Why Designers Should Learn to Leverage AI Tools

In the world of digital marketing, SEO often takes center stage when it comes to improving website visibility. But simply optimizing content with keywords is no longer enough. Increasingly, Google is placing greater emphasis on UX – User Experience – in its ranking algorithms. So how exactly do these two areas intersect, and why is it critical to focus on both? Let’s dive into why delivering a strong UX doesn’t just make users happier – it can also boost your position in search results.

What is UX?

User Experience (UX) refers to the overall feeling a user gets when interacting with your website. It’s not just about pretty visuals – it includes:

• how fast your site loads,
• how easy it is to navigate,
• how quickly users can find what they’re looking for,
• how mobile-friendly the site is,
• how readable and accessible your content is.

In short: UX is what keeps visitors on your site longer – and encourages them to come back.

How Does UX Affect SEO?

Although UX and SEO are separate disciplines, their goals often align. Google wants to serve users the best possible results, which means both relevant content and a positive on-site experience. Here's how UX directly impacts SEO:

1. Core Web Vitals

Google explicitly includes certain UX performance metrics in its ranking algorithm:

• LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) – measures loading performance.
• FID (First Input Delay) – measures interactivity.
• CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift) – measures visual stability.

Poor scores in these areas can harm your SEO rankings.

2. Time on Site & Bounce Rate

If users find your site confusing, slow, or frustrating, they’ll leave quickly. A high bounce rate and low time-on-site signal to Google that your page didn’t meet expectations.

3. Mobile-First Indexing

Since most web traffic now comes from mobile devices, Google indexes the mobile version of your site first. A non-responsive design can hurt both the user experience and your search visibility.

4. Site Structure & Content Accessibility

Clear headers, intuitive menus, and internal linking not only make things easier for users, but also help Google understand your content and crawl it more effectively.

How to Improve UX for Better SEO

Here are some practical tips to enhance UX while supporting your SEO goals:

• Optimize loading speed (e.g. compress images, use caching).
• Ensure your design is fully responsive.
• Simplify navigation so users can find key content quickly.
• Format content clearly with proper headings and spacing.
• Use calls-to-action (CTAs) that are helpful, not intrusive.
• Regularly test your site from a user’s perspective.

Conclusion

Good SEO isn’t just about targeting the right keywords. It’s about delivering a valuable and seamless experience to your audience. Today’s Google algorithms reward pages that do more than just answer a query — they reward those that offer a satisfying journey.

So don’t choose between UX and SEO — align them. A great user experience means happier visitors, better engagement, and ultimately, higher search rankings.

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Setting up a custom domain is a crucial step to making your Webflow website live and accessible. A custom domain not only strengthens your brand and boosts SEO visibility but also makes it easier for people to find and remember your site.

If you’re new to domains and Webflow, don’t worry—this guide will walk you through the entire process, step by step. Whether you’ve purchased your domain from Google Domains, GoDaddy, or another registrar, this tutorial will show you how to connect it to Webflow quickly and easily.

What You Need Before You Start

• A Webflow Site: Ensure your project is ready and you’ve upgraded to a Webflow Site plan.
• A Domain Name: Purchase one from a domain registrar like Google Domains or other registrar.
• Access to Your Domain Registrar Settings: You’ll need login details to modify your DNS settings.

Step 1: Add Your Domain to Webflow

• Log in to your Webflow account and open the project you want to connect.
• Go to the Settings tab for your project.

• Navigate to the Publishing tab.
• In the Production section click Add a custom domain and then Manually add domain.
• Type in your domain (e.g., www.yourdomain.com) and click add domain.

Step 2: Update Your DNS Settings

To connect your domain to Webflow, you’ll need to update your DNS records at your domain registrar.

1. Log In to Your Domain Registrar

Access the platform where you purchased your domain (e.g., GoDaddy, Namecheap, Google Domains). Look for an option labeled DNS Settings, Manage DNS, or something similar.

2. Add Webflow DNS Records

In your registrar’s DNS settings, update or add these records:

• A Records (Address Records): These map your domain (e.g., yourdomain.com) to an IP address, directing visitors to the correct server hosting your website.
• CNAME Record (Canonical Name): This redirects a subdomain (e.g., www.yourdomain.com) to another domain, such as Webflow’s proxy server (proxy-ssl.webflow.com), ensuring traffic routes correctly.
• TXT Record (Text Record): This is used to store text information, such as a verification code provided by Webflow, to confirm ownership of your domain.

3. Save Your Changes

Save your DNS settings after adding the above records and click Verify domain. These changes can take some time to propagate (up to 24 hours), though it’s often much faster.

Step 3: Verify and Publish Your Domain

• Go back to Webflow’s Publishing settings.
• Click Check Status next to your custom domain. This checks whether Webflow recognizes the updated DNS settings.

• Make sure you set your “www” version as a default.
• Once verified, click Publish and select your custom domain.

Troubleshooting Tips

• DNS Not Propagating:
  DNS updates can take time. Wait a few hours and check again.
• Secure Connection (SSL):
  Enable SSL in Webflow’s Publishing tab to ensure your website loads securely over https://.
• Double-Check DNS Entries:
  Confirm that you’ve entered both the A Records and the CNAME Record correctly in your domian registrar.

You’re All Set!

Your Webflow site is now live on your custom domain. Following these steps ensures your website is accessible and professional-looking, and now your audience can easily find you online.

If you’re looking for more Webflow tips or need expert help with your website, UX GIRL is here to assist. Get in touch, and let’s create something amazing together!

As AI projects gain traction and SaaS ventures become less popular to start, I’ve noticed a new mindset emerging—the belief that you can build an entire AI project on your own. The idea is that you don’t need a designer or even analysts to help shape your groundbreaking AI product because there’s now an abundance of AI tools, like Midjourney and DALL·E, that can assist with the process. But let me tell you—you couldn’t be more wrong, and I’m about to prove it.

So, why do you need a designer in the first place in this new era of AI tools for your AI project? I’m going to break it down and cover the most important aspects—focusing on the key principles behind creating truly great AI products.

AI Products Have More Functionalities Than Just Chat

Most AI products come with additional features that determine whether they are truly usable or not. Take image generation tools, for example—they offer a wide range of options like vary subtle, vary strong, or even a seed ID. But let’s be honest—does anyone even know what that is, anyway? ChatGPT is fairly simple since it’s just text-based, but when you move into text-to-image or text-to-video interfaces, it quickly becomes clear that a basic text field isn’t enough. Sure, you can use it by just typing in prompts, but without proper use of functionalities, you won’t be able to tap into its full potential.

Another example—take the Share feature in ChatGPT. Let’s face it, it just doesn’t work! Whether you’re trying to share a conversation with someone else or even a teammate, it’s always a hassle. More often than not, you’ll end up copying and pasting the answer instead because OpenAI clearly didn’t test or design this feature with usability in mind or is it just strategy? (evil laugh, not mine of course). To sum up, AI products are usually based on Writing functionalities, but not fully. You will still need to design a proper user flow and user interface with a UX designer, before starting the development of a feature.

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Pricing segmentation and upsell

If you’re building a groundbreaking AI product, you’ll definitely want to monetize it somehow (those API credits can be a real hassle to pay for, right?). This means you’ll need a solid market strategy, a well-designed pricing structure, and upsell functionalities that encourage users to move up tiers—not down.

This is where a skilled UX designer becomes invaluable. Figuring out the best places to introduce upsells and designing a smooth, effective funnel isn’t just an afterthought—it’s a crucial part of your product’s success. Because let’s be real, aside from great AI functionality, your second biggest priority is making sure users actually want to pay for it.

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Great UI doesn’t automatically translate to great UX (even with AI generated graphics)

There are countless tools available for creating stunning assets—take Midjourney, for example, which we even shared tips and tricks for in one of our articles. Yes, you can use AI tools like this to generate benchmarks or even the visual assets you need for your project with ease.

But remember—UI is not UX. A visually impressive interface won’t save a poorly designed experience. If the entire user journey isn’t thoughtfully crafted, with all edge cases considered, you’ll likely run into serious user retention issues down the line. A beautiful UI means nothing if users get frustrated and leave.
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Introducing AI features for Fintech and Health care

Some industries require extreme precision in user input and output, meaning they might not benefit from AI-driven features as much as others. Imagine you're planning a detailed travel itinerary for clients in a city you know nothing about. You could spend hours researching, or you could use an AI writing tool to generate ideas you might never have thought of on your own. In this case, AI is a helpful assistant.

Now, imagine using the same AI-generated interface to initiate a bank transaction or transfer money to another person or institution. The potential for errors is enormous—and the consequences could be serious. That’s why industries that rely on precision, like healthcare and fintech, will integrate AI carefully and sparingly. Many of the interfaces we use today in these fields will likely remain unchanged, even after the AI revolution.

If you're building an AI product in fintech or healthcare, it’s critical to carefully plan functionalities with a dedicated UX designer—ideally, one who specializes in the industry. At UX GIRL, fintech is one of our core specialties. We’ve honed our skills through years of experience and have mastered the craft of creating highly usable fintech interfaces.

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Focus on Your User—Who Is Still Human

The tools might be evolving, but remember—you’re still designing for human beings, and not everyone effortlessly navigates the ever-changing world of new tech. Sometimes, it’s better to stick with familiar interaction patterns rather than reinvent the wheel.

Take Windows ME, for example. Microsoft tried to revolutionize the operating system world, but instead of being embraced, it became one of the most infamous failures in tech history. Users found it confusing, buggy, and unintuitive, leading many to downgrade to older versions or simply wait for a completely new release rather than adapt to it. The lesson? No matter how advanced your AI product is, if the user experience isn’t intuitive and user-friendly, people won’t hesitate to abandon it.

So maybe it’s best to hire another human to design for a human—not a machine.

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Afterword: The AI Revolution Needs Great UX—And So Do You

AI is changing the way we build products, but one thing remains the same—your users are still human. No matter how advanced your AI tool is, if people can’t navigate it easily, trust it, or see its full potential, they won’t use it.

That’s why great UX design isn’t optional—it’s essential. From crafting seamless user journeys to designing intuitive interactions, a skilled UX designer ensures that your AI product isn’t just powerful but also usable and profitable.

At UX GIRL, we specialize in creating AI-friendly, user-first designs, particularly in high-stakes industries like fintech and healthcare. Whether you're building a cutting-edge AI tool or enhancing an existing product, we can help you design experiences that delight users and drive business success.

Need a UX designer for your AI product? Let’s talk. Get in touch with UX GIRL today and let’s build something great together!