Being Ahead Through Technology?
Introduction
Audi is a car company founded in Germany that was founded in 1885 and since its conception, has always been focused on technological advancement in its automobiles. Audi’s proposed vehicle concepts are stunning and eco-friendly (despite the supposed emissions scandal from 10 years ago). Although their cars appear to be at the forefront of technological advancement and luxury, does the user interface on their website emulate the same ideology? Let’s take a look.
Website UX
Audi”s desktop website appears to be simple, however, it does not “scream” luxury brand. The location of viewable sections is conveniently placed on the top of the page, and the drop-down menus are easy to navigate. In the top-right-hand corner, we see a user login logo, which tells us that Audi does encourage vehicle owners to register an account with them. Thus, at their core, they are providing personalization for consumers, allowing their website to be consumer-centric. It is safe to say, however, that the design itself is not innovative. The website structure is the same as any basic-level website for a standard car brand. Nothing about the website states exclusivity and luxury, and instead, it leaves the user feeling the experience is quite dull. In terms of aesthetics, we see that the website uses a white background with photos of their newest vehicle lineup. The photos do not look artistic in any way and are pretty generalized, even for their pricier models. The content does educate about the vehicles, however, it is not exactly exciting to view. Little information is provided about the vehicles on the first click, and it takes about 5–7 clicks in order to get to the page of the vehicle you are interested in. Henceforth, the UX for the desktop webpage is nothing special, especially since it lacks AI functionality.
Mobile UX
The mobile UX for Audi is even more difficult to use than the desktop version of the website. Excessive cookie usage makes the page very difficult to navigate, even on a newer phone. The design is very simple with an all-white background, however, much of the time, the pictures fail to load and the website is running very slow, regardless of internet speed. Since the structure is exactly the same as the desktop website, with a few modifications for mobile, it is safe to say that the website offers nothing special to consumers. It is the same plain design that is somehow worsened by being adjusted for mobile.
Conclusion
Overall, the UX interface for Audi across all platforms is a bit disappointing. Their website design does not align with their core ideology of “Being Ahead Through Technology”. In the modern era, being ahead through technology needs to occur in many different facets, including consumer resources management. If your platform is not usable, then customers' experience with your brand will not be positive. Henceforth, Audi needs to be more innovative in their website design, as in this market, just having brand loyalty is not enough.
Works Cited
Audi America Website. https://www.audiusa.com/us/web/en.html
Audi Media Center. https://www.audi-mediacenter.com/en/the-new-audi-a7-sportback-the-sporty-face-of-the-luxury-class-9496/gui-design-digital-user-interfaces-9503
OSV. (2022). “A Brief History of Audi”. OSV. https://www.osv.ltd.uk/brief-history-of-audi/
