I am Greg
The dominant model in computing was once “if you build it, they will use it.” The pool of computer users was relatively small and extremely technical, so usability was an afterthought – anyone who was technical enough to get your application to run was technical enough to figure out how to use it.
Computing has gone mainstream so that model does not work anymore. If your user experience sucks, so does your product. But there is a massive opportunity here – a great experience can be the greatest marketing tool on the planet. In fact, I would argue that a great user experience is one of the things you need before your product can achieve greater than linear (exponential) growth.
How do I define user experience?
The traditional definition of user experience focuses on the product – UX is about usability and design. But I like to take user experience a whole lot deeper, into areas usually reserved for touchpoint management (an.d other arcane fields). In my opinion, technical support is part of user experience. Your website and how your customers interact with it is part of user experience. The story that people tell about your brand is part of user experience.
User experience isn’t about the sale, it is about the relationship you build with your customers. I think that is the most important relationship a brand can have.