What is UX? We asked people actually working in the field (Part 1)

The Importance of User Experience Value Design

It's been quite a while since the last installment (sweat). Keeping a series going is tough, isn't it? While I regularly meet journalists and writers due to my profession, I found myself respecting them all over again.

This time, I'd like to delve into the term UX (pronounced "you-ex," short for User Experience), a term frequently used in the IT industry.

UX, as the term suggests, is generally used to describe the overall experience a user has when interacting with a service or product. In the world of IT web services and apps, where similar services proliferate, the concept of UX has become increasingly important year after year.

For IT services, users typically access and operate them via devices, apps, or the web. Since this often involves considering the screen UI (user interface) alongside it, the term "UI/UX design" is frequently used to encompass both.

In certain highly competitive market segments (red oceans), how UX is managed and designed has become so crucial that it directly determines a service's success or failure.

On the other hand, much like " growth hacking " covered in the first series, it's a term without a clear definition. While understanding is gradually progressing, multiple interpretations exist, and some ambiguity remains.

Therefore, to capture it from a more practical perspective, we sought the cooperation of designers and directors from various roles who specialize in UX. Through interviews, we aim to consolidate the concepts and approaches of UX.

Contributors

Given the title "People Actually Making an Impact," we primarily sought UX designers and directors who met the following criteria: "I have personally used the service they are involved with as a user" and "I have seen the specific aspects of their work through their projects." We are deeply grateful to the individuals below, as well as the PR representatives from their respective companies, for their cooperation (thank you very much to everyone involved).

We intentionally varied factors like age, gender, company size, role, level of involvement, and whether they work on client projects or in-house services.

While the focus is primarily on web/app roles, which align with this series' theme, we also included individuals working on B2B system services, hardware design, and print production.

We posed the following four questions to everyone. The structure aims to provide a general overview of the concept, experience, and learning related to UX.

■ The Four Questions Asked

・How would you explain "What is UX (to you)?" if asked?
・Key points you prioritize when considering UX
・Symbolic events where you consciously considered UX (if you have such experiences)
・How do you learn about/gain input on UX?

These four questions were sent via email. We will introduce their perspectives on UX and design thinking in this first part, and their past experiences and insights in the second part.

* We will not publish all responses; only selected portions will be featured.
＊The order of responses is random.
＊Occasionally, I personally found a response moving or relatable, leading to longer reviews—please bear with me.

Question 1: How would you explain "What is UX (to you)?" if asked?

First, I asked about their fundamental understanding of UX.

Many responses pointed out that while the core concept is the overall experience users feel when interacting with a service, it's crucial to aim for "ease of use," "comfort," and "joy" within that framework.

Ricoh, Mr. Inai

"The impression or atmosphere you get when using a service or product. The desired impression varies depending on the goal or concept. Even something as simple as pouring water into a cup – the impression is completely different if it's slammed down roughly on the counter versus being served with a smile. It's similar to that. The function or result is the same, but is it pleasant? Does it fit the situation?"

This emphasis on designing the impression based on intent and concept, rather than just the installed features or actual usage results, is precisely the kind of insight that comes from a hardware manufacturer deeply focused on UX. Especially in markets like cameras or printers, where countless competitors exist based on features and specs alone.

Even among you, haven't you experienced situations where, despite products having broadly similar core functions, you thought, "I want to use this product" or "This one feels better to use"? For example, the elegant stores of luxury hotels or apparel brands, along with their attentive and thoughtful customer service, are part of that element. It's about cultivating a superior brand image and building a fanbase through UX.

Another particularly striking perspective was the inclusion of "the service provider's positioning viewpoint" among the many UX responses.

Shiroku Ishiyama

"For me, if I had to describe UX in one phrase, it refers to 'the mechanism that makes people feel value in a product or service and get hooked on it.' Broadly speaking, this applies to web media, smartphone applications, IoT hardware products, and other intermediaries between people and services. It encompasses the experiences users gain through their actions, whether online or offline—simple feelings like 'fun,' 'easy to understand,' 'easy to use,' and so on. Ultimately, it's about users perceiving value in the product or service. In other words, for companies creating products and services, UX can become a competitive advantage."

This opinion suggests that UX can be a competitive advantage for service-oriented companies.
This perspective aligns with the mindset of a company leader providing growth hacking services.

While the company primarily focuses on internet services, the emphasis on "regardless of whether it's in the real world or online" seems crucial for comprehensively understanding UX.

NTT IT's Mr. Hamaguchi

"It's the experience a service provides to users. The term 'UX' itself carries neither positive nor negative connotations. Depending on the design, it can deliver either a good or bad experience to users. A service designed to provide good UX will undoubtedly enable users to accomplish what they want to do, and in the process, can even inspire some sense of wonder.

However, when actually building a service, considering UX alone isn't enough to create a good service. Sometimes, the service won't function properly unless the provider's intentions and circumstances are also taken into account.

I believe UX is one axis for designing a good service, but it is not everything.

The term UX itself should be viewed objectively. While acknowledging the importance of design in creating good UX that can even inspire users, it's equally important to consider the service provider's perspective as an external factor.

Dentsu Inc. · Suzuki

"A bottomless swamp. The UX I handle is the experience that helps clients achieve their goals. Those goals are often increasing sales and profits. The user experience needed to achieve this goes far beyond just UI design or visual aesthetics. It extends into areas closer to PR and media planning: what triggers users to learn about the service, and what expectations do they have when they engage with it? In other words, the more you think about it, the broader the scope becomes. Simultaneously, it requires deep contemplation that involves imagining real-world experiences. ”

Suzuki, who handles client UX design at Dentsu Digital Inc.'s Digital Marketing Center, takes a broader view of UX. It encompasses not just visual UI/UX design, but also the advertising/PR experience enabled by media planning. In a way, this might be a typical advertising agency perspective.

Certainly, it encompasses the entire flow of product engagement—from user contact with the brand, through purchase, to becoming a fan. Broadly speaking, it also includes concepts like customer journey maps, commonly used when designing the overall experience of services, ads, or campaigns, and cross-media contact point management.

Furthermore, Suzuki positions UX as encompassing the goal of creating value for the company while simultaneously aligning with the user experience.

(Reiterating) What is UX?

I've summarized the responses into a diagram.

First, there is the general meaning (narrow sense of UX) that represents the experience at the points where users interact with a service, as the term "UX" itself suggests. Additionally, it encompasses aiming for satisfaction with the service from both the user and the company providing the service as the goal of good UX design and planning (broad sense of UX).

Next, let's organize the key perspectives important for this design process.

Question 2: What points do you prioritize when considering UX?

Next, we asked about key points in UX design.
It's impressive how they prioritize the customer/user perspective while also valuing the verification of hypotheses.

Recruit Marketing Partners, Mr. Wakatsuki

"It's about understanding users (and their needs) along a timeline. For example, rings in the wedding context are broadly categorized as 'engagement rings' and 'wedding bands,' and generally, people buy the engagement ring before the wedding band. Even on the ring search screen within Zexy, users at different consideration phases visit, and each seeks different information. Of course, users initially searching for engagement rings will eventually transition to searching for wedding rings over time. We design each screen individually, factoring in how user needs change over time."

While it might be considered fundamental to capture needs along a timeline and design screens with information architecture to match, this perspective is particularly important precisely because we handle everything consistently at Zexy, Japan's largest wedding information service— from user research and requirements definition to post-release A/B test results.

NTT IT's Mr. Hamaguchi

"It's about thoroughly understanding user actions and feelings. We immerse ourselves in the user's perspective, tracing the entire journey of how they interact with the service from start to finish. We imagine what kind of UX the service delivers. What do users truly want to achieve? Are we enabling that and creating a sense of wonder? If not, how can we fulfill it? To vividly imagine the UX like this, we need a deep understanding of user actions and feelings."

This opinion emphasizes the importance of imagination in understanding user actions and feelings.
Mr. Hamaguchi regularly conducts user research in his work, and it's clear he values not just left-brain processing of results but also right-brain perspectives.

In fact, screens he designed previously clearly laid out the next steps and desired information for users.

Shiroku Ishiyama

"As I've touched on in my work on practical UXdesign andinteraction design approaches, the UX design process, it's becoming harder to differentiate services through functional development alone. Consequently, more services are prioritizing experiential value. Users now have the luxury of choosing which corporate services they prefer, demanding precise solutions that meet their needs. Crucially, we must accurately identify customer problems. Verifying whether customer needs actually exist. Ensuring what we provide has continuity, not just a one-time experience. In other words, what I design is an 'unforgettable experience' for the user."

So, the key is creating lasting, sustainable experience design rooted in understanding user needs and problems.

Creating unforgettable experiential value is certainly no easy task, but I believe it's crucial to approach it with that level of high-level perspective.

Ricoh, Mr. Inai

"Since much of it is intuitive, I strive to explain what value that UX provides. What technology is needed behind the scenes to realize this world? How can we help others understand the value of this UX? This often requires more effort than simply following specifications, so I use prototypes to let developers experience it and persuade them effectively."

Regarding implementation costs, we received the perspective of persuading internal developers during the design phase.
Clearly articulating this to ensure we can explain it well is also crucial in practical terms.

Manabo Sano

"Whatever form it takes, avoid becoming self-righteous, don't cling to hypotheses, accumulate insights, and continue to make this a company culture."

Mr. Sano, who oversees the design of the smartphone tutoring service "mana.bo," also values continuous accumulation.

His particular emphasis on "making it a company culture" may stem from his perspective as a service designer for a startup.

Key Points of UX Design

Here's a summary of our discussion.

It was striking how, in design too, understanding user challenges and needs forms the foundation, and on that basis, creating designs that inspire users and encourage continued use is prioritized.

A common characteristic is the shared belief that, whether working for a client or on an in-house service, maximizing user experience value through UX design also requires consideration of the service operator's development assets and the achievement of their objectives as part of the job.

On the other hand, the specific goals and objectives championed through UX—such as "profit improvement" or "company culture"—vary significantly depending on the business phase, scale, and challenges of the service-providing company. This diversity shapes the meaning attributed to UX and the themes guiding the design process.

I too engage with UX across various layers—from strategy and team structure (like defining service targets and value propositions, or establishing CRM systems) to hands-on execution (conducting user research, creating wireframes [design blueprints illustrating screen elements, functions, and flows within a service's UI], and optimizing monetization pathways through access analytics).

In this process, perspectives and priorities regarding UX can differ between management members and frontline designers. There have even been times when, while sketching wireframes, I found myself collaborating to rethink the business strategy itself.

Including your responses, this serves as further evidence that UX design activities are crucial for achieving business objectives.

In the second part, we'll delve into more focused discussions, such as events that made us conscious of UX and methods for learning about UX.