There has been a lot happening on the design front lately. You may have heard the debate around Airbnb’s new logo. Several users and professionals have already said a lot about it so we won’t delve into that. In our post, we will discuss a few design mistakes that may prove disastrous for brands and businesses.
Don’t ask your visitors to sign-up straight away
There is an on-going practice in which users have been asked to sign-up or Like a Facebook page before they can interact with the web app. We all know how important it is for businesses and brands to gather user data for a mailing list, however, this is not a good way to go about it. Let them roam around for a bit and go through the information they are looking for and then let them decide whether they want to subscribe to your mailing list or not. It is always better to present an option rather than shoving it in the user’s face.
Catering to short attention spans
There are sites out there that throw heaps of text and some images at their viewers. People these days have shorter attention spans, and it is highly unlikely that this technique will engage your audience. They do read information, but they would love to see an introductory video instead or perhaps an engaging infographic. A good combination of these elements creates a user-experience that may help you garner more customers.
Low resolution images are a big no-no
Previously, we discussed how important it is to create a mix of web content to provide a wonderful user experience. However, if you provide low resolution images, graphics and videos in your website, it will fall short of the modern day user’s expectations, who are not expecting anything less than HD images and graphics — retina display ready. For example, if you are running an e-commerce business, low resolution product images could tarnish your users’ buying mood.
Don’t forget to integrate customer contact points
The most important strategy of the website design is to intrigue visitors to contact you one way or another. Whether it’s a “Contact Us” form or ‘Liking’ your brand’s Facebook Page, you need to place the call-to-action in a strategic location for maximum conversions. These days people prefer to connect with businesses in different ways, like interacting with blog posts, social networks, and live interactions (sales & customer support).
If you fail to integrate these contact points in your website for interested customers, the chances are you may face a higher bounce rate. Consider your options carefully and place them strategically.
Wrap Up
No matter how Airbnb’s new logo may turn out for them, their efforts to offer a better user experience will surely give them a boost in terms of staying fresh. Having a well thought out UI and UX for your business is getting more important by the day as trends shift towards the online space.
