Effective web and user experience (UX) design – complementary disciplines which work together to build high performing websites, portals, e-commerce stores, apps and tools – are key to providing the positive experience that keeps users loyal to your product and brand.
While web design is more concerned with ‘look and feel’, UX design focusses on the experience of users as they move through and interact with a site, app or tool, optimising the design to encourage certain behaviours and make it easy for the user to accomplish their goals.
Working with us
At Workingtree Studio, we are strong advocates of User Centered Design (UCD), a well established methodology based on gaining and applying a thorough understanding of your users when approaching each task. It addresses the whole user experience in relation to your business requirements and is tested and refined by user evaluation.
We use this methodology when designing the content management system (CMS) too and your Admin users are central when developing the interface. Understanding where the balance between flexibility and design integrity should be set will provide the optimum combination of templates, components and drag-and-drop blocks. Understanding the right mix of tools and reporting required in relation to user roles will provide a lean, efficient and easy-to-use admin dashboard.
We can design a site, app or tool as a standalone service, as part of a design and build project or as part of a full design, build, hosting and maintenance package.
Our approach is client-centric and agile. The process will vary according to the project and your preferences, but the general outline is likely to be as follows:
The process
- Initial meeting – Establish roles and responsibilities, preferred ways of working.
- Discovery phase – Explore with you in detail project goals and audiences. Gather knowledge and supporting data from you. Together, set success metrics and finalise a project plan. Supply a cost breakdown and a statement of work.
- Design phase – Create user-personas, which will be used as reference to create tailored user-journeys (flows) with a structure to support them. Research and, as appropriate, run surveys and focus groups. Discuss GDPR and accessibility. In the case of an e-commerce site, assess with you whether particular features are required, such as CRM integration or personalised shopping, and which platform will best meet your needs. Develop the information architecture. Map API connections with outside systems. Create wireframes and prototypes. On approval, create user interface (UI) designs.
- Testing and feedback phase – Test prototypes. Undertake A/B testing as appropriate. Make adjustments as necessary.
- (For sites, apps and tools that are already in use, a Design / UX audit will provide transformative insights with actionable recommendations).
After sign-off, you may then choose to move to the Web development or E-commerce development process with us.
Design / UX audit
For sites, apps and tools that are already in use, a design / UX audit will provide an end-to-end review of the experience your customers have at every stage when they interact with your business via a digital interface. The landing page, the user interactions, the content, messaging and communications – everything will be looked at.
(In the case of an online store, our e-commerce audit process is described here).
The Discovery phase will be similar to that for a new project. Then, informed by project goals and research, we will test user journeys to ensure functionality is intuitive and free from barriers.
New visitors form first impressions of a site, app or tool very quickly, directly affecting how they perceive it, use it, and remember it. They need to understand the particular problem solved by your product and its quality or service advantages. The user experience should be smooth and the product easy to use.
Whether the goal is to drive an enquiry, produce a conversion, gather data, provide information or deliver a service, user flow analysis will be conducted as part of the audit, which will help determine which areas need improvement, why users might be hesitating at certain points and what can be done to fix this.
We will produce an audit report, containing an overview of the design improvements we have identified and a clear set of insights and actionable recommendations.
For large platforms with high volumes of traffic or revenue, the audit would typically include detailed data analysis, CRM strategy and extensive user testing. For smaller platforms we adopt a leaner approach focusing on key user journeys and functionalities.