Learn how to put your thoughts into words and make sure your feedback is getting the love it needs by communicating effectively and constructively using text communication. At Sketch, we’ve been remote from day one. We’re a fully distributed team that works asynchronously across the globe for over a decade now.
Letters are boring
When trying to express yourself using just letters and symbols, it’s easy to miss oral or visual communication nuances.
- At Sketch, we use a staggering array of custom Emojis and animated GIFs, links to YouTube videos, song snippets, TikTok videos, and internet memes as effective ways to communicate and express yourself.
Celebrate the good
Praise all the good you see in design.
- Don’t limit yourself to giving feedback on the things that need to improve in a design. Feature what you like and what you think was a good solution to a tricky problem.
Be direct, but kind
It’s better to flatter than offend
- Explain the issues with the product while offering encouragement
- Make suggestions on how they can improve it
- Improve relationships within your team by being constructive and considerate with criticism
- Don’t be rude
Great feedback can come from anyone
When giving design feedback: every member of the team brings a unique perspective to a design. Focus on how the design proposal addresses the problem you and a designer are trying to tackle together.
- Sometimes, the best design feedback will come from non-designers. Keep your eyes and ears open, and try to keep a zen mind. Remember, design feedback is not about you.
It’s a small, but diverse world
While shared cultural knowledge can help speed things up when everyone understands the context, internationally compliant communication can be more challenging.
- Pay attention to subtle (and not so subtle) differences between cultures when it comes to the meaning of words.
Take your time with feedback, don’t improvise
When giving design feedback: Use the time as an opportunity to separate yourself from your daily grind and focus now on what you’re trying to convey, and how you are saying it.
- Write and reread.
Give all the context for the feedback you need
When giving design feedback, make sure you are addressing the right issues.
- Be explicit about the state of your design, and share what you need and what you don’t. This shows you are extra considerate and keen on giving them useful feedback.
Ask, don’t assume
Ask lots of questions and actively listen to the answers
- You want to understand the journey as much as the destination
- When giving design feedback: make sure you have all the information you need, and rewrite comments as questions to stimulate thought
