{"id":9826,"date":"2021-05-14T14:55:09","date_gmt":"2021-05-14T18:55:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ladybugz.com\/?p=9826"},"modified":"2021-12-15T09:37:34","modified_gmt":"2021-12-15T14:37:34","slug":"ux-or-ui-design","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ladybugz.com\/ux-or-ui-design\/","title":{"rendered":"UX or UI Design \u2013 What\u2019s the Difference?"},"content":{"rendered":"

The confusion about UX and UI design terminology<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

What is UX, What is UI, and are they the same? UX stands for User Experience, and UI stands for User Interface. But for many marketers, these terms are a bit foggy<\/a>\u2014so much so that the two terms are (incorrectly) used interchangeably.\u00a0<\/span>If the differences between UX and UI design are confusing to you, you\u2019re not alone. <\/span><\/p>\n

But let\u2019s be clear\u2014while UX and UI both essential for website design, and they do overlap, there are distinct differences.<\/span><\/p>\n

We will dig down and explore the similarities, the differences, and how UX and UI form a complementary whole.<\/span><\/p>\n

UX and UI design are similar\u2014but different<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

There are many analogies for the symbiosis of UX and UI. For now, let\u2019s consider the human body. There are skeletons, muscles, tendons, organs, and other internal functions that physically enable us to interact with the world. This internal system is akin to UX elements relying on coding and applications.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Then there are external features and \u201cornaments\u201d that are outward-facing\u2014such as our eye color, hair color, mannerisms, and clothing. These features give us additional ways to represent ourselves beyond our basic physical functions\u2014making them akin to UI\u2019s use of fonts, color, images, and other stylistic elements.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Everyone has a skeleton (UX) and external representations (UI). They rely on each other, and in combination, they represent how we interact in the public sphere. But just as you can easily tell the difference between external and internal features in a human, you can distinguish between UX and UI.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The chicken and the egg problem<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

Some would argue that you need to finalize UX before you can proceed to UI. I would argue differently, though.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

UX and UI design work together to achieve a common goal: Creating a user-centric website<\/a> that makes it easy, intuitive, and enjoyable for users to find the information they want and perform tasks that bring them closer to purchase. Putting the two in separate silos creates a division that can hinder reaching the overarching goal.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Further, UX and UI designers have overlapping knowledge, but specific sets of deep expertise. Collaboration and idea-sharing at all stages can result in a site that is stronger than one in which UX simply passes along a set structure to UI, which then puts \u201cicing on the cake.\u201d In addition to creating synergies, working together makes the process more efficient, with less need to scrap or significantly modify conflicting elements that were planned by UX or UI without the other group\u2019s knowledge.<\/span><\/p>\n

UX and UI design responsibilities differ on team skill sets<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

Here\u2019s a big caveat: While I\u2019ve divided the responsibilities and processes below as if they fall neatly into UI or UX, it\u2019s more complicated than that. In many ways, the discussion below provides guidelines, rather than rigid rules.<\/span><\/p>\n

Many UX experts<\/a> also have strong design skills, and many UI designers have skills that would normally fall into the UX camp. Some web designers claim to do both, although they are likely stronger in one area than the other.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

All of the UX and UI areas discussed below are essential, the composition of the team will more exactly determine how roles and responsibilities are divided.<\/span><\/p>\n

Research is the foundation to solid UX<\/b><\/span><\/h2>\n

UX generally takes the lead role in researching background areas that will ultimately drive the structure, functionality, and look of the website. Areas for research include:\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n