Task

The task was to create a new library of Icons that aligned with the new look that would be implemented with a complete app rebrand. In addition to creating the icons themselves, I was tasked with creating a set of standards for future designers to use to create new additions to the icon library.

Discovery

To accomplish this task, I had to familiarize myself with the new brand standards, understanding things like voice and tone was important because ultimately the icons would have to reflect this voice and tone. From there I conducted research on the web, using word icon association searches on google and sites like “The Noun Project” helped me quickly gain a sense of what mental models users have; for example, when searching the word “contact” a multitude of examples of icons surfaced, but the more I searched I began to get a general consensus of what symbols were most commonly associated with the phrase. This turned out to be a quick and free methodology for vetting icon concepts, especially because I did not have the resources to conduct any user testing on these concepts.

Ideation

From here, set out to give the icons characteristics that represented the brand, and cultivate a style that complimented the brand. After a few iterations, and reviews with my design manager, I had the style locked in.

Next, I worked from a list of existing icons and began to re-create them in the new style. In many cases, it was simply a matter of re-creating the same symbol in the new style, but in many cases, the original symbol was dated, or it didn’t align with popular mental models for the icon-action association. In these cases, I would create a completely new icon entirely.

Collaboration

Throughout the process of creating these icons, I worked very closely with my direct manager, reviewing each concept, taking feedback, and creating revisions when necessary.

Result

The final output from this was a complete icon library, consisting of over 50 original icons that were dev ready in PDF, SVG, and XML formats, and style guide for creating new icons. These icons are featured in the current build of the Lively mobile app.