UX Strategy: What it is and what to consider when crafting one
Why trust EnticEdge?
At EnticEdge, we are healthcare and wellness business consultants dedicated to helping companies clarify and align around their competitive advantage, which we call your authentic edge! Our team brings 30+ years of healthcare expertise in strategic advising, value mapping, business consulting, client experience, team and cross-departmental alignment, and more, all tailored to helping teams achieve mission-driven growth.
We recently discussed how UX Design is the silent ambassador of your brand, creating a compelling experience for your user/customer/patient that leads to brand loyalty and conversion, or frustrates them and dissuades them from engaging with your organization. Since the opportunity presented to your customers, patients, and partners by your experience design is critical, having a strong UX Strategy in place becomes a must. In this blog, we’ll discuss what a UX (User Experience) Strategy is, what the different components are, and how to build and maintain a strong UX Strategy. We’ll also give you a few notes on what UX Strategy consultants are and how they can help ensure an effective and engaging experience for your target markets.
What is UX Strategy?
UX Strategy, or User Experience Strategy, is a comprehensive action plan that informs the totality of experiences your users may have with your products, services, team, or technologies and is most likely available to them 24 hours daily, 7 days a week digitally. A strong UX Strategy will align user/customer needs and preferences with business goals and objectives.
Components of a UX Strategy
Overarching Goals and Objectives:
The most foundational components of a UX strategy are the overarching goals and objectives. What does the ideal user experience look like at your organization? What are the goals and objectives that you’re looking to achieve with improved user experience? It’s essential to vet the opportunity presented and the ROI (return on investment) potential of improving the experience for your users, customers, patients, and/or partners, and remember each experience should be tailored appropriately. Your overarching goals and objectives set a clear direction for all UX efforts, including your intended call to actions for each user audience, ensuring that they contribute to the overall success and impact of the business. By defining what you aim to achieve in terms of user experience, you can better ensure that every UX decision and innovation is purpose-driven and strategically-aligned.
Positioning and Corporate Alignment:
A significant component of your UX strategy is aligning all goals and objectives with corporate goals, objectives, mission, values, and messaging. Aligning UX strategy with corporate positioning ensures that user experience design not only resonates with users, but also reflects and reinforces the brand's values and market stance. As part of this alignment, budget considerations are necessary to guarantee that UX initiatives are financially viable, and competitive analyses are necessary to provide insights into market trends and expectations, helping to differentiate your UX approach in a crowded marketplace.
Target Market and User Personas:
Understanding your target market and developing detailed user personas is crucial for creating experiences that truly resonate with your audience. This component involves listening, in-depth analysis, and empathy to capture the needs, preferences, and behaviors of your users, informing a UX strategy that is deeply user-centric and tailored to engage and satisfy your specific target demographics.
User Research:
The cornerstone of any effective UX strategy, user research, provides the empirical insights needed to make informed design decisions. Weighing research findings against corporate objectives and finances is the next step. Through various methodologies, from surveys to user testing, this component gathers essential data on user needs and experiences, ensuring that your UX design is grounded in real-world user feedback and not just theoretical or only-internal assumptions.
Design Principles and Standards:
Establishing a set of design principles ensures consistency and quality across all user touchpoints, and heavily influences the execution of your UX strategy, especially with multiple team members involved. Additionally, different standards should be considered when setting design principles including sustainability and accessibility standards, among others. Strong design principles and standards not only provide an intuitive, engaging, frictionless experience, but also communicate inclusive brand personality and values. This includes communicating a commitment to ethical design and inclusivity, by ensuring that your products are not only aesthetically pleasing and functional, but also environmentally responsible and accessible to all users.
Feedback Loops and Opportunities:
Creating mechanisms for ongoing feedback allows for continuous learning and improvement on your user experience. This component emphasizes the importance of listening to users and stakeholders alike, using their insights to refine and evolve the UX design over time, ensuring it remains relevant and effective.
Team Alignment:
Ensuring that all team members, not just UX designers, understand and are committed to the UX strategy fosters a cohesive experience for your users or customers. Including cross-departmental collaboration highlights the value of diverse perspectives and expertise in creating a user experience that is holistic, innovative, and seamlessly integrated with all aspects of the business. As an example, UX designers, marketers, and sales team members are all affecting the user’s experience (with product design, messaging, and customer service, respectively), so ensuring that these team members are aligned and bought-in on the UX strategy at an appropriate level is important to provide the best outcomes for your end user.
Tracking and Adapting:
An effective UX strategy is not static but evolves with changing user needs, technological advancements, and market dynamics. This component focuses on the importance of monitoring performance metrics, gathering user feedback, and staying attuned to industry trends, allowing for agile adaptations and continuous optimization of the user experience.
The Role of a UX Strategist or UX Consultant
A UX strategist or UX consultant plays a pivotal role in bridging the gap between a company's strategic objectives and the user's needs, ensuring that the design and implementation of UX elements align with both. Here's what they typically focus on:
Strategic Alignment: They ensure that aspects of the user experience align with the broader business goals and objectives, translating the company's vision into tangible UX outcomes that drive engagement and growth.
User Advocacy: Acting as the research-backed voice of the user within an organization, UX strategists research and articulate user needs, preferences, and challenges, ensuring that the product development process is user-centered before decisions are made.
Cross-functional Collaboration: They facilitate collaboration across different departments, ensuring that UX strategy is integrated and consistent across all touchpoints, from marketing to product development and operations.
Continuous Learning and Adaptation: UX strategists monitor and analyze user feedback and market trends, advocating for iterative changes that enhance the user experience over time, ensuring the product remains competitive and relevant.
At EnticEdge, we don't just apply standard UX strategies; we infuse strategies with relevant industry knowledge. Our approach involves:
Deep-Dive Analysis: We go beyond surface-level insights to understand the nuanced needs by your target market, leveraging our strategic expertise to uncover deeper user motivations and behaviors.
Holistic Strategy Development: Our strategies are comprehensive, considering facets of the user's journey and the business ecosystem, ensuring alignment across all touchpoints for a seamless and impactful user experience.
Innovative Solutions: We pride ourselves on our ability to think outside the box, applying innovative thinking and cutting-edge methodologies to solve complex UX challenges, while filtering out hidden biases or assumptions whenever possible to deliver differentiated user experiences.
Strategic Partnership: Working with EnticEdge means more than just having a strategic advisor or consultant; it means also having a strategic partner who is invested in your success, providing continuous support, insights, and adaptations to keep you ahead in a dynamic market.
By partnering with EnticEdge, you gain more than just expert advice; you gain a dedicated ally committed to elevating your UX strategy to drive meaningful engagement, customer loyalty, and growth.
