Prior to taking this course, I was unfamiliar with the concept User Experience and to be honest I wasn’t even sure why this term even mattered. Fast forward, to twelve weeks later, now I know that this notion is everything and more to the digital ecosystem.
I recently attended a webinar on “User Experience” hosted by our very own Amy Lavin, which proved more so why this concept is so important.
In order for a website to be successful, it is essential to be engaging, you have roughly about 5 seconds to engage with a visitor before they leave your site. Think About it…….5 Seconds, which isn’t a lot of time, therefore you need to ensure all of the elements of the user experience are being touched on. From branding, usability, functionality and content, these foundations are necessary to create a good user experience. And it all starts with Information Architecture, IA-which can be defined as “the structural design of shared environments, it is the art and science of organizing and labeling websites intranets, online communities and software to support usability and findability”. IA connects the user with both content and context, providing the user a seamless experience along their journey.
User experience is a person’s approach/spirits about a particular product or service. In my eyes, UE can be considered the customer service in digital, as it is all about the user interaction and experience.
Before formally rolling out a website, one should prototype which can help avoid any type of reworks, it basically is a test and learn. Prototypes are necessary when developing websites, they ensure all T’s are crossed and I’s are dotted, they demonstrate functionality, improve product adoption and user engagement, and can help avoid any fiascos before execution. You wouldn’t buy a car without test driving it, would you?
I’m sure at one point or another, we have all come across or will come across websites that we both genuinely enjoyed and those we did not, this is User Experience. So the next time, you are navigating through one of your commonly used web sites, be mindful of how it makes you feel-because in the end, it’s all about you-the user.
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_architecture
Lavin, Amy- June 2021- “Getting Started with Building a Website-User Experience”
Hansberry Jaclyn, June 2021 “Prototyping & UX & UI Design”
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