ELEGANT UI/UX DESIGN

While certainly related, UI and UX are two different concepts in design. UX focuses on the end-user’s overall experience when interacting with an application. You’ve likely heard the words usability, accessibility, functionality, efficiency, and flow when describing UX. At its core, UX forces designers to think through how an application’s design will support the goals of the end-user. By contrast, UI is a bit more focused on the visual and interactive elements of the design. Think icons, buttons, layout, colors and fonts. UI makes up the look and feel of a product.

Trends matter because they shift the general expectations of your users over time. Failing to keep your app in step with what users want and expect will result in diminished engagement over time. In technology as in life, the challenge is trying to determine if something is a lasting trend or a passing fad. Using another house analogy, you wouldn’t want to remodel your entire kitchen based on a passing fad. You need any updates to be relevant long enough for your investment to pay off. Likewise, you don’t want to find yourself iterating on your application design until you are sure a trend will be relevant in the long term.

In the design process, there are often many competing goals. When designing for the users, app experience generally tops the list. When designing for developers, goals such as ease, speed, and cost to implement may be the priorities. Then there is designing to your vision as the client, and the harsh reality of designing to the project budget and timeline—each with an entirely different set of goals. To succeed, expert balance is required. A project that meets the needs of the developers and hits the timeline but leaves the end-user out of the picture is ultimately a failure because no one will use the application, yet failing the business goals isn’t acceptable either.