Why UX Design Unicorns Are Paid Less

Are you an aspiring UX professional? If yes, then chances are you have already applied for your fair share of positions. And chances are that at the top of your resume you proudly introduce yourself as a “UX Designer” and listed everything from concept development to information architecture to interaction design to visual design to implementation in the “Skills” field… Well, you have been doing it all wrong.

Here is why I think being more specialized and finding your niche is better and more promising for your UX design career than being a so-called Unicorn.

The thing is that UX design is not a profession. It is rather an umbrella that includes many different jobs and skill sets. (I will go into more detail describing UX design careers in one of the following posts). So, essentially, calling yourself a UX designer is basically saying: “I don’t know exactly what UX design is, I don’t really know what my strengths are, I don’t know what I am worth and I am ready to do everything under the sun for not so much money”.

Believe me, you will get what you are asking for. Dozens of companies will respond to your resume and will want to interview you. There are mainly two types of companies that would look for that perfect Unicorn, who will embody 10 different professions for the price of one. The first type of companies will most likely not know what UX design is and how important it is for the success of the business. The second type are companies that just want to save money. Take a position at either and you will be asked to take care of everything from a Keynote Presentation creation to business cards design to small tweaks of the existing app or a web page design. You will probably be paid a small entry level salary. What’s even worse, you will not be treated with the level of professional respect that you deserve.

So what can you do instead?

You’ll have to change the way you present yourself. To do that, you will have to find your niche and become more specialized.

UX design careers include many different professions (i.e. Interaction Designer, Visual Designer, Information Architect, Content Strategist, User Researcher to name a few). Call yourself a UX designer (i.e. a Unicorn) and you’ll end up doing all those things for very little money at a company that doesn’t know much about UX design. Find your niche — and you will get hired by a company where UX plays an important role, where you’ll be expected to do that one thing you are best at, where your opinion will be highly valued and where you will be financially compensated accordingly.

Of course, in response to a more targeted job search as a User Researcher or an Information Architect you will probably get fewer interview invitations and it will most likely take you a bit longer to find a job. However, at the end of the day it will pay off.

Don’t get me wrong, applying for a job as a UX designer at the beginning of your design career is the right and (arguably) the only way to go about it. After all, how else will you find your niche if you haven’t tried doing all those things that the UX design field includes? So, by all means, call yourself a UX designer and apply for those internships and entry level positions. Be ready, though, to be treated as a beginner. Your level of expertise will be doubted, your opinion will very often be dismissed, your decisions will be argued with. And that’s ok. It is expected. At the beginning.

Treat that first job as a learning experience. Take on challenging tasks, show initiative, try new things, learn new skills, figure out what it is you are passionate about, find what you are good at. Your ultimate goal is to gain that experience and to find your niche. Remember, the more specialized you are at the end of the day — the more respected, valued and well-paid you will be at your next perfect job.