23. Is UX Purely Business?

“UX must be, above all, a business”

What do you think of this statement?

Here’s my opinion.

I’m convinced that UX should be:

• Cross-functional
• Practiced by every area of the organization
• Sustainable
• Resilient
• Profitable for the business

Now, UX must find ways to make the business viable in both the short and long term.

Is there a problem with that?

Yes, there is a serious problem that arises when organizations interpret that UX should only contribute to optimizing the conversion of a funnel or monetization, at the expense of the user’s will.

This poses two problems:

• A moral problem: which I’m not too interested in developing since it’s merely subjective.
• A business problem: this is where the real problem lies. When we want to capture the user at all costs. Where we apply all available dark patterns to keep them captive, against their will.

Let’s set aside some dark patterns that border on illegality. Let’s think about aggressive retention strategies, constant contact through multiple channels, hidden costs, hiding access to unsubscribe options or service cancellation, etc.

This harms the business in the long term because it fosters distrust in the brand, damages reputation, reduces loyalty, and/or increases drop-offs.

So: Is UX, above all, a business?

My answer is: Yes, UX should be a business in the short, medium, and long term.

Even in non-profit organizations. UX should represent benefits to both the user and the organization.

But it should never foster an obsession with short-term business at the expense of long-term business.

The greatest modern asset is attention. We live surrounded by services and products fighting to capture and retain our attention. Products and services that understand UX as a method to lure users at all costs, by captivating their attention. And they are effective at doing so.

The negative impact of these strategies is seen every day: billions of users being processed by opaque mechanisms, absorbing their data, attention, and even their will.

How will all this affect the long term?