Have you ever found an amazing tool that looks awesome and it tends to be popular but when you try to use it you have no idea know HOW to use it? Or you get more confused when reading the instructions? This is the perfect example of an amazing design with poor user experience.
Creating an app is no easy task, the designer has to know how the app will work before considering the look and feel of the interface. For all UX designers, the end goal is to provide an effortless experience for the user.
True user experience goes far beyond giving customers what they say they want, or providing checklist features. It is crucial for the designer to use EMPATHY when designing an app. If you put yourself in the end users’ shoes this allows you to move beyond a superficial understanding to a real appreciation of users’ feelings and behaviors, which in the end will avoid any kind of frustration while navigating the app.
User experience designers often ask themselves:
- What is the user trying to accomplish while using this app?
- How will users feel when they use it?
- Will they be confused?
- If so, why?
- How can I solve this issue in the shortest and easiest way?
Designers are compelled to navigate the app from the beginning to end, trying to find frustrating steps, annoying alerts, or anything that can affect the users’ behavior or feelings. After all, if a product is well-designed, a user shouldn’t even have to think about it they will know the app is there to help them and will not confuse or frustrate them.
