Research and Define

The first steps to the design process are Defining the problem and Researching it.

Problems can come in a variety of forms, such as design briefs from a client, issues you want to improve upon or situations that arise without warning. Whatever the case may be, one needs to define the problem itself before finding a solution.

Henry Ford (the founder of the Ford Motor Company) once said, “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said faster horses”, and to be honest this can sometimes be the same with client briefs. So, as a designer, it is up to you to assess their needs and further define what the problem is through research.