ChatGPT answers, unedited

• Fuzzy Math - 811 W Evergreen Ave #305, Chicago, IL 60642, United States
• Orbit Media Studios - 4043 N Ravenswood Ave #316, Chicago, IL 60613, United States
• ArtVersion® Creative Agency - 211 W Wacker Dr Ste 1130, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Sandstorm Design - 4422 N Ravenswood Ave #50, Chicago, IL 60640, United States
• UX 4Sight - 111 W Jackson Blvd Unit 1700, Chicago, IL 60604, United States
• Marcel Digital - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1285, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• IDE Interactive, Inc. - 2945 W Peterson Ave Ste 103, Chicago, IL 60659, United States
• Grand Studio - 444 N Wells St #501, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Dialogue Theory - 1932 S Halsted St #509, Chicago, IL 60608, United States
• Artversion - 205 N Michigan Ave 8th Floor, Chicago, IL 60601
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Clique Studios - 20 N Wacker Dr Ste 1075, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• Solid Digital - 100 N LaSalle St #1400, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• Design In Chicago - 159 N Sangamon St Suite 200, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
• The Office of Experience, LLC - 980 N Michigan Ave Ste 1090, Chicago, IL 60611, United States
• EVE - User Experience Design Agency - 7135 N Merrimac Ave, Chicago, IL 60646, United States

For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of a marketing site, I’d bias toward agencies that can diagnose conversion issues quickly and ship polished design—not a giant brand consultancy that will spend months in discovery.

A good Chicago shortlist:

Best fits for a fast marketing-site refresh

Fuzzy Math

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 866-563-4650)

Best for: UX rigor + conversion improvements
They’re one of the stronger Chicago UX specialists: usability reviews, UX strategy, wireframes, prototypes, and UI work. Good choice if your site has deeper IA/navigation/conversion problems rather than just looking dated. Expertise

I’d ask them for:

• 1–2 week heuristic audit
• analytics review (GA4/Hotjar/FullStory if available)
• homepage + key landing page redesign concepts
• prioritized backlog

Orbit Media Studios

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 773-348-4581)

Best for: B2B marketing sites, SEO + conversion alignment
Orbit is a strong fit if the website is a lead-generation engine. They tend to think about content structure, user journeys, calls-to-action, and measurable outcomes—not just visuals.

Great fit if:

• your site gets traffic but conversions are weak
• messaging/content needs cleanup
• you’re on WordPress

ArtVersion® Creative Agency

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 312-837-7466)

Best for: visual refresh + UX + brand polish
A good option when the site feels visually behind competitors and you need a more premium marketing presence. They combine branding, web design, and UX work.

Bright Bright Great

Best for: modern redesigns with strong creative direction
Worth considering if you want a sharper visual identity and a refreshed digital experience. Their work is often a blend of UX/UI, web design, and development. Clutch

Sandstorm Design

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 773-348-4200)

Best for: enterprise, accessibility, complex organizations
Good if your site has multiple audiences, compliance requirements, or stakeholder complexity. They emphasize UX strategy, inclusive design, and enterprise web work.

If you want a very quick “audit first” engagement

UX 4Sight

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 312-224-0095)

Best for: a pure UX diagnostic
They focus heavily on UX/UI consulting, audits, usability testing, and experience evaluation.

Marcel Digital

DirectionsWebsite[Call](tel:+1 312-255-8044)

Best for: UX tied to marketing performance
They combine UX/usability work with digital marketing and conversion optimization. Marcel Digital

My recommended shortlist by scenario

For a rapid engagement, I’d probably get 3 proposals:

1. Fuzzy Math — UX depth
2. Orbit Media — marketing conversion lens
3. ArtVersion — visual/UI refresh capability

Ask each for a fixed-fee “UX audit + refresh roadmap” first rather than jumping straight into a redesign. A good audit should tell you what to change before anyone starts pushing pixels. UX Planet Clutch

If you tell me your industry (B2B SaaS, healthcare, fintech, ecommerce, etc.), CMS (Webflow/WordPress/custom), and budget range, I can narrow this to 3–5 agencies that are the best match.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d favor a studio that can diagnose the site quickly and then actually redesign the highest-impact pages—not a giant agency that turns it into a six-month “digital transformation.”

My Chicago shortlist:

1. Orbit Media Studios — my first call
   • Strongest fit if the site is primarily a B2B / lead-gen marketing site.
   • They combine UX, conversion optimization, content, SEO, analytics, and web design rather than treating UI as purely visual. They say they've designed 1,000+ websites and have 20+ years in digital marketing. www.orbitmedia.com
   • Particularly good if you want the audit to answer “what is hurting conversion?”, not merely “what looks dated?”
   • Best for: UX + conversion + messaging + redesign.

2. UX 4Sight — best if the audit itself is the priority
   • More UX-specialist positioning than a traditional marketing agency.
   • They specifically do UX/UI, website redesigns, competitive analysis, wireframes and conversion-oriented work.
   • I'd talk to them if you want a rigorous outside critique before deciding how much to redesign.

3. Solid Digital — strong B2B option
   • Good middle ground between strategy, UX/UI, branding and actually rebuilding the site.
   • Their Chicago practice specifically targets B2B marketing teams and full website redesigns, including UX/UI, SEO and conversion considerations.
   • Best for: a serious refresh where you may also need implementation.

4. Clique Studios — if you want a more substantial design engagement
   • Stronger choice if this isn't merely a facelift and you want strategy → UX → visual design → development.
   • They cover usability testing, accessibility, UX/UI, responsive design and design sprints.
   • I'd expect them to be more involved/expensive than a small rapid-refresh studio.

5. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best if brand aesthetics matter heavily
   • Chicago design consultancy with a long history, combining branding, web design and UI/UX/research.
   • I'd shortlist them if your problem is partly “our site doesn't look like the quality of company we've become.”

6. Brand Vision Marketing — potentially good for a smaller/faster engagement
   • Their offering explicitly includes UI/UX consultation and audits, web design, branding and conversion-oriented work. Brand Vision Marketing
   • Worth talking to if you want something leaner and faster than a major digital agency.

One interesting wildcard

VA Designs is unusually aligned with exactly what you described: they explicitly offer UX research/audits + UI/UX redesign + Webflow, including competitor benchmarking, analytics/heatmap insights, wireframes and A/B testing. They're based in Chicago. www.vadesigns.net

For a 2–6 week “audit → prioritized recommendations → refreshed key pages” engagement, I'd actually put them in the conversation.

Who I'd contact first

If this were my project, I'd send the same brief to:

Orbit Media + UX 4Sight + VA Designs + Solid Digital

That gives you four meaningfully different approaches:

I'd not start by asking for a “website redesign.” I'd ask for a fixed-scope rapid UX audit followed by a UI refresh of the 2–4 highest-value templates. That makes it much easier to compare agencies and keeps them from immediately proposing a giant rebuild.

A good initial deliverable would be: heuristic UX audit + analytics/heatmap review + competitor review + prioritized issues + redesigned homepage + one core conversion page + design direction/component refresh.

If you tell me your company's size/industry, current site URL, CMS (Webflow/WordPress/etc.), and roughly what you want to spend ($10–25k, $25–50k, $50k+), I can narrow this to the 3 Chicago agencies I'd actually interview, including who has the most relevant recent work.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d favor agencies that can diagnose conversion/usability issues quickly and then actually redesign the key pages—not firms that want to turn it into a 6-month “digital transformation” project.

My Chicago shortlist

1. Orbit Media Studios — my first call
   • Particularly strong fit for a marketing website, rather than a SaaS/product UX engagement.
   • They explicitly offer UX audits focused on finding where users get stuck or drop off, followed by prioritized recommendations. www.orbitmedia.com
   • Their approach combines UX, information architecture, content, conversion optimization and visual design, which is exactly the combination I'd want for a marketing site.
   • Best for: “Tell us what's wrong, redesign the important parts, and make the site convert better.”
   • Orbit Media

2. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best if the visual refresh matters a lot
   • Strong combination of brand + UX/UI + web design/development.
   • They work on corporate/marketing websites and bring UX research, visual systems and development together. agency.uxplanet.org
   • I'd pick them if the current site feels dated, inconsistent with the brand, or visually underwhelming, in addition to having UX problems.
   • Best for: “Make this feel substantially more premium while fixing the experience.”
   • ArtVersion

3. UX 4Sight — best pure UX choice
   • Their core offering is UX/UI consulting, including UX audits, usability, accessibility, visual design, user research and usability testing. agency.uxplanet.org
   • I'd use them if you're worried there are deeper problems than just “the site looks old.”
   • Best for: “Give us an evidence-based UX diagnosis before we touch the design.”
   • The tradeoff is that they may be more process/research-heavy than you need for a quick marketing-site refresh.

4. Alpha Efficiency — good fast-moving option
   • More performance/growth-oriented than a traditional UX consultancy, with web design, analytics, SEO and conversion work.
   • Their positioning is explicitly around making websites revenue-generating assets, and current reviews emphasize design quality and fast iteration.
   • Best for: a relatively pragmatic UX + UI + conversion refresh rather than a deep research project.

5. IDE Interactive, Inc. — good if implementation matters
   • Chicago experience-design/development shop combining strategy, UX, design and engineering.
   • I'd consider them if you want the same partner to audit → redesign → implement, especially if the current site has technical baggage.

One I'd put on the “maybe” list

Highland is excellent if this is actually becoming a broader digital-product/customer-experience project. They combine research, strategy, UX/UI and engineering. But for a rapid marketing-site audit + refresh, they may be more agency than you need.

If it were my project

I'd send the same brief to Orbit, ArtVersion, and UX 4Sight and ask each for a fixed-fee 1–2 week audit sprint, rather than asking for a full redesign proposal.

I'd specifically ask them to deliver:

• Heuristic UX audit
• Analytics/user-behavior review
• Mobile + desktop review
• Navigation/information architecture assessment
• Conversion-funnel/CTA analysis
• 5–10 highest-impact issues, ranked by impact
• Competitive teardown of 3–5 comparable sites
• Refreshed design direction
• High-fidelity redesign of the homepage + 1–2 critical templates
• Clear recommendations for what not to redesign

That lets you evaluate the agency based on how they think, rather than whoever produces the prettiest pitch deck.

My ranking for your specific description:
Orbit → ArtVersion → UX 4Sight → Alpha Efficiency → IDE Interactive.

If you tell me what your company does, roughly how big the site is, what CMS it runs on (Webflow/WordPress/Next/etc.), and whether the primary goal is brand perception, lead gen, or conversion, I can narrow this to the 2–3 agencies I'd actually contact and give you a suggested scope/budget for the sprint.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of a marketing site, I’d bias toward agencies that understand conversion, messaging, information architecture, and visual design—not heavyweight product-consulting firms that will turn a 3-week engagement into a 4-month discovery project.

My Chicago shortlist:

1. Orbit Media Studios — my first call
   • Probably the strongest fit if the site is a marketing/growth asset.
   • They explicitly offer UX audits using analytics, heatmaps, session data, plus review of navigation, copy, forms, CTAs, mobile, accessibility and performance. www.orbitmedia.com
   • They also do the actual redesign, CRO, SEO and implementation, so the audit can translate directly into changes rather than becoming a slide deck.
   • Best for: B2B, lead-gen, professional services, SaaS, content-heavy sites.
   • My take: Ask them for a 2–3 week audit → prioritized recommendations → homepage/key-template UI refresh rather than a full redesign.

2. UX 4Sight — best if UX rigor is the priority
   • More UX-specialist than traditional web agency.
   • They do UX/UI, website redesign, wireframing and conversion-oriented work, and have experience analyzing sites against competitors, SEO and advertising considerations. agency.uxplanet.org
   • Best for: “We know the site isn't working, but we're not sure exactly why.”
   • My take: I'd put them on the shortlist if you want the audit to be genuinely diagnostic rather than primarily aesthetic.

3. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best for a more substantial visual refresh
   • Particularly interesting if the problem is partly “our brand/site feels dated”.
   • They combine UX research, usability testing, UI, branding and web development, so they're well positioned to bridge UX recommendations into a more polished visual system. agency.uxplanet.org
   • Best for: corporate/B2B brands where credibility and visual polish matter.
   • My take: Strong candidate if “UI refresh” means more than tweaking buttons and spacing.

4. Solid Digital — good all-around B2B option
   • Their process explicitly covers sitemap/IA, wireframes, UX, SEO considerations and visual direction, followed by implementation.
   • Best for: B2B companies wanting strategy → UX/UI → redesigned website.
   • I'd consider them if you want the audit to lead fairly quickly into a broader site refresh.

5. Clique Studios — good if content/messaging is part of the problem
   • Their offering spans competitive analysis, content audits, UX research, IA, messaging workshops, copywriting, UX/UI, usability testing and accessibility.
   • Best for: marketing sites where you're thinking, “The design isn't the only problem—the story and structure aren't working either.”
   • Potentially more agency/process than you need for a tiny refresh, though.

If it were my project

I'd actually talk to three, in this order:

There's also an interesting smaller/leaner option: Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding, which specifically advertises UX/UI consultation and audits alongside web design and branding. That could be worth considering if you want something less heavyweight. agency.uxplanet.org

What I'd ask them to quote

Don't ask for a generic “website redesign.” I'd frame it as a rapid UX/UI sprint:

Week 1 — Diagnose

• Analytics + heatmap/session review
• Heuristic UX audit
• 5–8 competitor/reference sites
• Mobile + desktop review
• IA/navigation
• Messaging hierarchy
• CTA/conversion paths
• Accessibility/performance red flags

Week 2 — Design

• Prioritized UX findings
• New homepage direction
• 1–2 critical page/template refreshes
• Updated typography/color/component direction
• Mobile designs
• Before/after rationale

Week 3 — Validate + handoff

• Quick user testing
• Iterate
• Prioritized backlog for remaining site
• Figma/design system guidance
• Implementation recommendations

That gives you something much more useful than “here are 47 UX observations.”

One thing I'd specifically watch for: agencies that respond to “rapid audit” by proposing a huge discovery engagement. Current Chicago agency pricing spans roughly $5k+ for smaller UX projects to six figures for substantial redesigns, so I'd insist that the first phase have a fixed scope, fixed deliverables and a short timeline. agency.uxplanet.org

If you tell me what kind of company/site this is, approximate site size, and whether you want them to actually implement the refresh, I can narrow this to the 2–3 Chicago agencies I'd actually contact and what I'd expect each to cost.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of a marketing site, I’d favor a team that can move quickly from audit → prioritized recommendations → refreshed key pages/components, rather than a big agency that wants to turn it into a 6-month redesign.

My Chicago shortlist:

1. UX 4Sight — best pure UX fit

This is probably my first call if the primary question is “what's wrong with the experience, and what should we change?” They specifically offer UX audits covering usability, accessibility, visual design and the end-to-end experience, plus responsive web design and conversion-oriented work. agency.uxplanet.org
Best for: rigorous UX audit followed by a targeted redesign.

2. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best UX + visual refresh combination

Strong choice if you want the site to feel materially better, not just receive a list of UX recommendations. They combine UI/UX, research, web design/development and brand/design systems. agency.uxplanet.org
Best for: modernizing the visual language while fixing UX.

3. Sandstorm Design — best strategic/enterprise option

I'd consider them if this is a larger B2B, enterprise, nonprofit or mission-driven organization and the site has complicated audiences/content. They emphasize UX strategy, inclusive design, research and enterprise web work.
Best for: a more substantial UX/experience problem rather than simply “make the website prettier.”

4. Orbit Media — best if conversion/marketing performance matters

This is a particularly good fit if the marketing site is supposed to generate leads. Orbit combines UX analysis with analytics, SEO, conversion optimization, content and web design, and says it has designed 1,000+ websites. www.orbitmedia.com
Best for: UX + conversion rate + SEO + messaging.

5. Solid Digital — best for B2B website refresh + implementation

They look well suited to a B2B marketing team that wants someone to go from strategy through UX/UI and ultimately implement the changes. Their Chicago offering includes website redesign, visual/UI design, design systems, UX/UI and development.
Best for: “audit it, redesign the important stuff, and actually ship it.”

6. Clique Studios — best larger-agency option

More comprehensive than you may need, but worth considering if the project could grow into a broader digital transformation. Their capabilities span UX/UI, usability testing, accessibility, design sprints, strategy, engineering and marketing.
Best for: larger organizations or sites with complicated technical/content ecosystems.

If it were my project

I'd actually talk to three:

For a rapid engagement, I'd ask each for a 2–3 week “UX + UI sprint” rather than asking for a website redesign proposal.

I'd structure the scope roughly as:

Week 1: heuristic audit + analytics review + competitor teardown + stakeholder interviews
Week 2: prioritized UX recommendations + redesigned homepage/key templates + visual/UI direction
Week 3: responsive designs + component/design-system updates + implementation-ready specs

That gives you something much more useful than a 60-page audit: “Here are the 8 things hurting the site, here's what we'd change, and here's what the new experience looks like.”

One other agency I'd put on the radar is The Office of Experience, LLC if you want UX recommendations tied closely to broader marketing, brand, lifecycle and digital strategy.

If you tell me what kind of company/site this is (B2B SaaS, professional services, ecommerce, etc.), approximate budget, and whether you want them to actually implement the UI refresh, I can narrow this to the 3 Chicago agencies I'd contact first and what I'd expect each to cost.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d bias toward firms that can diagnose the experience quickly and then actually redesign the important screens—not agencies that want to start with a six-month brand/discovery engagement.

My Chicago shortlist

1. UX 4Sight — best pure UX choice
This is probably my first call if the priority is “tell us what’s wrong, why, and what to change.” They specifically focus on UX/UI, UX audits, usability, accessibility, research and design validation.
Best for: rigorous audit → prioritized recommendations → UI redesign.
Watch-out: I'd confirm they have strong marketing-site visual design work, rather than primarily product/app UX.

2. Solid Digital — best overall for a marketing website refresh
A particularly good fit if you want UX + visual redesign + implementation rather than an audit that ends in a PDF. Their offering includes website redesign, UI, design systems, UX/IA, wireframes and development.
Best for: B2B/tech/professional-services marketing sites where conversion matters.

3. Clique Studios — best if you want a more sophisticated strategic engagement
They cover UX research, content audits, information architecture, messaging, UX/UI, usability testing, accessibility and design sprints.
Best for: a site where the problem isn't just aesthetics—you suspect positioning, navigation, content and conversion are intertwined.

4. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best design/brand-forward option
Chicago-based and unusually broad across brand, UX/UI, web design and development.
I'd consider them if the current site feels dated visually and you want the refresh to feel like a meaningful brand elevation, not merely UX cleanup.

5. Sandstorm Design — strong for mission-driven/enterprise organizations
They combine UX strategy, brand/messaging, web development and accessibility, with a particular emphasis on inclusive design.
Best for: organizations where accessibility, content, stakeholder alignment and institutional complexity matter.

6. IDE Interactive — good boutique design + development option
They combine experience design and engineering and work across websites, ecommerce and digital products.
Best for: wanting a relatively hands-on partner who can move from UX into implementation.

Two smaller/faster options I'd investigate

Legible Studio is interesting if you want something very fast and hands-on. They explicitly offer a written website audit within 48 hours and position themselves around conversion-focused Chicago websites, with projects shipping in 1–8 weeks. legible.studio

Groto is another good fit for a design-led refresh: they describe themselves as a full-stack studio specializing in UX, UI, branding and marketing, and specifically cite moving quickly on a 30-page website redesign. www.letsgroto.com

If it were my project

I'd send the same brief to UX 4Sight, Solid Digital, Clique Studios, and ArtVersion and make them respond to the same exercise:

Phase 1 — Rapid audit: 1–2 weeks, reviewing analytics/heatmaps if available, UX, information architecture, messaging, mobile, accessibility and conversion paths.
Deliverable: prioritized findings, annotated screenshots, competitive observations, and a list of quick wins vs. structural changes.

Phase 2 — UI refresh: redesign the homepage plus 1–3 highest-value templates in Figma, including responsive states and a lightweight design system.

Phase 3 — optional implementation: quote separately so you're not locked into development before seeing the design direction.

That structure will tell you very quickly who actually understands your problem versus who is just selling a website redesign.

One other agency I'd keep on the radar is Intechnic Corporation. They're much more UX/enterprise-oriented and have deep UX research, UI and web-experience capabilities, so I'd consider them if your site is complex or has a lot of stakeholders.

My ranking for your specific description:
UX 4Sight → Solid Digital → Clique → ArtVersion → Groto/Legible

If you give me your website URL, what you sell, roughly how much traffic you get, and whether you're B2B/B2C, I can narrow this to the 3 I'd actually contact, including who seems best suited to your site's particular problems.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d favor a boutique UX/web shop over a giant digital transformation agency. You want people who can quickly identify the 10–20 highest-impact issues and then actually redesign the pages—not a six-week discovery process that ends in a 150-page strategy deck.

My Chicago shortlist

If it were my project

I'd talk to three:

1. Orbit Media — if the goal is "make the marketing site perform better."
2. UX 4Sight — if the goal is "tell us what's wrong with the experience and give us a really good UX/UI solution."
3. ArtVersion — if the goal is "make it materially better and more contemporary visually, too."

That's a nice spread: CRO/marketing → UX rigor → design/brand polish.

One reason I wouldn't automatically go with the highest-rated generic web agency: your project sounds like it should start with diagnosis before redesign. Orbit, for example, explicitly describes using analytics, heatmaps/session data, UX review, and prioritized findings rather than jumping straight into a visual makeover. www.orbitmedia.com

What I'd ask them to quote

Rather than asking for a "website redesign," I'd frame the engagement as a 2–3 week UX/UI sprint:

• Heuristic UX audit of the existing site
• Analytics + heatmap/session-review if you have the data
• Competitor/reference-site teardown
• Mobile + desktop review
• Information architecture/navigation assessment
• Messaging/content hierarchy review
• Conversion/CTA analysis
• Accessibility quick pass
• Prioritized P0/P1/P2 recommendations
• Redesign of the homepage + 1–3 highest-value templates
• Figma design system/components for the refresh
• Optional developer-ready specs
• 30–60 minute executive readout

That gives you something tangible quickly and prevents the agency from turning a relatively focused refresh into a six-month redesign.

Budget-wise, I'd expect a focused audit/design sprint to be substantially less than a full site rebuild. One current Chicago UX market guide puts discovery sprints around $7K+, while full redesign engagements can run into six figures; Clutch's current Chicago listings also show many established UX firms starting around $10K–$25K minimums. clutch.cowww.925studios.co

If you tell me what kind of company/site this is (B2B SaaS, professional services, consumer, etc.), approximate site size, CMS (Webflow/WordPress/etc.), and rough budget, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually contact and what I'd expect each one to cost/take.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of a marketing site, I’d bias toward a shop that can move from audit → prioritized recommendations → high-fidelity redesign quickly, rather than a big product-development consultancy.

My Chicago shortlist:

1. UX 4Sight — best pure UX fit

They’re specifically focused on UX/UI and offer UX audits covering usability, accessibility, visual design, and the end-to-end experience. That makes them a particularly good fit if the audit itself is the important first step. agency.uxplanet.org

2. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best UX + visual refresh combination

I'd seriously consider them if you're looking for the site to feel substantially more polished, not merely fix usability issues. They combine UX research/UI with branding, web design and in-house development. clutch.co

3. Marcel Digital — best if conversion is the KPI

Stronger choice if this is a B2B/lead-gen site and you care about conversion rate, analytics, funnels and UX together. Their UX process incorporates analytics, heatmaps, user research, usability testing and A/B testing. www.marceldigital.com

4. Intechnic Corporation — best for rigorous UX

They're much more UX-specialist than conventional marketing agency. Clutch lists them as 100% UX/UI, while their Chicago practice covers research, information architecture, interaction design and visual/UI design. clutch.co

5. Alpha Efficiency — best for a fast, pragmatic website refresh

More marketing/web-oriented than the pure UX firms. They emphasize conversion-oriented websites, design, development, SEO and analytics, and their reviews specifically mention fast iteration and design quality.

If it were my project

I'd probably get proposals from UX 4Sight, ArtVersion, and Marcel Digital.

There's also an interesting smaller option: Legible Studio. They explicitly offer a written website audit within 48 hours and position themselves around conversion-focused Chicago websites, so they could be worth considering if you want something small, fast and hands-on rather than an agency engagement. legible.studio

One thing I'd change about the RFP: don't ask for a generic "website redesign." Ask for a 1–2 week UX teardown followed by a focused UI refresh of the highest-impact pages. Require deliverables like:

• heuristic + usability audit
• analytics/heatmap review if available
• competitor teardown
• prioritized list of UX issues
• revised IA/navigation recommendations
• redesigned homepage + 1–3 key conversion pages
• responsive/mobile treatment
• design system/component direction
• annotated Figma prototypes
• implementation recommendations

That will make the proposals much easier to compare—and prevent an agency from turning a relatively focused refresh into a six-month redesign.

If you tell me what your company/site does, roughly how many pages, your CMS (Webflow/WordPress/etc.), and your rough budget, I can narrow this to 3 Chicago agencies I'd actually contact and what I’d expect each to charge/take time-wise.

For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of a marketing site, I’d bias toward agencies that can move quickly, diagnose conversion issues, and actually redesign—not just produce a critique deck. In Chicago, these would be my shortlist:

My practical ranking for your exact ask:

1. UX 4Sight — if you want a fast expert audit and prioritized fixes.
2. Fuzzy Math — if UX quality and customer behavior matter more than speed alone.
3. ArtVersion — if the site needs to look materially better while improving usability.
4. Clique Studios — if you want audit → redesign → build with one partner.

For a rapid engagement, I’d ask agencies for a 2–4 week sprint with these deliverables:

• heuristic UX audit
• analytics review (GA4/Hotjar/Clarity if available)
• competitor teardown
• homepage + key landing page redesign concepts
• component/style refresh
• prioritized backlog with estimated impact

Budget-wise, a serious Chicago agency will often land somewhere around:

• $5k–15k: audit + recommendations
• $15k–40k: audit + UI refresh of key templates/pages
• $40k+: broader redesign, CMS work, content, development

If you share your industry, CMS (Webflow/WordPress/HubSpot/custom), traffic level, and whether the goal is leads vs. brand perception, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I’d actually contact first.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d avoid agencies that primarily do huge “digital transformation” engagements. You want a team that can diagnose quickly, make strong design decisions, and actually ship the refresh.

My Chicago shortlist:

1. UX 4Sight — best pure UX choice

They’re specifically focused on UX/UI, including UX audits, usability, accessibility, research, and conversion-oriented improvements. If the first question is “What is wrong with this experience and what should we change?”, this is probably my first call.

2. Clique Studios — best overall agency option

Stronger choice if you want audit → UX strategy → visual refresh → implementation under one roof. They explicitly cover UX research, content audits, IA, messaging, web/UI design, usability testing, accessibility and design sprints.

3. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best for a substantial visual modernization

I'd consider them if the site isn't fundamentally broken but feels dated, inconsistent, or insufficiently premium. They combine brand, UX/UI, web design and development, so they're well suited to making the site look and feel significantly better rather than just fixing usability.

4. Sandstorm Design — best for strategy + UX + accessibility

Interesting option if you're a larger organization or have multiple stakeholders. Their work emphasizes UX strategy, inclusive design, accessibility, research, stakeholder interviews and enterprise web development.

5. Dialogue Theory — best boutique option

A good fit if you want a smaller, hands-on team rather than a traditional agency machine. They combine discovery/research, UX/UI, visual design, content/messaging and development.

Two I'd also look at

Orbit Media is particularly compelling if the marketing site is a major demand-gen channel. They've designed 1,000+ sites and combine UX with SEO, CRO, analytics, content and conversion optimization. Their approach is more comprehensive than a quick UI facelift, though. www.orbitmedia.com

VA Designs is worth considering if you want something relatively focused and potentially faster/smaller-scale. They explicitly offer UX audits, competitor analysis, user journeys, analytics/heatmaps, wireframes, prototypes, A/B testing, accessibility and UI/web design. www.vadesigns.net

What I'd do

If this were my project, I'd send the same tight brief to UX 4Sight, Clique, ArtVersion, and VA Designs and ask each for a 1–2 week audit + 2–4 week UI refresh proposal.

I'd ask them to quote specifically for:

• heuristic + UX audit
• analytics/heatmap review if available
• top user journeys / conversion paths
• competitive teardown
• prioritized list of UX problems
• redesigned homepage + 1–2 key templates
• responsive/mobile treatment
• lightweight design system / component guidance
• implementation or developer-ready Figma
• no giant discovery phase

One thing I particularly like right now: Legible Studio in Chicago actually offers a written website audit within 48 hours and positions itself around conversion-focused marketing sites, so it could be useful as a fast, low-commitment benchmark even if you ultimately hire someone else. legible.studio

My ranking for your exact brief:
UX 4Sight → Clique Studios → ArtVersion → VA Designs → Sandstorm

If you tell me what kind of company/site you have (B2B SaaS, consumer, professional services, etc.), approximate site size, and whether you need them to actually implement the refresh, I can narrow this to the 3 I'd interview and what I'd expect each to cost/take.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of a marketing site, I’d bias toward agencies that can diagnose conversion/usability problems quickly and then move directly into design—not a big six-month “digital transformation” engagement.

My Chicago shortlist

1. UX 4Sight — probably my first call
   • Very directly aligned with what you described: UX/UI, website redesign, conversion-oriented design, and outside UX audits.
   • Their positioning is particularly strong around dissecting an existing site and identifying friction rather than immediately rebuilding everything. agency.uxplanet.org
   • Best for: “Tell us what's wrong, prioritize it, then make the site substantially better.”

2. Solid Digital — best if this is a B2B marketing site
   • Strong combination of strategy → UX/UI → website redesign → development.
   • Particularly interesting if you ultimately want the same team to implement the refresh, rather than handing designs to another developer.
   • Their Chicago practice explicitly targets B2B teams needing website redesign with UX/UI, SEO and conversion considerations.

3. Sandstorm Design — best for deeper UX/research
   • More UX-strategy-heavy than a typical web design shop, with usability testing, accessibility and research baked into its approach.
   • I'd consider them if your site has a complicated audience, lots of stakeholders, or meaningful accessibility requirements. www.expertise.com

4. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best for a visual/brand refresh
   • Good fit if “UI refresh” really means the site feels dated and needs to look significantly more premium, while still improving UX.
   • They combine brand, UI/UX, digital strategy and development, so there's less risk of ending up with a pretty design disconnected from the brand. agency.uxplanet.org

5. Marcel Digital — best if conversion/analytics is the priority
   • Their UX work explicitly incorporates analytics, heatmaps, user research and usability data rather than relying solely on designer judgment. www.marceldigital.com
   • Best for: “We have traffic, but we're not getting enough leads/demo requests/conversions.”

6. Clique Studios — good larger-agency option
   • They cover strategy, UX/UI, usability testing, accessibility, design systems and development.
   • I'd shortlist them if the marketing site is relatively large or important enough to warrant a multidisciplinary team.

One I would not automatically choose

TXI is excellent, but I'd probably consider them overkill for a straightforward marketing-site refresh. They're much more oriented toward complex digital products, product strategy and custom software.

If it were my project

I'd send the same very tight brief to UX 4Sight, Solid Digital, and Marcel Digital and ask each for a 1–2 week audit sprint followed immediately by a UI refresh.

The brief I'd give them is roughly:

“We don't want a full website reinvention. We want an expert outside perspective on what's hurting clarity, credibility and conversion, followed by a focused redesign of the highest-impact pages. We want concrete recommendations, annotated findings, and redesigned screens—not a 100-page strategy deck.”

I'd specifically ask them to audit:

• Homepage + primary landing pages
• Navigation / information architecture
• Messaging hierarchy
• CTA strategy
• Forms / lead capture
• Mobile experience
• Visual hierarchy and typography
• Accessibility
• Page speed/performance
• Analytics/heatmaps if available
• Competitor positioning
• 3–5 highest-impact UI changes

Orbit Media is also worth putting on the list if conversion optimization is especially important—they explicitly offer UX audits using analytics, heatmaps/session data and a subsequent prioritized improvement plan. www.orbitmedia.com

If you tell me what your company sells, roughly how big the site is, and whether you're B2B/B2C/SaaS, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually contact, including what I think each would be best at and the likely engagement shape.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d bias toward a smaller UX/web specialist rather than a big digital-transformation agency. You want someone who can diagnose the site quickly, identify the highest-impact issues, and turn those findings into a refreshed visual system—not spend six weeks in discovery.

My Chicago shortlist

1. UX 4Sight — probably my first call
They’re unusually aligned with what you described: Chicago-based UX/UI specialists, with explicit experience doing website audits, competitor analysis, redesigns and conversion-oriented UX. Their positioning is much more “find what's wrong and fix it” than generic branding agency. agency.uxplanet.orgclutch.co

2. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best if the UI/brand refresh matters a lot
Good combination of UX, UI, web design and brand/visual systems. They'd be a particularly good fit if the current site is functional but looks dated, and you want the refresh to feel like a meaningful evolution of the brand. Clutch currently lists them at 20% UX/UI, 20% web design, 20% branding and 10% digital strategy. agency.uxplanet.orgclutch.co

3. Solid Digital — best for B2B marketing sites
I'd put them high on the list if this is a B2B SaaS/tech/company marketing site and you ultimately want the audit to flow into a broader redesign. Their Chicago team covers website redesign, UX/UI, design systems and branding, with a particular fit for B2B marketing teams.

4. Orbit Media Studios — best if conversion/SEO is part of the objective
Orbit is more of a marketing + web agency than a pure UX studio. That's actually useful if “UX refresh” really means more qualified leads, better conversion, clearer messaging and better-performing pages. Their work emphasizes conversion-focused journeys alongside design, development, SEO and analytics. agency.uxplanet.orgclutch.co

5. Sandstorm Design — best for a deeper UX/research engagement
I'd consider them if your site has complicated audiences, accessibility requirements, or a lot of stakeholder complexity. They combine UX research, strategy, design and development and have a strong accessibility/inclusive-design orientation. www.expertise.com

One wildcard

Intechnic Corporation is worth talking to if this is a high-value/complex B2B or enterprise site. They're much more UX-specialist than a conventional web agency; Clutch currently lists them as 100% UX/UI design. agency.uxplanet.orgclutch.co

If speed is the #1 criterion

I'd contact UX 4Sight, ArtVersion, and Solid Digital first and explicitly ask for a 2–3 week “UX audit → prioritized recommendations → UI refresh” sprint, rather than asking for a website redesign proposal.

I'd want the engagement to produce:

1. Heuristic + UX audit of the existing site
2. Analytics/heatmap review if you have the data
3. 5–10 highest-impact UX problems, prioritized by business impact
4. Competitive teardown
5. Revised IA/navigation recommendations
6. Homepage + 1–3 key page UI refreshes in Figma
7. Updated typography, color, components and interaction patterns
8. A concise “ship now / next / later” roadmap

That keeps an agency from turning a relatively surgical problem into a $100k+ redesign project.

If you tell me your company/site URL, rough budget (e.g. <$15k, $15–30k, $30–75k), and whether you're B2B SaaS, consumer, professional services, etc., I can narrow this to 3 agencies and tell you exactly why I'd pick each one.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d bias toward a firm that can diagnose the funnel quickly and then actually redesign the highest-impact pages—not a giant agency that wants to turn this into a 6-month website transformation.

My Chicago shortlist:

1. UX 4Sight — my first call for a pure UX engagement
   • Very aligned with what you're describing: UX/UI, website redesign, conversion-oriented design, wireframing and UX consulting.
   • Their positioning is more “let's dissect what's wrong and improve the experience” than “let's sell you a giant rebrand.”
   • Particularly attractive if you already have a functioning site and want an expert outside perspective before touching the visual system. agency.uxplanet.org

2. ArtVersion® Creative Agency — best if you want UX + a noticeably better visual brand
   • Strong combination of UX research, UI/visual design, branding and web development.
   • They also have usability/research capabilities, so I'd consider them if “UI refresh” means more than just polishing components—you want the site to feel substantially more sophisticated. agency.uxplanet.org

3. Solid Digital — best for B2B / lead-gen marketing sites
   • Particularly compelling if your site exists primarily to generate leads.
   • Their process covers sitemap/IA, wireframes, UX/UI, visual design and implementation, with conversion and SEO considerations baked in. clutch.co
   • I'd put them high on the list if you're ultimately going to want the same team to execute the changes.

4. Sandstorm Design — best for rigorous UX/research
   • More research-heavy than a typical web-design shop, with usability testing, journey mapping, personas and metrics.
   • They also have an unusually strong accessibility/inclusive-design orientation. www.expertise.com
   • I'd choose them if the audit needs to produce evidence, not just a designer's opinion.

5. Clique Studios — best if this could grow into a larger redesign
   • They cover UX research, content strategy, IA, usability testing, design sprints and UI, plus development.
   • More of a strategic digital partner than a small “come fix our homepage” studio. www.officeofexperience.com
   • Good choice if you suspect the audit will uncover deeper messaging, architecture or content problems.

One wildcard: Orbit

Orbit Media Studios is worth talking to if conversion rate / pipeline matters as much as visual quality. They've designed 1,000+ sites and explicitly combine UX analysis, conversion optimization, SEO, content and web design. www.orbitmedia.com

For a marketing site, I actually like this orientation a lot: don't just make the site prettier; identify where visitors are getting stuck and redesign around the business outcome.

How I'd narrow it

For what you described, I'd probably send the brief to UX 4Sight, ArtVersion, and Solid Digital and make them compete for a 2–4 week engagement. There's enough overlap that you'll get a useful comparison without running an enormous agency bake-off.

I'd specifically ask each one to price a fixed-scope “UX audit + prioritized redesign” sprint, with deliverables like:

• heuristic + analytics review
• competitor / category review
• mobile + desktop UX audit
• 5–10 highest-impact page recommendations
• annotated before/after designs
• refreshed visual/UI system
• redesigned homepage + 2–4 key templates
• prioritized implementation backlog
• optionally, usability testing with 5–8 target users

That structure keeps “rapid audit + refresh” from quietly turning into a $150k website rebuild.

If you tell me what kind of company/site this is (B2B SaaS, professional services, consumer, healthcare, etc.), your approximate budget, and whether you want them to actually implement the UI, I can narrow this to 3 agencies I'd contact first, including the kind of engagement I'd ask each for.

Yes. For a rapid UX audit + UI refresh of an existing marketing site, I’d bias toward a team that can move from audit → prioritized recommendations → high-fidelity redesign without turning it into a six-month “digital transformation” engagement.

My Chicago shortlist would be:

If it were my project

I'd actually run a 3-agency mini-RFP with:

1. UX 4Sight — strongest candidate for the audit/UX rigor.
2. ArtVersion — strongest candidate for UX + visual/UI transformation.
3. Clique Studios — strongest candidate if messaging, content, IA and conversion are part of the problem.

That gives you three meaningfully different approaches rather than three agencies pitching essentially the same thing. Chicago's current UX market also puts Fuzzy Math, ArtVersion, UX 4Sight, Sandstorm and Codal among the prominent local UX firms. agency.uxplanet.org

One thing I'd change about the brief

Don't ask for a generic "UX audit." Ask for a 2–3 week conversion-focused UX/UI sprint with concrete deliverables:

• heuristic + usability audit
• analytics/behavior review
• competitive teardown
• top 10–20 UX issues prioritized by business impact
• revised sitemap/IA where necessary
• homepage + 1–3 key templates redesigned in Figma
• responsive/mobile direction
• design-system/UI recommendations
• implementation-ready specs
• optionally, a lightweight usability test of the new concepts

That will get you much closer to an actionable refresh than a 40-page audit deck.

Budget-wise, I'd expect a serious Chicago specialist to be substantially more than a freelancer but you don't necessarily need a $75k+ enterprise engagement. Current Chicago agency listings show everything from roughly $10k engagements at firms such as Intechnic/ArtVersion to $25k+ and $50k+ engagements at larger UX/product firms. clutch.co

If you tell me (1) what your company does, (2) roughly how many pages the site has, (3) what it's built in (Webflow/WordPress/HubSpot/etc.), and (4) your rough budget, I can narrow this to the 3 agencies I'd actually contact, including which one I'd pick first.