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Ask HN: How can I convince people that UX improvements are valuable?

I'm a product designer, so it boggles my mind on a daily basis that engineers and businesspeople don't seem to see much value in a UX improvement (whether graphic design, or better interactions, or what) if the "functionality" is the same as what preceded it. To them, UX is an irrelevant "fashion" that merely covers the "real" value of the product. How can I convince them that all those little "superficial" improvements add up to potentially big gains? What are some huge success stories that will wake them up?

spotman 10y ago
A/B testing and measuring specific goals. If the goal is to frustrate people less measure how much time they spend on things. If the goal is revenue measure if the ux change converts better or worse, etc. But it is hard to get people to listen when it's just one opinion or the other. Arm yourself with data.
- jknoepfler 10y ago
  and if you don't have the data to make your case, start getting the data.
beat 10y ago
Have you considered the possibility that they're right? Technical people tend to have a lot of Golden Hammer syndrome in their thinking, and don't always see the big picture. As a designer, you think UX, so you see UX as the most valuable aspect, and probably exaggerate its importance in your mind. Developers see architecture. I'm sure if you asked them about their concerns rather than telling them yours, they'd talk about this or that broken thing that's causing or will cause problems, and how vital it is to fix that, and how nobody listens to them. Talk to the business people. Ask what concerns them, rather than telling them what concerns you. They'll talk about features that could sell more product, bugs that customers complain about, etc. They'll be very upset about resources being wasted on things that don't provide value to customers. If you want to sell your ideas about UX, you don't need to convince them you're right - you need to convince them that they are right, and UX is how to solve the problems they care about.
montecore 10y ago
Highlight videos of before & after user tests.
cbrumback 10y ago
Be able to show, with data, that the improvements will benefit the business or product.

spotman 10y ago

A/B testing and measuring specific goals. If the goal is to frustrate people less measure how much time they spend on things. If the goal is revenue measure if the ux change converts better or worse, etc. But it is hard to get people to listen when it's just one opinion or the other. Arm yourself with data.

jknoepfler 10y ago
and if you don't have the data to make your case, start getting the data.

beat 10y ago

Have you considered the possibility that they're right? Technical people tend to have a lot of Golden Hammer syndrome in their thinking, and don't always see the big picture. As a designer, you think UX, so you see UX as the most valuable aspect, and probably exaggerate its importance in your mind. Developers see architecture. I'm sure if you asked them about their concerns rather than telling them yours, they'd talk about this or that broken thing that's causing or will cause problems, and how vital it is to fix that, and how nobody listens to them. Talk to the business people. Ask what concerns them, rather than telling them what concerns you. They'll talk about features that could sell more product, bugs that customers complain about, etc. They'll be very upset about resources being wasted on things that don't provide value to customers. If you want to sell your ideas about UX, you don't need to convince them you're right - you need to convince them that they are right, and UX is how to solve the problems they care about.

montecore 10y ago

Highlight videos of before & after user tests.

cbrumback 10y ago

Be able to show, with data, that the improvements will benefit the business or product.