In addition to guest posting on the UpCity blog, Austin Williams is featured as one of the Top User Experience (UX) Companies in the United States. Check out their profile!
A UX developer is a key component of the website development process, guiding the user experience (UX) or journey users take when interacting with the site. A UX developer conducts research on a website’s user experience, then develops the website’s information architecture. They aim to provide users with the information they seek in the best and most convenient interaction possible—ensuring the website achieves its goals.
What Is the Difference Between a UX Developer and a UX Designer?
While these job titles sound similar—and both seek to optimize the user experience—there are differences in their job responsibilities. UX designers take care of the aesthetic and creative aspects of the website, while UX developers focus on ensuring these visual elements are organized and function properly. UX designers have the design skills necessary to sketch out new pages and interfaces based on user research, feedback, and other data; UX developers have the technical skills in various programming languages and computer science to bring digital products to life.
What Is the Difference Between a UX Developer and a Front-End Developer?
A UX developer is responsible for creating a website interface and organization that is both visually appealing and easy to use. Front-end developers bring these ideas and elements to life through coding. Both have technical skill sets, creativity, and business understanding.
UX developers focus on the website’s architecture and stay on top of cutting-edge website design and functionality elements. However, most don’t have the skills to bring these elements to life and code in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript. That’s the front-end developer’s job: They have the skills to code, build, and maintain a website. When UX developers and front-end developers work together, they become a masterful full-stack web development team.
Job Description of UX Developer
UX developers not only come up with the features and design elements that make a website an enjoyable experience, but they also work with a web design and development team to implement these ideas. They’re essentially the bridge between the artistic design team (user-interface designer) and technical (front-end developer) teams and must, therefore, have good communication skills. A large part of what UX developers do is researching potential users. They’re looking to identify problems and provide fresh perspectives and solutions to meet a site’s goals. Read on to learn more about the specific tasks and responsibilities of a UX developer.
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Research
In the initial stages of UX development, research is crucial. This research includes reviewing the current website, interviewing users, competitive research, and looking at user data to find website UX pain points. The research phase is a crucial phase where UX developers review the project, identify who they are designing for, and identify what the users’ needs, goals, and challenges are in relation to the product or service that is marketed on the website.
Information Architecture
In this phase, UX developers think about the kind of content needed on each webpage. Next, they plan how it will be structured and presented to the users. In this stage, a UX developer creates a strategy to display the website elements in a logical layout of organized content. The goal here is to make sure all website users can find what they are looking for and easily navigate from one page to the next.
Prototyping, Wireframing, Mockups
UX developers use a range of tools to map the user’s journey through each page. They do this by creating wireframes and user flows. Wireframes provide a two-dimensional outline of a single screen or page. User flows are charts that visualize the complete path a user takes when using the website, from entry point to the ultimate conversion or desired action.
Testing
Testing is a big part of UX development. Usability testing informs the design process from the perspective of the end user. Prototyping can also be part of this process—and it’s a big undertaking. It involves creating prototype sections of your website and hiring users to test it (another reason why communication is a crucial part of UX development). In addition to user testing, manual testing is also effective, and you will find UX developers tracking audio, visual, and analytics data that directly correlate to the website goals.
Experience with UX Software
UX developers work with software to help bring their ideas and wireframes to life. Software such as InVision, Figma, Adobe XD, and more are used by UX developers every day. Services like Coursera and LinkedIn Learn allow professionals to take UX development courses without breaking the bank or enrolling in official college courses.
Coordination with Front-End Developers and UI Designers
Communication is crucial in the role of a UX developer. Adaptability, communication, problem-solving skills, and teamwork are all essential soft skills for a UX developer. It is important that they collaborate with those around them—clients, stakeholders, fellow developers, and designers through to the end user.
Becoming a UX Developer
A UX developer must be aware of technologies, languages, and web platforms—and how to use them. This multidisciplinary field incorporates visual design and computer programming. UX developers often work for advertising agencies, in-house at companies, at web development agencies, or freelance. From small companies to large, UX developers have a multitude of job options, and they’re growing.
There is an increasing demand for UX developers and designers because companies (and consumers) are looking for a great website experience. Due to the increasing demand for all things digital, user experience design is one of the top 5 in-demand skills, according to LinkedIn. In 2022, Glassdoor added it to their list of the best 50 jobs to have in 2022. The UX development and UX design job market are strong in the US, and you can make a decent salary even at junior levels.
If you thrive on variety, are a good collaborator, have an interest in technology, and pay attention to the details, a job in UX development or design could be right for you.