A beautiful, cutting-edge website is pointless if your audience doesn’t know how to use it. Interactive design is unique (and challenging) in the fact that it blends visual art with usability and human behavior. A good designer will deliver an eye pleasing piece of creative. A great designer will also make sure it’s easy and pleasant to engage with.
Is your online presence up to snuff in terms of user experience? Here are five common mistakes many websites make, and how to fix them:
1) Content overload
Writing for the web and for print are two different ball games. Your online copy should be concise, easy to digest, and broken up into manageable sections. It’s far more difficult to read text on a screen than it is on a page, and your user expects everything (including understanding what you’re trying to tell them) to be quick and scannable. Could you get the same point across using half of the words? Then you should.
HOW TO FIX IT:
- Edit copy to be as brief as possible without losing important information.
- Use bulleted lists and short paragraphs with clear subheadings.
- Show, don’t tell — photos, images and graphics are your friends!
2) A lack of visual hierarchy
If the user only does one thing when they come to your site, what do you want it to be? Take that top priority and make it the largest thing on the page. Put it up top where no one will miss it. It sounds like common sense (and it is), but you’d be surprised how many websites (including major corporations) have a primary call to action that is hiding in a not-so-obvious spot.
HOW TO FIX IT:
- Resist the urge to put every single thing on your homepage. That’s what search and navigation are for! Narrow down your top 2-3 priorities and feature those.
- Make your most important task the biggest, boldest, most beautiful part of your site.
- Tell the user what you want them to do right off the bat. They’re coming to you for guidance, so don’t be afraid to show them the way.
3) Readability
I love a gorgeous, thin font as much as the next designer, but they aren’t always successful online. If a user can’t read what you’re telling them, your website will never live up to its full potential. Fonts should be simple, large, and use appropriate colors and contrast. A beautiful font is a font that is easy for anyone to read.
HOW TO FIX IT:
- When in doubt, make body copy larger, not smaller.
- Use simple serif or sans-serif fonts for body copy. Custom fonts are great for headlines and larger text, so long as you make them big enough.
- Avoid placing text over complicated photos or images. Solid text on solid color is easiest to read. If you are using a photo background, make sure there is enough contrast and your fonts are large enough.
- Test it out! If you’re worried about readability, show your design to someone who wears glasses or is elderly. If they can’t read it, you need to make some changes.
4) Failing to consider mobile
There’s nothing worse than a pretty desktop experience that renders horribly on a mobile device. Mobile internet usage is quickly surpassing the desktop, which means the majority of your audience is pulling your site up on their phone or tablet. Make sure your layout is flexible enough to work on a small screen. Remember, a frustrated mobile user is an unhappy (or even lost!) customer.
HOW TO FIX IT:
- Take a mobile first approach. Create mobile designs initially, then scale larger to determine a desktop version.
- Use site analytics to determine which devices you should focus on.
- Simplify! Keep content consistent across mobile and desktop, and aim for a clean, minimal approach. Less is more.
5) Making the user think
When a visitor lands on your site, it should be obvious who you are, what you do, and what you want your visitors to do. Avoid gimmicks, confusing language and crazy animations. If something seems confusing, think of a way to make it clearer. You can never be too obvious online.
HOW TO FIX IT:
- Show your designs or live website to test subjects. (These can even be friends and family!) Ask them to complete a few of the most common tasks on your site while you observe and notice any pain points or spots of confusion.
- Follow standard design conventions and best practices. Don’t try to reinvent the wheel with foundational elements like navigation — using an interface people are familiar with will help them feel easy and comfortable.
- Tell the user who you are and what you want them to do right away. If a visitor lands on your site and can’t tell what you’re offering, you have a serious problem.
Creating an online experience that is simple for the user can often be quite complicated for the design team. These five points are a great place to start when giving your site a usability makeover! By focusing on your customer and keeping things crystal clear, you’ll delight your customers and see your online business skyrocket. Questions? Drop us a line!
Written by Katrina Taylor || Digital Design Maven