In today’s digital age, user experience is everything. From the aesthetic elements of your brand to your digital system's navigation and loading speeds, every UX design decision that you make has a part to play in the acquisition, retention and satisfaction of your users. But, how do we identify ways to improve user experience? The answer is UX auditing.
Maddie Zapletal
Technical WriterWith a well-structured UX audit, we can examine user pain points, spot usability issues, identify conversion blockers and so much more!
Whether you need to transform your internal tools to make processes simpler for your staff or want to rise above your competitors and provide a flawless customer experience from start to finish, UX auditing is the first step to finding a solution.
If you’ve stumbled across our page by chance, there’s a possibility that you already have some understanding of UX auditing and the UX design process. If that’s the case, go ahead and scroll on down to the benefits below. (There are plenty of cool features for you to discover, so we won’t be disappointed if you simply can’t wait to find out what they are!)
But, if you’re new to UX design and are finding it all a little overwhelming, fear not. UX, as a term, is actually pretty self explanatory.
UX is essentially an acronym. The “U” stands for user and the ‘X’ stands for experience.
Sandwich both of these letters together, stick design on the end, et voila, you get ‘UX design’ - pretty simple, right?
When we talk about UX design from a tech perspective, we’re referring to all of the elements that make up the customer journey or ‘user experience’. From landing on your web app to locating your menu, tapping your service buttons and then submitting a form or purchasing - EVERY step of this process is part of the UX design.
If the UX design of your app or digital system isn’t well thought out, it will fail to meet the requirements of the user and can actually become more of a hindrance than a help. In fact, we could probably sit here and write a whole article about the problems of bad UX design but we’ll save that one for another day…
For now, the most important thing to remember is that quality UX design should never be overlooked.
Good UX design is not just an added bonus or ‘a nice thing to have’, it’s an essential component that helps to guarantee meaningful user experiences and keep people coming back.
Most people are familiar with the term ‘audit’. It’s something that is used across nearly all sectors and industries to spot trends, data patterns, barriers, opportunities… the list goes on.
Therefore, when we use the term ‘UX audit’, it is exactly what you’d imagine - a systematic evaluation process that can help us to make smarter, more strategic decisions that improve the user experience.
Most often, UX audits are undertaken to analyse mobile applications and other software products. By gathering valuable data and information from these products, we can make improvements, troubleshoot issues and ensure that everything is working like a charm!
When it comes to UX audits, there are no rules in place to dictate when you should or shouldn’t carry out an audit, however, there are some specific scenarios within which UX auditing can be extremely valuable.
Here are just a few…
Now that we’ve covered the importance of UX design and UX auditing, let's take a look at some of the key benefits!
When conducting a UX audit, most beady-eyed UX designers will be on the lookout for user pain points that may be disrupting the user journey. If you’re a B2B or B2C company, it’s critical that you iron out any design flaws that could prevent your customer or client from engaging.
When we think about the things that could prevent a user from completing a desired action, there are a few things that might spring to mind. For example, broken CTA buttons, forms or links. However, even the most subtle design defects can affect the user experience and have an impact on engagement.
When you enlist the help of an experienced UX designer, they will pick up on both the obvious flaws and the subtleties to ensure that you have every chance of keeping the user engaged.
Whether you’re conducting a UX audit for a customer-facing product or an internal system, user satisfaction is key. At the end of the day, your product should be able to meet the needs and expectations of its users and, if it doesn’t, it’s not doing its job.
To understand the effect that UX design can have on user satisfaction, check out the following examples:
Business system
Ever been browsing a digital system on your mobile device, only to find that the text is cut off and you can’t locate the navigation menu? Since you can’t navigate the system or locate what you’re looking for, you decide to abandon ship. You might even feel obliged to share your frustrations with other users and discourage them from visiting the site.
Internal user applications
Perhaps, you’ve tried logging into an employee portal and have been unable to access your tasks, timesheet, workflow or instant messaging. Without access to these vital features, you’re left wondering what to do next. Maybe, you attempt to call IT or find alternative solutions but, by this point, you’ve spent over an hour trying to troubleshoot issues that could have been easily avoided with quality UX design.
What are the consequences?
With customer products, you’re more likely to end up with low customer retention rates, customer mistrust, and a poor brand reputation.
With internal applications, poorly designed processes can lead to low staff morale, decreased productivity, and even, a higher staff turnover.
But, remember, these things are easily avoidable and CAN be put right!
By conducting a thorough UX audit, you can alleviate user frustration and ensure that your products are fit for purpose.
Your UX design plays a critical role in ensuring that your products and services are accessible to all.
When we undertake UX design, we need to make sure that our applications create inclusive experiences that cater to a diverse range of users. With a comprehensive UX audit, we can look at features such as colour contrast, ease of navigation, keyboard accessibility, alt text and visual hierarchy.
By examining these features and taking accessibility into account, we can create or adapt existing tools to facilitate equal access for users with both physical disabilities and neurodiverse conditions.
Time and money can be a major concern for many businesses, particularly during periods of significant growth. With higher staff volumes, an increased workload and an expanding customer or client base, the need to tighten purse strings and prioritise effective time management becomes increasingly more important.
Luckily, for business owners, UX audits can contribute significantly to cost and time savings by preventing the need for expensive remedial actions in the future.
By detecting and addressing issues early on, businesses can avoid the expenses associated with redesigns or extensive revisions. This proactive approach allows for a timely resolution of usability concerns, ultimately minimising the resources and expenses required to rectify problems later down the road.
What’s more, if you decide to undertake a UX audit before developing an app for internal processes, your UX designer can facilitate your company expansion by implementing enhanced workflows, better employee management and an overall more structured system. It’s a win-win situation!
Earlier on, we touched upon the ways that UX auditing can be used to increase engagement rates for B2C and B2B companies. But, in order to understand what it is that makes your users engage with your system you need to carefully consider your UX personas.
When we talk about UX personas, we’re referring to fictional representations of your target audience, whether it be their name, age, buying habits or other behaviours.
By considering audience demographics and figuring out their goals and motivations, we can make more informed design choices and tailor products to suit customer needs. When implementing a UX audit, we can use this information to map out the customer journey and assess the relevance of your offering to that user.
Then, if we notice that there are various touchpoints missing from the process, we can document these in a gap analysis and use them to enhance the product.
If you feel that your business could benefit from a comprehensive UX design audit, why not get in touch?
Our experienced team of UX designers and developers will explore the ins and outs of your existing products so that we can enhance user satisfaction, increase revenue and enable you to stand out from your competitors.
Simply drop us a line, or call us on 0117 205 0425 to get started!
Want a clickable prototype for your product in just 2 weeks? Check out our design sprint process!
I'm Maddie Zapletal
Technical Writer at NewiconSubscribe to get our best content. No spam, ever. Unsubscribe at any time.
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