As the world continues to become increasingly digitalised, you may have heard the terms UX and UI more than ever before – but what exactly do they mean?
User interface (UI) is anything a user may interact with to use a digital product or service. This includes everything from screens and touchscreens, keyboards, sounds, and even lights. With users able to interact with a range of elements within a website, what is their experience in doing so? Enter user experience (UX), which takes into account how the user experiences their website, both positively, negatively and neutrally.
Both UX and UI are key factors to be considered when designing a website and should be revisited frequently whenever website updates are made. Here are just a few reasons why UX and UI are important for your business.
#1 Enhanced accessibility and readability
Regardless of your target audience or segmentation, your user pool will have variations in many ways. Be it age or perceptions to browsing pattern, IT proficiency – even standard of internet connection, you’ll have users with a wide range of needs visiting your website. Effective UX design addresses this by creates websites that compliment all types of users and devices, further enhancing the overall user-friendliness of your
website.
#2 Guiding users to the bottom of the funnel
One of, if not your top concern with a website is guiding users to the bottom of the funnel to convert. It can be difficult to grab the attention of a user and have them follow the entire process from landing on your page to maintaining that engagement right the way to the point of purchase. Small things like slow page loading times, a lack of information or confusion on how to proceed can be all it takes for a user to abandon the page. Employing UX can help iron out these issues and make it more likely you’ll gain increased sales and repeat customers.
#3 Reducing development costs
Creating a website or building a product typically comes with multiple iterations and stages of development. UX can help provide insight into potential obstacles you may face when building. As we know the smallest issue can be enough to lose a user, so research into UX and the buyer persona pain points can save you money in the long run. If you focus extensively on ensuring a seamless user experience, you may find you won’t necessarily have to spend money on referrals, sales and marketing – customers happy with the ease of using your website are more likely to refer it to their friends and family.
#4 Providing consistency across website and app
Your website and app are part of your brand, and although these platforms will have key differences that may dictate how you write your copy or select your images, they still need to be clearly related to each other. Elements such as icons, style, colours and other visual components can be used by a UI/UX design agency to ensure these platforms belong to the same family.
#5 Boosting SEO
A well-designed website contributes to better Google search rankings. Google takes into consideration your page loading speed, buyer journey completion, and the average time a user spends on your page. This means the more user-friendly your website, the more relevant Google will find it, thus helping to improve your search rankings.
For more tips on effective web design have a look at our blog or get in touch with us at info@helloslate.co.uk
Posted: November 2020
Author: Jon
