During Navaratri, people come together to celebrate.
Children experience the festivities for the first time. Older adults navigate crowded spaces. People with different accessibility needs participate in their own ways. Visitors unfamiliar with local traditions try to understand what’s happening around them.
One celebration brings together many people, but not everyone experiences it in the same way.
This offers an important lesson for product designers.
A meaningful digital experience should recognise people’s differences, too.
The Problem With Designing for an Imaginary User
Imagine designing an app for one ideal user.
They understand every instruction. They have perfect vision. They use the latest device, enjoy a fast internet connection, and know exactly what to do at every step.
Your interface might work beautifully for them.
But real users don’t all fit that description.
One person might struggle to read small text. Another might be using an older phone. Someone else might be unfamiliar with the interface or navigating without sound.
A user could be walking while using your product, interacting with it in bright sunlight, or trying to complete a task with a slow internet connection.
The same interface can feel effortless to one person and frustrating to another.
When designers assume everyone behaves and interacts in the same way, they risk creating experiences that unintentionally exclude people.
What Is Inclusive Design?
Inclusive design means considering different people’s needs, abilities, and contexts when creating experiences.
Rather than designing around a single idea of a typical user, it encourages us to recognise human diversity and identify barriers that could prevent people from using a product successfully.
The question changes from:
Will this work for our typical user?
To:
Who might struggle to use this, and why?
That simple change in perspective can influence everything from the size of a text label to the structure of a user journey.
Inclusive design doesn’t require building a completely different product for every individual. It requires understanding where assumptions create barriers and making thoughtful decisions to reduce them.
Accessibility Is Part of Inclusion
Accessibility isn’t an extra layer to add at the end of a project. It’s part of designing an experience people can use.
Imagine creating a digital invitation to a Navaratri event.
Can everyone understand it and interact with it?
Consider these questions:
- Colour contrast: Is there sufficient contrast between the text and its background?
- Readable text: Can people comfortably read the content?
- Keyboard navigation: Can users navigate and interact without a mouse?
- Screen readers: Is the content compatible with assistive technologies?
- Responsive layouts: Does the experience work across different screen sizes?
- Clear instructions: Can first-time users understand what they need to do?
- Meaningful labels: Do buttons and controls clearly communicate their purpose?
These details may seem small, but they can determine whether someone can complete a task independently.
A button that looks obvious to its designer might be difficult to identify for another user. A visual indicator might communicate a message to some people while leaving others without the information they need.
Good design considers these differences instead of assuming one presentation will work for everyone.
Different People. Different Contexts.
Accessibility is only one part of the bigger picture.
The environment in which someone uses a product also matters.
A person might interact with your app:
- While walking.
- In bright sunlight.
- Without sound.
- With a slow internet connection.
- Without a mouse.
- While learning something unfamiliar.
These situations can change how people experience the same interface.
For example, an instruction that seems straightforward to an experienced user may confuse someone using the product for the first time.
An interaction that depends entirely on sound may not work for someone using the product in a noisy environment or with audio turned off.
A page that looks excellent on a new smartphone may be difficult to use on an older device.
Designing for different contexts means looking beyond the ideal conditions in which we usually review our interfaces.
Good UX considers the context, not just the user profile.
Don’t Design for an Imaginary Average
When designers imagine a typical user, it’s easy to overlook people whose needs differ from that assumption.
Before finalising a design decision, ask yourself:
- Who might be excluded by this decision?
- Can someone complete this task in another way?
- Are we relying on assumptions about our users?
- Does the experience work across different contexts?
- Have we considered people with different abilities?
These questions help turn assumptions into opportunities for better design.
You may discover that an instruction needs to be clearer, a button needs a more meaningful label, or a critical interaction needs an alternative way to complete the task.
The goal isn’t perfection. It’s to make considered choices that allow more people to use the product successfully.
An Inclusive Design Checklist
Before shipping your next feature, take a moment to review it.
- Is the text readable?
- Is the interface usable with assistive technologies?
- Are the instructions clear to first-time users?
- Does the experience work across different devices?
- Are colour and visual cues supported by other indicators?
- Have we considered different abilities and contexts?
- Have we tested with people whose needs differ from our assumptions?
This checklist is a starting point, not a substitute for accessibility testing or learning from users directly.
The most important step is to question your assumptions before they become barriers.
Your Navaratri UX Challenge
Let’s put this into practice.
Think of an app you use every day.
Now imagine someone with low vision trying to use it. What about someone using an older phone? Someone unfamiliar with the interface? Or someone navigating it without sound?
Ask yourself:
Who might find this experience difficult to use, and what would you change to make it more inclusive?
You don’t need to redesign the entire app. Start by identifying one barrier and thinking about one meaningful improvement.
Share your observations with other designers. Looking at familiar products through a different lens can reveal opportunities we might otherwise miss.
The Big UX Lesson
Navaratri brings people together despite their differences.
Our digital experiences should recognise those differences, too.
People don’t all see, hear, move, learn, or interact in the same way. Designing only for the person we imagine using our product can leave real users behind.
So, the next time you design a screen, map a journey, or review a feature, look beyond the imaginary average.
Design for human diversity, not an imaginary average.
Because inclusion begins when assumptions become questions.
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