What is UX Design & Why is it Important?
There’s a lot of talk about User Experience (UX) when it comes to designing digital products these days, but does it actually matter?
What is UX Design?
User Experience (UX) is essentially the way a person interacts or the emotion they experience whilst using any product. By following the correct procedures, we are able to map out the process of designing that desired feeling or interaction. There is no direct route one could take to achieve this feeling. However, with the right mind-set and the right tools, we can achieve the desired effect.
The role of UX Design
Although you may not realise it, user experience design plays an important role in practically every object you interact with on a daily basis. For example; the desk you may be sitting at, or the height of each step you climbed this morning. They are all designed based on measurements and data, which have been determined over time and various studies. As little as half an inch higher on a step and you may trip and hurt. Definitely not the User Experience the architect or designer envisioned.
User Experience is something that needs to be part of the thought process behind the design from early stages, it’s that important.
Why UX Design is important
The tech world, web and software sectors in particular have acknowledged that UX design is essential for a product to thrive. Creating a digital product that is easy to use, looks good, and ultimately serves its purpose is becoming increasingly complex yet essential. One of the greatest challenges we face is the multitude of screen sizes the product is destined for, as well as ensuring that the experience you tailored is reflected uniformly throughout.
UX Design
The main difference between a visual designer and a UX designer lies in the questions each asks before engaging in a project. A visual designer is interested in exploring visuals, colours, images and animations. A UX designer would focus on the target audience, performance, interaction and engagement levels. Ultimately, it’s all about combining great aesthetics with creative functionality and taking steps to improve the user experience before launching.
In our industry, it is imperative that we pay close attention to both. Unfortunately, at times designers risk creating and launching a product that looks fantastic, but fails on the user front.
UX Design at Think
UX Design at Think generally consists of five key phases. These include; strategy, research, analysis, design and production. It starts out with the principle of collaborative design that encourages us, as a team to reach a common goal by solving a problem. It’s really important for the team to work closely to create great aesthetics and to achieve the project’s vision. That’s the way we like to do things around here, we believe it delivers better results and creates much better vibes between everyone on the team.
In conclusion, you need to focus on what you’d like to create, who you would like to create it for and what you’d like the end user to experience. Each product must feel natural and familiar. It must reach its objective in the fewest steps possible. Sometimes it takes countless iterations. However, we never stop until we would have reached what we believe is a near perfect product.
Our expertise is in crafting digital experiences. If you’re interested in a new website or mobile app, we can help! Contact us to discuss your needs and any questions you may have.
