Excerpt.

For the past five years, a small group of Silicon Valley investors spent nearly a billion dollars quietly buying up over 50,000 acres of farmland in Northern California. The goal, to create an ambitious new California dream city, something that hasn't been done in America for over a century. The California Forever Project aims to create a livable, workable, walkable city that puts working families at the heart of its design, creating new housing for up to 400,000 people. Skeptics abound, but could this be the solution to one of California's most intractable problems, affordable housing? Here to help me dig into it, is urban planner, Gabriel Metcalf, the city's designated architect.

Gabe, thanks for joining me.

Thank you for having me.

So let's start with why you're here. How did you first hear of the project and what was it that convinced you to sign on?

I guess the real reason I'm here is because I love cities. I think cities are in a way humanity's greatest invention, and I've spent my whole career working on making cities work better. But the great cities of America have run into a big problem, they have all gotten super expensive. They've gotten so expensive. They have stopped performing their historical role of bringing all kinds of people together because it's gotten to be that only people who have a lot of money can get in.

I guess it started to seem to me that part of the problem is that all of the places that are walkable are places that existed 100 years ago, and that the problem is that we have lost the art of making new cities, making new walkable places. If we could figure out a way to make new cities, new walkable places, again, it might take the pressure off and help places like San Francisco, where I'm sitting right now, might help them not have such intense pressure on them. And so I obviously was not the only one thinking along these lines. When I got offered the chance to come be the head of planning for this project, I jumped at it.

So what's the vision here in a nutshell?

Yeah, in a nutshell we're talking about a community on 17,500 acres of land in Eastern Solano County, which is in the Bay Area. It has room for up to 400,000 people. The first phase would be 50,000. We are proposing a mixed use compact, medium density community. So it's not single family suburbia. It's not Manhattan. It's in between, medium density. And while many people I think are most excited about its contribution to housing supply and what that could do for California, it's really important to us that this is not only about housing. This is very much about providing an economic engine for part of the Bay Area that has been left behind by some of the job creation that's happened in other parts. And the vision is for this to very much be a mixed use community. So shops and schools, industry, office, civic uses, sports, entertainment, everything that would be part of a small city.

Gabe, before we move on from housing, as I mentioned in my intro, one of California's biggest problems is the lack of affordable housing. How does the group plan on keeping it affordable?

If you have enough money to afford to live in San Francisco or the East Bay where Berkeley and Oakland are, then great. Good for you. Cities that developed organically over centuries will always be really interesting. They're wonderful. Our business thesis is that there are a bunch of people who would love to live in a city but cannot afford places like San Francisco. And so in essence, our idea is to try to offer urbanism at a more affordable price point. We have funding commitment in the ballot measure that people will be voting on in November that provides 400 million for affordable housing on the first phase, and then it just keeps going up after that. So if we did the full build out of 400,000 people, it would be $3.2 billion invested in affordable housing.

The project's website talks about the theory of new urbanism as an inspiration for the city plan. What distinguishes this style and why do you think it will be effective here?

Yeah. Well, the new urbanists were really pioneers starting in the 1970s of the attempt to rediscover really timeless principles of urbanism, smaller streets, building more compactly, designing around the pedestrian rather than the automobile. And so I certainly take a lot of inspiration from what they did. I think they were pioneers.

Infrastructure will obviously be a huge issue to tackle. Water, sewage, transportation, et cetera will all need to be created from scratch and be fully in place before people move in. But how will those systems be funded?

Yeah. Well, we have to pay for them, and it's inherent in a new town strategy is that you pay less for the land, but you pay more because you have to build all of the infrastructure. It's a big part of the planning work that we're working on this year and next year. Water, power, wastewater, transportation. One thing that's important is we try to phase it so we don't have to build the full capacity for 400,000 people day one. You just have to stay ahead of the growth of the city. You have to have enough infrastructure for the phase you're working on. We're doing a lot of work right now on what the needs are for the first 50,000 people.

The plan also talks about access by proximity. As a central tenant of the new city, what does that mean and how will it be implemented?

Yeah. Access by proximity is a phrase we just mean it's contrasted, I suppose, with access by movement. So instead of needing to get 30 miles to your job or in some cases 10 miles to the store, having a lot of those things close at hand so you can just walk. It's the best transportation solution. It's way better for the environment. It saves everybody money. And it actually provides a lot of the joy of city life. It's being able to walk to a great local shopping street, so the densities and the street network in the city plan are being laid out to make it really easy to get to all that stuff. That's what access by proximity means.

The plan also talks about creating streets that fulfill dual roles. I'm trying to picture it, but also what are those roles and what does this mean in practice?

Streets are really interesting. They are both an infrastructure system to facilitate movement, but they're also public spaces. And if you think about the great cities, I mean maybe if any of your viewers have been to European cities, that experience of being out in public and just enjoying city life, we're really trying to emphasize that part of streets. And so, it is a balancing act because you have to allow movement, but by keeping speeds slower, by putting in wide sidewalks and street trees, by having really interesting buildings built right up to the sidewalk. All of those kind of traditional urban features, the goal is to make it be really a joy to be out in public enjoying city life on a stroll.

The project aims to create up to 15,000 new jobs. What industries are going to support those jobs?

In the long run we aim to attract way more jobs than 15,000. But in the first phase, 15,000 is what we're aiming for. A few sectors we're focused on. One is defense-related industries that are excited about the chance of being in the same county as Travis Air Force Base. Second are companies that are innovating in the space of constructing housing where we might be able to be a big customer for them, and the chance to scale up new techniques to build at lower cost could be a big industry. Companies that want to be in the Bay Area for innovation, but need the room because they're building things in physical space, not just software, are a really good fit for us. So that could be in all kinds of industries that are at the intersection of innovation and the real world. And I should say also that all the regular jobs of teachers and cops and chefs that go along with any population are important too. Planning for those.

Gabe, you're in charge of design. Who's going to be in charge of zoning and regulation? Is that going to be investors? The county? A new city agency? Who's in charge here?

It's a few different phases of how that works. There is a voter initiative that will be voted on this November by the voters of Solano County that will put in place high-level zoning, high-level building standards, so things like densities and heights and kind of basic uses, what's allowed to go where. After that the next phase is more detailed planning, a full environmental impact report, and working toward a detailed development agreement with the county board of supervisors that will spell out in much more detail all of the design standards and things like that.

As I mentioned earlier, there's been quite a bit of backlash against the plan. The mayor of nearby Fairfield recently shared with The Daily Beast that of the hundreds of messages she's received regarding the project, 95% are opposed to it. How do you win over those people?

We have half a year now to make the case about what the benefits are to current residents of Solano County. So we are spending a lot of time in the community, talking to people one-on-one in small groups. It's always controversial, especially in California it's always controversial when people are proposing to build things, and that's, I suppose, one of the reasons why it's been hard to manage growth in California. But I think the tide is really changing on that, and there are a lot of people who understand that in order to solve the problems people care about, whether that's switching to renewable energy to deal with climate change or getting more housing built to deal with affordability, we have to build. And so we will be making that case and then we'll see. We'll see in November if we were successful or not.

What happens if voters reject this ballot initiative?

I don't know the answer to that because we have a mindset of planning for success. But we will, I suppose, regroup, have some hard conversations, have some honest conversations with people in the county, and try to figure out a way forward. And there are really some timeless principles that we are drawing on.

Who gets the first crack at housing? Or are you not that far yet?

One of the things I hope is that the first housing might go to some of the construction workers that built the housing. It's an idea we've talked about a lot. That's absolutely one of our goals is that the people who work in the community and the people who build the community can afford to live in the community. But wouldn't it be nice if its building trades members and carpenters union members who are themselves the first residents? I think that would be a beautiful symbolism.

Gabe, thank you for being on The Excerpt.

Thanks to our senior producers, Shannon Rae Green and Bradley Glanzrock for their production assistance. Our executive producer is Laura Beatty. Let us know what you think of this episode by sending a note to [email protected]. Thanks for listening. I'm Dana Taylor. Taylor Wilson will be back tomorrow morning with another episode of The Excerpt.