UI Breakfast: UI/UX Design and Product Strategy

We all know that a good brand name is essential, but the actual process often remains a mystery. Our guest today is Brad Flowers, the founder of Bullhorn Creative and the author of The Naming Book. You'll learn about the stages of the naming process, why it doesn't have to be customer-centric, and how to make the right decision.P.S. No words can describe what's going on in the world. The interview was recorded several weeks in advance. Sponsorship revenue from this episode goes to Black Lives Matter.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesBullhorn Creative — Brad's agencyThe Naming Book — Brad's bookAnything You Want — a book by Derek SiversHow Nike almost ended up with a very different nameFerrari's Subliminal Cigarette AdsGet Brad's bookFollow Brad on Twitter: @BullhornBradDrop Brad a line at brad@bullhorncreative.comToday's SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Encrypt.me — the ideal VPN service for teams. Working remotely calls for tighter cyber security. Encrypt.me for Teams covers all of your company’s privacy needs by securing your business network and providing essential privacy tools. Sign up at encrypt.me/uibreakfast and save 25% on your initial subscription.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here.Help FoundersAnd here’s another product featured in our Help Founders section. ClientRock is a client communication tool for professional services companies. It helps you schedule appointments, collect payments, share files, and much more — a great way to keep your freelance clients organized. Head over to clientrock.com/uibreakfast to start your free trial.If you’d like your product to be featured for free on multiple awesome shows, welcome to apply at helpfounders.com.Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

2 Jun 202042min

Is building an agency the only path to design success? Can you succeed on your own? Our guest today is Rafal Tomal, a UI/UX design consultant who has recently returned to working solo. You’ll learn how to scale your freelance business while focusing on your favorite work, how to get help from contractors, and how to grow professionally without growing in team size.Download the MP3 audio file: right-click here and choose Save As.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesRafal’s websiteEpisode 79: Typography in UI Design with Rafal TomalAuthentik Creative — Rafal’s previous agencyConvertKit, Nathan Barry, The Smart Passive Income, Eric Ries — some famous clients at AuthentikThe Company of One — a book by Paul JarvisDesignKit — Rafal’s wireframing system for FigmaQuickFrames — Rafal’s system for sitemaps and user flowsFollow Rafal on Twitter: @RafalTomalToday’s SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Encrypt.me. Their Teams Plan is the ideal VPN service for keeping your business secure. Keep your team safe with your own private servers, content filtering, and other key features. Sign up at encrypt.me/uibreakfast and save 25% on your initial subscription.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here.Help FoundersHugo provides centralized, searchable meeting notes for your team. It connects with tools like Zoom, Slack, Zendesk, and HubSpot, and it’s free for up to 40 users. Head over to hugo.team to learn more.If you’d like your product to be featured for free on multiple awesome shows, welcome to apply at helpfounders.com.Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here’s how.

25 Mai 202026min

How can you use workshops to level up your design practice? Why are they exponentially better than regular meetings? Our guest today is Jonathan Courtney, CEO of AJ&Smart and the author of The Workshopper Playbook. You'll learn how they transformed their business using workshops, why this collaboration method is so powerful, and how to get started with your first workshop.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesThe Workshopper Playbook — Jonathan's new book (might be sold out, but there's a waitlist)AJ&Smart — Jonathan's design agencyEpisode 131: Design Sprint with Jonathan CourtneyJake & Jonathan (previously Product Breakfast Club) — Jonathan's podcast with Jake KnappDesign Thinking, Business Model Canvas — popular methodologiesSprint — the original book by Jake Knapp with John Zeratsky and Braden Kowitz5 Stages in the Design Thinking Process — an article by Rikke Friis Dam and Yu Siang TeoMiro — an online whiteboard tool for remote collaborationThe Ultimate Guide to Remote Design SprintsUserlist — Jane's SaaS productLightning Decision JamFollow AJ&Smart on Instagram and YouTubeLook for The Workshopper Playbook on Amazon in JulyFollow Jonathan on Twitter: @jicecreamToday's SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Encrypt.me — the ideal VPN service for teams. Working remotely calls for tighter cyber security. Encrypt.me for Teams covers all of your company’s privacy needs by securing your business network and providing essential privacy tools. Sign up at encrypt.me/uibreakfast and save 25% on your initial subscription.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Help FoundersScatterSpoke is an online retrospective tool for agile teams. It gives them tools and data to improve the way they inspect their practices. So you can create a culture of continuous improvement, rapid experimentation, and change for the better. Head over to scatterspoke.com to learn more.If you’d like your product to be featured for free on multiple awesome shows, welcome to apply at helpfounders.com.Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

17 Mai 202042min

How do you approach something as ephemeral as your brand? Can us mere mortals do it? Our guest today is Austin Church, a brand consultant and co-founder of Balernum. You'll learn what a brand means, how to develop your brand using simple DIY methods, and how to communicate it on your website and in your product.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesBalernum — Austin's branding and marketing studioFreelance Cake — Austin's business growth course for freelancers and consultantsUserlist — Jane's SaaS productStart With Why, The Infinite Game — books by Simon SinekEpisode 155: Writing Microcopy with Yael Ben-David Four Seasons: The Story of a Business Philosophy — a book by Isadore SharpEssentialism — a book by Greg McKeownGive and Take — a book by Adam GrantGet your free brand scorecard at Balernum.comFollow Austin on Twitter: @austinlchurchToday's SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Balsamiq — the low fidelity wireframing tool loved by founders, product managers, marketers, designers, and developers. You just drag, drop, and position pre-made components on the screen. You'll be amazed at the great interfaces you'll be able to create. They even offer wireframing courses to help you get started. Now with just-released brand new versions, it's time to give Balsamiq another look! See what's new at balsamiq.com.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Help Founders 💛Versoly is a SaaS focused landing page and website builder. It’s the easiest way to build your SaaS website — no developers, no code. Head over to versoly.com to learn more.If you’d like your product to be featured for free on multiple awesome shows, welcome to apply at helpfounders.com.Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

13 Mai 202046min

Should you go freemium? Will it help your SaaS grow, or kill your revenue instead? Our guest today is Tim Valishev, co-founder and CEO of JivoChat. We talk about their many years of growth as a freemium product, how to adopt the right mindset when it comes to your free plan, how to balance free and paid features, how to encourage conversions from free to paid, and much more.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesJivoChat — Tim's product we're talking aboutBootstrapping to $7.5MM by Letting My Product Speak for Itself — Tim's interview at Indie HackersZendesk, LiveChat, Intercom — some popular products in the live chat industryList of countries by number of Internet users — a Wikipedia articleEpisode 161: Managing Product Versions with Max SeelemannPhrase — a tool for software localizationEpisode 157: Serving Your Customer’s Customers with Adii PienaarFollow Tim on FacebookToday's SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Encrypt.me. Their Teams Plan is the ideal VPN service for keeping your business secure. Keep your team safe with your own private servers, content filtering, and other key features. Sign up at encrypt.me/uibreakfast and save 25% on your initial subscription.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

4 Mai 202034min

Presentations are everywhere: we use them for talks, webinars, investor meetings, and many other occasions. Today our guest is Payman Taei, the founder of Visme. You'll learn the story behind their tool, what makes a good presentation, how to translate your ideas into visuals, and what mistakes to avoid.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesVisme — Payman's product, a tool for designing presentationsHow to Make Information Beautiful — Payman's video seriesVisme BlogGary Vaynerchuk, Seth Godin — some of the most inspiring speakersUnsplash, Pixabay — popular free image resourcesUse promocode UIBREAKFAST to get 25% off all Visme plansFollow Payman on LinkedInFollow Payman on Twitter: @PaymanTaeiToday's SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Balsamiq — the most focussed tool for low-fidelity wireframing. Other tools let you fidget with details all day. Balsamiq Wireframes keeps you focused on functionality and copy. Period. With all new desktop apps and collaboration features, Balsamiq has improved a lot since you've last used it… It's time to give it another look! Check it out at balsamiq.com.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here.Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

26 Apr 202040min

Should you relax once you find that mythical product-market fit? Our guest today is Arvid Kahl, the author of The Bootstrapped Founder blog. You'll learn how to stay in touch with your market, proactively collect customer feedback, overcome technical challenges, and make sure your product remains the best solution for your audience.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesThe Bootstrapped Founder — Arvid's websiteFeedbackPanda — Arvid's previous product together with Danielle Simpson, now acquiredContinuous Validation: Staying in Touch with Your Market — Arvid's articleFarm Don't Hunt — a book by Guy Nirpaz and Fernando PizarroCustomer Success — a book by Nick Mehta, Dan Steinman, and Lincoln MurphyThe Bootstrapped Founder Podcast — Arvid's weekly showZero to Sold — Arvid's book (free to read online)Follow Arvid on Twitter: @arvidkahlToday's SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Nusii — proposal software made easy for creatives. Do you get stressed every time a new lead hits your inbox? Nusii was built to help you create, send, track and manage your proposals in one easy-to-use app. Forget about searching for your best content, and following up with clients to sign on the dotted line. Visit nusii.com/uibreakfast for a 30% discount on your first 3 months.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

21 Apr 202047min

What makes a great live event? What makes a great remote event? Our guest today is Paul Campbell, co-founder and CEO of Tito. The recent crisis nearly threw them out of business, but they didn't give up and built a new live-streaming platform. You'll learn about Paul's journey, what spectacular event experience means for him, and how to navigate the organizational constraints while staying true to your values.Download the MP3 audio file: right-click here and choose Save As.Podcast feed: subscribe to https://feeds.simplecast.com/4MvgQ73R in your favorite podcast app, and follow us on iTunes, Stitcher, or Google Play Music.Show NotesTito — Paul's productVito — Paul's new platform for live-streaming online events and growing communitiesFunconf, Úll — conferences organized by Paul and his teamEventbrite — another ticketing toolTito's valuesUserlist's valuesStart With Why — a book by Simon SinekThe Art of Gathering — a book by Priya ParkerFollow Paul on Twitter: @paulcaToday's SponsorThis episode is brought to you by Nusii — proposal software made easy for creatives. Do you get stressed every time a new lead hits your inbox? Nusii was built to help you create, send, track and manage your proposals in one easy-to-use app. Forget about searching for your best content, and following up with clients to sign on the dotted line. Visit nusii.com/uibreakfast for a 30% discount on your first 3 months.Interested in sponsoring an episode? Learn more here. Leave a ReviewReviews are hugely important because they help new people discover this podcast. If you enjoyed listening to this episode, please leave a review on iTunes. Here's how.

12 Apr 202051min