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Getting Started As A Blockchain Product Designer

Getting Started As A Blockchain Product Designer

Roadmap and Resources to Becoming a Blockchain Designer

Elizabeth Bassey's photo
Elizabeth Bassey
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4 min read

Web3.0, NFTs and Cryptos are blockchain powered innovations that have revolutionized the way we communicate, perform transactions and carry out businesses today. With blockchain demonstrating some level of security and transparency, many businesses are leveraging on this technology to improve their products, and this means more blockchain powered-solutions.

Why Should you become a Blockchain UX Designer?

Blockchain is an evolving and fast-paced technology with little to no attention to user experience. As the need for blockchain powered-solutions arises, the need for users adoption also arises. Blockchain products are built with so much complexities that non-savvy users struggle to understand. This creates a lot of friction in the adoption of these products. However, as business are moving to adopt this technology, there's need to create seamless and accessible solutions in order for these businesses to strive and for this solutions to be maintained. This in turn means a lot of opportunities for UX designers.

Therefore, whether you're just starting out as a UX Designer or have been an expert in the field. A career in blockchain technology would be promising. But how do you get started? with so much complexities in the industry, and with so much attention given to the development of these products, UX Designers can barely know where to come in or get started. This article aims to give a step by step guide and resources to designing awesome solutions in the blockchain industry.

How to get started

1. Learn About the Blockchain Technology:

Whether you're designing for web2.0 or web3, the UX design process remains the same. No need to fret. all you need to make do is communicate trust to the user (considering web3.0 is a new environment). Understanding the concepts of blockchain technology and how it works, would give you an insight on how blockchain products are expected to work, and you'd be better able to communicate this in your designs.

2. Learn Industry Terminologies:

The Blockchain ecosystem is filled with many jargons such as NFTs, Cryptos, Gas etc. Understanding these terminologies would give you some level of confidence to dive in deeper.

3. Study blockchain design patterns:

A few persons who have been into the blockchain industry for a while, have been generous enough to share principle and design patterns to guide you. Study them to better understand blockchain design patterns.

4. Explore Blockchain products:

There's no better way to understand the user's mental model, than to explore it yourself. Download blockchain applications (mobile or web), and play around with them. Navigate through them to have a first-hand experience the product. Take note of the experiences (good or bad), it would help you better analyze similar products

5. Imitate existing Designs:

Try to design some existing blockchain applications (whether web or mobile) to better understand patterns and the users mental model and complexities.

Pick a Bounty:

Bounties are little challenges on gitcoin that help learners work on open source projects while earning. Consistently picking up challenges to work on, would greatly increase your blockchain. design skills.

###Pick up a challenge: Now you understand the design patterns of blockchain products. Challenge yourself to a complete project...this could be redesigning common blockchain applications to improve on them, or a totally new idea which could be a plus to your portfolio.

6. Join a Hackathon:

Hackathon are challenges that help you work on real life projects while collaborating with others. Participate in this to build to collaborative skills.

7. Join a Community:

A community of same interest would help you stay updated and consistent, while building on your skills. you can find few in the resources below.

8. Build a portfolio:

Your portfolio should contain sample and detailed analysis of projects you've worked on, to easily point to employers what experiences you've had.

Resources to get you started

Introduction to web3

Introduction to Blockchain

web3 design guidelines

Web3 design patterns/Case Studies

Bounties

Hackathons

Communities

Videos

Podcasts

Jobs

I hope you found these helpful? Please share anymore resources you might have in the comment below and also share this article with your friends to help them get started too!

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