<div class="gn-article"><div class="gn-hero gn-reveal"> <div class="gn-hero__image"><img src="https://cdn.prod.website-files.com/6877701b88030d58f11ac053/6a16dbdac4978f51cb8320b8_playback-ux-and-web-development-banner-68b88161e7598173276127.webp" alt=""></div> <div class="gn-hero__head"> <span class="gn-kicker"><span class="dot"></span>Expression</span> <h1 class="gn-title"><em>Playback:</em> Revolutionise Your Brand with UX &amp; Web Development</h1> <div class="gn-meta"> <strong>The GO Network</strong> <span class="pip"></span> <span>3 September 2025</span> <span class="pip"></span> <span>1 min read</span> </div> </div> </div> <div class="gn-body"> <h2>What Agencies Need to Know About UX and Web Development in 2024</h2> <p>A slow-loading page, a cluttered mobile layout, a form that frustrates rather than converts: these are not just technical problems. They are commercial ones. For agencies building or refining digital products on behalf of clients, UX and web development sit at the centre of every meaningful business outcome. The question is not whether to invest in them, but how to do it in a way that is defensible, measurable, and repeatable.</p> <p>This article draws on a session hosted by <strong>The GO Network</strong> as part of its Expression series, featuring <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/karl-barker-8486693/">Karl Barker</a>, Principal Product Owner and Strategist at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/wearecube3/">Cube3</a>; <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-willoughby-6847b32b/">Amy Willoughby</a>, Head of Design and UX at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/qubadigital/">Quba</a>; <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/sruthi-swaminathan-a4655973/">Sruthi Swaminathan</a>, UX Designer at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/pomegranate-media-ltd/">Pomegranate Media</a>; <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/chriscallaghan/">Chris Callaghan</a>, Head of Digital at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/jaywing/">Jaywing</a>; and <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/lathamsimon/">Simon Latham</a>, Web Design and UX Director at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/ponderosa-agency/">Ponderosa Agency</a>. Collectively, their perspectives span product strategy, design leadership, and digital delivery, making the session a practical reference point for agency teams working across these disciplines.</p> <h2>UX Is a Business Argument, Not a Design Preference</h2> <p>One of the clearest themes to emerge from the session is that UX still struggles to get proper buy-in, both internally within agencies and when making the case to clients. The problem is often one of framing. When UX is presented as a design discipline, it competes with aesthetic preferences. When it is presented as a performance lever, it becomes a budget conversation with a clear rationale.</p> <p>For agency leaders, this distinction matters. If your UX team is still positioning their work primarily around look and feel, the commercial case is being undersold. Good UX reduces friction, shortens conversion paths, improves retention, and decreases support overhead. Each of those outcomes has a number attached to it. Training your team to speak in those terms, and equipping them with client-facing language that reflects it, changes how UX is scoped and valued in new business conversations.</p> <p>The same logic applies when briefing web development work. Performance metrics like Core Web Vitals are not just technical benchmarks. They directly affect search visibility and user drop-off rates. Framing them as revenue-relevant from the outset makes the investment easier to justify and easier to protect when budgets are reviewed.</p> <h2>Common Pain Points and How to Address Them</h2> <p>The session addressed several recurring problems that agency teams encounter on web and UX projects. These are worth naming directly, because they tend to surface across clients of different sizes and sectors.</p> <ul> <li><strong>Slow load times:</strong> Page speed remains one of the most consistently overlooked performance issues. Agencies should build performance audits into project kick-offs rather than treating them as a post-launch concern. Setting a performance budget at the start of a project gives development teams a clear target and reduces the risk of speed degradation as features are added.</li> <li><strong>Poor mobile experiences:</strong> Designing for mobile first is an established principle, but execution is still inconsistent. The gap often appears not in initial design but in handover to development, where mobile edge cases are deprioritised. A structured QA process that covers a range of devices and viewports before sign-off closes this gap reliably.</li> <li><strong>Misalignment between design and development:</strong> When design and development teams operate in silos, the handover becomes a source of errors and rework. Closer collaboration during the build phase, with designers present during development reviews rather than only at the brief and sign-off stages, significantly reduces the number of revision cycles.</li> <li><strong>Lack of ongoing iteration:</strong> Many agencies deliver a website and consider the project closed. The agencies generating the strongest results from UX investment treat the launch as the beginning of an optimisation cycle, not the end of a delivery process.</li> </ul> <h2>Tracking Performance: Metrics That Actually Matter</h2> <p>Measuring the impact of UX and web development work is one of the more persistent challenges agencies face, particularly when clients are accustomed to reporting on reach or engagement rather than experience quality. The session highlighted the importance of establishing clear baseline metrics before any work begins, so that improvements can be attributed accurately.</p> <p>Relevant metrics to track across UX and web performance projects include:</p> <ul> <li>Task completion rates and time-on-task from usability testing</li> <li>Conversion rates by device type and entry point</li> <li>Bounce rate changes on key landing pages following redesigns</li> <li>Core Web Vitals scores, particularly Largest Contentful Paint and Cumulative Layout Shift</li> <li>Heatmap and session recording data to identify where users lose momentum</li> </ul> <p>The goal is not to produce a comprehensive dashboard but to agree upfront with clients on which two or three metrics define success for a given project. Fewer metrics, tracked consistently over time, make the ROI conversation far more straightforward.</p> <h2>Making UX a Differentiator in Your Agency's Positioning</h2> <p>Agencies that have invested seriously in UX capability are increasingly using it as a new-business differentiator. The ability to show prospective clients case studies in which UX improvements drove measurable commercial outcomes is one of the most effective tools in a credentials presentation. It shifts the conversation away from portfolio aesthetics and towards demonstrable impact.</p> <p>If your agency has not yet documented these case studies in a format that connects UX decisions to business results, that is a practical starting point. Work with your team to identify two or three past projects where the UX work had a clear and trackable effect, and build a concise narrative around each one. Those case studies will strengthen both your pitch collateral and your team's own understanding of the value they create.</p> <p>The full session is available as a playback to members of <strong>The GO Network</strong>, as part of the ongoing Expression series. If UX and web performance are areas your agency is looking to develop or sharpen, it is worth setting aside the time to watch it in full.</p> </div></div> <aside class="gn-related gn-reveal" data-auto="related-reading"> <div class="gn-related__label">Related reading</div> <ul class="gn-related__list"> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/how-can-you-revolutionise-your-brand-with-ux-web-development" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">Revolutionise Your Brand with UX &amp; Web Development</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Watch the recording: agency experts break down UX basics, web innovation, case studies, and how to measure ROI from your digital presence.</span> </a> </li> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/playback-tiktok-emerging-social-platforms-how-your-brand-can-get-involved" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">Playback: TikTok &amp; Emerging Social Platforms: How Your Brand Can Get Involved</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Agency experts break down how to build audiences and drive conversions on TikTok, BeReal, and beyond. Free playback for GO Network members.</span> </a> </li> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/playback-crisis-comms-in-2025-are-you-prepared-for-the-unexpected" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">Playback: Crisis Comms in 2025: Are You Prepared for the Unexpected?</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Watch agency experts cover risk anticipation, multi-channel crisis management, and turning brand incidents into trust-building wins. Free fo</span> </a> </li> <li class="gn-related__item"> <a href="/articles/playback-ai-personalisation-at-scale" class="gn-related__link"> <span class="gn-related__category">Expression</span> <span class="gn-related__title">Playback: AI Personalisation at Scale</span> <span class="gn-related__excerpt">Watch this GO Network session to master AI personalisation tools, metrics, and how to balance automation with creativity across email, media</span> </a> </li> </ul> </aside>