98. Designers Without Borders: The Importance of Cultural Context in Product Design with Ruby Pryor

How can designers create products that feel native to users across the globe?
In this episode, I get to chat with Ruby Pryor, whose career has taken her from the bustling streets of Melbourne to the vibrant cities of Southeast Asia. Ruby’s unique perspective, shaped by her experiences at Boston Consulting Group, Grab, and her own consulting firm, Rex, offers valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities of designing for a global audience.
We dig into the subtle yet profound ways culture influences our experience. Ruby shared fascinating anecdotes about how seemingly minor details like work schedules and currency symbols can significantly affect the users’s experience across different countries and cultures.
Whether you’re a seasoned pro working on global products or a designer just beginning to consider international audiences, this episode provides insights and actionable strategies for creating user experiences that truly resonate across boundaries.
Topics:
• 04:54 - Ruby’s origin story
• 06:35 - You may not realize how your culture affects your perspective until you move
• 14:13 - How do remote teams understand the target cultures
• 15:10 - Low context vs high context cultures
• 18:30 - When we’re taught research, culture is chronically under-discussed
• 24:20 - Where do we start if we’re designing for a global market?
• 30:32 - The role of service design in global products
• 32:29 - Finding international research participants
• 40:01 - How do we measure whether we’ve accounted for culture in our metrics
• 42:00 - How do you promote this within your team to push for this idea?
• 44:20 - Being globally inclusive doesn’t mean building something new every time
• 52:47 - Reading fiction is a great way to build empathy
Helpful Links:
• Connect with Ruby on LinkedIn ( / ruby-pryor )
• rexhq.io (www.rexhq.io/)
Ruby Pryor
Founder @ Rex
About Ruby
Ruby Pryor is the founder of Rex, a UX research and strategic design consulting firm. Ruby has worked in Design and Customer Experience for a decade across Australia and Asia. Her experience includes working for Boston Consulting Group, Grab and Nous Group. She has spoken at UX conferences in 5 countries, appeared on multiple podcasts and been interviewed on Channel News Asia.
Connect with Ruby on LinkedIn ( / neil-pleasants-9411356b )
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