What is the difference between a product planner and an interaction designer?

Most of the company's products and interactions are done by the same person. I look at it this way: the product person focuses on meeting the user's needs (what the product can give the user) and the product goals (the company's business goals), and the functional scope (what are the main functions of the product and which are secondary).

Interaction focuses on how to make product functions easy to use, connect UI to convey product emotions, etc. Wireframes are an important output. A good product manager can be regarded as half of the interaction, most of the interaction is done by the product manager himself, many product teams do not have interaction designers, it is also very tragic to join the interaction and not understand the product, they are compatible and symbiotic relationship.

In layman's terms, PM focuses on user value, and UX focuses on user experience. The corresponding user motivation and cognitive processing processes are: experience goal-instinct-what the user wants to feel; The end goal - behavior - what the user wants to do; A truly qualified product or interaction is one that works together to solve these two problems, not against each other.

In addition, a good PM or UX also considers the third layer: life purpose - reflection - what the user wants to become. These three layers basically correspond to what Freud called id, ego, and superego.

What I have learned and experienced in my actual work is that there is a big difference between product planning or product manager and interaction designer. Product planning includes demand definition and functional logic, mainly from the perspective of product form, and is concerned about whether the user's needs are met and what kind of product the user gets. Whereas, interaction designers are mainly concerned with user experience, interaction logic, interaction between entire product features, product usability, and so on.

However, many companies do not necessarily have interaction designers, and product managers and product planners often take care of the work of interaction designers. My company has a UE department, and the way to work with product people is to assist. The product personnel define the product requirements, and then the interaction designer comes up with the interaction plan, and then integrates it into a complete requirements document for R&D implementation.

Of course, the division of labor between the two will not be very clear, and each other will also take into account the affairs of both parties. <>

Summary. In practice, interaction design is the responsibility of the interaction designer; Product design is mostly the responsibility of the product manager. In fact, many people are not easy to distinguish the dividing line between interaction design and product design, and there are many friends who think that interaction design is also a part of product design, why make a clear distinction?

The purpose of distinguishing between the two is twofold: first, to clarify the responsibilities of each position and devote all their energy to their respective areas of expertise; Second, it is more important to be clear about the direction of your career development.

In terms of roles, interaction designers and product managers are the two roles in the user experience system, and the rest of the roles also include user research, R&D, testing, etc.

Which is better, interaction design and product design.

In practice, interaction design is the responsibility of the interaction designer; Product design is mostly the responsibility of the product manager. In fact, many people are not easy to distinguish the dividing line between interaction design and product design, and there are many friends who think that interaction design is also a part of the side of the product design discussion, why make a clear distinction? The purpose of distinguishing between the two is twofold:

First, clarify the responsibilities of each position and devote all their energy to the areas where they are adept. Second, it is more important to be clear about the direction of your career development. In terms of roles, interaction designers and product managers are the two roles in the user experience system, and the rest of the roles also include user research, R&D, testing, etc.

In terms of requirements, most of the thinking angles of both are from the user. The difference is that after the product manager collects the requirements from various channels, the focus of the analysis is the authenticity of the requirements, the scenarios used by users, and what value they have for the product itself. Interaction design is to confirm the real existence of a demand, split various task flows, select the optimal implementation path, design the user's behavior, and imitate the group to be responsible for the user itself.

Therefore, there is still a certain difference between interaction design and product design, and it is necessary to clarify which one is more suitable for you, and then learn vocational skills. As for which of these two positions is better, it's actually hard to say. Strictly speaking, these are two different positions, and both belong to Internet jobs, so the development prospects are good.

There is no best position, only your favorite position, so choose it according to your hobbies! Or quickly.

Product interaction design is defined as the content and structure of communication between two or more interacting individuals (products) so that they cooperate with each other to achieve a certain purpose.

Interaction design strives to create and establish meaningful relationships between people and products and services, with a focus on "embedding information technology in a material world full of social complexity". The goals of interactive system design can be analyzed from the two levels of "usability" and "user experience", focusing on people-oriented user needs.

The thinking method of interaction design is constructed in the user-centered approach of industrial design, and at the same time it is developed, more oriented to behavior and process, the product is regarded as an event, the ability to think processively is emphasized, the flow chart and the state transition diagram and the vertical storyboard have become important means of design expression, and more importantly, it is important to master the skills and evaluation techniques of software and hardware prototype implementation.