UX Isn’t Just for Apps and Websites
When people hear “user experience,” they often picture digital teams refining app screens or tweaking a website’s checkout flow. And yes, UX plays a critical role there. But what many businesses overlook is that UX principles apply everywhere.
Whether you’re designing a mobile app or running a local brewery, the challenge is the same:
How do you make it easier and more enjoyable for your customers to engage with you?
Over the years, I’ve applied UX thinking to financial platforms, smart devices, and mobile apps. But some of the best lessons came from designing real-world experiences — rethinking how customers navigate my theater, buy a beer at my brewery, or engage with pricing and loyalty programs.
UX isn’t just a digital function. It’s a business strategy.
UX is About Solving for Humans, Not Screens
The biggest misconception I see is companies believing UX starts and ends with product design teams.
In reality, UX is about:
- Understanding human behavior
- Identifying friction points
- Designing experiences that are intuitive and satisfying
None of that is exclusive to digital.
Example:
When we took over the theater, it followed a traditional model — a separate outdoor ticket booth and an indoor concession stand. It made sense decades ago, but not for today’s audience or technology.
With modern POS systems and a more expansive bar menu, that layout created friction. People stood outside — sometimes in bad weather — just to buy a ticket, then waited in another line for concessions. Meanwhile, the ticket booth ate up valuable indoor space.
We rethought the flow completely.
- Eliminated the ticket booth
- Moved ticketing to the concession stand, now two POS stations could handle both tickets and concessions
- Repurposed the booth space as a satellite lounge, giving customers a place to relax with a drink before or after the movie
- Enabled upselling, with one interaction, staff could easily suggest a drink or popcorn while selling tickets
It didn’t just make operations smoother — it made the experience better for every customer. That’s UX thinking in action.
5 UX Principles Any Business Can (and Should) Apply
1. Start with User Research — Ask, Don’t Assume
Whether you’re designing an app or a service experience, the worst thing you can do is assume you know what your customers want.
- Use feedback forms
- Watch real behavior (analytics, screen recordings, or just observing foot traffic)
- Ask your customers directly
At my theater, we learned through customer feedback that our online ticketing wasn’t as intuitive as we thought. Showtimes weren’t easy to find — a simple fix that made a huge difference once we caught it.
2. Empathy Mapping — Step into Their Shoes
UX is empathy-driven. Can you see every touchpoint the way your user does?
- What’s confusing them?
- What’s slowing them down?
- Where are they frustrated?
In Comenity’s web application, adding clearer tooltips and improving error messages wasn’t just about compliance — it reduced customer service calls. Good UX creates empathy bridges that benefit users and the business.
3. Map the Entire User Journey — Not Just a Single Entry Point
The experience doesn’t start when someone clicks your ad or walks through your door, it starts the moment they decide to engage. At our brewery, that meant understanding customers weren’t just coming in one way.
- Some arrived through the front door.
- Others came directly from the parking lot through our large bay door.
That meant mapping every possible flow — where live bands set up, how to position our to-go beer fridges, and making merchandise immediately visible no matter which entrance they used.
It wasn’t just about decor — it was creating a journey that was welcoming, highlighted our offerings, and encouraged exploration.
4. Prototype and Test — Fast
You don’t need to launch something polished to test ideas. UX teaches us that low-fidelity prototypes, a rough wireframe or even a temporary new beer menu, are great ways to gather quick feedback.
When working with BBQ Guru, prototyping app flows helped us avoid costly development mistakes. At the brewery, testing new draft beers on tap let us gather feedback before committing to large-scale production.
5. Always Connect UX to Business Outcomes
UX isn’t just about making things pretty, it’s about solving problems that improve your bottom line. At the brewery, we started by offering variety, assuming more options made us competitive. But sales data told us otherwise. Our Hefeweizen “Banana Stand” outsold every other wheat beer.
We adjusted production and placement, just like optimizing a feature or product based on user behavior. The result? More sales, less waste, and a better customer experience.
UX is a Business Mindset — Not Just a Job Title
Every business benefits from thinking like a UX designer. Because at its core, UX is about designing better systems for people — digital or physical.
When businesses embrace this, they:
- Create experiences people love
- Reduce friction that costs time and money
- Build loyalty that keeps customers coming back
And those results? They show up in every metric that matters — from revenue to reputation.
Final Thought: UX Is the Competitive Edge Most Businesses Overlook
The best companies don’t see UX as an expense — they see it as an investment. They know that in a world full of choices, the better experience wins.
Whether you’re running a theater, a brewery, or a digital platform, design the journey, not just the product.
Need help mapping out your customer journey or uncovering hidden friction in your business? Let’s talk.