User experience, or UX, is essential for a good design. Websites, apps, and software all depend on the seamlessness of the UX. The first ten seconds customers send on digital platforms are critical to whether or not they return or turn away from the platform. Here we’ve listed seven tips for improving your UX so you can maximize your company’s image and the quality of the products you’re designing.
1. Find Out What Customers Want
The first step to good UX is figuring out what your customers want out of your product. Figuring this out can help you avoid any unnecessary or costly features that no one wanted in the first place. You’ll spend less time on extras and more time designing a product that will suit the customer’s needs.
Utilizing a consumer survey or watching trends in the industry are some great ways to learn about your customers. Who are you selling to? Which problem does your product solve for the customers? Ask yourself these questions during the design process to keep the customer-focused approach in your sight.
2. Reviews Or Audits Of Past Projects
Who says looking back can’t help you move forward? Have you ever attempted an audit on your own designs? It can be a great way to gain insight into what you did well or…not so well in the past when it came to UX design.
Not only should you review the projects themselves, but also review (preferably with your team) how the team worked together. Was there anything you could have improved? Were any UX designs scrapped? If so, why were they?
Reflection is the key to successful change, and UX requires constant adaptation as the users’ preferences change as the technology does. Stay aware of your own processes and trends in user preference by auditing your own work.
3. Use Different Tools
Let’s say your previous designs turn out sloppy or hard to use. Maybe it’s time to consider some new tools for your team’s arsenal. With hundreds of UX tools available online, it’s easy to find the one that best suits your needs.
Figure out what your team is lacking and match those shortcomings with the features of a new UX tool and your projects will begin to come together much more effectively.
4. Use A Wireframe In Your Designs
What’s a wireframe? A wireframe is simply a rough draft of the final design. It’s the initial road map to what your project will look and feel like, and most of all, how it functions with users. A wireframe is an essential tool for generating quality UX.
Wireframe tools come in all shapes and sizes, but many of them have similar features. The majority of wireframe tools don’t require coding, or very little. You can map out apps and websites via a simple to use drag and drop interface.
By focusing on functionality before design, your project will feel better before you add fonts and graphics to it. How your navigation performs is more important in the beginning than the graphics and pictures you’ll be adding later.
5. Look At Your Competitors
If your competitors are blowing you away in the user experience department, take the time to research what exactly they’re doing differently. They could be doing something as
By examining your competitors’ designs, you can get an idea of what the market calls for, and where your products fall short. Knowing this can also offer you insight on how to outperform your competition and bring new customers straight to your brand.
Never discount the impact of a competitor on your brand’s image and sales numbers. Something as simple as bad UX can make your brand stand out in a bad way, pointing traffic away from you and into the open arms of the competition.
6. Make Your Aesthetics Work For The Design
The aesthetics of a site or an app can actually play a large part in the success of the design. Utilizing things like white space will drastically change how your website flows and what customers see.
Overly complex graphics or too many graphics and images can be overwhelming and cause pages to load slower. First impressions are everything, so to ensure good UX, take the time to design an aesthetically pleasing site that also isn’t overwhelming to the customer.
7. Optimize For Cross-Platform Use
When you’re designing apps or websites, it’s important to remember that the majority of users access websites via a mobile device, and a mobile-friendly website does not load the same way a mobile-unfriendly site does.
Optimizing your app or site for cross-platform use is an important step to maximizing user experience. Not only will it streamline your product across major avenues of traffic, but it also opens up the product to entirely new customer bases.
Mobile devices have become the staple of internet access, meaning if you are not optimizing for mobile use, then you are missing out on a huge market of potential customers. Make sure you consider cross-platform compatibility for your next design so you can maximize UX and drive new customers straight to your doorstep.
The Take-Away
UX is all about making customers happy when they interact with your product. Solve their problem, and they’ll keep returning to your brand when future issues arise. Be sure to include UX in all of your designs, preferably at the forefront. It is arguably the most important aspect of any design.
