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UX & UI Real World Vademecum

Part VI: The Business of Design

Knowing how to design is useless if you can't sell the value of your design. This section transforms "doing jobs" into "providing engineering consulting."

Presenting Work​

31. The Engineer's Case Study​

Not "What I did," but "What I solved"

What it does: Demonstrates your value by telling the story of problem solving, not just showing final screens.

The Analogy: Imagine a doctor presenting a case. They don't say "I used scalpel no. 4 and blue suture thread." They say: "The patient had appendicitis (Problem), we operated urgently (Action), and now they are running a marathon (Result)."

The "STAR" Structure:

  1. Situation (Problem): "Factory workers wasted 10 minutes per shift logging in."
  2. Task (Goal): "Reduce login time to 30 seconds."
  3. Action (What you did): "I replaced complex passwords with NFC badge login and a simplified PIN."
  4. Result (Data): "Time reduced by 95%. Estimated savings of 50 man/hours per month."

Red Flag: A portfolio with only final interface images ("UI Porn") without explaining the "Why" is an artist's portfolio, not a UX Engineer's.

Financial Management​

32. The Quote: Selling Value, Not Hours​

The Price of the Bolt

What it does: Shifts negotiation from "how long does it take" to "how much do I make you earn."

The Analogy: The old story of the technician fixing the ship with one hammer blow.

  • Bill: €10,000.
  • Client: "For one hammer blow?"
  • Technician: "€1 for the hammer blow, €9,999 for knowing where to hit."

The Strategy: Don't say "It takes me 10 hours at €50/h." Say: "This redesign will reduce customer support calls by 30%. How much does customer support cost you today? €100,000 a year? My project will save you €30,000 a year. The project price is €5,000." Sell the result (the plane flying), not the effort (the hours spent tightening screws).

33. Templates and Proposals​

Business Automation

What it does: Reduces time spent on bureaucracy to focus on design.

The Approach: Don't write every quote from scratch. Create your bureaucratic "Design System."

  • Standard Skeleton: Who I am, Method (GDD), Phases (Research, Wireframe, UI, Test), Costs.
  • Customization: Change only the "Problem" and the "Proposed Solution."

Having a solid template makes you look immediately more professional. The client thinks: "This person has a tested process, they aren't improvising."