

UX (user experience) is carefully studied in many sectors in order to achieve better customer satisfaction indices. So why not in architecture?
Architects focus a lot of our attention on the end product of our services, the building, but relatively little on how we provide those services and how our employer feels about what we do.
However, market research shows that the customer sometimes attaches more importance to how a process is implemented than to other considerations – because processes can be long, tortuous, stressful affairs full of unpleasant surprises and anxiety, in which many parts are often lacking in transparency.
I’m sure you’ll say you treat your customers very well, and that’s probably true, but I’m talking about going a little further.
Have you ever tried holding the attention of a 3-year-old child? It’s really difficult. They get distracted straightaway, they get bored and they lose interest… I practise UX a lot with my nephews.
With customers it’s even more difficult, especially if they’re the end users of the building. There’s also apprehension and uncertainty. 0}
Now that architects are all seemingly much the same and we find it hard to differentiate ourselves and compete in areas other than low fees, UX offers us a way to endow our work with added value.
How do we look after our customer’s experience?
Improving UX goes beyond just being polite. Here are some recommendations:
As architects, I believe we’re prepared to take a step forward with user experience (when all’s said and done, we already make video games, and that’s one of the sectors most sensitive to user reactions). It’s a question of having the willpower to do it, of getting trained and putting it into practice.
And then watching the result and improving.