Digital products fight for attention every day. When teams rely only on internal ideas, they often release features that look fine but feel awkward to use. The problem shows up when decisions come from assumptions instead of real examples. By examining how real-world products operate gives teams a better way of determining the experience they want their users to have. By using this method, they save time, eliminate the need for repeat development work, and create a more enjoyable user experience right from the outset.
When teams view live examples of how users operate interfaces to complete daily tasks, they can usually learn more quickly. An example of a resource that can help with this is https://pageflows.com/. The user flows found on this site are taken from real-world products, and allows teams to observe where users slow down, where users are confused, and how design decisions have improved or hindered the user experience. This type of information will allow teams to get a better sense of how people actually interact with their product when making decisions related to UX.
Real Experiences Show What Plans Often Miss
Plans and diagrams look neat. Real use rarely follows those plans.
Friction Becomes Visible in Real Flows
When designers watch full user flows, small problems stand out. When a user stalls or hesitates or backs up during a step in a flow there is a good chance that there is something unclear about the piece of text they are reading or that the window they are working on is combining more than one function. A poorly written step may have a negative impact on the rest of the flow – teams who look at real flows are able to identify these issues earlier during development process and not have to rush to fix them later on after the creation of the final version.
Similar Problems Appear Across Many Products
Teams will frequently consider their product a “special case.” In actuality, many applications can be found within the same boundary as those that came before them in terms of the same sign-up, checkout, and permission processes that often create friction for customers when interacting with multiple product offerings. By considering how other teams have defined those key events, teams can learn about their failures or successes in regard to reducing confusion and making the process easier for their customers.
Clear Examples Reduce Long Debates
Real product examples change team discussions. Instead of arguing over personal taste, teams look at how users move through existing tools. Conversations become more focused on outcomes. Decisions move faster, with fewer rounds of back and forth.
Real Product Data Helps Shape UX Strategy
UX strategy improves when teams connect research to what already works in the market.
Easier Prioritization
Studying real flows shows where users drop off or slow down. Teams can focus on steps that block progress instead of polishing minor details. This leads to faster improvements where they matter most.
Better Team Alignment
Designers, product managers, and engineers often see problems differently. Real product experiences give everyone the same reference point. This shared view reduces confusion during planning and development.
Page Flows as a Useful Reference for UX Teams
One practical way to study real product experiences is through Page Flows. Page Flows works as an online platform that helps designers, product managers, and developers review real UX and UI flows from live products.
Seeing How Journeys Work Step by Step
Page Flows shows full user journeys instead of single screens. Teams can see how actions connect and where feedback appears. This makes it easier to understand how products guide users forward without overloading them with text.
Comparing Different Ways to Solve the Same Problem
Many products solve the same tasks in different ways. Page Flows makes these differences visible. Designers can compare how various apps handle onboarding or checkout and learn what feels smooth versus what feels heavy. These comparisons help teams choose better paths for their own flows.
Using Page Flows Early in Design
Employing page flows early when designing new features is something that many teams do by looking at other similar designs for inspiration. Page flows can show real examples of how a given product is currently being used, allowing designers to create journeys that don’t feel out of date or foreign to a user.
Returning to Page Flows Over Time
Over time, as products and users’ habits change, teams can revisit Page flows to see how the patterns have changed since they last reviewed them. This will help to ensure that the UX work being done is based upon real-world usage and will become an integrated part of any product team’s ongoing research process.
Turning What Teams See into Action
Watching real products helps only when teams apply what they learn.
Make Minor Changes First
Major redesigns take a long time, but there are many small things you can change to help improve the overall product experience without needing to redesign the entire product, including changing the copy, changing the sequence of steps or adding more descriptive feedback. Over time, these small changes will add up and produce substantial results.
Test-Observe-Adjust
By using short cycles to test the change, team members will be able to see whether a change will affect how well the user can move through their tasks. Once a team has determined that a change is good, they can make small incremental changes and evaluate how users are interacting with the change. This will keep the UX work focused on practical application.
Continue to Study Real Products
Studying real product experiences should not be a one-time task. Markets change frequently, and so do user behaviors. Teams who continue to watch how other companies are creating products will be more in touch with what users want.
FAQ
1. Why do real product examples lead to better UX decisions?
They show how users move through real tasks and where friction appears in practice.
2. How can teams study real product flows without large budgets?
They can review public flows and examples from live products instead of running large studies.
3.When should a team evaluate external product flows?
During initial planning phases, prior to performing a redesign, and post-release when an enhancement/ improvement is required.
4. How frequently will UX professional teams examine real-world product examples?
Many professional teams routinely do this on a quarterly basis to maintain currency with what their users expect of them.
I’m Emma Rose, the founder of tryhardguides.co.uk, and a content creator with a passion for writing across multiple niches—including health, lifestyle, tech, career, and personal development. I love turning complex ideas into relatable, easy-to-digest content that helps people learn, grow, and stay inspired. Whether I’m sharing practical tips or diving into thought-provoking topics, my goal is always to add real value and connect with readers on a deeper level.