Good Experience Design is Obsolete
—by Michael Wachs and Adam Olenn
Good experience design is obsolete.
That might seem like a strange perspective for an agency that designs user experiences, but it’s true. Good UX/UI really mattered in 2005, so what happened?
People paid attention.
As a result, good user experience design became the default expectation. In 2007 the iPhone obliterated everyone’s understanding of what a cell phone could be. They left the Old World of incremental UX improvement for a new continent of radical transformation. This was the moment that everyone suddenly understood that design isn’t an add-on, it’s the main event.
The reason good experience design is irrelevant is because great experience design is now the baseline. “Great” is table stakes.
Businesses that have embraced this philosophy have thrived: Dyson, Apple, Yeti.
On the other hand, even mega-heavyweight businesses have seen major initiatives tank due to poor design: Google Glass, Microsoft Zune, Amazon Fire.
Why?
As Paul Papas, SVP at IBM put it,
“the last best experience anyone has anywhere becomes the minimum expectation for the experience they want everywhere.” In other words, if you add compelling interactions to your web app, users rely on them. This builds loyalty and stops them from switching to competitors without that level of polish.”
In other words, if you introduce a new product or service that offers real value, but users’ ability to access that value is hindered by insufficient empathy in your design, they’ve already dumped you. They’re just waiting for a better version to come along. When it does, money spent on surveys, increased marketing, or loyalty programs is just denial.
Obviously, this can doom a product. But the stakes are actually much higher than that. A bad user experience can sink an otherwise strong product. And it can be just as detrimental to the overall brand. As a case study, consider the video game franchise Fallout.
First released in 1997, Fallout is set in the aftermath of a Cold War-era nuclear war. With rich storytelling, interactive gameplay, and expansive worlds to explore, it was a smash hit, and spawned multiple sequels. Fans and critics raved, and the hits kept coming: Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout 3, Fallout 4… And numerous spin-offs, until Fallout ‘76.
Rushed into production by Bethesda Game Studios, it was bug-ridden and glitchy. Unstable servers crashed. The characters and story arcs were completely different. Fans revolted, along with many BGS employees. Critics panned it. Sales slumped. That was six years ago, and Bethesda Game Studios has yet to introduce a major release in the franchise. In fact, their approach to shoring up the company has been to take the game concept to Amazon and turn it into a streaming series.
That show has earned strong reviews from fans and critics, and so it appears Bethesda Game Studios’ long game may pay off, generating enough revenue to sustain the company while re-igniting interest in the franchise. But was all that pain and financial peril really necessary?
Of course, when people think “design,” they generally imagine one aspect: visual design, or “look and feel.” But design is a much broader term, and it’s important to think holistically. As a case in point, in 2015, CNN redesigned their website to be much cleaner and less cluttered.
That sounds great, but they didn’t balance visual design with the technical aspects of the site, and slow load times created a terrible user experience, driving users away in droves.
Ultimately, taking great care in the design of user experiences is an investment in a company’s longevity. It’s a means of signaling to users, “we care how you feel,” which is the engine of customer loyalty. After all, if someone says you’re important to them, but their actions show they don’t care about your feelings, it’s just manipulation.
For some, investing in design can feel risky because money goes out, and returns take time to manifest. But the reality is that investing in great design is the safest course of action—if you have the courage to stay the course. That’s because it shows your customers—rather than telling them—that they matter to you; that they’re worth your time; and that you’re willing to work hard to safeguard their time and comfort.
That’s how you earn customers’ respect, trust, and loyalty. There is no greater ROI.
Adam Olenn and Michael Wachs lead Rustle & Spark, a branding and marketing agency.