3 Things I Learned about UX Design during my Content Strategy Degree
The first year of my content strategy degree is coming to a close. While the first semester provided a more general introduction into Content- and Business Strategy, the second semester had a strong focus on UX Design.
U-what?
As a former teacher and English student, my design knowledge was basically zero before attending the User Experience & Interaction Design class taught by Dr. Fleur Jeanquartier.
But before we dive into my learnings from this course, let me provide a brief definition of the term for those like me, who might not be familiar with it.
UX stands for user experience and “encompasses all aspects of a user’s interaction with a product”. When used in relation to design, UX refers to “the process of enhancing user satisfaction with a product by improving the usability, accessibility, and pleasure provided in the interaction between user and product.” (Both quotes are taken from my lecture slides by Dr. Fleur Jeanquartier)
Here is another brief definition:
In my own words, UX refers to any interaction a user has with a product (whether that’s searching for a new show to watch on Netflix or adding another candle to your Etsy cart). Technically, it even encompasses offline experiences, but as a future content strategist, I am a lot more intrigued by the digital world.
Good UX design is intuitive, accessible, and most importantly, it meets the user’s needs. What sounds simple can, in reality, take years to perfect.
I am not, by any means, a UX design expert. However, I have picked up a few insights along the way. Here are my top 3 takeaways from this semester:
1. Different is not always better
I’m a strong advocate for diversity in any area of life. However, when it comes to UX design, different is not always better.
As part of our UX design class project, we evaluated a smartphone app based on Jakob Nielsen’s 10 Usability Heuristics. Heuristic №4 refers to consistency and standard, internally as well as externally. What this means ist that good UX is not only consistent within a single family of products, but also takes into consideration industry standards and conventions.
One of my findings, evaluating the Too Good To Go app, was that similar applications share the same main menu structure. Below you can see a screenshot of the Too Good to Go, Treatwell and the Thermomix Cookidoo app menus. All three menus are located at the bottom of the screen and feature icons as well as a description of each menu item. And all three menus display the ‘discover’ section on the very left.
Another example of this type of external consistency was that all the apps I looked at, located their back arrow (that takes a user back to the previous screen) in the top left. I even had a conversation with my husband about this, who claimed that Snapchat has the back arrow in a different location, often causing him to push the wrong button.
When users navigate your website or app, they will have certain expectations. If 99% of smartphone apps have their back button in the top left, that is where a user will expect to find it. When apps do not adhere to this standard, users can feel confused, disgruntled, and disappointed. Not necessarily what you would want them to associate with your product.
2. Content without design is ineffective
As a future content strategist, I care deeply about the relationship between content and design. After all, isn’t it the responsibility of good design to facilitate the search, digestion, and comprehension of content?
“The design provides context, intention, trust, and helps in bringing content to life.” (Source)
When navigating a website or app, most users have a specific goal in mind, whether that’s finding specific information (e.g. opening times) or performing a specific action (e.g. ordering a product). When content and design work together, processes like this should be smooth sailing.
3. Keep it Simple
Last but not least, I learned that good UX design is usually simple. Instead of trying to create a piece of art, listen to what your user needs and give them, well, exactly that. There’s no point in designing a rocket ship, when your users really only needed a bike to overcome their problem all along.
