People often use the terms “UI” and “UX” interchangeably, but the truth is they are two completely different web design processes that can make all the difference for a company website. If you want to learn more about website development and are not familiar with either term, the following article breaks down the difference, and why it’s imperative to your website’s success.
User Interface
A website’s user interface (UI) design is the process of building interfaces in either software or physical electronic devices while focusing primarily on its visual appearance. These interfaces should be enjoyable and easy to use. Furthermore, people who work on UI tend to specialize in graphic design and branding design.
Three well-known formats of UI include:
- Graphical user interfaces (GUIs). These visual icons or images on digital control panels are what users can interact with. Some examples of a GUI include a computer’s desktop and a smartphone’s home screen.
- Voice-controlled interfaces (VUIs). As the name suggests, a user’s voice controls these interfaces. VUIs are typically voice assistants such as Apple’s Siri and Amazon’s Alexa.
- Gesture-based interfaces. These UIs exist in virtual reality (VR) programs and allow users to design 3D spaces using hand gestures.
User Experience
A website’s user experience (UX) design, on the other hand, is the process of creating products that offer worthwhile experiences to users. UX designers not only look at how users interact with a product but also look at how it’s advertised and constructed.
In the case of company website development, examples of UXs include a custom logo and an error prevention feature.
Why Are They Different?
While UI and UX both work well together, there are some major differences between the two design processes that you should keep in mind, especially when applying them to company websites.
UX designers would find potential issues with the website and outline how to deal with them. These designers will also look at the website’s content arrangement as well as the types of features that users may need. This process ends with the creation of stripped-down blueprints for the website.
Once all that’s done, UI designers will step in and craft the visual elements of this journey, which may include the website’s various icons and how the colors are used for its appearance.
Weave Design
Here at Weave Design, we help you create an incredible website design for your company. Our website development agency in Boston is dedicated to assisting your business in making the best possible UI and UX for its website. Click here to learn more about what Weave can do for you.