A snappier, quicker product creates a better UX

Designers frequently under-appreciate the factor of speed in the overall user experience of their products. But in my career I have never seen any user complaining that their site or product is too-fast.

However, vice versa is true: you can design the most elaborated user flows and detailed UX screens in the world, but if the product is generally sluggish then you are screwed. Slowness erodes the overall experience and gives the impression of a low-quality product.

Computer manufacturers understand this well. They push mandatory operating system upgrades specifically to force users into buying new computers, since "old" computers become intolerably slow. But we already know that a computer cannot slow down spontaneously.

Aesthedes graphical workstation

The users develop high expectations with every generation of digital products. What once was "normal speed" is today considered "slow", even "unbearable". It's easy to get used to better and become intolerant of any friction.

There is one catch to this rule, though: the product should always signal its current internal state, especially when the operation performed is critical, such as "document is saved" or "security check is done". The user sometimes misses important system notifications because the operation finished immediately. In this situation, they become suspicious of the system's accuracy, which reduces the overall experience of the system. It is a rare case of a user doubting because the response was "too fast".

So when in doubt, build for speed while keeping user informed! This is a no-brainer.

Here is a video of a presentation about UX and performance, organized by Practical UX Meetup group: How performance affects UX of the webpage and what we can do to improve it? -Practical UX Meetup #16 (Youtube)

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