Anybody interested in learning how to design apps/digital products from a product designer?

Question

I have an idea for a new business but wanted to gauge interest in the topic!

I'm a product designer, worked in Silicon Valley for 6+ years, and have my masters in human computer interaction and a bachelors in graphic design. I really love teaching and want to teach other people how to create really well designed digital products leveraging HCI principles, usability best practices, and design tutorials and support...but not sure if there's is something people would be interested in.

What do you all think of this idea?

If it seems like super lame, what other areas do you think could be a good way to leverage my existing skills as a product designer? (I want to avoid going back into corporate and start to build an online business leveraging my skills).

Thanks!

Latoya Hall · Accepted Answer

@brandarmy oh man finding a good product manager can be challenging - honestly some of the best product managers were people who were good at the soft skills/communication skills, overall pleasant personality/attitude, are strategic thinkers, can code switch in terms of who they're talking to (ie designers vs engineers, vs biz stakeholders), and have excellent project management skills, are super persuasive, and are strategic from a UX perspective and a business perspective.

Have you tried searching for PMs on Upwork? Asking because I actually used to work at Upwork on the product design team and we constantly hired freelancers from the platform to do various roles inside Upwork HQ, including PM :) there's great talent on the platform!

Ana Bibikova · Answer

Congrats! I always support the idea of leaving boring corporate world and leaping into adventurous world of entrepreneurship:) It's the best thing a person can do.

However, I hope you don't mind if I make small suggestions about your "customer's interview". The trick is not to ask people upfront "would you be interested/will you pay for my services". The chances of getting truthful answer is not very high here as some people would feel awkward saying "no", others would just ignore the question and move further. The idea behind finding market for your product is to think what problem your product (in your case, specific skills) might solve, figure out who are those people who have this problem and ask them how do they solve their problem now. What tools do they use and  what are the upsides and downsides. It's generally NOT recommended to ask about future ("what if I launch this service, would you go for it?) and only focus on the existing circumstances, as people are not very good at giving correct predictions about their own behaviour in future:) 
So, getting back to your case, if you want to evaluate the demand for your educational product, you've got to ask yourself what this education would be used for and who're the users. Then reach out to them and ask, where do they get this education now and whether they need it at all. It'll definitely give you more objective view of the market and it's needs. 
All that being said, I once again wish you good luck. I'm also in education business and I can relate:) If you feel that teaching others is something you're good at, definitely go for it.

Tarek Dajani · Answer

I would definitely be interested, but only if it is a really simplified fun course. Good luck!

Latoya Hall · Answer

@cryptor00kie This is a good point! I was definitely thinking about how developers could use this knowledge, but the content would definitely have be super unique because so much is already out there! thanks for your feedback!

Latoya Hall · Answer

@anab Good point! Thanks for this feedback. I've been struggling trying to figure out who would need a product like this and it's best to focus on the pain points and who has a demand for the type of content I want to put out.

Latoya Hall · Answer

@tanya_volkova that's sooo true. thanks for your feedback!

Latoya Hall · Answer

@jonathon_joyner would you be willing to chat with me for about 15 minutes so I can learn more about what you know about app design, building apps, and launching apps online? No sell of course, I'm just looking to get insight from others as I build out my idea.

Latoya Hall · Answer

@jonathon_joyner The beginning of the journey is always the most fun! I would love to teach you design too! It's soooo fun especially when you have the power to create WHATEVER it is that you want :)

Latoya Hall · Answer

@rowemore I was thinking of doing a course for sure! But want to offer more hands on services - I don't want to just set it and forget it so it would be more hybrid with additional design coaching/support as needed. Thanks for the feedback! :)

𝕋𝕣𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣ℝ𝕠𝕠𝕜𝕚𝕖 · Answer

@latoya_cherice I feel that the gap between developers and designers is still a bit too large - much could be done to give developers just a bit more design knowledge!

𝕋𝕣𝕒𝕕𝕖𝕣ℝ𝕠𝕠𝕜𝕚𝕖 · Answer

Well, I think a lot of people are interested in design! I definitely see a market. A lot of people work with software and user interfaces with limited design knowledge. I think a lot of developers could be better equipped with just a bit of design knowledge - so yeah! I think there definitely is a marked: But the challenge probably is to do something unique and set yourself apart from all the design guides already available online. You need to provide unique content!

Ramon Mendez · Answer

@brandarmy @latoya_cherice I have not tried searching on Upwork. Thank you for the idea. I feel like we're going to need a good PM sooner than later and I figure it's best to start this process now rather than when I actually need them. I expect it will be a lengthy process. Thank you for the advice!

Ramon Mendez · Answer

Seems cool. I just a bit ago today posted on HackerNews asking how does one go about finding good product managers and then how do you know if they can even do a great job (vetting). We're going to need to hire someone epic here in the coming months which is why I asked. So if the course didn't seem too insane (too complex) and you could slowly teach me then that would be epic. I would love to learn about this stuff.

Jonathon Joyner · Answer

Im new to web development I have just started my journey 5 months ago and would love something like this, I have fallen in love with design.

Rowe Morehouse · Answer

Could you make a video course? Go look at the product design video courses on Udemy. If you can do a course that is as good or better, then make it, but sell it on your own website, and charge like $299 — no discounts. Design your course in a way that brings the value up to the price-point.

Anybody interested in learning how to design apps/digital products from a product designer?

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