UI design is how your website looks and what people tap or click, while UX design is how the whole experience works, meaning how easily visitors find answers, trust you, and complete actions like calling, booking, or filling out a form.
Think of UX as the plan for a smooth customer journey and UI as the visual layer that makes that journey clear and comfortable. ISO 9241-210 describes user experience as a person’s perceptions and responses that come from using, or expecting to use, a product or service, which is why UX includes more than screens and colors. For local Orlando businesses, UX is the difference between a visitor booking an appointment and a visitor bouncing because the phone number is hard to find or the form feels frustrating.
| UX design (user experience) | UI design (user interface) |
|---|---|
| Focus: how the site works for real people and real goals | Focus: how the site looks and how controls behave on screen |
| Questions it answers: “Can visitors find what they need fast?” “Does this flow reduce friction?” | Questions it answers: “Is this readable?” “Do buttons look tappable?” “Is the style consistent?” |
| Typical deliverables: sitemap, user flows, wireframes, prototypes, usability feedback, content structure | Typical deliverables: page layouts, component styles, color and type rules, buttons, forms, icons, spacing |
| Success looks like: higher form completion, more calls, fewer drop-offs, clearer navigation paths | Success looks like: clean hierarchy, consistent brand look, accessible contrast, fewer misclicks |
| Example on a dental site: clear “New patient” path, simple insurance info, short booking flow | Example on a dental site: calming colors, readable type, clear appointment buttons, tidy form fields |
| Common failure: pretty pages that confuse visitors or bury the next step | Common failure: good flow but weak visuals that feel dated or untrustworthy |
UI and UX overlap, and on many small business sites one person handles both, but the mindset is different. UX work often happens earlier because navigation, page order, and content priorities shape everything else. UI work comes in when we turn that structure into polished screens that feel like your brand.
If you’re comparing vendors, it helps to separate what you’re buying: some teams mostly do UI, meaning they start in a design tool and create attractive mockups, while others start with UX, meaning they map the journey, write or organize content, and test the flow before polishing visuals. Our website design services cover both, because a site that only looks good is not enough if it does not turn visitors into leads.
Practical signs you need stronger UX: people call with basic questions that are already on your site, mobile visitors struggle to book, the same page gets traffic but no conversions, or your menu has too many choices. Practical signs you need stronger UI: pages feel inconsistent, typography is hard to read, buttons do not stand out, or the site looks dated compared with competitors in your Orlando market.
If you want to go one layer deeper, our breakdown of the difference between web design and web development can help you scope a project without mixing roles or deliverables.
When you talk to a designer, ask questions that reveal both sides: “What is the primary action on each page?” “How will this work on a phone with one thumb?” “What will the visitor see first, second, and third?” “How do you handle navigation labels so people do not guess?” Those answers tell you whether UX is being handled, not just visuals.
For a simple yardstick of what a modern site should do for a local service business, review what makes a good small business website, then compare that checklist to your current pages and your lead flow.
