Demystifying UX and CX – Let’s look at the key differences

There's a lot of buzz around different types of experiences, but one thing is clear, EXPERIENCE is more crucial than ever for brands.

UX and CX can be broken down into the different purposes they serve and the level of work involved differs between project, so it’s important to understand how they relate to each other.

All clients will often define their key audiences as customers; however all users are customers but not all customers are users.

Tricky?

Let’s understand the difference in order to create the best, value added experience possible.

User Experience (UX) is all about the interaction between users and products like websites, native applications or web platforms. UX applies to the interaction with said product and the immediate impression users get when they navigate an app, click buttons, or scroll through content. A great UX means the interface is simple, seamless, and enjoyable to use without much effort.

UX design focuses on creating a logical and visually pleasing app or digital experience that users love interacting with and allows them to complete flows or tasks within the product.

On the other hand, Customer Experience (CX) encompasses much more of the full experience.

True customer experience is about how you define a customer journey end-to-end.

To do this we consider the full journey every customer experiences, when interacting with the brand. The idea is to create a holistic mapping achieved by optimizing every touchpoint and channel of interaction between the customer and the brand. In simple terms CX is a much more ‘umbrella thinking’ for the experience and relationship between customer and brand.

Building Trust to gain customer satisfaction

The goal of CX is to build trust and satisfaction, enhancing users' overall perception of your brand and business while making tasks easier and more seamless to complete. To do this we gather an understanding at a much deeper level of your business, for example, this may include reviewing ‘how setting up a bank account’ flows but not only understanding the digital application or UX but also understanding where the user may need to visit a branch, share or sign physical documents and ensure that this set up flow mirrors online (or on app), to in-store at a kiosk, or when assisted by a staff member on a video call or in person.

The customer experience must meet their expectations

In essence, UX is a component of CX. The way users interact with your product contributes to their overall impression of your brand however ensuring your customer experience also meets this expectation is key. This is where many brands fall down, but the likes of AirBnB and Nike capitalise the market we see today.

The most seamless experiences are not just a single digital application but are well thought through from start to finish to meet customer needs, every interaction and expectation to reduce time spent on task and deliver something truly special and value driven from your brand.

We always start with our projects customer experience at the forefront, then tailor this to define your user experience (UX) to ensure you meet the standard which is essential for today’s modern brand. Omnia have a talented team of UX and CX experts who will navigate your digital experiences and use proven business strategies to define and create the best experience for your customers or clients.

See some of the work we have delivered and other stories that put CX first here.