How to Sell UX to Stakeholders and Business Teams

25 Minutes of reading.

Por Redacción Aguayo

Talking about UX with business teams can feel like trying to sell air. How do you explain to someone that they can't see or touch user experience design, but without it, their product could fail? The key is to shift the focus: instead of talking about design, talk about results, efficiency, and return on investment. At the end of the day, stakeholders aren’t looking to "do UX"—they want to improve their business. 🎯

Stakeholders_entendiendo_UX — **CAPTION:** Photo generated from Midjourney

How to Sell UX to Stakeholders and Business Teams

Talking about UX with business teams can feel like trying to sell something invisible. For designers and UX experts, the benefits of UX are obvious, but for stakeholders who manage budgets, strategic decisions, and ROI expectations, it’s not always so clear.

The challenge is to change the narrative: instead of talking about design, interfaces, or methodologies, UX needs to be translated into business terms. When leaders see UX as a driver of growth, cost reduction, and competitive advantage, the conversation shifts from "Why do we need this?" to "How do we make it happen?"

Understanding Stakeholders Before Talking About UX

To sell UX, you first need to understand who you’re selling to. Not all stakeholders have the same priorities or measure success in the same way.

What Do Stakeholders Care About?

Business leaders typically prioritize four key aspects:

Growth and profitability. If UX can improve conversion rates, increase retention, or attract more customers, it becomes a valuable investment.
Operational efficiency. Well-designed experiences reduce customer support costs, development iterations, and product maintenance expenses.
Competitive differentiation. Companies with a great user experience generate greater loyalty and engagement than their competitors.
Risk reduction. A poor user experience can lead to complaints, bad reputation, and customer loss.

Speaking the Language of Each Stakeholder

Not everyone values UX in the same way. For a CFO (Chief Financial Officer), the main concern will be cost impact and return on investment. For a CMO (Chief Marketing Officer), the focus will be on how UX strengthens brand experience and increases conversions.

Understanding these differences is key to tailoring the message and preventing UX from being perceived as an unnecessary expense.

Connecting UX with Business Goals

To change the perception of UX within an organization, the conversation must focus on measurable results and strategic benefits.

Strategies to Make UX a Tangible Investment

Show data instead of opinions. Saying "users prefer this design" isn’t enough. Instead, present metrics like conversion rates, drop-off rates, or customer satisfaction scores.
Share success stories. Concrete examples of how UX has improved similar businesses can help stakeholders take it seriously.
Highlight the cost of not doing UX. Redesigning after launch can be up to 100 times more expensive than doing it right from the start.
Use business language. Instead of talking about wireframes or heuristics, use terms like "funnel optimization," "operational efficiency," or "support cost reduction."

Strategies to Persuade Internal Teams

Even if stakeholders buy into UX, the next challenge is integrating it into the company’s culture and processes.

How to Make UX Part of the Business DNA

Evangelize from within. UX storytelling sessions, workshops, and sharing key insights in business meetings can shift perceptions about UX.
Quick wins to build trust. Improving critical elements like a form or navigation can generate quick results and convince more people of UX’s importance.
Involve stakeholders in research. Watching a frustrated user during a usability test is more persuasive than any theoretical argument.
Create allies within the team. A marketing or sales leader advocating for UX in their area can help reduce resistance to change.

How to Structure an Effective UX Pitch

Having strong arguments isn’t enough—the way you present them is just as crucial. A successful pitch must be clear, concise, and focused on business impact.

Key Elements of a Persuasive UX Pitch

Start with a business problem. "Our users abandon the checkout process at a 40% rate. That costs us X million per year."
Show concrete evidence. User data, benchmarks, or A/B test results make the proposal hard to ignore.
Explain the solution simply. "We can reduce that abandonment rate by optimizing these three key areas."
Highlight the expected impact. "With this change, we expect to increase conversions by 15%, which translates into X additional revenue."
End with a call to action. "To achieve this, we need to prioritize this optimization in the roadmap."

When the message aligns with business objectives, resistance to UX decreases, and its implementation becomes a priority. 🚀

How to Structure an Effective UX Pitch

A strong UX pitch should not only be backed by data and logic but also presented in a compelling, clear, and business-relevant manner. The goal is to demonstrate that investing in UX directly impacts the company's growth and profitability.

Key Elements of an Attention-Grabbing Pitch

For a UX pitch to succeed, it must follow a structure that resonates with the mindset of stakeholders and business teams. Instead of focusing on design or methodology, the presentation should emphasize problems, solutions, and measurable benefits.

Start with a Clear and Relevant Problem

Focus on a pain point that directly affects business objectives. For example:

“Our users abandon the checkout process at a 40% rate. This costs us X million per year in lost sales.”

Framing the problem in terms of financial impact makes the conversation more relevant to decision-makers.

Support Your Argument with Concrete Data

Stakeholders trust metrics and facts, not assumptions. Back up your argument with user insights, market benchmarks, or A/B test results.

Example: If an A/B test shows that an optimized checkout flow reduced the abandonment rate by 20%, that data is far more convincing than simply saying, “Users prefer this flow.”

Present the Solution Clearly and Concisely

Avoid technical jargon or overly complex explanations. Instead, explain in simple terms how UX can solve the identified problem.

Example: “We can reduce abandonment by optimizing these three key areas: simplifying the form, improving cost visibility, and adding more flexible payment options.”

Highlight the Expected Impact with Tangible Estimates

For UX to be seen as an investment, you need to show the expected return. Projecting financial impact or improvements in user experience helps justify the investment.

Example: “With this change, we expect to increase conversions by 15%, representing X additional revenue per year.”

End with a Clear Call to Action

A good pitch doesn’t just inform—it drives action. Define the next concrete step to implement the solution.

Example: “To achieve this, we need to prioritize this optimization in the roadmap and allocate resources for the checkout redesign this quarter.”

Selling UX is Selling Results

UX isn’t just about design—it’s about making smarter business decisions. When stakeholders understand that investing in UX is investing in growth, the conversation shifts from “Why do we need this?” to “How do we make it happen?”

Conclusion:

Selling UX to stakeholders and business teams isn’t about discussing design, interfaces, or methodologies—it’s about translating user experience into tangible business impact. To achieve this, it’s essential to:

Understand each stakeholder’s priorities
Connect UX to business objectives
Structure arguments clearly, using data and measurable results

An effective UX pitch should focus on solving a critical business problem, be supported by evidence, present concrete solutions, and highlight the expected return on investment.

When UX is positioned as a growth strategy rather than an additional cost, resistance fades, and it becomes a priority in the company’s roadmap.

Ultimately, selling UX means selling better results, efficiency, and competitive advantage. Those who can communicate it this way will not only gain internal support but also drive digital transformation and long-term business success. 🚀