Why Should Early-Stage Startups Invest in UX Design?

In our latest article, we catch up with Anupam, a designer at Razorpay, to explore the magic behind the scenes. He shares why integrating UX design from day one can be a game-changer for startups.

Ever high-fived a website for being awesome? That's the magic of UX design. UX stands for User Experience, and it's an approach focused on enhancing the overall experience that users have when interacting with a product, service, or system. 

And, UX designers are the ones responsible for creating products that are intuitive, efficient, and enjoyable for users by considering their needs, behaviours, and preferences throughout the design process.

Today’s article is inspired from a candid conversation with Anupam Taneja, a cool product designer at Razorpay. He has actively worked on different products of Razorpay Rize ensuring that the user’s voice is constantly heard and considered. That’s how we built Razorpay Rize as a community- with a user-friendly interface, an appealing website and an accessible dashboard!

In this article, we're sitting down with Anupam and asking some important questions around UX design and how integrating UX design right from the start with a customer-centric approach can help startups achieve their vision and goals.

Why is UX design important for early-stage startups?

The role of a UX design for startups is more than just creating pretty-looking screens; It bridges the gap between what’s feasible, what’s profitable, and what’s desirable. It helps you create a digital experience that users love, trust, and keep coming back for- giving your brand the much needed visibility. 

Let’s list down a few non-negotiable reasons why putting your users first and embracing UX design from the get-go can skyrocket your startup to greatness.

• First Impression: 

  An intuitive and visually appealing user experience creates a positive first impression, capturing the attention and interest of potential users and customers.

• User-Centric Approach:

  UX design emphasizes a user-centric approach, ensuring that the product aligns with user expectations, behaviours, and pain points.

• Differentiation:

  A well-designed user experience can be a key differentiator, attracting users who appreciate an interface that is easy to use and enjoyable.

• Iterative Development:

  A solid UX foundation allows for easier adjustments and improvements, fostering an agile development process that responds effectively to evolving user needs.

• Better Conversion:

  Whether it's signing up for a trial or making a purchase, a positive user experience increases the likelihood of users converting into customers. An intuitive design can guide users through the conversion funnel, reducing drop-off rates.

• Cost-Efficiency:

  Addressing usability issues early on can save a startup significant costs down the road. 

• Trust and Credibility:

  A well-designed user experience builds trust and credibility. Users are more likely to trust a startup that invests in creating a smooth and reliable product interface, enhancing the overall perception of the brand.

• Adaptability:

  A user-centric design approach allows startups to adapt and pivot based on real user insights, increasing the chances of finding a Product-Market Fit (PMF).

Few Data Points related to UX Design

In a world where user attention is a precious commodity, we have the numbers to back up our above reasons as well. For example-

Source: Mind Inventory

It’s time to highlight some big words and even bigger data figures- Return on Investment (ROI)!

Companies are increasingly channeling significant investments into establishing design and UX teams. However, a prevailing expectation in many firms is the demand for concrete proofs showcasing the return on investment (ROI) at every stage of UX research, design, testing, and validation.

But, here's the kicker- Research done by Forrester implies every $1 invested in UX design can result in a return upto $100.

According to Temkin Group's research, companies that provide a great customer experience have customers who are 3.5 times more likely to repurchase and 5 times more likely to recommend the company to others.

A positive UX contributes significantly to the overall customer experience. For a qualitative answer, we also asked Anupam, “Is there a ROI for UX design?”

His answer- “Yes – Design and business should co-own and work on the same metrics. For eg. for Incorporation, we have shared metrics we focus on. If we're working on how founders find Rize products, we may look at the top of the funnel, measure impressions/leads, and measure our designs on whether they increase those numbers. 

If we’re looking at increasing the quality of leads, we may look at leads vs. final payments to measure and find out why drop-offs happen, and find problems to solve in that part of the journey. “

While the direct financial impact of UX design can vary depending on the industry and specific business goals, the overall consensus is that investing in a positive user experience yields substantial returns by fostering customer satisfaction, loyalty, and if you’re playing the game right, conversions and retentions.

How are we implementing UX Design at Razorpay Rize?

Razorpay Rize's mission is straightforward: to make life easier for founders. By offering practical solutions and support, the focus is on simplifying the challenges entrepreneurs face.

Keeping that in mind, our design heroes have always taken UX design too seriously! Rize Incorporation pages and Rize Marketplace can be some of the best examples of how effective UX design can be for products.

Let’s hear it straight from Anupam-

“At Rize Incorporation,

We focused on making our process as transparent as possible. We studied the market and thought about our offerings very deeply to craft our messaging and value proposition.

Whether you’re discovering documents for incorporation, looking for a name for your startup, or searching for different service providers for incorporation – we strived to make our product journey clear, delightful and desirable.”

Note:  Currently, we’ve grown to become one of the biggest incorporation services in India in just over a year.

Now, the second best example-

“Rize Marketplace

The goal was simple for Marketplace - How can we help Rize Founders acquire their first customers and showcase their products in an aspirational way? Our early research helped us discover that founders listing the deals were not getting the traction they hoped for while the community struggled to discover what others were working on. 

To increase the discoverability of Rize founder products, we combined partner deals with Rize deals to ensure maximum footfall.

We created best-in-class experiences for community members to discover, search and consume what others within the community are working on. We also put the founders behind the products front and centre in the product details page so that as a Rize community member – you can always reach out to your peers and get to know the humans behind these products.“

What are a few examples of brands with great UX design?

Users don't want to feel like they're on a treasure hunt to find information. A seamless UX offers intuitive navigation, less friction, and consistent and responsive design.

When users effortlessly navigate through a website or app, finding what they need becomes a joyous journey. And, with the journey being enjoyable, users are more likely to stick around and convert to customers.

We talked about how Razorpay Rize took help from its founders to discover, understand, and prioritize their pain points - whether they were listing their products for the first time or were simply looking for a great deal. And, in return, could give them a seamless experience.

Here are a few more names that have mastered the art of creating experiences that users can't get enough of-

“Apple is most well known for it’s great user experience – right from the pop of the iPhone box, or when you connect AirPods for the first time, or when you copy something from your iPhone and just simply paste it on a Mac.

Source:Apple

Internationally, Airbnb & Monzo are well respected in SaaS. In India, you’ve Swiggy, Zomato, who constantly push boundaries. Groww and Zerodha are great examples of invisible design at play.

Source- Airbnb

Some may find Cred controversial, but I feel they’re a great example of using the principles of delightful and desirable design to have a solid brand moat.”

Source: Cred

But at the end of the day-

Anupam believes, “You can see great UX design everywhere if you are looking for it. “

Common UX Pitfalls for Startups

Time and again, we keep stressing the importance of putting your money into UX design for your startup early on. But let's talk about why things might not go as planned even after making that investment.

1. Excluding design from problem discovery and early ambiguous stages:

   Giving a 50-page Product Requirement Document (PRD) to a designer and expecting them to understand the nuances without including them in early conversations with the customers is almost a sure-shot way of killing design culture within organizations.

   Great UX is an outcome of deeply embedded design, engineering and strategy teams who discover and work on problems together. 

2. Micromanaging designers:

   Telling designers exactly what to do might seem like a shortcut to avoid tricky product discussions. However, in the long run, it sends a message that their opinions and instincts don't matter, ultimately stifling creativity within design teams.

   An uninspired design team might lead to inconsistency in design elements across a product, feature overload, laggy interactions, and so on.

   “Allow your designers to own and be accountable for outcomes. This will help your designers understand domain-level nuances that matter more to your users than you think."

3. Thinking in screens are not flows:

   Often, judging a screen in isolation and not  in the continuity of an interaction or a task is like judging a movie by looking at just one still frame. Rapid prototyping today is super simple and must be used to critique design.

   Focusing on just one screen in isolation without the necessary context may be diversionary.

4. Not testing in the right context:

   “Always, ALWAYS test your design on the devices, sizes, and context they are meant to be consumed.”

   When creating an app for bikers, try putting it on your bike's screen under daylight at 50% brightness. If you're designing for a big display, test it by putting your screen on a TV and checking if everything is readable from 2-4 feet away.

   Simulating your product in the right context unlocks many key insights for you to improve and iterate on your design – and a cheap way to test the efficacy of your product without writing a single line of code.

Conclusion

And there you have it – the journey through the world of UX design, where every click, scroll, and interaction helps bring in new users for your business.

According to Anupam- “A good UX project would strive to include the users not at the end, but right at the beginning and through various stages.”

So, if you’re an early-stage startup, it’s time to change the narrative around UX design. It’s not a luxury but a necessity for creating a brand people love and come back for.

“Including designers early on helps product teams align and focus on meaningful problems and metrics associated with measuring them. “

Need more details on how to kickstart the UX journey for your startup? Our next edition will exclusively talk about different elements and components of a great UX design, tools to deliver, and what to look for in designers while making that early hiring- the ultimate UX checklist! Stay tuned!

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