There's a big reason why we tend to gravitate to one specific grocery store, bar, hair salon, restaurant, etc. All these businesses that you frequent have created a pleasant and memorable experience, which keeps you loyal to the brand. When it comes to retail, overall experience and engagement is what keeps customers faithful. The digital world is no different.
Think about how you feel when you are browsing through a new site or a site that has frustrated you beyond measure and why. Design, color scheme, speed, and functionality all contribute to user experience. An exceptional user experience on your site will ensure that visitors can find everything they're looking for easily and quickly.
There are plenty of methods that you can apply in order to improve user experience. For now, start with these simple steps below in order to avoid common user experience mistakes and create a pleasant environment for your users.
Website Design
- Avoid using ultra sophisticated layouts on your site. No one wants to feel like they are completing a puzzle when browsing through a site.
- Keep it clean and simple. You want the site to feel authentic and real.
- Avoid using stock photos all over your site. They typically devalue your website and consumers tend to notice. When setting up sections on your site like "get to know the team" or "contact us", use actual photos of current employees and not a random picture from the internet as a placeholder for people.
Speed
Both mobile and desktop users expect a site to load in just two seconds or less! The faster a user can navigate through your site, the better the user experience. Not to mention your business will also thank you. In today's fast-paced world even just 1 second makes all the difference.
Images tend to take a significant portion of a website's loading time. Test your site before you go live and verify that you're not including pictures that will have visitors waiting too long for it to load.
Automation also plays a big part in user experience when it comes to speed. Not only does a user want a website to load fast, but they also want to interact with the site quickly. When setting up your site, include caches so that the user won't have to download or retype something more than once. Think about how relieved you feel when you are shopping on a site and you don't have to type in your address during every single purchase!
Transparency
Some brands think it's cool to be mysterious and intriguing. Truth is, 66% of consumers think transparency is one of the most attractive qualities in a brand. Find a clear and concise way to inform users about the vision, mission, and culture statement of your business. Visitors shouldn't have to search your entire website to find out what your business does. They should be able to understand the purpose behind your business within just a couple of seconds of being on your homepage.
Proper Calls to Action
A call-to-action button performs best when it's placed within a section of the site where users also find information they need. Instead of overwhelming the user by placing call-to-action buttons all over your site, use a strategic approach and place the button in a section of your site where the user is more inclined to make a decision.