“All these must be built with due reference to durability, convenience, and beauty.”
– Vitruvius
What is UX?
UX stands for “User Experience.” A UX designer is largely concerned with the way a user is able to navigate a website or application. They focus on making use of a product simple, intuitive, and efficient; in essence, they care about a product’s “flow.”
UX designers deliver products such as screen wireframes, storyboards, and sitemaps to visualize what users will see in particular sections of an application, where and how users can navigate through the application, and how each potential path relates to the user’s anticipated use of the product.
Designers often conduct user tests to locate stumbling blocks and unclear options and provide iterative designs until these difficulties are minimized.
What is UI?
UI, on the other hand, stands for “User Interface.” There is no complete separation of duties between UI and UX, and designers will often be tasked with working on both; however, UI concerns differ in their focus. UI designers specialize in the appearance of products, both in terms of aesthetics and clarity. They concern themselves with color schemes, font styles, page layout, determining the best format for an input, etc.
A typical design change a UI designer might suggest could be to move important information to a more prominent position on the screen or to use dropdown-selected options where an open-ended field existed previously.
The Importance of UX and UI
UX and UI are vital to modern website and application design. An inconsistent or unappealing appearance can convince users not to open an application in the first place, and a difficult or opaque interface can stop them in their tracks if they do; moreover, design tends to compound a user’s impression of a product’s functional issues.
Even minor bugs can loom quite large when viewed in the context of an ungainly interface. Conversely, strong UX/UI doesn’t just aid in viewing or navigating a solution. It can create the general impression that developers care, that a product is well-supported, and that the remainder of a user’s experience is relatively likely to be positive.
How TechArk Can Help
TechArk employs a number of top-notch UX and UI designers. Our entire business centers around designing websites and applications our customers request, so we have plenty of experience nailing down the best look and flow for a software solution; in fact, we’re so proud of our designs we keep an online portfolio of our past work for potential customers to review.
If you have a solution in mind and want our help with the UX/UI, contact us today!
UI? UX? YOU? Learn more about the principals of this critical aspect of graphic design, and how it might be affecting YOUR bottom line.
