We offer a free design review to anyone who sends us a page or a flow from their product. People often ask what they actually get, and whether there is a catch.
There is no catch. It is the quickest way for us to show how we think, and the quickest way for you to find out whether you want to work with us. Here is how we run it, including what it does not do.
What a design review is
A design review is a short video where one of us looks at one page or one flow in your product and says what we see. Not a report. Not a slide deck. A person talking while the screen is on view.
You send us a link, or a few screenshots, and a line about what you want us to look at. We record a video of about ten minutes, walking through the page as a first-time user would. We say what works, what confuses us, and what we would change first.
We chose video because it is closer to how a real conversation goes. When we point at a button and say "I did not notice this was clickable", you see the same thing we saw. That is hard to get across in a written list.
What we look at
We keep the focus narrow. One page or one flow, such as a sign-up, a pricing page, an onboarding step or a dashboard.
Within that, we usually check:
- The first few seconds. Is it clear what this page is and what to do next?
- The main action. Is the thing you want people to do easy to find and easy to finish?
- Wording. Do labels, headings and buttons say what will happen?
- Hierarchy. Does the eye go where it should? Is anything fighting for attention?
- States and errors. What happens when something is empty, wrong or slow?
- Small screens. If the page is meant to work on a phone, does it?
- Basic accessibility. Text contrast, tap sizes and whether the page makes sense with a keyboard.
We do this as a fresh pair of eyes. We have not seen your product before. That is useful, because it is how your new users meet it.
When you send the request, tell us who the page is for and what you hope people do there. "Trial sign-ups from small agencies" is a much better brief than "please review". It changes what we notice.
How long it takes
The video itself is about ten minutes. Making it takes us longer than that, because we look at the page first, take notes, and record only when we know what we want to say.
We cannot promise a turnaround here, because it depends on how many requests we have that week. When we confirm your request, we will tell you when to expect the video, so you are not left guessing.
On your side, it takes a few minutes: a link, a sentence or two of context, and your email. If the page is behind a login, tell us how to get in. A test account is best.
What you get
You get a link to the video. You can watch it, pause it, forward it to your team and keep it. There is no need to book a call to see it.
The video usually has three parts:
- What we noticed first. Our honest first read of the page.
- The main problems. The few things most likely to hold the page back, in order of importance.
- What we would try first. Concrete suggestions, so you can act on them the same day.
We say plainly when something is good. Design reviews that only list faults feel unfair, and they are less useful: you also need to know what to protect.
We give you our opinion, not a verdict. A design review is a trained guess from one outside view. Your analytics and your users may tell a different story, and when they do, trust them over us.
What it does not cover
It helps to be clear about the limits.
- It is not a full review of your product. We look at one page or flow, not the whole app.
- It does not use your analytics. We have no access to your numbers, so we cannot tell you where people actually drop off.
- It is not user research. We have not tested with your customers.
- It does not include a redesign. We may describe what we would change, but we do not draw it.
- It is not a code review. We look at what a user sees, not at how it is built.
If you want those things, that is what the paid steps are for. A UX audit is a fixed-price, one-week review of your key flows. It uses your analytics, gives you a ranked list of fixes, redesigns one key screen and ends with a walkthrough call. The price is $950 and it is credited toward an MVP design sprint if you start one within 30 days.
The design review is much smaller than that. Think of it as a quick, honest look from a senior designer.
Is there any catch?
You do not pay, and you do not sign anything. We will ask for your email so we can send the video, and for the link to the page. That is all we need.
We do this for a plain reason. A small studio cannot show its work to a stranger without asking them to trust us first. A free video lets you judge us on something real, with no risk.
We also keep the number of design reviews limited so each one gets proper attention. If we are busy, we will say so, not send you a rushed one. And if we think your page is already in good shape, or that we are not the right team for it, we will tell you that too.
Next steps
Most people do one of three things after a design review:
- Make the changes themselves. That is a fine outcome, and the video was the whole point.
- Ask us a few follow-up questions by email.
- Move to an audit or a larger project, when the design review shows there is more to look at.
All three are fine with us. You can see our packages and prices on the pricing page whenever you want to know what a next step costs.
To request your design review, send us the link and a line about the goal through /contact.
