Making the Subjective Objective

UX isn’t new. It’s been around since long before websites were even a thing—shaping everything from product design to service experiences. But too often in digital branding projects, it’s either misunderstood or left out entirely.

And even in many agencies, there’s still a lingering misconception: that web projects are a purely creative exercise. They’re not. They’re systems, experiences, and behaviours—all of which need to be designed with purpose, not just styled to look good. And that’s a missed opportunity.

In the world of branding, storytelling is king—and rightly so. But when that story moves into the browser, things get messier. Suddenly, opinion meets interactivity, timelines get tight, and feedback gets fuzzy. That’s where UX steps in—not to dilute creativity, but to enhance it. The primary objective of UX is to keep the user front and centre during solution design. Especially for agencies still relying on instinct and iteration to get digital done, UX offers a proven, purposeful way to lead the process—not chase it.

This isn’t about adding red tape. It’s about clarity, alignment, and outcomes. UX gives structure to the most unstructured parts of digital work—helping creatives, clients and developers move with purpose instead of guesswork. From an agency perspective, it’s also about helping projects run smoothly, stay on time, and remain on budget. Because the reality is: late projects—regardless of who’s at fault—invite scope creep. UX acts as a preventative measure, aligning everyone early and often so surprises are fewer and momentum is easier to maintain. It also helps rationalise the way forward when expectations have not been met. This is especially important in web, which is one of the few industries where research and development happen simultaneously. We’re all on a journey when building websites, and it’s incredibly difficult to predict every detail in advance. UX makes it easier to navigate that uncertainty with confidence and consensus, and helps empirically inform the best and most pragmatic course of action when stumbling blocks are met.

UX: Not What You Think

UX gets mistaken for UI. Or wireframes. Or a mysterious phase that slows things down. But in practice, it’s a set of tools and mindsets that help answer the most important questions early:

• Who are we designing for?
• What are they trying to do?
• How do we help them succeed—and prove we’ve done it?

It starts with empathy and ends with impact. And along the way, it brings your team and your client along for the ride.

Making the Brief a Question, Not a Solution One of the most common project anti-patterns? Briefs that already contain the solution. You know the type:

“Wouldn’t it be good if we had a carousel on the homepage?”

Every agency has heard this. It’s not a brief; it’s a hypothesis in disguise.

That’s not a brief. That’s a guess. UX helps reframe that into: “Who are we trying to reach? What problem do they have? What content or interaction helps them solve it?”

This shift helps creative teams do their best work. It gives devs something buildable. And it gives clients confidence that what they’re paying for actually delivers. But when clients prescribe solutions too early, they rob their agency of the opportunity to provide technical direction and solution design—some of the most valuable things an agency can bring to a project. Solution design, when grounded in success criteria and shaped with sympathy to the technical process, is where real innovation and feasibility meet.

Validation Is a Valid Outcome

There’s a myth that UX should always result in dramatic change. But sometimes, it confirms that the current direction is sound. That’s still value. In fact, it’s powerful.

UX isn’t just about disruption. It’s also about reassurance. And even when the client direction is right, the process gives the creative team deeper understanding of both user and business needs—so their solutions hit harder. Occasionally, especially on larger projects, the UX team ends up understanding the business more deeply than any one person within the client’s organisation. That holistic perspective is invaluable when aligning disparate priorities, identifying gaps, and steering the project toward meaningful outcomes.

Wireframes Are Conversations, Not Conclusions Another trap: mistaking wireframe for design. I keep mine lo-fi, deliberately. They’re not the work. They’re scaffolding for the conversation.

They help shift the dialogue from “What does it look like?” to “How does it work?”, “Where does it go?”, “What comes next?” That’s the real stuff. They’re also a clear guide of priority—making it obvious what matters most to the user, and by extension, to the business.

UX Helps You Avoid Feature-Lifting Ever had a client say, “Can we do it like [insert big brand site here]?” Of course. But unless you know why that feature exists—and whether it works for your user—it’s just decoration.

UX challenges this. It asks: “What are we trying to achieve? And does this feature help?”

Sometimes it does. Often it doesn’t. But now, at least, you’ve got a framework for the conversation.

UX Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All Not every project has budget for full discovery and deep testing. That’s fine. UX can scale.

• Quick workshops instead of lengthy interviews
• Remote tests instead of formal labs
• AI to summarise research, cluster insights, and even sketch flows

UX isn’t about how much you do—it’s about when and how you do it. The process can be light-touch and still make a big difference.

Design With, Not Just For Good UX doesn’t fight creative—it supports it. It smooths feedback loops. It gives the team confidence. It helps projects land on time, on budget, and with the outcomes everyone wanted (even if they couldn’t articulate them at the start).

If you look after your client’s customers, you look after your client. That’s what UX is for.