Disclaimer: All trademarks and logos are the property of their respective owners. Screenshot of Spotify UI used under editorial fair use for illustrative purposes.The other day, I screenshot a song on Spotify to send to a friend.
Instantly, Spotify served up a clean, ready-to-post visual. Perfectly sized for Instagram Stories, beautifully branded, and begging to be shared.
Not loud. Not try-hard. Just … smart.
This isn’t new. But that doesn’t make it any less impressive. Spotify didn’t drop this feature to go viral. They dropped it because people were already screenshotting songs. Already sharing them. Already behaving a certain way.
And instead of slapping on a “Share” button and hoping for the best, they hijacked the habit. Wrapped it in design. Made it smoother, sleeker, more intentional.
That’s not UX. That’s street-smart design.
That’s creativity without the pitch deck.
That’s branding without the interrupt.
And it’s exactly where more brands need to be playing.
We love talking about “human-first,” but too often, user experience (UX) is still treated like the final polish; the post-idea afterthought we send to design once the big, shiny concept is locked. That’s backwards.
The best brands? They start with use. With the messy, erratic, instinctive behaviour of people who are mid-scroll, mid-scroll, mid-scroll. They don’t wait for attention. They earn it by being useful, invisible, smart.
Because here’s the truth: no one’s hanging around for your campaign. They’re navigating. Swiping. Tapping. Skipping. Making micro-decisions by the second. If your brand doesn’t understand that rhythm… No, if your brand doesn’t live inside that rhythm, it’s already out of sync.
This is why UX isn’t just functional anymore. It’s strategic. It’s emotional. It’s brand architecture disguised as convenience. It’s design that makes people say, “That just felt… right.”
Take any app you actually enjoy using. It doesn’t feel good because it’s simple. It feels good because it’s considered. Because someone asked:
“What’s the very next thing they’ll probably do?”
Then designed for it. Before it was even needed.
Apple Wallet also nails this.
You book a flight. You arrive at the airport.
Suddenly, your boarding pass appears on your lock screen. Unprompted, perfectly timed, exactly where you need it, just before you even think to go looking for it.
No tutorial. No pushy nudge. Just pure, predictive utility.
That’s not UX. That’s foresight wrapped in function.
And it builds what most brands are starving for: trust.
Because in a world drowning in noise, what cuts through isn’t more noise.
It’s human intuition. Flow. Design that feels so natural you don’t clock it as branding, you just call it better.
That’s the win.
Not adding friction, but removing it.
Not inserting the brand, but embedding it.
Not asking for attention, but earning it through ease.
If you’re not doing that?
You’re not in their lives.
You’re just in the way.
By Lyle Martin, Associate Creative Director, Horizon FCB Dubai
