It is never a bad time to take stock of what works for your business but at the start of a new year, it seems particularly apt to consider all the options. The major part of any assessment process should involve investigating what your users think when they interact with your company, whether that is via the telephone, in person or through your online presence. In fact, the quality of the user experience has an enormous effect on many aspects of your business’ success.
1. Optimises Your Brand’s Image
Every piece of information about your company that is in the public domain plays a part in creating your brand image. When the ratio of positivity to negativity rises, your image improves. This essentially means that every favourable experience that a user reports, or shares, will ultimately help to advance your reputation in the marketplace.
Such an improvement will have the additional benefit of making your company more visible online, especially on search engines and social platforms, leaving you more likely to be contacted by potential customers.
2. Improves Conversion Rates
Of course, it is not enough to attract enquiries. Converting interest into business opportunities is an integral component of commerce. Creating a positive user experience will help to achieve a high conversion rate and is a far more economically sound method than paying for more advertising.
The easier it is for a potential customer to source whatever it is they need from you, the greater the likelihood of them purchasing your products or services.
With personal interaction, either during a telephone call or in a face-to-face situation, it’s easier for you to gain insight into the customer’s needs and opinions, enabling you to adapt your approach and making a conversion more likely. However, the majority of initial encounters will be through your website.
4. Improves Overall Online Experience
When you cannot alter your approach to the customer on a minute-to-minute basis, you must be sure to optimise their experience at first contact. There is a wealth of information available regarding the best approach to this. It can involve such aspects as accessibility of content and ease of navigation as well as your perceived trustworthiness and the emotional response elicited by the features of the site.
With so many facets to consider, many businesses opt to employ the services of a user experience professional, who would have access to the most up-to-date research and tools with which to maximise the site’s user-friendliness.
Another advantage of using professional assistance such as those for design services is that you can take advantage of a experience in the field, leaving you free to concentrate on your own area of expertise.
Conclusion
At the heart of any successful business is the provision of essential or desirable goods or services. Companies strive to demonstrate a unique selling point, particularly in a highly competitive market. Without the core values of quality, value and honesty, no business can sustain a presence over the long term.
By developing and maintaining a practical and enjoyable user experience, you can enable the initial impression of your business to be a positive one, as well as improving customer satisfaction rates. Customers are the essential component of business; keep yours happy by ensuring their user experience is the best you can provide.
Want to learn more?
Want to get an industry-recognized Course Certificate in UX Design, Design Thinking, UI Design, or another related design topic? Online UX courses from the Interaction Design Foundation can provide you with industry-relevant skills to advance your UX career. For example, Design Thinking, Become a UX Designer from Scratch, Conducting Usability Testing or User Research – Methods and Best Practices are some of the most popular courses. Good luck on your learning journey!
(Lead image: Depositphotos)
