To successfully roll out your digital design systems and maintain its growth over time, you need to have an established strategy that addresses all areas of how your users and stakeholders interact with the system and how they will benefit from it in the long run. Here are some of the most critical aspects of developing and implementing a strategy for rolling out your new design system.
What is a Design System?
According to Contentful, “Design systems are a collection of reusable components with clearly defined use standards that teams can assemble to build websites and applications. Design systems originate in two complementary philosophies: component-driven user interfaces and atomic design.”
The Role of Digital Design Systems
A well-defined and reusable set of components, modules, templates, and guidelines that helps give your products and services more consistency. A strong design system also plays a critical role in deciding what to build next, prioritizing changes in existing code, onboarding new employees, and even managing tools like style guides or pattern libraries.
How Can I Set Up My Design System?
Identify core touch-points – where customers and users will be coming into contact with your product. This can be anywhere from their website, an app, or even your physical stores. For example, every time a user buys something online from Walmart, they interact with Walmart’s Design System elements – whether it knows that Walmart offers free 2-day shipping on most products or quickly locating items on each category page.
Focus on Collaboration
A key aspect of good collaboration is open communication and feedback. This doesn’t just help your team reach its goals, but it also encourages innovation. So make sure to hire people willing to learn from one another and try new things based on their input.
Use Localization Tools
You might not think of software localization as something that needs to be done until you go to sell your product overseas. Still, it’s wise to incorporate localization from day one. Software localization tools make it easier than ever to target specific audiences. Once you get into a habit of localizing early on in your development process, it can save you time and money.
Make It Easy For Developers And Others To Implement
Make your content approachable, whether through visual personas or easily accessible content libraries. Give people reasons to adopt your systems in non-technical language. The best part is, you won’t have to do all of these on your own: create designs that allow others to contribute and give them incentives to use their creativity. Once you’ve got something great in place, ensure everyone knows about it.
When creating a design system, you’ll want to consider different approaches and experiences. So be sure to have an open mind when figuring out how your company uses digital design systems and what may work best for your team.