What UX can Learn from Fashion Design
The move from fashion to UX was terrifying at first. I was never the best with tech, and often struggled with it. Even though User experience was in my job title, I wasn’t entirely sure what that meant.
It took a couple of months to grow into to the job, and I started to recognize overlaps from my life in fashion to this new world of UX. Design principles remained the same -- if you cant get the dress over your head because the hole is too small, you won’t buy it - just like if a user can’t find the right button to use, they’re going to bounce. In fashion we think about deliveries (or seasons). You might have 12 deliveries a year, each delivery with a slightly different version of the same top - different colors, different fabrics, same underlying features like fit, and weight of fabric. In UX we think about iterate quickly and work in sprints. How can we use existing UI patterns and adapt them for new situations? How can we maintain a consistent flow through the screens? How do tops and pants work together to create wearable outfits? Turns out design thinking exists throughout design whether it’s tech of fashion.
But as I’ve delved further into the world of UX I find that there’s a certain level of disconnect we tend to maintain between our users and ourselves. We like to measure, we still use labs, we talk about users.
The world I designed in, contemporary fashion has a level of service built into it. A level of intimacy so personal. In the world of fashion, the clothes you put on define you, they speak for you, they are your voice! So when we design in fashion we have to walk in the shoes of the women who want to put the clothes on. We have to ask if what we just designed speaks to the woman, and for the woman. Does our customer want to put this on, wear it out of the house, and will she feel like she owns the world when she does it? That is when you have won in fashion!
Why is that level of service built into fashion design? It might be because fashion is so competitive. Women have so many choices that the piece of clothing isn’t good enough if it just goes over her head successfully. It must fit her, make her look good, and make her feel good. She is in essence ‘recommending’ it by putting it on and wearing it out. (as we think of NPS in UX) But it could also be because there is a level of sophistication in fashion handed down over the years - a history of fine fabrics, of silhouettes. People buying fashion expect service when they’re spending money on nice things. It could be that fashion was traditionally made by a tailor - someone you knew, who knew your body, and what made it look good. This person was a craftsman, or this piece of clothing was made by a person. But I tend to think it’s because there was an in person experience you had when you went in the store. Think before amazon, when we shopped in boutiques, and tried on clothing before buying it.
Retail is certainly a service industry. When you walk in the door we greet you, we show you to the dressing room, compliment your looks, and your style. It’s a bit of romance. Between the mood of the store, the story of the season told on the racks, the customer service, and the way you look in the mirror. Something happened. A small transformation that sells you the outfit. You become someone new for a minute, forget your worries, and the hurry. You ask yourself it it looks right, is it me? Will people notice, will they notice too much? But that moment of contemplation, of imagination, of mind transportation is the combination of successful product and service. It’s the moment of delight we often talk about in UX. But it’s much more than delight, it’s the moment when you feel inspired and alive.
In UX we are obsessed with observing, measuring, nudging the needle of success. But the main point we have missed is the connection, and a level of service we should be offering. It’s a tall order for UX these days, to replace that in store experience, to say that time saved makes up for the hassle of going out. But it’s our job to shift that experience into what can be delivered on a screen. I would argue that we don’t spend enough time contemplating what Experience really means. It’s true that interactions are much smaller and shorter when they happen digitally, but that doesn’t mean we should spend less time thinking about it. Especially if the volume of people coming through is high. We should be spending more time thinking about the user, and how we can elevate the experience above using, to service. How can this app serve you in your life? How can it improve how you see yourself, how you feel? It can be done, but I think we are spending time in the wrong places to make that happen.
UX should take some tips from fashion. Make it fun, make it memorable, make it personal, and it will make you feel better about yourself. I guarantee I never asked a woman who walked out of my store, how do you feel on a scale of 1 -10. But they came back because they knew the level of service, and the personal relationship, the way they felt about themselves was what mattered to them.
Lets shift UX thinking to service. We should all be in the business of service to our customers, and thinking about the entire experience they have, and how we can elevate it. UX is entering another era where service and design makes the difference, and distinguishes companies in a more competitive landscape.