It’s a pretty common situation in a meeting: someone throws out a set of acronyms—usually in English—and a few people discreetly start searching online to figure out what they mean. This happens quite often with UX, and it’s understandable. After all, UXD (User Experience Design) is in a constant state of evolution, as the platforms and devices it interacts with are always changing. But let’s go back to the title of this post: What the hell is UX/UI?
Well, broadly speaking, UX is a specialized field within the world of design that focuses on shaping the interactive experience that users have while engaging with a digital product. UI, on the other hand, refers to the pure design of the interface—buttons, sleek interaction effects, text blocks, images—all of which are the result of solid UX groundwork. The distinction is important: UX comes first, UI follows.
UX is a vast field where design merges with marketing and development. It’s still relatively new in digital projects, and while there’s much yet to be done, we already have some key insights that guide us toward best practices.
In these early years of UX development, we’ve identified several essential patterns to consider when tackling a client project. These include:
- Gathering metrics and business objectives
- Designing interaction models
- Creating site maps
- Wireframing
- Developing experience maps
- Prototyping
- Usability testing
- Design (finally!)
So much so that today, there’s already software available to help us create prototypes tailored to analyzing these aspects of UX.
It’s also interesting to look at well-known UX case studies. Take Apple, for example. Its attention to design is famous worldwide, but it’s not just Apple’s aesthetics that captivate millions of customers. When asked about why they choose Apple products over others, many users responded:
“It’s smooth, it’s pleasant, it’s easy.” That is UX.
