Most people think of graphic design when they think about what design is generally about. And let’s be honest, graphic designers have come up with some iconic pieces over the years. But now comes a question – what is UX design and why is it important? When you don’t want to focus only on the visual aspects of a product but also make it enjoyable for users, it’s where UX design comes in.
Dr. Ralf Speth, Jaguar Land Rover’s Chief Executive Officer, has said, “If you think good design is expensive, you should look at the cost of bad design.”
What Is UX Design?
Let’s start with UX meaning. It’s short for User Experience. It’s the overall experience a person has when interacting with a product, system, or service, especially in terms of how easy or pleasing it is to use.
UX Design, short for User Experience Design, focuses on creating products that will ensure users find value and relevant experiences in them. The process includes a thorough understanding of who the users are and what they need, design (making the product look and feel good,) and usability that ensures it’s easy and efficient to use. It also includes functionality, prototyping software development, and testing so it can be improved based on user feedback.
Why Is UX Important?
When you’re planning to invest in MVP software development, keep in mind that UX design is crucial because it makes products and services enjoyable and easy to use. Here are other reasons why it’s so important:
- It enables satisfaction – better UX means happier users.
- It provides efficiency because users can do things faster and easier.
- Fewer issues mean less money is spent on fixes and support.
- Such products stand out, and great UX can help conquer the competition.
- It’s made for everyone because a great design includes users with different needs.
- Itpromotes more sales because easy-to-use websites or apps get more customers.
- It saves time in MVP development because fixing issues early saves time later.
- Finally, it keeps users coming back because people tend to return to products that are easy and pleasant to use.
Also, keep in mind that a $1 investment in UX yields a $100 return (ROI = 9,900%).
What Does the UX Design Process Look Like?
The design process starts with a problem. Or, rather, with the needs and wants of the targeted audience. Although the natural process may seem simple – you simply head on into designing the solutions, it doesn’t work like that. If you want a good UX design, you will need a structured approach.
Understand the Target Audience
You should begin the process by creating user personas. These personas are detailed representations of the target audience segments. It takes a thorough understanding of these personas for a design team to create experiences that will resonate with the specific audience’s voices and emotions.
Conduct User Interviews and Write Descriptions
It’s crucial to conduct interviews with both existing and potential users. They will provide deeper insights into what makes a design effective. It’s an important step because the user experience is highly subjective. Based on this, the design team creates summarized descriptions of product features from the users’ perspective. It will ensure that the design aligns closely with what the users need and want.
Functionality Mapping and Wireframes Development
This is when the magic begins to unfold as the team creates a structured hierarchy of all product pages and subpages. This functionality map is essential because it visualizes user navigation and simplifies the product-building process. Next in the process are wireframes, the visual guides that represent the skeletal framework of the product. They provide a first look at the product’s aesthetics and are very important for identifying usability issues early on.
The Prototyping and the Final Phase
In this phase of software prototyping or hardware prototyping, the team will create mockup versions of the product to enable user testing. The advantage of prototyping is that it helps minimize wasted time and resources because of testing and refinement before the product launch. And then comes the final phase, where real users evaluate the product’s ease of use. This is where any potential roadblocks or friction in the user experience are identified and addressed.
The Key Elements of UX Design
Effective UX design is more than just making things look good – it’s about creating a complete experience that combines usability, value, appearance, and functionality. Here is a breakdown of its key elements:
- User Interface or UI is a vital part of UX, and it deals with the visual and interactive elements of a product. It’s like a bridge that connects users to the product’s functions and features, like in websites, apps, and software.
- While it’s not everything, graphic design is important. It makes sure the product looks attractive with images, layouts, and screen size adaptation. It also includes making sure the brand look is consistent with color schemes, fonts, and themes.
- Last, but not least, content strategy is also essential. This strategy involves choosing the type of content (whether it’s text, images, or videos) to use and how it should be arranged. A good UX design ensures the layout and style match the content so the overall experience is seamless and user-friendly.
Create the Best UX Design With an Expert MVP Development Company
In the end, UX design is important not only to make your product appealing but also to deeply resonate with your target audience. Incorporating these principles into your product can significantly elevate the value and impact of the final version. We at Juratech Solutions will stand by to support the evolution of your project with continued development, maintenance, and assistance. Contact us and inquire about our desktop application development services and what we do that will help you toward success.