Should You Focus More on Your Site’s UX or UI Design?

Ensuring a good user experience on a website is critical.  People are always on the move and want fast access to information. It is even more important when you are looking at mobile applications. 

Over 50% of internet traffic comes from mobile. You must, therefore, pay attention to the user experience. 

Web design companies focus on user interface (UI) and user experience design. (UX). But, few people can distinguish between the two. In our article, we will explore whether you should focus more on your side UX or UI. We will also provide an in-depth explanation of both.  In the end, we will highlight which is more critical.

Understanding User Interface (UI)

Every time someone uses your products or services in the digital space, they use certain elements. Such include touch screens, lights, sounds, and a keyboard. You submit your commands via menus, buttons, and icons.  

You also use the same to control your actions while on a website.  This is what web designers refer to as a user interface.

A good user interface design will make browsing the internet more pleasant. It is about the aesthetics and elements that go with the experience of using a product. The UI applies to digital products and how they look. It also focuses on how you interact with the product. A good web design company will provide an intuitive experience. It removes the hassle of using the online space.

Understanding User Experience (UX)

The term user experience is attributable to Don Norman. He came up with the term during his employment at Apple in the early 1990s. User experience is about the interaction you have with a company’s products or services. Peter Morville aptly summarized the customer touch points in the usability honeycomb above.

UX transcends the digital world, although it is more common within the digital arena. However, as long as you can experience or interact with the product or service, the term can apply. 

In design terms, UX takes into consideration anything that adds to the experience. It determines how you feel about what you are using.  

User experience, for example, can even include the Checkout process. If it is difficult or very complicated, you can say the user experience was unpleasant.  When you use an app, you want efficiency and quick access to information or services.  If it works as per your expectation, the user experience will be pleasant.  

User experience designers focus on improving the quality of interaction. it doesn’t matter whether it is with products or services.  The focus is not on visuals, rather, the experience.

Exploring the Differences Between UX and UI

It would be fruitless to focus on the UI if you ignore the UX.  You may have the most attractive website due to a fantastic UI design.  If it is not functional, navigable, or hard to use, it will result in a poor UX. 

The right combination of both should be the result. If you ignore the UI design on your website, how can you give the visitors a good UX?  They both look at finding solutions to pain points amongst target audiences.  

That is why market research is very important. You find out what your customers need and respond appropriately. You map out the customer’s journey to determine any gaps that you can fill in. You then think about the appropriate products or services that directly respond to the market needs. 

The UI Designer will then bring the products to life. He looks at all the touch points and goes into more in-depth details to come up with the right solution.  

If it is a website, for example, the focus is on things like readability and typography. Anything you do on your phone, such as scrolling or clicking on links, is possible with the right UI.

To better understand the two, we can summarize them as below. 

User experience focuses on

• Market research to understand the customer journey and pain points
• Competitor analysis
• Product strategies and structures
• Content development
• Wireframing and prototyping
• Testing Products and services and whether they meet the market requirements
• Iteration
• Coordination with developers and UI designer
• Analysis

User interface focuses on:-

• Understanding the market research and competitor analysis carried out by a UX designer
• Design research
• Focus on how a product looks and the functionalities it offers to the end-user
• Graphic design and branding
• Storylines and user guides for better interaction with the different elements.  on the different platforms
• UI prototyping
• Animations and interactive elements
• Adapting designs to different screen sizes
• Working together with developers to implement different designs.

Let us use an analogy of food to explain the difference between the two. The UI is the presentation of the food. The UX is the taste of the food. What good is a fantastic presentation, yet when you bite into the food, it is terrible?

So, Should You Focus More on Your Site’s UX or UI Design?

For web visitors, a good user experience is a crucial determinant of whether they stay or leave.  For web designers, a good UI determines the UX. The right UI design will take the feedback from the UX design research. It will form the basis of every decision regarding the interactive elements. 

The decision on whether to focus more on a site’s UX or UI design is not that clear cut.  Without a doubt, it is essential to meet the relevant standards for each of them. The two complement each other, and both play critical roles in the customer’s journey.

How can you, for instance, provide a good interaction if you do not have the structures in place. If your website has a poor or unattractive design and bad content, no one will want to interact with it.  

Without proper navigation tools, online shoppers will experience confusion. The UI and UX designers must, therefore, work hand in hand and not as separate teams. The UI provides the means of getting the best experience. Think about it like a road or bridge you need to travel to get to your destination.