Experience is at front and centre of the ServiceNow platform, as more and more organisations seek user interfaces and experiences that are intuitive, tailored, and engaging.
Whilst often used in combination, UX and UI design are two very different concepts. So, what exactly is the difference between UX and UI?
User experience (UX) is the experience that a person has as they interact with a product. As UX designers, it is our job to improve customer satisfaction through the utility, ease of use, and delight provided in the interaction with a product. UX involves gathering data about user patterns and behaviours, researching users’ issues, and turning them into opportunities. By analysing the research, we collect information and develop a framework for the best experience for our users. UX design is about empathising with your users and building for them based on their needs.
User interface (UI) design prioritises the user’s visual experience. It’s a human-first approach to designing the aesthetic experience of a product and is the space where interactions between humans and machines occur. UI design is a fundamental element in human-computer interactions and focuses on the visual touchpoints of a product that allow the user to interact with the interface and accomplish their goals with ease and efficiency.
At Thirdera Digital (3D), UX design refers to researching and designing ServiceNow applications to fit our customers’ specific needs as well as addressing the pain points they are experiencing in their current process. Together with our ServiceNow Architects, we speak directly to our clients, hold workshops to reveal their values, goals, and bottlenecks, discuss how to avoid potential future issues, and examine the different widgets, which are an element of interaction that they can utilise to make their process more efficient. We then take our findings and build out a list of requirements before starting on the design, ensuring that we address each pain point. Next, we use critical thinking (and product knowledge) to create a customised, enhanced experience that will create seamless workflows and remove complexity. UX design is an iterative process, so uncovering new pain points in our client’s workflow is always a possibility. Our job as designers is to listen to our clients, take the feedback received and implement it into the design.
The UI component is always about the visual design of the interface. We design a branded portal using our clients’ design system, creating a holistic experience for the client and their team. We aim for a seamless, user-friendly, and visually familiar experience.
To ensure we provide the most up-to-date and relevant designs, the Thirdera Digital (3D) design team makes sure to stay on top of all the newest industry trends. That allows us to solve problems to the highest standard, help users stay engaged, and achieve their goals.
Our ServiceNow UX/UI experts created this eBook to explain eight UX/UI trends we see gaining traction and are currently being used in the industry. Thirdera Digital (3D) will be applying to our ServiceNow portal designs in 2022.