The terms UX/UI designer seem to go hand-in-hand. The job functions seem intertwined, working to create an enhanced user experience for websites, apps, etc. In reality, they are two different positions. Their work might be different, but at the end of the day, both roles work together to create a user experience for the better whole. A great way to think of a UX and a UI designer is comparable to the brain. The UX designer controls the left brain, while the UI controls the right; the two halves together control the whole body. Here are the differences between a UX and a UI designer and the function of both jobs.
UX Designer
Starting from scratch, UX stands for user experience. The function and goal of a user experience designer are to create the best experience for a customer when they visit a website, an app, when they play a video game, etc. Their main task is to implement a seamless customer journey map that will take them from the start to the end of their experience. A UX designer does not design the concept itself. Alternatively, a UX designer researches and implements the overall idea of the customer journey. User experience designers are logical, on the side of research.
Examples of job functions of a UX Designer:
UI Designer
A UI designer is a user interface designer. This type of designer focuses on creating an aesthetic for the user to see during the customer journey with a brand/product. In terms of other designers, the UI designer has similar functions as a graphic designer. They are in control of the specific visuals that the customer sees, such as the logo, graphic designs, images, fonts, colors, branding, etc. The UI designer is the artistic side of creating an experience for the customer.
Examples of job functions of a UI Designer:
Parts of a whole
You might have heard the title of a UX/UI Designer before, meaning that one person can do the jobs of both a user experience designer and a user interface designer. Now that we laid out the foundational differences between these two positions, it will be easier to understand how the two work together to create a finished product.
An example of a UX and UI designer working together could be to create a website for a start-up company. The role of the UX designer is to research the target audience of the brand, what would lead them to and how long the user will stay on the website, the path that would lead them to the landing page, and so on. The role of a UI designer is to design the webpages themselves, implement the brand’s logos, fonts, colors, images, graphics, etc. Create buttons, menus, and other means for transporting the user through the customer journey.
At first, the job functions of a UX and a UI designer seem confusing, but a great way to remember the difference between the two is to think of a UX designer as the logical left brain and the UI designer as the artistic right brain. Both parts of the brain (designers) have different roles but come together to make the body function.
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