With a background in brand design, Kevin Tome is eager to pivot his career into Product Design. Having just graduated from Dribbble’s 16-Week Certified Product Design Course, Kevin joins us today to share his experience and offer advice to new product designers.
Tell us about your background. Do you have any previous design experience?
Hi, I’m Kevin, based in Ontario, Canada. I’ve been in design for 8 years, and I’ve mostly specialized in marketing and brand design. I really enjoy UI/UX and wanted to pivot my career. I find product design a refreshing change of pace.
Why did you choose Dribbble’s Certified Product Design Course?
Dribbble’s Product Design Course seemed very accessible and I’m a big fan of Jesse Showalter. My good friend took a UI/UX Dribbble Course, and really enjoyed and pursued accessibility as a result and incorporated it into her work. It was nice to have a friend take the course as well to bounce ideas off of and compare notes.
Did you make any meaningful connections throughout the course?
My mentor Andrew Daniels was fantastic. That was worth the course alone. He provided valuable insights from concept to completion and was very in-depth when it came to the hiring process.
As someone who has been on both sides of the hiring process for marketing design, it was helpful to see the difference and similarities with product design. I was able to secure a lot of 1:1 time with my mentor and that was invaluable.
Tell us about your favorite course project. What did you work on?
I really enjoyed the dog walking app project. I was able to build out a brand and created a working prototype that I’m really proud of. I have some motion graphics experience, so I was able to incorporate it into the product too.
Through working on the project, I learned to really listen to my users and to not be afraid of testing. I learned so much from a simple user test that resolved a lot of the potential blindspots I was facing, mainly UX writing, and how important it can be.
What have you been up to since graduation?
Currently, I’m building out my product design portfolio to include experience working with product and visual design. I’m also working on an app with a couple of friends (one who took the course). The app’s main function is for buying and selling used horse riding equipment. We’re still in the early stages, but it’s been a lot of fun to pursue another self-initiated project!
What advice do you have for new or aspiring product designers?
Put in the time and work hard. Don’t be discouraged. Dribbble’s course is helpful to get you up and running. You have access to a great mentor make sure to use them as a resource. But mainly be open to feedback and ask for honest feedback—it really goes a long way!
Want to keep up with Kevin? Explore his work and follow Kevin on Dribbble. ■
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