An app UX audit is an important step in ensuring that your mobile app is providing the best possible experience for your users. A well-designed app that is easy to use and provides a seamless experience for users can lead to increased downloads and happy users. On the other hand, an app that is difficult to navigate or confusing to use can lead to frustrated users and poor reviews. That's why conducting an app UX audit for your mobile app is essential. In this blog post, we will explore what an app UX audit is, why it's important, and how you can conduct one for your app. By understanding the key elements of a successful mobile app UX, you can unlock more downloads and happy users.
At Fortnight, we offer FREE MOBILE APP UX AUDITS - all you have to do is submit your app to us. We'll do the heavy lifting and send you a 15-minute audit report back!
User experience (UX) refers to the overall experience of a person using a product, such as a website or mobile app. It encompasses all aspects of the user's interaction with the product, including the design, layout, navigation, content, and functionality. It is the holistic feeling a user gets when using a product.
User experience (UX) is a crucial aspect of mobile app design that plays a major role in determining the success of an app. An app UX audit is a process of evaluating and identifying areas of improvement in an app's user experience. In this article, we will explore what happens during a UX audit, what the results can tell you, who should do the audit, and what you need to run your own app UX audit.
An appUX audit is an opportunity to identify areas of improvement and create a plan of action to improve the user experience. Every app and product is unique, but the majority of our clients goals will fall into one of the below:
Improving usability: One of the common goals of an app UX audit for a mobile app is to improve the app's usability. This can include making the app's navigation more intuitive, simplifying the layout, and making it easier for users to find what they are looking for.
Increasing user engagement: Another common goal of a UX audit is to increase user engagement with the app. This can include identifying ways to make the app more engaging and motivating for users, such as adding gamification elements or providing personalised content.
Improving the onboarding process: An app UX audit may reveal that the app's onboarding process is too long or confusing. One of the goals of the audit can be to improve the onboarding process by simplifying it and providing clear instructions and tutorials.
Improving the app's visual design: The audit may reveal that the app's visual design is not appealing to users, or difficult to read. Improving the visual design can be a goal of the audit, by revising the colour scheme or typography to make it more visually appealing and user-friendly.
Increasing retention: An audit may reveal that the app has a high rate of churn, or users that stop using the app after a short period of time. Improving retention can be a goal of the audit, by identifying the reasons why users are leaving and finding ways to keep them engaged and motivated to continue using the app.
Improving accessibility: Making the app more accessible can be a goal of the audit, by identifying issues that may be preventing users with disabilities from using the app and finding ways to address them.
Improving load time: If the audit reveals that the app takes too long to load, reducing load time can be a goal of the audit. This can be achieved by optimising the app's code and graphics to reduce loading time.
Enhancing the value proposition: The audit may reveal that the app is not providing enough value to the user, or that it is not meeting the user's needs. Enhancing the value proposition of the app can be a goal of the audit, by identifying ways to make the app more useful or relevant to the user.
These are some examples of common goals from a UX audit for a mobile app, but occasionally you might not have a defined goal, and just want to get a fresh pair of eyes on your product to find improvements you might have missed.
An app UX audit begins with a thorough examination of the app's user interface, navigation, and overall user flow. The auditor will take note of any issues that may be causing confusion or frustration for users, such as poor navigation, lack of clear calls to action, or unresponsive elements. The auditor will also evaluate the app's visual design, including the use of colour, typography, and overall aesthetic.
Once the initial evaluation is complete, the auditor will conduct user testing to get a better understanding of how real users interact with the app. This can include testing on different devices, in different environments, and with different user groups. The goal is to identify any pain points or areas of confusion that may be impacting user engagement and satisfaction. Here are a few different approaches to a UX audit which can be used individually or collectively, depending on the product, the clients needs and budget:
User research: An app UX audit typically begins with user research to gain a better understanding of the users and their needs. This can include conducting user interviews, surveys, and focus groups to gather information on user demographics, goals, pain points, and feedback.
Heuristic evaluation: A heuristic evaluation is a method of evaluating an app's usability by using a set of established usability guidelines. The auditor will use these guidelines to identify any usability issues, such as poor navigation, confusing layout, or unclear calls to action.
User testing: User testing is a key aspect of an app UX audit. This can include testing the app on different devices and in different environments, and observing users as they complete specific tasks. This allows the auditor to identify any pain points or areas of confusion that may be impacting user engagement and satisfaction.
Task analysis: Task analysis is the process of understanding the user's goals and the tasks they need to complete to achieve them. This can include creating task flows and user scenarios to understand how users navigate the app and complete specific tasks.
Eye-tracking: Eye-tracking is a method of measuring where users are looking and for how long. This allows the auditor to understand how users interact with the app and identify any issues that may be impacting the user experience.
Analytics: Analysing the app's analytics data, such as user engagement and retention rates, can provide valuable insights into how users are interacting with the app. This can help the auditor identify patterns and trends that may indicate issues with the user experience.
A/B testing: A/B testing is a method of testing different variations of an app to see which performs better. This can include testing different layouts, navigation, or design elements to see which version has the best impact on user engagement and satisfaction.
The results of an app UX audit can provide valuable insights into how users are interacting with the app and where improvements can be made. With the app market highly competitive, you need to ensure you provide your users with the best experience possible. 94% of first impressions are related to your app's User Experience so you want to ensure this is following the very best practices for your product. Here are a few examples of common outcomes you can expect from an app UX audit:
Navigation: A mobile app UX audit may reveal that the app's navigation is confusing and not intuitive. For example, users may have difficulty finding the menu or specific pages within the app. As a result, the app's navigation may need to be reorganised and simplified to make it easier for users to find what they are looking for.
Search functionality: The audit may also reveal that the app's search functionality is not effective or user-friendly. For example, users may have difficulty finding relevant search results or the search bar may not be prominently displayed. This can be improved by making the search bar more visible, and by implementing an algorithm that returns more relevant results.
Loading speed: The audit may reveal that the app takes too long to load, which can cause users to become frustrated and give up on using the app. This can be improved by optimising the app's code and graphics to reduce loading time.
Onboarding process: The audit may reveal that the app's onboarding process is too long or confusing. For example, users may have trouble understanding how to use certain features or may be overwhelmed by the amount of information presented. This can be improved by simplifying the onboarding process and providing clear instructions and tutorials.
Visual design: The audit may reveal that the app's visual design is not appealing to users. For example, users may find the colour scheme or typography to be unattractive or difficult to read. This can be improved by revising the visual design to make it more visually appealing and user-friendly.
Accessibility: The audit may reveal that the app is not accessible to users with disabilities. For example, users with visual impairments may have difficulty using the app or may not be able to read the text. This can be improved by making the app more accessible, such as by including large text options, and by providing alternative ways to navigate the app.
These are some examples of issues that may be uncovered during a mobile app UX audit, and some possible solutions that can be implemented to improve the user experience. However, it is important to note that the specific issues and solutions will vary depending on the app and the users.
App UX audits should be conducted by professionals with experience in UX design and research. These individuals have the skills and knowledge to accurately evaluate the app and provide actionable recommendations for improvement. In-house teams or external agencies are the best options to conduct the audit.
At Fortnight, we offer full scale app and website UX audits covering over 250 different tasks, spread across over 20 areas. Some of the areas we look at are:
Visual Design
Reviewing the visual hierarchy, error messaging, form submissions, progress indicators and elements from the user interface (UI)
Building User Trust
Making sure the user can fully trust using your app and can verify you as a brand/company. We look at areas such as the about page, customer support, reviews on the website and your contact information.
Error Prevention
Prevent interaction problems from occurring in the first place: either minimise error-prone conditions or check for them & adequately communicate them to users
Consistency
Ensuring all design elements work together and your product works the way the user would expect it to.
Fields and Forms
Ensuring fields are positioned correctly, forms are easily understood with correct values and easy to navigate
Depending on the size of the product, our app UX audits usually cost between £1,800 and £3,600 and results in:
Not all app founders are at the stage where they have the money to hire a team of experts to run a UX audit for their app, so there are ways to run a simple UX audit check yourself that shouldn’t take longer than 15 minutes, based on the outcomes above:
In order to run your own app UX audit, you will need a few key tools, including a device or devices to test the app on and a method of recording and analysing user feedback or your own findings. If you follow the checklist above, you’ll be able to find quick wins and ways to improve your mobile app experience.
In summary, conducting a UX audit is a crucial step in guaranteeing that your mobile application offers the optimal experience for its users. By pinpointing and addressing any complications, you can boost user satisfaction and engagement with the app. It's vital to perform the audit with a professional and employ the appropriate tools and techniques. By doing so, you can enhance the general user experience of your app and potentially grow revenue and retain users.
Have an app or app design and want to know if you can improve the UX? Request a free app UX Audit or get in touch with our team of UX experts via our Contact page.
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