As user experience has evolved over the years, it’s become intertwined with a business’s overall goals. No longer just about creating a visually cohesive interface, UX has evolved into a much more immersive concept. This could make it an integral part of business strategy, but as UX has transformed, there are organizations who may not know how to include UX goals in their objectives.
According to UXMatters, some companies are stuck focusing on design, not seeing how they can use UX to help generate revenue, or further other objectives. Smashing magazine also emphasized that idea, pointing out that UX designers should strive for more than just pleasing the user – design can push consumers to complete certain actions and show a better return on investment for businesses.
To leverage UX design for these goals, here are a few tips:
Identify business goals, then usability goals
Before determining how you can use UX to benefit your business, you’ll first need to decide what your goals and objectives actually are. While objectives are broader targets like “generate revenue,” goals focus more on day-to-day or smaller achievements, like increasing click-through rates. Established enterprises likely already have these outlined, but newer ones may need to take some time to decide.
“Focus on user needs and how they match companies’ intentions.”
User Experience magazine recommended defining “usability goals” as well as overall business goals. To do so, companies can conduct interviews with management, stakeholders and end users and review communication materials. The emphasis is to focus on user needs and how they match with the company’s intentions.
“Sometimes business goals appear too high-level to be useful,” according to the magazine. “User-centered research and analysis helps drill down into the goals, uncovering and clarifying any issues.”
Include designers in different operations
It sounds kind of obvious, but to streamline UX and overall objectives, designers need to understand more about your business. Whether your designer is in-house or freelance, they should be included in as much communication as possible.
UXMatters highlights the importance of designers accessing internal documents, such as marketing plans and competitive strategies, to get a full understanding of overarching business plans and how they can fit into design.
They should also get enough information about your competitors to know what steps to take in the future. If a competing company is using certain UX features, your business’s website may want to follow its lead. Some of this information is readily available with research and the use of tools. However, some of this information will need to come from deeper digging and a expert-level understanding of the industry. If you’re working with a new or freelance designer, you’ll need to supply this information.
With these tips in mind, you can make better use of UX. If you know how to develop a relationship with consumers through strategic design, you have the key to achieving your business objectives.