How would you want your customers to interact with your website online? How would you design your website, app, or software for them to reach your business goals?
These seem to be quite vague and unrelated questions, but all have a common thread that can answer these questions- A well-planned UX strategy.
This is easier said than done. Earlier, the whole concept of Best UI/UX design services was alien and unimportant. However, with websites and apps now becoming increasingly crucial for achieving business goals, no business can afford to ignore the whole experience the customer has with the digital asset.
UX strategy- What it means
UX stands for User Experience. Preparing a User Experience Strategy essentially means the way you design your website to influence the visitor to perform a certain action. For instance, if you are a travel agent, your website should be designed to interest visitors to drop in their contact details. Here, the UX strategy used includes how you present your text, images, videos, and other design cues to motivate the customer to view the content and eventually make inquiries to you.
Why is a UX strategy important?
The user is at the core of any UX strategy. UI/UX designers, web designers, and content creators have to align their focus towards achieving one goal- get the customer to interact with the brand and perform an expected action.
For the UX design, professional website design services would first understand the client’s requirements in detail before starting to develop their UX strategy. UX strategies require the input of all stakeholders so that you can come up with an all-inclusive solution. In essence, a UX strategy is important as-
- It helps the client and other stakeholders understand the experience and benefits of a UX design
- It outlines UX research and design processes
- It sets guidelines to measure UX design success
- It aligns the brand’s identity with the user experience.
How to create a kickass UX strategy
A UX strategy has to be a detailed plan about everything that the digital asset should represent. It should contain every detail that is needed to align the digital asset’s user experience with your company’s objectives. The process of chalking out the strategy can be done in four steps-
#1- Define your goals
Firstly, you have to define what you and your team hope to achieve. For this, your goals should answer these questions-
- What are we trying to improve?
- What business challenge are we aiming to solve?
- What do we need to know about our customers?
- What are our budget and time constraints?
- How can we maximize the digital asset’s impact?
#2- Research
Understanding what needs to be done requires detailed research and interviewing various stakeholders-
Primary stakeholders- Consist of those in charge of the digital asset, this could include the business owners or others in high positions. Get answers to the following from them-
- What is currently working well with the digital asset?
- What are your expectations from them?
- What are your biggest concerns with the digital assets and why?
- How does this digital asset compare with its peers, according to you?
Secondary stakeholders- These are the men on the ground, the people responsible for implementing the business plans. These are the people who know the strengths and weaknesses of the organization and which challenges need to be addressed to stand out from the competition. These stakeholders include those in managerial positions in-charge of various departments. Ask them the challenges they face in their departments and what expectations they have with the digital asset to help solve them.
Current Users- Current Users- If your digital asset already exists, interview existing users. These could be customers, frontline employees, or other primary users of the app/website. Get to know what they feel about the app/website, explain why you’re asking for their feedback, and explain what you intend to get from them. Remember, do not waste time here- interview only 2-3 people as the rest may give you similar answers.
Beta Users- Interviewing these testers can be challenging. Their main motive is to identify issues with the app/website and check if everything is working as planned. If things aren’t going as planned, they would be the most frustrated of the lot. When interviewing them, empathize with their challenges and explain how you are going to help improve the product experience, and that this endeavor would not be possible without them.
Subject matter experts- Besides the users, you should also consider interviewing subject matter experts who’ll be working with you like visual designers, programming specialists, behavioral psychologists, data scientists, and many more. Do your research well and ask them only relevant questions. They would be able to give you solutions to a variety of challenges, some of which you might not have even realized.
Competitor’s users- Check out how your competitors’ users feel about their app/website. What do they like the best? What challenges do they face? And so on. To answer these questions you could check out the Apple App Store and Google Play Store reviews.
#3- Brainstorm and wireframe
Once you have done your in-depth research and interviewing, you can start drafting some designs that fit the requirement as well as fulfill technical and personal expectations. For this, you have to brainstorm with your team of UI/UX designers, copywriters, graphic designers, web designers, and other stakeholders who can come up with an innovative solution.
#4- Test and evaluate designs
Not all your ideas will be accepted. With the help of web design services and other professionals in your team, you can make various iterations for the same digital asset and get an unbiased opinion from a third party. You will need to make various iterations, and each will have to be evaluated for its strengths and weaknesses so that you can take the best of each iteration and come up with a solution that solves all problems.
In conclusion
When it comes to choosing between you and your competitor, the UX of your digital asset will prove to be an important deciding factor. That’s why you should always choose an IT solutions provider that has the skills, experience, and know-how to give you an outcome that matches your requirements. Here at Houston IT Developers, we have a highly-skilled and experienced team of UI/UX developers, web designers, and related professionals to take on any challenge that is presented to them.
