Capabilities
I help founders and product teams decide what to build first and then design it, from the first map of the workflow to the product people use every day, and the versions which follow.
Five-star reviews from clients on Upwork
What I help with
I think a product mostly succeeds or fails on what it leaves out, so I help you choose the one job it should do very well and then I design everything that job needs.
An MVP planned around the one workflow which your first customers would pay for, small enough for your team to build in weeks.
An older product brought up to date one workflow at a time, so the customers who rely on it keep working while it changes.
Interviews, workflow maps and quick prototypes which show what to build before your team writes the code.
Prototypes which show where the product is going, for a pitch, a sales demo or a first test with real users.
The next three to six months of design work, ordered by what your customers need and what your team can build.
The app and the website which sells it, designed together so they look and sound like the same company.
How I work
I believe a first version should do one job very well,
and then earn the right to do the next one.
Four stages / three to twelve weeks
Stage / 01
We start with what the business needs the product to do and who will use it, and I talk to two or three of those people, so we design for the day they actually have.
Stage / 02
Then we decide together what the first version does and what waits, and I map the flows and the screens it needs, so the scope is clear before the design starts.
Stage / 03
I design the screens in Figma and turn them into a clickable prototype, and we test it with real users, so the changes happen while they are still cheap to make.
Stage / 04
I hand the design to your developers with every state and component, and then we plan the next version from what the first one teaches us.
Working with me
I think product design is mostly a series of decisions about what to build now and what to leave for later, so I write each one down with the reason behind it, which keeps your team, your investors and your developers looking at the same product.
Common questions
A product designer helps decide what a product should do and then designs how it works and how it looks, from the research and the flows to the screens and the prototype, and on my projects that work ends with a design which your developers can build from.
A UI/UX designer mostly works on the screens of a product which already exists, while a product designer also helps decide what to build and in which order, and I do both, as the UI/UX designer page explains.
Yes, I would plan the first version with you around the one workflow your first customers would pay for, design it in Figma and hand it to your developers, and how long MVP design takes shows a realistic timeline.
Yes, mostly with founders and small teams who need one designer for the product and the website which sells it, so you work with me directly from the first call.
A short description of the product and who it is for, anything you have already drawn or built and a rough deadline are enough for me to reply with a plan and a quote.
I quote each project after reading the brief, since the number depends mostly on how many workflows the first version needs, and what B2B and SaaS product design costs explains where the money goes.
Yes, I work from GMT+8 with teams in the US, Australia and Asia, with a regular overlap for calls, reviews in a shared Figma file and every decision kept in writing.
The thinking behind it
A multi-tenant wholesale ordering platform built around the reorder, not the browse.
Turn a leadership intent into five minutes of practice a day.
A tour budget that survives the routing changing.
Virtual challenges that get riders back in the saddle.
From the mill to your needles, in a few taps.
Client reviews
Mike is an absolute star. A great communicator who takes initiative, and has the skills to complete the job well each and every time. He is a fantastic partner in all-things design and development, is a pleasure and easy to communicate with.
Gwyn P. Founder, Sail Digital
Mike was one of the easiest consultants we have worked with. Good attitude, willing to take on feedback, good designs and willing to please. Will have no hesitation to hire!
Fiona M. Director, CArio
Mike not only gave us an amazing new website but also gave us time back to focus on growing our SaaS company and the confidence to know that we can leverage their skills again in the future. I unreservedly recommend!
Andrew Former director, shibumi
Mike helped us design and develop our new website in Webflow. He is very responsive to changes and iterations, and helped find faster ways to implement what we wanted.
Julien R. Founder, Hire Donna
Hire the product designer who helps you decide what to build, and your first version does the one job your customers came for.
Send me a few lines about the product, or a link to what you have so far, and it comes straight to me, so I can reply with what I would design first, what it would cost and how long it would take.
Send me an email
To Mike Lopez <mike@mikeui.co>
I use these details to reply to you and keep them for 12 months after our last message. Privacy notice
