Making a case for slower UX: When to prioritize story over speed

At its core, UX design is all about efficiency, ensuring that the user gets from point A to point B in the simplest way possible. A great-looking UI is important, but an intuitive experience is even better, and many different laws and concepts have been established to create a balance between both. This has created the default UX assumption that faster is better. But is that always the case?

Depending on the context, slower UX can be just as, if not more, effective than the current default of efficiency at all costs. This article will challenge the default assumption while exploring the benefits, techniques, and ideal use cases of slower UX design.

Why speed isn’t always the goal

Modern design has become all about seamlessness. Ensuring the UI’s speed and intuitiveness has become the focus of many design teams, and for good reason.

A frictionless user experience guarantees that both the user and platform goals are achieved. However, while utility-focused UX has resulted in clean UI, it often ends up being colder, which is not always optimal. Much of the creativity that kickstarted many designers’ passion for the industry (including myself) has often taken second place to a more surgical and optimized approach to UX.

Take, for example, this video published on TikTok by Zander Withurst in 2024 titled ‘Stop adding colors to your UI’. In the video, Zander redesigns a mobile UI, opting for a more conventional yet monotone color palette. Here’s the before:

And here’s the after:

And the viewers noticed that the video was flooded with comments criticizing how the revised UI had become devoid of color. This started a discussion on how modern UI had resulted in many platforms becoming carbon copies of each other, leaving no room for creativity:

Today’s world has started to look all the same, because while that type of design offers a ‘cleaner’ look, many things are lost in the process, such as narrative, differentiation, and even trust. That is to say that a core element of UX design is being lost over time, namely, storytelling.

The UX value of storytelling

Storytelling in UX design means creating a narrative in order to establish a connection between the user and the product.

When humans hear a good story, the neurons of the person telling the story and the listener mirror each other in a process called neural coupling. In anticipation of a story’s resolution, the brain can then release dopamine, which can often make it easier to remember.

Using storytelling in UX transforms mundane interactions into an experience that a user wants to return to. Practical examples include fitness apps that celebrate user achievements and media platforms that use teasers and previews to build anticipation. Rather than jumping straight into the product’s functionality, such as providing cold statistics to show growth or allowing users to quickly access their media, users are guided through a journey filled with intentional pauses that make their experience memorable.

This can also have positive impacts from a business standpoint. Think about social media in today’s world. Personal branding has moved to the forefront of many social media pages, such as Instagram and TikTok. Why? Because people trust other people more than they do faceless companies. Storytelling can deepen an individual’s emotional engagement and resonance, increasing trust, memory, and even the willingness to buy a product.

When applying this to digital products, increased trust and user engagement can increase conversions because trust is properly built before a purchase is expected, and repeat purchases are more likely because the experience was more memorable. However, before we dive into what techniques can be used for better storytelling in UX, it’s important to first decide if and when slower UX should be applied during the design process.

When is slower UX the right choice?

Slower UX definitely has its benefits, but that doesn’t mean it’s a good fit for all projects. In some cases, efficiency should be the priority, such as when users want to quickly find an item or easily access information. The key is to know which is the better approach, depending on the project, that is to say, when the story should be prioritized over speed.

Before jumping into any project, it’s important to analyze the following criteria to figure out whether slow UX is the best fit for your design process:

• User intent — Understanding your user is the start of any project. At the start of the design process, it’s essential to ask yourself whether the product is designed to provide a meaningful experience or fulfill one of the user’s goals. Design flows focused on creating an experience for the user, such as wellness, creativity, or education platforms, must have meaningful pacing that allows the user to experience everything the product has to offer. On the other hand, flows focused on task execution, such as search platforms, product checkouts, or banking apps, require efficiency in order for the user to get from A to B as fast as possible
• Emotion and meaning — In some cases, emotion and meaning play a critical role in an application’s function. For such products, the user must have an emotional connection to the brand in order for it to have meaning. Charity or non-profit platforms, for example, put a lot of emphasis on the organization’s mission and the problem it aims to solve, rather than quickly aiming for donations. Slower storytelling creates empathy and trust, and the possibility of frequent donations
• User success and memorability — Some user flows are simply better when slowed down. Progressive disclosure, for example, ensures that the user isn’t overwhelmed by information, instead receiving it step by step, making it easier to understand and remember. This is common for onboarding user flows where understanding the platform is crucial

As a general rule of thumb, speed and efficiency should be a priority if the product’s value depends on how efficient it is. This can, however, make such products less memorable and harder to differentiate from other products that use similar design patterns. After all, story-driven narratives can be a great differentiator.

On the other hand, storytelling and slower pacing should be a priority if the product’s value depends on how emotionally impactful it is for the user. This should be done in moderation, however, as if the user is already familiar with the product, too many extra steps can be frustrating.

Techniques for better storytelling

All stories have a three-act text structure, a beginning, middle, and end, and in order to effectively utilize storytelling in your designs, you should understand your designs’ narrative flow. This means mapping out the user’s journey, from initially accessing the page to meet their ultimate goals.

Coupled with prior research on your target audience and their pain points, it becomes possible to identify points in that journey that could benefit from a little slowing down. Once those points are established, using the following techniques can change the pacing of the journey without losing user engagement.

However, these aren’t the only ways to create a compelling narrative. There are many unique and case-specific ways to properly utilize storytelling; these are simply jump-off points.

Conclusion

Ultimately, not all UX design should be slower; sometimes efficiency should be prioritized, however, it’s up to the designer to establish whether efficiency is more important than storytelling. If and when it’s established that storytelling is in fact more important, utilizing the techniques above and embracing intentional pacing can not only create emotionally driven narratives but also evoke emotions of trust and familiarity in users.

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