Today I will not bore you with the theory of what UX design is. I assume that if you came across this article you already know something about UX design and its profits. Instead, let me introduce the advantages of starting work with a designer already at an early stage – from the beginning.

1. UX designers take care of UX awareness

It is important that everyone, especially the business side, is aware of the importance of UX and that in order to make good UX, designers need to talk to the users. Who will explain it better than the UX designers themselves? Let’s let the  UX designer talk about the power of UX and convince stakeholders that this is needed. In the end business and UX designers need to agree on common goals and plan tasks also connected with the research.

Moreover, thanks to building UX awareness, we can build a more committed development team that will have a sense of mission in solving real human problems.

2. UX designers ask people

Let designers find potential users of your app and talk with them. They can investigate their requirements, needs, demands, motivations, and goals. It can be made in many different ways, which not always will demand huge effort like online surveys. However, don’t be afraid to invest more in it. It is important to check at this stage whether there is any interest in the product you have in mind.

3. UX designers can investigate the market

Preparing a Competition analysis can help your business to identify opportunities. By analyzing competitors’ apps, the UX designer can identify areas where their designs may be lacking or whether there is any space for improvements. This allows you to identify opportunities to create a more innovative and competitive product that meets user needs more effectively = offer users a new value proposition. 

By investigation, UX designers can also learn from best practices and avoid pitfalls. Competitors may have already implemented successful design solutions or UX patterns that they can inspire from. By studying their designs, they can gain insights into what works well and apply those best practices to your own application. On the other hand they can also help you identify usability issues or design flaws that your app should avoid. By learning from their mistakes, you can ensure a smoother user experience and avoid frustrating your users with similar issues.

4.  UX designers validate business requirements with knowledge obtained from users and research

UX works collect insight which can help to justify business decisions, spark innovation, and enable you to create a user-centered application that stands out from the competition. To make it happen it is important to create a comprehensive understanding of user needs, preferences, and market dynamics. And change the direction if it turns out that the initial assumptions were wrong. But to quickly catch it, they should be involved in discussions with the business as they need to understand their point of view and priorities set by them. UX designers need to know business needs. From the beginning.

5. UX designer test and iterate

And these tests and iterations are quicker and cheaper than improving already developed solutions. UX designers can start with lo-fi sketches and wireframes, get feedback from team members, business and users and improve previous assumptions. In addition, preparation of hi-fi mockups is mostly quicker and less expensive than coding.

During the design phase the UX designer should possess answers to the questions: Is the flow understandable for the user? Do end users know how to interact with it? Does it provide the desired solution to the user’s problems? If not, they still have a chance to improve the design. This can last until feedback from all stakeholders will be satisfying.

Summary

  1. Involving designers in the work on a newly emerging app is crucial for creating a user-centered product. 
  2. Their insights can help you to validate your initial assumptions and take appropriate action in time.
  3. Works on sketches and mockups are quicker and cheaper than introducing improvements and already developed product.

If you want to know how to apply UX when reverting an existing app – check this link.