User Flow vs Task Flow in UX Design

when i graduated high school back in 2009 phone apps barely existed imagining becoming a mobile app designer was out of question back then that's to give you some perspective on how young the product design field really is just like a lot of other aspects of this industry every designer have their own way of working with design deliverables user and task flows are no exception in this video i'll share my perspective on what user and task flows are the similarities and the differences for those of you that don't know me yet i've been a creative professional in multiple industries for almost 20 years i have a super weird background where i started off as a self-taught dancer learned to master the style while using the same practices and mindset from dance to teach myself other creative skills today i run a startup in the media tech space while also running my own design agency where i consult businesses in the product and ux design space before i start doing any actual design work i map out all types of flows to understand the journey of the users that i'm designing for after watching this video you'll have a better understanding of when to use these types of flows how they're used what tools you can draw them in and how it helps you design a better product if you're serious about this craft and intend to design experiences that actually serves people it's important to understand both user and task flows when creating great ux design simply put the main difference between the two is the level of abstraction or detail [Music] what they both have in common is that they help segment the design and help you understand how users can fluidly navigate the design to accomplish a set of goals however user flows break down each step in the customer journey of a website or app looking at multiple pathways and branches in contrast task flows which breaks down the process of completing a specific task in a detailed step-by-step process so basically task flows focus on the single tasks while the user flows focus on a specific user's journey [Music] let's take the example of making scrambled eggs so you take a couple of eggs you beat them until they're blended heat a non-stick skillet over medium heat and add in a good amount of butter add the blended eggs stir it around and bam you're done just like the simple steps of making scrambled eggs task flow help you show how a user might accomplish their task using the app or the website that you're designing for some examples of task flows in user interfaces could be restoring your forgotten password on instagram uploading a story or changing your profile picture it breaks down all of the possible steps someone might take and maps it out in a linear path there's no branches meaning no alternative pathways we're just looking at the step-by-step process of completing a task a task flow can actually most of the times be a segment of a larger user flow as well so if task flows can be considered as the step-by-step process of making scrambled eggs what would then a user flow be we could actually use the same analogy of making scrambled eggs as a user flow too the difference would be the fact that we're now looking at a way more complex pathway like what happens if we don't have any eggs at home or what happens if the eggs are outdated what if we don't have a non-stick skillet and most importantly we have to define what we consider as a starting and an ending point did we find a recipe first that we're following or are we doing this from experience as you see user flows becomes really complex we have to consider all kinds of decision points depending on the points of interactions different people can accomplish the same goal of making scrambled eggs in completely different ways based on a lot of different dependencies the user flow you want to map out for making scrambled eggs would therefore be specific to a particular user or target audience understanding what tools you have and when you can use them will make you more productive as any type of creative professional if you know when to use a pencil or a pen then you realize the strengths and weaknesses of each the same goes for these flows in my years as a designer i've used the task flow in order to structure and map out how one step of a bigger task is connected to the next which eventually leads the user to the end goal it helps me stay focused on the task at hand and therefore clarify what things to consider as well as help me understand if there are any room to mitigate complicated tasks it's also very helpful to draw out an already existing task that you're aiming to improve looking at the step-by-step sequence helps you understand if there are things that can be simplified in order to make the task easier for the end user since user flows are complex it gives me a more holistic understanding of different areas of the design this becomes really useful when discussing the user journey with other people in your team like developers or engineers oftentimes a user flow can be mapped out together with your product team to help get input from other areas of the product understanding what technical dependencies or opportunities you have helps you decide on what possible scenarios there are in order to design a great user or task flow it's important that you understand users well look through any data that you have of them understand their goals needs and behavior this will in turn help you determine the steps to consider for a task flow or the various interactions of a user flow the best tools are very subjective it depends on what fits into your workflow for me the fastest way to get the ideas of a first strapped out is just using my ipad or paper and a pen when i want to polish them up and make them look nice i use whimsical or mirror i'll link these tools down in the description whimsical is really easy to start off with mirror is great too but can feel a bit overwhelming if you just want to get started figma is my personal favorite design tool as of now but i use it for more complex design work i usually just paste in a screenshot of the final user or task flow onto my figma file when i'm ready to turn them into design that's my take on the differences and the use cases of each flow so to quickly summarize it all a task flow is a simple step-by-step sequence of how a general user might accomplish a task in a website or app user flow is a complex pathway that helps you visualize all the possible paths a specific user might take to accomplish a desired goal or need that's all i have for now i hope you guys find value from this video make sure to subscribe turn on notifications and hit the like button for more videos like this if you have any questions or comments at all please feel free to drop them below and i'll do my very best to answer them until next time peace [Music] you

Channel: Wired to Design

Views: 34,284

Keywords: design process, how to become a ux designer, taskflow, ui ux design, ui/ux design, user experience design, user flow diagram, user flow tutorial, user flows, user journey tutorial, ux design, ux design course, ux design process, ux design tutorial, ux designer, ux designer career, ux process, what is a user flow, what is a user flow diagram

Id: cGzIO4n03gY

Length: 7min 27sec (447 seconds)

Published: Fri Nov 19 2021