It seems that all anyone is talking about is the Apple Watch. There’s a huge buzz surrounding wearable tech and Apple’s latest contribution has only helped this excitement grow stronger. These tiny devices on our wrists are making a huge impact – for users, for designers and for developers. We can’t afford to ignore this new trend, and knowing when and how to use these little screens is key to delivering a big message for your brand. When designing for the Apple Watch or for Android Wear, just remember…

It’s not a mobile app.

(so don’t design it as though it is one)

Here are a few tips that I have gathered from my own experience as well as the guidelines that Apple and Google have provided. They’re well worth a read before delving into your own wearable design.

Keep it simple

It’s important to remember that Watch apps are not standalone – they are companions. Without your mobile the watch app is meaningless and your watch should not deliver the same functionality as your phone. Consider the information your user is most interested in and see how you can display this information best on the watch. Don’t add features that don’t absolutely need to be there. Strip it down to the bare minimum and keep things as simple as possible. Ideally, one or two calls-to-action on a page is enough. Don’t flood the page with options and don’t cram everything into one screen. Give it room and let it breathe.

It’s also worth noting that these watches just don’t have the power, nor functionality necessary to run the advanced apps we see on mobile. Remember this when you’re designing your app – the last thing you want is for your developer to tell you it just isn’t possible. Try to get your whole team involved from the beginning to minimise this possibility.

Bigger is better

We’re used to screen sizes becoming larger and larger – but with wearables the opposite is happening. It can be surprising just how little space you really have. Suddenly your mobile phone screen seems enormous.

Making best use of this space is key. Use large fonts and imagery that span the whole screen. What looks good on your monitor probably won’t look as good on the watch. If your design is scrollable make note of what is displayed after the fold. It’s not as easy to judge this with screen sizes you’re unfamiliar with.

I’ve found Invision to be perfect for quickly viewing watch designs. Invision allows you to adjust your screen size, so you can view your mockups on small, large, square or round watch faces. In addition to this, Marvel have very recently allowed users to view designs directly onto the watch; an invaluable feature for gaining perspective before rushing into development. Unfortunately they don’t support android yet, so this is purely for the iOS crowd.

Your brand is more than your logo

Don’t try to force your logo into the app. Remember that your brand image is made up with colour, with font and with iconography. Try to use your brand colour to accent your app. Use your brand font where it makes sense, for example with titles or key statements. Watch apps should be streamlined and glanceable, so you shouldn’t need to build a home screen that caters to delivering your brand. Your home screen should jump the user right into the action, so try delivering your brand in other, more subtle ways.

Know your platform

The Apple Watch and Android Wear function in wildly different ways. You can’t design an app for the Apple Watch and simply port it over to the Android Watch (and vice versa) – they are too different for this to be feasible. Both in visual style and in functionality, users of each will expect a familiar experience that they can delve right into.

Both devices have their limitations, especially the Apple Watch. Apple is yet to allow developers access to most of the key features that make the watch great. Essentially, we are currently working with the watch as an external display to the phone. We are so limited in what we can achieve and this can be a huge barrier to your creativity. Fortunately, this won’t be the case for much longer. Apple plan to release an SDK towards the end of the year to open up more possibilities for developers.

Experiment

This is perhaps the most important point of them all. This is all new – to everyone. The watch is young and the way we best use this tech is still to be discovered. We are all learning together and great ideas are born every day. This is your chance to experiment so don’t be afraid of making mistakes. Try something new that nobody else has done. Your idea could be the winner!