We get it. Research is the last thing you want to spend your time doing. And, far too often, user experience is the last box to check on your company’s “to-do” list. In theory, it should be at the top, but hey, things happen. Your plate gets full, you lose track of time, and it becomes tomorrow’s problem all over again.

Instead of treating the way our customers experience our brand as an afterthought, let’s make it a priority. If bottom lines and profit margins are the goal, how customers get to a purchasing decision should actually be a huge chunk of how we spend our time.

At the end of the day, most companies are wasting huge amounts of time and money by skipping out on this important step in user experience (or “UX”) design.

So, let’s start with the basics. What’s the difference between UX design and UX research?

In the business landscape we’re currently existing in, both of these functions are incredibly important to the success of any company, but there are some differences.

Designers create the experience a potential customer engages in when using your app or website, from start to finish. In other words, how can we use content and technology to achieve our business goals and create a seamless experience for our target market?

To do all of this, we must first understand users’ needs and motivations through user research.

Surveys, usability tests and in-person interviews help to synthesize the goals of the consumer with the goals of the business. An open dialogue with the end user is paramount when attempting to satisfy customer needs. In fact, I don’t think it would be overstating it to say that companies who choose not to invest in user research are jumping into the deep end with no life jacket.

Here at Help On Demand, our customer’s experience is the cornerstone of our business. To put it simply, user research is where it all begins for us. Our success hinges on our ability to keep our promise: that we’ll connect Consumers with Experts faster. We achieve that goal because we understand how our user navigates our site, uses our technology, and is ultimately serviced.

Let us take on the user research and design.

Before you know it, you’ll be reaching your consumers even faster than before.