The UX of digital products is critical to your business. It is more than just a beautiful appearance. Competition in many industries is greater than ever, so only those companies that stand out with their unique design and build positive experiences of their users will survive on the market. Find out why bad UX can hurt your business.
Positive end user experience of your application or website is closely related to broadly understood customer satisfaction and strongly influences the success of your business. Disregarding this fact can cost you a lot, so find out what UX mistakes to avoid and what benefits you will get by properly building a positive user experience for your product.
How bad UX can hurt your business?
Usability of your digital product depends on many aspects. At Stepwise, we treat them as a process that should be constantly developed, improved and adapted to the current needs of your potential customers. The effect of these activities should be increased satisfaction with using the application, website or system. Thanks to this, we can provide what is most important in each project – meeting your business needs.
The software development process can be very complex. Many companies that no longer exist have found out how severe the effects of taking shortcuts in software development can be. One of the main factors that have a negative impact on the success of your venture is disregarding or giving up good User experience practices. What UX mistakes can lead to the failure of your business?
UX inconsistent with business assumptions = no effect
Stepwise’s priority in each undertaken project is to meet the business needs of our partners and to meet the expectations of end users of their product. User experience, like all elements of the software development process, should aim to achieve a specific effect.
For example, if we create a sales platform, the expected effect of using it should be an order by a potential customer (i.e. conversion). This is a very general example, but it illustrates that UX design should serve the business and provide solutions that will help achieve the intended goals of the product.
Rough architecture = high costs
A mistake many people make is to design a product, with no vision for the future development, scaling, and global potential of the software. Already at the stage of designing the UX architecture, it is worth considering the use of solutions that can be easily developed without losing application performance (e.g. using cloud services).
If you are serious about your product, also take care of modern technologies and presentation of interface elements, adapted to the newly emerging devices. The use of outdated programming languages and tools may result in the need to re-create the software at some stage of development, and this is associated with significant costs.
Not understanding the end user = customer dissatisfaction
Even if good accessibility practices allow the use of the product by as many users as possible, designing a good UX should, however, be directed at a specific audience.
End users of your application or system have specific habits, and you need to learn about these habits. Failure to understand certain patterns that guide your potential customers may lead to the fact that even if they use the product, they will give it up because it does not match their requirements. This includes reading patterns that you can use to properly align your product interface elements. The so-called heatmaps that track where users of an application or website direct their eyes come in handy.
It is worth paying attention to the developing “mobile first” trend. The mobile version of your product should differ from the desktop version, not only in terms of appearance (adjusted to smaller screens). Users who use applications or websites on computers behave differently than mobile users. Therefore, digital products should meet the expectations of both these groups. There are almost as many mobile as desktop Internet users. Failure to understand these needs will result in a lack of key functionalities for each of these groups and will expose you to the loss of many potential customers.
No testing in the software development process = unmatched product
Lack of tests in UX design is often due to ignorance. Digital product owners believe that building a positive user experience is a waste of time and money. It’s a mistake.
UX testing in the software development process can be relatively efficient. They don’t require involvement of many specialists. At Stepwise, we use proven, simple and effective UX tests. One of the solutions that allows you to easily check the UX level of the application is, for example guerrilla testing [read here].
Lack of UX testing in the software development process collects all product usability issues. Instead of resolving them on an ongoing basis, we spiral down to many negative effects. The later these errors are identified, the more expensive it will be to fix them. If you launch a finished product on the market without taking care of user experience, you will not meet the expectations of your customers. A customer who is not satisfied with the application does not use it. Business without customers fails.
Low application accessibility = loss of customers
Accessibility of the application is the possibility of it being used by the largest possible group of users. Failure to follow good accessibility practices can seriously harm your business.
Your potential customers may include many people with disabilities, including those who are blind or partially sighted, deaf or hard of hearing. Non-disabled people may be limited by the capabilities of their devices, the speed of Internet connections or the environment (e.g. bright daylight and a blurred view on the screen). You can learn more about how to ensure proper accessibility here.
Unavailability of the app for people with special needs will deprive you of a powerful purchasing group. If you care about developing your software and want to make real profits from your digital product, you cannot afford such losses.
Unreadable interface = no results
UI (user interface) is one of the key elements of building a positive user experience. Most often, it is the interface that the user has the first contact with when using a digital product. The desire to create the WOW effect with the appearance of an application or website can be tempting, but it is a mistake to omit readability and simplicity in the UI.
The composition, buttons, descriptions of interface elements, the design of the main view or instructions should provide the user with a pleasant visual experience, but the readability of the entire interface is equally important. An end-user who struggles to understand where to click to trigger the desired action may opt out of further use of the product.
Good UX – benefits for your business
Good UX is not only about beautiful interfaces, but also the usability and intuitiveness of the software. The “WOW” effect can give you a great first impression. However, if you want to develop your product, think about the future and take care of usability that will provide the user with tangible value and a positive experience at every stage of using a digital product. What are the specific benefits for your business?
Saves time
UX testing of your software will allow you to significantly reduce the number of dissatisfied customers and the time that would have to be spent on improving the usability of the software or explaining the functionality to confused end users. An innovative approach to testing allows you to obtain a sufficient amount of data at the initial stages of projects. At Stepwise, we use effective UX research methods, and modern tools allow us to carry out this process very efficiently.
Saves money
Relatively fast tests provide a lot of information at a low cost. Way lower than learning from mistakes when you launch a product with a bad UX on the market. Proven end-user testing methodology and technology prototyping tools such as Invision significantly reduce the cost of improving software usability.
Better business results (Improved KPI)
Regardless of the type of software you develop, the final product has to fulfill a specific purpose. As a rule, this goal is related to how much you earn. Good UX of the software will increase the pleasure of using your product, and practical and intuitive interfaces will motivate users to take the desired action, such as a purchase. Properly selected colors and CTA buttons can significantly increase conversion in the application.
Acquiring loyal customers
A thoughtful, beautiful and practical design tailored to a specific group of recipients of your product will make you stand out on the market. The WOW effect can attract attention, but you will only gain loyal customers by providing a positive experience at every level of the application. Accessibility, practical UX, design consistent with the visual identification of your company are the elements thanks to which you will effectively stand out and gain customers faithful to your brand.
Distinction from the competition
Many companies that create their digital products use solutions that already exist on the market. The competitive benchmark can bring many benefits, but everything must be done in moderation. Good UX will allow you to use the best solutions on the market and at the same time provide an innovative approach that will distinguish you from the competition. Remember that they don’t sleep and are already planning further UX improvements in their products. Good UX will give your business a strategic competitive advantage.
Greater user safety
Anyone who thinks that good UX has nothing to do with software security is wrong. Thought over UX and UI guide the user by the hand through the effective use of a digital product. This also includes education in the field of good practices related to cybersecurity. This includes, for example, suggesting regular password changes and giving tips on the most secure passwords.
Summary
As your digital project grows, the business environment can change very dynamically. You should keep your finger on the pulse of your business. Do not put aside the effort of creating a good UX for the sake of getting the product to the market earlier or meeting the minimum budget. A bad UX can harm your product and, as a result, your entire business. If you take care of the proper usability of the application, website or system from the very beginning, you will prepare your company for stable and consistent growth.
If you want to avoid the accumulation of UX errors, find the support of a reliable software house. Stepwise will help you clarify your business needs and the expectations of your potential customers. Our experience allows us to effectively identify problems related to UX and implement the necessary improvements in the software. The use of modern tools and proven test methodologies provide a lot of key information, and at the same time do not burden your budget and resources significantly. This is how we will create a digital product with global potential that your customers will love.
