97 Things Every UX Practitioner Should Know

Chapter 11. User Experience Extends Beyond the Digital Realm

Frances Close

If you survey the landscape of user experience classes offered online, you are likely to find that the majority focus on creating digital experiences. This is not surprising, as many of the capabilities of a UX designer are associated with the interactions between people and the digital products they use. However, in a world that feels more digital by the day, it’s important to consider the human interactions that surround our digital ones and how the two types of interactions work together under the umbrella of UX.

An experience with a company consists of many touchpoints. First, someone learns about and interacts with a brand. Foundational brand elements like visual language and voice and tone set the stage for things to come. A flexible brand system that spans digital and physical spaces and speaks to customers at different points in their journey helps ensure a cohesive end-to-end experience. Next, as someone becomes more familiar with a brand, they engage in different ways. This might include buying a physical product they can open and touch, walking into an environment with a certain smell, or hearing a sound while feeling an indication via haptic feedback. While the last item in that list likely has a digital component, the other two are rooted in the physical world. At each of these points in the ...