1) Simplicity
While the look and
feel of your website is important, most visitors aren't coming to your
site to evaluate how slick the design is. Instead, they're coming to your site
to complete some action, or to find some specific piece of information.
Adding unnecessary
design elements (i.e., elements that serve no functional purpose) to your
website will only make it harder for visitors to accomplish what they're trying
to accomplish.
From a usability and
UX perspective, simplicity is your friend. And you can employ simplicity in a
variety of different ways. Here are some examples:
·Colors. Don't use too many. The Handbook of
Computer-Human Interaction recommends using a maximum of five
(plus or minus two) different colors in your website's design.
·Typefaces. The typefaces
you choose should be legible at the very least. And when it comes to colors,
you shouldn't use too many. A common recommendation is to use a maximum of three
different typefaces in a maximum of three different sizes.
·Graphics. Only use them
if they'll help a user complete a task or perform a specific function (don't
just add graphics willy-nilly).
2) Visual Hierarchy
visual hierarchy entails arranging and organizing website
elements so that visitors naturally gravitate toward the most important
elements first.
Remember, when it comes to optimizing for usability and UX, the
goal is to lead visitors to complete a desired action, but in a way that feels
natural and enjoyable. By adjusting the position, color, or size of certain
elements, you can structure your site in such a way that visitors will be drawn
to those elements first
For
example:-
"Get Free Trail" call-to-action sits atop the
visual hierarchy.
3) Navigability
Ideally, a visitor should be able to arrive on
your site and not have to think extensively about where they should click next
-- moving from point A to point B should be as pain-free as possible.
Here are a few tips
for optimizing your site's navigation:
·Keep the structure of your primary navigation simple (and near
the top of your page).
·Include navigation in the footer of your site.
·Use breadcrumbs on every page
(except for the homepage) so people are aware of their navigation trail.
·Include a search box near the top of your site so visitors can
search by keywords.
·Don't offer too many navigation options on a page.
·Don't dig too deep.
In most cases, it’s best to keep your navigation to no more than three levels
deep.
·Include links within your page copy, and make it clear where
those links lead to.
4) Consistency
In addition to keeping your site's navigation consistent, the
overall look and feel of your site should be consistent across all of your
site's pages. Backgrounds, color schemes, typefaces, and even the tone of your
writing are all areas where being consistent can have a positive impact on
usability and UX.
That's not to say, however, that every page on your
site should have the same exact layout. Instead, you should create different
layouts for specific types of pages (e.g., a layout for landing pages, a layout
for informational pages, etc.), and by using those layouts consistently, you'll
make it easier for visitors to understand what type of information they're
likely to find on a given page.
5) Accessibility:
According to survey in India now
tablet internet consumption grew 30% between 2014 and
2017. Smartphone internet consumption, meanwhile, grew 78% during the same time
period. The takeaway here: In order to provide a truly great user
experience, your site needs to be compatible with the different devices (and
operating systems, and browsers) that your visitors are using.
At a high-level, this means investing in a website structure
that is highly flexible -- like responsive design. With a responsive site,
content is automatically resized and reshuffled to fit the dimensions of
whichever device a visitor happens to be using.
6) Conventionality
There are certain web
design conventions which, over the years, internet users have become
increasingly familiar with. Such conventions include:
·Having the main navigation be at the top (or left side) of a
page
·Having a logo at the top left (or center) of a page
·Having that logo be clickable so it always brings a visitor back
to the homepage
·Having links change color/appearance when you hover over them
In order to provide the best experience possible for
your site's visitors, take advantage of the fact that you already know what
types of web experiences they're familiar with. You can use this information to
make your site easier for visitors to navigate.
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