Customers are the very people our websites are built for, yet too often, their voices are left out of the conversations that shape these experiences.
Between what customers truly need and what businesses assume they need lies a gap – a gap fuelled by assumptions, competing priorities, and missed opportunities. Yet, it’s within this very space that the most meaningful and impactful design work can happen, if we take the time to listen.
Voice of Customer (VoC) research is one of the most powerful tools we have in UX. It’s not just about gathering feedback; it’s about creating space for customers to share their experiences, frustrations, and expectations. It’s the part of the discovery process where we stop talking and start listening. There are often so many hidden emotions, feelings and experiences that go undetected when this part of the discovery process is skipped.
Nevertheless, the challenge is often that businesses enter this process with a fixed idea of what success looks like. They want faster conversions, higher engagement, better retention. Whilst these are valid goals, they don’t always align with what customers are asking for.
I’ve seen this play out time and again. A client wants to redesign their homepage to drive more traffic, but customers are struggling to find basic product information. The business wants to launch a new feature, but users are still confused by the existing navigation. The gap isn’t just technical, it’s emotional. Customers feel unheard and neglected, and businesses feel frustrated when their investments don’t deliver the expected ROI. A website designed for customers should give them the chance to share what helps them achieve their goals, and what frustrates them. Without this, opportunities for insight and improvement are lost.
One of the most powerful things I’ve learned is that customers don’t always speak in KPIs. They speak in stories. In one interview, a user told me, “We would go to roadshows and discover products there that we couldn’t find online.” That single sentence revealed a major disconnect between the digital experience and the real-world customer journey. UX isn’t just about interfaces. It’s about inclusion, trust, and providing user value.
These insights don’t show up in dashboards. They emerge in conversation. And they’re often the key to unlocking design decisions that truly serve the customer.
So how do we bridge the gap and begin to connect with users? It starts with reframing the conversation. Instead of asking, “What do we want the customer to do?” we ask, “What does the customer need to succeed?” That shift in perspective changes everything.
When we conduct VoC interviews, we’re not just validating design decisions, we’re challenging them. We’re uncovering pain points that weren’t on the roadmap and identifying opportunities that weren’t in the brief. We’re building empathy, not just efficiency.
And in all honesty, it can be messy. Customers don’t always show up. Research samples are sometimes small. Interview preparation doesn’t always align perfectly with what customers actually need – sometimes forcing an unexpected shift in direction. However, even in that imperfection, there’s much value. Why? Well, this is because every conversation is a chance to learn something new, not just about the user, but about the assumptions we’ve made as designers and strategists. Conversations help us to really read the room and capture insights that usually go unseen.
UX isn’t a layer we add at the end of a project. It’s a lens we use to shape the entire strategy. When we bring VoC insights to stakeholders, we’re not just advocating for better design. We’re advocating for better business.
I’ve seen how a single customer quote can shift a stakeholder’s perspective. How a journey map built from real user feedback can reframe a product roadmap. How empathy can become a competitive advantage.
Nevertheless, it requires courage. Courage to challenge internal narratives. Courage to prioritise customer needs over internal preferences. Courage to say, “This isn’t working and here’s what our users are telling us.”
One of the most common frustrations we hear from users is a lack of transparency. Whether it’s unclear order statuses, confusing navigation, or missing product updates, customers want clarity. They want to feel informed, empowered, and respected.
When we respond to those needs, when we simplify navigation, translate content, and provide clear updates, we’re not just improving UX. We’re building trust. We’re showing customers that their voice matters. That their experience is more than a metric: it’s a valued relationship.
The outputs of the design decisions affect real people, real cultures, and real constraints. In one project, we learned that some customers don’t use the platforms we expected to hear about the latest products. This was insightful because it challenged the existing narrative and provided opportunities to innovate. We cannot say that we are designing for customers when we haven’t taken the time to truly understand what their problems are and whether we are adding to those problems or eliminating them.
Therefore, these design decisions aren’t just design tweaks, they’re strategic decisions rooted in customer insight. They’re the kind of decisions that champion customers and build brand trust.
There’s a moment in every VoC interview when the conversation shifts. When the user stops talking about features and starts talking about feelings. Frustration. Confusion. Delight. Trust.
That’s the emotional ROI of UX. It’s the impact we make when we design with empathy. When we listen, adapt, and respond. When we create experiences that don’t just work, but feel right.
And that’s where business goals and customer needs align. When users feel heard, they engage. When they trust the experience, they convert. When they feel valued, they stay.
Bridging the UX gap isn’t about choosing between customer needs and business goals. It’s about recognising that they’re two sides of the same coin. That the most successful products are built at the intersection of empathy and strategy.
Voice of Customer research is our compass. It guides us through complexity, challenges our assumptions, and connects us to the people we’re designing for. It reminds us that behind every click is a human story, and that our job is to honour it.
So let’s keep listening. Let’s stop treating customers as an afterthought. And let’s keep creating meaningful experiences that convert.
