Do you know these benefits of UX and UI design?
Written by Suvi Saari
Senior UX/UI Designer
The purpose of digital products and services is to bring concrete benefit to users, owners, and stakeholders. For example, a system that reads and analyzes the sensor data of a physical object can help anticipate needs for maintenance, or a digital diary that monitors the nutritional values of a diet enables optimizing the diet to meet the needs and goals of an individual user.
When creating different kinds of digital solutions, seamless and pleasant user experience is not an automatic by-product of the product development. Instead, it is achieved through the methods of systematic UX and UI design and testing.
Do you recognize any risks in product development that can be minimized with thorough planning? We made a list of concrete benefits of UX and UI design.
A suitable solution for the right problem
Prior to the actual design and realization of a system, it must be clear what the problem is and what kind of solutions it requires. It is good to ensure that the planned solution is a product, system, or a service that is reasonable from the business point of view, suitable for the users, and can be realized with appropriate investments.
A common focus saves time
A thorough investigation and specification helps build a common understanding of the work between the client, the project team, and the stakeholders, and thus decreases time-consuming misunderstandings and corrections. It is also important to clearly specify what the scope of the functionality is and how detailed it is.
Less expensive changes
When all relevant user requirements have been identified and validated, and the necessary actions have been specified, the need for changes in the execution phase becomes minimized. It is also important to create an understanding of the different versions of the product and their actions in the development phase as well as the impression that the user experience is trying to achieve. Is the goal to produce a first version with sufficient basic functions or are you trying to get a wow effect with finalized, comprehensive user experience?
Good user experience brings satisfied users
Building good user experience piece by piece with tools that have been proven good has a crucial effect on customer satisfaction and brings competitive advantage. A frustrated user easily stops using the product, makes mistakes, or, for example, misinterprets the results provided by the system. A system that truly supports the user’s tasks releases resources for the task itself.
Clear and sufficient definitions speed up the implementation
With sufficient and comprehensible specifications, implementation is straightforward. With the designer’s support, it can also be ensured that the result is in accordance with the specifications. A UI designer produces, among other things, interactive user interface prototypes, layout models, UI component specifications, and visual elements that meet the needs of the production. The designer also ensures that the distinctive features of the production technology have been considered in the solution.
Continuous validation ensures quality
For example with heuristic analysis, usability tests, and surveys, it can be ensured that the solution truly is suitable and convenient for the users. Continuous validation and usability testing is especially important with safety-critical systems. With usability tests that occur in an environment that is similar to the actual operating environment can be ensured that the possibility of harmful error conditions has been minimized with the design.
Did you become interested in the benefits of UX and UI design? Don’t hesitate to contact us for further information!